My disdain for Donald Trump has little to do with Republican vs Democrat. It has much more to do with what I was taught growing up about being a decent human being.
Much of that was taught to me by my father, a man who wasn’t perfect but always tried his best to be decent toward and honest with everyone he met. Trump is just about everything I was taught not to be, and it’s become almost all but impossible to hold onto whatever respect I once held for people I know who support him.
It doesn’t feel good to lose that respect. I was also taught to look for the good in people, and I still believe there’s good in almost everyone, but I find less of it when I hear people cheer for a man who embodies everything my father taught me to disdain: bullies, liars, blowhards, braggarts, and cheats. To me, championing a man who displays those behaviors on an almost daily basis demonstrates a fundamental flaw of character.
Based on what I was taught, you just don’t do the following: You don’t mock the disabled. You don’t disparage someone for being a prisoner of war, even if you disagree with their politics. You don’t take money from a proclaimed charitable foundation and use it to pay $20,000 for a painting of yourself to give to your spouse. You don’t claim you’ve given a million dollars to veterans that you haven’t given, then, when the press discovers and reports that you haven’t, try to cover your ass by giving it in the middle of the night before calling a press conference the following day to berate the media for calling you on your dishonesty. You don’t insinuate things about the parents of a fallen soldier you could have discovered were false by checking just because you got your precious feelings hurt when they criticized your proposed ban on people who practice their religion which is about as direct a violation of the U.S. Constitution as someone can cook up. You don’t claim that people in the military will do whatever you tell them to do, even if it’s a war crime, as if this is Nazi Germany and you’re der Führer. You don’t score women’s looks like you’re the Universe’s gift to them. You don’t encourage crowds to commit acts of violence against people exercising their first amendment rights. You don’t encourage foreign agents to hack your political opponent’s emails. You don’t run around accusing the president of not being a natural born citizen, then wrongfully dump the blame on your opponent when you finally have to admit, in the most weaselly way possible, that you were wrong from the start. You don’t claim you can’t release your tax records because you’re being audited when being audited in no way prohibits you from releasing them, and then refuse to even provide evidence that you’re actually being audited. You don’t pretend you’re friends with someone you never met. You don’t promote torture when men and women have given their lives to fight enemies who employ it. You don’t make flippant remarks about people assassinating the other candidate. You don’t do so many things this man does almost every day.
If we disagree on these things, we simply don’t share the same values. If I criticize these things and your response is to laugh with derogatory glee, you come across like a toothless jackass braying as you lift a leg to take a piss on human decency.
We can debate the impact of a minimum wage hike, the best approach to healthcare, the effectiveness and constitutionality of a gun regulation proposal, and a great many other things, but human decency isn’t on my list of debatable topics anymore and it never should have been to begin with.
My father was a Republican, but he was not a straight ticket voter, and I can’t believe he would have ever cast a ballot for this man. As the father of a handicapped child who died very young, he would have severed any ties he had to Trump the day the candidate mocked a reporter’s disfiguring congenital joint disorder.
I think my father would have agreed with my basic argument against such behavior: “Fuck that asshole and the festering pile of shit he rode in on.”
But more important to me than what my father taught me is what I teach my own children. They’re adults now and must decide for themselves who they’re going to be, but I still believe it’s my responsibility to be someone worthy of their respect.
I have never been what anyone would call wildly successful, and I would say I failed at being the kind of husband I should have been when I was married to their mother, but I do my best to demonstrate to them how I feel about the importance of honesty and compassion for others. No, I don’t always live up to my own standards, but I have them, which means I’m painfully aware of the times when I bite the ethical dust.
It also means I recognize a candidate who has no standards at all when I see one. I don’t have to read a news report or fact check claims made by others about him. I can read the transcripts of his talks and interviews. I can watch videos of him in action. I can read his childish tweets. I can watch him live as he displays an absolute disdain for anything requiring humility, compassion, or scholarship.
As former POW Joel Sollender says in a new Hillary Clinton ad, “He is everything I would not want to be or emulate.” And those who support him are supporting everything I have no respect for, and I honestly find it hard to separate them from that.
Photograph: Trash Planet by Alias Albinos on Flickr
Trump Mocks Reporter’s Physical Disability
Trump Disparages John McCain for being a Prisoner of War
Trump Spends Charitable Foundation’s Funds to Buy Self Portrait
Trump Claims to Donate to Veterans but Doesn’t Until Hounded by the Press
Trump Insinuates Mother of Fallen Soldier Not Allowed to Speak
Trump Claims Military Will Follow Illegal Orders
Real Quotes from Donald Trump About Women
Trump Encouraging Violence at Rallies
Trump’s Birther Campaign
Trump’s Tax Return Dodge
Trump’s Contradictions Regarding Relationship with Putin
Trump on Torture
Trump Jokes About Disarming Clinton’s Security: “Let’s see what happens.”
My question is as a journalist where is your article not of praise about Hillary? You can basically remove Trump’s name insert Hillary and change the circumstance. I do see anything mentioned about the peculiar death around Trump,I wonder why that is? Glad you can do an article with your point of view but with the slightest of research Hillary is the worse donating millions to her own foundation as a deduction then using that money as she pleases. Where is the difference. Lies ect. Please explain.
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You obviously weren’t raised with the same values. Like learn before you speak and don’t accuse until you know the facts. You learn from FB and Twitter just like Trump gets his info from Sunday morning TV shows. I’ve followed Secretary Clinton for 40 years. The Clinton Initiative since its conception. Do your homework.
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If your values replicate Hilleary then I wouldn’t be bragging about my raising. She’s the most corrupt person to ever run for the highest office in this country. While she was Secretary of state she came real close to committing treason by swapping favors to foreign governments for contributions to the Clinton slush fund. She allowed all our security secrets open to be hack into by anyone willing to try. Russia and Iran know more about our foreign policy than you do or any other American She now says all women that say they have been raped should be believed, but when women accused Bill of rape she did everything she could to destroy them. Remember she was in charge of the Bimbo eruption office. She openly says she intends to destroy our constitutional right to keep and bare arms to defend our homes and families. She intends to destroy our republic as we know it. I hope you were raised not to accept this type of person to be our president.
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There have been several comments like yours. Lists of claims about horrible things Hillary has supposedly done. There’s just never actually any hard evidence.
When I wrote this piece, I made sure to list only behaviors of Trump’s for which there was either ample evidence or actual video footage. In fact, I ignore charges made against him that are nothing more than rumors. The verifiable things I criticize him for are more than enough reason, for me, to reject him as a person who deserves to be president.
You, however, have made charges against Clinton and provided no real evidence for them. Everything you listed that Clinton has supposedly done is a matter of hearsay and speculation. You have zero hard evidence for any of it, which is pretty much what I find when I dig into these kinds of allegations.
Let’s just take one of your claims and examine it. It wouldn’t matter which one, but let’s just try this one: “She openly says she intends to destroy our constitutional right to keep and bear arms to defend our homes and families.”
For you to claim this, I assume you have video or audio recordings of her saying this, something where she explicitly stated her intention to destroy the second amendment, the entire thing. Something where she “openly says” she wants to take all your guns away. We’ve been hearing this kind of talk about Obama for eight years. Conspiracy theorists keep assuring us that any day now Obama and his henchmen are going to kick down the doors of law abiding citizens and confiscate all their guns. It hasn’t happened. It’s never going to happen. It was never even an intention of his.
You say she intends to destroy our republic as we know it. You know this is her intention? Do you have footage of her talking about how she wants to be elected so she can destroy the republic? No. It’s just something you say, not her.
You are speaking in hyperbole.
I haven’t found Clinton to be demonstrably guilty of a single thing that candidates from the past, both Democrat and Republican, haven’t engaged in.
She takes large donations from corporations. So has almost every other candidate who’s run for the office, again both Democrat and Republican. I wish none of them did, but pretty much all of them do. I don’t see how her doing the same thing makes her uniquely evil.
I was a Sanders supporter in the primary, and I had a lot of negative feelings about Clinton, but after listening to people call her almost every name in the book and prattle on about how corrupt and horrible she is, I began to notice they never bothered to provide any real evidence for it. They just keep screaming for her head on a plate. So I started digging to find out what we really know about Clinton, and I discovered most of the charges made against her have no teeth. They just get repeated again and again until people assume they’re true.
If you don’t like Hillary Clinton, don’t vote for her, but don’t tell me I have to accept the notion that she’s just as “bad as Trump” because of all the things her opponents insinuate about her but never prove. I think you know good and well she would never stand on a stage and mimic a disabled person’s deformities, especially given the fact that she spent part of her life working to help disabled children gain access to educational opportunities.
You know who else wouldn’t do such a thing? Just about any other Republican candidate I can think of. I did’t vote for Mitt Romney, but he wouldn’t think of doing something like what I described in a million years and I would never write a piece like this about him or any other sane Republican. This was a piece about how I feel about Trump’s behaviors and you haven’t even tried to defend any of them because you know you can’t.
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The difference is there is no proof of the slander and innuendo you are directing at Hillary. Let’s just take the foundation issue you brought up. The Clinton Global Initiative is one of the most transparent charitable organizations out there. 89% of the money donated gets out to the causes they support like fighting AIDS. Only 11% for administrative costs is very good. They don’t use the money as they please. All money is accounted for. None of the Clinton family receives any compensation for their work for the charity. Of course they took a deduction for money donated to a charity, just as you would. The fact that they founded the charity is irrelevant. Trump could deduct donations to the Trump Foundation if he had made any in the last 7 years. With all due respect, get your head out of the sand, or perhaps more accurately, out of the echo chamber
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You make it impossible to comment. Which is a liberal for you
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I don’t mean to make it impossible, but I do moderate comments, which I do when I have the time, because I reserve the right to decide what kinds of behaviors I’m going to allow here.
This is essentially my home, and just as you would not allow someone to walk through the door and relieve themself on your rug, I don’t allow people to waltz onto my comment section and make threats, spew racial slurs, or anything else I don’t have any reason to tolerate.
If you want the right to write and publish anything you wish, I would recommend you do what I did and start your own blog.
It’s free and it’s easy. Just visit WordPress.com or the home page of any other blogging platform you prefer.
If you can find people who want to read what you write, more power to you, but no one owes either you or me their attention. We have to earn that.
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I don’t know if memories or short, or if people just don’t know or care about what has actually already happened. Clinton sold off 20% of the USA’s uranium deposits to the Russians in exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars in contributions to the Clinton Foundation. http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2015%2F04%2F24%2Fus%2Fcash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html%3F_r%3D1&h=HAQGDBACN
And providing “Dirty Medicine” while skimming tens of millions of dollars from U.N. levies imposed on airline travelers, the Clinton Foundation’s Clinton Health Aids Initiative worked closely with a pharmaceutical company in India to distribute “drastically substandard” generic antiretroviral drugs to Third World countries that had no chance of helping HIV/AIDs patients, according to a Wall Street analyst.
Clinton Health Aids Initiative, known as CHAI, approached the Indian company, Ranbaxy, in 2002 to negotiate a deal. It allowed CHAI to assume a controlling position to administer the airline-ticket levy program through UNITAID, a program of the U.N.’s World Health Organization in Geneva. The deal positioned the Clinton Foundation to have access to hundreds of millions of dollars from what amounted to a tax imposed on millions of average airline passengers,
The scam was perfected, when a key player in developing the CHAI ‘discount generic drug’ strategy touted as revolutionary by Bill and Hillary Clinton, namely Ranbaxy in India, by selling drugs the company knew were so drastically substandard that the Ranbaxy ARV products had no chance of curing any HIV/AIDS patients taking the drugs in the third world countries to which the Clinton Foundation delivered them.
‘It’s just blacks dying’
Ranbaxy on May 13, 2013, pleaded guilty to seven federal criminal counts of selling adulterated drugs with an intent to defraud.
Ranbaxy agreed to pay $500 million in fines, forfeitures and penalties, the most ever levied against a generic-drug company.
A Fortune magazine article in May 2013 by investigative reporter Katherine Eban titled “Dirty Medicine” detailed the Ranbaxy pharmaceutical scandal.
The article captured the moral bankruptcy of Ranbaxy through a conference call Dr. Kathy Spreen, Ranbaxy’s executive director of clinical medicine, had with a dozen company executives in which a participating Ranbaxy executives dismissed concern that the company was producing defective drugs.
“Who cares? It’s just blacks dying,” the executive said, according to Fortune.
Clintons endorse Ranbaxy
And, in a visit to Mumbai April 11, 2013, Bill Clinton praised Ranbaxy for its role in assisting his Clinton Foundation.
http://www.wnd.com/2015/04/clinton-foundation-distributed-useless-drugs-to-aids-patients/
Plus, what the Clintons did to the poor people of Haiti after an earthquake devastated the island, despicable:
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/437883/hillarys-america-secret-history-democratic-party-dinesh-dsouza-clinton-foundation
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Hmmm. Who should I believe? A site that posts stories about Hillary’s “eyes going crazy” as proof she has serious health problems, one that begins with the quote, “‘My mom is 87 years old and looks so much better than this creature does.”
That sounds like an objective piece of journalism.
Here’s a link to Politifact’s findings on your uranium claim, but I know. You don’t trust any websites or publications that allow themselves to be influenced by facts.
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Hows that kool-aid taste? How much does Chelsea make from the foundation?
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Actually, no, very simply. Clinton has been multiply investigated over a period of decades and not one accusation against her has been found to have a grain of truth.
I find her grating to listen to, and she strikes me as a cynical career politician. I do not like her as a presidential candidate. She may very well be highly dishonest or criminal, but if she is, she is smart enough that in 30 years no one has been able to make anything stick to her.
Trump is a psychopathic, narcissistic, nasty, stupid, lying abomination who should not even be allowed into the White House on a paid tour in case he pisses in a flower vase while he is there. There is absolutely no comparison, and to say that you could insert Con Ron’s name in the article here and it would make sense is quite ludicrous.
All that people have against Clinton, really, are things her political enemies have tried (and failed) to pin on her, but they have been said so often that many people assume they are true. Trump is condemned out of his own mouth as a sub-human monster.
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our kidding, right? did you raed the article, Trumps name is all over that vile behavior, and you think Hillary is just like him? wow
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Your comment is demonstrably untrue.
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This is not about Hilary. You are using the typical ‘red herring’ to deflect the focus on how despicable Trump is. Hilary has her faults too but 2 wrongs do not make a right. Ignoring how Trump treats people is a reflection of how he’ll treat anybody, republican or democrat, if they do not agree with him. Not supporting Hilary will not protect you from this vile human being.
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There is so much known corruption on Hillary’s side for decades starting with Bill–He was impeached if you remember; and yes, Trump has “said” a lot of things but his past and his actions show that he does not treat people like that. But, like I said, I didn’t like him as a candidate, but the choice is now what it is, and you will just have to decide if Trump can ameliorate his talk, with his true actions to help all Americans and whether if Hillary is elected she will NOT continue to rape America for power and wealth and continue failed Obamacare and Obama’s policies. We all will have to live with our choices,,,and how we have suffered under Obama, which wasn’t my choice, ,,,but politics isn’t intrested in what is best for America….politicians are interested in maintaining their power and wealth. Trump will NOT be in office forever, and only he can try to add Term Limits, go after real fraud and power holds in the gov’t,,,certainly not Hillary. So you may not like how Trump has describled the issues of America, but he is right on, and he is NOT P.C. which is what you want to hear. As the bible said, “they liked their ears to be tickled, but their consciences were seared”,,,
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You know your talking about our next President!
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I’m afraid your response is totally ridiculous.
This article isn’t about comparing the candidates. It’s about Donald Trump and the reason why the person wrote the article is his feelings towards Trump.
The facts that are laid out in this article are about Trump and they are facts. I’ve seen them before, many, many times from different scholars, newspaper articles and websites too.
Now with just a few words typed “fact check Trump” and then typed “fact check Hilary,” into Google you will find that Trump is a pathological liar.
There is even a comparison on PolitiFact which compares their statements over the years.
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/lists/people/comparing-hillary-clinton-donald-trump-truth-o-met/
Now, why don’t you try and prove your case that, “Hillary is the worse.”?
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You are missing the point, and your comment is just a distraction.
Ken Robert was not discussing Hillary Clinton – he was discussing Donald Trump. If you feel there should be another article about Hillary Clinton, you are perfectly free to write it and publish it. Or are you trying to push the notion that Ken Robert is not at liberty to write his article about Donald Trump, unless he first writes one about her?
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Just read agenda 21. Lesser of two evils.
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That is actually COMPLETELY untrue. She has her faults, but she is nothing like Mr. Trump. I don’t think this country has seen the likes of someone so disgusting being defended by ignoring what is stated and trying to deflect using Hillary. In the complete absence of Hillary or an election, everything stated here is absolutely true. The videos are added for Trumpers who use his same tactics to ignore the truth and pile on the lies. YOU just did that. Perhaps rather than taking shots at Hillary you need to look inward and ask why you would defend such a deplorable person. Are you biting off your nose to spite your face, or are you just deplorable, too. Reflect.
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You are wrong and a weak minded, follower, fool.
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There is no difference because they are all corrupt.
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All one has to do to discredit a statement like that is perform a simple compare and contrast exercise, one like an eighth grade student would be asked to perform for an essay writing assignment.
Saying things are the same or equally bad has become the thing people do to sound clever and more aware. But it’s demonstrably false and illogical.
It falls apart in under a minute if you honestly question it.
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Where does one buy Trump Koolaid?
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I, too, was raised with similar principles regarding decency and respect. And, I pretty much agree with 99% of what you wrote. But I have a wee, small problem with this sentence:
“You don’t promote torture when men and women have given their lives to fight enemies who employ it.”
It’s the “fight enemies who employ it” phrase that I’m having particular trouble with, because it makes me think the men and women who gave their lives would have to have been fighting against the U.S., as well.
Oh, that’s right, we (USA) don’t torture. We use “enhanced interrogation techniques.” … Never mind; my bad. … Carry on.
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That’s easy. I’m guessing he’s talking about WWII and the fact that back then the USA and its allies DIDN’T use torture against its enemies because America, as well as many other countries involved in the conflict of WWII, had signed up to the Geneva Convention regarding the treatment of prisoners of war.
The fact that the USA has seemingly abandoned the treaty under George W Bush, due to the events of 911, does not affect the heroism of those who fought in the Second World War when they conducted themselves by those rules of engagement.
It is still something that many people across the world feel is important.
America can’t go around acting like the world’s policeman and talking about human rights violations in China, Saudi Arabia or wherever when it uses enhanced interrogation techniques or torture as we used to call it in the good old days.
The writer is making a heartfelt plea about something he was taught to believe in, not making a modern critical analysis of the use of torture.
He was appealing for restraint against torture something that Trump doesn’t understand when he makes comments about using more than waterboarding and bombing the families of terrorists.
Trump is a disaster as a human being.
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Thank you for your contributions to this discussion, or whatever it’s devolving into.
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Yes, I did take WWII into consideration before I posted my comment. Being an editor, sometimes I just can’t help myself. Perhaps the sentence would be better with a couple of edits:
“You don’t promote torture when men and women have given their lives to fight against it.”
But, as we all know, it’s Ken’s blog and he’s allowed to write it however he so chooses. I respect that. I think his points are clear and they’re not lost on me. Thanks for your reply to my comment.
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I see the White Supremacist Racist in Trump! That alone makes him unelectable! End of discussion!
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What a wonderfully written piece. I, too, find myself struggling to maintain respect for his supporters. People I have known my entire life and whom I always thought of as decent, kind people I now see in a different light. I have made the comment to many people that if I ever hear the hateful words that Trump spews on a daily basis come out of my daughter’s mouth, I will know I have failed her as a parent. How can his supporters not feel the same way regarding their children? How can they tolerate such behavior? This is a piece I will share many times before the election.
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to nyyfanrlc: a well stated support of this anti-Trump essay! Yes, it is so difficult seeing some of my own friends and family supporting Donald Trump. How am I ever going to be at peace in the knowledge that there are those who, albeit mysteriously, will continue to support and even vote for Donald Trump? There are only 47 days until the November 8th election. We are now in the Existential Twilight Zone!
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You claim that you haven’t been “wildly successful”…. I disagree completely. You have been wildly successful in expressing the disdain for Trump that many of us feel but are unable to put into words. Hats off to you sir. You are my hero today.
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Someone posed the theory that perhaps there is an uncomfortable upside to this nightmare….
So many, so very many of our friends and neighbors, even family members, supporting such a reprehensible person. Espousing and sharing his hateful scapegoating…. It’s such a shock. SO many! We all knew that this darkness was lurking. That there are always people harboring hateful views, happy to blame and demonize…but so many. It’s terrifying.
But now we know. The world knows. They are out in the open, spouting their hate and showing their willingness to believe the worst. To be led down a dark path where the demons in their nature can raise their ugly heads and turn on their fellow human beings in blame and anger. Perhaps now, with this ugliness revealed where all can see, perhaps in dealing with it we can truly begin the hard work of evolving beyond it? Perhaps we can see it clearly for what it is and realize, as a species, that the politics of fear and devision only lead to more confusion, more pain and suffering?
*sigh*
I sometimes feel I am grasping at straws. This is a nightmare. This is the terrifying echo of Nazi Germany. So few recognize it. How is that possible? Can they have forgotten? When I am most tired and dismayed I often wonder if people have simply given up and chosen to devolve. Then I look around me, into the eyes of my friends and see mirrored there the confusion, the outrage, and I resolve again to speak out for understanding and compassion. To openly challenge intolerance when I encounter it. To continue to fight the good fight. Perhaps that is all anyone can do…so, thank you.
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There are so many similarites between Trump and Hitler. People followed Hitler too they would have followed him off a cliff. But in the end they had been deceived by Hitler. I too am appalled at wonderful people who I know are God fearing people who think his foul mouth mean spirited reteric is great. I am not sure what is happening to people. I see him for what he is and for the way he presents himself no one has to tell me he does it all on his own. He is not the right person to be the leader of our country all I can do is pray that he is not
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I don’t think some people chose to devolve.
I think the education system in America is largely at fault for not teaching the lessons learned about Nazi Germany and the rise of Hitler.
The fact that different states pick and choose which parts of history to teach or not teach is a factor.
Lack of proper funding for decent quality education is part of the problem.
I watched a video today which I’ll share a link with here that shows the idiocracy of many Trump supporters and their ilk.
One imbecile even questioned why Obama wasn’t around during 911 and why he wasn’t in the Whitehouse.
It would be laughable if I hadn’t seen Jordan Klepper, interviewing Trump supporters at Trump rallies for the Daily Show earlier in the year.
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I do place a large part of the blame on our pitiful educational system. I honestly think it is broken. So many bureaucrats serving agendas that have nothing to do with creating a generation well-versed in history, multiculturalism, the sciences and the arts. What happened to the idea of creating generations of individuals who can think for themselves? I have dear, creative, intelligent friends who teach grade school and it’s a mess. I also blame what passes for news. A well-informed public ensures freedom. We are left with sensationalism and propaganda in pursuit of ratings. Garbage. The result is this self inflated gas bag, like another obnoxious reality show star, but this one is actually running for POTUS.
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Why Hillary called Trump supporters ignorant:
because they didn’t go to school and learn about the Hitler’s rise to power, how he feed people’s hate, and gave them hope about making Germany great again. He blamed it on foreigner and politics. He said he would break treaties with other countries and change the laws that were causing Germany to lose money and jobs. Even some of the Jews were for him because he was going to make Germany great again. Then he blames religion and gays for making Germany a deplorable place.
Thousands supported him and his mainstream propaganda. Because Germany was going broke, millions of people were unemployment, and people were starving. He promised them he would make a change and make Germany great again. He never shared his plans to them he just fed on their hate with all his propaganda.
When he took office he wild his country up and said look this is what we have to do to make our country great again. let’s collect all the foreginers, illegals, and jews. let’s lock them up and make camps for them. Everyone still supported him.
Then it happens. The cleansing of Germany. He used them and abused the people in the camps. Then his officers started to murder them. That wasn’t enough he said they had to collect religious supporters of the Jews. Oh and he added the gays and lesbian because he couldn’t have them in his country either.
Only if people knew his plan, only if people saw his hate, only if people saw his violent side, only if people saw his lies.
This is why Hillary calls Trump supports stupid. Because they don’t see history repeating itself and they encourage Jews to vote for him because trump is part jew. Damm, Hitler was a jew and he didn’t care because he was a psycho and Trump is a psycho. Trump is following Hitler’s steps perfectly. He is feedinh on their hate and feelings of unfairness.
So, you Mexicans and African Americans that are voting for him please read Hitler’s rise to power because you know that you are a American and know that your families are born here and think you have nothing to worry about. Your wrong, trump like Hitler is not telling you his plan he is feeding you propaganda and lies. He will turn on you ,too.
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Interesting that you would quote Hitlers Rise to Power. Hmmmm didn’t Hitler gain power over the masses by taking away their guns so that they were unable to fight back. Which candidate wants to get rid of the general populations guns. Or should I rephrase it and say which political party. Which political party wants to become a part of a “one world order and increase the public’s dependence upon the Federal Government?” It is frightening how many of you can manipulate words and sound bites to try and convince people to your particular point of view. Although I’m not a big fan of Mr Trump. I’m am totally against what the left wants to turn this country into and the direction that they wish to steer us. I am a compassionate man and a god fearing man. I believe in a handup and not a handout for those who do not wish to help themselves. This country has been headed in the wrong direction for quite awhile. I don’t believe that Hillary or anyone else in the left is capable in leading this country and taking us in the direction that we are in need of going. If that means supporting Mr Trump then so be it. But I’m very offended by you calling those of us who disagree with your biased opinions and left leanings in calling us ignorant and uneducated. I was raised to be better than that.
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see this is where I would call mister good ole boy an old fool…who isn’t fooling nobody no how but you wont let me..lol
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Egad! Find one bit of proof that she wants to take away everyone’s guns, abolish the 2nd amendment….blah blah blah…..and post it. You can’t because there isn’t any proof. Do everyone a favor and read all about it yourself instead of listening to this ever perpetuating lie.
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No, he didn’t. Just the opposite: The Weimar Republic had fairly strict gun control and a very low rate of gun ownership, and Hitler loosened restrictions in order to get guns into the hands of more of his supporters. This took place in the
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(sorry, accidental early post) This took place in the German Weapons Act of 1938.
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And as a life long democrat I’m deeply offended to hear yet ANOTHER say that our party is trying to take your guns away. Quite sick to death of it. No one wants to take your guns. No one wants to take away your Second Amendment Rights. No one wants to give free handouts to everyone that might possibly need them. Perhaps a better solution is this…..lets start over. What’s happened has already happened. Entertaining a thought without swallowing propaganda hook line and sinker is also extremely offensive. I believe there’s enough of that from BOTH parties. You’re right. Our country is in trouble but it’s not a Democratic or Republican problem – it’s a HUMAN problem. What divides us will eventually destroy us all in the end. I’m not willing for that to happen. Am I a liberal – you bet I am but you’d probably be very surprised at some of my “conservative” beliefs. Trump is all that has been said in this article and more. Ethics are important. This man can’t even release his tax returns much less run our country. I will stand against anyone who spreads a racist agenda. He is disrespectful, vulgar, and a hypocrite. Keep your guns. We don’t want them.
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Awesome fact(s) reporting Ken Robert. The video evidence speaks for itself. Wake up Trump supporters. One day it could be your family member(s) on the receiving end of Trump’s antics. He may be good with you now, try disagreeing with him on any of his statements and Trump will attach a few nasty verbages to you for calling him out on his, on camera waffle flip flopping. Having fame, rank and enormous amounts of money does not make anyone above the law or humanity. Everyone should say yes …to having a good moral compass. Thank you Ken for standing up and being a voice of wisdom. Treat others, as you wish to be treated. Lead by demonstrating love of people, is the greatest strength. A Commander-in-Chief should not exhibit any form of bigotry and hatred, it’s not tolerable at any level in society. Do what is right even when no one is looking. If you are going to hate anything, hate evil, hate sin, hate wrong doings, not the person and correct injustices regardless who the person or entity is! This message is sent in the spirit of love and One Nation under God.
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The sprinkling of pro-Trump comments brings us back to the question of whether he rode in on a festering pile of shit, or if he actually IS a festering pile of shit. Evidently it is the latter, as shit is known to draw many flies.
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Comparing people to disease and vermin is the rhetoric of the génocidaire and is not acceptable when referring to anybody. It’s reprehensible to support Trump, but that does not make his supporters subhuman,
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You nailed. Thank you for summing him up so succinctly.
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Great post. I agree. You also have to consider how he would handle the affairs of this country. I mean if you can’t sue or bully every leader in the world just because you don’t like what they say or do.
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When I hear Trump talk about getting rid of political correctness, I think of the essay by Robert Fulghum, “All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten.” It posits that the important things in life are to Share, Not hit people, Clean up your messes, and Hold hands when you cross the street, etc. On the other hand, my mother taught us to be polite, not made fun of people, not tease people, be kind to each other. That was a parent’s version of political correctness, and, Trump, that has never gone out of style.
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Trump is terrifying. Hitler was bad but Trump admires leaders who are sadly much much worse. He said that Sadam Hussaim knew how to deal with terrorists. That monster did things that no human eyes were created to see. Terror and torture beyond imagination and often of people who could never be terrorists, babies and children. I don’t doubt that Trump has his own bag of tricks ready. I suspect all of us who oppose him will be branded terrorists. I will not go gently into that dark night. I will stay true to the values I was raised with. I also know that I am not perfect and that I am a human being who can be broken. All of us are. I pray that I will not be tested but I will not be silent out of fear. I pray that if I am tested, I will be able to be true.
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I won’t be praying.
I’ll be fighting every inch of the way and shouting and screaming!
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The facts are impossible to ignore.
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Ken, you didn’t touch on his use of tax credits to fund his real estate empire. NYT reporting based in part on returns from his casino.He boasts about not paying taxes. No wonder he won’t release returns
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Excellent points, Ken. May I add an additional, very unsettling one?
I used to believe that if Donald Trump lost this election, he would then channel his followers toward a new media empire –a cable news/entertainment network, and more– which he’d create. Why? Because $$$$$.
I recently read that American presidents are permitted to actively manage corporations while in office. If elected, Donald Trump would (he says) cede management of his businesses to his children. Even so, I now believe that Trump –or, more likely, his children and/or associates, in order to get the necessary FCC licenses– would launch and oversee a new media empire WHILE he were serving as America’s president.
Doing so would earn Trump hundreds of millions of dollars. It would also provide him with a propaganda arm completely under his control.
Doubtful? It’s been done many times before, though never here. Yet.
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That’s just a theory.
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True, Mark. I never said otherwise.
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this is what I’ve been trying to say for months. This man embodies every base impulse in human nature…those things we have been taught to fight in ourselves, he embraces.
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Keep saying and doing what you are doing.
As Yoda once said, “There is no try.”
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It is so hard to believe that so many can support him and look the other way regarding his abhorrent behavior and hate speech. This election is like no other I can ever remember in that a candidate so unqualified, unfit, and vile actually has supporters among people for whom I USED to have respect. It is sad.
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For those who are asking: look at the Libertarian candidate, Gary Johnson. See what he stands for and see if you don’t think he fits the bill.
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So far, not impressed.
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Beautifully written. It think you bolted the points right into concrete with this essay. I’ve never been so utterly embarrassed by and for a political affiliation until I witnessed the Republican “party” and their so-called leader this past year. Trump is an American embarrassment, much like the phony and unnecessary Iraq war the Republican party led us into.
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Reblogged this on The Purple Politicist and commented:
I wish I could say that Trump is everything my parents taught me not to be, but I can’t. I had to figure that out and choose decency on my own. I hope my children will feel like they can say that Trump is everything I taught them not to be.
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Good work Ken. The hard part is understanding those who support trump. It’s just hard to understand.
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Not really, when you consider that America has a long history of xenophobia, authoritarianism and white supremacy coexisting alongside its history of liberty, equality and justice, and that the former tradition has never been rooted out the way it should have been.
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Great Article!
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So reassuring that there are so many others that share my views on Trimp and his supporters. Thank you for writing this. I am surrounded by Trump supporters at work and I am really struggling with the respect thing too. Thank you for writing this article
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That must be frightening.
At least you can look for a better job where you don’t feel like you would be alienated for expressing your views.
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What I do not get is this, my friends who support Trump would never make fun of a disabled person, or lie and then lie again as an apology etc , yet they support him, which in the end makes them seem like him, no getting around it, I canno longer be friends with anyone like this.Never
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Trumper could learn something from Thumper.
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Thank you for saying so much of what I’ve felt, and doing it beautifully! This situation is a horror show, never before did I imagine we would witness such vile and lawless spirit coming from an election process! There’s so much work that needs to be done right now, the last thing this country needs is Trump!
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Thank you for writing this. It perfectly sums up what I’ve been feeling but have been unable to express. So many people that I know, love and have respected support this man and it is getting harder and harder to look them in the eye. How can these people support a fear mongering man who spews such vile and hate. It’s truly starting to scare me😦
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He is so far from Jesus’ teachings; it really amazes me how Christians can justify voting for him.
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I agree that Mr. Trump is not fit to be President. He accuses Hillary of not being “Presidential” but in comparison he falls even shorter of the mark. His speeches have a familiar ring. I’ve seen some old history clips where Hitler spoke (Translated to English) and I have a feeling that Mr. Trump and Hitler would have hit it off very well.
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The projection in the comments regarding Ms. Clinton is a typical tactic with followers of the sTRUMPette. The psychological definition for the term “projection”:
“Projection is the process of taking feelings we have about ourselves (usually painful feelings) and focusing them on other people.”
Examples of Projection: A person who fears he is drinking too much may point out another person who is drinking and put him down for being a drunk.
A man or woman who has been cheating on his/her spouse may accuse the spouse of being unfaithful.
These sheeple refuse to look at the reality regarding the character — or LACK of character in this instance — of their own candidate, so they attach those same very evident negative connotations (the lying, the cheating, the theft, the misogyny, the racism of the sTRUMPette) onto Clinton. And they do so with absolutely NO EVIDENCE to back their claims. In all of the “projections” stated here agains Ms. Clinton, there is not ONE piece of legal proof to back up anything. Not one.
The same cannot be said of the sTRUMPette’s campaign.
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Great article! If Satan was running as a republican and Jesus Christ as a democrat, in my county, Satan would win in a landslide. I too am appalled by friends I once considered intelligent, decent, Christian human beings. When I ask why, I get “I vote conservative”, and “I just can’t vote for Hillary”. I’m not sure they know what “conservative” means. It isn’t supposed to mean “against everything”, it simply means “frugal”. And they can’t vote for Hillary because she’s a liberal, which in their small minds means “gay, atheist baby killer”. It actually means “generous”.
If trump wins, you can predict our country’s future by reading about the past. Not only the Third Reich, but also the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. It wasn’t their decadent lifestyle. Hell, they had decadent lifestyles for over 500 years! The beginning of the end came when the Roman Emperor issued a pogrom on immigrants, the same ones they had invited to come to Rome to do the menial tasks that Romans didn’t want to do, like working in the fields. (Sound familiar?) Their economy was experiencing a downturn, and of course the emperor couldn’t be held responsible, so let’s blame the immigrants. The same people who had been welcomed before were being attacked in the streets. Entire families were slaughtered. Those who survived were kept or sold as slaves. Then Rome reneged on promises (aka treaties) made to Gaul for supplying soldiers to defend Rome’s borders. Of course that pissed off the lands these immigrants came from, and Gaul was livid. So came attacks, sieges, and the sacking of Rome. They never recovered.
So, if you think this country is on the wrong path, believe me, voting for trump is not a course correction. It’s steering straight for the center of the cyclone. After 4 years under a thin-skinned, arrogant, pathological liar, this country will be unrecognizable. I keep asking people to name exactly what Obama has done to ruin our country. The only thing they can think of is Obamacare. That means most pro-life people are actually pro-death when it involves those who can’t afford insurance. They can NOT name anything else he’s done, but can’t see that being unable to back it up invalidates their entire argument. They’re just sure he’s deliberately ruining us. I may be in the minority, but I’ve never been able to ignore facts just because they belie my preconceived beliefs.
If you are a Christian on the far right, please remember that is what Hitler claimed to be. At least until he gained enough power to believe himself mightier than God. Then he dropped the phoney facade and outlawed religion altogether. If this happens in my country, YOU will be responsible.
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You said, “You don’t mock the disabled.” Well, Trump didn’t either. That is and has been proven to be a LIE. The media, and now you, showed a side-by-side photo of Kovaleski and Trump, Kovaleski with his right hand in a permanently flexed position downward saying that he was disabled and a captured freeze-framed of the Trump video at the exact moment when his hand went into a flexed posture. Be sure to see the video of an interview with Kovaleski, below,,,muscle spasms or involuntary arm movements are not part of the reporter’s disability.
What the media did not choose to show was video of Serge Kovaleski. His disability is a congenital condition called arthrogryposis. which causes restricted movement in the joints but does not cause spasms or uncontrolled moving of the limbs like cerebral palsy does. If Trump wanted to mock Kovaleski, he would have had to stand perfectly still with a flexed right hand and not flail his arms. Dishonest, lying media for sure,,,here’s a video of Kovaleski https://youtu.be/baUuXQ443fA
Trump makes the same hand gestures, making similar flailing motions, which is his standard impression of someone caught trying to answer a question they can’t answer, doesn’t matter if it’s an Army General, a reporter, Ted Cruz.
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In my opinion Trump mocked Kovaleski, just like he mocked Krauthammer.
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First of all, I love the fact that you’re defending him by talking about how he mocks other people. Hilarious.
Second of all, he blatantly lied that he had never met the reporter before. The reporter covered him for years and they had met twelve times and were on a first name basis.
Third, he said, “I mean, you should see this guy.” Then he said he had no idea that he was disabled. Did he not see the guy he said you should see. What does that mean? You should see this guy?
There are two clips in the video that are supposed to serve as proof that this is how Trump rolls. The first one looks nothing like the gestures he made while talking about the reporter. The second one looks kind of like it if you want to stretch.
He knew the guy. He knew he was disabled. He said you should see this guy. He made that gesture.
If Hillary had done that, you’d be telling me all about it.
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Ken, thank you for your respectful and eloquent post. I appreciate and sense that you truly are not commenting against left or right or the Republican party. I’ve been a Republican for 20 some years and am ashamed of so many people who have decided to drink the Trump Kool-Aid in the name of getting the Supreme Court Justices they think he’ll give them, or whatever else is in their best-of-intention hearts. I am bewildered by this entire election, and at this point I’m voting for Gary Johnson & Bill Weld. Thank you for contributing to this conversation. Because if people like you, I have more respect for people of different perspectives & political bents than I EVER have – as well as open ears to listen. That is one very good thing that has come out of this crazy ongoing election process.
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I am admittedly a Democrat, but I do not think Republicans are evil people by virtue of being Republican. I don’t think Trump is evil for being a Republican. I simply think his behaviors and rhetoric are despicable.
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Here is a link to the Kirk Douglas piece I mentioned in the comments a couple days ago. I didn’t have the link at the time. It is worth reading.
The road ahead http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-road-ahead_us_57e03be4e4b08cb1409749f2?ncid=engmodushpmg00000004 via @HuffPostPol
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