Today at 12 noon, Eastern Standard Time, Donald J. Trump
will be sworn in as the 45th President of the United States of
America. That is a fact. There is nothing that I can say or do that will change
that. If there was something I could say, I would say it. If there was
something I could do, I would do it. The reality is, Trump won the election,
and Clinton lost.
For me, that hurts. It hurts to say it. It hurts to write
it. It hurts to think it.
When I went to bed (early) on election night I felt
physically ill. I love my country. I have studied its history intently since I
discovered my school’s library in elementary school. I am still moved by the
majestic words of the Declaration of Independence and the Gettysburg Address. I
am inspired by America’s heroes that have given their lives to preserve its freedoms
and defend our rights. I am proud of its achievements in science, engineering,
architecture, medicine, and the arts. I take pride in my country’s role in
protecting human rights around the world and alleviating the suffering of those
less fortunate than ourselves. I am proud of our way of life, our standards of
living, and our progress in making our own country a beacon of opportunity for
people all over the world. But when I went to bed on election night I was not
proud. In fact, I was ashamed. I was angry. I was embarrassed.
I wonder who felt that way the night Barack Obama was
elected President of the United States? I wonder if they would have the courage
to ask themselves why?
I was ashamed because Donald Trump thinks that we should
torture people and “take out their families”. To me, that means murder. Torture
has been outlawed with the consensus agreement of the entire civilized world. So,
our new President wants to be a war criminal and murderer. Donald Trump was
caught on tape bragging about “grabbing them by the pussy”. He feels he can do
that to women because of his celebrity. That makes him a misogynistic, admitted
sexual abuser. Not to mention he has been accused of sexual assault by at least
twelve different women. He feels that when we invaded Iraq we should have just “taken
their oil”, and “presto!”, ISIS would not exist. He doesn’t seem to realize
that invading a country and seizing its natural resources is the height of
imperialism, and the type of thing the Nazi’s were sentenced to be hanged for
at Nuremberg. Nevertheless, this is our new President.
I was angry because Donald Trump believes that we should
have guns in our schools. Elementary schools, middle schools, high schools,
colleges. He thinks we should have guns in our churches. He thinks we should
have guns in our bars, guns in our airports, guns in our supermarkets, guns in
our theaters, guns in our offices, guns in our malls, guns at our sporting
events, guns in our restaurants, he thinks everybody on our streets should have
a gun. Then, and only then, will we be “safe from the terrorists”. I am angry
because I served in the United States Marine Corps, and I know what guns can
do. I was a high school Principal for almost ten years, and I know how
beautiful, brilliant, immature, impetuous, and stupid teenagers can be. I know
how it feels to deliver a eulogy for a young person gone too soon. I still feel
the pain of the parents of those elementary school children in Newtown,
Connecticut. Gunned down with a weapon designed for the battlefield. I went to
bed angry that night because I despise racism and those that promote or
perpetrate it. Donald Trump created his political base by insisting at every
opportunity that America’s first Black President was a fraud, illegitimate,
born in Kenya and ineligible to be President. Donald Trump said that Barack
Obama was “the most ignorant President we have ever had”. Trump started his
campaign by insisting he would build a wall on the Mexican border to keep the
Mexican’s out of the country, and institute a ban on Muslims entering the
country to stop terrorism. He has said nothing about keeping illegal immigrants
that happen to be white out of the country.
When I went to bed on election night I was embarrassed
because our children are watching. People all over the world are watching. The
American President has incredible power to influence the actions of others.
They are the supreme role-model. Some of our children have already begun to
emulate the despicable behavior displayed throughout the campaign at Donald
Trump political rallies. They are insulting minorities, ridiculing the
disabled, and threatening violence against those that may disagree with them.
I fear for what comes next for my country and the world. War
is more likely than peace, and nuclear weapons makes it possible for Donald
Trump to destroy civilization itself. Trump is beholden to the Russian government.
Evidence indicate the reasons are financial as well as sexual. I fear what the
Russians will extort from our new President.
ABC’s Wide World of Sports was an American institution from
April 1961 until January 1998. It’s iconic opening sequence featured a terrible
crash of a ski jumper, Vinko Bogataj. Just before Bogataj’s crash, the
announcer, Jim McKay says “the thrill of victory”, and as the crash occurs, he
says… “and the agony of defeat”. Watching the crash, you can’t help but assume
that every bone in Bogataj” body is broken, and he probably died.
Bogataj survived the “agony of defeat”. I pray that America
will survive it too.
