Five Reasons No One Should Vote for Donald Trump

 

There are many, many reasons not to vote for Donald Trump: his history as a business cheat, the way he has handled immigration, his refusal to comply with congressional oversight, etc., etc. It is very hard to make a list of his serious transgressions without forgetting some. There are so many.

But the following five items are important because each individual one, by itself, is not only sufficient reason to want Donald Trump out of office, but each one is important enough by itself that it should be disqualifying. Each one is bad enough that no decent person should ever vote for Donald Trump simply due to that one item, bad enough that no decent person ever will vote for him.

The Birther Lie

Donald Trump was the most prominent proponent of the Birther conspiracy - the racist, un-American, unpatriotic lie that claimed that President Obama was not born in the United States. And even if you don't believe that this conspiracy was racist, unpatriotic, and un-American - you're wrong, but let's just say anyway - you should believe this: it was an incredibly stupid idea that appealed to racists and was sold, by Donald Trump, to some of the dumbest people on the planet.

After all, there was never any even marginally believable evidence that it was true. People just believed it because they wanted to believe it because they hated Barack Obama, whether because of his ethnicity or his politics or something else. They did not believe it due to a rational weighing of the evidence - in fact, you had to ignore a lot of solid evidence to be a birther.

And that brings up a further point: Donald Trump almost certainly knew that what he was pedaling was a lie. It can be hard, I admit, to tell where the line is between reality and fantasy with Trump, but he is smart enough to understand the difference between a crazy story versus all the evidence indicating Obama was born in Hawaii. As with a lot of things that he says, chances are Trump just didn't care if it was true or not. He just cared about what worked for him.

Disrespect Toward Women

There is so much here. Cheating on his wives, paying off a porn star, bragging about sexual assault on the Access Hollywood tape, 26 charges of sexual misconduct, two charges of rape including rape of a 13-year old, insulting women reporters and women politicians, and just this week telling women he will get their husbands back to work(!) and treating Senator Martha McSally, a Republican, with complete contempt at a rally in Arizona.

But there were two incidents that should have finished Trump. First, he implied that Ted Cruz's wife was unattractive. What sort of person does that, in the middle of a national political race? Just disgusting. Second thing: he indicated to his supporters, with phrases like "Take a look at her" and "I don't think so," that at least two of the 26 women who accused him of sexual misconduct were not attractive enough for him to have assaulted. What sort of person says anything like that, ever?

Not the sort that any decent person would vote for, for President or anything else.

20,000 Lies

As of a moment ago, it was 22,247 lies according to the Washington Post. That's a lot. He is undoubtedly the most well-documented liar in history, literally, no exaggeration. He lies all the time, about everything.

As a result, we can't trust anything he says. Even if he tells the truth on occasion, we need verification from an independent party in order to trust it.

Politicians make mistakes and sometimes lie, but not on the scale that Trump does. He is fundamentally untrustworthy. He is not worthy of anyone's vote.

Lock Them Up

Whenever Trump mentions Hillary Clinton at one of his rallies, the crowd starts chanting "Lock her up!" Trump does not lead the chants, but he does not tell people to stop. He could stop the chants, but he likes them. Locking up your political opponents for imagined crimes is not what American politicians do; that is the kind of thing that happens in countries where the only rule of law is whatever the Supreme Leader says it is. But here in the United States, Trump encourages this thinking, and has even said that he approves of the chants.

Trump has also called for the imprisonment of Barack Obama and Joe Biden for imagined crimes and suggested that a reporter should be arrested for not writing about a story Trump was pushing, another fake scandal involving Joe Biden's son. He has also complained that the Justice Department is not doing enough to investigate his political opponents.

This is not how America works. We do not need politicians who abuse their power by threatening to lock up their opponents. No one should accept this behavior.

COVID-19

What the pandemic exposed about Trump was that, when faced with a significant challenge, he just was not capable of leading the response. Yes, other countries had problems dealing with the virus, and they continue to have problems, but it was more than bad results that demonstrated Trump's failure; the way he approached the problem was all over the place - inconsistent, dishonest, counter-productive, and incompetent. He downplayed the virus. He questioned the value of masks and then ridiculed people for wearing them. He held mass-spreader rallies and events. He questioned the nation's experts. He promised the virus would just go away, without any evidence. He promoted unproven drugs. He lied about the timeline for a vaccine. Even now, he insists we are "turning the corner" as in fact cases are the highest they have ever been, and climbing every week.

Any president might have had trouble controlling the virus, but almost anyone else would have avoided the string of errors Trump made. The problem just overwhelmed his abilities. He does not belong in the office, He just is not ready, and never will be.

Very Fine People

Democrats are, if nothing else, reliably politically correct. We don't want to believe that there is something fundamentally wrong with our neighbors, friends, and family who support Donald Trump. But look at those five reasons above. Would any decent person choose Donald Trump to lead this country? Can anyone just ignore all that and pretend that he is the leader we need? And honestly, if those reasons are not enough, there are many, many others.

Donald Trump will get more than forty percent of the votes in this election. It a a national disgrace that he will get any votes at all. 

Don't Tell Me I've Nothing to Do

 

Countin' flowers on the wall

That don't bother me at all

Playin' solitaire till dawn with a pack of fifty-one 

Smokin' cigarettes and watchin' Captain Kangaroo

Now don't tell me I've nothing to do.

Statler Brothers -- Counting Flowers on the Wall

My brother reminded me of that song recently, when we were talking about how we keep busy in retirement.

I woke up today with nothing really pressing to do, like most days. But like almost all days, there are things that take up my time, and today I had several ideas, so I made a list:

• Postcards
• Postcards
• Postcards

This item is on the list three times, because I want to do it in three sessions. This is my big ongoing project for the next couple of months. I am writing 400 postcards to voters in Michigan, trying to encourage them to vote. I only like to do three at a time, so the plan is to do three sets of three each day, and I should easily have all 400 done before late October, when I send them out.

• Reading
• TV

I have to set aside time to read and watch TV; otherwise I will miss a few days and start to lose the thread of what I was watching or reading. I definitely do not watch TV as a habit. Right now I am reading a book by Liberty DeVitto, Billy Joel's drummer, and watching Foyle's War and season 4 of The Wire on TV, switching between the two.

• Podcast

My younger son turned me onto podcasts. I listen to politics. (Who'd have thought?) I try to remember to listen while I'm working my jigsaw puzzle.

• Bike ride

I have been pretty good about exercising in retirement, but my right Achilles tendon has been bothering me when I walk, so at least during the good weather, I have started riding instead. 

• Kitchen floor

Like a washerwoman from some movie about medieval times, I am getting down on my knees and scrubbing every spot off the kitchen floor. I don't do that often, but right now I am doing a piece of the floor each day. (If at all possible, I avoid doing any job for three or four hours at a time, but break it into smaller sessions.)

• Watering

I try to do something each day inside the house (kitchen floor today) and something outside. I have a sprinkler system to water the grass, but some plants have to be watered with a hose. This may only happen one or two more times before our short dry season is over and nature will water everything for the next ten months.

• Piano

I like being able to play the piano, but my improvement is very slow, so I get bored. But I really want to play well. Right now I am at beginner level.

• Cook sausage
• Stew

The sausage just needs to be cooked and put in the fridge for breakfasts. Stew is tonight's dinner. Jackie still does a lot of the cooking, but I do more than I used to.

The list does not include cleaning and putting away the dishes, or other little everyday things. Also it does not include checking the Internet or playing video games, because those things will happen regardless.

And here at the end of the day, I did not get to the third round of postcards, the watering, the piano (always the easiest thing to miss), or the sausage. Tomorrow, I have things for the list already.

Retirement: Random Thoughts

5,040 pieces - I counted

When I retired on April 10, I was half done with this puzzle, or less, so I put together maybe 3,000 pieces in less than three weeks. I have time on my hands, and I do not watch much TV or play lots of video games, so I spent a lot of time puzzling. Usually, it takes me most of the year to finish one of these - this year is different.

Coronavirus is definitely the theme of my early retirement. I check the statistics every day. Today is Tuesday, and Tuesday death tolls are always high. If today we have fewer deaths than last Tuesday, that's a good sign, or at least it means that New York is possibly past the peak.

In addition, coronavirus has put a crimp in two activities that would have meant significant changes to my lifestyle: weekend outings, and getting involved in the community. Jackie and I are already thinking about taking some short trips starting maybe June - we are a bit stir crazy, like everyone - but going wine tasting or spending a night in Eastern Washington is off the table for now. Community activities - chess club, bridge, Jubilee (our community name) Democrats, group outings, community shows - are all on hold. Because of that, my days feel not too different from what my weekends used to be, but with less activity.

Other thoughts:

Based on the choices I have made, it appears that cleaning the toilet appeals to me more than working in the yard does. Today I chose to start working in the yard early, trying to get into the habit. It really is not so bad, except weeding, which is bad.

Going to pick up burgers at Sonic seems like a real treat now.

Sometimes I walk with Jarrod, sometimes on the phone with Mike, sometimes by myself. I am a very introverted person, but walking alone is boring.

Rowing on the rowing machine is boring too, but I think that I have used it every day since I retired and have rowed about 10 kilometers total. I listen to audio books to get through. [Blogger is telling me that "kilometers" is misspelled and needs to be "kilometres." I sense a British bias.]

I have not started drinking during the daytime, but I am beginning to wonder why not.

My closest co-worker at my last employer contacted me yesterday and said she was laid off. I think maybe I did OK to leave when I did. [Update: everyone I worked with got laid off.]

When you are retired, one ice tray is enough to make plenty of ice for the whole family.  Keeping up with making ice seemed like a struggle when I was working.

In general, all is well.

Retirement: The Next Big Thing

First, a little update on how retirement is going. Today is my sixth day since my last work day April 10, and I am pleased enough with my days so far. Looking down my list of retirement activities I had planned, I have been surprisingly good about exercise and housework (!), and have prepared dinner several times. We actually ventured out for a weekend activity last Saturday, drove to the coast and ate lunch in our car, which was very nice considering the restraints we are under. And here I am writing my first post-retirement blog post, so that's not a bad effort.

On the other hand, I have not touched the piano yet, and I have done very little yard work despite unnaturally good weather, for this part of the world, all week since I retired. It is another beautiful day today. This is getting weird.

Community activities are on hold.

One odd item: I have been using a feather duster, on a regular basis, to dust. I never expected that.

The big item I can see now is missing from my plans is The Next Big Thing, some overriding goal to pursue, some substantial accomplishment. Everyday tasks like exercising and keeping the yard in shape are good things, but I feel like I am missing something. My friend Chuck wrote novels after he retired. My brother achieved his Life Master designation in bridge. I could use a goal along those lines.

I have considered writing, but I really don't have any ideas for a novel. Writing blog posts or Twittering fall more into the day-to-day category. I could probably become a bridge Life Master if I devoted myself to it, but that has been done, and I am not sure I could muster the devotion. I would like to play chess, but I simply do not have the brain power, to put it bluntly, to be much better than I ever was, which was only fairly good. I could understand trying to set some goals around golf, but I don't think that is for me.

The one thing that occurs to me so far is to devote more time to politics, to try to work with others to make small changes in the world for the better. So that's one idea, one that will stay on hold for the time being given the pandemic. I prefer to have a few viable ideas to choose from rather than just the one, but it's a start.

So add one more retirement activity to the list: find the next big thing.

Retirement: Health

I am not retired yet, but soon, very soon. May 1, if all goes as planned, if coronavirus doesn't change everything. I have plans for my retirement, and I like to make plans more than I like sticking to my plans, but still, I have plans. People ask me what I will do in retirement, so I have been trying to think it through, come up with a list.

My retirement is different from some retirements, because Jackie will be working full-time, from home, so only one of us will be retired. Given that, here is my list.

Health
Learn to cook
Housework
Yard work
Piano
Weekend activities
Writing
Community activities

So taking things one at a time, there is health. Retirement may only last a short time, but in theory it could go thirty years. Jackie and I would like to travel the world, and to really do that we will have to stay in traveling shape a long time, as there is a lot of the world to see, so I have some incentive to try to stay healthy as long as I can.

Right now, I am off to a poor start. I am fat, to put it bluntly, and diabetic.

And if you know me, you know that I will not be the kind of fanatic who gets up at 5:00 and heads to the gym for yoga class. In fact, I am not sure that the gym figures much in my future, and yoga class is even less likely. My thoughts tend more toward walking, with maybe some other exercise thrown in. Not 10,000 steps every day either - that is too much of a commitment for me. I think more like two walks a day, 8,000 steps, nine days out of ten, to give myself a break or a chance to have one day when I have something else to do. Add in 20 minutes on the rowing machine or doing exercises along with YouTube (maybe even yoga?), and there we are. If I can do that much, I will surprise myself.

The other health piece, and this one is more important but harder than the exercise, is that this is my last chance, very last, to lose weight. With more time to fix good meals and exercise, perhaps it will be possible. Or maybe, with the refrigerator and the pantry close by all the time, it will be easier to gain weight. This goal is more of a wish than a real goal, but maybe. I have been obese more than half of my life now; getting down to a healthy weight would be life-changing.

So that is goal number one, put first partly because I should be able to start it quickly, even on May 2. As with almost everything I do, I won't go to extremes, won't ever look like old Jack LaLanne there, but I will try to make progress.

The Political Landscape

Many thanks to Dumb and Dumber here for posing for the photo

I have written or said before many of the words I will write here, but I think it is important to write them at least one more time.

The United States government as we know it died last Wednesday. It has been dying for a long time, but the acquittal of a criminal President without even the slightest pretense of considering the evidence by a near-unanimous Republican senate makes it official to me.

The political struggle in our country is not about policy or how to move our country forward; it is about whether we will choose to live according to the US Constitution and the rule of law, or whether we will be ruled by Republicans who no longer care about those things. It is important to me to understand just who put us on this path, who the opposition is. In short, who is to blame?

Don't Blame Donald Trump

There will always be horrible people in the world, and sometimes some of them will want to be President. Pat Robertson ran for President before. He would have been terrible. Fortunately, he was not elected. But somehow, Donald Trump was elected. He lied, he had help from Russia, he fooled a lot of people, but in the end, he was only one vote. He needed help from 63 million knuckleheads like the two pictured above to actually get elected. When that many people get together and make an inexcusable decision, it's hard for me to want to blame one guy.

Besides, Trump did not have a vote in the impeachment trial. That wasn't his fault.

Don't Blame Mitch McConnell

Yes, he's a monster, one of the most malignant politicians in US history. But who votes for this guy? McConnell has been a complete ass for decades, but that is what the people of Kentucky want. And who follows him? Republican senators don't have to choose him as senate leader, but he is the one they want. They did not have to agree with Moscow Mitch that the impeachment trial did not require witnesses, or that Trump should not be removed from office, even though he clearly should have been, but they did agree. And millions of voters chose those Republican senators, even though it has been clear for decades that the party was headed off the rails. Those Senators didn't elect themselves.

Don't Blame Fox News

Yes, Fox News sucks. But here's a story about Fox News: long ago, when Fox News was a new thing, before Jackie and I knew anything about them, we had a cable service that only offered one 24-hour cable news station, and it was Fox. So we watched Fox News when we watched news. After two or three days, we realized that something was wrong - it was clear that the station was pushing a conservative agenda rather than just providing the news. So we stopped watching.

People watch Fox because they want to. Everyone knows that there are alternatives, but they do the same thing Jackie and I did, except then they decide Fox is what they like. We tend to get caught in echo chambers, listening to people who agree with us, but we choose our echo chambers. No one has to watch Fox News. No one should.

If you don't believe global warming is caused by human activity because you are caught in a right-wing echo chamber that reinforces your beliefs, right-wing media is not the problem. The problem is that you are an idiot.

Republican Voters Are The Real Problem

Donald Trump is President because of the Electoral College, true, but more so because 63 million Americans chose him to lead the country. Mitch McConnell is the majority leader of the Senate because Republican voters put him in office and put 52 other senators in place. Fox News is divisive and dishonest propaganda because their BS gets good ratings.

If you voted for Trump, you probably either liked his policies, or you liked him personally and wanted to see him lead the country. Based on those criteria, I sort Trump supporters into two categories: horrible people, and morons. Of course there is a lot of overlap.

Addressing the morons first, Trump talked about creating jobs, building a wall and having Mexico pay for it, re-writing trade deals to make them so much better, and more. He also had no experience in government, showed no particular interest in the details of it, lied all the time, and made stupid statements about how we would get tired of winning, that he knew more than the generals, that he was such a super smart guy, and on and on. It was just glaringly obvious that he had no idea what he was talking about most of the time. If you fell for it, if you really believed that he would become President and would be able to deal with the country's problems, you fall squarely into the moron camp.

But to be honest, I do not believe that most Trump supporters were, or are, that stupid. I think that most of them saw the racist, the conspiracy theory chaser, the shockingly prolific liar, the fake Christian, the cheating husband, the sexist, the serial molester, the immigrant hater, the name-calling schoolboy, the braggart, the narcissist, the unhinged loon who went off the rails when anyone - even a gold star father - spoke harshly about him, and they liked him. Not a guy to have a beer with, but someone who could get away with anything and would hate the people they hate.

This is the point we have to acknowledge: the source of our current political state is our neighbors, our coworkers, our friends, our families. Our political goal should not be to work with them or to accommodate them, because we have to reject the vision that they offer. We can try to persuade them, but they resist any kind of logic or facts and cling to dishonesty and imagined conspiracies, so persuasion will come slowly if at all. We have to outnumber them, and if we are to move forward, eventually crush them out of existence in their present form, hopefully to be replaced by something we can work with. That is the only way forward that I can see.

New Year, Resolutions

I did not make any New Year resolutions this year, which is not unusual. Nevertheless, here are a couple I can make now:

Retire

I actually need to resolve to retire, because even though I am planning to, I keep wavering. For a couple of years at least, my target has been to retire on the Friday before my birthday this July, which to be precise means Friday, July 17, 2020 will be my last day of work; however, I have seriously considered extending that to the end of October, or maybe to the end of the year, and I have thought about getting a job right away after I retire. After a couple of discussions with Jackie and a recent discussion with my boss that seemed to confirm that she would not try to talk me into staying longer, I am back to shooting for July 17, and just fully retiring, not going back to work part-time.

So I resolve to do that. With retirement will probably come a robust list of additional resolutions. What they will amount to in sum is to use the time to do things and to enjoy life rather than watch TV or play the same video games over and over, but there will be time enough to come up with those.

Writing

I do not feel a great need to write a certain number of blog posts or to post on some predetermined schedule, as you can see if you look at my posting history, but I do get the desire to write every so often, and I usually let it pass without actually writing anything. I only posted twice last year - once about Trump, once about Emmitt - so it should be easy enough to surpass that output. I will be halfway to last year's production as soon as I hit the publish button for this post, and it is only January 11.

One thing I am thinking about is to post less about politics and more about everything else. The problem with politics is that every insight I may have, every opinion, everything has been written about already. I just started using Twitter, and there are hundreds of posts about politics just on my Twitter feed every day, so that subject gets covered whether I cover it or not. On the other hand, no one posts about the events in my life except for me.

I think that retirement will be a good subject to write about, but I need to wait until I get a little closer and can be sure it is actually happening. I don't want to put too many plans in print and then have to stay at work if Jackie loses her job, for example. Must wait.

So good, two resolutions. I really hope I can keep the retirement one at least. I bet that I will keep up with the writing too.