It was relatively dull. My heart didn't start pounding and my adrenaline didn't start pumping. At no point during the show did I start swearing. I yawned a couple of times because I was watching at night while I was folding laundry before I went to bed.
Which was all good.
Which was all good.
I'd prefer my world leaders to be dull, not dramatic. Charismatic is fine. Crazy is not. I want to be able to sleep knowing someone competent, capable and stable is in charge, someone who geeks out on policy, who thinks before they speak, where the goal isn’t entertainment but running the largest democracy in the world.
Which is so different than what we have today.
Last week, people were saying Donald Trump is a racist because he called African countries "shitholes."
We as a country need to get something straight: the idea that Trump is a hater is not new news. The "shithole" comments were merely further evidence the guy is a racist. Add this comment to the pile.
We need a broader term than racist to describe Trump. Sure, he hates black people, but he also hates Mexicans, women, people of different religions, immigrants not from Norway, and my favorite (not) -- people with disabilities.
The first time I thought Trump was indecent was when he mocked a disabled reporter early in his campaign for President--before the wall, before the "pussy grabbing," before there were "good people on both sides" of a protest over a Civil War monument coming down. I was on the Seattle Public School's Special Education Task Force for years. When I saw Trump bullying the reporter, I thought: How can this man possibly advocate or support policies that make the lives better for people with disabilities when he is treating them cruelly? If Trump were a private citizen making fun of disabled people, I'd think he was a boorish, obnoxious ass, at best. But he's not a private citizen. His job is to protect the rights of all Americans and ensure we have solid relationships with other countries so our country can thrive.
There are numerous leaders from both political parties who are not asses. There are many Republicans who are much better human beings than Trump. John Kaisch and Jeb Bush wrote an opinion piece in the New York Times decrying Trump's goal to deport 200,000 Salvadorians who came here in 2001 after an earthquake destroyed their country. The people he wants to deport have children who were born here and are citizens. Really?
And does "not being an asshole" have to be highest bar we set for our leaders? Can't we do better? I hope so. I'd really like to have a week where my friends, family, dog walker and co-workers don't start conversations with "Did you hear what Trump said?"
Which is so different than what we have today.
Last week, people were saying Donald Trump is a racist because he called African countries "shitholes."
We as a country need to get something straight: the idea that Trump is a hater is not new news. The "shithole" comments were merely further evidence the guy is a racist. Add this comment to the pile.
We need a broader term than racist to describe Trump. Sure, he hates black people, but he also hates Mexicans, women, people of different religions, immigrants not from Norway, and my favorite (not) -- people with disabilities.
The first time I thought Trump was indecent was when he mocked a disabled reporter early in his campaign for President--before the wall, before the "pussy grabbing," before there were "good people on both sides" of a protest over a Civil War monument coming down. I was on the Seattle Public School's Special Education Task Force for years. When I saw Trump bullying the reporter, I thought: How can this man possibly advocate or support policies that make the lives better for people with disabilities when he is treating them cruelly? If Trump were a private citizen making fun of disabled people, I'd think he was a boorish, obnoxious ass, at best. But he's not a private citizen. His job is to protect the rights of all Americans and ensure we have solid relationships with other countries so our country can thrive.
There are numerous leaders from both political parties who are not asses. There are many Republicans who are much better human beings than Trump. John Kaisch and Jeb Bush wrote an opinion piece in the New York Times decrying Trump's goal to deport 200,000 Salvadorians who came here in 2001 after an earthquake destroyed their country. The people he wants to deport have children who were born here and are citizens. Really?
And does "not being an asshole" have to be highest bar we set for our leaders? Can't we do better? I hope so. I'd really like to have a week where my friends, family, dog walker and co-workers don't start conversations with "Did you hear what Trump said?"
No comments:
Post a Comment