What Has Been Will Be Again

This may be an excellent likeness of someone you know...

Hysteria. Delirium. Panic. 

These words describe the mental and emotional state of nearly every lawmaker in the United States, from those in the US Congress to those at state and local levels. The only individuals not affected by these problems can generally be seen in two groups: Those who don't care about anything that doesn't directly affect their lives, and those who are not possessed by an irrational hatred of a particular president. 

The reader should take two things into account at this point. The first is that this problem has been seen before. It is not unique to our current President, nor is it unique to one political party. It has affected folks from every walk of life, from every ethnic background, from every educational level and from every career path. The second thing is that "irrational hatred" is here defined as an emotional state which compels words and deeds that would otherwise violate one's own ethical, moral and professional codes of conduct. Such a state might be an issue for readers of this article, but affected readers likely wouldn't have made it this far, so... 

Memoria Venellam *

Was he waving at the person on the phone?

During the Obama administration, many in Congress took issue with then-president Obama. Sometimes it was over serious things, such as his cavalier use of the executive order and national emergency declarations. Other times, it was over excessively petty things, like his use of prompt screens. Of those who were obsessed with petty problems, most were Republican; most lacked the ability to recognize anything good done by the President; and nearly all refused to work with him out of personal spite, as opposed to genuine principle. 

At the time, many of the Democrats in Congress couldn't figure out what the problem was. Many lamented the stubborn refusal to work with Obama on anything. Not only were Republicans refusing to work with the President, they were also refusing to pitch their own solutions. On top of that, they were proposing legislation that directly countered Obama's agenda, and were running time and money wasting investigations and hearings. 

Conservative talk show hosts were having a field day with every little thing they could dig up. Born in Kenya. Not an American citizen. Communist. Socialist. Corrupt. Friends with a terrorist. Pastor's a radical. Father's a Muslim. His middle name is Hussein. There's no college record. It went on and on. 

Ultra-conservative talk show hosts were having an even bigger conniption fit. There were connections being made every which way but up. He was a Manchurian candidate. He was being used by Iran. He was being used by Syria. He was being used by Libya. He was also reportedly covering up FEMA camps; Big Pharma human testing; gun running; drug smuggling; and the human trafficking of his enemies. They said that he was breaking the Constitution so that it would no longer work; that he was going to do away with elections; and that he was the Antichrist. 

Veritas Utrum

Many were cartoonish in their hysteria.

While some of what the pundits and talking heads and alarmist writers were putting out there was accurate, there really wasn't a lot of genuine and factual accounting. He may have been born in Kenya, but he was also legally granted a Hawaiian document of birth. His birth father may have been Muslim, but by most accounts he barely knew the man. His pastor may have said some crazy things from the pulpit, but so have a number of other big name preachers. None of this means that he is not responsible for some of the worst abuses of power our nation has ever seen; it just means that there was a whole lot of petty crud that didn't need a fraction of the attention it received. 

There were also the straight-out lies by which even this writer was taken. For instance, one of the earliest pseudo-facts was that Obama was a full-blown Muslim. The deception didn't last long, fortunately; yet the fact that it had managed to capture the attention and energy of intelligent and rational writers such as myself remains a source of consternation. Another lie: Obama was attempting to repeal the Constitution. A few of his executive orders were strung together, along with a few statements from his campaign, which gave the appearance of an all out assault on the supreme law of the land. This one didn't last as long; in fact, it was proven to be a fabrication while researching the story for the sake of an article on this very blog. 

So what has brought on this seeming nostalgia? 

Nothing New Under The Sun

Well, as the saying goes: "New boss same as the old boss." Or if preferred: "The more things change, the more they stay the same." There was also this saying from a young man who grew up in several African countries: "A cheetah may change his spots to stripes, but his heart remains set upon your life." 

In the eyes of this author, Obama was and continues to be a scumbag. That personal opinion does not change the fact that he did a few things which were beneficial. It simply means that in the process of weighing what was good and bad about his administration according to subjective judgment, the resulting conclusion puts Obama and most of those people he surrounded himself with firmly in the "scumbag" column. This may be painfully obvious to those who are long-time readers; however what ought to be just as obvious is the fact that not everyone feels this way. Those who are capable of rational thought and logic; and who have the enviable position of accounting for the historical impact of US Presidents; have suggested that apart from his actual election, Obama's notability and historical significance is negligible. 

In the same way, President Trump currently sits in the "Meh" category. He's not yet to be cheered, nor mocked. He's done a lot of good for the country, but this has been nullified by his negative speech. He's already written his name in the history books due to five different events which were halfheartedly reported by the mainstream media. At the same time, those events have not all been seen positively, so once more he's "Meh." 

Yet as in the days of Obama, so too is it now in the days of Trump. People are losing their minds. There are those who are so consumed by irrational fear and/or hatred that they are incapable of rational thought. There are those who are so stubborn that they have turned their backs on lifelong goals solely because Trump thinks those goals are worthwhile. There are insane accusations being made. There are lies being told. There are charges being filed, hearings being held and investigations being conducted - All of which are wasting time and money. CNN is to Trump what FOX was to Obama, in a manner of speaking. 

Basically, we've stepped through the looking glass, Alice- And to fracture more idioms- The grass may be greener on the other side, but it is always full of thorns when we cross the fence. Though the only constant is change, this applies solely to that which is superficial. The heart of humanity, without any form of external influence, remains hopelessly devoid of redeeming qualities; and this explains why the basket still rolls steadily towards Hell... Exempli gratia, Concessus abortus et educationem ordinatur optimum.

* It should be noted that the author is aware of his atrocious grasp of Latin and is using it regardless for the sake of adding a lighthearted touch to an otherwise heavy handed article.

History Calling

Art by Andrew James Unlimited

Hello? Hello? Hello!

Hi! Glad to finally connect with you! So I know we never really met in school, but I saw you an awful lot in passing. Never really saw you in the halls, but sometimes I saw you in the classroom and every now and again I saw you in the library.

I guess I should introduce myself. My name's American History, and I guess the reason I wanted to have a chat with you today is really to kind of clear the air.

You know, there have been a lot of things said about me over the years. A lot of people have been really cruel in the way they've dealt with me, and yeah, I could sing songs about the troubles I've gone through. But I thought that instead of making a big scene, I'd just try and have a conversation with you. Like adults.

The first thing I want you to know is that I don't blame you at all. I was already being done wrong by your teachers long before you grew up. You're not the problem; you're the solution. I'll tell you what I mean in a moment.

You should also know that I'm not in nearly as bad of shape as a lot of people have said. Sure, I've seen my share of bad times, but so has everyone. For example, you've been told that I'm a mess and that I need to get clean. Well truth be told, there's very little about me that isn't pretty straight forward. I don't need to be clean, because the things I've seen were not clean.

Oh! No, I'm not talking about being on drugs! Sorry to have given you that impression. I just mean that facts are facts. What happened in the past can't be changed by reinterpretation, retelling or ignorance. No matter how many times someone tries to change the story, the reality of past events stays the same.

I guess I should tell you that I understand how confused you and a lot of your peers are right now. Your parents are good with celebrating national holidays like Columbus Day and Presidents Day, but you're not sure you can because of issues like slavery and human rights. Your parents are concerned with young politicians wanting socialism in the United States, and all you can see is how bad things are getting around you. I understand that things like socialism and open borders and world peace are appealing. In fact, you and your folks probably argue about it from time to time.

I have to be honest with you about this. Socialism has never worked on a national scale. My family can tell you that first hand. Ask Russian, or Polish, or German. They'll all tell you that every time its been tried, something's gone wrong. The people in power then had to figure out how to fix what went wrong, and sooner or later it became war or oppression. That's not to say there aren't some good things socialism tries to do. The United Kingdom has some socialist elements and they work. Public transportation, for instance. But they can support the programs they have put into place, and not simply because the government printed new money. Does that make sense?

World peace would certainly be nice also. I would love it if I never saw another war. But until that happens, open borders don't make sense because there will always be enemies. They don't disappear simply because you decide there shouldn't be war. The same goes for slavery. What happened prior to the American Civil War was horrific, and that war was even worse. But look around. Slavery didn't disappear, it just became less obvious. There are still slaves, right here in the United States. Why isn't that more important than a politician's haircut?

Look, I'm not trying to argue with you. I just want you to know that these days, you can't really trust what a lot of people are saying. You really do have to look into things for yourself. Search engines and internet encyclopedias are great, but they can't substitute personal research.

Why?

Well, because when you are the one doing the research for yourself, the opinions you draw are formed organically. They grow and change naturally. When you listen to the news, the anchor tells you a story based upon the network's opinion. Online resources are often written from someone else's point of view also. So when you rely on those and don't do any digging of your own, you don't have an opinion of your own. You become a clone of someone else.

I'm not trying to be insulting. I will admit that when it comes right down to it, I really don't have a lot of tact or diplomacy. I've never really had the ability to be concerned with feelings. I don't understand emotions so I don't really understand why there's more value placed on them than on facts. I'm also more of an introvert so I don't generally reach out to people. I figure if they want to know something, they'll ask.

But I can promise you that I'll always tell you the truth. Just keep digging. Keep asking. I've got nothing to gain by leaning to any direction. That's how you're the solution.

So, anyway. I guess that's all for now. I hope we'll meet again.