Looking Ahead

I have tried--God knows, I've tried--to keep quiet about next year's election. Largely because, in the dark of night, when all my slithery, creepy, crawly thoughts have free rein, I am afraid that Donald Trump may win a second term. I cannot grasp how that could be; I never truly understood how he won the first one; but among all the things that go bump in the night, that thought is the bumpiest.

I am an admitted snob, a grammar freak, a vocabulary maven. I admire the well-spoken, and their well-turned phrases. I read, and fine writing scratches an itch that, I admit, other people may not have. I admire grace and elegance, though I lay claim to neither. I am a liberal. So shoot me. I believe that people should be treated equally, without regard to race, creed, gender, or national origin. I may not always live up to my own expectations, but I try. And I work hard to keep my own petty prejudices to myself (except where spelling and grammar are concerned, I guess...)

So, if you wonder why I am so opposed to a president who is the living antithesis of all I believe in and admire...well, you haven't been paying attention.

I am not political by nature, but when I see him turning the Constitution on its head, I find it hard to believe that he has mustered such widespread support--such a base 'base'--for the overthrow of what truly made America great, what made the US a beacon of hope for other countries, what made us a place to turn to for beleaguered populations elsewhere in the world. He has turned America's greatness upon itself, corrupting the idea of greatness, interpreting it as power, exerted in the interest of financial gain and position as a global bully. That is not the 'greatness' to which we have historically aspired. He would have us trade our moral greatness--our generosity, our all-encompassing welcome, our boundless opportunity-- for Esau's bowl of pottage: the poorest of all trades. How can anyone, raised amidst the ideals of our founding fathers, confuse 'greatness' with racism, intolerance, and the 'me first' culture that he encourages? I simply do not understand.

I am not certain of what the upcoming election will bring; there are too many candidates to focus upon, too many issues being raised, and far too much coverage of the minutiae of candidates' histories to decide or specifically recommend anyone at this juncture. I simply hope and pray (and this is sincere hope, and sincere prayer, unlike the meaningless 'thoughts and prayers' that no one acts upon) that our country will once again find itself, and will find someone we can rally behind to mend what this vicious interloper has broken, to restore the greatness with which this land was born, and with which we operated for two hundred years.