The Los Angeles Times July 24, 2022 editorial defined some of Donald Trump’s crimes but not all. A Donald Trump trial could result in a civil war.
There is no doubt that Donald Trump is “guilty of conspiring to defraud the United States and conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding” but also plotting an insurrection, dereliction of duty and dishonoring his sworn oath when he took the office of president. He ought to be tried and convicted. Sadly millions of Americans still believe Trump won the 2020 election as evidenced on January 6, 2021 and are willing to take up arms. If found guilty, the country would experience a second civil war. His followers have demonstrated their willingness to do his bidding. There are an estimated 393 million civilian-owned firearms in the US and 20 million of them are AR-15 style rifles. Are those trying to uphold the Constitution prepared to go to war to retain this democracy?
An abridged version of this posting appears on the letters page of the July 26, 2022 Los Angeles Times.
A political leader who seeks support by appealing to the desires and prejudices of ordinary people rather than by using rational argument. “a gifted demagogue with particular skill in manipulating the press”
What is an example of a demagogue?
Modern demagogues include Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Huey Long, Father Coughlin, and Senator Joseph McCarthy, all of whom built mass followings the same way that Cleon did: by exciting the passions of the mob against the moderate, thoughtful customs of the aristocratic elites of their times.
Donald Trump clearly meets the definition. Trump is the 21st century version of McCarthy. It was Joseph Welch finally asked the question of McCarthy: “Have you no decency, sir?” Unfortunately Donald Trump has no decency.
Israeli laws are designed to assure Israel will remain a Jewish state. Non-Jews are free to go anywhere they wish and live where ever they want. Intermarriage between Jews and others is permitted. Intermarriage has always been considered unacceptable as best displayed in the play “Fiddler on the Roof”. European Jews viewed anyone marrying a non-Jews the equivalent to a death.
During most of the 20th century, South Africa was ruled by a system called Apartheid, an Afrikaans word meaning ‘apartness,’ which was based on a system of racial segregation.
An Israeli human rights group has put up billboards in the occupied West Bank with a stark message for President Joe Biden, saying “this is apartheid.”
Israel was created as a Jewish State. The country was created as a homeland for Jews. Jews have experienced discrimination and in some instances faced death in almost every country in the world.
The Holocaust (6 million Jews were killed) was the seed for creating Israel. Jewish Israelis have arranged their nations laws to protect their rule over their country.
There is no other way to write this or say this reality. Israel will always be a Jewish state. If that fact changes, Israel’s purpose to exist will end.
There is only one religious holiday a national holiday in the United States. Christmas Day. If that isn’t sponsoring a religion then what is it?
Up to the age of nine I attended Philadelphia public schools. Every morning all the children attended an assembly. After reciting the Pledge of Allegiance someone at the front of the auditorium read from the Christian bible. There was a Christian song that all the children sang. The problem was that I was not a Christian. I kept my mouth shut unless someone came by my seat prompting me to sing. My solution to that was to move my lips but not sing a single word.
Happily none of that happened in Los Angeles in the 4th grade.
I remember this like it was yesterday.
Now the Supreme Court sees nothing wrong with conducting prayers on school grounds. The Supreme Court ruled on June 27 that a high school football coach had a constitutional right to pray at the 50-yard line after his team’s games, the latest step by the court in expanding the place of religion in public life. The vote was 6 to 3, with the court’s three liberal members in dissent.
Is it any wonder that some Americans have chosen to migrate to countries that respect the religious rights of all citizens?
Sofia Ali-Khan wrote an opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times relating how she, a child of immigrant parents, could no longer live with the hate of minorities perpetrated by President Donald Trump. She believes that to live in the States she would have to hide her Muslim identity.
The number of Americans seeking residency in Canada has grown exponentially. No wonder. Canada is a country that welcomes people of all faiths and races.
I can’t fight the system. Perhaps it is time to follow Sofia Ali-Khan to Canada.
It is accurate to say that the United States is in a period similar to 1850-1860 — the decade that led to the Civil War. The president in 1850 was Millard Fillmore. By championing the Compromise of 1850 he can be credited with delaying an American civil war for more than a decade. The compromise admitted California as a free state, left Utah and New Mexico to decide for themselves whether to be a slave state or a free state.
The similarities today could not be more apparent. Each state can now decide whether abortions are legal. Likely same sex marriage and voting rights laws will also be determined by each state.
The words “a house divided cannot stand” come to mind. California, Oregon and Washington State see the world through a different lens. As an example it is clear that California and Texas have little in common. Texans are concerned with an invasion of illegal aliens and California accepts them as if they came to the United States legally.
Without a civil war perhaps it would be best if we all went our separate ways.
The justices agreed with lawyers for West Virginia, saying Congress did not give environmental regulators broad authority to reshape the system for producing electric power by switching from coal to natural gas, wind turbines and solar energy.
“Today, the court strips the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the power Congress gave it to respond to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time,” Kagan wrote.
In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court took away the president’s administration authority to implement regulations under the Clean Air Act to reduce carbon emissions at power plants. The majority opinion was delivered by Chief Justice John Roberts.
“Today, the court strips the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the power Congress gave it to respond to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time,” Kagan wrote. “The Court appoints itself—instead of Congress or the expert agency—the decisionmaker on climate policy. I cannot think of many things more frightening. Respectfully, I dissent,” Kagan concluded.
I am no environmentalist but if agencies created by congress are not allowed to do the job assigned to then our administrative system becomes dysfunctional. What is next on their agenda? Could it be the Voting Rights Act or same sex marriage? Since Black Clarence Thomas is married to a White woman. Loving v. Virginia, 388 U.S. 1 (1967) is not likely to be overturned.
Based on news reports thousands and maybe millions of Americans believe the 2020 election was fraudulent.
The disparate responses from the governors of the two most populous states in the nation highlighted the stark political divide in America, deepened by radically different approaches to healthcare, gun control, the COVID-19 pandemic, LGBTQ rights, immigration and now, once again, reproductive rights.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, Governor Kate Brown of Oregon, and Governor Jay Inslee of Washington joined together in announcing a multistate commitment to defend access to reproductive health services and contraceptives.
Bill Maher’s monologue on Friday’s episode of “Real Time.” joked that “It’s gonna be a fun America that we’re going to live in, isn’t it?” and eventually lamented that “we are going to be living in two very different Americas.”
On Saturday June 18 thousands of Texas Republicans approved a new platform at the 2022 party convention in Houston calling on the state legislature to authorize a referendum on secession from the United States. There are 275 planks in the platform and among the planks it defines homosexuality as “an abnormal lifestyle,” marriage as only between “one biological man and one biological woman,” and supports eliminating sex education from schools altogether. On the political side, it calls for abolishing the direct election of U.S. Senators, nullifying Supreme Court decisions, ending birthright citizenship, repealing the Voting Rights Act, and holding an Article V convention to rewrite the U.S. Constitution. I am not making this up. The convention decisions were reported in The Week magazine.
Perhaps it is time for the United States to split apart. The Calexit plan started in 2015 calls for succession of California. The South, those that tried to succeed in 1861, calling themselves the Confederate States of America never really surrendered. The Confederate flag is still in prominent use.
Abraham Lincoln speech June 16, 1858: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” He was correct but his solution has not brought peace to the people of those southern states.
I believe is it is time we all went our separate ways.
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