Twilight in America
Originally posted on The Cutter Rambles on November 9, 2016
That didn’t take long.
Less than two weeks after I wrote my “final” post, I’m back. I wasn’t sure I wanted to write this, because my last post ended on an optimistic note, and this one will be far less positive. But I had some things I wanted to say, and I didn’t think Facebook or Twitter were the right places for it.
Remember when I wasn’t sure if this blog was anything more than a public diary? Well, this one certainly fits into that category. I’m writing this more for my sake than anyone who might happen to read it. As I write this, I’m not entirely sure I’m even going to publish it. Even if I do, I’ll probably remove it at some point.
If you couldn’t guess, I’m writing because of the results of last night’s presidential election. As you may have surmised, I’m not happy.
Last night, as Mrs. Cutter and I watched the results unfold, she was growing increasingly upset as the situation grew more dire for Hillary Clinton. I may have handled it a little better, and that’s only because I recognized the awful feeling. It was the same feeling I got when Ronde Barber intercepted Donovan McNabb in the 2003 NFC Championship Game. It was the same feeling I got when the Phillies failed to score a run in game five of the 2011 NLDS. It’s the feeling the the team that you love and support and care deeply for is about to lose.
That’s where the comparison should end. Those were just sporting events. The world continued on, and the Eagles and Phillies both resumed play the following season at 0–0, ready to give it another try. This is different. The world will continue on, but it has changed dramatically. And I don’t think we’ll be able to start over in four years with a 0–0 record.
America has spoken…kind of. For the second time in 16 years, a presidential candidate has received the majority of the popular vote, but come out on the losing end of the electoral college.
From what I’ve seen on social media, my fellow Hillary supporters aren’t as much disappointed that she lost — although they’re certainly upset about that — but more upset that almost half the country voted for Trump. More than half the populace thought that a man who promoted a racist, misogynistic, and xenophobic campaign would make a fine chief executive.
I tried to understand what would cause a person to vote for Trump. I really did. If you voted for him because you really felt like the establishment had left you behind and you had no other hope, then I pity you. I truly can’t understand the kind of desperation that would make you turn to a man like that for hope.
If you voted for Trump because you were worried that a Clinton presidency would keep you from inflicting your religious beliefs on others, or because you couldn’t stomach the thought of a female president, or you were worried that it might be a little harder for you to get a gun, then I have no use for you. If you voted Trump because you wanted to show that America belongs to white men, then I consider you to be sad and pathetic.
Regardless of why people voted for him, President Trump is now no longer a joke on the Simpsons. Come January, it is going to be reality.
In this new reality, I will likely be fine. Thanks to my standing as a white, upper middle class male living in Maryland, my life probably won’t be directly affected much, if at all. In fact, there’s a decent chance that my taxes will be going down.
Not everyone will be so lucky. Those who were finally able to obtain health care thanks to the ACA may no longer be able to get coverage. My LGBT friends who were so overjoyed that they could finally get married are now understandably worried that it won’t be an option anymore. How comfortable are minorities and Muslims going to feel now that the alt right and hate groups have been emboldened by this campaign and victory? And as for those tax breaks…they aren’t going to seem quite as nice when the national debt skyrockets thanks to Trump’s budget.
I’m trying to hold out hope that things won’t be as bad as some fear. When discussing Trump last week, I remarked that maybe I’m not all that different from him. I can be rude, brash, and belligerent. I sometimes like to instigate trouble, and I can sometimes be a bully. When asked why I’d oppose to a man with which I have so much in common, I asked them, “Would you want me to be president?”
Maybe I’m just rationalizing here, but despite my flaws, I do have a conscience. I’d like to think if I ever found myself in the Oval Office that I would do the right thing for the people of the nation.
My hope is that Trump is not actually his public persona. My hope is that he did and said what he had to in order to get elected, and the reality of his reign will be different. My hope is that he will return to the liberal-leaning ways he used to demonstrate before he decided to run for president. It’s not much hope, but it’s something. It’s better than we would have gotten from Ted Cruz, who absolutely would have attempted to follow through on all of his campaign promises.
I somehow managed to get some sleep last night. At one point, I had a dream that Donald Trump won the election, and I crashed my car after heavily drinking. As it turns out, only half of that dream was real, so maybe this was my brain’s way of telling me that things could always be worse.
After all, I have my family. But in a way, that just makes things worse. My daughter was upset to learn that Hillary lost, but at age six, she doesn’t really understand the magnitude of what happened. When will she realize that her elders might have majorly screwed up the country for her and her siblings.
At what point will they learn that hate is still strong in the country and some people will likely hate them simply because they have a Jewish father. Would they be better off if I told them to ignore their Jewish side?
Of course not. That’s the coward’s way out. Instead, I want to teach them to fight against hatred and evil. I once joked that when the robots tried to conquer the world, my daughter would have to serve as the John Connor of the world and lead humanity to victory. It seems that the apocalypse might be coming sooner than we think. And hey, one positive of the election is that I’ll be able to easily get her any gun she wants so she can get plenty of practice with it!
I once wrote that depending on politicians to enact change and make the world a better place is foolish. That seems more true than ever. If we really want to see the world improve, we all need to do our part.
Before I sent her off to school this morning, I told my daughter to find a classmate who she doesn’t often talk to. I asked her to go up to that classmate and say something nice. It didn’t have to a grand gesture, and it could be something as simple as telling them to have a nice day.
I know it isn’t much, and one simple greeting isn’t going to change the world. But right now, it’s really all I can do.
