Ichabod's Kin
A place for politics, pop culture, and social issues

          In a world of Trump, Putin and Netanyahu, what can we say? Well, there’s a saying: Cheer up, things could be worse; so you cheer up and, sure enough, things get worse. Take a lesson from the New England Patriots: when things are as good as they can get for 20 years, be very careful with the next step—it could change everything.

          The U.S. was on the verge of a great liberal era. The best next step was to elect Hillary—but we didn’t. Sure, bad things happen under best of circumstances but you know that history since Trump’s presidency is beyond any other scenario.

          We’ve had it really good in this country for a long time, and still have the world’s best economy, strongest military, and are among the safest societies, but it’s been too good for us. Others had tin-pot dictators and leaders who left office and took their nation’s wealth with them. No banana republic here. We’ve been stars of the world stage for our system of checks and balances, and when we incautiously elected rascals we knew next time how to throw the rascals out. No more. We’re teetering on the edge: half of us are in thrall to one who is forgiven everything, however wrong, dishonest, crackpot or looney, with a mountain of lies to boot—but not a single misstep or misquote, even demonstrable success, is granted his wiser opponent.

          Freud said that mankind is a herd animal but added, “with a leader.” True enough, given that little gets done without them. But heaven help us when choosing whom to follow. And “choose” is the operative world. In other times might made right and the winner took all until someone worse unseated him. Not that such is unknown today but, again, not here—until now where it lurks around the corner.

          Are we wrong to consider history? Does the totalitarianism of less than a century ago serve any caution to our times—a succession of early tyrannies until all of Europe fell to one criminal leader after another? And those that first resisted had collaborators who betrayed their own people and governments? We should hope not here, but is it wrong to raise alarm?

          We know what tyrant spelled out what he would do to his people and the world were he to come to power. A few believed him, most did not but were charmed by his bravado; others thought he could be “handled” and rid of soon enough. Silly them. At least we have their example as fair warning. Are we listening?

          We think that really terrible things can’t happen, but they can. In our Tik-Tok, social media-driven nation we’ve tossed morals, ethics, history and logic from our educational curricula. Science and tech are better than ever but in the hands of fascists, the world will go upside-down.

          If Donald Trump loses an election again, belittles the ballot, declares the election rigged, and calls ballot officials scoundrels and conspiracists, are all warnings too late? Will not all the drama we’ve endured continue—and worse? Were he to suffer debilitation or death, would MAGA Nation, without a shred of evidence, declare the other Party responsible? What then: will we be looking at another January 6? Were it best to look plausibility in the face now, not later?

          Next best step: VOTE to keep our democracy and its republic. Then we must enforce what we can only hope is the best outcome—which will be the most difficult of all. So put on our big boy and big girl pants. There’s work to do.