For a moment, put everything you know about former President Donald Trump on the back shelf, and remember the most important thing that his presidency accomplished--something no other President has done. He revealed the level of division in the American public. He brought it to the forefront, revealing how the conflict stymies the nation's forward movement, gives it a zig-zagging sense of direction, and diminishes its ability to achieve its goals and solve its problems.

Trump's opponents railed about his abrasive personality, his sex-life, and his wealth, but the fact remains that nearly half of the population voted for him. Those voters didn't care about his anti-politician style or his lack of tact. They liked his can-do spirit, the things he stood for, and the fact that he did not equivocate about them. With Trump, what you see is what you get.

Trump revealed to everyone that the nation has reached a cross-road. We either continue along, hobbled by our divisions--more intent on destroying each other than confronting our external enemies--or we work out a division of the country to permit both sides, Democrat and Republican, to express their political differences independently.

Our inattention to our other problems causes the nation to drift, which presents some risks to us, going forward:

1. One side wants to tax more, while the other side wants to spend less.

2. One side likes firearms for sport and self-defense; the other side wants to limit access to them.
3. One side wants to build a wall to protect America's southern border from drug-dealers and criminals; the other side offers asylum and opposes a wall.
4. One side wants "constitutional originalism;" the other wants a "flexible" constitution that adapts to circumstances.

5. One side wants to reduce the power and influence of wealthy individuals and mult-national corporations; the other wants to reduce the power and influence of the government.

The division reveals clearly-defined governing concepts that work just fine by themselves but obstruct each other when they try to work together. Americans have to realize that democracy fuels the polarization, not the politicians, the media, wealth, race, or anything else. We need to stop thinking of the political divisions as something bad, but as a step in our evolution. Nations must evolve, like plants and animals. Americans need to respond pro-actively to the evolution of our country, rather than try to thwart it.

One of the Founding Fathers John Adams expressed the opinion that "Democracies murder themselves." He must have had a scenario like ours in his mind--two delineated parties struggling to gain control over each other, resulting in a loss of unity and inattention to ongoing problems.

I fear for America's future, its ability to serve as a world-power that can counteract the aggressive intentions of Russia and China, if we do not agree to a division. If we want to identify an incentive for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, we only have to look at how our enemies react to American indecisiveness.


Blog

March 31, 2023

How Long Do Republicans Wait?

Americans who vote Republican have to remember that, for people who work for the Republican Party, it's just a job. They may like their jobs. Mostly they prefer to keep their jobs. They may share the Republican sentiment for free-market principles and military readiness; but when someone like me comes along and suggests that Republicans petition for a nation of their own, they worry about things like job-redundancy and relocations more than they do about Democrat big-government and peacenik sell-out.


March 23, 2023

Release Grand Ole Prometheus!

Left-wing trash-talking of the GOP represents a concerted campaign that should concern its leaders. The scathing rhetoric suggests that the trash-talking will not end until the Left can make the GOP the permanent minority-party, and silence or discredit its associated media-organs. Older Americans familiar with the Nazi-smearing of the Jews should note the similarities in the left-wing method. Neither the Republicans nor freedom-loving people of any stripe should ignore the potential threat that these smear-tactics represent.


March 21, 2023

Republicans: a New Start

The Republican Party has a few tasks it needs to undertake. It needs to examine the philosophy it claims to represent and to take stock of its future, and stop thinking in terms of personal rivalries. We have more on the line than just choosing candidates and securing a victory in future elections. The GOP needs to regain a corporate sense-of-self. How can we move forward when we have deep doubts about the game, the rules, and not least the players?


Lloyd Bowers

loybow3@gmail.com


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