Trump’s America: Stuck Somewhere Between A Rock And An Orange Place

So here many of us are, post-election, stuck between a rock and an orange place. I mean a racist place. I MEAN A HARD PLACE. A rock and a hard place, trying to decide what to do next. What’s the next move, where do we go from here?

Many feel afraid for themselves, personally victimized by a system that chose a reality star as its leader. An individual who revels in twitter meltdowns and victory tours rather than simply googling, “Demands of the president.” Need I remind you, there was a genuine air of shock around him when he found out he would have to move out of his glowing ivory tower? This is a man who wraps himself in war cries against the sick, poor, and marginalized while doing as little as possible to keep his business, which is now the country, running. Good going voters.

Others feel afraid for those who feel afraid. I, for example, am a woman and this is a tenuous situation for me, but I am also white and would be remiss if I did not admit I understand there are certain issues I will never face under this administration. For example, when the KKK marched through my state in victory after his election, I’m aware that wasn’t directed at me. Regardless all, I think, feel a little unsure about the future. I keep hearing, “Find common ground with trump supporters. Give him a chance. It is the only way to unify the country.” The president elect himself said one of his first goals is to eliminate the tense and noticeable divisiveness running rampant throughout the country. In his infinite wisdom and complete lack of grace, he took on Stephen Bannon, known white supremacist as Chief Strategist. This was his first move to unite a diverse nation. It forces us to ask, is the president elect attempting to bring the country together, or just the white parts of it? And since then, he has made it his mission to take on more members of the cabinet befitting the old Koch-like conservative stereotypes, causing much of the nation to hang its head in shame. Some feel like we had come so far, only to be pushed back into the dark.

There has also been a lot of talk lately about overreactions. Protests and high school walkouts were being held on a daily basis as a response to the election’s outcome. They protest trump, but it is more than that. They protest a government that allowed this to happen. An electoral college that once again ignored who the majority of constituents chose. The argument is well-known at this point; the EC was founded to protect smaller communities without a voice, allowing for full representation of the nation. Okay, sure. But was it? Last I checked Clinton was ahead by 2 million voted and old Trumpy had a full-fledged tantrum when a recount was even mentioned. They protest the now proven rise in hate crime right after the election and the attempt to normalize racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia (word of the year, way to go guys…) on our nightly news broadcasts.

It is 2016, and I know we hear this phrase a lot lately, but what year do they think we are living in? It is clear some people in this country are not just threatened by the left, it is more than that. They are threatened by the future and the breaking down of barriers. They are threatened by helping others, and the idea that money is not everything.

I am not naïve. I understand if you work hard for your money, so hard for the money, it should be yours. Taxation is often considered a form of theft by many citizens and there are justifications for this. However, I am also not an asshole. I don’t need ALL OF MY MONEY. I literally do not. If taxing me more helps a child, family, single parent, homeless person, who the fuck ever in a difficult time I am for that. If my neighbor gets to live more comfortably and it means I don’t get to buy a new rifle every month, that’s fine. Oh no, children get affordable medical care, but I will be without my large collection of duck callers?! Whatever shall I do?! Seriously, you can’t take it with you, but while people are here, money is important and we could stand to not be such assholes. We could share a bit more. Isn’t that what our mothers taught us? I am for sharing, unless a tax hike for me means a tax cut for people richer than I could ever dream of being. I am against sharing when these individuals are rich based on doing nothing, or worse, based on screwing over the little guy.

We are all afraid for different reasons now. The right is evidently threatened that the left will hijack an election they have already won. I cannot understand why. Everybody else is afraid of a lot of things.

Most recently, for example, I was made aware women in Texas were the most recent in a line of three who will be forced to make plans to cremate or bury the remains of any aborted or miscarried fetus that occurs by surgical means. Moreover, they will have to pay. Not only is this a blatant attempt to shame women out of making a choice concerning their own bodies, but it will likely deter many women from seeking necessary medical attention during a serious time in which their life could likely be threatened. Never mind the emotional and psychological impact this could have on a person who simply does not want to have a service in this situation. While in his first video in lieu of tradition press conference the peotus made no mention of tweaking Obamacare there have been several follow-up assessments of how conservatives seek to defund Planned Parenthood in the coming years now that they are the majority in, well, everything. More frighteningly, it is assumed the peotus could end up nominating as many as four seats in the SC, which could mean total chaos for a woman and her independent choices.

Many people of note do not agree with this man, and have actively spoken out against him in apprehension, including Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany. Despite repeated meltdowns on twitter, rape allegations, a fraud lawsuit he was forced to settle to the tune of $25 million, and his feeble attempts to disguise the insatiable need to be center stage at all times, his followers flock to him like disciples. Are we fucked? I don’t know, maybe. Those of us still asking questions, or still wondering if his actions are that of a man teetering on the edge of lunacy should at least keep talking about it, and never heed the call to, “come together,” until that means everybody coming together. Not just white Christians willing to follow a set of rules even a woman of the 1950s would flinch at.