Found this awesome image on the web, don’t know who made it but: kudos!
10. November 2016
Despite all my latest rants and complaints (mostly on twitter) I still have many thoughts and feeling about the US election that I need to get off my heavy chest. The event has unexpectedly moved me to write a blog post (which I haven’t done since the glory days of blogspot).
I am, as you might know by now, totally heartbroken about the result. I cried actual, bitter tears over this gross rejection of values that I hold very dear – such as equality, decency, competence, integrity and reflection, to mention a few.
To me it’s a very grim prospect to know that the republican party will now be in control of the President, the House, the Senate and Supreme Court appointments. A lot of hard earned progress is in very real danger of being wiped out. The only ‘minority’ not in line for a major setback at this point is the 1% on the top. This to me is sadder than I can even begin to explain.
Then there is the new President Elect; I don’t have enough room, time or frankly the energy to list all that is wrong with this guy. I’ll try and run quickly through some “highlights” from the Pandora’s box of horrors that have made millions of people depressed, angry and frightened by this election: His long criminal record and list of sexual misconduct allegations. Some of these cases are even ongoing as we speak. And yet he doesn’t even blink when he calls Hillary Clinton crooked. I probably don’t need to remind you of the damned wall, or him calling Mexicans criminals and rapists, how he will round up and deport all illegal immigrants or refuse Muslims to enter the country, or how he thinks global warming is a hoax and that there should be some form of punishment for women who have an abortion. Dissmissing allegations from women who claim he groped them by calling them too ugly for him: “look at her” “not my first choice”. The New York times filled two whole pages with a long list of people he publicly insulted since he announced his candidacy. His vile twitter account and infantile twitter feuds are so outrageous that this alone should make it impossible to become president.
I’m sure many share my immense frustration with how he constantly gets away with blatant lies and innuendo. How he is the epitome of “the pot calling the kettle black“, his bigotry, his misogyny, his “I never said that” – even when there is video coverage to prove he did. I’m so sick of his boastful exaggerations (or truthful hyperboles, as he likes to call them), his online bullying, his offline bullying, his pathologic narcissism, his blatant disregard for facts and competence, as in “I know more about how to win a war than the US generals”; his ugly opportunism, his megalomania, his claiming anything that doesn’t go his way “is rigged”, wether it’s his tv show not winning the Emmy, or losing the debate, or …whatever. And frankly I hate his “goodly” and his “bigly” and his “believe me, believe me”. When this sort of behaviour gets you close to 60 million votes for president – how do you not break down and cry?
I also cried for Hillary Clinton – not mainly because we didn’t get our first woman president in the USA, although his would have been very cool and of fantastic symbolic value. But let’s get real, a woman president, monarch or prime minister is ancient history in most of the world. (I still remember how I swooned over Iceland’s president Vigdis Finnbogadottir whom I actually got to shake hands with one time she visited Norway in the early 1980’s) – That said, I DO think it’s high time America gave it a try too.
Anyway, for me it’s not so much about not getting a woman elected US president – I cried because I truly feel that the US chose a bigoted, misogynistic, immature, racist bully & confirmed con man with no political experience or accomplishments over an exceptionally well prepared, accomplished and qualified candidate who has fought her entire working life for better conditions in areas like justice, equality, education, child care, women’s health, universal health care, diversity and tolerance (well, not LGBT form the very start, but eventually: big time).
– I find myself blaming this depressing and frustrating campaign season and its ultimate, disastrous conclusion on sexism, racism, ignorance, reckless media coverage, outrageous double standards and foul play.
Clinton presented a plan to reduce the mind-blowingly unfair tax cuts for the extremely rich and to recharge the American economy by investing in upstarts and smaller businesses all over the country. She wished to invest heavily in alternative energy, thus willing to risk a lot of votes in the the fossil fuels segments of America. Also, she was not about to leave ‘obamacare’ unchecked – she publicly acknowledged its flaws because she has studied successful health care solutions all over the world for many years and knows that major adjustments are needed.
I haven’t even mentioned her unprecedented relevant experience she has accumulated as secretary of state, first lady, senator and other politically relevant working experiences (Arkansas Attorney general, pro bono child advocacy work and … well, just look it up for yourself if you want to know more). On top of this comes her well established connections and rapport with international leaders all over the world.
I do not think she is without flaws. One major mistake during the campaign was calling trumpsters “deplorables”. Not good, not even close. But for all the issues and non-issues that have been raised and raised again: no other candidate in the history of candidates has ever been more thoroughly scrutinized, vetted, investigated and subsequently cleared. Comparably, there’s basically “nothing there”.
I voted for her in the democratic nomination eight years ago too, and as much as I really do love the Obamas (I mean: Come on!!!) I still felt she was better qualified for the job. Although, in light of recent events I realize that with the disdain, sexism and double standards she has had to battle most of her adult life … she probably wouldn’t have won the white house then either.
On the matter of “how could they?”
Many americans need and deserve change and to be seen and heard, I get that. The significance of that rural cry for attention and relief appears to have been grossly ignored, underestimated or under-prioritized both by the media and by the establishment / “Washington”. This hurts. I get that. And it’s only natural to at least consider “what’s in it for me”.
I expect a big chunk of the votes were good old, far right, racist hate-voting, which of course is truly sad. Yet, what really pains me at this juncture is the thought that if the people who wanted change for ‘legitimate’, non-racist, non-sexist reasons had bothered to take just a few minutes to check what was actually on the table, the majority would find that the only candidate with an actual, plausible plan to help them was Hillary Clinton. (I agree that his may not apply in ‘coal-country’ and certainly not those among the filthy rich who mostly care about getting even richer through another failed “trickle down”-policy.)
I know I’m being presumptious, but I can’t help feeling that a lot of voters didn’t care or bother to find out what was really at stake or what concrete solutions the two candidates were actually putting forth. I’m generally bothered by mental laziness, at least on important matters. I urged and will still urge everyone to vote, because democracy depends on it. But democracy has its flaws; democracy does not ‘work’ if people are simply moved by empty slogans and flat out lies about the state of the country, and they can’t be bothered to do a minimum of fact-checking. That, in my opinion, is the flip side of democracy and eerily reminiscent of how Hitler came to power.
So yes, I cried a lot yesterday because of the 2016 US election, even if this happened miles away from my comfortable life in pretty safe and fairly decent, above averagely pro equality little old Norway.
True or false, I found this possible Trump-quote to be pertinent to the case
