HOW TO CHOOSE?

     Woke up thinking to write about one topic and then read the news and uh-oh, another topic came up. So how to choose? Which is more important? Which raises my inner temperature? Difficult choice, actually, especially when both are close to my heart, but let's go with the national security one, the goose and gander one, the one which inherently points out the whole crock of this recent election and shouts out about the dangers facing us.
     Throughout the campaign we were receiving daily, sometimes hourly, pieces of "news" that would roil the situation. These are graced with the categorization of "fake news" which more simply can be called LIES. You know, a rose by any other name.....We pride ourselves on being sharp, on being foolproof, yet how many jumped on the band wagon, eager to believe all they heard, particularly if it spoke against Hilary, accusing her of dastardly deeds, never mind the proof or the timing. Wonder if these people had been in  my class and had been exposed to the bandwagon/propaganda unit if they would have been so gullible?
     Comey, the FBI director was quite okay with  his conscience at releasing all his "news" despite being in the middle of a so called investigation. Timing is everything, you see. And yet, yesterday, when caught with his pants down, holding onto information harmful to Trump, suddenly the investigation precluded any release. Yet we all know that there is almost nothing held secret for long in today's environment.
So what's up?
     I have long used the term Manchurian candidate with regard to Trump. I have long stated that he is a puppet of Russia, in particular his best bud, Putin. And today we have information about x rated video of him with prostitutes in Russia in a hotel room. "Kompromat" indeed! We are told that the Russians have compromising material and information about Trump re financial and personal status. We already know that Trump owes money to approximately 150 banks worldwide. These are serious allegations indeed and Trump's reaction - shouting on his Twitter account. Getting old already. Can the man never stand on his own two legs and stand up as a man and face people? Can he ever tell the truth?
     Yesterday I finally saw, for the first time, the video of him waving his hands around and making ugly sounds as he imitated a disabled reporter - right to his face! Ugly does not begin to cover the scene and yet this man has the gall to deny it! He never said it! He never did it! I think not.
     We have appointees who lie through their teeth and why not, for their boss does it all the time! They will uphold the law, they say. Really? And when pressed to answer whether they would do that if the law were inherently wrong, we got the obey the law business again. Seems to me I heard that, we all heard that before, "I was only following orders" again? Again? When will we hear someone say I will do what is morally right? Ever? Certainly not with this gang of billionaires. Certainly not with our having a shadow president of what 35 or 38 years of age who will continue to have his fingers and thumbs into his business and please, do not tell me that ceding them to his brother and mother makes a difference!!
     And this situation is the same for all the nominees. Where are their ethics papers? What has happened to their holdings? How do we make sure we are governed by honest and impartial as possible people who have the interests of the nation at heart and not their own financial well being? Certainly not within the Trump administration. Not at all.
     This flying in the face of all that is proper and right carries over into every other area. If we disrespect all who do not have "our" money amounts, if we disrespect people based on gender, orientation, color and physical condition, then how can we have a good and moral administration? These are minimum requirements for any administration and while none are perfect, perhaps we should remember to always go forward and not turn the clock backwards on what is acceptable and moral, good, and not evil. People are allowed to vote because they are allowed to vote. Period. There are no exceptions if the voter is a citizen in good standing (felon laws aside and there is room for questioning there as well). Government officials are subject to the law, same as everybody else, and if they violate the trust they have been given then out they must go!
     And goose and gander, folks. What is demanded of one person, one candidate, must be demanded of the other. No exceptions and certainly there needs to be a level of intelligence that people need to pass before they can run for office! Have we elected a brain deficient morally lacking person as our president? G-d help us, and let us all save ourselves as best we can. At present what we have is a president elect who for sure, gives rise to many laughs as he is just so out there in his behavior, in his statements, in the facial and physical gestures he makes, in his denials of truth in his own tweets, but that is not his job, to provide us with amusement, rather he is supposed to provide us with careful and thoughtful leadership and it ain't there, folks, it just ain't and what is more, it is not there in dangerous times and so on whom are we to rely? With whom can we develop trust? And are we to look forward to censorship of our media? A limitation on freedom of speech? A Hollywood that will be limited to propaganda films that glorify him and his henchmen? Where does it all stop? And never think that this country is immune to the dangers of fascism. Never!
     I am sad, and worried, apprehensive and wondering. Where did we go wrong? Where did we allow one who garners support from hatemongers to have such power? How did we elect one who has a potty mouth and predator behavior, the soul of a grifter and the ego of a child? And why are we afraid to talk about him? And why have good friends made pacts not to talk politics with each other? We are supposed to be the UNITED States of America and yet we all know that is no longer the case. Like climate change, have we reached the tilting point or is there yet hope for us, for the USA of the future?
     I am praying and hoping and working for the latter. Why not join in, speak up, speak out, see the truth as it presents itself and stop turning blind eyes, purposefully blind eyes, to the deeds of this person and his crew. Yes, you can be ashamed at your pick, but now try to make it better by overcoming the hate he engenders, the financial misdeeds that we can be facing, the inherent unfairness to huge segments of society. If we all do not work together, well......