WESTMINSTER WEST — As I write, we are mere days from the inauguration of Donald J. Trump - a political D-day in my view.
I wasn't surprised by Trump's presidential victory, but I was horrified and so very ashamed of our country. America has elected a man who personifies the ugliest of human traits: greed, arrogance (the flip side of insecurity), cruelty, and self-aggrandizement, to name a few.
A serial liar with such unlimited hubris that he thinks that he alone can untangle and fix the web of the country's problems by following his guts and shooting from the hip without an ounce of knowledge and with no ability to even sit through a briefing, much less glean any information from it.
A man who can't resist a gloating tour so he can relive the adoration of his followers and jab insults at former opponents.
A man so cowardly that he lobs Twitter bombs alone in his bunker penthouse like some wronged teenager rather than reveal his ignorance at press conferences.
What a pathetic, messed-up creature - and he is about to become one of the most powerful people on Earth.
Heaven help us!
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Contrary to his belief, Trump did not get elected on his own. He had help from the media, from a corrupt political system that practices gerrymandering and gorges on unlimited dark money, from two political parties that use their respective bases during the heat of each presidential cycle only to abandon them and ignore their problems once elected, and from public schools, whose decades of decline have led to a stunningly ignorant electorate who vote against their own interests and drink from the well of fake news, false accusations, and unrealistic promises.
Oh, and let's not forget two of Trump's buddies: FBI Director James Comey, whose unprecedented interference helped sway the election, and, of course, fellow thug, Vladimir Putin.
For those who dismiss the charge that Trump is a racist, the proof is all over the place, most notably in his choice of Steve Bannon, who, as the chief White House strategist, will have a good deal of power and influence.
Bannon is former chief executive of the infamous and repugnant Breitbart “news” website, which writes glowingly about neo-Nazi leader Richard Spencer, and the site clearly supports his movement.
In addition, Trump's pick of Senator Jeff Sessions for attorney general is telling.
Sessions was the only nominee under the Reagan administration to be turned down for a federal judgeship, because of his racism.
Examples included calling a black attorney “boy,” suggesting that a white lawyer working for black clients was a race traitor, and calling the NAACP and other civil rights' groups un-American.
This is the man who will be in charge of enforcing the nation's civil-rights laws. How chilling.
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Republicans and some in the media are falling all over their own words in an attempt to normalize Trump. If Trump is the norm in this country, then we are a nation in rapid moral decline. Forgive my sophisticated analysis: we're in deep doo doo.
I disagree with people who say that most of Trump's followers aren't racist. Just tune into the Internet to hear the roar of that rabble.
For those Trump voters who deny being members of that club, I ask: isn't condoning such over-the-top behavior or looking the other way the moral equivalent of supporting it?
The position that Trump's support was mostly born out of the economic frustrations of blue-collar workers doesn't address the question; if it did, then why didn't people of color in that category also flock to Trump?
As far as those blue-collar whites, I think many of them will be sorely disappointed in their chosen leader. How could they possibly think that a billionaire who spent decades cheating, bullying and suing so many regular-Joe workers could possibly be on their side?
I also disagree with people who think of Trump as a smart man. I think he's very wily but not too bright. Couple that with his reckless compulsiveness and insatiable ego, and you've got someone who is very vulnerable to those who are smarter and more experienced with the political ways of the world.
The fact that Trump has outsourced the staffing of many government positions to the Heritage Foundation gives credence to the ultraconservative think-tank's influence, and some foreign policy experts cringe at the thought of how Putin will run circles around Trump.
In short, Trump is out of his league, and we're all going to pay for it given the Faustian deal the Republican controlled congress has made with the president-elect in order to retain control of all three branches of government.
Trump's cabinet picks are equally troubling. His nominees bring a lack of government experience, far-right ideology and, in many cases, a history of denouncing and/or working towards destroying the very agencies they will head.
Let's look at just two examples. One: Betsy DeVos for the department of Education. She has poured millions into campaigns promoting charter schools, especially religious ones. Her stated goal for school choice is “greater Kingdom gain, i.e., more Christian control over America's schools.
DeVos's previous efforts suggest a further gutting of public schools, which would leave the poorest of the poor trapped in strapped and abandoned school systems.
Separation of church and state anyone?
Two: Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Pruitt is a climate change denier who would push for the U.S. to drop out of the Paris climate change agreement, defund all climate change research, support fossil fuels, and strip away many of EPA's current regulations.
Acceleration of global warming anyone?
Trump's cabinet picks are downright frightening.
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Finally, Trump's green light to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) - and, despite his campaign promises, privatize and cut Social Security - are the stuff of nightmares. Yes, there are problems with ACA, but there's no denying that millions who currently have health insurance under the program would lose it.
The obscenity of a for-profit health care system has a long, sordid history in our country, and repealing the ACA would cause even more suffering. The lack of a single-payer health care system is one of this country's biggest shames.
Conversely, Social Security has been one of the crown jewels of our country, yet now the years of threats to the program may become reality.
Most people's Social Security payments are meager but essential to their survival. Could you imagine the chaos and desperation that would have unfolded if Social Security had been privatized at the time of the 2008 crash?
I rest my case.
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As for the impact of Trump's reign on Vermont, I'm concerned. Vermont is a great state, but we aren't immune to the same problems as other states - not by a long shot.
As of 2015, Vermont's poverty rate was 12.2 percent, and you don't have to look too hard to see evidence of income inequality in our state. It's not unusual to see a stretch of decrepit houses just down the road from large estates that stand empty 10 months out of the year.
Don't get me wrong: people have a right to spend their hard-earned money any way they want. My issue is with a cruel economic system that rewards a few lavishly and punishes many with poverty even though those low-wage earners work just as long and hard. I think the system's about to become even more cruel.
Despite its reputation, Vermont has its share of environmental problems: water contamination with Perfluorooctanoic acid, high phosphorus levels in Lake Champlain, and the continuing loss of open lands and forests to development.
I also worry about the influence of outside money on our electoral process. There's no denying that it's seeping into the state more and more with each election cycle.
Yet, despite our problems, I'm usually humming right along with Vermont's praise singers, and I feel very lucky to have landed in such an amazing state.
Vermont is a caring state, as evidenced by the many non-profits that populate the state and the hard-working staff and volunteers that keep the doors open. There's a lot of caring on an individual level as well, be it from the plowman who plows a poor person's driveway year after year knowing full well that they'll never be paid for their services or the person who brings soup and company to a sick neighbor.
It's a struggle but, so far, Vermont is managing to keep a good amount of its land undeveloped, thanks to the wonderful land trusts and associations that preserve large tracts of land that serve as vital habitats and corridors for wildlife and provide such beauty and comfort to us all.
And finally, at least in my experience, our state politicians are accessible and responsive to their constituents. My out-of-town friends from larger states are envious that I can email or call a state representative and get a personal response. They are truly public servants, and I thank them for their service, which seems so pure and honorable when compared to the likes of Trump and his minions.
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I walk the woods of Vermont every day, both for work and pleasure. Sometimes my thoughts turn to the awful election results and I despair.
During those moments, I will myself to stop and observe the beautiful woodlands that I am blessed to call home. I take out a worn scrap of paper than I've been carrying around with me since shortly after the election. It contains the oft-quoted last line of a 1928 speech given by our 30th president, Calvin Coolidge. I have come to cherish it as my mantra of hope:
“If the spirit of liberty should vanish in other parts of the union, and support of our institutions should languish, it could all be replenished from the generous store held by the people of this brave little state of Vermont.”
Hold tight, Vermont, hold tight.