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| U.S. President-Elect Donald Trump |
To my fellow left wingers in despair tonight as President-Elect Donald Trump speaks: this is not the end of the world, not close. Trump is a divisive, obnoxious and often offensive candidate - he may be very dangerous indeed.
But the United States and the world have survived more dangerous presidents in more difficult times.
Richard Nixon was a paranoid psychopath who escalated the immoral Vietnam War, bombed Cambodia and Laos, persecuted his political enemies and brought the world close to war. He backed the military overthrow of democratically-elected Chilean President Salvador Allende and supported the Pinochet dictatorship.
Ronald Reagan was approaching senility during his presidency, waged covert war against Nicaragua, supported death squads in El Salvador and Guatemala and much more.
George W. Bush was a cocaine using draft avoider who invaded Iraq and Afghanistan at huge cost of lives while destabilizing the entire Middle East to this day, while VP Dick Cheney and others ran the US government.
Trump may yet prove worse, though those are terrible enough measures on which to judge.
But let us reflect - and not get wrapped up in overwrought emotion when a clear sense of history is so urgently needed.
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5 comments:
I feel much the same way or maybe moreso; I think Trump could do a lot of good things, especially with a Republican Congress but he may have to be kept in check which no doubt the left-lib MSM will be keen to try to do.
Canada's economy probably will benefit directly and quickly from a regime change away from Obama and to Trump and PM Justin Trudeau deserves kudos for wisely not taking the bait to mouth off against Trump prematurely.
BCNDP needs to study the demographics behind Trump's populist win and learn some lessons and adjust their platform asap or else they'll badly lose yet another winnable election in May 2017. But of course many left-lib activists will be forever in denial of reality.
The writing is on the wall but the naive idealists refuse to read it. Too bad. They'll repeat the same old mistakes.
JT
I was not exactly thrilled about either candidate but some of today's bitterness out of the left kind of kills the myth that progressives are kinder and gentler. Bill's comments are relatively polite compared to some I've heard today.
Those on the left should try to accept this with a modicum of grace, as I tried to do when Notley swept in here.
History seems to be judging Reagan more kindly as time goes on and the first Bush administration (which I notice you left out) is starting to look pretty good as well. I could read more on the subject, but my impression of the Bill Clinton administration from Halberstam's War in a Time of Peace is that he was so preoccupied with doing a decent job on the deficit, that he neglected foreign policy, leading to much bloodshed in the Balkans and perhaps the rise of Al-Qaeda. It is too early to judge the repercussions of Obama's (mis?)handling of the Arab Spring.
I have cautious hopes that Keystone XL will get going again, avoiding billions of legal fees and getting our socially licensed Alberta oil to market. Canada will need that business to offset losses due to protectionism in softwood lumber and other places. Bill and I are both old enough to remember the loud progressive opposition to NAFTA back in the day. Remember that when you listen to progressive hand-wringing about Trump's threats to tear it up.
Last night, rather than suffer through the results, I went to the latest Start Trek movie, which was just OK, but a decent enough distraction. There are lots of things to be grateful for in life, in particular, our health. Live long and prosper Bill!
Peter
Its a good thing that our political leaders are somewhat constrained by advisers . Im trying to imagine how the renegotiating NAFTA would go if Trump and Trudeau were to go one on one.
The drama teacher vs the tycoon. Canada would be lucky to hold its sovereignty
13.
Last week Obama care would be shut down,yet last evening parts of the medical plan would be kept. Big mouth,insulting a large number of folks, wonder what he will backtrack on. He even managed to insult the republican who spent a number of years in "The Hanoi Hilton" What next??
Yes, left wingers should not disappear about right wing governments, as they have been in place for years. Except in BC when Glen Clark was premier and we had the most successful gov't in the province. It was the last time we had a balanced budget and surplus. No wonder he was hired by Jim Patterson. Who hires G. Campbell; it was Stephen Harper, because he was a yes man.
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