When I booked this transatlantic cruise to Barcelona I was aware that I would be away for the election of 2024. Actually part of the reason I booked was to be away at this time and my desire to see Barcelona.
I knew if I went away I would come back and face either of two situations: Kamala Harris or Donald Trump would be President. I felt that it didn’t matter what I did, one of these two situations would be true on my return. Could I make a difference if I stayed home? I didn’t think so. Canvassing was out of the question, phone calls would be possible, but I thought what would help me the most and possible others is writing about this moment in time when our disbelief in what is happening is the reality. If you can use any of this information to convince a person on the fence about who to vote for, please do. The information is factual.
Please please help me understand
So you are watching this ad and thinking, look at what a regular guy this is, working the window of a MacDonald’s…..he’s just like me. I heard a few jokes he made at a rally—he was poking fun at the incident of Paul Pelosi being assaulted. I just realized I used the word “joke”—that kinda confirms my believe that Trump’s behavior has been normalized. Who would poke fun at someone else’s harm? I know it is definitely not 70 million people. No one would want their children to behave with that meanness and disregard of others welfare–that’s a given.
If you ask a Trump voter about this behavior they might say “that is just the way he talks—he will be a tough leader and I am in favor of his policies” [a bit more about policies later in the week].
Then you might add: does that include the content of the “talk”. Can you accept the content of the “way he talks”. Can you accept that the joke was about someone who was assaulted. Someone please tell me who the fuck thinks that is funny. Well in this moment there are more than 70 million people who will vote for Trump and probably have laughed at that “joke.” I step back for a moment to think maybe not all 70 million Trump voters thought the “joke” was funny—maybe some laughed because of their nervousness, or others because the person next to them did, or others who were surprised by the comment and, sadly, others who thought it was a “joke” and a “joke” that they thought was funny. So possibly about 22 million of our neighbors think poking fun at someone’s else harm is okay and funny. Trump thinks it is funny—that is who he is and I guess about 22 million of my countryfolk are as well.
Oh BTW, do some of those people go to church as well. What hypocrisy! Damn, I didn’t think I would get to this state of ranting but it is beyond all of my intellect to accept the polar opposites of Churchgoers and Trump on this particular issue of hateful jokes.
So what about the other 44 million citizens who don’t think Trump is funny—why would they vote for him.
Well there is Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House. He does not think that Trump is funny. When he was on CNN SOTU this past Sunday he avoided every question that was asked of him. Jake Tapper was following up on the Trump rally speech that focused a bit of time on Arnold Palmer’s “junk”. Tapper decided he would use the word “penis” so there be no misunderstanding. Johnson shied away from any talk of penises and put that sardonic smile on his face. His smile informs us that Mike is under the impression that his policies and ideas will carry over to a new Trump administration. It matters not that Trump’s behavior would never be normalized in his coterie. This is a man who tracks his son’s activity on the internet to keep him honest about how many times he visits a porn site—he is not now, nor never will be, a man who uses bad language or makes hateful jokes in public places. He is a confirmed card- carrying Christian Nationalist who makes no excuses for his ideology. After all Mike believes that as long as he smiles while mildly scolding his candidate about language and never admits that Trump did not win in 2020—his loyalty to Trump will not be questioned.
The Speaker believes his loyalty will be rewarded and abortion will be outlawed everywhere, and possibly that might happen. But, he will be surprised when Trump decides to abandon the abortion issue because it does not serve his pursuit of power. Trump cares nothing about whether women have self determination about their bodies, he cares about being on the right side of the issue. The “right side” is the side that brings the power to him. It is the “Mike Johnsons” who will put aside their distaste of Trump in pursuit of their ideology.
So let us assume that there are about 22 million “Mike Johnsons” out there.
And now to the last 22 million Trump voters. Who are they? I think they can be broken down into 3 or possibly 4 groups. There are the Elon Musks of the world—those who actually understand Trump and know he is their path to acquiring power and influence in his administration. A Trump administration would definitely reward those wealthy few with generous tax breaks. Possibly a second group are those who cannot under any circumstance vote against a Republican. This group has fallen into the “label” hole. Their attachment to the label “Republican” blinds them to the label change. Beware of those labelled Republicans–they are no longer Republicans.
A third group might be the misinformed, uninformed and I don’t really care enough about elections.
Oh indeed, talking about Arnold Palmer’s “junk” is such a fresh approach to attracting voters. Now for sure, this is the guy I want for President. This is the guy I want to represent American interests to the rest of the world.
The media has helped us transition to the normalization of Trump. When once there would be an uproar so loud, so forceful, so impactful to Trump’s behavior—we now talk “penises” on CNN SOTU.
I assure you that Trump and the action of 70 million+ voters is not normal and should never be considered normal for then it becomes true.
I need to understand, maybe you can help.
Fun and Other Serious Matters 
You know my friend, there is no understanding. Does no one care he is a convicted felon among so many other things TNTC. I am in the process of trying to find out how to apply for dual citizenship….it probably won’t happen but I like to think about living in Italy.
You know my friend, there is no understanding. Does no one care he is a convicted felon among so many other things TNTC. I am in the process of trying to find out how to apply for dual citizenship….it probably won’t happen but I like to think about living in Italy.
Recently it’s become more difficult to apply for Italian citizenship. I know because my daughter began researching and gathering paperwork in 2018 because of (of course!) Trump.
At that time, if you had an ancestor who emigrated from Italy and was not yet naturalized when the next direct ancestor was born (in this case, my maternal grandfather, then my mother), every direct ancestor thereafter was entitled to apply for dual citizenship.
But it’s really daunting finding, translating and organizing all the birth and marriage certificates for every generation. If there’s a misspelling or discrepancy, it must be corrected and verified.
When Biden won, it was less urgent and she put it on back burner.
However the Italian laws were recently changed. Now the first ancestor (my grandfather) cannot have acquired citizenship while the next in line (my mother) was still a minor. She would have to have been at least 18. We, and the vast majority of applicants, no longer qualify. Particularly heartbreaking for those who fulfilled all paperwork, in some cases hired translators, hired lawyers, at considerable expense – some already had consulate appointments which were then cancelled. Those who had already been granted dual citizenship under the former rules will thankfully retain it.
Hoping you qualify if you decide to go forward. There is actually a Facebook group devoted to this subject.
I do have a friend who offered us, only half in jest, her finished basement in Toronto. 😉
Thank you for the info. I knew applying for Italian citizenship would be daunting. Do you have the link for the FB page/group? Of course, I can just go and live there for the next few years without citizenship. And there are other places to move to temporarily. But I really like Italy.
There is always Australia or New Zealand…but they are so far away, no one would ever come to visit me there.
It’s the dog whistle from Trump and his followers. He will be a champion of decisiveness and racism. Most of his followers don’t realize his flawed policies will hurt them just as much as any other group. They are not sophisticated enough to realize he’s taking their money to finance tax cuts to folks and corporations that don’t need it. This guy isn’t of low character, he is of no character. Intelligent folks don’t even give him the time of day. However, he has all of these followers. Why? It’s one of America’s deep imbedded flaws. Racism my friend.
I can’t help. I will only add to your well-written rant. I am very fearful. I can’t travel or I might leave too. Even take my mail-in ballot to the Electors office.