Americans are not a race and forming an opinion about
“the Americans” would therefore not count as racism. It would undeniably be a
generalisation. Yet what is one to think, when one learns that a year into
the election of this despicable man, his approval rating has hardly dipped
amongst Republicans in the United States.
After a year of Trumpism, four out of five
Republicans, still support this vile man. He represents their values, views and
wishes. They trust him to navigate their country best and feel comfortable in being
represented by him.
An approval rating that has not gone lower than 79%
and according to the latest Gallop poll, a few days ago, stood at 81% is sick
and is worrying. Not only is there no hope of impeachment (Republican politicians
who criticise Trump, get punished by voters!), but with such ratings, there is
no hope for America.
At a party in Los Angeles, last May, friends of
friends said to me “do not think badly of us, here we did not vote for him.” This
is difficult. It is difficult not to think badly of a society that allows such deterioration.
“God Bless
America”, like so many slogans, is also empty and meaningless.
It's simplistic to say of Trump & Americans He represents their values, views and wishes.
ReplyDeleteWhat he does represent is their anger; misguided for the most part, but very real. When we canvassed for Hillary more than one voter told us that they would have voted for Bernie over Trump but preferred Trump to Hillary.
I am quite surprised though that you are so outraged by the election of Trump to the White House. It was bound to happen sooner or later that such a man would make it. All the ingredients were there: a flawed electoral system in which the very wealthy have huge advantage, a poorly educated population, media which can print and say what they like, a population which wants all the upside of globalisation and immigrant labour and none of the down side, a Wall Street which does as it pleases and has massively ripped off the little people.
ReplyDeleteHuman beings are fundamentally the same the world over.
Their behaviour only varies because the cultural, economic, political and historical circumstances in which they find themselves vary.