“Donald Trump is the US’s present day would-be Hitler.”
If you think Trump has a lot of great things to say, do me a favor and read Hitler’s Willing Executioners and see how you feel after you’re done. Will we have another history book in a decade or two about how ordinary Americans lined up to eagerly deprive certain religious groups of rights, torture and kill people, deport nearly half their population, stories of Latino and Muslim Anne Franks forced to go into hiding to escape the US's tyranny, and, well, you get the idea? You do know what Trump wants to do, right? If not, you can get a nice, quick taste of the poison in Timothy Egan's well-written NYTimes piece here (In part, "Trump promises to arrest, sort, and deport 11 million people — a number more than 25 percent higher than the entire population of New York City. This from the nominal leader of a party that doesn’t think government can do anything well. In practice, (imagine the viral videos) the new operation would prompt a million Hispanic Anne Franks — people hiding in the attics and basements of Donald Trump’s America.")
I don’t really believe suffering makes anyone stronger; I believe it strips you down to your core and shows you what you’re made of. Germany has suffered and now this plain, small woman is fearlessly holding it together – not just Germany, but the whole EU – and welcoming refugees in staggering numbers. France responded to terrorist attacks with a rally for peace and the hashtag #RefugeesWelcome. Australia with the hashtag #IllRideWithYou.
In the US, on the other hand, we have Donald Trump. Ted Cruz. The “Tea Party.” And, of course, their "ordinary, American" supporters. A series of hatemongers so awful that even former Republican House Speaker John Boehner couldn’t take it, calling the Cruz set “false prophets.” See CNN. I’m not a fan of bringing religion into politics but if even a guy as conservative as Boehner thinks the Republican party is spiraling of control, maybe we ought to take that seriously. (Forbes)
People like Trump make me ashamed of my country. He represents all that is wrong, evil, base, gauche, and ignorant about this young country. Perhaps we should look to other nations led by people like Merkel and Hollande and take a lesson from our elders. That is, if we want to be "good." Especially during holiday season, we like to talk a lot about being "good." What does that really mean? Being kind, compassionate, generous? If we want to be good, we should be good. Being good doesn't mean you'll get a reward, though. It just means you were strong enough to do what is right for its own sake. Whether you will act with that kind of strength and courage is entirely up to you.