The U.S. and the Need to Act

As someone currently watching what is happening in the United States from outside – specifically from Canada, a country with great interest in the outcome – I find myself feeling some surprise and confusion. And, yes, anger.

I am not referring to the behaviour of Donald Trump. The firing of thousands of government employees for no reason, the cutting of funds for anything related to diversity, the jailing of innocent immigrants, the price increases, the racism and misogyny that are everywhere in his government, and the threats to take over foreign countries - some of his actions have been a bit of a shock, but most have not to anyone who has been following what he has been saying for years.

I am speaking of the reaction of the people. Or, more precisely, the lack of reaction.

This is a population of over 300 million that is dealing with a fascist government run by a man who is autocratically destroying their country. He has some support, but the majority of the people say that they are against him and what he is doing.

So where are the people refusing to let this happen? There have been a few protests, yes, but they are in the hundreds, not the millions, like I would expect. Where are the companies standing up to his ridiculous instructions? For that matter, where are the riots in the streets that we have seen over much more minor challenges to the status quo?

No one is doing anything beyond the official filing of court motions to stop him. This is a first step, but only works when:

1.       He does not own the judge, and

2.       He follows the law if it goes against him

At this point it does not appear that these can be reasonably expected.

I have seen a few people asking these questions on social media, and the answers are along the line of “I might lose my job”, “people are afraid”, etc. While these are true, they seem to me to pale beside losing your country. Much more frightening, at least to me, large numbers are saying that these things are in fact not happening, and that anyone who says they are is crazy.

It seems like the majority of Americans are still waiting for things to “get really bad”, not understanding that by the time it gets as bad as they fear, it will be far too late to stop it.

The Democrats, supposedly the opposition to Trump’s Republican party, are likewise sitting back and doing nothing. On the budget vote, their most obvious chance to come out against them, they actually voted with them to pass it.

We, the world, have been here before. More and more, Trump is taking his ideas from Adolph Hitler’s playbook – including, now, wanting to take over other countries. We know how this is likely to turn out if it is not stopped.

Do I want a civil war in the United States? Of course not. But, sadly, I am beginning to think it would be preferable to a third world war, and that seems to be the direction in which Donald Trump is heading.

Americans need to quit sitting back and watching. To do nothing is to support the fascists. They need to accept the fact that they are the only ones who can save their country, because it will soon be too late, if it isn’t already.

Trump's Tariff Threats

Donald Trump is lying about large numbers of illegal immigrants and drugs flowing from Canada into the United States – his excuse for a 25% tariff on all imports from Canada. The numbers are literally a trickle when compared to the southern border. But even if he was correct, so what?

It is the responsibility of the Canadian government to protect our border; to stop drugs, guns, and illegal immigrants coming into Canada. It is not our job to look after the American border. If the US government is not able to control their own border, that is their problem, and attacking Canada (and Mexico) is not a solution.

Drugs are being smuggled into the U.S. from a number of countries because it is known that there is a large market for them there.

People are crossing the border illegally, at least in part, because many Americans will hire workers without papers who will work for less than minimum wage.

These are not Canada’s problems. They are not Mexico’s problems. They will not be solved by Donald Trump imposing crippling tariffs that damage the economies of all three countries.

If the incoming U.S. government believes that they have problems with drugs and immigration, then they need to work on solving them, and not threaten others with crushing financial punishment if we do not fix their problems for them.

The History of Today

There’s one thing I love about history: you always know how things are going to turn out. Who will win the war, how many will die in the plague, what new countries will be formed, and, most importantly, that humanity will survive. History is broken into neat little packages like “the Norman invasion” and “the Spanish Inquisition”.

Life isn’t like that. Yes, this will be someone’s history someday (presuming the species does survive), but as we go from day to day, we don’t know how many are going to die in the pandemic, or if some of them are going to be people we love. We don’t know if the wars we hear about daily are going to explode into the next world war. We don’t even know how much groceries will cost next week, or if we will be able to continue to pay rent and feed the family.

This can cause a lot of stress, especially when many of the things we don’t know could mean the difference between life and death for us and the people we love. Sadly, there are political factions in several countries right now that, rather than trying to ease these fears, are taking advantage of them for their own purposes.

These extreme right-ring politicians are stoking the fear that people naturally feel, and encouraging them to turn it into anger and even hatred against groups with whom they disagree. Because some of them are good speakers with well-designed propaganda, talking to people who are already looking to find someone to blame for their negative feelings, they are succeeding all too well.

If elections were to occur today in both Canada and the U.S., according to polls, the extreme right wing would win in both countries. The people who are choosing hate and fear are supported by the majority.

We need to do something to change that before there really is an election. Propaganda will not be enough. We need to help people to feel less stress and fear for the future so that they will have less desire to follow the haters. Not an easy job, but here are a few suggestions:

• Spend time with a friend, and offer a bit of help if they are stressed (babysit so they have a night off, treat them to lunch, etc.)

• Volunteer (the food banks can use help right now)

• Look after your own physical and mental health

• Let people know they can talk to you if they need to

• Call or write your political representative to be sure they are doing what they should be for their people

• Make sure that you are registered to vote!

Our current political leaders are attempting to win the voters. In Canada, we have the beginning of Pharmacare and free dental care, as well as federal money going into housing throughout the country. $10-a-day day care is also being implemented, though it is also not complete. Hopefully these types of assistance will help, but it is up to all of us to look after each other. Don’t let fear and hatred win.