Why did Trump Get Elected

When Trump was elected in 2016 I felt we had an opportunity to change. We could begin to see the overriding dynamics of our country and decide to change. Instead we seem to have decided to make the chasm deeper and I see those who claim to want an end to this division being a catalyst for its widening. Silencing those who disagree does not end the division, whether it be through legislation or media social bulling. In fact that is how I believe we got here today. ( Hacking your mind on PBS https://www.pbs.org/video/us-vs-them-2t0c0s/)

When I was a teenager I felt pulled. I was a jock, but always had deep spiritual questions and saw the other side of an argument as having merit. I remember a song in the 60's that had a line, 'Don't hate me because my hair's too long'. I always heard in the back of my head,' Don't hate me because my hair is too short'. We often think of the 60's as being the decade of love and free spirit. I found it to be very judgmental. It seemed to be free love and peace.... as long as you agree with me. If you did not agree you were demonized.

My mother who voted both times for Obama said during his second term that she was disappointed. Her complaint was that he wasn't doing anything for people like her. The Middle Class who worked and paid taxes all their life. Instead she saw insurance premiums and taxes going up while, as she saw it, minorities and illegals aliens got the benefits. One night she had to sleep on a cot in the hallway of a hospital at 92 years old because all the beds were full. Once she learned that more than one illegal alien had a bed she broke into tears. She said, " I never thought there would come a day when a white person who worked hard all their life and paid their taxes would be penalized." I am not saying she was right and she was considering all factors. She was not. But still it was how she felt.

I can remember a friend saying to me once, "The hardest thing to be in America today is a middle class hard working white male.". I thought of that when Bill Clinton said after the 2016 election that all Trump proved he could do was get angry white men to vote for him. I thought to myself. ' What an out of touch racist thing to say'.

Trump has not divided us. He was elected because we were ( and still are) divided. Many hard working people were tired of having the tyranny of democracy impose taxes and legislation on them. They were tired of political analysts telling them how they should and should not think. They could see the unfair treatment Trump got in the press and comedians making fun of him with characterizations of him especially those that claimed he lost all the debates with Clinton. They were tired of politicians and political games.

They had believed all their lives if they worked hard, were kind and honest, they could provide for their families and someday retire and enjoy the fruits of their labor. That belief has faded with rising taxes, insurance premiums and other sources pulling at their income. Now I know some will say well it is harder for minorities. I will answer this in depth in a latter post, but for now I ask:

When did two wrongs ever make a right?

How is the greater good served when it is based on bringing some down to uplift others?

On a spiritual basis I ask, what is the energy being spudded into the world. Hate is hate as far as that which creates the world is concerned and what it manifests is a world based on that hate. Putting people down, even if your think you are right and they are wrong, you are good and they are bad, creates a dark world.

I did not vote for Trump. There are things he says about people personally and the way he says things that pushed me away. But it saddened me to see the way some things he said were twisted to demean his character. I remember my step-father who loved all things Mexican and had spent times in border towns saying, any country, any race has criminals, and some of the Mexican criminals do take advantage of a loosely guarded border to commit crimes in the US and return home before they can be caught. Mexico does have a large organized criminal element that is very powerful and has cartels established in the US. But that does not mean saying so is racists. It is true to one degree or another of all races. You don't have to say all people in one race are perfect or make excuses and justify the actions of some to be a non-racist. Many middle class Americans saw the classification of Trump as a racist as being part of the same political positioning that had forgotten them and lowered their quality of life.

Overall what they saw was a hypocrisy in the machine that ran against him.

Question: Do you think we were divided before Trump was elected?

No. He is the great divider ___

Maybe somewhat ____

Yes ___

Question: Do you feel he has divided us further or did his election make us more open and loud about our differences?

He is the great divider ____

The differences, for the most part are now clearer___

Question: Have the democrats played a role our divisiveness?

Not at all. Their actions unify us. ____

Maybe a little ____

Yes ___

I had hoped that the political arena would see that they had to change their approach from seeking the votes of segments of the population to understanding that they served all people and that the engine that runs America, the working middle class, no matter what race or sex, has to be cherish and nurtured. I was hoping the deep divides in or society would be recognized we could then begin to heal them. I did not see this. I had hoped the democrats especially would see it and take the lead. Instead, as I see it, the opposite is happening.

My first disappointment was from a group I met with once a week. This was a group of supposedly very spiritual people, mostly women. Before every meeting they meditated and sent a white light out to the world to heal it and bring love to it. The week before the election they were all smiles in anticipation of Hilary Clinton's election. They were discussing how easily she would win. I was shunned when I suggested it would be close and not to be surprised if Trump won. The people in the group all claimed to have some degree of psychic power and the leader often quoted a person she was connect with who could see political futures. She passed on that he had stated it would be a run away for Clinton and America would embark on a new journey of equality and peace. We met the day after the election and the hate and anger was palpable in the room. When one member said ," Well at least now the cockroaches are out in the open." many shook their heads in agreement. I had to speak up and said their words and emotions might be poisoning the world. For people who felt they could meditate and infuse healing light into the world, I though it would be easy for them to see that their negative (low) energy was counter to their meditation. As I tried further to explain how the world needed positive energy, they said I was being political and shunned me further. The hypocrisy forced me to leave the group shortly thereafter.

I thought to myself, maybe after a short time, a week a month, the shock would wear off and people would see. I was wrong. I began to see more and more how people who preached inclusion were pushing people who did not agree with them on policy, or had a different lens on life than they did, away and excluded them. I do not see how you can get to inclusion via exclusion. I am reminded of a saying about Berkeley, CA. Berkeley is considered a very liberal city. It has stood for years as a paragon of free speech. Some now call it the city of free speech, as long as you say things I like.

Question: Do you think demeaning or demonizing a side brings us closer together?

It can't be helped. Some people will not see ____

It hurts but is necessary to open their eyes ____

It hurts and creates division ____

What concerns me more is that the left has doubled down on it practices, the same ones I think lost the 2016 election, I feel it could well lead to another Trump victory in 2020 and a subsequent redouble down on diversionary practices. How can a black US congress woman stand up on camera and say, " Anyone who supports Trump is either a racist or just plain stupid", and have no one see that as hypocritical. Does she think Trump supporters said to themselves, ' She's right, I need to change!' or does she think they might dig their heels further into the ground? Every time someone demeans or demonizes Trump they demean and demonize his supporters. This creates a deeper and stronger push back from Trump's supporters. I don't think they will be silenced again as they were before 2016. Either election result that comes to pass, the world will not be healed.

Question: Do you think defeating Trump and imposing new policies will change his supporters?

They will see the light _____

Who cares as long as we get our way ____

It can't be helped but the world will appear better ____

It might make them louder and the world will still be divided ____

Question: Do you think demonizing Trump and his supporters make us less divided?

No _____

At least it gets to the truth ____

Maybe if we listened and lived in the grey things would improve ______

I do hope that whatever the results, it will open the way for a new future leader that respects all people. One that will truly focus on bringing people together. Someone that is more of a mediator than an activist. One that respects the sovereignty of the individual versus imposing their agenda. Maybe a further divide will force us to see how both sides are playing a part in it and motivate us to get to purple.

Question: Would you like to see such a leader?

No not at all ____

It would be impossible to get us to find solutions that works for both sides _____

Maybe but he/she would never get elected____

Yes _____