Bernie and Beyond

This is a pivotal week for the future of the United States as a democratic republic, and it concerns me like nothing has since 9/11.   Last week, we were treated to a demonization of Hillary Clinton like no major party candidate has ever been subjected to, with cries from the right of, "Lock her up!"   Now the "Bernie or Bust" left is threatening to cast a shadow over a Democratic convention run by Debbie Wasserman Shultz and a party establishment that has entertained the idea of taking the low road to prevent a Bernie Sanders nomination.   The latest email dump, shady circumstances and all, exposes people who are more bent on sabotaging a good man's fair shot at a nomination - one that showed more promise at keeping an egomaniacal demagogue out of the White House - than the party's "establishment" candiate. Shultz needs to quickly get as far away from Hillary Clinton's camp and the Philadelphia convention as possible while Clinton needs to reach out to disgruntled Sanders backers like never before.   Getting rid of superdelegates is a start.

What I prefer Bernie Sanders?   Absolutely, but don't think Donald Trump wouldn't wrongfully label him a communist more than Senator McCarthy used the term in the early fifties.   Sanders does better than Clinton in a matchup against Trump, but it would be nasty either way.   Did the Democratic Party have an anti-Sanders/pro-Clinton bias?   The latest email fiasco bears out what many already felt.   

I'll say it one more time.   Donald Trump is an existential threat to a political system (warts and all) that still holds more promise for mankind than any other system in history.   We have to get the outrageous influence of big money out of the equation.   To the Bernie or Bust liberals who went so far as to boo their own candidate when he called for supporting Hillary, I say get off your high ideological horse and remember that every protest vote against Hillary - or boycotting the November election entirely - is a Trump vote.   Once when we let our idealism blind us to reality, we got Nixon.   Trump is far worse.      

What I Can Do

Normally, I look forward to my WICH morning radio show.  Friday was a notable exception, with breaking news from Dallas of five policemen slain by a demented individual. That followed and preceded protests over black motorists shot to death by police in Louisiana and Minnesota.   Of course, the blogosphere had already exploded this week with outrage from people disappointed that Hillary Clinton avoided likely criminal charges and jail.

What do we do?   The obvious solution is through thoughtful and positive action based on common ground across the political spectrum, but how can that go forward when the public discussion is so negative?    

The 9/11 attacks left Americans in shock and horror, yet we were touched by stories of average people going above and beyond the call of duty while so many voices came together on a global scale.   Subsequent events would make this era of consensus a brief one.   So, what can I do in my own little way to get past the anger and ignorance that fuel the news cycle?   I don't have to look - or listen - far.

Yes, that would be radio... specifically, talk radio   My first reaction Friday was to call out people who benefit financially and politically by stoking the outrage and spreading the myth that "their people" are uniquely entitled to be that way.   You don't have to lecture this old broadcasting guy about the fact that I'm on the air to make money for me and my employer, but somewhere along the way it also slipped into my consciousness that radio was designed to be a public trustee.   I mentioned some time ago about a Providence radio host fostering a public nuisance, exploiting listeners' fears about the Ebola virus.   That host has also prospered as a national network fill-in.   What's the difference between that kind of yelling "fire" in a theatre and taking the fear and hate to the next level in the context of this week's news?   Funny how they're never wrong about anything.   Beware of people who prey on ignorance and fear on the radio as with every segment of society.   When the opportunity presents itself, I will call out people in my business and others who play off fear and ignorance.

So take a walk in the sun, a drive in the country or crank up some feelgood music.   Limit your exposure to so-called "news" that has a clear agenda of profitability based on ideology.   America is a promise, not an irreparably broken reality.     

Let the Voters Decide

I woke up in the middle of the night and made the mistake of checking Facebook.   There was outrage over the FBI director's announcement that there was no legal basis for prosecution over Hillary Clinton's emails. Director Comey, widely respected on both sides of the aisle, did deliver a stinging criticism of the careless and systemic use of a private server potentially vulnerable to hackers.   There was no sign of hacking.   Nor was there evidence of intentional flaunting of security protocols.   That said, social media (and undoubtedly right wing talk radio) are abuzz about a "corrupt" and "rigged" system where the Clintons are above the law.   Speaker Paul Ryan even referred to it as a miscarriage of justice.   Donald Trump, in true third world political fashion and devoid of real information (as usual), for months has called for Hillary Clinton's jailing for the sole purpose of pandering to his base.

The FBI was in a no-win situation, but I see no need to disparage the director's motives. They'd get political heat for a drawn out probe as well as a quick conclusion.   Carelessness does not necessarily mean lawlessness, and he made that call based on tons of evidence.   The issue of Hillary Clinton's trustworthiness and overall competence should be where it belongs: with the voters.   She's got her work cut out for her, and I fail to see where Clinton money and power have made her anything close to some Teflon figure.   Certainly the optics alone of Bill Clinton's airport encounter with the Attorney General Loretta Lynch were enough to send Clinton PR people into damage control overdrive.

When it comes to truth on issues, Presidential demeanor, experience and overall competence, Donald Trump has a lot of mending fences to do.   He shows no signs of doing that as he praised Saddam Hussein for "killing terrorists."   Let the American voters decide whether or not he should be entrusted with the nuclear codes.   Votes count!

Brexit - Stage Right

For those select few among us on this side of the pond who actually paid attention, the vote in England (except London) and Wales to leave the European Union came as a shock.  British Prime Minister David Cameron announced his resignation as the hopes of the Obama admnistration and much of the international community were dealt a serious blow in a close vote.   Donald Trump, in Scotland primarily promoting his new golf resort, claimed victory in Britain "taking back" its independence while ignorant of the fact that Scotland itself had actually voted to remain in the EU as the likelihood of a new Scottish independence move increased.   Stock markets tumbled around the world.

That's not all.   In addition to Scotland talking again about breaking away from the UK, there are rumblings in other European nations about divorcing themselves from the EU.   Right wing nationalist and isolationist politicians are capitalizing on fear as immigration and terrorism become an even hotter topic.   Here what makes this British divorce from the EU so scary.   Europe has had decades of relative peace thanks in large part to effective cooperation amomng nations.   Military alliances alone such as NATO are no check against rampant isolation, hyper nationalism and ethnic divisions.  

I get it... mostly.   There are lots of older blue collar, rural, white and less educated Americans and Europeans who feel alienated by increasing globalism and technology in the economy.  There's a feeling that they're "losing" their countries to immigration and political correctness, but I think much of that fear is misguided.   The gap between the one per cent wealthiest and the rest of us is almost unprecedented.   Bernie Sanders is right in hammering this point home and forcing Hillary Clinton to pay more attention to where the true outrage should be directed.  Trump and Clinton are both part of that financial elite, yet Trump's demagoguery would place most of the blame on immigration and the intellectual elites who routinely refute his faulty "pants on fire" statements.   Unfortunately, passions seem to be overwhelming logic these days and it's not likely to get better soon.   Even if Trump gets clobbered in November, the polarization on both sides of the Atlantic needs to be addressed without jokers like Trump exploiting it.