The War President

The War President

by Ruth A. Sheets

June 18, 2019

In the past week or so, Mr. Trump has been tweeting and calling out to reporters over the usual background helicopter that he does not want a war with Iran.  How do I know this is not true, you know, a lie?  Nothing related to Mr. Trump’s presidency in any way indicates that he does not want war with Iran, in fact, everything he has done cries out for a fight.  He has just been scanning to find the place he wants to strike.

Mr. Trump has been itching for a war since he was a candidate.  He couldn't make himself go to war back during Vietnam (bone spurs, you know), but he will be OK sending others to war.  

Mr. Trump’s hatred of Barack Obama is legendary.  His primary goal upon election was to destroy everything Mr. Obama had put into place.  One of those points was the agreement with Iran and numerous other nations to keep Iran from developing nuclear weapons.  He disregarded the agreement unilaterally for no reason.  Iran was clearly complying.  Everyone said so, but of course, he could not take any information from his intelligence community as he had already informed America that they were no good and essentially didn’t know anything.  His military leaders’ information was dismissed also (as were most of his defense/military advisors).  

It is close to irrelevant what the “intelligence community says now about who did or did not cause the attacks on the oil ships in the Gulf off Iran.  They have become so influenced by Mr. Trump and his constant lying and his demands for intense loyalty that it is hard to know just who they are for.  Then, I pretty much don’t care if Iran did the deed as it relates to the United States going to war.  We definitely do not need another war.  We haven’t even gotten past the last two and have no business starting one. 

Another indicator of Mr. Trump’s bellicose intentions is that the people with whom he has surrounded himself, particularly Bolton and Pompeo, are totally on board with war.  Iran is convenient, but I suspect any “little” war would do. 

Mr. Trump wants to be a war president.  I suspect he thinks that if he gets a war started, people will vote him in again so he can “finish” the war.  Alas, that might actually work.  It did for George W. Bush who was only slightly more competent than Mr. Trump at the job.  If we actually look at what happened, both Mr. Bush’s wars were still going on when he had to leave office due to term limits.  He never did finish them even with the extra time. 

It seems to me Mr. Trump is trying to demonstrate his manhood.  But, as the 8-year-old school yard bully he keeps proving himself to be, he has a long way to go,  and dragging a bunch of folks into a useless stupid war will not do it.  Somehow, he just brought his petty grudge-making, racism, misogyny, xenophobia,   and resentments into adulthood without the ability to reason or think critically about any of them.

So, if Mr. Trump and his nutty cronies Bolton and Pompeo want war, they should play with plastic soldiers and weapons on the oval office desk.  It will be fun and everyone will be better off.  A win-win!  

THE CHILD PRESIDENT

THE CHILD PRESIDENT

Ruth A. Sheets

June 24, 2019

It has been clear from before Donald Trump took office that he despises immigrants, that is, immigrants of color.  He told his cult that he wanted all 11 million (or so) “illegal immigrants” gone.  That kind of a blanket statement is typical of a person who sees things in “black and white,” and cannot or will not consider the consequences of his actions.  That is expected of a little kid, but not of a 73-year-old man.

In this case, Mr. Trump has threatened to send his dogs, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) into communities to drag undocumented immigrants out and ship them back to their original countries.  He knows ICE will do whatever he tells them to do because Congress decided in a fear fever after 9/11, that is their job.  He also knows they have let power go to their heads and seem to love this task.  Like so many in Mr. Trump’s administration, they seem to revel in the suffering of others and the power it brings them, and Mr. Trump, the Commander in Chief, revels in being able to order them about.

As a citizen and Christian minister, I am horrified at the threats this president is making.  He is using threats against the lives of thousands, perhaps millions of people to get his way.  He and his cult want a wall and they plan to get it any way they can.  Tell everyone he is releasing the dogs on Sunday to bring added fear to communities of color, then on the day before, tell everyone he will call off the dogs, but in return he expects to get from Congress the money for his wall.  Isn’t that extortion?  If Congress gives in, Mr. Trump will know that this tactic works and he will definitely use it again, this time in a more all-encompassing way.  

That kind of reasoning alas, is exactly what one would expect from an 8-year-old school yard bully.  And, that's what Mr. Trump is.  He never had to grow up and his emotional age is about that of an 8-year-old and he has the understanding of a kid about that age too.  Then, he is rich, which he believes, gives him even more weight, a bigger bully.  

Some unthinking people chose to put this child in the White House and hoped he would do stuff for them.  He has!  Not alone, though because there are a lot of people who benefit from allowing and encouraging this child’s tantrums and bullying.  Who benefits?  Corporations that produce fossil fuels love the acts that permit increasing the amount of pollution they can produce, the places like National Parks where they can do their dirty work, and the destruction they can wreak on the oceans and seaside communities (not Mr. Trump’s property at Mara Lago, though). 

Employers of undocumented immigrants benefit too because if they don’t want to pay their employees what they have earned, no problem.  They can always report them to ICE if they complain.

Evangelicals enjoy wallowing in their self-righteousness that “those people didn’t come in the right way.  They’re making ‘anchor babies’ who suck up our resources.  The sad thing, it doesn’t matter to Evangelicals if any of what they say is true.  It feels true!

Shame on all of them trying to extort concessions from Democrats and some Republicans in exchange for him getting his stupid useless, but very expensive wall.  The parents in the room must stand up and tell him no.  I am guessing Republicans, bad political parents that they are, just can't do it.  The neighbors will somehow have to step in, introducing some discipline. 

I get it that a child like Mr. Trump does not understand much, but he certainly does know how to manipulate his cult followers and the other Republicans and conservatives who enable his poor behavior.  It looks like the American communities will have to step forward to protect Mr. Trump’s targets, the people who work hard, raise families, and feel loyalty to this country even though they were born somewhere else.  They deserve a chance to become permanent residents or citizens if that is what they choose.  They do not deserve the constant threats and crippling fear that comes from not knowing if parents will still be here when a child gets home from school, the fear of being thrown back into the chaos and death of the countries they fled. 

Mr. Trump wants to be a hero to his cult.  He doesn’t truly understand that he already is.  He appointed Justice Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court and he will stop abortions.  That and his anti-immigrant stance are all it takes for them to cleave to him forever.  So whatever he says or does is OK with them. 

Pretty childish, huh? 

WHO’S NEXT?

WHO’S NEXT?

By Ruth A. Sheets

May 27, 2019

In recent months, many, perhaps as many as 400 bills have been passed in legislatures in the United States to restrict or eliminate abortion.  This is despite the fact that Roe vs Wade is the law of the land and has been for more than 46 years.  The states are passing “laws” that they know are against the Constitution, hoping the Supreme Court will fix things in their favor.

The anti-choice movement has sunk their teeth in to the idea that their personal lives will be better if only abortion is stopped and those dear little fetuses are born.  They become more and more restrictive in their demands on women to the point that in addition to eliminating abortion, they don’t want to allow any kinds of birth control either.

I can't help but wonder, if Rowe v Wade is overturned, who will the appalling anti-choicers go after next.  Whose rights will they then move to restrict or take away?

What we all need to understand is that when taking people's rights away, it does not stop with the stated purpose.  For example, one state started with stupid "Three Strikes" laws and the movement kept going until we had more than 2 million Americans incarcerated, many, perhaps even most for minor offenses or drug use crimes which then required life in prison.  What stupid, outrageous laws!  But a lot of people bought the fantasy that this would stop all crime and they would be safe in their little American dream houses.  Who cares what happened to those in prison, that was not their problem.  Then, they wanted to arm everyone and passed concealed and open carry laws.  Carrying around automatic weapons is now on the agenda of many of the “Three strikes” bunch.

The self-righteous do not stop with one issue.  They get their power and jollies from hurting other people to prove they are so much better, holier, more worthy than those people.  It is a guarantee this group will find new targets.  I am thinking Muslims, progressives, teachers, and a host of folks who make a positive difference by helping others.

We who care about human rights need to be getting this message out loud and clear.  The anti-choicers will not stop with abortion!!!  These currently anti-reproductive rights individuals can't stand not spouting their hatred of everyone who does not live, think, and do things that make them feel comfortable and "secure."

We must get the media on board to let people understand how the process works.  The genocides in Bosnia and Rwanda did not just happen.  They began with neighbors being told to hate neighbors for one reason or another, but primarily because they were not of the right group or didn’t act in the right way.

The Germans of the 1930s got this.  They didn’t go after all their enemies at one time.  They built up to it, little by little in one place at a time, restricting rights until people got used to the new normal they’d created.  When appalling atrocities were committed, it was pretty easy for most people to blame the victims whom they thought were working to destroy their community, culture, nation, etc.

Mr. Trump and his cult are introducing these same factors into American society and they are getting a lot of help from outlets like Fox News and Facebook.  They are also getting lots of support and cooperation from Republicans in Congress and in state legislatures, who of course, are mostly men, as it always is in movements to take away or restrict human rights.

I suspect this whole anti-choice movement is not about abortion at all.  To prove it, I have a modest proposal.  My sister gave me the idea and I think it’s a good one that should be seriously explored.

The stated goal of the anti-choicers is to end abortion.  Why do women need abortions?  They have had sex with fertile men.  So, I propose that at age 13, all boys have vasectomies.  This would be part of their coming-of-age ceremony and would be accompanied by a lot of pomp and circumstance as such a ceremony should be.  The pain would be a minor inconvenience for the joy of knowing they would not produce an “unwanted” pregnancy.

Then when the “man” is older and marries, he can get permission from his wife to have his vasectomy reversed so he can be responsible for the children the wife decides to allow him to father.  The rate of abortion would go down so far that it would truly be rare or perhaps, nonexistent.   

Of course, even though this would be a great way to stop abortions, it could never happen because men, in general, particularly the anti-choice men are not about stopping abortion really.  They are about keeping women from moving into the realms they believe are their own.  Many women have been so brainwashed  that they agree to the BS the men are spewing.  And they will buy whatever hate they can dump on the next targeted group.

So, sisters and men who believe in human rights, stand up and yell with your strongest voices to stop the anti-choicers and expose the fact that abortion is not the final phase to their quest.  There is even darker stuff ahead unless it gets stopped here.

WOMEN, THE MEDIA, 2016, AND 2020

WOMEN, THE MEDIA, 2016, AND 2020

by Ruth A. Sheets

May 30, 2019

At the beginning of the 2020 campaigns, it is necessary that the media, all the media cover female candidates with respect and honesty.  They deserve at least that much.  They are all , at least as qualified as the men in the group of candidates.  They should be judged by their proposals and their ability to address the needs of this nation.  NO mention of their hair, cute or otherwise.  There should be no comments on their perky outfits, whether or not they are perky.  They should not be told their voice is too strident or harsh.  Few people have a harsher , more strident voice than Donald Trump. 

In the 2016 election, most of the media covered nearly every one of Donald Trump's words and lies, but called them everything but lies.  Cameras focused on empty podiums while awaiting the mega (or MAGA) star.

In the interest of “equality” and “fairness,” they did cover Benghazi and emails when discussing Hillary Clinton (except, of course when Mr. Comey was inappropriately chastising her and after her mention of some of Mr. Trump’s followers being a “basket of deplorables).  Mr. Trump was shown shouting, yelling and egging on crowds with his lies and half-truths with no identification of those comments which were lies.  Perhaps the reporters and newscasters thought that would take up too much time.

Hillary had pneumonia, like many Americans each year, but was instantly described as unfit, not healthy enough, not strong enough, etc.  Mr. Trump dictated a note supposedly from his doctor describing him as the healthiest person ever to run for president, a man who could live to be 200.  That was shown over and over.

Mr. Trump was allowed to loom over Ms. Clinton in debates instead of being forced to stay at his own podium with the threat of ending the debate.  Mr. Trump is a bit taller, so for a lot of people, he seemed bigger, stronger, manly enough to be president, while poor pathetic Hillary Clinton just stood there trying to present her “ridiculous” platform.

Mr. Trump was and still is proud that he does not read and it is reported that he does not listen very much either.  Hillary Clinton was and is well informed about the world and the issues that directly impact the nation.  That fact was mentioned a few times, on MSNBC, but even more rarely on mainstream or other cable media outlets.     

Benghazi was thrown in Clinton’s face often as though she had gone in and single-handedly killed the Americans there.  Isn’t it interesting that Mr. Reagan and his Secretary of State were not held responsible for the more than 200 Marines killed in Lebanon in the 1980s, or George W. Bush not held responsible for 9/11, attacked embassies,  or the extreme recession of 2007?  But Hillary Clinton is forever associated with and blamed for Benghazi.

The private emails Hillary Clinton didn’t turn over to the government was the other issue.  If it was such a big deal, why is Donald Trump’s family allowed to keep private servers?  Why is Mr. Trump allowed to have an unsecured phone?  Oh, they’re men and Republicans.  As we are learning lately, Republicans don’t have to abide by the law, any law.

Hillary Clinton was blamed for her husband’s infidelities while the people who accused Mr. Clinton and led to his impeachment were cheating on their wives.  Mr. Trump was not blamed in the media for the way he treated his wives over the years either.  It was like a joke.   Boys will be boys!  And, the women are always responsible.   

Detailed plans for improving conditions for all Americans were laid out by the Clinton campaign, but what was covered concerning them, she told coal miners they would be losing their jobs and that everyone had a responsibility to help them find quality jobs.  That was seen as a slap in the face for miners and other white working men.  Mr. Trump shouted that he would keep coal mining jobs and he would make coal great again.  Miners are still losing their jobs, but there is no strong federal program to help them.   Coal is a losing proposition, but Mr. Trump had no clue.  Ms. Clinton did.

The media was markedly unfair to Ms. Clinton in 2016.  More than the media led to her electoral college defeat, but media coverage definitely tipped the balance.  Already the female candidates running for the 2020 election are receiving comments about their hair, their clothes, the way they walk, their voices, and on and on.  The “b” word has also been employed.  (Maybe the “b” means brilliant, brave, balanced.)  I have heard no similar comments about the men.  Of course, conservatives and Republicans make disparaging comments about male candidates, but mostly political, not gender or appearance related.

In 2016 we expected more from journalists, but got garbage and a pathetic childish president who “hates” the media OK, that’s not exactly true, though, every time Mr. Trump says something disparaging about the media, he laughs because he knows what the media did for him and what he thinks he can make them do for him again in 2020.

Unless some serious changes in the media are made related to the women in the race, 2020 will be a repeat of 2016.  With Russia helping out, Mr. Trump could be allowed to trample any candidate, particularly women who might run against him.  That would be bad for all of us.

LYSISTRATA IN AMERICA

by Ruth A. Sheets

American women are facing a crisis that should have been settled more than 46 years ago when Rowe V. Wade was correctly ruled on by the Supreme Court.  The ruling stated that women have a right to abortion in the United States.   Since that time, conservatives and people who call themselves “Right to Life” have been doing everything possible to overturn this Supreme Court decision.  Why?  They want women put back in their place, back where “God” decides on pregnancy and men rule the home and everything in it, or think they do. 

One can understand why men would like this.  It allows a man to remain a juvenile who can boss a woman and children around, treat them just as he wants to, and be sure “his” woman does nothing he does not approve.  The confusion for me is that women go along with this.  One of the media darlings on this issue was a woman named Phyllis Schlafly, a lawyer whose purpose in life was to tell other women they should not have what she had.  Being a stay-at-home mom was a glorious thing, something all girls should aspire to. 

With her help, over time, vitriol against abortion and the women who had one became vicious.  A fetus was a person for many of them, even to the point of having more rights than the woman who carried it. 

When the “pro-life” prayerful protests didn’t work, their actions became louder and more extreme.  The movement encouraged bombing clinics where abortions were performed, killing abortion providers (it would save a lot of baby lives), passing draconian laws to make simple unimposing, safe, clean facilities unacceptable and require instead, unnecessary, unbelievably expensive surgical centers to perform a simple 5-minute procedure. 

When these actions  didn’t have the desired results, the movement got help from mega conservative organizations that designed bills for Republican legislatures all over the country that would ban abortions after some period into a pregnancy (20 weeks at first, then 8, then 6 weeks),  forced ultrasounds on pregnant women, forced women to get male permission, enforced extremely inconvenient long waiting times, threatened doctors with prison.  None of these helped any women because, of course, they were not meant to.  They were meant to send us back to the good old days when women had to seek back-alley abortions, often dying as a result.  For the pro-lifers, that was OK because those women deserved what they got for daring to end a pregnancy. 

Since the pro-lifers love fetuses so much, one might wonder if they care what happens after the all-sacred birth.  The answer is, of course not.  That’s the mother’s responsibility now.  Pro-lifers just got the baby born.  Now, you’re on your own.  Good luck!

No  matter how hard we who are pro-choice examine the problem, we just can’t seem to understand a few things (OK, anything about the pro-life position). 

- First of all, how does a man, any man (especially old white men) have a say regarding women's reproduction?  Men will never know what it means to be pregnant let alone pregnant as a teen, as a rape victim, as a victim of incest, as a college person trying to get life started, as a desperate carrier of a severely compromised fetus, you know, the things that could lead a woman to choose abortion.

- Then, how can a politician have a say in women's reproduction?  These guys not only are mostly not women, they are not doctors, and they really don’t care to learn about women’s needs.  Men are often pathetic hypocrites who don't want government in their business but are more than OK if government is in women's vaginas and uteruses.  

- Furthermore, How is it religious fanatics have any say regarding women's reproduction beyond FaceBook comments?  This country was built on the separation of church and state.  The right to abortion does not mean you must have an abortion, just that you can choose to have one. 

How should the thinking women of America respond?  We should pull a Lysistrata on the men of America.  Refuse all sexual contact with any man who does not 100% stand behind women's right to choose.

Men think that because they are loud and strong physically that they have a right to tell women anything they want about everything.  They don't and perhaps it is time we take a hint from the Ancient Greek play and kick disrespectful men out of our beds, possibly, our lives. 

Then we need to work on the women who are so afraid of men and what they think that they will betray their sisters and claim it is OK for women to be treated like little kids with no rights and no control over their own bodies.  Perhaps these women need to be pushed back a bit until they grow up and stand up for themselves and for their sisters. 
 
In the Greek play “Lysistrata,” the women refuse their beds to their men until the men stop the war that has been raging.  Well, this is a war against women.  It’s time we women follow the heroine Lysistrata and kick men out of our beds until they grow up and get out of women's reproductive decisions. 

Come on sisters and supporters.  Lysistrata has come to America and is showing us the way to get what we need! 

OPEN NOTE TO REPUBLICANS IN CONGRESS

Dear Republicans & Conservatives in Congress,

Where do you stand on global warming?  Yes, I call it global warming because that is what is happening.  Climate change sounds so innocent and natural even though what our planet is now experiencing is neither.  We, human beings are doing it.

Barack Obama (Oh God, I just wrote that name you are trying so hard to obliterate) helped to negotiate the Paris Climate Treaty which nearly every country in the world signed in good faith.  That is shocking because nearly every country just doesn’t agree on anything, yet they did on this one.  Mr. Trump can’t stand that a Black man could do anything for this country, so is working to nullify anything that was passed by Congress or set up by executive order during the 8 years he was in office.  Mr. Trump still feels the sting of not actually having won the popular vote, so is doubling down with his “base” to try to go back to some past time when America was great and white men ruled with impunity.  He should be ashamed.

I get it, though, that Mr. Trump has no shame.  He cares nothing for this country as long as he keeps whatever wealth he has and is allowed to get as much more as he possibly can.  Just because this appalling human being got into the White House must not mean that you Republicans should fall before him like bowling pins or nobodies, kowtowing to an emperor.  Where is your pride?  You Republicans as well as Democrats should be standing behind and totally supporting the Paris Climate Agreement, no matter who in this country helped negotiate it.  Shame on you if you betray your constituents because you are scared and must bow to an incompetent fool who has no regard for you or anyone else. 

When your constituents are losing their homes, businesses, and communities, you will probably be dead, but your children and grandchildren will have to answer for what you have not done, that is, if they survive the floods, fires, and lack of food that you  could have helped stop. 

Take a deep breath, face Mr. Trump and Mr. McConnell and tell them that you fully support the Paris Climate Agreement and that you demand a vote to support it.  If Mr. McConnell will not bring the bill of support to the floor, threaten to remove Mr. McConnell from his post.  You should have done that a long time ago in the service of the Constitution, but alas, that is for a different letter.

Mr. Trump talks a lot about loyalty, but he only really cares about loyalty of others to himself.  You swore an oath of loyalty to the United States of America and our Constitution.  It is time you start acting like that oath means something to you.

Sincerely,
R.Sheets  

DEFAULT SETTINGS

by Ruth A. Sheets

My computer and I are at a near constant tug of war to see who or what will become master.  Sometimes I win and can get my computer to cooperate to do the many tasks I need it to do.  I use a screen reader which adds an additional layer to the challenges and the sense of victory I feel when I complete an article, a lesson plan, or an activity for use with my students.

Sometimes the computer “wins.”  Its little victories come daily when my screen reader just stops talking to me, requiring some extra keystrokes to get things going again.  The big victory happened last November when my hard drive crashed.  I was truly lucky because I had backed up most of the material and the folks at Geek Squad were able to retrieve the rest after about 10 days of computer vacation. 

When I got my computer back home, I discovered it had been returned to its default settings. These settings reflect the actions the manufacturer assumes most users would want as automatic.  I had changed most of the problem actions on my pre-crash computer, but now had very annoying settings adding to the usual challenges.  I had forgotten that numbering can be automatic even if I don’t want it.  Autocorrect has its own time-consuming moments.  I had to relearn the arrangement of the toolbars and still can’t find some of the things I need. 

I suppose default settings are necessary for computers, but I am noticing that there are default settings in other places in our lives. These settings generally aren’t noticed until they affect us in some way or are brought to our attention. 

Lately, I have been thinking about the kinds of questions reporters and pollsters ask interviewees.  “How does it feel to be an immigrant in America?  What kinds of challenges have you encountered as a woman in engineering (or physics, or aeronautics)?”  There are numerous books and articles about what it’s like to be Black or Hispanic, or Asian in America.  

We have been exposed to these perspectives for so long that we rarely, if ever, hear anyone asking “What is it like to be male or White or rich in America or in any specific type of business."  If we stop to consider why this is, it becomes clear that the default setting for America is White in general and male in particular and their goal is to be rich. 

It is possible to change the computer default settings if you know the menus that cover each one, but changing the American default setting will be much more difficult.

On the computer it is assumed that people might not like or be able to use the factory settings, so changing them is not too hard.  In America, many forces are in play to make sure that the default remains as it is.  Efforts to limit everyone else’s power and influence work behind the scenes all day and pop into the spotlight often enough to be sure we all know How things are supposed to be. 

Our various government entities have worked hard over time to ensure that African-Americans and Hispanic-Americans have few opportunities to succeed and are regularly blamed for the high levels of poverty they face. Educational opportunities for them in no way come close to matching what white males receive.  Women are regularly undermined and victimized, the result being low self-worth and frequent denigration of women by other women as well as by men.    

Immigrants are maligned as criminals, rapists, invaders even though fewer are coming here than in the past and have a much lower crime rate than non-immigrants.  They contribute extensively to our society as well.

It is hard to change this default setting when an entire political party, Republicans, depends on it for their existence.  Republicans point out the token women and people of color they include, but revel in their whiteness and maleness.  Their leaders find often ingenious ways of blaming our nation’s problems on “the other.”  They state directly that when racists go for a “reset” to default, and people protest, there are “fine people on both sides.”  Those White men who are afraid people will move from “factory settings” to something else will do whatever they can to keep that from happening.  Fear is one of their most effective weapons and they have had generations to learn just how to wield it with the greatest impact. And, there is a lot of money and power spreading fear far and wide. 
We don’t need to breathe in the fear.  We can become more vigilant and pay more attention to how we are being treated, what we are being called.  Who is speaking?  Who is listening?  Who is taking us seriously?  

So, perhaps just as I had to change settings to make my computer usable, we who believe in diversity and the value of immigration must enter the settings of inclusion we want for our nation.  It will be hard.  We may face a crash of our hard drive (our democracy) and experience new efforts to reinstall White male settings (white supremacy, repression of women,  etc.).  We will have to work together to find the right “menus” that  help us get to equality and appreciation of all persons.  We must  make our society work for all, not just the default.