Trump & Friends

Trump & Friends is mostly a collection of observations and opinions on President Donald Trump and his administration. The "Other Thoughts" include commentary on the digital maelstrom that is overwhelming minds the world over. There is also discussion of the fate of Ed Snowden, Chelsea Manning and Julian Assange. Yet another article focuses on the ghosts of the Vietnam era that seem to be appearing with greater frequency in 2017. Finally, the dangers of subjectivism are noted. In past years, some would claim that the content in Trump & Friends is over-the-top. But the United States, thanks to its bombastic president and his enablers, is now a wacky carnival fun house. Who knows what shocking event lurks around each turn as Trump and his cult go psycho every day. His actions and those of his followers have created a nation now so over-the-top that nothing is held sacred. One of the themes common to these essays is the need for the American people to interact with each other in a civil and civic fashion. There needs to be a return to the ideals embodied in the US Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The Epilogue, as I call it, features a few powerful excerpts from the remarks of General Mark Milley, the US Army Chief of Staff, who is at once a compassionate soul, great leader, and a fierce war-fighter. His remarks were made at an Association of the US Army (AUSA) event in October 2017. General Milley explained what the core beliefs are that the Army fights for. He reminded those listening what the United States of America should be, not what it is now, or what it is becoming. The reason why the Army fights is also the reason that American civilians, young and old, should fight for a better country. Not with guns and bricks in the street, but through mass political, civic action. Don't like the two party system? Change it. Don't want Social Security and Medicaid privatized? Stop it. Think politicians are overusing the US military? Tell them to grow a spine and stop hiding behind the military. In the end, the needs of community and country must surpass ideology, party affiliation and tribe. As 2017 comes to a close, the United States is boiling in a toxic stew of its own making. Trump is a symptom of the stink rising from that poisonous concoction. He is a dangerous man as Thomas Jefferson said of Andrew Jackson. Americans should remember that soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines want to be part of a country that not only strives to be better each day, but that functions as a great country should. That means taking care of its people and infrastructure, and bolstering the laws and institutions that guard against tyranny and madness within the government and society. There are no market based solutions for those tasks. Milley's remarks remind us all what kind of nation and people we should be. "The U.S. was formed on a very powerful idea... that here in America we will have a government of the people, by the people and for the people. It says that all of the people, regardless if you are male or female [are equal]. It doesn't matter if you are gay or straight or anything in between. It doesn't matter if you are black or white or Asian or Indian or any other ethnic group. It doesn't matter what the country of your origin is or the spelling of your last name. It does not matter if you are Catholic or Protestant, Muslim or Jew, and it doesn't matter if you believe at all. It does not matter if you are rich or poor, common or famous. In this country, in these United States, under these colors of red, white and blue, all Americans are created free and equal. We will rise or fall based on our merit, and we will be judged by the content of our character and not the color of our skin. That is the core organizing principle of the United States of America and that is why we fight."