Plato said, "democracies pass into despotism" and I say, “no thank you” to that! An unqualified bully so full of lies and mayhem should not replace our U.S. Constitution and the rule of law. In my judgement, Trump is only about power and money. No one who loves their children and grandchildren should take part in promoting this individual to another term as President of the United States. Let all truth seekers join together and stop this nonsense.
I am 87 years old, a grandfather, a former small business owner, a writer by avocation and an Army veteran with two older brothers buried in Arlington National Cemetery. My oldest brother William was a World War II veteran who was shot by a German sniper in the shoulder and spent two months in a U.S. military hospital in England before being sent back to the European theatre. He was given a bronze star as a platoon leader. He stayed in the Army and fought in Korea and Vietnam before retiring. He is buried in Arlington and his wife is buried next to him. My other brother Donald fought in Korea, suffered in North Korean from serious frostbite and battle fatigue which diminished his existence the rest of his life. They both rest in Arlington in silent service to their country.
My two brothers, like everyone else in Arlington Cemetery, have a connection going all the way back to the war of Independence. There really seems to be something special and unique about our military since the first shot was fired in 1775 by the colonists against England. After the war, the colonists that had defeated one of the greatest military armies in the world and George III of England, found themselves with an improbable victory. After that success, the Founding Fathers tried to live up to the Articles of Confederation without success. Instead, they created a replacement via the U.S. Constitution which would give the power to the people. In effect, they turned down a monarchy and a dictatorship allowing the people to govern themselves. That Constitution has remained the legal soul of our government for over 248 years. My two brothers are like everyone else in Arlington, all having sworn allegiance to that Constitution.
I served in the Army as a draftee 1956-1957. I was a clerk typist at a quartermaster depot south of Paris. They sent me to personnel specialist training in Germany for seven weeks. I took the train, the Orient Express sleeper, to Munich from Paris. I flew back on Air France. As a 19-year-old from a town of 300 people, I knew right then how special my experiences were. I always considered my time in the Army as a positive experience. I went on to use the GI Bill that paid for part of my four year college degree.
My son called me a year ago and asked if I knew that my Army records had been lost. They were destroyed in a warehouse fire. I expressed surprise because I was attempting to investigate any VA benefits I may be eligible for over medical issues. To make a long story short, I wrote my Michigan U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow in April of this year and inquired about how to prove I was in the Army. Within three weeks she wrote back with documentation proving I was in the Army. They found my mustering-out discharge papers at Fort Sheridan IL from 1957. I then went to the Veterans Administration in Ann Arbor Michigan in May of this year and was pleasantly surprised at the quick service. Within two hours of proving I was a past GI, they had issued me a GI ID card and had opened a military file for me. Meanwhile, they explained all of my possible VA benefits for future reference. I bring this up to make sure that the reader knows that the Veterans Administration is well run, well organized, and every time you meet someone new at the VA, they always say when you're leaving, “thank you for your service”.
There really is a mystique in Arlington National Cemetery, since it was dedicated in 1872. One of the dedication poems was written by a Michigan poet named Will Carleton. It was a very long poem. I put a copy of that poem at both brother’s gravesites. Then a year later I wrote my own poem which follows:
Arlington Brothers
Two brothers in Arlington Cemetery
Warriors buried but not forgotten
These Arlington guests only asleep
On a journey to their eternal keep
I presented my salute in remembrance
Embraced by beautiful acres of encumbrance
So many heroes at attention
All gathered at a silent convention
As much for the living as the dead
Visitors are blessed to see
Those who protected freedom's legacy
Danger lurks if obligations grow cold
And their sacrifice expended goes untold
In death these heroes must live forever
We must never forget the many unusual periods of time when our troops were called to action. For example, on December 7th, 1941 when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Adolf Hitler declared war on the U.S only five days later. At that time, believe it or not, we were issuing wooden rifles to the many new recruits as the war preparations started. Within a surprising four years we had built 68 aircraft carriers, thousands of liberty ships, over 300,000 aircraft, many tanks, much artillery and so forth. Finally it was capped off by the atomic bomb in 1945. At the end of the war we were producing more steel than Japan and Germany combined. We had over 14 million men and women in uniform. Many factories were running three shifts. There were also some remarkable and unusual methods embraced by our American military officials during that war. We were capturing many German POWs in Africa and Italy at the beginning of the war. Eventually we had a total of 400,000 German POWs in over 150 camps in the United States. How were they treated? Well, the military officials decided to give them the same food as American GIs. The German Generals and field grade officers were given cigarette and wine allowances as well as servants. What was the motive behind such a strange situation? Well the genius of the concept was, that the American POWs in Germany would be treated with due deference. Did that work out? Yes, it did!
We were an army that was highly successful toward the end of the war. In fact, many German soldiers were intent on surrendering to the American military rather than Russia because of the humanity of their treatment. After the war ended, we did not take advantage of Germany with any serious spoils of war or retribution. Instead, we actually had classes teaching the U.S. Constitution to the German citizens. Within five years, both Japan and Germany were declared democratic nations and had a loyalty within 3 years to the American government. The U.S. immediately began creating the United Nations in New York followed by the Marshall Plan and NATO. All of these actions were taken to help expand and assist free nations of the world.
In 1961 Conrad Adenauer, head of the German government, told President John F. Kennedy that the Americans were a unique victorious nation in the way they treated their enemy.
So, what's my point in all of the above discussions? Well let’s look at ex-President Donald Trump. He is a proven draft dodger, a convicted felon, guilty of a civil case of sexual assault, followed by a related case that awarded an $80 million judgment for defamation. He had two Impeachments while President of the United States. It was reported that he made suggestions that the soldiers involved in World War II were “suckers and losers”. He has never shown sincere deference or expressed loyalty to the U.S. military. A week ago, he had an altercation with the staff at Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery. He was asked to desist from political ceremonies in that area. After being asked to desist, he criticized the staff at Arlington with hostility. He treated the staff at the cemetery, that were trying to enforce Federal laws over political activities in military memorials, with threats!
Now remember this ex-President does not seem to know anything about those 55 men in Philadelphia in 1787. He does not realize they set up a government for the people. They rejected choices of a king or dictatorship to rule. Now it is clear that this ex-President has suggested he prefers dictators. In fact he calls Vladimir Putin “a genius”. He has actually invited authoritarians to Mar-a-Lago. Fox news, Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, many MAGA Republicans and CPAC members all have expressed admiration for Viktor Orban and Vladimir Putin. What gives? Are they trying to make Ronald Reagan leap out of his grave? Are they giving up on the rule of law under our U.S. Constitution? Why are they so negative over their own country daily? Why do they suggest our country is in decline? Here we are the envy of the free world and the stock market breaking weekly records. What's the deal here? Could it be the fault of that eighth-grade bully with a flannel tongue who admits he is a wannabe dictator? Don’t forget this is the man who created the big lie on January 6th, 2021, bringing along 30-40 million Americans who still believe Joe Biden stole the election. This is nuts! Has there been a single fact or any evidence or any proof that the election was stolen? Absolutely none! The insurrection of the Capitol building was caused totally and completely by the falsehoods of ex-President Donald Trump. The invaders of that building had a mission to find and stop Vice President Mike Pence from exercising the Electoral College vote. They failed, and the vote was taken, validating the Presidency of Joe Biden. However, 8 MAGA Republican Senators and 144 MAGA Republican Congressmen, all voted no on accepting the Electoral College tally. Did they have proof, facts or evidence of wrongdoing before they voted no? Dear reader, they had none! Did they violate their oath to the U.S. Constitution by voting no? In my opinion they took the low road. Dear reader, to this day, Donald Trump promotes the big lie. Never forget this is the man who was fact checked by the Washington Post that found over 25,000 lies told by him during his Presidency. Did he refute or dispute the Washington Post? No, he did not. He also claims he is a victim of all of the litigation against him. He suggests the judges, the juries, the DOJ and the FBI are all after him and he suggests that he is innocent. Meanwhile he claims all of the major cases remaining should be delayed. If he's innocent, why delay? Is he going to pull off all of these delays which are intended to go past November 5th? You betcha! Is it all an attempt to actually spend over $100 million to get questions delayed and confused by using tactics that are not available to the ordinary American? History will question this peculiar situation. Especially SCOTUS expanding the powers of the Executive Branch, including immunity. Meanwhile, I see Mr. Trump as a convicted racketeer, who has bamboozled the Heritage Foundation (author of Project 2025), the Federalist Society, the Christian Evangelical Nationalists, six members of SCOTUS, and over 50 million MAGA Republicans. They all seem to believe he is the "chosen one". I believe this is a sad journey into make-believe and blindness. Do they have a right to their political position? Yes, and I also have a right to mine!
What is my answer to all of these situations we're in because of Donald Trump and his behavior against the rule of law? The answer is quite simple. You, the voter now must be the judge and jury. Remember, over 100 professional historians suggested that ex-President Donald Trump was our very worst President out of the 46.
How can we be led by someone who honors all the dictators of the world and continues to despise and ridicule his own country? Is he attempting to degrade and dismiss our wonderful legacy? The voter had better figure it all out by November 5th. And remember, not voting and remining silent is a form of consent.
Plato said, "democracies pass into despotism" and I say, “no thank you” to that! An unqualified bully so full of lies and mayhem should not replace our U.S. Constitution and the rule of law. In my judgement, Trump is only about power and money. No one who loves their children and grandchildren should take part in promoting this individual to another term as President of the United States. Let all truth seekers join together and stop this nonsense.
Let us all pray to a just God and seek to be blessed with a peaceful future, full of truth, hope and moderation.
Opening Image: CNN, The Washington Post, Getty Images, Arlington National Cemetery
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