To adequately emphasize the existence and potential impact of a presenting existential danger to our Democratic Republic, we have elected to analogically employ the image and impact of a cataclysmic collision of a rogue comet with Planet Earth. Our contextual reference is derived from the prevailing theory that approximately 12,900 years ago, Planet Earth was, struck by a huge colliding comet, the impact of which resulted in major alteration of the Planet’s geology, fauna, and flora, such as the species termination and extinction of the well-known, “Woolly Mammoth.”
From its advent, the “Founders” described their newly conceived Nation as a “radical experiment.” Eschewing the European tyrannical history of absolute rule by Monarch or Church and the injustice of the implacable tradition of privileged classes, they set about to create a unique polity, one destined to be, ‘by and for the people,” as well as mandatorily, secular. When asked about the nature of the newly created nation, Benjamin Franklin famously replied, “a Republic if you can keep it.” Thomas Jefferson, another Founder, wisely and, it now seems, presciently, declared that for a democracy to succeed, it is required to have an informed and educated citizenry.
The Nation presently finds itself in a singularly precarious state, relative to its endurance as a Democratic Republic. Such danger is contextually referable to the referenced admonitions of Founders, Franklin and Jefferson. A nationwide, pandemic-size, populist, inclination, favoring ignorant and non-rational delusion, was exacerbated by the rise and elevation to the Oval Office of an ignorant, narcissistic demagogue, completely lacking in moral compass or humanistic perspective. It would appear that his unorthodox, societally disrespectful acts and pronouncements have continued to have populist and cultish appeal to the nation’s previously amorphous (and now conglomerated), legion of poorly informed American citizens, stereotypically characterized by a less than adequate education but an abundance of perceived grievances and a vocal sense of generalized discontent.
Such a substantially large horde of ignorant populist citizens, in (political) principle and empirical experience, empirically poses an existential danger to the basic essence and dynamics of democratic government, viz., one “by and for the people.” Regrettably, our Nation’s such problem has developed into a state of clinical malignancy, further metastasized by an unaccountably bizarre, cultish adherence to an ignorant, deity-like autocrat, lacking in empathy, societal or moral compass or a scintilla of capability. Such a precarious state of facts confronts our democracy with an imminent threat of extinction, not unlike that of the dynamic impact of a planet-altering collision by a rogue comet.
Trump’s loyal following appears completely unfazed by his 71 reported felonies, his four criminal indictments, his neurotic and autocratic election denial, his incitement and management of a violent insurrection against the government, the judicial finding that he is a rapist, his consistent and ubiquitous bigotry including blatant misogyny, the judicial determinations that he is a defamer and a substantial tax cheat, his proven and admitted acts of purloining of top secret government documents, his acts of voter interference, his treasonous relations and “bromance” with Russia’s mafia-style dictator, our arch enemy, who in Russia’s interest, assisted his former election to his former four-year term of Presidency, [during which he richly earned two congressional impeachments] and, most startlingly, his publically unabashed declaration of intention to be a dictator. The media has reported that Russia has currently been engaged in again assisting the 2024 election of Trump, by the use of dirty tricks, facilitated by A I technology and otherwise.
Frighteningly, Trump’s autocratic agenda is not singular but, compliantly assisted by a virtual plethora of anti-democratic governors, officials, and legislators. Because of his large populist following, it would seem to be a worrisome certainty that this treasonous miscreant will be nominated to run for another term as President of the United States. His possible success would predictably, and autocratically, centralize unlimited authority in his Office, bring about the extinction of civil rights, and promote the use of violence and the military to quash opposition to his absolute rule.
Added to that extant cosmic threat, is the present prevalence of intrusive and constitutionally forbidden, introduction of Christian religious dogma into government; facilitated by the wrongful manipulation of a tactically appointed “right-wing” of the judicial composition of SCOTUS. The devastating and tragic result was the recent draconian and anti-humanistic denial of the long-standing legal (and natural) right to seek an abortion when needed. Such evangelistic and un-American denial and criminalization of such right has caused unlimited and ubiquitous instances of preventable and non-empathic tragedy (i.e., in the areas of rape, incest, maternal health, diagnosed non-viability or mortality of the fetus, and other nuanced situations). Donald Trump has publically boasted that he is creditably responsible for the reversal of Roe v. Wade.
In an errant extension of said draconian, anti-precedential, decision of the Supreme Court, the historically atavistic, Bible-belting, and traditionally biased State of Alabama has rendered a head-scratching, dystopic, as well as unconstitutional religious-based declaration, that frozen embryos are “children, made in the image of God.” Such reasoning would exceed the dystopic proclamations of Lewis Carroll’s “Mad Hatter,” and would, shamelessly, betray the inarguable, historically based, secular dedication of our wise and pragmatic Founders.
The irrefutable and predictable impact of a Trump success in the coming election, like the cataclysmic impact of a huge rogue comet, would wreak colossal alteration to the Founders’ unique American experiment and sadly, render extinct, like the “Wooly Mammoth,” the salubrious existence of our democratic way of life.
-p.
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