The Present Calm

I’m amazed at the difference of not having the image, voice, news of Donald Trump constantly disturbing the mental and emotional space of the nation, and of myself personally. It’s like when the neighbor finally finishes mowing the lawn, and the sudden silence sweeps over me, and I find myself taking a deeper breath, and a tension in my shoulders eases.

I experienced an almost instantaneous release of tension a week ago, on Inauguration Day, when the possibility of some final, desperate grasp at power dissolved. The four years that I and many others had endured with clenched teeth was finally over. The fate of the world was no longer dependent on the whims of a spoiled child. (Trump may in fact be a sociopath, but I’ve always seen him as one of those obnoxious and immature adolescents that we’ve all experienced, who plays bully when he can, but most often flails against the reality of not getting his way).

This second relief, emanating from the relative calm and quiet of the past week, is even deeper than the first. It’s a return to normalcy – yes, relative normalcy, despite the pandemic, the economic instability and the resurgence of racial and civil rights concerns. But I won’t allow myself to turn entirely away from all the civil poison that Trump’s presidency brought to the fore.

I find it deeply disturbing that four in ten Americans still support Trump’s politics. And I’m not sure which is worse: that many of them feel that his actions are morally and legally appropriate in a constitutional democracy, or that many of them are aware of the fascist and racist underpinnings of his actions and just don’t give a damn about maintaining a constitutional democracy. Either way, it reveals a stunning disconnect between the foundations and principles of our democracy and almost half of the American population.

I recently started reading William L. Shirer’s “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich”, because of Trumps determined effort to undermine the election. In retrospect, I’m disappointed in myself for going through my entire adult life with so little curiosity about how the phenomenon of Hitler came about, particularly in a population that was as progressive, educated and advanced as early twentieth century Germany appeared to be. Well, it’s a shocking read.

So much that characterizes Trump’s ascent and rule parallels the rise of the Nazis, including: the scapegoating of minorities, the constant denouncing of political opponents as enemies of the people and of the nation, the sanctioning of political violence, a distain for majority rule, and the total subservience of government and party to a single man. As much as I’ve distrusted the American right, I never thought that it would stoop to these depths.

But sheer selfishness and stupidity are much to blame. Because too many Americans – left and right – are unwilling to educate and train themselves to look beyond immediate self-interest, and to consider how attitudes and policies will affect the health of the nation and of their communities in the long run. More than ever before, I feel that there needs to be a shift in emphasis away from political candidates and to the responsibilities of voters. That alone would make voters less susceptible to misinformation and manipulation. How to bring such a thing about, I don’t know. Especially in this political and social climate, when we can’t even agree on basic facts.

One thing that reading of Hitler’s rise alerts me to is that the danger of far right insurrection is far from over. It’s a threat that has been building for decades, and it hasn’t been widely recognized for the threat that it is. Whole families and communities – including many Christian communities – have grown up around the supposed threats to the white race, the rise of communism and the social evils of liberalism and humanism. As anyone who has been listening has heard lately, there are many who feel that a civil war of good versus evil is long overdue. I guess one of the saddest things about any such war is always the total disagreement about what is good, and what is evil.