The moment lived is history, that is, history in its progress through time. If so, how do we truly “live in the moment” that is irretrievably receding into our past? In truth, we humans are constantly reconstructing our present experience from our past. And that reconstruction determines our future. In other words, each of us exists in a world we partially create from our sensual perception of a world as interpreted through the lens of our past experiences. If this line of reasoning sounds like a circular argument, then you perceive the mystery of human perception at the very moment it is individually experienced. Is it any wonder then, that we can differ so widely between what we perceive as reality or what others may determine as reality?¹ As a result, the preconceived notions of others can hold sway over our lived experience. If confronted with indisputable evidence or scientifically proven facts, we often choose to accept a reality we did not previously identify. Or we might simply accept as reality whatever a trusted person tells us. And therein lies the secret of any dictator’s success over a supplicant society. The dictator might tell us to believe in a reality not proven by either scientific or factual evidence nor personal experience and judgment.
As a result, Americans at this point in our country’s history are torn between two vastly different perceptions of reality. In the world created by political operatives, the present is too often redefined by preconceptions, that is, a predisposition to displace the reality perceived by an individual’s experience. The individual’s ability to validate and learn from his/her experience is negated by such predispositions. There are many examples of this phenomenon in very recent American history—and a warning as well.
The first predisposition.
On January 6, 2021, there was either a peaceful citizen protest against a rigged election or a violent insurrection intended to impede the peaceful transfer of power and the results of a free democratic election. Donald Trump, and his unquestioning followers, claimed that the incident was peaceful and/or justified. But 140 officers were seriously injured and at least one of them died because of this wild melee at our Nation’s capital. The notion of a peaceful assembly is the result of a false narrative deployed to preempt the obvious reality and predispose fellow citizens to accept a lie. Instead of a peaceful demonstration there really was a violent insurrection designed to at least forestall, if not kill, the certification of a national election.
The second predisposition.
Hundreds of protestors have since been convicted and sentenced to prison for their participation in this attack on the American capital. And no evidence has ever been presented to justify their claims that the election was rigged. Nevertheless, Donald Trump and his followers have superimposed a false justification for a violent attack on the nation’s capital–reprising the only previous attack by the British in the war of 1812. The British attack is recorded history. And the Trump-inspired attack was seen and recorded in real time—thereby documenting it as an historical event. When Trump sent his followers to the capital with the words “you have to fight like hell, or you will not have a country anymore,” he was not defending our democratic state, but directing its overthrow. His preconceived ambition for America, therefore, was a dictatorship under his sole control, rather than a democracy ruled by its citizens. He was predisposing his followers to demonstrate allegiance to him, rather than to America’s democracy.
The third predisposition.
But do his followers realize their support of his fascist ambitions would spell the end of the American democracy? When he states his intent to disband various institutions of government and the very Constitution that defines America’s democracy, should his subjects simply fall in line behind his leadership? How is it that he can claim such power? The answer is quite simple: he cannot, unless we citizens grant him that power. And bequeathing him that power would be a betrayal of the responsibility that every citizen has in a democracy, that is, the power of self-government. Our Constitution not only gives us that power, but it outlines the basis for self-government in values, principles, and laws. ² Although our world is constantly changing, every American citizen lives within the parameters of the American Constitution and the responsibilities it demands of us. And that demand has perhaps never been more pressing than at this moment in time. For Donald Trump is predisposing Americans to believe our institutions—including a national election and the peaceful turnover of power—are the “enemy within” that represent what he terms the “American carnage.”
The fourth predisposition.
In Donald Trump’s bastardization of the capitalist “virtuous cycle,” the rich both control and benefit from a growing economy abetted by their influence over government. But his interpretation of Adam Smith’s logic is perverse and not at all virtuous, for Smith placed the advance of domestic industry not in the hands of the rich and powerful, but in the contributions of every individual led by “an invisible hand.”³ And Jefferson clearly believed it “self-evident . . . that all men (sic) are created equal . . . endowed . . . with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” And that pursuit is not just a right guaranteed by the American Constitution but enhanced by Adam Smith’s definition of the virtuous cycle wherein he gives voice to an individual’s pursuit of happiness. Donald Trump, however, believes that not only his wealth but also his narcissistic self-characterization demand he stay in office for the duration of his life. After all, his oft-repeated declaration that “only he can make America great again,” presumes he should never concede his Presidency to impeachment or a plebiscite. 4
The fifth predisposition.
Donald Trump presents himself as a business tycoon and a glorious winner who demolishes his rivals in any competition—whether in the Presidency, in the courts, in business, in golf, or in the wrestling ring. “Make America great again” and “America first” are goals he asserts that only he could attain and realize—assumedly, for the benefit of all citizens. Of course, his wrestling prowess was staged, his golf trophies were rigged at his courses, and in like manner were his other touted successes. After bilking his brothers and sisters out of their inheritance, he squandered his father’s fortune into six bankruptcies. But, in the tabloids, he displayed the lifestyle of a billionaire “playboy.” In truth, his only business success was achieved by his first wife. On his own merits, he ran every one of his enterprises into the ground—including his wife’s achievement—while declaring six bankruptcies. When he refused to pay laborers, he avoided accountability in the courts, by exhausting the resources of his plaintiffs with endless appeals. As a candidate for the Presidency and as President, his criminal activity did not subside but expanded (reference the footnotes in the previous blog, “The Blessings of Liberty”).
My fellow Americans, ask yourselves how it is possible to believe Donald Trump:
- that the January 6 riot at the capital was peaceful and not an insurrection;
- that we must show allegiance to Donald Trump, the leader and antagonist for that insurrection;
- that our national institutions, including mandated Federal elections, are the “enemy within”;
- that Donald Trump is justified in not conceding the Presidency as demanded by the Constitution and a lawfully conducted Federal election (specific reference to Article II and subsequent related Amendments XII, XX, XXII, XXV);
- and that his continuation in office is in any way beneficial to American citizens?
In the past 235 years since George Washington became our first President, no American President has attempted to remain in office unless duly elected. Although former President Trump can legally run for a second term, the insurrection he led after losing his bid for a second term should invalidate his credentials as a candidate for reelection. For, clearly, he does not believe in term limits and would attempt to remain in office for the duration of his life.
For America, this moment in time is as pivotal to our country’s history as Jefferson’s “Declaration of Independence,” the ratification of the American Constitution, Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox, and America’s victories in two World Wars. In these moments of American history, the fate of our 248-year-old democracy and of other democracies it has supported was established and/or protected. But now Donald Trump demands to be President, claiming “only he can” make America great again. Even if he loses an election, he will claim the election must have been rigged. His resultant tantrum over losing will witness the violence he promised—what he termed “a bloodbath” –and whatever else political chaos he can muster. He believes he can thereby hold American democracy hostage to his will. And he is predisposing Americans to accept the inevitability of his Presidency-for-life.
But, in our Constitutional democracy, “we the people” perfect our union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, and provide for a common defense, while relentlessly promoting the general welfare and the blessings of liberty for all Americans. So how do we live in this moment? Well, we either vote for the values of our Constitutional democracy or for their demise in favor of a “fascist of the first order” (as quoted by Mark Milley, the 20th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff).
Just remember that your vote at this moment in time will create a history that you and others must live both now and into the future. Will we secure the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our posterity?
If not, then we will elect a twice impeached ex-President who had bilked the electorate into believing he was a great businessman whose qualities mirrored the character he portrayed in a TV series. But that character was simply fictional. The real Trump wasted a billion-dollar inheritance, ran various business ventures into six bankruptcies, and had indulged in sexual abuse, fraud and tax evasion for which he was found guilty after his term in office. Currently, he faces multiple felony indictments for crimes he committed while in office (reference the “generic footnote” in “The Blessings of Liberty”). Does Trump offer a future we Americans should follow?
We have only this moment in time to create America’s history, set the course for millions of our fellow citizens, and affect the prospects for those Americans not yet born. 5
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1 This paragraph is inspired by Einstein’s theory of relativity that most of us were taught in school but may have struggled to understand.
2 Reference the previous blog, “The Blessings of Liberty.”
3 “As every individual, therefore, endeavors as much as he can both to employ his capital in the support of domestic industry, and so to direct that industry that its produce may be of the greatest value; every individual necessarily labours (sic) to render the annual revenue of the society as great as he can. . . he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention.” Adam Smith, in “The Wealth of Nations,” pp. 347-348.
4 Trump’s refusal to concede his election loss is consistent with the mindset of any dictator. Note the parallelisms here with Putin in “Post Inauguration Thoughts on Power and Government.”
5 Unfortunately, I have sounded prophetic once before. In December of 2015, shortly after I decided to write a blog, I wrote “The Trump Bump.” The “Donald” had just won his Party’s candidacy for the Presidency. At that time, I could not have known how accurately I was forecasting the demise of the Republican Party. Now I reach an audience nearly 30 times greater than I did in 2015. And I shudder at the prospects that this warning might go unheeded.