Let’s Get Mad

Let’s get mad. I mean really mad. If you don’t know why I suggest this, then you are either in a coma or very, very stoned. 

Why get mad? Here are a few reasons.

One of our increasingly inevitable Presidential candidates is, among other despicable things, facing two federal and two state indictments; facing a number of civil trials, some involving his adulterous sexual harassment, one of which has found him liable of extensive fraud and another of slander. And to put the cherry on top (no pun intended), he now faces another civil trial in the slander case for slandering the same victim again. Oh, and yeah, the last time he was President, he led an attempt to undermine the constitutional process for choosing his successor. Essentially, we are being asked to let a man become the most powerful person in the world when you wouldn’t even let him date your daughter. 

This should make you very mad.

As I type this, I am watching a speech on CNN nominating Jim Jordan to be the Speaker of the House. There are a lot of Jim Jordans in the world, but sadly, this is the one who, among other despicable things, conspired with the multi-indicted Presidential candidate to undermine the constitutional process for Presidential succession; who has repeatedly fostered the lie that the 2020 election was stolen; who has refused to obey a Congressional subpoena; who is accused of covering up sexual abuse of college students; and who has been described by his colleagues in the Congress as “a legislative terrorist.” And how did the nominating speech describe Mr. Jordan? As “a man of integrity.” And no one laughed.

This should make you very mad.

The other taken-for-granted Presidential candidate has a son who has been indicted for gun and tax charges in which the candidate may actually have been involved. That candidate denies any such involvement, but that candidate also has trouble remembering what color the White House is. When Abe measured years in Four Score, he likely did not intend for that to be the age of a person beginning a new Presidential term. This candidate has so much trouble expressing himself that despite his having accomplished a great deal in his first term, most people don’t even know he’s done it. And he’s the best that his party can offer.

This should make you very mad.

Beyond our borders, we have been responsible for the deaths of an estimated 200,000 Iraqis in a war to prevent Iraq from using weapons that they never had. There were another 50,000 Afghan civilians killed in a war attempting to supplant the Taliban from governing that country when, after that war was over, the Taliban was governing that country. We are now facing a war in the Middle East. This is nothing new, of course. I was born in 1948. Let’s just summarize the major conflicts in that region in my lifetime:

In 1948, there was the first Arab-Israeli War. 

In 1956, there was the second Arab-Israeli War. 

In 1967, there was the Six-Day War. 

In 1972 there was the Munich Olympic Massacre.

In 1973, there was the Yom Kippur War. 

In 1987, there was the First Intafada. 

In 1995, Prime Minister Rabin was assassinated. 

In 2000, there was the Second Intafada. 

In 2008, Israel attacked Gaza. 

In 2012, Israel killed the Hamas military chief setting off a week of rocket fire between Israel and Gaza. 

In 2014, Hamas killed three Israeli teenagers prompting an Israeli military response that killed 2,200 Palestinians and 73 Israelis. 

In 2018, protests in Gaza prompted an Israeli raid that killed 170 protestors. 

In 2021, tension at the Al-Aqsa Mosque triggered an Israeli police raid at that holiest site of Islam which, in turn, caused Hamas to fire thousands of rockets into Jerusalem and an Israeli response. 

In 2022, Palestinians engaged in terrorist attacks on Israelis prompting another Israeli response. In January, 2023, Israeli forces raided the Palestinian city of Jenin. A Palestinian gunman then responded killing seven people, including children during prayers at a synagogue. 

In the summer of 2023, Israel launched surprise airstrikes across the Gaza Strip setting off a back and forth between the two sides that killed many and destroyed hundreds of homes.

And now we have the latest version. And the world is acting surprised.

This should make you very mad.

So, what are we doing about all this crap? Essentially nothing. In the spirit of the 1960’s – the spirit of this Blog – we would be in the streets, not shooting or looting, just protesting. Just trying to make a difference. Just trying to make this crazy world a little bit better. 

Believe me, my admonishing here is entirely hypocritical. I’m not doing much either. I’m voting. I’m contributing money. I’m writing this Blog. That’s not hardly enough. But, at least, I’m mad. 

Hell, I hope not too many of you are doing less.