Sleeping Giants

On December 8th, 1941 there was a euphoric celebration going on among the staff of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, celebrating the stunning, devastating surprise attack upon the United States Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbor. While the staff whooped it up, there was one man who sat alone "sunk in an appearant  depression". It was Yamamoto himself.

It seemed that he and almost he alone saw what the eventual outcome would be. There is a famous quote attributed to Yamamoto just after the attack:

"I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve".

You see, he knew that once this emerging colossus that is America was stirred to action and galvanized in purpose was awoken, Imperial Japan's days were numbered.

As I look at the footage from the several Town Hall meetings that took place this last week, I can't help of being reminded of that ominous quote. It is beyond doubt that the campaign, election, and ascendancy of Trump has brought about a mass political awakening. The raw emotions voiced at these gatherings from coast to coast from moms & dads, from the elderly to a seven year old boy, illustrate to us that we are waking up from a miasma  slumber and looking for answers.

In these bell weather moments there is a reckoning. We have seen it through history, both human and American. You can hear, see, and read it in documents and speeches like: "When in the course of human events it becomes necessary.....", "Four score and seven years ago......", "Hell no we won't go.........". We are starting to see this reckoning in our Town Halls and in our streets. Again, I would like to point out to our Republican and conservative brothers and sisters that math does not lie. You are not the majority and there is no sweeping mandate. Trump's dystopian dream of walls, mass deportations, muzzled media, and authoritarianism will not long endure.

There is much talk about how the left is in disarray and it may be that there are some division at the moment but make no mistake, this shall pass. As F.D.R. rebuilt during the depression, as President Obama brought us back after a great recession, we the people, we the sleeping giants are starting to wake up and our voices will be heard.

What Did You Expect?

After watching Trump's Press Conference I was equally shocked and not surprised.  The little voice that's inside all our noggins said to me:

"What did you expect?"

We've always seen and come to believe that the President should be calm, cool, and collected no matter the situation and no matter who is the President.  We even have a term for it, "acting Presidential".

It's safe to say that we didn't see that when Trump gave his 77 minute part diatribe, part rant session, and part display of wackadoo.  Watching the faces of the White House Press Pool might be best described as them watching a train wreck.  There are still interns here trying to sift through the transcript to find pockets of sanity.  But again:

"What did you expect?"

Any gravitas we were hoping for when Trump took the oath of office should be quietly unceremoniously buried out in the back in our cemetery of national common hopes.  He is who he is right?  He is very much the vulgar, English language slaughtering, ignorant, racist, xenophobic, narcissistic, impulse driven loon we always knew he was, and again he just lived up to who he is at his core.

In a week where chaos reigned with the bombshell of Flynn's departure due to Russian collusion, lies, and possible treason, to Stephen Miller doing his best to win this year's Joseph Goebbels Look alike award, to the press conference meltdown; many believe this is a unraveling of a presidency.  I think it's just another week in our new national circus.  When he continues to be what he has been all along, he fulfills the cliche: It is what it is.

When we witness that sort of public spectacle the press in real time needs to adjust and push back in real time.  When the leader of the free world calls the media fake, spews out 100% verifiable lies, and paints a picture of dystopian fantasy, the Press has to call him on it right then during the back and forth where he either answers the questions or continues to look and play the fool.  He is always going to have his 35% sycophant supporters, those who willfully believe his brand of crazy.  The press needs to push back and not continue to be manipulated into being a part of the carnival.

This is where we are right now, this unfortunately is what we will continue to see until he is either impeached or gets his orange gludius maximus voted out of office.  But we should not be shocked anymore.

After all, what did we expect?