1 week Ago
On Election Day, a friend during a casual conversation asked for whom I had voted for president. I politely declined sharing that information, making the point that by doing so that I had nothing to gain, and plenty to lose – a friendship, that is — if my answer was “wrong.” No one knows for whom I voted, although in what is a glimpse into human nature, most with whom I talk have convinced themselves I did not vote as they did.
That is OK by me. My desire to be coy might surprise regular readers of this column because I often share personal tidbits from my life, but I do so mostly to get a chuckle or if lucky a laugh out loud. I have reached a stage in my life that I do not bother myself much with what others think of me.
This product has gotten its final coat of paint, so take it or leave it. But there has been nothing funny about this election, which featured two incredibly flawed candidates, and divided this nation in ways I never imagined possible. The number of lies and scope of fearmongering came in large if not equal doses from the Left and Right.
My Facebook page insists I have 2,687 “friends,” but I know that north of 90 percent of them are mere acquaintances, so I see no reason to cull the herd. When I ventured over to my Facebook page to get an updated count of friends, I saw a post by someone who said he was severing long-time friendships based on how those folks had voted. His chorus of support continues to grow.
I submit that I would know much more about a person through years of shared experiences than a single ballot during a presidential election. Now is the time to be the bigger person. Not everyone who voted for Donald Trump is a racist and/or a misogynist and an examination of the voting by demographics would confirm that.
In short, women and people of color voted for Trump in greater numbers than they did in 2020, and the easy target, old white folks and the rich, voted for him in smaller numbers. Although votes are still being counted, it appears Harris lost and badly because 15 million voters who supported Biden stayed at home. Look at Robeson County, which is 70 percent people of color, a county that historically was as dependable as the sunrise to go deep blue.
But almost two of three Robeson County residents picked Trump. I am tempted to say that Trump did get 100 percent of the racist vote, but then I am reminded of what is happening on college campuses across this country regarding Israel and the Jewish people – and know that plenty of anti-Semites supported Harris. .
We should agree that Trump is a horrible human being, and if I knew the exact number of people on the planet, I would rank him not last, but in the neighborhood. He is not a man of faith, and while all Christians are sinners, few embrace and display their sins as he does. But he is not the first narcistic, lying sinner to win the presidency – and those ugly traits do not mean he cannot be an effective president.
Perhaps Democrats should do some reflection and determine why they could not cough up a candidate that could defeat a Donald Trump, but if they cling with the tired refrain that we are a racist, misogynistic country then they will have fumbled a teaching moment. This was not only a beat down for the Democratic Party, it was a message from the American people. Trump talked about issues that affect Americans, immigration, inflation, crime, war, etc.
Kamala Harris spent too much time screaming “fascist.” But Democrats and Republicans were both wrong on this, that if their guy or gal did not win it would be the end of our nation as we know it. Our system is flush with checks and balances and in four years Americans will get to vote again and Trump, if he is alive, will not have declared himself king.
When students at Harvard and Princeton find the courage to return to class, perhaps they will learn that. There is always the next election, regardless of what Oprah spews. Reach Donnie Douglas by email at ddouglas521@hotmail.
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