---Harry S. Truman
According to the Washington Times, "A brand of toilet paper to be labeled 'Trump' after the sitting U.S. president should hit grocery shelves in Mexico soon.." Although many Americans might chuckle at the idea, it is far from funny. In fact, the biggest danger in this situation is the very fact that Americans are laughing at another country's attempt to demean the sitting President of the United States of America.
Our country is in serious trouble, and if we don't address it we will lose the respect of the entire world. As much as we might agree or disagree with our President's politics, we must respect the office of the presidency. When Americans knowingly disrespect this office, we give license to the rest of the world to do the same. The very fact that we are given freedom of speech in our wonderful country, means that we are burdened with a huge responsibility. We must use our freedoms wisely and protect our appearance throughout the world.
Kathy Griffin had every right to hold up that bloodied head of her President, but in doing so she made light of the death of our head of state. The world saw our President as a joke, and he will be treated as such by other countries. As we parse his every tweeted word, we are showing the world that he is lacking in control and intelligence. Why, then, should they listen to anything he says. Rooting for his failure is rooting for our own failure.
It is not a secret that I do not agree with most of his ideas. In fact, I am concerned that we may be heading toward the end of the "equality for all" country that I have spent a lifetime working towards. I realize, however, that if I demean the office of Presidency I will gain nothing as we climb towards a level of partisanship that will be impossible to overcome. We all want America to be the superpower that it has the ability to become, even though we might have different paths to our goals.
While this President has spent much of the past years showing a lack of humility and a caricature-esque vision of himself on reality T.V., our country elected him to lead us. Whether it was a hijacked election, Gerrymandering, or simply the will of the people, Donald Trump is our President and the office demands our respect. We can (AND SHOULD) disagree with some of his choices. We can (AND SHOULD) hold him accountable to a higher standard. We can (AND SHOULD) respect our forefathers' wishes and vote in new officials who will assure checks and balances in a congress that seems to have lost its way. What we can't (AND SHOULDN'T) do is stoop to a level that allows us to be the worst version of ourselves. That is not the face of America that we want to show the world. We must be the grown-ups and take the higher road, and hopefully we can learn to do it together.
I read lightly this week and reviewed a cozy mystery and a children's book. Three Odd Balls: A Cue Ball Mystery (Book 3) is a cute mystery written by Cindy Blackburn. The plot is light, the characters are enjoyable and there is no political subplot!
I'm Just a Little Someone by Sharen Peters is a feel good children's book that makes a great gift for the wee ones in your life.
As always, complete reviews of these books follow this blog.
Happy reading,
- Beverly