Trump, Lebron James and Fear Of A Brown Planet

In typical fashion the 45th President of the United States denigrated successful persons of color when he attacked Lebron James and Don Lemon of CNN in reference to an interview James did with Lemon. James was discussing the new school for disadvantaged youth he opened in Akron, Ohio. James was asked about Trump and he responded that he was using sports to divide people. Trump, who has skin so thin that it is translucent, responded by insulting the intelligence of Lemon and James. Trump then attempted to drag basketball legend Michael Jordan into the fray by stating that he liked Mike. Jordan responded by stating he supported Lebron James. Trump's own wife, Melania, stated she thought Lebron was trying to do good. 

Living In the Age of White Reparations - 

Caged Migrant Children, Kneeling Athletes & White Supremacy - on Amazon.com 

 

Trump has a pattern of attacking positive figures in the Black community in order to gin up support among his solid 33% or so base. Trump attacked President Obama, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Black NFL players and Congressman John Lewis. Combined with Trump's attacks on the gold star Khan family, immigrants from south of the U.S. border and labeling some people from majority Black or brown population nations as residents of shit hole countries it is clear that he is stoking fears of a brown nation and world, but that train has left the station. Projections are that the United States will be a majority minority country by 2044. Trump can fan all the racial fear, social anxiety and hate he wants, but the tsunami wave of demographic change is coming and there is little he can do to stop the United States from becoming the melting pot it was destined to become.

 

The idea that a President of the United States is actively the leader of a racial and social division campaign in America should chill the souls of all of citizens he is supposed to be serving. It is one matter to feel there may be an issue with local officials in regards to race relations, but to feel that way about the POTUS is frightening. All of our taxes support the house Trump lives in, the aircraft that transports him and the secret service that protects him, so Trump should understand he works for all of us and when an employee is insubordinate they should expect to hear the words, "You're fired!"  

Let Them Eat Beautiful Chocolate Cake

When the Republican tax plan was signed into law near the end of 2017 we were told that the lower tax rates on business would allow them to keep more of their profits and pour money back into jobs in the United States and employee pay. Six months in the year of 2018 and it seems that the tax plan was not working as sold. The Bureau of Labor Statistics stated the following:

Real average hourly earnings were unchanged, seasonally adjusted, from May 2017 to May 2018. Combined with a 0.3- percent increase in the average workweek, real average weekly earnings increased by 0.3 percent over this period.

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/realer.pdf

So if increased profits from companies paying lower taxes didn’t go to workers in the form of higher wages, where did that extra money go. Large public companies use their additional profits to buy their own stock back and pay dividends to their shareholders. As warned by many, the trickle down of trickle-down economics never happened, but according to the Congressional Budget Office the tax plan is pushing the United States towards a debt disaster:

 Available on Amazon

At 78 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), federal debt held by the public is now at its highest level since shortly after World War II. If current laws generally remained unchanged, CBO projects, growing budget deficits would boost that debt sharply over the next 30 years; it would approach 100 percent of GDP by the end of the next decade and 152 percent by 2048. That amount would be the highest in the nation’s history by far. Moreover, if lawmakers changed current law to maintain certain policies now in place—preventing a significant increase in individual income taxes in 2026, for example—the result would be even larger increases in debt. The prospect of large and growing debt poses substantial risks for the nation and presents policymakers with significant challenges.  

https://www.cbo.gov/publication/53919

Many Americans are cheering the politicians enacting these budget busting and economic crisis inducing policies, so where is the pushback from those of means with platforms? The current tax plan is structured to pump a lot of money into the bank accounts of those at the top of the economic ladder and has bought their silence. As for the rest who will shoulder the debt, get no pay raises and possibly have their Medicare and Social Security cut to lower the self-inflicted deficit, the message is like Trump said about his meal with China’s President Xi,”It was the most beautiful piece of chocolate cake.”

It seems, like Marie-Antoinette, Trump is saying let them eat the most beautiful piece of chocolate cake.

Photo of cake authored by Carl Black from Decatur, GA, US - Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license

Trump and The Art of Hate Baiting

President Donald Trump

 Hate baiting is Trumpism's answer to race baiting. Tell them they are just hate baiting when a Trump supporter goes hateful with words that really don't matter.

Liberals and progressives have long been subject to getting a knee jerk response of race baiting whenever issues around racial discrimination or racial injustice were raised in order to take the legitimacy out of whatever the underlying argument was about. It did not matter if the issues were concerning African American deaths at the hands of police or harsh treatment of migrants from nations south of the United States border, the instant the color of the individuals involved were mentioned the reply from those unwilling to entertain race as a factor in the negative outcome was that race baiting was involved to cloud the discussion. We have now entered a new era under President Donald Trump when so-called race baiting on one side should be replaced by hate baiting on the other.

 Available on Amazon

It should be clear that the type of insulting, vitriolic and often racist language coming from Trump and his supporters should have a label, hate baiting. Hate baiting is using intentionally toxic language such as calling Black athletes kneeling to protest police violence against African Americans sons-of-bitches, said migrants were infesting America and called the press the enemy of the people. Hate baiting has gone from words to actions with migrant children separated from their parents. Hate baiting by Trump and his supporters is designed to provoke a like response from opponents that will allow a coordinated attack by Trump supporters citing a lack of civility. Hate baiting includes flaunting demeaning acts such as former Trump campaign manager Corey R. Lewandowski when on a televised news interview made a dismissive, womp womp, sound when another guest mentioned a migrant child with downs syndrome child separated from his parents at the border. Lewandowsky was vilified by the left for his remarks, but lauded by Trump supporters. President Trump rewarded Lewandowsky with a seat on Air Force One as he flew to a campaign rally where he was applauded by the crowd in attendance. Hate baiting is a strategy and responding in kind is a trap for Trump policy opponents, but it is understandable when turning the other cheek just gets you another slap on your face.  Congresswoman Maxine Waters fell into the hate baiting trap and was attacked on all sides, but I guess she was tired of getting slapped in her face.

Next time Trump or his his supporters say something in the most hateful way possible, take their power and tell them they are just hate baiting. 

Let us try to save those hate baiting responses for voting if we can hold out.