Death clock

So far in 2019 in America, there have been 240 incidents of mass killings by guns. Lawmakers don’t even bother to express their condolences any more. Little new sensible gun control legislation has been passed at the state or national levels. For every incident at which a gun owner successfully defends their life or property, there are multiple examples of murders by gun. It’s all becoming sadly routine.

There is a debt clock that registers the accumulating U.S. debt minute by minute. We need a death clock, put up right at the entrance to the U.S. Capitol, that totals the deaths by gun violence minute by minute. Would this do any good? At least it would remind us to care.

For Christ's sake

Real Christianity is hard work, and many Christians aren’t up to it. Especially when it comes to comparing their Christian values to their support of Trump and Pence.

Mike Pence claims to care for the sanctity of life as an anti-abortionist, but he is silent when children are locked up in cages and taken from their parents. He mocks Democrats for wanting to address poverty aggressively while he serves in an administration that is heavily white, wealthy, unqualified and corrupt.

Donald Trump criticizes black inner-city mayors for corruption while his cronies are in jail or under indictment. He is a lying, unfaithful, narcissistic, name-calling racist. Yet, Mike Pence adores him and millions upon millions see him as their savior. But measure Trump against the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes or the teachings of Christ, and he comes out an odious human being.

I hope Trump voters open their eyes, for Christ’s sake.

Trump rally

My son invited me to attend yesterday’s Trump rally. I agreed, and I’m glad I did. Need to check the competition. As we stood in line to enter the arena, the people in the line didn’t look so different from the people protesting. So it seemed to me the difference had to be in their minds and life experiences. Inside the packed arena, the difference became very clear. It was an overwhelmingly white crowd.

A rally is a rally, no matter the party. But this was one more reminder of how good we have become at manipulating crowds to our purposes. Loud pop music, mostly with an emotional heft, blared away. A lady next to me got excited because she thought she spotted Don, Jr. Another lady in front of me clutched her teddy bear with its American flag cape and blond Trump hair swatch.

As the crowd waited for Trump there were some spontaneous chants and number of waves that went round and round the seats. We could have been at a sports event. The event started with Mike DeWine giving some political hype for Ohio and Mike Pence. All predictable and all used over and over again. Mike Pence walked the runway to the podium, pushed the Ohio-is-great button and went on the praise Donald Trump and Trump’s America.

Finally, out came Mr. Trump. He took his time on the runway, stopping to shake hands and clap for himself. His litany of his accomplishments—list one, wait for applause, list another—gave himself much credit.

What struck me most was how skillfully these simplistic tags could arouse the crowds so effectively and with spontaneous intensity. Pence would say, “drain the swamp” and within less than a second, the crowd would repeat this. The same with “build the wall” and “socialism.”

Yes, it was a rally, and that’s what rallies are for. But there was no message of better means inclusion or civility or hope. It’s fundamentally of message of white privilege and the fear of its loss.

Small

The moral framework we learn as young people and which we apply to the world as adults is often hard to change. But racism, entitlement and privilege are areas where the contemporary world demands we assess our values.

Donald Trump, this soulless man, is and has been a master of using race, entitlement and privilege as social wedges to divide groups of people, to play on their fear, to call up their worst instincts and to bring attention to himself.

Love withers around this man. He makes America great again by making it smaller than it has ever been.

Buffoonery

For those aspiring to a career in buffoonery:

The Buffoon Code

1. Diffuse the tension at meetings by cleverly pointing out the absurdity of the situation.

2. Use humor to deflate the egos of the pompous.

3. Introduce into a scenario some sorely need laughter.

4. Save leaders from stupid decisions.

5. Dress funny on selected occasions.

6. Recognize that buffoons are the most valuable of the least valued members of society.

7. Help people see the truth by laughing at themselves.

The Buffoon Credo:

Tell the truth. Heal with laughter. A