Egos and Lies

I watched the Presidential news conference yesterday and was quite surprised when President Trump called on CNN's reporter Jim Acosta, especially knowing the animosity the white house has for him.

When Mr. Acosta started to ask his question about the migrant "caravan", the President interrupted him and started to berate and denigrate Mr. Acosta. He did not let him finish his question and resorted to calling him names, including what a terrible person he was. 

When an intern attempted to take the microphone from the reporter, he pulled back and held on to it. The confrontation was very painful to watch. And as the President called on another reporter, Peter Alexander, he continued his tirade against Mr. Acosta. To Mr. Alexander's credit, he stood behind his fellow reporter.

Several other times during the long press conference, the President interrupted almost every question, and even called some questions completely racist, when in fact they were not. He was asked about the two Muslim women who were elected to Congress and went on a long rambling comment about the unemployment rates of minorities and how the minorities love him

This morning I read that Mr. Acosta's press credentials have been revoked because, as Press Secretary Sarah Sanders put it, he "laid hands on an intern for just trying to do her job". 

I am disheartened also from reading comments on this situation condoning the blatant lie now coming out of the white house. What press conference did these people watch? Certainly not the one I watched! Mr. Acosta was not in any way, shape or form disrespectful in this question, nor in his failure to relinquish the microphone. As he gestured with his empty hand, the touched the arm of the intern and immediately apologized. 

I am ashamed of this administration for again deliberating lying to the public. Do they think we are totally stupid? I guess they must since they keep doing it. I am also disheartened by Ms. Sanders, who was raised in my state, by a Christian minister father. Her actions definitely don't reflect my Christian values.

Is our country so divided that we will never get back to unity? What does the rest of the world think of us? I've seen so many reports from other countries that we are now the laughingstock of the free world. We have alienated our closest allies. By taking the stance of nationalism above all else puts us in a dangerous situation. Have we gotten so far from recent history to see that this parallels what happened in Germany? Many say that it is the democrats who are perpetuating socialism, yet the former administration did not break ties with our allies.

I said from the start of this administration that I feared for our country. That fear is growing and being borne out every day. There is so much anger, on both sides, that I fear we will never be whole again. 

Yesterday was a very sad day for our country, and not because of the election results in the mid-terms. It was a blatant display of ego that will not benefit our country.

Changing MY Tide

I've never been very outspoken. In fact, I'm one who will keep the peace, sometimes at a great cost, just to avoid conflict. But, I've been changing. Maybe it's just due to aging and seeing things in a different light. Maybe I've just come into my own since having to be more assertive to be an advocate for my husband. Maybe I'm just tired of crap. 

I've always been afraid to comment on a Facebook post if my viewpoint differed from the poster's, or the other commenters.  Part of that stems from my general nature, part from posting a comment and getting blasted for it. But, I've started to change that, especially if the posts are unfair, or just plain false. And, as far as being blasted, another commenter on a post last night, totally misinterpreted my comment and went into a long, detailed, totally off into a different direction to prove me wrong. Instead of just scrolling by and remaining silent, I replied, clarified my statement and went on my merry way. As of last check, there had been no rebuttal.

I've also decided that I'm tired of people who seem to have no goal in life but to spread lies and rumors, whether on or offline. I actually feel sorry for these people. They must not have much joy in their lives, or interests to occupy them. Some of these people I've know from high school, including teachers. I know that we each are entitled to our opinion, but that leads to another problem. It seems that if we don't agree with the poster, we don't count. I've seen family members get very angry and unfriend people, just because they had a different opinion. They were also told not to post stuff like that on their page. So, it seems that people only want to hear from like-minded people. Maybe because they are afraid that their view might not be totally true. What has happened to agreeing to disagree?

I'm especially disturbed by people I know to be good Christians, living a Christ like life, unless it comes to politics, social programs, the poor, human rights, and many other conditions. I have seen posts that don't show their Christianity at all. People who don't know them would have a hard time seeing them as Christians, and that might make a difference in whether they wanted to be a Christian if they are not already saved.

So, at least online, I'm going to call people out for untrue posts, especially if they can be verified easily. And who knows, maybe it will spill over into "real" life. I was asked not long ago what I thought about our President. My only comment was that I feared for our country. And I do. I would also feel that way if the other candidate had won. The direction our country is headed has me very concerned. We are going to isolate ourselves from the world and then our country will cease to exist as a world power. We are well on the way to that.

There are so many other issues that need addressing, and I'm just one person. But like the old camp song says, it only takes a spark to get a fire going. If enough scared, timid people like me start speaking up, maybe we can salvage what's left of our country.

So, if you're tired of it too, start speaking your mind, whether it will be popular with others. If nothing else, it will make you feel better, it sure did me!