WHEN EGO GETS IN THE WAY

Misanthropic Boomer

WHEN EGO GETS IN THE WAY

We have as our current President, Donald J. Trump, a man seemingly driven completely by ego. We are all, to one degree or another, driven by that same psychoanalytically defined force. Some ego is a good trait as it drives each of us toward whatever goals we wish to achieve. Even the most altruistic among us gain feelings of good will and ego satisfaction when a good deed is recognized. There is absolutely nothing wrong in that.

We must also recognize that the ego can be a very destructive force, e.g., a defensive football player who lowers his head when charging his opponent, may have his ego gratified by making a devastating tackle, but it may be at the cost of causing great physical harm to his opponent, as well as a penalty against his own team. Therefore it is incumbent upon us all to be in control of the ego as much as is possible. This is often not an easy, or simple thing since each of us develops our own level of egocentricity in childhood, and is it reinforced as we grow. It would seem that President Trump’s ego has served him well throughout his life. He has been a seemingly successful businessman, who amassed a great fortune, and was very influential in many of the diverse spheres in which he participated.

As President, Donald Trump has not had the kind of success he realized as he did in the business world. There are numerous factors contributing to his current lack of achievement. He is certainly a neophyte politician, with little patience for those with whom he disagrees. This shows up in his tendency to shirk responsibility for actions that seem to have a negative effect upon his governance. Then too, he is likely to give himself a pat on the back for good things that have their beginnings with someone else’s actions. Finally President Trump sees himself as knowing more than anyone who may advise him, even though his experience may not be adequate to determine the best course in a given situation. This then is definitely a case of ego getting in the way of successful governance. His pre-Presidential campaign promises, most of which were ego driven have, for the most part remain unfulfilled.

President Trump made many promises as he campaigned for the highest office in the land: the border wall to be paid for by Mexico, repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, tax reform that would benefit the working and middle classes (never the wealthy), preventing China’s continued mercantilism, protectionism and intellectual property theft, repairing U.S. trade imbalances worldwide, lowering the deficit, regaining manufacturing jobs, re-negotiation of the Iran deal, leave Social Security alone, and more. To date most of those promises go unfulfilled, and his ego says it is all someone else’s fault. He loves using the Democrats as his foil for his lack of success, completely ignoring the fact that his party, the Republicans, control both Houses of Congress. In addition, he has made many claims regarding his ability to negotiate good deals; all beneficial to the United States. Unfortunately, here too his ego has gotten in the way of success.

First let’s look at President Trump’s actions regarding North Korea. Initially, there was the ego driven bluster….my bombs are bigger than your bombs; frightening the entire world. Then suddenly he did a complete turnaround and decided, against the advice of his diplomatic service, that he and Kim Jong Un can be “friends” and should have a face to face sit down and come to an agreement as to the total denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. This rapprochement was the work of the South Korean President, Moon Jae-In. Trump quickly took credit for Moon’s work; and, when someone mentioned the Nobel Peace Prize Trump virtually glowed.

The President had his meeting, the result of which was a suspension of the annual multinational tactical naval maneuvers in the region (suggested to him by none other than Vladimir Putin), and a piece of paper signed by both he and Kim, that says virtually nothing…no mention of denuclearization. And when all was said and done, Kim resumed his nuclear program and publicly stated that he never agreed to the denuclearization of the peninsula.

Following that diplomatic triumph, Trump began his trade war by instituting new trade tariffs on goods from aluminum to soy beans, the effect of which so far is to have increased prices on both durable and perishable commodities. His tariffs so far have hurt, not China but Trump’s own voting base: especially the farming community. Many family farms, which produce 87% of our food, are at risk of bankruptcy due to retaliatory measures taken by China. In addition, he has extended the war to our European allies, who have also retaliated in kind. One result of this extension of the trade wars is that Harley Davidson is moving its manufacturing operations offshore in order to be competitive and sell more products in Europe…so instead of increasing manufacturing jobs in the U.S., Trump is reducing them.

As if causing the cost of living to rise, and being made a fool of by Kim Jong Un weren’t enough President Trump has attacked all of our European allies both individually, and through his attacks on NATO, collectively. Ironically while he is attacking NATO, we are the only nation to benefit from NATO’s Article Five, which in its commitment clause defines the casus foederis. It commits each member state to consider an armed attack against one member state, in Europe or North America, to be an armed attack against them all. Which is why following the attack on the United States of September 11, 2001, NATO committed more than one hundred thousand troops to the war in Afghanistan in support of the U.S.

Following the unsuccessful NATO meetings at which Trump accused the member nations of not holding up their end (see above remarks regarding the only invocation of Article Five)the President moved on to Helsinki, Finland. It was in Helsinki that Trump met with Vladimir Putin, former head of the KGB, and currently the President of the Russian Federation. They two men met for a little over two hours, alone with only translators in attendance. It has been six days since the meeting and we still have no idea of what was discussed, or if any commitments were made. The only thing we do know is that Trump is apparently still not ready to tell Russia to stay out of U.S. politics. What Russia did in the run up to the 2016 election should be considered, at the very least a hostile act, and at the other end of the spectrum, an act of war. Yet the President seems to be cozying up to the man behind it all.

As I said at the very beginning of this opinion piece, we are all to some degree, ego driven. And as I also intimated it behooves each and every one of us to control and use our ego to serve us best. It appears to me that our President’s ego is placing the people of the United States at risk. What is more disturbing still is that there are 535 other egos in Washington, D.C., that cannot seem to be brought under control to the detriment of the nation. The Republican’s who control both Houses of Congress, collective ego seems to support the President blindly, and without reservation. The Democrat’s, in the minority, collective ego seem unwilling to look for solutions that will be palatable and benefit everyone.

Additionally, there is the electorate, that’s us. Our egos also get in the way of finding a solution. For those of us who lean toward the progressive approach to problems and solutions, our ego is just as much in the way as everyone else’s. I routinely review both Left and Right leaning sites on the internet and there is much name calling and general vitriol, complete with what are thought to be rational justifications on many of the sites of both Left and Right. And there is also what to me is the loyal opposition (Woody Allen describing his relationship with God), the Right. I know this will upset many people of a conservative bent but I’m here to create dialogue, not to find friends. I believe at this point most of Donald Trump’s supporters are letting their egos get in the way of finding a solution to what seems to be a Freight Train called the United States of America running at full speed, out of control, headlong toward a collision with a destiny that no one on either side wants…the destruction of our Republic. The ego of President Trump’s supporters does not want what it perceives as failure in the election of Donald Trump to the Presidency. I think Trump knows this and feeds it. It is time to look at what is happening in this country and to stop letting ego get in the way of success. If for no other reason than everyone on the planet knows that Vladimir Putin and the Russian Federation attacked our democracy, and our Commander-in-Chief refuses to do anything about it, ego must be put aside and under control and we must rid our House of the infestation called Donald J. Trump.

NONE DARE CALL IT TREASON

“NONE DARE CALL IT TREASON”

Misanthropic Boomer

When I began college in 1964 a new, recently published anti-Communism tome was being highly touted by the John Birch Society, a national anti-Communist organization mostly popular on college campuses across the country. The Birchers, as they were called, were convinced that the domino effect was real and that without U.S. intervention Southeast Asia would fall, followed by the rest of Asia; nations falling like dominoes.

The title of the book, written by John A. Stormer, was taken from a couplet by Sir John Harrington 1561 - 1612: “Treason doth never prosper, what’s the reason? For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.” I do not believe there is a more accurate statement of Donald Trump’s rationale for his traitorous actions than Harrington’s couplet.

It is patently obvious by now that Donald Trump, President of these United States, is a willing rather than a coerced participant with Vladimir Putin in the attempted destruction of our nation: the relegating of the United States to a position of puppet to the Russian Federation. First, consider that at the press conference of July 16, 2018, following the so-called summit meeting between Putin and Trump, when asked point blank about whether the Russian interference with the 2016 election was discussed, as Trump was deflecting, Putin’s body language including the smirk and subsequent chuckle spoke much more eloquently than did Trump’s answer. It was obvious that Putin was projecting the willingness of Trump to go along with everything that Putin was and is planning.

Why am I convinced that Trump is a willing partner of Vladimir Putin’s plan to create a single, Russian, super power with enough strength to dominate the rest of the nations of the world? Consider the fact that both Putin and Trump have denied from the very beginning of this fiasco ever having had any personal knowledge or contact with one another until Trump’s election to the highest office in the land. And then, consider that Trump’s first known business contact with the then Soviet Union was in1987 when he began discussions with Soviet businessmen and government officials about developing a deal with the Russians to construct a Trump Tower in Moscow. The meetings to discuss these plans were arranged by Soviet Ambassador Yuri Dubinin. Dubinin arranged for an all expenses paid trip to Leningrad and Moscow for Trump to meet with Soviet officials, and oligarchs. Although it was Gorbachev who was the Soviet leader at the time, Putin as a high ranking official in the Soviet intelligence apparatus would certainly have been aware of, and most likely very interested in said meetings.

It was shortly after this first incursion into the world of Soviet business and politics (really one in the same) that Trump first made known his interest in the U.S. Presidency. He traveled to New Hampshire at the invitation of Mike Dunbar, a Republican operative. While in New Hampshire Trump purchased full page ads in the New York Times, The Washington Post and the Boston Globe, at a cost of nearly one hundred thousand dollars. These ads decried America’s foreign policy and criticized the policy of “…paying to defend countries that can afford to defend themselves:” a theme he has continued during his Presidency (most recently at the NATO meetings preceding his ‘Summit’ with Putin). Interesting that this position began after his first meetings with Soviet officials, facilitated by a high ranking Soviet Ambassador. This then began Trump’s serious involvement with the Soviet Union and then the Russian Federation.

Between 1987 and 1999 two things stand out about “businessman” Donald Trump; his financial dealings began to fall on hard times: four bankruptcies between 1990 and 1992, and posted losses of nearly $650 million for Trump casinos. How does anyone lose money owning a casino? This period also began his increased interest in doing business with Russia. Then too, it was also during this period that Trump began his serious investigations into a Presidential run. An interesting sidelight to all of this is that in 2000 Michael Caputo, who ran Trump’s 2016 New York primary campaign, began work as an image consultant for Vladimir Putin.
Trump’s interest in and dealings with Russia continued throughout the new Millennium with licensing, real estate, gambling deals and of course the Miss Universe Pageant. And, as his dealings with Moscow increased so did his desire to make a Presidential run. In this he gradually assembled aides whom he had known and been involved with for decades, including Roger Stone and Paul Manafort; both of whom had had significant business dealings with Russia going back to the Soviet era.

By 2013 Trump was openly critical of President Obama, and very openly praiseworthy of Russia’s Vladimir Putin. In November of 2013 following a supposedly aborted meeting with Putin (we don’t know for sure whether or not the meeting took place) Trump said of Putin in an interview, “I do have a relationship, and I can tell you that he’s very interested in what we’re doing here today. He’s probably very interested in what you and I are saying today and I’m sure he’s going to be seeing it in some form. But I do have a relationship with him and I think it’s very interesting to see what’s happened. I mean, look, he’s done a very brilliant job in terms of what he represents and who he’s representing. If you look at what he’s done with Syria, if you look at so many of the different things, he has really eaten our president’s lunch, let’s not kid ourselves.”

As the 2016 Presidential campaign moved into full swing Trump, who had always prior to this talked seemingly very openly about his Russian relationships, began to become very cagey; covert one might say. And this leads us up to his election to President and his embracing of Russia and Vladimir Putin: Trump’s new, old best friend. Everything Donald J. Trump has done since being elected President seems to benefit Russia and himself, in one way or another, from his failing to implement Congressionally approved sanctions for Russia’s interference in the elections to this latest meeting with Putin wherein he has apparently in secret committed U.S. troops to Russia for the Syrian conflict. Additionally he has carried water for Putin in his war with NATO, a burr under Putin’s skin. We are now very aware that Trump is on Putin’s side in everything on the Dictator’s agenda. The only question left to answer is whether blackmail controls Trump, or he is a willing agent of the Russian Federation and Vladimir Putin. I would posit that the former makes little sense in that if was blackmail Putin would have begun to use Trump more effectively and sooner. No, this is as John Harrington put it…when both parties prosper it is treason based although the semantics change the outcome. Donald J. Trump is a willing co-conspirator with no excuse for what he has done…his motivation power and self aggrandizement.

Finally ponder this, at no time since his election to the Presidency has Trump placed the needs of the United States above his own or Vladimir Putin’s.

None may dare call it treason, but I do.