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Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Who is more unstable? Trump, or his critics?


After the election Trump’s most ardent critics set sail for sunny and warm climes, armed and ready to criticize his every move. But they boarded the wrong ship and now are headed where the Titanic rests.

Trump, they say, is crass, stupid, dangerous, mentally unfit, etc., and their reactions to him are exercises in petulance, whining, stomping of feet, boohooing, and even releasing real tears in their fits of hellish pique.

Their feel-good, though unfulfilled, dreams of a quick impeachment demonstrate just how irrational their reactions are. Full-on obstruction and subversion may make their over-reactions abate temporarily, but their antics interfere with important national operations, damaging the very nation that they say they are acting to save.  What sensible people do is sit back, shut up, and do an objective analysis of what has happened in the nation since the man the American people elected took office, overlooking the petty objectionable aspects in favor of the positive reality.

Given the disgraceful performance of the mainstream “news” media, most of the good stuff that has occurred suffers from a lack of air (time) and ink, so many or most Americans have been kept in the dark by the “professionals” whose duty it is to keep them well informed.

And the anti-Trump media looks foolish, trying in vain to explain to their audience something that they themselves are incapable of understanding. Donald Trump doesn’t do things in the way they think is essential, so he must be wrong. The idea that “different is not necessarily wrong or bad” is a concept far beyond their narrow understanding of things.

Despite the disbelief and ill wishes, good things are happening with Trump as president.

For example, the number of federal employees has fallen, by as much as 71,000, according to one report, a good start to restoring government to its proper size and function. Many of these employees left because of their dislike of Trump.

Personnel reductions often have negatives attached to them. Large organizations may suffer discord at first, requiring remaining personnel to do more, which is not always eagerly accepted, even when employees didn’t have enough to do to begin with.

Too few people might lead to over-working existing personnel, and/or falling behind on the mission. Having too many people allows for periods for employees to be non-productive, or worse, to do “work” where and/or when there is no real demand for it. In government this condition frequently results in malicious behavior, such as the government badgering people for political reasons because there were too many employees with too much time on their hands.

This was likely the case when IRS employees had so little real and necessary work to do that they had time for misfeasance, targeting and harassing conservative applicants for non-profit status, while approving liberal applicants easily and quickly.

“Of 624 key political positions requiring Senate confirmation, just 240 were confirmed” as of mid-December, The Washington Post reported. The story added that the process was stalled by a slow recruitment and vetting process, and drawn-out Senate confirmation schedules.

However, on the Laura Ingraham radio program in November, Trump explained the businessman’s sensible perspective: “I tell my people, ‘Where you don’t need to fill slots, don’t fill them.’ ”

Called “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” the reactions to Trump as president fall clearly into the realm of madness. While much of the media ignores the positive developments in Trump’s first year, they also have ignored how all the insane predictions from his irrational critics have not occurred.

Predictions such as that the stock market would crash if Trump won; the opposite of which has occurred. Or, that civilization would end, but it still exists and is no worse off, except for the anti-Trump maniacs. Or this one, one that many wish had come true: that celebrities who threatened to leave the U.S. are still here.

The pot calls the kettle black, as his enemies accuse Trump of being crazy. A long and objective look in a mirror might help them. If not that, then a face-to-face evaluation by a licensed (and competent) mental health practitioner might be the answer.

And, the Real Clear Politics average of polling shows that on Inauguration Day 2017, Obamacare’s approval flipped from negative to positive, and has remained there since. And that is just one such issue where support and opposition have flipped since Trump took office.

“The psychology is easy. I don’t like the guy. If he says two plus two is four, I’m going to make it five. That’s human nature,” said Republican Party strategist and pollster Michael McKenna. “The message and the messenger are inextricably linked.”

So, in the confused mind of McKenna, something is only good enough for his support if he likes the person who proposed it, regardless of what the issue is and its intrinsic value to the country. Does this not support the use of the term “unhinged” as applied to many of Trump’s critics?

Trump’s enemies must have enormous egos to believe that their dislike for him is more important than professional ethics and standards, or thoughtful evaluation of issues. So long as this is the standard for Trump’s opposition, the country is in trouble.

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