KICKING ASS!
"I'm too old for this."
"Are you sure?"
Right brain argues with my left brain.
Daughter buys my house in a small Montana town. I move into the city 50 miles away and live totally alone for the first time ever. I'm short six months of celebrating my 75th birthday.
This is, in fact, an experiment, an adventure of sorts. I sign a six-month lease on a small apartment. Although I'm acquainted with a few people and can find my way around, the territory is essentially new. Am I really too old for this? Can I begin a new life in a city alone? Why would I even want to?
As a four-year resident of a small town, I find limited opportunities to stretch myself. Running for political office as a Democrat bucks the local trend. It leaves me feeling unrewarded and on the outs with many colleagues. Serving on a local Board as well as trying to re-capture use of a skill from my distant past means that I expend all my energies, burn out, and look for other ways to succeed. How can I widen my horizons, increase my knowledge, grow?
First step: Create a vision. How do I see myself in the latter third of my life? As a grandparent? Not yet anyway. A perpetual volunteer? Maybe. A person who has skills, talents, and dreams yet to be realized? Yes, that's who I am. What are my dreams? Live life to its fullest. Possibly reside in another country that has a different culture, traditions, food, and language. (Research cannot say for sure but learning a new skill like another language may help build brainpower that helps hold off memory loss - WebMD.) How can I bring that to pass?
Second step: Embrace change. Change happens anyway. Why not meet it head-on? I want adventure; I want to experience as much life as possible. To do that, I must live independently. Floating lazily down a stream while other family members make decisions about my life doesn't really cut it. I research possibilities, choose options. Sell my house, move into the city.
Third step: Observe self through upcoming changes. How do I plan my days in the city? In which organizations do I have interest and want to participate? How do I connect with others who may have similar interests? Do I feel my goal of living life to its fullest is coming to fruition? Will it be enough? Or do I want to push myself even more? If I do well in this transition of six months, does that mean I have found my goal or is there a next step?
Possible fourth step: Assess my life within six months. Is this a city where I continue to expand horizons, increase my knowledge, grow within a community? Or does living overseas sound like a more interesting option? If that's true, developing how-to skills is a part of that process and is already starting.
Life happens, right? To the extent, however, that one can control anything at all, I want to make challenging choices. I live to the best of my ability in this third "third". It is as I wish -- a kick-ass life!
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Friday, June 17, 2016
Published in Montana Senior News, June/July, 2016, is the following story I wrote in February, 2015.
TODAY I FLY!
Today's the day. I jump into my car. I'm free!
Down alley, left to Main. No cars. I turn right, then right again at the blinking light, down the hill. Slowly, I keep at 25 mph. I want to fly! No. Not yet, not yet.
The sun, still low in the sky, hits me on the left. Feels good.
I cross the river and enter the first curve. Years back, the road twists and turns. It would be so easy to miss a bend, fly across a fence, a pasture. Now my path cuts through hillsides.
Without thinking, I push the radio "on" button. A blast of static assails. Oops. I haven't yet crossed the Divide where Montana Public Radio kicks in.
The road gently inclines. I consider my long, productive life, achievements undisputed. A strict, stifled upbringing leads to a failed marriage but, out of that, comes a daughter with whom I now share my home. The death of my second husband four years ago precipitates my move to Montana. Adjustments haven't been easy. Now at 74, I've questioned my worth many times. But today? Today I fly!
Slowly I reach the peak. At the Divide, a railroad trestle spans the highest point in the mountains. Over the edge, cliffs are steep, jagged. Valleys below are rolling, uneven. What if I gunned the motor, heading straight instead of curving with the road? Just let myself go, relax into the air, gravity carrying me downward? No, no. Not here. Not yet.
Again I push the radio button. It's MTPR's "Performance Today". Strauss from Carnegie Hall flows around, through me, providing calm to taut nerves. What will be my performance today?
Memories flood in. A school teacher, a doctoral degree, a school principal. How else to move up in the 1970's than to have more credentials than male counterparts?
A new love, a move to Florida, a consulting venture. I love the work but not clawing to the top. A better fit is serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer with my husband in Bulgaria for two years after retirement. Adjusting to newness of country, language, food, traditions, is a challenge we meet with flying colors.
I'm good at adjusting to change, overcoming barriers. I've done it many times. There's been so much to live for.
After relocation and my husband's death, I adapt. The long-distance move to my daughter's is part of that flexibility. But now, approaching old age, I must again create something new.
It's been difficult. One step forward, two steps back. Where am I now?
I have read statistics on suicides in the West, far higher than in the rest of the nation. Montana is ranked third nationally. Will I be considered one of those statistics? No matter. I know what I have to do.
Through prairie land, intermittent hills along stretches of ribbon highway, I spy clouds of rising smoke signaling my arrival into the city. I make a right turn at the blinking light and another further on. I begin my ascent up the long, steep rise. Approaching the summit, I see on my left a sign for Swords Park, a walking path follows the top of the stone rims forming the city's northern boundary. Located many feet below is the city center shaped by the rims into a bowl.
I often wonder what it would be like to walk this path. Can I take that walk now? No guard rails, no fences, nothing to impede a stumble and fall into the abyss. No surrounding mantle of metal to keep a body from feeling the full impact of bones against rock.
A slight movement to the right of my windshield draws my attention -- an orange color, waving in the wind. Oh, yes. I pull right into the drive, pass several buildings before arriving at the door of the last one. I climb from my car just as a tall, lanky fellow steps out, sees me and grins.
"Hey," he calls. "Right on time. Are you nervous?" he asks, heading my way.
"Are you kidding?! I'm scared silly! My whole life has passed before my eyes. But, hey, this is my first tandem skydive. Today I fly!"
TODAY I FLY!
Today's the day. I jump into my car. I'm free!
Down alley, left to Main. No cars. I turn right, then right again at the blinking light, down the hill. Slowly, I keep at 25 mph. I want to fly! No. Not yet, not yet.
The sun, still low in the sky, hits me on the left. Feels good.
I cross the river and enter the first curve. Years back, the road twists and turns. It would be so easy to miss a bend, fly across a fence, a pasture. Now my path cuts through hillsides.
Without thinking, I push the radio "on" button. A blast of static assails. Oops. I haven't yet crossed the Divide where Montana Public Radio kicks in.
The road gently inclines. I consider my long, productive life, achievements undisputed. A strict, stifled upbringing leads to a failed marriage but, out of that, comes a daughter with whom I now share my home. The death of my second husband four years ago precipitates my move to Montana. Adjustments haven't been easy. Now at 74, I've questioned my worth many times. But today? Today I fly!
Slowly I reach the peak. At the Divide, a railroad trestle spans the highest point in the mountains. Over the edge, cliffs are steep, jagged. Valleys below are rolling, uneven. What if I gunned the motor, heading straight instead of curving with the road? Just let myself go, relax into the air, gravity carrying me downward? No, no. Not here. Not yet.
Again I push the radio button. It's MTPR's "Performance Today". Strauss from Carnegie Hall flows around, through me, providing calm to taut nerves. What will be my performance today?
Memories flood in. A school teacher, a doctoral degree, a school principal. How else to move up in the 1970's than to have more credentials than male counterparts?
A new love, a move to Florida, a consulting venture. I love the work but not clawing to the top. A better fit is serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer with my husband in Bulgaria for two years after retirement. Adjusting to newness of country, language, food, traditions, is a challenge we meet with flying colors.
I'm good at adjusting to change, overcoming barriers. I've done it many times. There's been so much to live for.
After relocation and my husband's death, I adapt. The long-distance move to my daughter's is part of that flexibility. But now, approaching old age, I must again create something new.
It's been difficult. One step forward, two steps back. Where am I now?
I have read statistics on suicides in the West, far higher than in the rest of the nation. Montana is ranked third nationally. Will I be considered one of those statistics? No matter. I know what I have to do.
Through prairie land, intermittent hills along stretches of ribbon highway, I spy clouds of rising smoke signaling my arrival into the city. I make a right turn at the blinking light and another further on. I begin my ascent up the long, steep rise. Approaching the summit, I see on my left a sign for Swords Park, a walking path follows the top of the stone rims forming the city's northern boundary. Located many feet below is the city center shaped by the rims into a bowl.
I often wonder what it would be like to walk this path. Can I take that walk now? No guard rails, no fences, nothing to impede a stumble and fall into the abyss. No surrounding mantle of metal to keep a body from feeling the full impact of bones against rock.
A slight movement to the right of my windshield draws my attention -- an orange color, waving in the wind. Oh, yes. I pull right into the drive, pass several buildings before arriving at the door of the last one. I climb from my car just as a tall, lanky fellow steps out, sees me and grins.
"Hey," he calls. "Right on time. Are you nervous?" he asks, heading my way.
"Are you kidding?! I'm scared silly! My whole life has passed before my eyes. But, hey, this is my first tandem skydive. Today I fly!"
Thursday, June 16, 2016
A MOMENTOUS CHANGE
A microcosm, my personal life mirrors the larger political changes in our country. What is going on? Hillary Rodham Clinton is the first woman ever to be elected as Presidential Candidate of a major political party. It becomes more than probable that she will be our next President of the United States. How does that affect me?
1. About Hillary's candidacy, people say, "Enough of male-only leadership. Forget what has always been. Let's look seriously at width and depth of experience, a female outlook, wisdom-with-age and see where that can take us."
My personal life: I sell my house to my daughter (she's been staying with me off and on over the past four years). Closing on my house is July 7. My past tells me I must follow tradition, do what has already worked. Buy another home, grow more roots, stay close to home and family. This time, however, my path is not so clear. What do I want to do with the rest of my life? Do I really want another home which requires time and resources to maintain and which also keeps me staying in one place? Why not invest that time and money in my life? Take the focus off a house, put it on me, see where it can take me?
2. About Hillary's candidacy, people say, "We need no longer be tethered to a tired, old idea. We have the ability now to experiment and succeed with a female leader as many other countries have already done. Consider Indira Gandhi of India; Golda Meir of Israel; Margaret Thatcher of the United Kingdom; Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan; Angela Merkel of Germany; and Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar. These are only six out of a list of more than 25 female leaders of countries. (Wikipedia)
My personal life: I would like not to be tethered to a house. Instead, I would like to fly, to experiment, to meet people who may be more like me -- whatever that looks like. Or to meet people who look nothing like me, speak another language, practice different traditions, eat different foods.
3. About Hillary's candidacy, people say, "These years can be a learning experiment. See what women like Hillary can do -- success will be hers. Imagine the role model she will serve for young girls and women."
My personal life: I want the last years of my life to be a learning experiment. What am I capable of doing? What risks am I willing to take? Can I make my life exciting again by learning something new while still taking care of myself? Can I be a success in my own eyes?
My developing plan:
What is Hillary's impact? She shows us how to shoot for the stars. When she gets knocked down, she jumps back up. Not once, not even twice, but over and over again. She is persistent; she never gives up. "Keep working toward your goals," she models. And if I don't meet my goals? Maybe, just maybe, merely trying for them will create a heck of a ride!
A microcosm, my personal life mirrors the larger political changes in our country. What is going on? Hillary Rodham Clinton is the first woman ever to be elected as Presidential Candidate of a major political party. It becomes more than probable that she will be our next President of the United States. How does that affect me?
1. About Hillary's candidacy, people say, "Enough of male-only leadership. Forget what has always been. Let's look seriously at width and depth of experience, a female outlook, wisdom-with-age and see where that can take us."
My personal life: I sell my house to my daughter (she's been staying with me off and on over the past four years). Closing on my house is July 7. My past tells me I must follow tradition, do what has already worked. Buy another home, grow more roots, stay close to home and family. This time, however, my path is not so clear. What do I want to do with the rest of my life? Do I really want another home which requires time and resources to maintain and which also keeps me staying in one place? Why not invest that time and money in my life? Take the focus off a house, put it on me, see where it can take me?
2. About Hillary's candidacy, people say, "We need no longer be tethered to a tired, old idea. We have the ability now to experiment and succeed with a female leader as many other countries have already done. Consider Indira Gandhi of India; Golda Meir of Israel; Margaret Thatcher of the United Kingdom; Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan; Angela Merkel of Germany; and Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar. These are only six out of a list of more than 25 female leaders of countries. (Wikipedia)
My personal life: I would like not to be tethered to a house. Instead, I would like to fly, to experiment, to meet people who may be more like me -- whatever that looks like. Or to meet people who look nothing like me, speak another language, practice different traditions, eat different foods.
3. About Hillary's candidacy, people say, "These years can be a learning experiment. See what women like Hillary can do -- success will be hers. Imagine the role model she will serve for young girls and women."
My personal life: I want the last years of my life to be a learning experiment. What am I capable of doing? What risks am I willing to take? Can I make my life exciting again by learning something new while still taking care of myself? Can I be a success in my own eyes?
My developing plan:
- Rent a small apartment in our nearby city for six months. See what I can do. It allows for time and space to see what I really want. It's a tentative step towards independence, totally on my own since before marriage and no family living with me.
- Will learning to do for myself be enough? Regular healthcare is nearby. Commitments to work on current projects here will continue on a weekly basis. [My candidacy, however, effectively ends when leaving this District.] Will I also be able to join in with other interesting groups in the city, like a writing group, a dancing group? Will I become part of smaller communities within a larger community?
- Once I'm free to leave at the end of this six months, will I want to leave? Will I want to live somewhere else? Will I still want to experiment, to take risks, to live in another country, speak another language? Will I have an interest in learning another language during these six months -- to prepare for living in another country? Or will I decide that living alone in the city is enough?
- Will the first-ever check I receive last week from Montana Senior News for a story I'd written ("Today I Fly") be enough motivation to keep me writing? To spread my wings through writing so there is no need to go someplace else? Or will my need to risk and write be the way to go?
- I want to write. I want to take risks. Is this the combination that will make my writing a success, particularly at my age? Are these the kinds of stories that will motivate others to also take risks in their later years? The tendency as I get older is to stay comfortable. I get used to a routine that seems safe but doesn't allow for much excitement in life, or to generate much new learning. It, instead, allows for my becoming stale, uninteresting, lacking new ideas or freshness. How to avoid that? Not sure.
- Do I need to be physically moving? Can I be the one experiencing all the new and the risky and then writing about it? Can I experience it living in one place or must I go out of my comfort zone in order to write about it?
- That's what I'm hoping these next six months will tell me.
What is Hillary's impact? She shows us how to shoot for the stars. When she gets knocked down, she jumps back up. Not once, not even twice, but over and over again. She is persistent; she never gives up. "Keep working toward your goals," she models. And if I don't meet my goals? Maybe, just maybe, merely trying for them will create a heck of a ride!
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
AN OPEN LETTER TO BERNIE SANDERS
It's amazing, Bernie. Your stamina is keeping you going day after day, month after month, with little rest in-between. You arrive at your rallies, bare-headed and bald, ready to go whether it's rain, shine, or just downright cold (where's your hat?!). You jump onto the plane, fly cross country or across ocean, jump off the plane, do what you need to do, then it's back to the plane again, retracing steps or creating new ones to the next place, the next talk, the next rally. When do you stop?!
You are not young anymore, Bernie. In fact, you are my age, mid-seventies. At this age, bodies are not meant to sustain constant abuse. I know -- I've tried outrunning my years but it hasn't worked. How is it for you Bernie? Let's take stock.
When you begin your campaign, it seems a little like Donald Trump's -- not taken very seriously by you, thought of more like an experiment? You seem relaxed, clear-thinking, speaking about ideas already voiced when you've been interviewed periodically as a Senator outside the Capitol building. But this is new. Here is your opportunity to have a wider audience, much wider, and it is invigorating. You come across as a smiling, grandfatherly, well-meaning figure -- relaxed and ready to go.
Many months and many miles later, what do I hear, what do I see peering from my screen? For the most part, the smiling and relaxed Bernie is gone. Except for times when greeting picture-takers or supporters on a one-to-one basis, your personna comes across as grumpy, short-tempered, and argumentative. Your words at rallies come more slowly; your voice more gravelly. But these aren't the only problems that have emerged of late. Consider the following.
Sarcasm has now become part of your public speaking, like in debates. When responding to Hillary's assertions that she took big banks to task, you sarcastically berate her with something like, "And I bet they were really scared when you did that!" Waving hands and arms in the air, you sound and look decidedly un-presidential.
It isn't just the words you speak but also words from people like Dr. Song who precedes you at a New York rally. He uses the phrase "corporate whore" referring, as everyone understands, to Hillary Clinton. If the phrase weren't bad enough with a large amount of the crowd cheering, it takes you a full night of sleep to realize what had happened then respond with a tweet of "inappropriate" language.
More and more, especially in New York, your approach has been to use personal negative attacks against Hillary. This is particularly puzzling because "going negative" is something you vow over and over that you will not do during your campaign. In your talk now and in your campaign ads, you imply that Hillary can't be trusted and that she is corrupted by money. You use baseless accusations to accuse her of illegal actions. As a congressman, you are aware that, while in office, you cannot accept speaker fees. But Hillary is not in office when she gives her speeches, so she has every right to accept fees. You imply that her fees are taken illegally, or that she is corrupt because she take the fees.
You note the importance of transparency in the presidential race and keep demanding copies of Hillary's speeches. And yet, Bernie, transparency is not a part of your campaign. For example, this past weekend, you fly yourself and Jane, children and grandchildren, to Italy and the Vatican. You say you are going despite the fact the trip is not part of your campaign; you would never forgive yourself if you didn't go, you say. Prior to your leaving, Andrea Mitchell of MSNBC asks your wife how you are going to pay for the trip. "I don't know," she responds. This is someone who, from all accounts, figures your taxes every year. Andrea later approaches Jeff Weaver, your Campaign Manager, with the same question. "The Campaign will pay for it," he quietly responds. There is no follow up question then and none since your return.
How, Bernie, can your campaign pay for your trip to the Vatican if the trip (and your speech) is not a part of your political campaign, something you repeatedly admitted? Politicians time and again are tripped up by misuse of political campaign funds. It would seem that you demand transparency on the part of Hillary Clinton when she gives speeches (about which there is no evidence of corruption), and yet, when it comes to you, there is no transparency at all.
The latest violations from Hillary's campaign, your campaign alleges, are that she and the DNC are in cahoots about a joint funding account and it's illegal, Jeff Weaver says. "It must be stopped," Jeff Weaver says. The truth is, Bernie, that the account Hillary has with DNC is also offered to your campaign. It is signed early on, but never used. Just as Donald Trump realizes that delegate-hunting is something he should have started long ago, so now your campaign is also found wanting.
It's sad. "Hypocrisy reigns supreme," says someone describing your campaign. Your current bombastic, self-righteous, and dishonest approach to running a presidential campaign is disappointing, to say the least. How will it all end? One of your advisers accuses Hillary of making "a pact with the devil". Both you and your campaign need to get back to a higher level of rhetoric if we can expect to heal wounds and hold the White House this fall.
It's amazing, Bernie. Your stamina is keeping you going day after day, month after month, with little rest in-between. You arrive at your rallies, bare-headed and bald, ready to go whether it's rain, shine, or just downright cold (where's your hat?!). You jump onto the plane, fly cross country or across ocean, jump off the plane, do what you need to do, then it's back to the plane again, retracing steps or creating new ones to the next place, the next talk, the next rally. When do you stop?!
You are not young anymore, Bernie. In fact, you are my age, mid-seventies. At this age, bodies are not meant to sustain constant abuse. I know -- I've tried outrunning my years but it hasn't worked. How is it for you Bernie? Let's take stock.
When you begin your campaign, it seems a little like Donald Trump's -- not taken very seriously by you, thought of more like an experiment? You seem relaxed, clear-thinking, speaking about ideas already voiced when you've been interviewed periodically as a Senator outside the Capitol building. But this is new. Here is your opportunity to have a wider audience, much wider, and it is invigorating. You come across as a smiling, grandfatherly, well-meaning figure -- relaxed and ready to go.
Many months and many miles later, what do I hear, what do I see peering from my screen? For the most part, the smiling and relaxed Bernie is gone. Except for times when greeting picture-takers or supporters on a one-to-one basis, your personna comes across as grumpy, short-tempered, and argumentative. Your words at rallies come more slowly; your voice more gravelly. But these aren't the only problems that have emerged of late. Consider the following.
Sarcasm has now become part of your public speaking, like in debates. When responding to Hillary's assertions that she took big banks to task, you sarcastically berate her with something like, "And I bet they were really scared when you did that!" Waving hands and arms in the air, you sound and look decidedly un-presidential.
It isn't just the words you speak but also words from people like Dr. Song who precedes you at a New York rally. He uses the phrase "corporate whore" referring, as everyone understands, to Hillary Clinton. If the phrase weren't bad enough with a large amount of the crowd cheering, it takes you a full night of sleep to realize what had happened then respond with a tweet of "inappropriate" language.
More and more, especially in New York, your approach has been to use personal negative attacks against Hillary. This is particularly puzzling because "going negative" is something you vow over and over that you will not do during your campaign. In your talk now and in your campaign ads, you imply that Hillary can't be trusted and that she is corrupted by money. You use baseless accusations to accuse her of illegal actions. As a congressman, you are aware that, while in office, you cannot accept speaker fees. But Hillary is not in office when she gives her speeches, so she has every right to accept fees. You imply that her fees are taken illegally, or that she is corrupt because she take the fees.
You note the importance of transparency in the presidential race and keep demanding copies of Hillary's speeches. And yet, Bernie, transparency is not a part of your campaign. For example, this past weekend, you fly yourself and Jane, children and grandchildren, to Italy and the Vatican. You say you are going despite the fact the trip is not part of your campaign; you would never forgive yourself if you didn't go, you say. Prior to your leaving, Andrea Mitchell of MSNBC asks your wife how you are going to pay for the trip. "I don't know," she responds. This is someone who, from all accounts, figures your taxes every year. Andrea later approaches Jeff Weaver, your Campaign Manager, with the same question. "The Campaign will pay for it," he quietly responds. There is no follow up question then and none since your return.
How, Bernie, can your campaign pay for your trip to the Vatican if the trip (and your speech) is not a part of your political campaign, something you repeatedly admitted? Politicians time and again are tripped up by misuse of political campaign funds. It would seem that you demand transparency on the part of Hillary Clinton when she gives speeches (about which there is no evidence of corruption), and yet, when it comes to you, there is no transparency at all.
The latest violations from Hillary's campaign, your campaign alleges, are that she and the DNC are in cahoots about a joint funding account and it's illegal, Jeff Weaver says. "It must be stopped," Jeff Weaver says. The truth is, Bernie, that the account Hillary has with DNC is also offered to your campaign. It is signed early on, but never used. Just as Donald Trump realizes that delegate-hunting is something he should have started long ago, so now your campaign is also found wanting.
It's sad. "Hypocrisy reigns supreme," says someone describing your campaign. Your current bombastic, self-righteous, and dishonest approach to running a presidential campaign is disappointing, to say the least. How will it all end? One of your advisers accuses Hillary of making "a pact with the devil". Both you and your campaign need to get back to a higher level of rhetoric if we can expect to heal wounds and hold the White House this fall.
Saturday, April 16, 2016
PLOMing -- again
I got word the other evening from Carol's List that they are endorsing me as a pro-choice Democratic candidate for MT State House District 40 (Carol's List is the Montana group that works in conjunction with Emily's List, the national group that helps pro-choice Democratic women attain public office). I stood up a little straighter and stuck out my chest a little further. What an honor! I've also been invited to attend a one-day training session with other endorsees of Carol's List in Helena in a week's time -- and to bring my "key campaign staff or lead volunteer". I went to bed feeling excited and hopeful. This is one endorsement for which I'd been encouraged to apply, and it has come through. I'll celebrate and make plans tomorrow, I tell myself.
In the clear light of day, however, reality hits. The catch in this whole thing is that there is no one with whom I can truly celebrate and I have no "key campaign staff or lead volunteer" to go with me to the training. Running "blue" for office in a very "red" part of a "red" state can be a lonely endeavor. This was true last time around in 2014, but that was an experiment and not taken too seriously. This time my goal is to be out in the community, starting a conversation, mostly listening and learning, and also sharing my point of view (knowing full well that achieving election is a long way down the road, if ever -- gotta start somewhere though).
After several days of PLOMing (Poor Little Ole Me), I've decided to reframe my whole outlook, pulling myself out of this funk. I can view this episode as an opportunity instead of a drawback. How do I do that?
1. Face the fact that I am a volunteer. I get to choose where and how I spend my energies and my time. If that's true, I must take responsibility for those choices and accept any results coming from them, whether positive or negative.
2. Remind myself that change is a part of life (as I remind my daughter). Life is different now than when I was in my thirties, forties. Then, there were many other women who felt as I did, who changed with the times, who came to realize their own worth and to build on it. We formed consciousness-raising groups, encouraged and supported each other along the way.
Now the "red-headed-ness" tenor of the country tries to quash that in any way possible. "We know what's best for you," they say, "particularly if you're poor. We will go backwards and take away your rights to affordable healthcare, to decide what is best for you when it comes to all healthcare including abortions. We will not help you reach your full potential: no equal pay for equal work, no affordable child care, no healthy planet on which to live, no being different from us, etc. etc. It's NO!NO!NO!" I can scream sometimes with the frustration of it all!
3. Understand that there is at least one advantage to aging. One can learn from past experience and become wiser in the process. As tempting as it may seem at times, I will not go back to a time of non-awareness (as on "I Love Lucy" in other words). I will not un-learn all the lessons from the past.
4. Re-visit my actions and desires since moving to Montana. How can I take what I've been doing and turn that into a meaningful, more uplifting project for the foreseeable future? This election process in which I'm involved can be much more than imposing my viewpoint on others. Through listening and learning from local residents, I can better appreciate their experiences and value their approach to life. In that process, I learn more about our town -- as it is, as it was. Much of the written history has been written by men, focused on men, like miners and ranchers, but very little on women and what they've achieved. It's time to change that.
Aging is not an easy process, for men or women. I'm aware that one way for men to find solace and understanding in that process is to relate to other men through common ground, even if philosophies of life may differ. For example, if enjoyment comes through a hobby or sports, relating to others on that level brings about a camaraderie that can transcend other differences. The same thing can be true with women. In my case, a greater understanding of other women's experiences, finding commonalities in our backgrounds despite philosophical differences, can bring about greater appreciation for their (and my) unique paths in life (hasn't worked so far with my sisters but maybe it's too early to give up).
It's for this reason that recently I had been considering researching the process of aging in women. Research would take the form of interviews with older women, learning from them how they have been able to work with the hand they'd been dealt.
5. Use suggestions from others in the community (longtime residents and particularly female, those women who describe themselves as moderate Republicans -- and there is at least one, younger community activists) who will help guide my path.
Along the way, I may be able to complete a goal I'd set for myself in 2013. It was to tell the stories of women in our community, compile them into one volume, and include them as part of the archives in Musselshell Valley Historical Museum (on whose Board I still sit). What better culmination to a project that originally looked so daunting (activities connected to election-running, learning more about area history through eyes of women, create a bond with women who seem to sit on another side of the proverbial fence, and complete a long-held goal).
All the steps above can be achieved, more gradually than not. But, if anything goes right at all, it may be that in my eyes, "red" won't seem so red, nor "blue" so blue. If we get to purple and create some authentic understanding among us, that will be a healthy improvement! And maybe a lot less PLOMing...
I got word the other evening from Carol's List that they are endorsing me as a pro-choice Democratic candidate for MT State House District 40 (Carol's List is the Montana group that works in conjunction with Emily's List, the national group that helps pro-choice Democratic women attain public office). I stood up a little straighter and stuck out my chest a little further. What an honor! I've also been invited to attend a one-day training session with other endorsees of Carol's List in Helena in a week's time -- and to bring my "key campaign staff or lead volunteer". I went to bed feeling excited and hopeful. This is one endorsement for which I'd been encouraged to apply, and it has come through. I'll celebrate and make plans tomorrow, I tell myself.
In the clear light of day, however, reality hits. The catch in this whole thing is that there is no one with whom I can truly celebrate and I have no "key campaign staff or lead volunteer" to go with me to the training. Running "blue" for office in a very "red" part of a "red" state can be a lonely endeavor. This was true last time around in 2014, but that was an experiment and not taken too seriously. This time my goal is to be out in the community, starting a conversation, mostly listening and learning, and also sharing my point of view (knowing full well that achieving election is a long way down the road, if ever -- gotta start somewhere though).
After several days of PLOMing (Poor Little Ole Me), I've decided to reframe my whole outlook, pulling myself out of this funk. I can view this episode as an opportunity instead of a drawback. How do I do that?
1. Face the fact that I am a volunteer. I get to choose where and how I spend my energies and my time. If that's true, I must take responsibility for those choices and accept any results coming from them, whether positive or negative.
2. Remind myself that change is a part of life (as I remind my daughter). Life is different now than when I was in my thirties, forties. Then, there were many other women who felt as I did, who changed with the times, who came to realize their own worth and to build on it. We formed consciousness-raising groups, encouraged and supported each other along the way.
Now the "red-headed-ness" tenor of the country tries to quash that in any way possible. "We know what's best for you," they say, "particularly if you're poor. We will go backwards and take away your rights to affordable healthcare, to decide what is best for you when it comes to all healthcare including abortions. We will not help you reach your full potential: no equal pay for equal work, no affordable child care, no healthy planet on which to live, no being different from us, etc. etc. It's NO!NO!NO!" I can scream sometimes with the frustration of it all!
3. Understand that there is at least one advantage to aging. One can learn from past experience and become wiser in the process. As tempting as it may seem at times, I will not go back to a time of non-awareness (as on "I Love Lucy" in other words). I will not un-learn all the lessons from the past.
4. Re-visit my actions and desires since moving to Montana. How can I take what I've been doing and turn that into a meaningful, more uplifting project for the foreseeable future? This election process in which I'm involved can be much more than imposing my viewpoint on others. Through listening and learning from local residents, I can better appreciate their experiences and value their approach to life. In that process, I learn more about our town -- as it is, as it was. Much of the written history has been written by men, focused on men, like miners and ranchers, but very little on women and what they've achieved. It's time to change that.
Aging is not an easy process, for men or women. I'm aware that one way for men to find solace and understanding in that process is to relate to other men through common ground, even if philosophies of life may differ. For example, if enjoyment comes through a hobby or sports, relating to others on that level brings about a camaraderie that can transcend other differences. The same thing can be true with women. In my case, a greater understanding of other women's experiences, finding commonalities in our backgrounds despite philosophical differences, can bring about greater appreciation for their (and my) unique paths in life (hasn't worked so far with my sisters but maybe it's too early to give up).
It's for this reason that recently I had been considering researching the process of aging in women. Research would take the form of interviews with older women, learning from them how they have been able to work with the hand they'd been dealt.
5. Use suggestions from others in the community (longtime residents and particularly female, those women who describe themselves as moderate Republicans -- and there is at least one, younger community activists) who will help guide my path.
Along the way, I may be able to complete a goal I'd set for myself in 2013. It was to tell the stories of women in our community, compile them into one volume, and include them as part of the archives in Musselshell Valley Historical Museum (on whose Board I still sit). What better culmination to a project that originally looked so daunting (activities connected to election-running, learning more about area history through eyes of women, create a bond with women who seem to sit on another side of the proverbial fence, and complete a long-held goal).
All the steps above can be achieved, more gradually than not. But, if anything goes right at all, it may be that in my eyes, "red" won't seem so red, nor "blue" so blue. If we get to purple and create some authentic understanding among us, that will be a healthy improvement! And maybe a lot less PLOMing...
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
What are you Doing about the Real World, may I ask?
"Babies are MURDERED here," reads a hand-made sign as I pull into the parking lot of my destination. A young woman holds the sign over her head and, across the long space of green, she gazes directly at my car. Well, that's an interesting question, I muse, climbing out and beginning my vigil. Just where is "here"?
My first thought of course is ISIS, or Daesh (a better name to use since the group hates it). Yes, Daesh cruelly tortures/kills babies, children, adults, every one they hate. I think of the toddler whose body washes up on a Mediterranean beach this summer. Yes, he is murdered by many -- those in his country who make it impossible for families to be safe, those who peddle in human trafficking, and those who build fences bordering anti-refugee countries. I think of the 14-year-old who has just starved to death early April, 2016. Yes, Assad's Syrian government obstructs humanitarian aid to his village for the express purpose of killing him and his family. I think of the very young to the very old who are murdered because of overwhelming numbers of guns (including assault rifles) flooding our country. Yes, it happens daily because of the greed of NRA in the name of gun manufacturers.
But here? No, Virginia, babies are not murdered at Planned Parenthood Health Centers. Instead, violence here comes from extremists who, as in Colorado, murder bystanders in the parking lot or patients and staff inside the medical center. Despite that, courageous doctors and nurses carry on. They provide health care for women who arrive for medical consultations, preventive care, screenings, birth control pills. The patient may also decide that, for her own health, an abortion, a constitutionally-sanctioned medical procedure, is necessary.
Open your eyes, Virginia, to where death really occurs. Help ease burdens of refugee families. After all, as Jesus taught in your Bible in Matthew 25:40, "Verily, I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Welcome to your neighborhood someone who may not look like you. Help prevent rampant overflow of guns across our country. Become educated on gun safety and how it can eliminate deaths of young children. Join the real world. Contribute time and money to those programs that can REALLY make a difference in peoples' lives.
"Babies are MURDERED here," reads a hand-made sign as I pull into the parking lot of my destination. A young woman holds the sign over her head and, across the long space of green, she gazes directly at my car. Well, that's an interesting question, I muse, climbing out and beginning my vigil. Just where is "here"?
My first thought of course is ISIS, or Daesh (a better name to use since the group hates it). Yes, Daesh cruelly tortures/kills babies, children, adults, every one they hate. I think of the toddler whose body washes up on a Mediterranean beach this summer. Yes, he is murdered by many -- those in his country who make it impossible for families to be safe, those who peddle in human trafficking, and those who build fences bordering anti-refugee countries. I think of the 14-year-old who has just starved to death early April, 2016. Yes, Assad's Syrian government obstructs humanitarian aid to his village for the express purpose of killing him and his family. I think of the very young to the very old who are murdered because of overwhelming numbers of guns (including assault rifles) flooding our country. Yes, it happens daily because of the greed of NRA in the name of gun manufacturers.
But here? No, Virginia, babies are not murdered at Planned Parenthood Health Centers. Instead, violence here comes from extremists who, as in Colorado, murder bystanders in the parking lot or patients and staff inside the medical center. Despite that, courageous doctors and nurses carry on. They provide health care for women who arrive for medical consultations, preventive care, screenings, birth control pills. The patient may also decide that, for her own health, an abortion, a constitutionally-sanctioned medical procedure, is necessary.
Open your eyes, Virginia, to where death really occurs. Help ease burdens of refugee families. After all, as Jesus taught in your Bible in Matthew 25:40, "Verily, I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Welcome to your neighborhood someone who may not look like you. Help prevent rampant overflow of guns across our country. Become educated on gun safety and how it can eliminate deaths of young children. Join the real world. Contribute time and money to those programs that can REALLY make a difference in peoples' lives.
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
GAMES PEOPLE PLAY, especially politicians
I'm a second-time around candidate for State House in Montana. I'm in it again because no one else will run in my district as a Democrat. I don't mind researching and arguing my side of an issue (although my debate skills leave something to be desired). And I can't bear not being represented during this particular presidential election year.
Puzzling situations develop. This is one.
A phone call from a friend asks a question. "Are you going to the Town Hall meeting?" Since I didn't see the notice in our local paper, she explains where and when it will be held and names the sponsor: one of the three Republicans running for the same office as I.
I have had somewhat-friendly dealings with this person who has a part-time job at City Hall. I call him, leave a message on his answer machine. "I'd like to attend your meeting [professional courtesy call, so to speak]. I could introduce myself and say a few words."
His response is recorded on my machine. "The simple answer is 'No,' he says. "This is my political event sponsored by me to get support for my campaign. Your coming would be irregular at best if others got you confused as one of my supporters." I'm taken aback.
Next morning, I call another Democrat friend. He will be attending the meeting that evening and suggests I do as well. (The meeting will be held in a room at our public school.) However, I remember viewing gatherings of other candidates and see that the candidate has the right to have a protestor removed. I would prefer not to be removed. Maybe my competitor gets the wrong message from me on his phone. I can make clear that I don't have to say a thing. Instead, I can observe and listen. Isn't that a compliment?
I call my competitor and this time he answers the phone. I clarify my intent (to listen and learn) and again he responds, "No. I'm spending money on this meeting and want to get support for my campaign." I'm actually struck by the imperiousness of his tone and attitude. Is this typical of all Republicans or only those like Donald Trump?
I don't attend. Two Democrat friends do and report back. It seems to be an unusual "town hall". Introductions are made of three other Republican candidates (for other offices) as well as himself and a few words said by each one. No discussion or questions are elicited from the small group who attends. Some refreshments are provided.
I ask myself: What is he up to? Is he trying to hide something? Or is this just a "Republican thing"? Maybe I'll find out tomorrow. He is scheduled to speak 10 minutes at the Senior Citizen luncheon. Although I will be late to another noon meeting, I will stop by -- to observe, learn, and listen.
I'm a second-time around candidate for State House in Montana. I'm in it again because no one else will run in my district as a Democrat. I don't mind researching and arguing my side of an issue (although my debate skills leave something to be desired). And I can't bear not being represented during this particular presidential election year.
Puzzling situations develop. This is one.
A phone call from a friend asks a question. "Are you going to the Town Hall meeting?" Since I didn't see the notice in our local paper, she explains where and when it will be held and names the sponsor: one of the three Republicans running for the same office as I.
I have had somewhat-friendly dealings with this person who has a part-time job at City Hall. I call him, leave a message on his answer machine. "I'd like to attend your meeting [professional courtesy call, so to speak]. I could introduce myself and say a few words."
His response is recorded on my machine. "The simple answer is 'No,' he says. "This is my political event sponsored by me to get support for my campaign. Your coming would be irregular at best if others got you confused as one of my supporters." I'm taken aback.
Next morning, I call another Democrat friend. He will be attending the meeting that evening and suggests I do as well. (The meeting will be held in a room at our public school.) However, I remember viewing gatherings of other candidates and see that the candidate has the right to have a protestor removed. I would prefer not to be removed. Maybe my competitor gets the wrong message from me on his phone. I can make clear that I don't have to say a thing. Instead, I can observe and listen. Isn't that a compliment?
I call my competitor and this time he answers the phone. I clarify my intent (to listen and learn) and again he responds, "No. I'm spending money on this meeting and want to get support for my campaign." I'm actually struck by the imperiousness of his tone and attitude. Is this typical of all Republicans or only those like Donald Trump?
I don't attend. Two Democrat friends do and report back. It seems to be an unusual "town hall". Introductions are made of three other Republican candidates (for other offices) as well as himself and a few words said by each one. No discussion or questions are elicited from the small group who attends. Some refreshments are provided.
I ask myself: What is he up to? Is he trying to hide something? Or is this just a "Republican thing"? Maybe I'll find out tomorrow. He is scheduled to speak 10 minutes at the Senior Citizen luncheon. Although I will be late to another noon meeting, I will stop by -- to observe, learn, and listen.
Friday, March 18, 2016
UNLEASHED: We Ain't Seen Nothing Yet!
[Elizabeth Warren says "there's no virtue in remaining silent" when it comes to Donald Trump. I take her at her word. Thus, as part of my run for MT State House District 40, I presented the following to about 40 Senior Citizens at lunch on Thursday this week.]
There's been huge unrest lately: mass shootings, shootings of young, unarmed African-Americans by police, disrespect shown to the President of our country to his face. Donald Trump precipitates the "birther" movement; he questions the birthplace of our President and accuses him of being Muslim rather than Christian. Is this Donald's first try as a Presidential candidate? If so, it falls flat.
But, in 2015, the time for a presidential bid comes around again and, just like starting a fire, all Donald has to do is strike a match. He calls Mexicans rapists and killers; promises a high wall that Mexico will pay for; wants to deport millions of immigrants; wants to prevent Muslims from entering our country; he will force military to follow his commands whether they're legal or not.
Donald attracts followers by the thousands. They are more angry, less educated, all white. He calls his competitors names, mocks them for their low poll numbers, brags on his poll numbers incessantly. He wants to "make America great again" and demands supporters raise their right hand and pledge to him (where have we heard that in the past?). When protestors speak up, Donald screams, "Get 'em out! Get 'em out! If you want to punch a protestor, I'll pay your legal fees! Get 'em out!" Violence erupts; protestors are surrounded, pushed, kicked, shoved. With each new rally, violence escalates. "Aren't we having fun?" he yells at the crowd with a wide grin on his face. "We're having fun!"
Donald's delegate numbers increase greater than that of all other competitors. Fear clutches hearts of Republican leadership (is THIS what we've created?). Donald can't be their nominee; he will never become President, will he? He has mocked Hispanics, African-Americans, Asians, Muslims, even the disabled -- everyone different from himself. They will not vote for him. Are there enough whites-only to vote him in? Consider women. Videos show Donald calling women all kinds of disgusting names. His disdain knows no bounds. Will women stand for that?
Republican leaders discuss rules for the Convention in Cleveland. Maybe it will be a contested convention. Donald threatens that if he isn't named the Republican nominee, his supporters will riot. The seed has been planted. More fighting, more blood. Is this what we want in our President of the United States? Do we want to repeat European history, like in Germany with the Brown Shirts?
Donald preaches it's "Us versus Them": "He points to the protestors and yells, 'These are not the people who made our country great. These are the people that are destroying our country.' Somehow, it's the collective Us that must defeat the Them -- and the stakes are high. The future of the greatest country the world has ever known depends on the outcome. The idea of 'Us versus Them' leads so easily to violence."
Donald tells his supporters at his rallies that "America is no longer great. He tells them whom to blame. He tells them the reason these losers are dragging America down is we have become too politically correct, too scared, too weak to stop them. He tells them he will pay their legal fees if they want to do what's necessary. 'There used to be consequences,' he says. The crowd knows exactly what he's asking: Make consequences real again."
This is ugly but it is understood. "There's an explanation and there's a solution. It's dangerous, it's violent but not unclear. That's why Donald is something different and more dangerous in American life. He is a man who wants to suppress dissent with violence, a man who believes America's problem is that it's too gentle on its dissidents. He wants politics to be backed by force. He wants a security force unleashed from political correctness. And he wants a country where protesting has consequences." I wonder to myself how Donald would have played here in Roundup back in the 1930's when coal miners went out on strike. What would he have done with them?
I leave you with this quote from Martin Niemoller:
First they came for the Socialists and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me.
Make no mistake. Donald Trump is dangerous.
You may ask yourself, "But what can I do about this?"
1. You can talk to friends, family, neighbors. How were the coal miners treated when they went out on strike in the 1930's?
2. You can follow Trump's rallies on TV. Watch what happens. Are his rallies becoming more violent?
3. Last but not least. YOU CAN VOTE!
Reference: Matt Yglesias and colleague
[Elizabeth Warren says "there's no virtue in remaining silent" when it comes to Donald Trump. I take her at her word. Thus, as part of my run for MT State House District 40, I presented the following to about 40 Senior Citizens at lunch on Thursday this week.]
There's been huge unrest lately: mass shootings, shootings of young, unarmed African-Americans by police, disrespect shown to the President of our country to his face. Donald Trump precipitates the "birther" movement; he questions the birthplace of our President and accuses him of being Muslim rather than Christian. Is this Donald's first try as a Presidential candidate? If so, it falls flat.
But, in 2015, the time for a presidential bid comes around again and, just like starting a fire, all Donald has to do is strike a match. He calls Mexicans rapists and killers; promises a high wall that Mexico will pay for; wants to deport millions of immigrants; wants to prevent Muslims from entering our country; he will force military to follow his commands whether they're legal or not.
Donald attracts followers by the thousands. They are more angry, less educated, all white. He calls his competitors names, mocks them for their low poll numbers, brags on his poll numbers incessantly. He wants to "make America great again" and demands supporters raise their right hand and pledge to him (where have we heard that in the past?). When protestors speak up, Donald screams, "Get 'em out! Get 'em out! If you want to punch a protestor, I'll pay your legal fees! Get 'em out!" Violence erupts; protestors are surrounded, pushed, kicked, shoved. With each new rally, violence escalates. "Aren't we having fun?" he yells at the crowd with a wide grin on his face. "We're having fun!"
Donald's delegate numbers increase greater than that of all other competitors. Fear clutches hearts of Republican leadership (is THIS what we've created?). Donald can't be their nominee; he will never become President, will he? He has mocked Hispanics, African-Americans, Asians, Muslims, even the disabled -- everyone different from himself. They will not vote for him. Are there enough whites-only to vote him in? Consider women. Videos show Donald calling women all kinds of disgusting names. His disdain knows no bounds. Will women stand for that?
Republican leaders discuss rules for the Convention in Cleveland. Maybe it will be a contested convention. Donald threatens that if he isn't named the Republican nominee, his supporters will riot. The seed has been planted. More fighting, more blood. Is this what we want in our President of the United States? Do we want to repeat European history, like in Germany with the Brown Shirts?
Donald preaches it's "Us versus Them": "He points to the protestors and yells, 'These are not the people who made our country great. These are the people that are destroying our country.' Somehow, it's the collective Us that must defeat the Them -- and the stakes are high. The future of the greatest country the world has ever known depends on the outcome. The idea of 'Us versus Them' leads so easily to violence."
Donald tells his supporters at his rallies that "America is no longer great. He tells them whom to blame. He tells them the reason these losers are dragging America down is we have become too politically correct, too scared, too weak to stop them. He tells them he will pay their legal fees if they want to do what's necessary. 'There used to be consequences,' he says. The crowd knows exactly what he's asking: Make consequences real again."
This is ugly but it is understood. "There's an explanation and there's a solution. It's dangerous, it's violent but not unclear. That's why Donald is something different and more dangerous in American life. He is a man who wants to suppress dissent with violence, a man who believes America's problem is that it's too gentle on its dissidents. He wants politics to be backed by force. He wants a security force unleashed from political correctness. And he wants a country where protesting has consequences." I wonder to myself how Donald would have played here in Roundup back in the 1930's when coal miners went out on strike. What would he have done with them?
I leave you with this quote from Martin Niemoller:
First they came for the Socialists and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me.
Make no mistake. Donald Trump is dangerous.
You may ask yourself, "But what can I do about this?"
1. You can talk to friends, family, neighbors. How were the coal miners treated when they went out on strike in the 1930's?
2. You can follow Trump's rallies on TV. Watch what happens. Are his rallies becoming more violent?
3. Last but not least. YOU CAN VOTE!
Reference: Matt Yglesias and colleague
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
GIVE_ME_A_BREAK!
My world is upside-down -- on purpose. People are trying to tell me something is true when it is actually false.
Take Donald Trump. Donald tells the world he's a unifier. In actuality, he pushes his supporters to fight with protestors ("Throw 'em out! Throw 'em out! Throw 'em out!" he screams through curled lips in a purple face, "Aren't we having fun!")
Donald tells the world he talks to police in Chicago and follows their advice to shut down his rally. In actuality, the police chief tells us that Donald's campaign makes the decision to shut down the rally after all supporters and protestors are inside, then they notify the police. After the announcement that the rally is cancelled, violence breaks out on the floor.
Donald tells the world it is the protestors at his rally who are hitting his (Donald's) supporters. In actuality, we see a Donald supporter smash the head of a protestor as the protestor walks by on the stairs -- and the protestor is handcuffed while the perpetrator is told to go back to his seat.
Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and John Kasich each tell me they would make a much better president than Barack Obama because President Obama is so horrible -- over and over and over again. Then I read the following achievements of President Obama, listed no more than 15 months ago (by a Canadian no less!)
Under President Obama's watch:
And that isn't all. Another list of 340 accomplishments, every one of them with a citation so no one can dismiss them out of hand, is also available. These are just a few:
Sources:
Detroit Free Press, "Americans don't know how good they have it with Obama"
PCTC*: "President Obama has done a LOT! A List of 340 Accomplishments So Far, With Citations"
My world is upside-down -- on purpose. People are trying to tell me something is true when it is actually false.
Take Donald Trump. Donald tells the world he's a unifier. In actuality, he pushes his supporters to fight with protestors ("Throw 'em out! Throw 'em out! Throw 'em out!" he screams through curled lips in a purple face, "Aren't we having fun!")
Donald tells the world he talks to police in Chicago and follows their advice to shut down his rally. In actuality, the police chief tells us that Donald's campaign makes the decision to shut down the rally after all supporters and protestors are inside, then they notify the police. After the announcement that the rally is cancelled, violence breaks out on the floor.
Donald tells the world it is the protestors at his rally who are hitting his (Donald's) supporters. In actuality, we see a Donald supporter smash the head of a protestor as the protestor walks by on the stairs -- and the protestor is handcuffed while the perpetrator is told to go back to his seat.
Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and John Kasich each tell me they would make a much better president than Barack Obama because President Obama is so horrible -- over and over and over again. Then I read the following achievements of President Obama, listed no more than 15 months ago (by a Canadian no less!)
Under President Obama's watch:
- Corporate profits are at record highs
- The country's adding 200,000 jobs per month
- Unemployment is below 6% [currently below 5%]
- U.S. gross national product growth is the best of the organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries
- The dollar is at its strongest levels in years
- Stock market is near record highs [at the time]
- Gasoline prices are falling
- There's no inflation
- Interest rates are the lowest in 30 years [at the time]
- U.S. oil imports are declining
- U.S. oil production is rapidly increasing [at the time]
- Deficit is rapidly declining
- The wealthy are still making astonishing amounts of money
- America is leading the world once again and respected internationally -- in sharp contrast to the Bush years. Obama brought soldiers home from Iraq and killed Osama bin Laden.
And that isn't all. Another list of 340 accomplishments, every one of them with a citation so no one can dismiss them out of hand, is also available. These are just a few:
- On his first full day in office, [Obama] froze White House salaries for the duration of the Great Recession.
- He created the massive TARP financial banking and rescue plan and forced banks and other entities to pay back virtually all of the bailout money.
- As of January, 2016, a record 64 consecutive months of overall job growth.
- Ordered 65 executives who took bailout money to cut their own pay until they paid back all bailout money.
- Tax rates for average working families are the lowest since 1950.
- Created a Presidential Memorandum to restore scientific integrity in government decision-making.
Sources:
Detroit Free Press, "Americans don't know how good they have it with Obama"
PCTC*: "President Obama has done a LOT! A List of 340 Accomplishments So Far, With Citations"
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
What is Insanity?
Is it, as a friend says, doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result? Is that me? Is that what I'm doing?
I sign up for a nine-week substituting gig for a first-grade teacher on pregnancy leave -- I make it through five weeks successfully before bowing out. I can't wait until I start training for a volunteer position at a nonprofit near where I live -- I make it through long days and half the training period before I become both physically and emotionally exhausted. I see dear friends and, without any encouragement on their part, I abuse their hospitality. I say "yes" to a phone call asking me to repeat a community service that I'd provided two years earlier without any apparent success.
What is wrong with me? I don't seem to be getting anything right.
Turn around. Take another look. Think again.
My first-grade substituting gig seems to be overwhelming for many who follow me. Maybe it just happens to be a difficult job for most of us who try it.
My volunteer training is created for young people. Since I'm no longer a younger person, maybe there is good reason for my physical and emotional exhaustion.
My friend gives me a high-five and a grin. Maybe we're still friends after all.
When I attend a lunch meeting today, at least three people tell me how much they appreciate my taking on the community service that no one else wants to do. Maybe there's a good reason for taking on the service, even when others may view it as a failed undertaking.
And, most surprising, I return home from a month's absence and find people in my community greeting me with, "You're back", "You're home already", and "Good to see you made it back safely".
Insanity? Maybe. I just think it's the human condition. There are bad times; there are good times. Given the choice, however, I'll take the good times over the bad any day of the week!
Is it, as a friend says, doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result? Is that me? Is that what I'm doing?
I sign up for a nine-week substituting gig for a first-grade teacher on pregnancy leave -- I make it through five weeks successfully before bowing out. I can't wait until I start training for a volunteer position at a nonprofit near where I live -- I make it through long days and half the training period before I become both physically and emotionally exhausted. I see dear friends and, without any encouragement on their part, I abuse their hospitality. I say "yes" to a phone call asking me to repeat a community service that I'd provided two years earlier without any apparent success.
What is wrong with me? I don't seem to be getting anything right.
Turn around. Take another look. Think again.
My first-grade substituting gig seems to be overwhelming for many who follow me. Maybe it just happens to be a difficult job for most of us who try it.
My volunteer training is created for young people. Since I'm no longer a younger person, maybe there is good reason for my physical and emotional exhaustion.
My friend gives me a high-five and a grin. Maybe we're still friends after all.
When I attend a lunch meeting today, at least three people tell me how much they appreciate my taking on the community service that no one else wants to do. Maybe there's a good reason for taking on the service, even when others may view it as a failed undertaking.
And, most surprising, I return home from a month's absence and find people in my community greeting me with, "You're back", "You're home already", and "Good to see you made it back safely".
Insanity? Maybe. I just think it's the human condition. There are bad times; there are good times. Given the choice, however, I'll take the good times over the bad any day of the week!
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Once Again, into the Fray
The phone rings on a weekday morning in early March. After exchanging greetings, the question comes: "Will you run for state representative for House District 40? Will you help us out again?"
I hem. I haw. I whine. Three Republicans are running. No Democrats. Yes, I understand. Without any contesting Democrats, it seems like we Democrats really don't care. How can that be during the year of the Trump?! If any year Democrats can shine, this should be it.
"I'll check with a friend who'd said he'd help me the next time around. Maybe he will run."
Nope, he won't. I think all weekend. What if I don't? There'll be this gaping hole in our District where there is absolutely no Democratic representation for state rep. It's not surprising. This is one of the very reddest areas in the state. This past December, I'm asked if I would run for state representative again -- only this time as a Republican. It didn't take too long to realize I'd be embarrassed beyond belief if I tried the RINO path. Be a Republican in Name Only? No way, not even for that. No thanks.
"What you'll be doing is helping other Democrats have a ballot with a name they can mark," she tells me. (Last time around, all Democratic candidates in this District end up getting about the same number of votes: Democrats voting for Democrats.) "It's very unlikely you'll be voted in. However, over time, change can begin to happen. Small inroads can start to make a dent."
I understand that change must start somewhere, even if it's just one voice. I vow, however, after the 2014 election that there will not be a second time. It isn't fun, particularly because I am not the schmoozing type. But it is a challenge. I take pride in my brochure created with help from a Billings Republican. I push myself back then to participate in two local candidate forums. Although mistakes are apparent in public speaking ("I can't believe you people can't see this..."), I do learn where improvements can be made.
I've already done it once, for gosh sakes. I can do it again (and with a lot less nervousness I hope). No more brochures this time, though. Just do what comes more naturally. Write Letters to the Editor, meet people through eliciting voter registrations at the local grocery, listen to concerns residents raise in conversations, read the newspapers, take notes, do some research. Enjoy myself. After all, this is old hat -- challenging myself all over again. It's really the only way to go/grow. (I_keep_reminding_ myself!)
The phone rings on a weekday morning in early March. After exchanging greetings, the question comes: "Will you run for state representative for House District 40? Will you help us out again?"
I hem. I haw. I whine. Three Republicans are running. No Democrats. Yes, I understand. Without any contesting Democrats, it seems like we Democrats really don't care. How can that be during the year of the Trump?! If any year Democrats can shine, this should be it.
"I'll check with a friend who'd said he'd help me the next time around. Maybe he will run."
Nope, he won't. I think all weekend. What if I don't? There'll be this gaping hole in our District where there is absolutely no Democratic representation for state rep. It's not surprising. This is one of the very reddest areas in the state. This past December, I'm asked if I would run for state representative again -- only this time as a Republican. It didn't take too long to realize I'd be embarrassed beyond belief if I tried the RINO path. Be a Republican in Name Only? No way, not even for that. No thanks.
"What you'll be doing is helping other Democrats have a ballot with a name they can mark," she tells me. (Last time around, all Democratic candidates in this District end up getting about the same number of votes: Democrats voting for Democrats.) "It's very unlikely you'll be voted in. However, over time, change can begin to happen. Small inroads can start to make a dent."
I understand that change must start somewhere, even if it's just one voice. I vow, however, after the 2014 election that there will not be a second time. It isn't fun, particularly because I am not the schmoozing type. But it is a challenge. I take pride in my brochure created with help from a Billings Republican. I push myself back then to participate in two local candidate forums. Although mistakes are apparent in public speaking ("I can't believe you people can't see this..."), I do learn where improvements can be made.
I've already done it once, for gosh sakes. I can do it again (and with a lot less nervousness I hope). No more brochures this time, though. Just do what comes more naturally. Write Letters to the Editor, meet people through eliciting voter registrations at the local grocery, listen to concerns residents raise in conversations, read the newspapers, take notes, do some research. Enjoy myself. After all, this is old hat -- challenging myself all over again. It's really the only way to go/grow. (I_keep_reminding_ myself!)
Saturday, March 5, 2016
Front-runner TRUTHINESS #3
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON
In school, Hillary is a motivated, hard-working, and all-round good student. She participates in several sports, like swimming and baseball. She's involved in Brownies and Girl Scouts winning different awards. At her high school, she is active in the student council, student newspaper, and is selected for the National Honor Society. After changing schools in her senior year due to redistricting, she becomes a National Merit Finalist and graduates in the top five percent of her 1965 graduating class.
Hillary's family background is politically conservative (although her father is an "outspoken" Republican, her mother is quiet and leans toward Democratic views). At age 13, Hillary helps canvass Chicago's south side "following very close 1960 Presidential election, where she finds evidence of electoral fraud against Republican candidate Richard Nixon". While a junior in high school, she campaigns for Republican candidate Barry Goldwater. Her greatest political influences during this time come from her high school history teacher (who like her father is strongly anticommunist and who encourages her to read Goldwater's The Conscience of a Conservative) and her Methodist Youth minister (who like her mother is very concerned with social justice). It is due to this minister that Hillary, as a sophomore, first sees and meets Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Chicago's Orchestra Hall.
DONALD JOHN TRUMP
Donald begins his education at Kew-Forest School where his father, Fred, sits on the Board of Trustees. At age 13, because of behavioral problems, Donald is removed from Kew-Forest and enrolled in the New York Military Academy. It seems, as his father states in 1983, Donald "was a pretty rough fellow when he was small". His parents hope "the discipline of the school [NYMA] would channel his energy in a positive manner". He finishes eighth grade and high school at the New York Military Academy. Donald participates in marching drills, wears a uniform and attains rank of captain in his senior year.
He attends Fordham University, a Jesuit school in the Bronx, for two years then attends University of Pennsylvania for two years. He studies economics and graduates from University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor's degree in 1968. While there, Donald takes undergraduate courses at Penn's famed Wharton School of Business. He is NOT, however, enrolled in Wharton's prestigious MBA program.
How is Donald able to get into the University of Pennsylvania? His grades from Fordham "had been respectable". He is also interviewed for acceptance into Penn by "a 'friendly' Wharton admissions officer who was an old classmate of Trump's older brother".
Donald would have us believe that he graduated from Wharton "first in his class". However, "careful examination of the commencement program from 1968 'does not list him as graduating with honors of any kind' even though 'just about every profile ever written about Mr. Trump states that he graduated first in his class at Wharton in 1968'...In 1988, New York magazine reported that the idea that Trump had graduated first in his class was a 'myth'."
Comments:
Sources: Wikipedia; 2011 Salon magazine; Valerie Strauss, July 17, 2015; New York Times magazine, William Geist, 1984
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON
In school, Hillary is a motivated, hard-working, and all-round good student. She participates in several sports, like swimming and baseball. She's involved in Brownies and Girl Scouts winning different awards. At her high school, she is active in the student council, student newspaper, and is selected for the National Honor Society. After changing schools in her senior year due to redistricting, she becomes a National Merit Finalist and graduates in the top five percent of her 1965 graduating class.
Hillary's family background is politically conservative (although her father is an "outspoken" Republican, her mother is quiet and leans toward Democratic views). At age 13, Hillary helps canvass Chicago's south side "following very close 1960 Presidential election, where she finds evidence of electoral fraud against Republican candidate Richard Nixon". While a junior in high school, she campaigns for Republican candidate Barry Goldwater. Her greatest political influences during this time come from her high school history teacher (who like her father is strongly anticommunist and who encourages her to read Goldwater's The Conscience of a Conservative) and her Methodist Youth minister (who like her mother is very concerned with social justice). It is due to this minister that Hillary, as a sophomore, first sees and meets Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Chicago's Orchestra Hall.
DONALD JOHN TRUMP
Donald begins his education at Kew-Forest School where his father, Fred, sits on the Board of Trustees. At age 13, because of behavioral problems, Donald is removed from Kew-Forest and enrolled in the New York Military Academy. It seems, as his father states in 1983, Donald "was a pretty rough fellow when he was small". His parents hope "the discipline of the school [NYMA] would channel his energy in a positive manner". He finishes eighth grade and high school at the New York Military Academy. Donald participates in marching drills, wears a uniform and attains rank of captain in his senior year.
He attends Fordham University, a Jesuit school in the Bronx, for two years then attends University of Pennsylvania for two years. He studies economics and graduates from University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor's degree in 1968. While there, Donald takes undergraduate courses at Penn's famed Wharton School of Business. He is NOT, however, enrolled in Wharton's prestigious MBA program.
How is Donald able to get into the University of Pennsylvania? His grades from Fordham "had been respectable". He is also interviewed for acceptance into Penn by "a 'friendly' Wharton admissions officer who was an old classmate of Trump's older brother".
Donald would have us believe that he graduated from Wharton "first in his class". However, "careful examination of the commencement program from 1968 'does not list him as graduating with honors of any kind' even though 'just about every profile ever written about Mr. Trump states that he graduated first in his class at Wharton in 1968'...In 1988, New York magazine reported that the idea that Trump had graduated first in his class was a 'myth'."
Comments:
- Note the difference between Hillary and Donald during the period they were each 13 years of age.
- "Trumped-up" seems to be an accurate description of Donald's educational achievements
Sources: Wikipedia; 2011 Salon magazine; Valerie Strauss, July 17, 2015; New York Times magazine, William Geist, 1984
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Front-runner TRUTHINESS #2
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON
Hillary is born on October 26, 1947, at Edgewater Hospital, Chicago. She is raised in a United Methodist family and, from the age of three on, lives with her parents and two younger brothers in Pine Ridge, Illinois. While her father, Hugh, is successful in the textile industry, her mother, Dorothy, is a homemaker. With Hillary as her oldest child and only daughter, Dorothy encourages Hillary to pursue an independent and professional career. Her father, even though traditional, feels "his daughter's abilities and opportunities should not be limited by gender." In other words, both parents encourage Hillary to follow her star.
Hillary's parents come from similar European roots. Hugh comes from Welsh and English roots. Dorothy originates from English, Scottish, French-Canadian, and Welsh backgrounds.
DONALD JOHN DRUMPF/TRUMP
Donald is born on June 14, 1946, in Queens, a borough of New York City. He is fourth of five children. (There are currently four children living since one passed away of complications due to alchoholism.) His mother, Mary Anne, is a homemaker and philanthropist while his father, Fred, is known as a real estate developer. The family lives in Jamaica Estates in Queens. Mary Anne's philanthropy includes Women's Auxiliary of Jamaica Hospital and Jamaica Day Nursery (a pavilion at the Hospital bears the Trump name), Salvation Army, Boy Scouts of America, Lighthouse for the Blind. Fred and Mary Anne also give buildings to National Kidney Foundation of New York/New Jersy, and Community Mainstreaming Associates of Great Neck, New York, which provides home for the disabled (one has to wonder if this is where Donald began at an early age to mock the disabled). Fred passes away in 1999 and Mary Anne in 2000.
Donald's brother, Robert, is president of his father's property management company. Maryanne, sister, is a federal judge on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, and another sister, Elizabeth, is an executive with Chase Manhattan Bank. Donald is known as the developer and casino operator.
Donald's mother is born on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland in 1912 (Donald, on his mother's side, is second-generation immigrant). Fred is living in America when Mary Anne visits; they meet and marry in the 1930's. It is Fred's parents who come to the United States from Germany in 1885; they are both of German descent. Fred's father is a Klondike Gold Rush Restaurateur and a brothel keeper. Fred always claims his father is of Swedish descent. It comes to light later, however, by a family historian that Donald's paternal grandfather is actually German. Fred changes his origins because he has "a lot of Jewish tenants" in his buildings and knows "it wasn't a good thing to be German".
Donald claims Swedish heritage in his book, The Art of the Deal, but when confronted, eventually owns up to his German heritage (rather than Swedish) and serves as grand marshal in the German-American Steuben parade in 1999. Since then, however, he mocks Senator Elizabeth Warren in 2013 for claiming some Native American heritage, stories of which are passed down in her family (Warren was running for U.S. Senate). "'She's caught a little wave. Maybe it's her Indian upbringing,' Donald tells Maureen Dowd. He retweets a tweet that refers to Elizabeth Warren as "Pocahontas Warren.'"
Sources: Wikipedia; The New York Times, August 9, 2000; and Andrew Kaczynski, Buzzfeed News Reporter
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON
Hillary is born on October 26, 1947, at Edgewater Hospital, Chicago. She is raised in a United Methodist family and, from the age of three on, lives with her parents and two younger brothers in Pine Ridge, Illinois. While her father, Hugh, is successful in the textile industry, her mother, Dorothy, is a homemaker. With Hillary as her oldest child and only daughter, Dorothy encourages Hillary to pursue an independent and professional career. Her father, even though traditional, feels "his daughter's abilities and opportunities should not be limited by gender." In other words, both parents encourage Hillary to follow her star.
Hillary's parents come from similar European roots. Hugh comes from Welsh and English roots. Dorothy originates from English, Scottish, French-Canadian, and Welsh backgrounds.
DONALD JOHN DRUMPF/TRUMP
Donald is born on June 14, 1946, in Queens, a borough of New York City. He is fourth of five children. (There are currently four children living since one passed away of complications due to alchoholism.) His mother, Mary Anne, is a homemaker and philanthropist while his father, Fred, is known as a real estate developer. The family lives in Jamaica Estates in Queens. Mary Anne's philanthropy includes Women's Auxiliary of Jamaica Hospital and Jamaica Day Nursery (a pavilion at the Hospital bears the Trump name), Salvation Army, Boy Scouts of America, Lighthouse for the Blind. Fred and Mary Anne also give buildings to National Kidney Foundation of New York/New Jersy, and Community Mainstreaming Associates of Great Neck, New York, which provides home for the disabled (one has to wonder if this is where Donald began at an early age to mock the disabled). Fred passes away in 1999 and Mary Anne in 2000.
Donald's brother, Robert, is president of his father's property management company. Maryanne, sister, is a federal judge on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, and another sister, Elizabeth, is an executive with Chase Manhattan Bank. Donald is known as the developer and casino operator.
Donald's mother is born on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland in 1912 (Donald, on his mother's side, is second-generation immigrant). Fred is living in America when Mary Anne visits; they meet and marry in the 1930's. It is Fred's parents who come to the United States from Germany in 1885; they are both of German descent. Fred's father is a Klondike Gold Rush Restaurateur and a brothel keeper. Fred always claims his father is of Swedish descent. It comes to light later, however, by a family historian that Donald's paternal grandfather is actually German. Fred changes his origins because he has "a lot of Jewish tenants" in his buildings and knows "it wasn't a good thing to be German".
Donald claims Swedish heritage in his book, The Art of the Deal, but when confronted, eventually owns up to his German heritage (rather than Swedish) and serves as grand marshal in the German-American Steuben parade in 1999. Since then, however, he mocks Senator Elizabeth Warren in 2013 for claiming some Native American heritage, stories of which are passed down in her family (Warren was running for U.S. Senate). "'She's caught a little wave. Maybe it's her Indian upbringing,' Donald tells Maureen Dowd. He retweets a tweet that refers to Elizabeth Warren as "Pocahontas Warren.'"
Sources: Wikipedia; The New York Times, August 9, 2000; and Andrew Kaczynski, Buzzfeed News Reporter
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
Front-runner TRUTHINESS* #1
Starting today, Tuesday, March 1, 2016, and from time to time during this presidential political campaign, there will be facts provided about each of the front-runners. At this time, the front-runner for the Democratic Party is Hillary Rodham Clinton and, for the Republican Party, it is Donald Drumpf (previous iteration of the name of "Trump" researched by John Oliver). One fact per post. This is the first.
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON*
"Hillary grew up in a middle-class home in Park Ridge, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago. Her dad, Hugh, was a WWII Navy veteran and a small-business owner, who designed, printed and sold drapes. Hillary helped with the family business whenever she could.
Hugh was a rock-ribbed Republican, a pay-as-you-go kind of guy, who worked hard and wasted nothing.
Hillary's mother, Dorothy, had a tough childhood. She was abandoned by her parents as a young child and shipped off to live with relatives who didn't want to raise her.
By age 14, Dorothy knew the only way she'd get by was to support herself, and she started working as a housekeeper and babysitter while she went to high school. Her mother's experience inspired Hillary to fight for the needs of children everywhere."
DONALD DRUMPF*
How did "Drumpf" become "Trump"?
Donald's German ancestors were wine-growers named "Drumpf" and decided during the Thirty Years' War to change their name (1618-1648). Fred C. Trump, Donald's father, introduced the "Trump" name to America (Donald is a second-generation immigrant). He had grocery stores and a real estate company, and drove a navy blue Cadillac that had an FCT license plate.
Why change the last name?
(1) Research says sound of the name is important. A "ph" at the end sounds almost comical in English; "dr" isn't as sharp and reminds us of "drug" and "drop"; and people with easily pronounced names are seen as more likeable.
(2) Research says meaning of the name is important. "Trump" carries associations, like a name whose definition is uniquely appropriate for someone's profession (kind of like a urologist last-named "Chopp", or a Cardinal last-named "Sin".) The name Trump "...implies victory and dominance". It conjures up "'trump card'...and is derived from 'triumph'". "Trumpet", in its shorter version of "Trump", seems to fit.
(3) There's also another side to the coin. "Trump" can mean "fabricate or deceive". "To trump up" can mean "forge" or "invent", like "trumped-up charges" or "trumped-up rhetoric, or "trumped-up politics".
Washington Post reported last fall that "Trump is a compulsive golf cheat, 'the worst celebrity golf cheat,' according to Alice Cooper". It would seem "trumped-up" is spot-on all the way around.
*Hillary Clinton.com
*Britt Peterson, Boston Globe correspondent, 9/9/2015
*Stephen Colbert's creation
Starting today, Tuesday, March 1, 2016, and from time to time during this presidential political campaign, there will be facts provided about each of the front-runners. At this time, the front-runner for the Democratic Party is Hillary Rodham Clinton and, for the Republican Party, it is Donald Drumpf (previous iteration of the name of "Trump" researched by John Oliver). One fact per post. This is the first.
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON*
"Hillary grew up in a middle-class home in Park Ridge, Illinois, a northwest suburb of Chicago. Her dad, Hugh, was a WWII Navy veteran and a small-business owner, who designed, printed and sold drapes. Hillary helped with the family business whenever she could.
Hugh was a rock-ribbed Republican, a pay-as-you-go kind of guy, who worked hard and wasted nothing.
Hillary's mother, Dorothy, had a tough childhood. She was abandoned by her parents as a young child and shipped off to live with relatives who didn't want to raise her.
By age 14, Dorothy knew the only way she'd get by was to support herself, and she started working as a housekeeper and babysitter while she went to high school. Her mother's experience inspired Hillary to fight for the needs of children everywhere."
DONALD DRUMPF*
How did "Drumpf" become "Trump"?
Donald's German ancestors were wine-growers named "Drumpf" and decided during the Thirty Years' War to change their name (1618-1648). Fred C. Trump, Donald's father, introduced the "Trump" name to America (Donald is a second-generation immigrant). He had grocery stores and a real estate company, and drove a navy blue Cadillac that had an FCT license plate.
Why change the last name?
(1) Research says sound of the name is important. A "ph" at the end sounds almost comical in English; "dr" isn't as sharp and reminds us of "drug" and "drop"; and people with easily pronounced names are seen as more likeable.
(2) Research says meaning of the name is important. "Trump" carries associations, like a name whose definition is uniquely appropriate for someone's profession (kind of like a urologist last-named "Chopp", or a Cardinal last-named "Sin".) The name Trump "...implies victory and dominance". It conjures up "'trump card'...and is derived from 'triumph'". "Trumpet", in its shorter version of "Trump", seems to fit.
(3) There's also another side to the coin. "Trump" can mean "fabricate or deceive". "To trump up" can mean "forge" or "invent", like "trumped-up charges" or "trumped-up rhetoric, or "trumped-up politics".
Washington Post reported last fall that "Trump is a compulsive golf cheat, 'the worst celebrity golf cheat,' according to Alice Cooper". It would seem "trumped-up" is spot-on all the way around.
*Hillary Clinton.com
*Britt Peterson, Boston Globe correspondent, 9/9/2015
*Stephen Colbert's creation
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