America's Bully

I was bullied as a child. Starting in third grade when we moved to Kenedy, Texas until I left almost immediately after my high school graduation, I was bullied by my classmates. Over 50 years ago, when I met my tormentors for the first time, there was little to nothing done about bullying by teachers or the school administration. My mother, a fourth grade teacher at the school, did nothing but tell me to "Ignore them. If you react, they'll keep doing it because they want the reaction." Well, I did my best for 10 years to ignore them. But the truth is that the verbal attacks and deliberate slights never stopped no matter what I did.

I tell you this because my experience factors in to why I loathe and fear Donald Trump and will do whatever it takes to prevent him from winning the presidential election this November.

I realize that many factors go into creating a bully, especially one of this caliber. I have no idea what was done to this man to make him this way, but to be honest at this point having read and listened to the unceasing vitriol, misogyny, racism, bigotry and belittling remarks he spews to anyone who dares to disagree with him, I find that I really don't care. Getting to the bottom of his issues is a job for a highly skilled mental health professional and will no doubt take years to unravel, much less remedy. What I do care about is what someone like him, so clearly unstable, with an inclination towards violence and out of touch with reality, will do to this country I love. 

To me it is very clear that my mother's advice from all those years ago cannot apply to Mr. Trump. We cannot ignore him and hope he will go away. Because as I found out the hard way, ignoring the bullies just gives them permission to continue their reigns of terror. I will never know if my childhood would have been better if I had stood up to the bullies and not let them define my youth. But I will not risk the future of my children and grandchildren being ruined by an unstable bully with a global arena of potential victims. I will speak up and stand up for what I think is right. 

Good Stuff

A few comments on this week. Warning to my conservative friends. I'm gonna diss the Newt, the Trump and the Sperminator. I'm also going to say some very nice things about a few people at the end. So please bear with me.

Let's start with the Donald. Raise your hand if your fondest wish was for him to just go away and not make a mockery of the 2012 Presidential election. It was certainly one of my fondest wishes. And it came true! Despite Mr. Trump's tough talk and declarations that he would make his financial records public if President Obama released his 'real' birth certificate, it turns out that Mr. Trump's desire to keep his business dealings under wraps was stronger than his desire to fix America. For which I am profoundly grateful.

Moving on to the Newt, one of the highlights of my week was the film showing the Newt being chastised by a fellow Republican party member as being an embarrassment. This right wing and right-thinking gentleman went on to advise the Newt to get out of the Presidential race as quickly as possible to avoid 'making a bigger fool of yourself.' My new fondest wish is that the Newt will take the man's advice. It's truly the best advice he'll receive about his presidential aspirations.

Next up: The Sperminator, aka Arnold, aka Scumbag Cheater. Call me a cynic, but whenever any politician, Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, or what have you, starts ranting talking about family values, the evils of single motherhood, etc., I start to wonder what dirt is hiding under his bed. In the Sperminator's case it was an extramarital affair that resulted in a child. A child who is no doubt freaked out at having his real origins being discussed in the news continuously. So, we've got a guy who's a hypocrite, a liar, and a cheater. And it does make me wonder what other dirt is hiding under his bed.

Finally a few kudos. To the woman who was raped by the head honcho of the IMF for reporting him right away to your coworkers and police. That took great courage and I hope that you know that, as difficult as it is right now, you are an example for all women who have been attacked.

To any friend who helps another through a tough time, thank you on behalf of the person you helped. It's tough out there some days and it's nice not just having a shoulder to cry on, but someone to tell you how terrific you are when you don't feel terrific.

To my sister Jane, congratulations on being named a 2011 Distinguished Alumna by the University of Texas Texas Exes. Can't wait to see how you get out of wearing that burnt orange blazer in October. Read all about it here.

And last, but not least, to my darling daughter Sara, who graduated from the University of Texas today: Congratulations!!! I am so proud of you and I love you more than you can imagine. And who knows, maybe someday you too will be named a Distinguished Alumna of UT and get a burnt orange blazer. Heaven knows, back when Jane graduated, we didn't think that she'd be awarded this honor some day. Oh, and Sara? I'm really, really glad that I didn't have to make a dress for you this time. It was fun the first two times (Middle School and High School), but it was much easier this time to pull out the credit card and order your regalia online. (But I would have made one if one was needed.)

Me, Sara, and her grandmother (aka Gigi, aka Larry's mom) after the University of Texas College of Liberal Arts Commencement Ceremony. It's been a good day.