You are probably wondering how I’m going to turn this headline and photo opportunity into a disparaging op-ed about Donald Trump. Here’s how ...
If you feel like you’ve lost the plot lately, or are just angry and frustrated, bombarded by words and terms like quid pro quo, whistleblower, impeachment, treason, extortion, election meddling, government witnesses, bribery, obstruction of justice, culpability, exculpatory ...all juxtaposed to words and terms like patriotism, valor, and honor, you are not alone. It’s disconcerting. A virtual cavalcade of malfeasance. These are our oath-sworn leaders. It’s serious business, and as an American citizen you should be very concerned about how a degenerate, narcissistic playboy, truly a creepy man with a creepy past, got himself elected President of the United States and “leader of the free world.”
The joke’s on us, ‘We the People’ ...and we thought Stormy Daniels could bring him down. Ha!
The last time we saw anything like this was 1938 Germany. But remember, it takes two to tango. Trump, I call him ‘President Goldfinger’ because “he loves only gold”, was elected within our democratic system. Hitler also came to power within a democracy as the NAZI’s gained seats in the Reichstag, and although he was never elected president in a democratic election, the German people were enthusiastically behind him. Go figure. I think he loved gold too, but not as much as Trump.
Be that all as it may, here we are ...but nonetheless it’s confusing, frustrating, and sadly, entertaining, like the photo you see above ...unsure what’s going on, notwithstanding the curiosity and entertainment of it. (Ha! I did it ...used ‘be that as it may’, ‘nonetheless’, and ‘notwithstanding’ all in the same sentence!). But I digress ...
Corruption is omnipresent. It’s here now, it’s everywhere always. The job is combating it ...here now, everywhere and always. It can be exhausting. It’s easy to give in.
What is the root essence of corruption? How do people, especially many of those in the public trust ...politicians, corporate executives, religious leaders ...get it in their heads to become deceivious while seemingly protected by their charade for the common good? Why is it that the ‘bad guys‘ always seem to rise to power, abuse it, then inevitably fall on their sword? Corruption must be inherent to our human nature, as a force of nature ...ego, power, desire, money, sex ...survival ...and as President Goldfinger says, “always winning”. Conversely, also inherent to our human nature must be truth and the desire for the common good, also as a natural force. Let’s hope so.
What was the first sign of corruption in our anthropological understanding? When and how did it first happen? Who set the example as the first culprit? Was it Eve in the Garden of Eden with the apple temptation? ...or was it her agent Satan, the snake, the Evil force of nature? “The Devil made me do it!” As the story goes, it was all predicated on obedience, loyalty, discipline ...doing what the boss tells you. So, is it Good vs. Evil or the practicality of curiosity and the human desire to satiate a legitimate thirst or hunger? Religion: fact or fiction? It depends on what you believe and what you observe. It depends on who’s the boss ...and there’s the rub.
Be that as it may, and getting back to our current predicament, American Foreign Service diplomat, George Kent, said it best during his testimony before Congress at President Goldfish’s impeachment inquiry hearing. “You can’t promote principled anti-corruption action without pissing-off corrupt people.” Brother, you said a mouthful. Sadly, that’s just the way it is. The Republican combatants at the impeachment inquiry shamelessly accused the witnesses, Ambassador William Taylor and Foreign Service diplomat George Kent, of testifying on “hearsay” and asked why they did not talk directly with Trump. The question should be why Trump did not talk directly with them. They are both U.S. Foreign Service officials and Ukrainian experts, Taylor appointed by Trump ...and why Trump went rogue with his “Three Amigos” Sondland, Giuliani and Mulvaney for nefarious back-channel negotiations with Ukrainian officials? I smell corruption.
The impeachment inquiry hearings are revealing, not just about the players but about we as a people and as a Nation. If there is anything for which we can thank Donald Trump it’s giving us the opportunity to examine corruption up close, expose it, and take a good hard look at the who, what and why a corrupt, deceivious person can rise to power and why he can easily amass a following. Jim Jones, Charles Manson ...Adolph ...
Corruption feeds off acceptance and celebrity. It spawns greed. It shows how a person or a group of like-minded people think, how things can escalate, and begs to ask if some people are corrupt to begin with or if they picked it up along the way. It can point to heredity, environment, parenting. It can point to gullibility, perception, values. The formula can be a complex mix of emotions, sentiments and passion.
As in the photo above, you’ve got to know what you are looking at in order to make a clear interpretation of what’s going on, then subsequently make a decision on how to proceed. A corrupt person will deliberately show you a confusing picture to throw you off track in order to advance his own personal ambitions. In this case, and just as an example, it’s me, in an honest way, in an effort to make my point.
...and I hope you haven’t lost my plot point here.
Were these government witnesses, Kent, Taylor, Marie Yovanovitch, Fiona Hill, Alexander Vindman, etc. called to testify and put in the hot seat because they were patriots doing the right thing, or were they disgruntled employees who displeased their boss and were called on the carpet? It depends on how you interpret the picture as presented and who’s telling the story ...and again, it depends on who’s the boss. Hopefully, the truth will prevail.
I wonder how Eve’s testimony would sound and be received at an impeachment inquiry of her boss regarding the apple temptation in the garden, and what kind of witness Adam would be ...
So, the point ...don’t lose the plot and give up. Don’t allow yourself to be fooled. Always keep your eye on the ball ...and always beware of the ‘man in the long black coat’ ...(live performance, ‘Man in the Long Black Coat’, Bob Dylan, Liverpool, England, 1996, lyrics to the right of video) ...https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=man+in+the+long+black+coat+video Like most Dylan songs it’s about everything. But this one focuses on deception and vulnerability, two main elements necessary for corruption to flourish, and of course one’s own conscience and God given ability to recognize the truth.
This is the studio production version of ‘Man in the Long Black Coat‘. Worth another closer listen, lyrics again on the right side ...https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=man+in+the+long+black+coat+video+youtube&mkt=en-
John Kushma is a communication consultant and lives in Logan, Utah
https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-george-kushma-379a5762
Some past articles and op-eds
https://muckrack.com/john-kushma/articles
...
