IT'S TIME — The Weekly Opine

The phrase “a day of reckoning” has never been more appropriate. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)

Literally a life or death decision.

Anyone with faint knowledge of history knows that Union soldiers, in the early-1860s, carried the responsibility to win the Civil War and save the nation. Today, it is not hyperbole to say American voters bear the same responsibility Union soldiers bore 155 years ago. Everyone among the electorate, at least those with enough sense to know the last four years have been wrong, dead wrong, must step up and end the Trump administration.

Whereas Union soldiers wielded weapons of war, e.g. canons and rifles, today we the people lean into our constitutionally guaranteed right to vote. When under attack, Union soldiers called for more soldiers and more firepower. Today, our right to vote is under attack, which requires a deeper commitment to get out there and vote. Pay no mind to the goons trying to intimidate voters. Circumvent those who shutter polling places, making it more difficult for some Americans to vote.

Let’s end this nightmare right now.

Four more years of Trump would virtually assure hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths from COVID-19. Another Trump administration likely means the death of the Affordable Care Act. It could mean the death of Roe v. Wade. It could mean the death of the freedom to marry the person you love. And it will continue the racist dismantling of civil rights and voting rights. Trump Part Two would lead to more atrocities such as the most unconscionable act: separating children from their parents.

Four more years of Trump’s war against science will hasten the demise of planet Earth.

The techniques are different but the goal of Union soldiers in the 19th Century and today’s clearheaded voters is the same. Defeat ideological misfits who would have us remain frozen in their fantastical, devoid-of-facts yesteryear, rather than progress toward the stated – but not fully realized – words in the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution.

No, this is not hyperbole. We are in a precarious moment. The fight for the survival of American democracy is at hand.

In the 2020 election, getting this sticker is tantamount to earning a civilian war medal. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)

Not too late to get on board

If you are Black and you support racist Trump you are, pardon me, an ignorant fool. This includes Sen. (R) Tim Scott, Herschel Walker, 50-Cent, Ice Cube, Kanye West, Diamond & Silk, and any other Black folks lined up at Trump’s trough of empty promises.

Rap artists 50-Cent and Ice Cube flirting with Trump is especially puzzling. Is their need for attention and notoriety boundless? Tough-guy urban authenticity, evident in their sometimes off-the-mark song lyrics, falls flat when they sell-out to “Master” Trump. Surely, any person of color who supports Trump has lost their mind. Try to regain your equilibrium and vote for your self-interest, not Trump’s. The way forward is with Biden-Harris.

If you are a woman and support Trump, why are you aligned with an avowed misogynist who has undoubtedly sexually assaulted multiple women? Please, re-evaluate and vote for Biden-Harris.

If you are in the military and still support unpatriotic, Russia-loving Trump, even after he derisively labeled you “losers” and “suckers,” well then, you are without a compass. Show a little self-respect and vote for Biden-Harris.

If you are a young, first-time voter remember, the reason your senior year was ruined is not because of China. Trump is the one who caused your senior year to be interrupted. Remote learning, cancelled sports, missed theatrical plays/musicals, and no prom where you would have danced the night away. Youngins, the first step toward making things right is to vote for Biden-Harris.

No problem

Far from the disaster Trump and his henchman, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, claimed it would be, voting by mail was a breeze.

Step one, I mailed in my application. No problem. Then I received my ballot. No problem. Next, I followed the easy-to-understand instructions and filled out my ballot (voted for Biden-Harris). Finally, I mailed in my ballot at the post office, using the same mail slot I use when paying bills. No problem. A week later an email arrived letting me know my ballot had been received. No problem.

Voting by mail was easy peasy. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)

From applying, to filling out my ballot, to mailing in my ballot, to getting confirmation my ballot was received, mail-in voting was no problem. It only becomes a problem when crooked Republicans and our criminal postmaster general try to sabotage the process, attempting to suppress voting. Another reason to vote Biden-Harris.

Postal workers go on and do what you do. Deliver the mail. Ignore the miscreant DeJoy and anyone else who says voting by mail is fraudulent. Most Americans support you. The power is in your hands to ensure mail-in voting succeeds and helps democracy prevail over authoritarianism.

All hail postal workers!

Meanwhile…

The pandemic rages on. The Coronavirus Task Force, helmed by the frightfully inept Vice President Mike Pence, quietly tapped out months ago, unable to cope with the virus. Despite Trump’s bluster that America is fighting a war against coronavirus, his undisciplined approach doomed us from the start.

One wonders how many of his fellow soldiers Trump would have gotten killed if he hadn’t bailed out of Vietnam because of fake bone spurs.

Rightfully, most of us hold up American soldiers as courageous heroes. Solemn places like Arlington National Cemetery remind us many brave troops paid the ultimate price fighting for our freedom. To quote the band Steely Dan, only a fool would say that our soldiers are “losers” and “suckers.”

If they were alive today, I believe our fallen soldiers would not hesitate to don a mask and practice social distancing. That is the only way to beat the coronavirus, until a proven vaccine is widely available. Yet too many Americans – many thumping their chests and waving the flag on Independence Day – lack the discipline and intestinal fortitude to deal with the coronavirus. Displaying unmitigated stupidity they refuse to wear a mask. They berate proven science. And they are losers just like the Confederates were in 1865.

Meanwhile, according to Johns Hopkins University data, as of today there are 8.9 million U.S. coronavirus cases, with 227,685 Americans dead. Comparatively, South Korea has 26,271 cases and 462 deaths. As a reminder, South Korea reported its first coronavirus case on January 20, the same day the U.S. reported its first case.

The choice is clear. Save American democracy or succumb to evil. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)

Next week, America’s registered voters can reject Trump. The lies. The disrespect shown to American democracy. The narcissism. The bullying. The sheer incompetence.

On November 3, the incomparable criminality of Trump and his cabal of fascist wannabes, including Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Mitch McConnell, and Bill Barr, can be discarded like a winter coat when spring arrives.

According to U.S. Elections Project data, 46.5 million mail-in ballots have been cast to-date, along with 23 million in-person early votes. The 69.5 million early votes easily surpasses the 2016 election when 58 million votes had been cast one-week prior to Election Day.

Go vote Biden-Harris to end the administration of the undisputed worst and most dangerous president in U.S. history.

Will he leave?

Over the course of summer and fall there has been much handwringing regarding what Trump will do if he loses. Many people fear Trump will not leave office if he loses. It is possible the opposite will occur, especially if voters administer a thrashing that results in a decisive Biden victory.

I can envision Trump climbing aboard Air Force One under the guise of visiting a world leader, say, in Moscow. A few days later, Trump would send Air Force One back to the United States. Under this scenario, Trump attempts to live out his life Julian Assange-style, hiding in a foreign land in a rogue nation’s embassy.

Farfetched? Possibly. But that may be the only way Trump avoids a lengthy prison sentence.