The Witness Chronicles December 6, 2023
Messing with this format, prog, lib, or lefty?, and when gagging Trump is an epic fail
I’m going to try an occasional format change here because of the somewhat strange structure I chose when I launched The Witness Chronicles. From the beginning this newsletter has not been a standalone. Instead it has been what Substack calls a Section which means it shares a subscriber list with The Grasshopper, my letter about the writing lifestyle.
In hindsight I probably should have just launched this as a standalone so readers could limit their subscription to this. But the idea was to share some of my actual writing from Medium, writing that focuses on opinions on US politics and climate issues. That will continue.
Some of these pieces have short half lives as situations evolve. For example, last week I published a piece during the Israel/Hamas hostage releases wondering what happens when they run out of hostages. Well, we now know and it is, unfortunately, what I thought would happen. Things escalated and my piece is now outdated.
I never set out to become an opinion writer but I have thoughts and I am a news junkie. The news got so weird and awful starting in 2019 or so that I simply had to express myself. And I found a small niche doing it.Â
After writing hundreds of these observations, I find myself watching the 2024 election year with a lot of trepidation, a feeling I think most Americans share. So much could go wrong, yet there is an opportunity to finally get the most toxic public figure in American history out of sight for good.
Imagine that. We could start talking to strangers again without tiptoeing around a pile of important subjects. A man can dream.
Liberal, Progressive, Lefty? I’m Confused
Why the hell are we fighting amongst ourselves when democracy is in danger?
I’m a liberal Democrat, old school style. I’m not a Bernie Progressive or a wannabe Socialist lefty, if any of these distinctions mean anything. The left leaning Democrats in this country are currently facing a crisis over strongly felt feelings about the Israeli/Hamas war.
There are two big problems with this division. First, reducing a violent conflict whose origins literally go back hundreds of years to a black and white good guys/bad guys distinction is stupidly simplistic and many of those embracing the Palestinians or the Israelis are acting like children.
But it is giving haters an opportunity to violently attack other Americans because of their religious heritage, be it Jewish, Muslim or Middle Eastern Christian.Â
We have some really weird and frightening scenarios like openly anti-Semitic political figures supporting Israel because it is politically expedient, or college administrations unable to control mobs on their campuses, mobs often manipulated by outside forces they don’t understand.
And now those Democrat subgroups are being lumped into one side or another. Are you progressive if you support Palestine or liberal if you are pro-Israel? The distinction is ridiculous, but it has people who should be allies fighting amongst themselves.
As for the socialist lefties, I have no clue what they expect.
But here’s the bigger problem with all of this: it plays straight into the hands of would-be fascist dictators like Donald Trump who no longer pretends he is anything else. He used division as a powerful strategy that got him elected by exaggerating fears and prejudices to the point where closet haters felt empowered to act on their hatred.
It’s bad enough that Republicans and Democrats are not talking to each other. There is a thing called agreeing to disagree, a kind of ground rule for starting a conversation with those you may not agree with. It’s a mutual respect for each other’s right to their beliefs.Â
Now those who should be working together on the left are screaming at each other over terrorism and war halfway across the planet. The problem with both the right and the left is that those on the fringe are more easily manipulated by forces they may not recognise.
It could be Netanyahu, it could be Hamas, or it could be political parties who see power in dividing the country.
We have to defeat Trump if we are going to rescue any semblance of democracy here in the US. Everyone is entitled to their views on conflicts elsewhere, but we have a real problem here in our country that is serious and could change the balance of power across the world.
A shift to an autocracy led by a narcissistic maniac out for widespread revenge would throw the US farther into chaos and encourage similar movements worldwide. The Israel/Palestine conflict would be nothing compared to what could happen globally.
The potential for a global war or wars is not a paranoid fantasy. Not to mention that mankind faces an existential threat from climate change that we should be united in working to reverse.
There is a simple action that can turn this terrifying scenario around. We have to talk to those we disagree with and we have to see each other as fellow humans, not MAGA or woke or progressive or right wing or anything but people who, while we disagree, can still find common ground as people.
Hopelessly optimistic? Yes. We have to be if we are going to stop the destruction of our democratic experiment, an experiment that inspires those worldwide who don’t have the freedom to have opinions and positions.
We are fellow travelers with far more in common than not. And no, I am not suggesting we sing kumbaya. We’re not children, at least not all of us, but we are fellow humans sharing the same place and that only works if we show respect and civility to each other, regardless of labels and fears.
If You’re Going to Gag Him, Gag Him
Forget the $10k fines, hit him hard
It’s pretty simple: if you or I were facing a judge and we went after his wife or co-workers on a public forum, we’d be in serious trouble. Our lawyers would be screaming at us, the judge would find us in contempt, and we might end up spending some time in the slammer.
Especially if an appeals court of four judges unanimously voted to gag us legally.
So why does Donald Trump get a pass?
Yes, he was President. So what? There’s this thing, it’s called the rule of law and it is crystal clear: no one is above the law.
I’m truly sick of writing about that. And I challenge anyone to find a public figure in America, besides Trump, who thinks otherwise. There are no Get Out of Jail Free cards, in theory.
In practice, we know the wealthy and privileged get off easy all the time. They don’t go to the same jails, if they go to jail, that the rest of us go to. Because he is a ‘public’ figure, Mr Trump is somehow allowed to say and do anything he wants.
I’m not kidding about anything. He faces charges of stealing classified documents and lying about them. He faces charges for inciting a murderous riot in the hallowed halls of the US Congress to steal an election he clearly lost. He, on a recorded call, implored the governor of a state to cook the vote counts for him. More charges there too.
Not minor charges, and they are backed by mountains of indisputable evidence including the testimony of many close associates and endless video and physical proof.
But in a civil suit he has already lost he gets to publically encourage his followers to threaten the judge, his family, and his co-workers; your fellow Americans doing their job?
He gets fined a few thousand dollars, a fine he probably won’t pay or that will get paid for him. Even if he did pay, he is supposedly a billionaire. Ten thousand bucks for him is like one of us leaving a five dollar tip.
Meaningless.
The problem here is that there is no punishment that will shut this guy up. He has no shame and no ability to control himself in any way. And we created him, with our stupid worship of fame and money and notoriety.
He bragged (bragged!) that he could shoot someone in broad daylight on a busy Manhattan street and get away with it. He truly believes it and right now he is doing the equivalent every day, on the much busier public street of social media.
The least we can do is hit him hard, put him in jail for contempt, muzzle his attorneys with threats of disbarment, and order lie detector tests for his moronic kids, then jail them for contempt. That last bit is a fantasy.
He is already facing some of the most serious criminal charges there are, in multiple courts and jurisdictions, with hundreds of witnesses for the prosecutions. Our law says he is innocent until proven guilty. He likes that part of the law, though he would quickly undo it if he was back in power.
He’d lock up nobodies like me and throw away the key. Due process? Don’t make me laugh.
It’s terrifying to think about that man in power again. So why does he keep getting a pass from the courts and the media?Â
Why is he different from you and I?Â
Back when newspapers were actually paper and we had not one, but two daily local papers here in my town, which was literally in another century, you could write Letters to the Editor, mail them in, and hope yours might be selected.
I occasionally wrote these missives about local stuff, politics, etc., and they nearly always got published. And it was quite amazing how many people read them. That was probably the seed of my opinion writing. But those letters gradually went away along with those papers (we still have one, a Gannett pub but it has become so diluted it is useless. They basically fired all the reporters or started paying a pittance), and I miss them.
But the young man who wrote those things found out he liked being read for his ideas and now I get to feed that liking with my Medium and Substack stuff. Any cash I make is barely walking around money, as the old expression goes.
But here I am.
I have to say something about the conflict in Israel since the hostage exchanges broke down. I’ve tried really hard not to turn this into a black and white issue as so many are. Doing so ignores the long history behind the hatred, fear, and mistrust on both sides.
But I believe the extreme crackdown and violence by Israel we see since the exchanges ended is a product of Netanyahu’s personal political desperation. He is extremely unpopular with his own people with a 75% disapproval rating, but they are hesitant to kick him out as long as the fighting continues. So escalation protects his job and his hold on power.
Frankly, it sickens me to even think this is possible. But the terrorist acts and sexual violence of Hamas is sickening too and very real. It’s a hard thing to watch and a hard thing to write about but that is nothing compared to the horror of those living through it on both sides.
Remember, be nice. We all need it more than ever.
Martin Edic
1991 words
~ I write The Grasshopper, a letter for creatives, The Witness Chronicles, a weekly digest of three of my articles on politics and climate, and The Remarkable, a recovery letter, about my addiction and reentry experience. All are weekly and free with a paid option to share your support. Please check them out.
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Believe me, it makes my day. M
Once again, Martin, your writing, your train of thought, is so uniquely honest and on target. That's why I follow you. As for why Trump gets a pass after doing all he can to get himself gagged with half a roll of duct tape, I have only one answer: cowardice, individual and collective.
Yes, judges have a fine line to walk, and must be ever cautious not to legally shoot themselves in the foot, leaving a door open for detractors and wily opposition attorneys to make a mess of their courtroom. But as we can see, the villains of society play by a different psychology. Break the law, cross the line, the "good-guys" are too timid to do much of anything, knowing all the chaos we can create. Always be on the attack, always show your teeth, and grin wildly to show your slick, confident dominance. And what the heck, if we don't get all we want, fall back and find another way to make fools of the law and the prim and proper attorneys who think they're so smart.
Our prosecutors might be better off taking a chance. If the bad-guys can do it, let's use the law to show them they're not so tough. Come down hard, as you suggest. Make life hard for them for a change. And when the minions scream, look them in the eye and do it again. The only way to silence a bully is to call a bluff and land a knockout punch.
It would not surprise me to learn that there is a similar psychology going on sociologically. When a good-guy is attacked but meekly retreats, there is a tendency for the followers of the bad-guy to pile on viciously. It seems our laws, and those prosecuting them, are surely being attacked. Not responding only reinforces the urge to attack, and more brazenly.
As for the cowardice, in my lifetime, I have witnessed entire assemblies sit silently while courageous individuals stood alone and faced down lies and treachery. Even judges, apparently, are not immune to being too intimidated to stand up and fight. At some point, some judge has to set the standard for other judges to follow; some judge needs the fortitude to face Trump down, and throw the book at him. For the future of law in America, this desperately needs to happen.
I identify with your position. Please keep in good health and continue writing. When I earn more money, you will get some of it. Happy Holidays