Thank You, Paul Krugman

     These are days of great trial for American patriots, 

...those of us who love our country,

...in all its diversity,

...for our standing in the global community as a bastion of democracy and opportunity,

...and for the values and rights that we hold dear, along with the truths we hold to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.  

     And, God knows, it's been a grind to the  spirit, having to  wake up every morning to the latest affront to our Constitution,  the latest insult to truth and decency, the  latest  attack on our democracy and the well-being of our country.

      But if  you find yourself  feeling  ground down, bogged down, slogged down and  exhausted by Donald Trump's nonstop carnival of ignorance, bigotry, lies, ineptitude and recklessness, if what you you need is a good, stiff, head-clearing dose of enlightenment and encouragement on just what a person is supposed to do about the current state of affairs in America under Donald Trump, then I have the tonic for you: Read "The Uses of Outrage", economist Paul Krugman's op-ed piece in Monday's New York Times in which he urges Americans to fight Donald Trump with outrage: our own sustained outrage for every outrage already committed by this man and for every one that he commits in the future.  In Mr. Krugman's words, "Outrage at what's happening in America isn't just justified, it's essential.  In fact, it may be our last chance of saving democracy."   According to Krugman, now is not the time to cool it.  It's not the time to "wait and see, to try to be constructive, to reach out to Trump supporters, to seek ground for compromise,"  but rather:      

  "An outraged populace can and must push back, using the power of disapproval to counter the influence of a corrupted government.  This means supporting news organizations that do their job and shunning those that act as agents of the Regime.It means patronizing businesses that defend our values and not those willing to go along with undermining them. It means letting public figures, however nonpolitical their professions, know that people care about the stands they take, or don’t. For these are not normal times, and many things that would be acceptable in a less fraught situation aren’t O.K. now."

        And so, inspired by Paul Krugman's voice crying out in the wilderness, I intend to continue use my own voice in any way that I can to cry out against Donald Trump and the brood of vipers he surrounds himself with.  Because I want it to go down in my personal history what I spoke out for and what I stood against.
     Thank you, Paul Krugman.

Reference:
"The Uses Of Outrage",https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/27/opinion/the-uses-of-outrage.html?_r=0