A Suggestion for the Candidates

Unglued and Unhinged

Iran's response to the killing of General Qassem Soleimani was, to say the least, restrained. They might have retaliated in a way that killed a whole lot of American soldiers but, instead, responded by making sure (I believe)  that the loss of life was minimal or non-existent. In doing so, they avoided a bombardment that surely would have led to an all-out war. Apparently, someone was able to convince The Donald to leave well enough alone. Both sides, hopefully, are satisfied. This incident might have evolved into World War Three, just as the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (and his wife) in June of 1914 mutated into the carnage of the First World War, or, as it was known for a generation, "The Great War". You see, when that unspeakable conflict ended in November of 1918, no one envisioned a second war on that scale as being even remotely possible. On September 3, 1939 everything changed.

 

FUN FACT: The last surviving veteran of the "Great War" passed away only six years ago. It is no longer a living memory.

 

I have a suggestion for the Democratic candidates for the 2020 election. They should put their differences aside - just for the moment - and put out a jointly signed letter to the rest of the planet that essentially reads:

 

Hi there, world! We're awfully sorry about the situation that the United States now finds itself in. No person with a lock on reality could have seen Donald Trump coming. Please, when this fucking nightmare is behind us, and this contemptible jackass is once again a private citizen and on his way to federal prison, we'll be back to normal (or as normal as the United States gets these days. Whatever happens between now and January 20. 2021, please try not to overreact. Remember that this era of American history is merely another, massive brain-fart on the part of the American voters, and that we will soon correct ourselves - just as we did on January 20, 2009 when we inaugurated Barack Obama. Please be patient - and hang in there!

 

Or words to that effect....

 

Such a statement would settle nerves that are in dire need of settling, don'cha think? There will never again be a moment like this, where the rest of this troubled planet will need to be reassured as much as it needs to be at this moment. I don't know whether or not Trump will be removed from office later this month, although his support among some Republicans seems to be eroding. I understand that the prospect of a Pence administration is enough to rattle the nerves of any thinking human being with an IQ above room temperature; but it should be remembered that Mike Pence - as jaw-droppingly stupid as he undeniably is - is not certifiably insane; something that we should all remember.

This is a deplorable situation that we need to extricate ourselves from as soon as possible. The fact that this idiot's support in the polls hovers, stubbornly, at forty percent is a reflection on the idiocy of too may Americans. There was a time, not too long ago, when the citizens of this doomed nation would advertise their national origins to anyone who would listen. That's not the case any longer.

I am ashamed to be a citizen of a nation so out-of-touch that they would send this fucking asshole to the house that was once occupied by Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. So sue me.

Tom Degan
Goshen, NY