A Nation Divided Shall Not Stand

We have been here before and we survived.  Not without painful consequences, but we survived.  In 1850’s America, slavery divided our nation.  Much of the south could not foresee their economic survival without the cheap labor provided by slavery.  The Missouri Compromise of 1820 admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state.  Prior to this legislation, we were a nation divided 11 states to 11 states, split between slave and free.  With the exception of Missouri, all states north of the 36°30′ latitude would be free.  With Maine admitted free, the balance of free and slave states remained.  We were a nation divided, but equally divided.

A Nation Divided

By 1861, we were a nation of 34 U.S. states.  In February of that year, seven Southern slave states seceded from the union and formed the Confederate States of America.  Four more slave states would eventually join the Confederacy.  We were now truly, a nation divided.  The end result of that division was the American Civil War where over 700,000 Americans were killed.  This loss of life exceeds the U.S. military deaths in all other wars combined.  Our nation paid a terrible price for this division.

There were an estimated 700,000 people killed in our Civil War

While the issue of slavery was not the only factor that divided our nation in the 1800’s, it was a major component.  White southerners believe that the emancipation of slaves would destroy the South’s economy.  Some even feared a repeat of the 1804 slave revolt in Haiti where all whites were killed.

Note the graphics on this Confederate 100 dollar bill

Now, in 2018 we are again a nation divided.  While it is not slavery that divides us, the lingering racism that is a holdover from that period is still with us.  Political leaders still use fear to motivate people to action.  We are a literate nation but not one steeped in our own history.  The average American knows little of our history and younger generations get their information from social media, not history books.  Politicians are but border collies herding their flocks in one direction or another with the barking of lies that provide them with the power of persuasion.

Border Collie herding his sheep

President Trump, using his bully pulpit, has used that pulpit to bully.  In its original implementation under Teddy Roosevelt, the term bully was an adjective more in line with the British usage to indicate superb or wonderful.  Today it is used as a noun as in a person who uses power to harm or intimidate those who are weaker.  Trump works his crowds like a tent revival preacher, whipping up their fury with chants of “lock her up.”  His relationship with this sea of red hat zombies is a symbiotic one where they chant and he soaks up as much of the crowd’s energy as he can.  He waves, pumps his fist, points out individuals in the crowd, and applauds along with his supporters.  His crowds thrive on his political incorrectness, showmanship, and jovial nastiness.  They rightfully saw an ineffectual Congress in need of change.  They know that Trump is a bully, but he is their bully.

Trump the Bully

While it is clear to even the casual observer of Donald Trump, the man is full of himself.  Some use the more clinical terms of Narcissistic Personality Disorder or Sociopath.  I’ll just say that the man is one good enema away from looking like Woody Allen.

Woody Allen

Instead of using his office to heal a divided nation, Trump, always the businessman looking for a bargain, has chosen to use this divisiveness to distract his constituents while he is lining his own pockets.  He has used fear of immigrants as the bogeyman responsible for all the nation’s ills while he and his Congressional partners in crime pushed through tax cuts that primarily benefitted large corporations and wealthy individuals.  Trump already conducts his real estate business in a favorable portion of the tax code but now stands to really make some big bucks.  A divided nation suits him just fine.

I realize that his followers couldn’t read this article and come to any realization that would change their minds.  You can’t use facts or logic with the faithful.  We are once again a nation divided and, just like the 1850’s, we seem to be equally divided.

The ballot box is where our trust and hope must be placed.  We can only hope that future generations can look up from their misnamed “Smartphones” long enough to see what is happening all around them.  A year ago I wouldn’t have held out much hope for our youth but after the February 14^thStoneman Douglas shooting, I heard some of the students speak.  They gave me hope for the future.  This was written on Election Day, November 6, 2018, before the polls closed.  I'll have to wait the day out to see if these midterms will be a starting point to Make America Whole Again.