On Friday, January 20, Donald J Trump was inaugurated. He was rude and angry, and he frightened many people around the world, especially Americans. In the three days since Friday, he has proven that he will keep his promise to be a man of action and will keep his reputation as a selfish, egomaniacal, ignorant clod.
Among his actions in these few days are:
* Insulting Barack Obama by failing to show appreciation for his service as President;
* Insulting the CIA by whining about his “war with the media” and bragging about his election at a memorial wall honoring CIA officers who had died in the line of duty;
* Quipping that the US may still seize oil from the Iraq and other Middle East countries;
* Insulting the millions of people who marched as part of the Women’s March by assuming that they did not vote;
* Lying about the number of people who attended his inauguration;
* Signing a global gag rule which bars financial support from the U.S. for any non-governmental agency that provides information about abortion with patients;
* Putting thousands of women at risk of maternal death by denying abortions at the time of Zika virus outbreaks, which have been associated with fetal abnormalities.
In his inauguration, Trump took an oath to faithfully execute his office and swore to “the best of my ability” preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. This oath implies a deep sense of truth, but we are told by Trump’s defenders that we should not take his words literally. With Trump, we also must wonder what the caveat “to the best of my ability” will allow. We have seen that his ability to uphold business and personal pledges is very limited as he disregards contracts and pledges of monogamy.
Voters who would resist Trump have known that he lies almost pathologically, but have not mobilized enough to take meaningful action. Even the voters who support him know Trump lies more than he tells the truth. The main stream media recognize that Trump’s onslaught of lies are an attack on facts they seek to promote. The Republican Party, under whose banner Trump won the White House, accepts his lies, and in so doing, has shown itself to be totally without principles, morals, or loyalty to the U.S. Constitution.
Only the main stream media seems able to take action meaningful action against Trump. It has now begun to use the words “lie” and “untruth”, but they need to go farther to explore how these lies are part of a bigger, more insidious disinformation strategy. The disinformation strategy is designed to render all facts meaningless and to allow the fascist state to proceed without challenge.
On Saturday, January 21, an estimated 5 million people worldwide marched in the Women’s March on Washington or in “sister marches” in hundreds of U.S. cities and in over 600 marches over 70 countries across the world. The Women’s March demonstrated the intent of millions of people to resist the threats that Trump represents. Hopefully, this March will be the start of a resistance that will meaningful.
Only the main stream media seems able to take action meaningful action against Trump. It has now begun to use the words “lie” and “untruth”, but they need to go farther to explore how these lies are part of a bigger, more insidious disinformation strategy. The disinformation strategy is designed to render all facts meaningless and to allow the fascist state to proceed without challenge.
On Saturday, January 21, an estimated 5 million people worldwide marched in the Women’s March on Washington or in “sister marches” in hundreds of U.S. cities and in over 600 marches over 70 countries across the world. The Women’s March demonstrated the intent of millions of people to resist the threats that Trump represents. Hopefully, this March will be the start of a resistance that will meaningful.
