One complaint I have about politics is that people seem to think that there are two ways to think about government…either you are a Republican or a Democrat. Thinking in a different light, especially thoughts on a really limited or even no government at all, almost will get one immediately shut out of the conversation.
The following is a response I wrote to someone criticizing the Trump Administration for the 100,000+ American coronavirus deaths:
Trump Isn’t Alone
Many presidents have been responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people around the world, yet Trump (I am not a fan of him) is singled out here for killing American citizens. What about all the citizens he has had killed (with actual weapons in an aggressive stance) in Africa or the Middle East? I’m no fan of Trump, but his killing is no different than any other president.
Obama actually had an American citizen assassinated without trial. McKinley’s war on the Philippines killed over 200,000 Filipinos, most of whom were innocent (the case could actually be made that they were all innocent with how America started that war). Clinton’s sanctions and bombings in the Middle East killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people. Bush’s undeclared war occupations in the Middle East (continued by both Obama and Trump) have killed who knows how many innocent hundreds of thousands.
It’s like saying history began on 9/11, when American had been messing with so much in the Middle East for decades.
You are giving Trump legitimacy as a tyrant by saying he’s responsible for the deaths of 100,000 American citizens. By doing so, you are saying tyrants are a good thing, but Trump is bad because he misused his power.
Should All Presidents Have Absolute Power?
In this case, Trump decided to not put a gun to everyone’s heads and force all of us to do what he wants, which is what we really should desire in our government. It’s so easy to blame Trump or any leader in a situation like this if you believe he should be that powerful. Do you really want someone that powerful?
Again, I’m not a fan of Trump, but do you think it’s better that a group of 15 million people decide what is best for themselves, or is it more rational for a group of 400,000,000 to decide what’s best for themselves?
Unfortunately, for our society anyway, we are taught by government ran public schools, which don’t teach us very well at all. It’s part of the reason why we, as Americans, feel the need for a powerful president to force us to do things.
Addressing Coronavirus
As far as addressing this actual coronavirus outbreak, I believe it’ll be extremely difficult (if possible) and take some time to decipher what the actual coronavirus deaths are. The “person died of coronavirus and it’s solely Trump’s fault” narrative is irresponsible, lazy, and will further damage future crises if all the analytics aren’t studied and considered.
When the state-ordered lockdowns first started in March, my visits to the stores for supplies were met with large crowd gatherings in the stores, and entire families were running around (especially the kids) without any face protection. Do they hold 0 responsibility for the spread of the virus? What should have been the correct response for a president to make in that situation?
I live in Las Vegas, NV. In the second week of May, I spent some time in Utah. I did a quick search and the numbers for coronavirus are about the same for the states currently. However, in Utah, I felt like I was in a different world. Of the places I visited (one was Walmart), almost NO ONE had masks on and there wasn’t even the thought of social distancing going on. In Vegas, masks are currently plentifully worn.
Yet, I can’t conclude exactly why the number of cases and deaths by COVID are nearly the same because there are many other things to consider. Like I said, I’m no fan of Trump (I know I keep repeating that because I have to keep repeating it, otherwise I’m labeled as a Trump lover for some reason), but claiming he’s responsible for every single one of those 100,000 American deaths is a bit of a stretch when people will act irrationally on their own, no matter what they’re ordered to do.
Absolute Power Corrupts…
So if you are going to attack Trump for misuse of his power, you must also acknowledge every other president for misuse of power, both the ones you love and the ones you hate. Things are complicated, and serious issues, like people dying, shouldn’t be concluded in a thought process that doesn’t involve research, critical thinking, and time.
End.
Please share your thoughts on my essay about Trump and the Coronavirus Deaths!
As I mentioned above, one big thing I don’t like about the Trump Administration is their foreign policy. This abuse can slowly be deterred by simply not having people in the military.
I was an Army Recruiter, so if you know someone trying to join the military, take a look at my page on joining the military, my page about what happened a year after I got out of the Army, or my anti-war page. Scott Horton’s Antiwar.com is a great resource too.
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The following is some suggested reading that helped me get to where I am at today in my political thoughts:
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