In journalism school, we were taught about the history of the press and how truly patriotic it was to be a part of the historic institution of the press.
They made sure we knew how sacred sources were and that the media, more than any other industry, would hold thebkeys to informing the public of what is happening in government.
In the beginning, people saw the press as the watch dog, which would guard the public interest and expose wrongdoing through great investigative journalism.
James and Ben Franklin championed this idea in colonial America and even went to jail over their writing content. According to google: “the Franklin brothers’ actions and writings set the stage for a greater understanding and appreciation of the importance of freedom of the press. Benjamin Franklin’s contributions to the printing and publishing industry, as well as his writings and political activities, helped shape the development of a free and informed citizenry.”
Ben Franklin said, “Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government.” He would also argue that without freedom of speech and press, the constitution dissolves.
Fast forward to 2025, and with the second term of Donald Trump, we see the deterioration of the free press. Covering the White House without being able to question anything is a problem. The days of journalists going to jail for their beliefs are over. The Republicans are just as afraid of Trump and won’t say anything about it, and the Democrats only get involved if it causes mass protests.
For example, there should be mass protests for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who is the Maryland man deported to El Salvador without due process. No mass protests, so no objections from Democrats.
On May 25, 2020, George Floyd was murdered by police in Minneapolis, and the world protested, and the Dems jumped right on the bandwagon. As of today, most of the reform gains we saw in the aftermath of Floyd’s murder have been squashed by the Trump administration. Again, no protest equals silence from the Dems.
With the influence of the press being gutted, the Trump Administration can do whatever they want while we watch. We can now lay to rest our press.
President Donald Trump has a playbook. If we understood history better, we would have seen this coming. Trump has quoted Adolph Hitler and shown us that he is quite the fan of the dictator. At the end of his first term in office, he began to follow Hitlers actions to rise to power through the very system designed and created to keep people like Trump out.
Never in the history of US presidents have we had one like Trump. In the modern era, no other republican president in the last 50 years would have even voted for him. There is no other time in America after the Civil Rights Movement that the country would have elected such a man.
Hitler was quite radical in Germany, and his clear hatred of people labeled communists and Jews was apparent. Hitler was a part of the country that believed they lost World War I because of this group. There were three major events that led to the rise of Hitler, and there are also three major events that led to the rise of Trump.
As recorded in the Holocaust Encyclopedia, these are the events that led to the rise of Hitler:
June 28, 1919 The Treaty of Versailles is signed Germany loses World War I in November 1918. Germans are shocked and horrified. Many people, including Adolf Hitler, refuse to believe that the loss is real. They falsely blame Jews and Communists for Germany’s defeat.
This shock is intensified in June 1919, when Germany is forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles. The Treaty makes Germany accept responsibility for the war. Many Germans feel that the Treaty’s terms are too harsh. Germany has to make huge payments for damage caused by the war (known as war reparations). Also, according to the Treaty, the German army is limited to 100,000 troops. Finally, Germany is forced to transfer territory to its neighbors. The Nazi Party makes overturning the Treaty of Versailles a key part of its political platform. Many Germans welcome this Nazi promise.
November 8–9, 1923 The Beer Hall Putsch In the early 1920s, the Nazi Party is a small extremist group. They hope to seize power in Germany by force. On November 8–9, 1923, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party attempt to overthrow the government of the state of Bavaria. They begin at a beer hall in the city of Munich. The plotters hope to march on Berlin. But they fail miserably. The Munich police kill more than a dozen of Hitler’s supporters. Hitler and others are arrested, tried, and convicted of treason. This attempted coup d’état is called the Beer Hall Putsch.
The failure of the Beer Hall Putsch encourages Nazi leaders to change their strategy. Instead of using force, the Nazis focus on winning elections.
October 24 and 29, 1929 The stock market crash in New York In October 1929, the stock market crashes in New York and sparks a worldwide economic crisis. This crisis is called the Great Depression. The stock market crash impacts Germany almost overnight because the American and German economies have become closely intertwined. This economic connection is a direct result of financial negotiations relating to World War I reparations payments. Unemployment becomes a major problem in German society. Joblessness, homelessness, and begging are commonplace. These economic conditions make Nazi promises more attractive to voters.
In America, Trump was elected the first time for three major reasons: Many poor marginalized white Americans felt that they were forgotten by the establishment, and many benefits were going to blacks, Hispanics, and the LGBTQ communities; America was not ready for a female president; Hilary Clinton could not overcome her past and the perception the American people had of the Clinton’s overall.
Despite Trump proving that he was not fit to be president of the free world, parts of America wanted him to “shake things up” in Washington, and that’s what he did. There are people who can point out some good that he did, but it is hard to overlook the tens of thousands who died monthly during the pandemic. Under Trumps leadership, America was not prepared to deal with the pandemic, and what’s worse is that a couple of months before Covid-19 hit America, Trump thought it was something the democrats made up.
When Trump lost to Joe Biden, he attempted an insurrection just like Hitler in Nov. 1923, and it failed. The White Fear button was pressed during his second campaign as he began to prey on America’s prejudices. White people believed illegal immigrants were bringing drugs, particularly fentanyl, into our country as well as sending us all their worst prisoners. The democrats mishandled legislation regarding transgenders and some of their decisions were a bit ridiculous, particularly in how our tax dollars were being spent on transgender operations. Finally, the idea that DEI initiatives were unfair to white people. Add that to a very weak candidate in Kamala Harris and inflation, and Trump, the felon, returns to office.
Trump now spends his days writing executive orders to dismantel America, alienate our allies and side with world dictators with the hope that he can become like them. It is a harsh history lesson for American citizens, but spoiler alert: Hitler ultimately is defeated — fyi.
I love history! I love history because it allows me to stand in the present, take a factual look at the past, and in some cases, see exactly what the future will look like.
This past and future vision has a caveat, which is whether or not we learned from and acknowledged our mistakes. This is great given the fact that America never learns from it’s past and it never acknowledges it’s mistakes.
We are now about four months into the second Trump presidency, and we have seen a calamity of executive orders that have harmed millions of people. From foreign aid funding being sliced and essentially killing humanitarian efforts across the world to thousands of layoffs of federal workers to the destruction of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs to cuts in federally funded research programs at various universities across the country, all in an effort to somehow make America great again?
Those against Trump’s plans seem to be waiting on others to step up and defend the American way. These “others” I speak of are those in the Republican party. Democrats are hoping for Republicans to have a conscious and stop Trump from destroying our country as we know it. They can not defend what he’s doing, and they are avoiding meetings with their constituents, believing the carnage will end soon.
Funding for school programs that level the playing field and assist those who are struggling have been cut. Healthcare initiatives like vaccines for hepatitis B and the flu shot were sliced, and the mass deportation efforts have disrupted kids in school, workers for farms and other industries where migrant workers are now afraid to leave their homes for fear of deportation.
The worst part of all of this is the fact that most American people are delusional about the Trump administration. It seems that those who believe it’s pure evil and those who think it’s the greatest are both wrong.
As usual, the American government is repeating past mistakes. We are looking at fellow Americans being hurt by all these cuts with no regard to their well-being. We are waiting migrant workers living in fear every day of their worst nightmare coming true. We are seeing people’s lives devastated by Trump’s actions, and we don’t say much against it because it doesn’t affect us. After all, I’m not a federal or migrant worker. I have no use for social programs or welfare or DEI, and I don’t own a farm. There are still a lot of Americans that can make this claim, but for how long?
Morality is principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior. A hundred years ago, our country based its morality on what was written in the bible. Our country claimed a belief in Jesus Christ and a belief in the bible.
There were other religions here. Hinduism, Buddhists, Muslims, and atheists were welcome in our country and shared similar views as Christianity.
As time moved forward, morality was hijacked by social norms. According to google, social norms are the perceived, informal, and mostly unwritten rules that define what behaviors are considered acceptable and appropriate within a given group or community, essentially acting as unspoken guidelines for how people should behave in a particular social context; they are based on shared beliefs and expectations about what is considered “normal” behavior within that group.
The problem with social norms is trying to define what is “normal.” We do not all share the same views on what is normal. Over time, normal became human nature, and human nature depends on a lot of things.
For some people, it is human nature to take something that is not yours if you want it bad enough and nobody is looking. For others, it is human nature for a man to refrain from crying at a funeral. Still, others believe that it is human nature for men to exercise power over other men and women. They may use the power that comes from money or physical power, resulting in sex.
Our biases have crept into our human nature, our social norms, and our biblical interpretations. Our constitution was written the same way, which is why it gave no rights to women nor minorities.
So, where is our morality today? It rests and abides with the rich and powerful. We see this play out in politics every day. Corporations like to believe they dictate social norms. They run most of the advertisements that tell us what products to use, what to eat, what medicines to take, where to vacation, what cars to buy, who is acceptable, and who is not.
We are riddled with double standards. We have “laws” in this country, but if you have the right law firm representing you, you can bypass the penalty.
Is it moral for the elderly to suffer in a country as rich as ours? Is it moral for babies to be born in poverty and without healthcare in this country as rich as we are? Our country tends to help many more foreign people than they do citizens. Ukraine and Israel greatly benefited from the benevolence of the US, while there are people struggling in the rural and urban areas of a plethora of things.
It is hard to believe that America still believes in morality.
Halloween is more than 2000 years old. It is something that immigrants helped to develop in this country. Halloween has everything to do with the Celtic celebration of old, where they welcomed the harvest at the end of summer by dressing up in costumes to wart off ghosts and celebrate the occasion. It was always festive and always fun.
Like everything else, religion tends to put a damper on many things as some attempt to make others feel extra guilt about their sins. There are some who believe almost everything is bad, and for them, religion has everything to do with stopping people from going too far.
For the sake of religion, there was a time in this country where women who were believed to be witches or practice witchcraft were burned alive. Somehow, these religious nuts only see the downside to everything, and if we follow their teaching, we would not be allowed to do anything.
Biblically speaking, the bible does prohibit any practice of witchcraft or worship of anything other than the Almighty God. I am sure there is a small percentage of Halloweeners who have gone too far into the festivities and use it as a time to practice evil. But that is definitely not the majority.
My 3 year old granddaughter loves to play dress up. In fact, when her mom was that age and older, we bought her many beautiful dolls to play with. Kids today like to dress like the dolls. My grandbaby doesn’t have one Disney princess doll, but she has all the Disney princesses gowns — all of them!
She loves Spiderman, and she has several spidey costumes. She knows exactly what Halloween is, and she loves to dress up and get candy. It’s her third favorite holiday behind Christmas and her birthday!
My point is that if you are one of those super duper Christians that complains every year about Halloween and you are the only house on your block with the porch light off during tricks or treats, I need you to know that you are sending a message but it is not the one you want to send. You will never be able to convince anyone of your beliefs by going so far against the grain.
This year, 175 million people will celebrate Halloween. For a change, why don’t you join them?
It is sad that we can not put our trust in either political party. I can’t remember things being this bad, and I’ve been paying attention for nearly 50 years.
Our criteria need to change. We desperately need an age limit, and I would add a financial limit. Imagine if Congress could only be between the ages of 35 to 65 and could not reside in a household that makes more than 400k? The smartest people in our society are definitely not the richest. The level of greed in our government is killing us and not a benefit to the middle class and poor.
In addition, we need to give up the party system. We already know that there are conservatives and liberals in both parties already. Neither party has been a benefit to the average American. Further, the rich in Congress is out of touch with what the middle class and poor need.
This is a perfect symbol of the Democrat party.
We need good wages and a better credit system that works for us and not against us. We need universal healthcare, and everyone should be able to afford to by a house. For example, instead of loans being based on income, the majority should be based on work consistency. A two parent family should be able to live comfortably in America.
We spend way too much on the military, and as a country, we don’t need to be involved in everything. We have spent more money on Ukraine than we have provided for our poor in this country.
Every politician has this Pinocchio effect.
Corruption is at an all-time high. Promises are made and not honored; a “tit for tat” mentality runs rampant with our government; and far too many people are struggling.
What was once progression has turned into our demise. We need to take serious notice of the America we think we are. Change is need immediately!
Forgiveness is a concept that our country isn’t too keen on as we are definitely people for revenge. Whenever someone’s crime upsets our social norm, we want blood.
Mass shooters, pedophiles, rapists, bad police officers, repeat offenders, men who hit women, or anyone who is against the LGBTQ community are all subject to revenge following their miscues. But in actuality, forgiveness doesn’t require an apology. Of course, it would be nice to have one, but it is not required. Forgiveness has nothing to do with the infraction as much as it has to do with you making a decision.
Forgiveness is a choice. It is frivolous to measure sins or even label them from bad to worse. Forgiveness involves an intentional decision to let go of resentment and anger. Why would you do that? Because hate in your heart consumes. It burns like fire.
There are 3 types of forgiveness: 1) Exoneration where a person genuinely makes a mistake; 2) Forbearance where the person gives a partial apology, but the offense did not call for a more extreme level; 3) Release where there is no acknowledgement of hurt. The person never even took responsibility for the pain they caused. So which one do you think God would want you to exercise? Here is a hint: God would want you to practice the one you need.
I don’t know about you, but I need to practice release because that is the one I need from God. The Greek word for forgiveness in scripture literally means “to let go,” and the context is the act of pardoning an offender.
So, if I am to practice forgiveness from the Bible, it must be the one I expect from God because the scriptures tell us that God is going to forgive the same way we do. Now, who needs an apology?
I’m not sure if this will be a new series or not, but there are certain things that just can’t happen. It needs to happen, but by the way we are as a country, it would cause an even greater divide if it did.
I’m specifically talking about a scientific discovery of longevity. Imagine the level of greed and covetousness that would ensue if we discovered a way to extend life by hundreds of years. I’m talking about a new life expectancy of 250 years.
I would imagine that our biased country would want to decide who is worthy of this. It would not be something that everyone could experience. I’m not even sure what the price tag would be, but definitely, anyone lower than wealthy would not have access.
There would be billionaires trying to corner the market on this gift. As the African proverb states: “When the elephants rumble, the grass suffers.” We are the grass.
Imagine some of the world’s dictators living longer: Kim Jong Un, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump,Joe Biden, and Xi Jinping all live another 160 plus years. Would the world be a bitter place if that happened?
Longevity would give us more time to be greedy and selfish. If it were available to everyone, then it would give the poor and downtrodden another 200-plus years of poverty, stress, sickness, and depression. Giving the world more time would not at all help the poor — it would extend their already horrible sentence.
It would do us no good to imagine the world as a better place because more time would increase the intensity of who we are today — and it’s not a pretty sight!
Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes was either brilliant or crazy when she quickly built her start-up company on a lie, raised billions, and now owes more than 450 million in damages and is serving 11 years.
Her vivid imagination fooled thousands, and she went further than she should have. Why? Because of two things: White Privilege and greed.
Nothing about her story was impressive. In fact, her claims were so outrageous that if you could imagine any other race saying the same thing to the same investors, you would quickly see how unextraordinary they were.
College dropout. Discovered what? What about this quitter would have made wealthy investors not vet her and trust that she must be on the cutting edge of something that would revolutionize an industry? She had absolutely zero knowledge of this field and no skill. What an insult to the egg heads currently spending years trying to do the same thing.
She was the unicorn every greedy, wealthy person dreams about. Ground-floor level of new technology. And her whiteness made her believable!
The bottom line is that on paper, she was a complete fraud who had done absolutely nothing to get the trust given to her, except she was the right color. Greed was also a contributing factor and works as a blinder – the men she hustled were fools, and the old saying is true: A fool and his money are soon parted.
As mental health awareness month comes to a close, I want to encourage everyone to empty your lives of as much drama and craziness as possible. You have been carrying it or them for too long!
There are some lives that follow social norms and others that don’t. Although anyone can experience a trial or tribulation at any time, it seems that the more logical thinking people tend to avoid strife better.
As for others, drama seems to follow bad decision making. It also follows bad relationships. Have you ever met someone who loves to argue? And they argue about everything. There are extreme in their thinking, they have a sense of entitlement, and they don’t seem to be happy unless they are trying to control you!
These same people masquerade as our friend until things don’t go their way. We waste a lot of time trying to apply logic to these relationships to no avail. These people are not logical, so no logic can be used in dealing with them.
Now, I realize that some of these people are relatives, and you’re wondering how can you abandon the family? Well, how can you keep strife around?
My professional advice is to give these illogical people some time to miss you. Don’t make a big production about it, just easy up on your availability. You will find that living with less stress is worth it.
A Yale University study found that chronic stress can shorten your life. Also, researchers from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare calculated the effects of multiple risk factors, including lifestyle-related ones, to the life expectancy of men and women and found that being under heavy stress shortens your life by 2.8 years.
Further research has shown that overreacting, constantly worrying, and living in a state of perpetual anxiety can reduce life expectancy.
So for this cause, when someone proves to lack judgment and be a destruction to their own life, you owe it to yourself to allow them to just be.
ClydeStyle 