Dear editor:
I am amazed at the number of people who have joined the chorus for Trump. This is a man who allegedly kept a book of Hitler's speeches in his nightstand. He lies so frequently that it is impossible to determine when he is actually stating a fact.
Trump's politics of aggrieved white nationalism -- labeling black people criminals, Latinos rapists and Muslims terrorists -- have succeeded because the party's voting base is made up of the people who once opposed civil rights. He has managed to capture the heart of the conservative evangelical movement. Because he has stated that he will support their policies against decent treatment for all, they seem to have forgiven him for all of his past transgressions. He is like the mass murderer who accepts their "Jesus" on the eve of his execution and joins them in their heaven.
It is my position that the problem is not Trump and his insane rants, it is the people who support him. Many of the conservative evangelical preachers have joined the movement. David Barton has said that if you don't vote for Trump -- you will have to answer to God. Christians have spent decades nursing a persecution mindset -- they are angry and fearful of their loss of cultural dominance. They treat those who are different as enemies. In their sermons, they cultivate a siege mentality among the faithful because making people angry and afraid has been shown as an effective way to build the base.
Many evangelicals have shown that they admire wealth, success and, above all, "ruthlessness." They will do almost anything to promote their views and in selecting Trump, they have shown that they approve of his tactics. They have stated that they want the meanest - - - - they can find.
It is essential that we do not allow ourselves to play by Trump's rules and yield to the darker, more primitive side of our nature. We are capable of so much more and it is my fervent hope that we will manage to survive this crises of values and seek a higher path.
I was extremely encouraged to read the excellent letter in the Monday paper penned by that master wordsmith John Ragland. His concluding words should be read again and again by all -- "America, once upon a time, we were a beacon of hope and hospitality for the stranger, the refugee, the suffering child. America, we used to be better than this."
Mike Nunn
Hot Springs
Editorial on 08/22/2016