Trump has my son paying close attention
There is a silver lining to Donald Trump’s burning desire to be at the centre of every scrum of microphones. His hatred has driven some people with little interest in politics to start paying close attention.
Exhibit one. Handsome Son, who turned 27 this week.
“Are you sure he’s not turning 28,” questioned Beautiful Wife, long a Trump anti-fan and now a full-blown CNN junkie. “He was born in 1990.” I motioned she should count with her fingers. Her motion in response took considerably fewer than 27 fingers.
Handsome Son is buried in the world of nuclear physics. His PhD work involves trying to figure out the shape of the nuclei at the heart of various atoms. Trying to go any deeper into it involves wiggles and squiggles of mathematics. None of which I understand.
He loves physics, and basketball. He played it from Grade 3 through university.
So Handsome Son’s ears perked up when Trump suggested NFL players taking a knee during the American national anthem to protest the treatment of blacks in the U.S. were SOBs who should be fired.
HS turned and paid close attention when NBA basketball players like Steph Curry of the world champion Golden State Warriors jumped to the defence of their fellow athletes.
The next day I received a series of private messages from HS via Facebook. I asked him if I could reproduce those here. Go for it, he said. Here they are:
“I just watched Steph Curry’s interview in response to Trump’s statement.
“One of the saddest things about all of this for me is how professional athletes — who have spent their whole lives living on top of a pedestal where they were told they were the best and had their egos blown up — can sit in an interview and give answers on their opinions clearly and without hurting people.
“Meanwhile, the president — who is supposed to be educated, impartial and respectful to the people of the country — can do nothing but be a bigot.
“Most NBA players we see in the interviews are one-anddone, meaning they are just out of high school or have a minimal college education. But they can vocalize their opinion in a way that contains a wider vocabulary than the president?
“My second favourite thing is with the NFL players. They are peacefully protesting and — even though they are taking a knee — many still have a hand on their heart for their country, or their arms locked together showing unity against unfair and unjust treatment.
“The building block of their country, being able to peacefully protest, gets booed by the fans saying they are not respecting the flag.
“The ignorance is remarkable.
“I wonder if they even realize that the USA flag code says the flag should never be laid flat. It should not be used as wearing apparel (take note all Trump supporters). It should not be used for advertising, used as a costume, on a label, pin or anything that is going to be thrown away.
“I am sick of this being in the news, and I am honestly scared this is what is important to people, especially the president of the USA.”
Democracy depends on an informed public. That means a public that’s paying attention to its government’s actions. I have hope.
Rick MacLean is an instructor in the journalism program at Holland College in Charlottetown.