An interesting article
THE following is from an article written by CNN commentator Mel Robbins posted on cnn.com on Oct. 10. The article's title is “The Trump Tape Doesn't Matter,” referring to the recently re-released tape of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump wherein he was heard making vulgar comments about women, comments like:
“I am automatically attracted to beautiful women. I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss, I don't even wait...and when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything.”
That may sound like mere bragging to many “macho” Pinoys, meaning there was nothing wrong with that kind of talk. But Trump is in the United States where political correctness matters, where respect for women or lack of it can make or break candidacies. After the contents of the tapes were leaked, some Republicans revoked their backing for the candidacy of their own party nominee. But Robbins saw things differently: “Donald Trump is a pig. It doesn't matter. “Donald Trump wants to 'grab women by the pussy.' It doesn't matter.
Donald Trump thinks it's okay for other men to call his daughter, Ivanka, 'a piece of ass.' It doesn't matter.
“His casino businesses have filed for bankruptcy more than any other major United States company in the past 30 years. It doesn't matter. “Donald Trump can hide his tax re“ART, turns from you. It doesn't matter.
“Donald Trump can stiff hundreds, if not thousands of people who have worked for him as vendors, contractors and tradesmen. It doesn't matter.
“Donald Trump can offend, threaten, flip-flop and be downright nuts. It doesn't matter.
“At this point, I believe that Donald Trump, as he has suggested, could actually shoot someone and it would not matter to the 40-45 percent of Americans who still appear to be voting for him.
“Pundit Dave Pell summed it up perfectly: 'Trump's brand is a—hole. His speech is hate. His promise is ignorance. I don't dig it. And you probably don't dig it either. But...he isn't playing to you or me. He's playing to the people who have been digging it.”
I got attracted to the article because it talked about a US election that is fast mirroring the Philippines' recently completed polls. Or at least the relationship between one “unique” presidential candidate and his fanatical supporters. And if you think Robbins' analysis is shallow, you're wrong. She presented a logical explanation of this kind of phenomenon:
“This election isn't about greatness, the future, or even Donald Trump. It's about defiance.
“To his supporters, a vote for Trump is a way to flip the middle finger to the system, the media, the elite, the liberals, the know-it-alls and the people who pretend they're better than 'us.'”
I remember a virtually similar explanation to the so-called Edsa 3, that attempt to topple the presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo by supporters of former president Joseph Estrada and the mostly poor in Metro Manila who joined the “uprising” that had them rushing to the gates of Malacañang. Edsa 3 was the “poor” fed up with elitist rule rising against it.
But back to the US elections and Robbins' take. Here's an advice that could very well apply to our country's present predicament:
“Don't talk to the people who agree. Stir emotion in those who don't. You can't just be smarter than Trump, you've got to inspire his supporters to be better human beings than him.
“If a vote for Trump is a middle finger to world, then a vote for (Democratic candidate Hillary) Clinton can't be a middle finger to Trump. It must be a vote for a system that has kept us united under one flag for centuries.”