Campaign 2024 is Black and White

In the Fight for America, It's All or Nothing

I’m not a fan of columns littered with quotes from famous (usually dead) people. But today, I think it’s appropriate. We’ll start here:

“The hottest places in hell are reserved for those, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality.” - Dante Alighieri

Discussing life in the stark tones of black and white is often a bad idea. Our existence, the decisions we make, the compromises life presses upon us are shades of gray. We’re told to stay away from ultimatums and binary choices.

Of course, not making a choice, is a decision, too. Too many of us, Americans I mean, are still, nine years in the Trumposcene Era, still in the “ignore it and it will go away” stage of diagnosis.

We’re nearly a decade into seeing what Trump catalyzed in a country at risk of a demagogue. All the ingredients for a boorish strong man were in place, and too many of us (me more than anyone perhaps) didn’t buy it. Too many today, still don’t.

Unfortunately, this election forces us into that singular choice. Either Joe Biden or Donald Trump will win in November. Elections are binary - you win or you lose, there are no moral victories on the campaign trail, no matter what folks (usually those that have lost) might tell you.

If our choices are clear, a bridge to a new American future or a slippery staircase downward into the darkness, the time for “I don’t really like politics” is over.

Author’s Note: I’m still decoding RFK Jr.’s role in all this, more on that soon.

As the campaign heats up, and you’re talking to friends, family, and colleagues, don’t let them get away with the “I’m apolitical.” That position shouldn’t be an option for any responsible citizen, but certainly not this year.

Not to say you should insult them, belittle them, or otherwise cause them to switch off. But it is important to give the undecided, the unaffiliated, the apathetic, a nudge in the right direction.

In a fight for the future of the country and potentially the world for the foreseeable future, standing on the sidelines is not an option. Unhappy with Joe Biden’s age? Get over it. Displeased that the Democrats didn’t keep all their promises? Welcome to the NFL.

You believe that [the environment, choice, student loans, national security, health care] is the most important issue we face? Where do you think any those issues rank on Trump’s 2025 agenda?

In Just over seven months, we Americans will decide our own futures. We don’t really talk about it like that, very often. There’s a lot of talk of “we” will do this or “the country” will do that. Voting is an individual act with individual consequences. Our families will have to make decisions based on the outcome.

Like so much of life, decisions have tradeoffs. Reelecting Joe Biden (which we should do in huge numbers) gives each of us the opporunity to decide how we’ll be involved in the next epoch of American history. You want to sit that out? I think it’s a bad idea, but you’ll make your choice.

Donald Trump wins again? Welcome to the land of the arbitrary. What’s Trump’s superpower? He vacuums up airtime, attention span, and political daylight. He’s everywhere all the time. He lives only to cast a shadow on everything and everyone else.

Are you prepared to wake up for the next several years and wonder what the president is personally worried about? If you’re a business owner (small, medium, large, public) are you ready for Trump administration goons to show up on your door and tell you you’ve crossed a line with the White House. Seem silly and outlandish? It is, until it isn’t.

Note: We experienced what one, unhinged, incompetent buffoon can do to a great nation. Look back at any day from four years ago. Bleach? Light? Disinfectant? That’s their problem? We’ve seen this movie before. Do we want a sequel?

Many Americans imagine (and yes some have lived) the big bad US government is out to get them. Human-devised creations are imperfect by definition. Now ponder a government that isn’t one bad apple here or there, but an orchard of worm-ridden fruit actively rooting out their political, ideological, or financial opponents.

The choice we face this fall should be an easy one. But for too many of us, it won’t be. Nothing in life is as easy as it should be, and we hate having to make decisions we’re uncomfortable with. Spend the next few weeks getting over all your hangups about Joe Biden. That too hard? Convince yourself that Donald Trump will never, ever be a legimiate choice for you, your family, and your country.

I’ll close with another quote from a wise dead guy that sums it up:

“Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you.” - Pericles

News and Notes:

Check out the latest episode of the podcast, featuring Arthur Goldwag. We talk Americans’ love for conspiracies and insanity.