I Cannot -- I Will Not --"Get Over It"

My eyes filled with tears and my heart and soul with fear for this country when I awoke the day after the election to the news that my countrymen had elected a racist bully as president. My body shook with a cold chill. 

People say to "get over it" and to "move on." How can I move on when the things I value most about this country are at great risk? I'm not upset and I didn't cry because we elected a sociopathic bully. I'm not angry because my candidate (whom I voted for as the better of four very poor choices) didn't win the election. I'm upset and sad because the country I know and love is about to change for the worse. This election has created a tidal wave of grief, but not for the reasons many think. And sadly, it has resulted in an emboldening of those whose hatred and racism until now have remained largely below the surface.

And I will "get over it" just as much as many Republicans got over the fact we have our nation's first black president. All this Republican-dominated Congress has done since Day 1 is obstruct anything Obama tried to do, including refusing to hold hearings on his Supreme Court nominee. So if you expect me to "get over it," you will have a long wait. 

We just elected our first dictator-in-chief. We elected someone who is a serial adulterer, who is guilty of -- and brags about -- sexual assault, who is a pathological liar, who mocks the disabled and attacks women based on their looks, who insults the family of a Muslim-American soldier who died fighting for this country, who routinely stiffs companies he has hired, who belittles political opponents akin to what one would expect from a grade school child, and who plans to dismantle the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and replace it "with something terrific." He also has made it clear that he knows more about the Middle East situation than America's best, most experienced generals. His hubris knows no bounds.

Trump is full of BS and will look out for no one except himself and his fellow dictators. Is it any wonder he was praised by none other than Vladimir Putin and Kim Jung Un of North Korea? He disavows climate change, and two of his sons are trophy hunters that enjoy nothing more than going to Africa and slaughtering endangered elephants and other animals for fun.

So yes, I expect to see the further destruction of our environment and wildlife, the further arming of our nation, and growing divisions between the educated and uneducated populace. Get ready for World War III, and perhaps another civil war. Expect to see attacks on minorities, gays and women explode, and the uneducated white men who apparently swept Trump into office will feel emboldened and beat their chests to show how superior they are. Already we are seeing instances of racist graffiti and attacks on minorities. Trump may not directly tell his followers to carry out acts of hatred, but his words certainly give the impression that he doesn't mind if they do.

When he says "Make America Great Again," what he really means is make America the way it was in the 1950s. Make America look like it did on the "Leave It to Beaver" television show -- mom stayed home and cooked, all while wearing heels, pearls and a dress. Blacks knew their places and stayed in segregated parts of town while attending segregated schools. Gays remained in the closet. Abortion will once again be illegal and relegated to back rooms and alleyways. "Locker room" talk that insults and demeans women and girls will be the norm. Our black president will be put in his place once and for all by the racists who defeated his chosen successor. "Pussy grabbing" will become a national pasttime. The KKK is undoubtedly gearing up to promote its sick, racist platform.

Trump has already shown signs of the coming dictatorship, wanting people to cancel the election and make him president. He banned certain media outlets from his rallies because they dared to report what he said. He is thin-skinned to the extreme and relentless in attacking anybody he thinks was 'mean' to him. 

He is gearing up to change climate agreements and to undo most of Barack Obama's progress on energy and the environment. He most likely will scrap the Paris climate accord. He has said he wants to eliminate the Department of Education and the Environmental Protection Agency. If reports are correct, he plans to fill his administration with lobbyists and recycled old white men like Rudy Giuliani and Newt Gingrich. And for America being a nation that is welcoming to all regardless of race or religion? Forget that. Trump has made it very clear that he wants to ban all Muslims from entering the United States, and that Mexicans are rapists and other criminals. So much for inclusion.


So forgive me if I am upset that Trump appealed to the racists among us and got himself elected emperor. I understand that people want change, that they feel ignored by our government. I don't hate people who support him, but I do hate what he stands for. I fear for the future of our public lands and wildlife. I fear for our planet. I hate that our citizens who happen to be non-white and of a non-Christian (or no) religion are fearful. Electing a lying, cheating narcissist who admires overseas tyrants is not the answer to the issues facing this country.

So no, I'm not going to "get over it" any time soon. There is far too much at stake. I won't be joining protests in the streets, I will not engage in name-calling, but I also refuse to be happy about this election that has made my country the laughing stock of the world.