This whole Trump mania is very entertaining to watch. To tell the truth, Trump is bombastic and just slightly above completely annoying. He has great appeal right now in spite of this, why?
I believe, and have no scientific proof to support it, that it is not what he’s saying so much as the fact that he is not afraid to take a stand. Right or wrong, he’s out there blasting away fearlessly about things that touch a nerve in America. Our beloved news media has decided over the past couple of decades to stop reporting news and start shaping news. They can and will try to influence elections, candidates and even votes in Congress on important issues. This is not what they are supposed to do. They wield immense power and use it all the time, sometimes subtly, sometimes blatantly. Most politicians know all too well how powerful the media is. They know that the media affects the perception people have of candidates. Thusly, candidates tiptoe around being careful not to say anything that might be misconstrued in any way. Donald Trump doesn’t care….it’s almost like he dares them to misconstrue what he says and then he throws it back in their face.
People are looking for someone with conviction. Someone with the courage to stand up to the politically correct sensors and say whatever. The fact that he’s a white heterosexual makes it even more interesting. We are used to minorities now being able to speak their minds. And when they do, God forbid you disagree. That will make you a racist, sexist, homophobic, whatever for having a differing opinion. Just because someone doesn’t agree, does not mean they hate the other person. Just because Trump doesn’t want illegal immigrants who are rapists(and they do exist), doesn’t mean he’s a racist that hates all Mexicans. That’s ludicrous.
Trump is in a unique position. He has a lot to lose, but even if he loses most of what he has, he will still have more than most of us ever dreamed of. So, he’s willing to risk a lot. He knows he’ll be OK at the end of the day(unless El Chapo manages to assassinate him). So, he says what he thinks and evidently his opinions resonate with a lot of people. He resonates with people afraid to speak their minds for fear of being labelled a horrible person. We are told by the media that we should love all gay people, all black people, all women, all anything that they perceive to be oppressed. I agree, we should show everyone the same basic respect, regardless of who they are. We should all be unafraid, however to voice our honest opinions about different issues. But we see examples like the couple in Oregon who have been fined $135,000 for daring to disagree with gay marriage. I assume if Trump was opposed to gay marriage(I honestly don’t know his views on this), he would have refused to bake the cake as well. They could have fined him and it wouldn’t matter, he can afford it. They tried to intimidate this other couple into silence as well. It didn’t work, they are still vocal. They are no more haters than Trump is. An opposing opinion does not equal hatred.
If people really thought that Trump was a racist, they would not be supportive. That is because most of the people in this country are very tolerant and not the least bit racist. They don’t see Trump as a racist any more than they see themselves as racist. If you don’t like a particular member of a different race, that doesn’t make you racist. I am sure there are quite a few black people who don’t like Louis Farrakan. Are they racist? If people hate George Bush, they are not white haters, they just don’t like Bush. Trump’s supporters are not all white guys with lots of money either. I was watching the Dr Drew show on HLN the other night. A youngish(30s?) black woman got up and said she supported Trump. She supported him because he knew how to get things done and how to make money. The rest of the media would have you believe nobody of color would ever support anyone conservative and would rather vote for anyone black even if a better white candidate exists. Not true. In fact, assuming that all black, hispanic, gay, female people must support liberals because they are repressed by the big bad white heterosexual males is very bigoted. It means they have no brains to think with and could never overcome ‘whitey’ without the government’s help. Just not true. There are many, many minorities that do very well. They don’t feel repressed by white America anymore than anyone else. They don’t consider it, they look at what they want to do, find out what they need to do to get there and they do it. If they fail, as many people do, they don’t jump up automatically and scream racism, sexism, homophobia, etc. They dust off their butts and get back to business.
People have seen through the news media’s portrayal of Trump. They know he’s kind of crazy, isn’t everyone? They don’t care. They want someone who isn’t kissing up to the media. Someone who is not kissing up to every special interest group. Someone who is not afraid to be himself. Someone who is not afraid to have a point of view and someone that doesn’t back pedal at the drop of a hat. I don’t know if Trump is actually the best person to be President. Probably a loose cannon, but consider this: how many times have you heard candidates say one thing and do another? Regardless of party, this is what has happened consistently in elections. Lies are expected and tolerated. Wouldn’t it be nice to have someone stand up, tell the truth and then not back down when someone was offended? Someone is always going to be offended. Lets get back to where it was OK to be Trump and say what you want without fear of losing your job, your business, your friends. If it takes a bombastic hairsprayed white dude to accomplish this, well so be it. You don’t have to agree with him, just don’t shut him up.