Assumptions? or Demagogy?

            I’m sure it comes as no surprise to anyone who knows me that I am absolutely and totally in opposition to President Donald Trump and almost everything he has done or said in the public sphere.

            My sweet, compassionate cousin says I’m biased. She’s right. I freely admit it. I have a serious bias against inhumane treatment of living things. So does she. She and her adoring husband left the fast lane and bought their “dream farm.” She feeds a longhorn bull—by hand! And he follows her like a puppy. There is not a softer heart or a more compassionate human on the planet. We love each other dearly, but I cannot for the life of me comprehend how she can support our current President, and she cannot comprehend how I cannot. Still, we are living examples that love does not require political agreement.

I am first and foremost a Christian pastor. My standard is Jesus of Nazareth—a standard I rarely attain for myself; nevertheless, based upon that standard, my primary opposition to the current administration is not political; although, if it were not for the humanitarian and moral dimensions it would be. I just said it: my primary opposition to the current administration is humanitarian and moral.

The inhumanity and immorality seem to be based upon specific assumptions that are demagogic in origin and nature. Google’s “AI Overview,” which I avoided for a long time because AI has frightening potential for misuse and abuse; nevertheless, Google’s application seems non-partisan and says this about demagogy: “A demagogue is a political leader who appeals to the emotions and prejudices of the masses rather than reason or logic. They often exploit popular fears and resentments to gain power. Examples include Julius Caesar, Adolf Hitler, and Benito Mussolini, as well as figures like Huey Long and Joseph McCarthy.” Later in the summary, it adds Donald Trump to the list. I commend the article so you can draw your own conclusions. Just Google “Demagogy.”

Playing on people’s fears and prejudices has always been a tool of demagogy; and in my observation the assumptions undergirding the current administration’s policies seem to depend much more heavily on demagogy than on documentation.

I focus on two examples:

First is the apparent assumption that all beneficiaries of Medicaid are frauds, and that there is rampant fraud among Social Security and Medicare recipients. The response is to eliminate all three—or to privatize them for profit (which is immune to fraud, of course). By the same logic, if you close all banks you eliminate bank robbery.

But data from the Social Security Administration and from a 2024 report from the Inspector General’s office indicates less than 1% of Social Security payments are improperly disbursed, mostly due to “insufficient controls in SSA’s automated and manual processes”[1]and to failure of beneficiaries to self-report changes in their circumstances. Fraud is virtually non-existent in the system.

Still, “less than 1%” amounts to $23 billion annually which, if corrected would ease some of the pressure on the system. So, wouldn’t the humane solution be to correct the system rather than decrease beneficiary payments?

The second apparent assumption is that all immigrants are illegal and are terrorists, drug dealers, human traffickers, and gang members. The assumption of guilt supersedes due process.

The wholesale deportation of immigrants, regardless of their legal status and without due process should come as no surprise, given President Trump’s long history of degrading language aimed at immigrants and their “sh _ _ hole” countries of origin.

The man has not demonstrated any evidence of compassion or decency. A line from a Robert Burns poem comes to mind:

“Man's inhumanity to man

Makes countless thousands mourn!”

So, yes, I’m biased. I lean toward The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-10 (NRSVUE)

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Yes, I’m biased. I lean toward “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ (Matthew 25:35-36 NRSVUE) Incidentally, in the original language, the word for stranger is ξενος (zee – nos), which is the root of the English word, xenophobia.

Yes I’m biased. I lean toward The First and Greatest Commandment, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” And when a cynic asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus responded with the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:37ff)—a Samaritan: a hated foreigner from a “sh_ _ hole” country.

And if someone says, “That won’t work in today’s culture,” my response is, “How do we know? Except in isolated enclaves of spirituality, not all of which have been Christian, to my knowledge, it’s never been tried.”

That’s the way it looks through the Flawed Glass that is my world view.

Together in the Walk,

Jim

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[1] https://oig.ssa.gov/news-releases/2024-08-19-ig-reports-nearly-72-billion-improperly-paid-recommended-improvements-go-unimplemented/

Disagreement Not Tolerated

 

We have become a society that thrives on absolutes—universal generalizations—stereotypes, and we tend to take every statement personally, as if it were aimed directly at me.

Some people in one church hurt someone, and that someone’s response is to abandon “the church,” or “Christianity,” or religion altogether.

A person stands up for his or her deeply held values and convictions, and disagrees with ideas, systems, behaviors, and policies that collide with those deeply held values and convictions, and the response is to chastise him or her for what is perceived as a blanket, universal condemnation of an entire population (conservatives or liberals, evangelical or progressive Christianity, etc.)

And as a society we are increasingly intolerant of differences. “I’m right;” therefore, anyone who disagrees with me is, by definition, “wrong.” In many contexts, “wrong” grows into “evil,” and evil must be banished, and an end-justifies-the-means ethic drives the wedge deeper.

Christianity is where I’m most comfortable and knowledgeable, recognizing that the primary thing I know is that I don’t know everything.

Religious Trama Syndrome (RTS) has been identified as a medically and psychologically diagnosed disorder, quite similar to PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), and effective treatment is available. While I am not qualified to diagnose or treat either disorder, I have enough training to recognize some symptoms.

It has been documented that the greatest sources of religious trauma emerge out of fundamentalist and evangelical (conservative) Christianity.

That doesn’t mean that all fundamentalist and evangelical Christian individuals or groups are abusive!!!

Several years ago, during President Obama’s tenure in office, I undertook a project to find something good about every US President. I began with Harry S. Truman, because I had just finished reading David McCullough’s biography, Truman. I expected it to be a daunting task; however, to my surprise, I found significant positive contributions from every President, including Richard Nixon, whom I had held in less than high esteem.

That doesn’t mean that every President was, OVERALL, a good and effective Chief Executive!!!

There were moral rogues whose tenure produced growth and justice and international goodwill. And there were moral saints who fumbled the ball on occasion. There were charismatic personalities who were popular but left the nation in worse shape than when their tenures began, and there were bewildering personalities that left us better off. Some were strong in economics, and others were better at diplomacy. Some favored the wealthy and others favored the little guy. Some battled against a legislature that was controlled by the “other party” and somehow managed to get some significant things accomplish, while others worked with a legislature with a majority of their own party and struggled to keep the wheels turning.

But none were totally good nor totally bad!!!

But see, here’s the thing: there were partisan trends involved in every administration. Until the last two or three generations, our democracy thrived on vigorous debate. But now, there is little debate. There are only parliamentary games and legislation aimed at eliminating opposition, because differences are not tolerated, and if you can’t win the debate, get rid of the opponent.

Yes, I have strong and deeply held values and convictions, and I do not apologize for them, nor will I cease to advocate for them. Nor will I cease to challenge the ideas and ideals, or the behavior, or the policies that work against the values and convictions I hold. It is my hope and my intention that I will be reasonably respectful and open to listening to opposing views; however, I also will continue to defend my own perspective, and, in the process, that means I will stand ready to enter vigorous but respectful debate.

I have encountered very few who are willing to enter the debate; instead, if there is disagreement, I generally am met with criticism and chastisement, most of which (not all) is disrespectful and degrading.

That’s the way it looks through the Flawed Glass that is my world view.

Together in the Walk,

Jim