In this time where we need a champion of unity, all we have is a "divider-in-chief."

Yes, I meant that.  As a voter who was against Trump in the beginning, who voted for someone else, and was convinced that he did not have the polish or diplomacy to be president, it is disheartening that he continues to make that argument more real for me every day.  No one wants Trump to succeed more than I want that, because his success would be our success.

His response to the Charleston protests was un-presidential, and served only to even more divide people with differing opinions.

A few clarifications before we move forward:
--Racism is wrong.
--The Confederate secession and everything about that period of Southern history was wrong.
--White Supremacy and neo-Nazism is a vile, despicable ideology that should be disputed and counter-protested any time they raise their voices.
--Violence is not appropriate--ever.  Ever.  Ever.

Refer back to those tenants if you wonder where I stand at any time.  But hear me out.

I was raised in Tennessee and have not lived anywhere else for my whole life, which at this point is rapidly approaching the half-century mark.  My elementary school was Robert E. Lee Elementary, which still stands and still goes by that name in Tullahoma, TN.  It was built on the battlefield of the Battle of Tullahoma.  When we had a fire drill, we didn't just go outside--we went blocks away, for fear that the unexploded Civil War cannonballs still in the ground under my school would bring even more devastation if a  fire were to break out.  I grew up around that kind of Civil War history.

I was raised in a church that prided itself on the outward appearance and the control of thought, but was devoid of any true love of humanity and diversity.  I was surrounded by blatant racist propaganda from a few ministers who were supposed to teach us to be a light to the world.  Their racism was a message of darkness, and one of the reprehensible  and regrettable influences I have ever had in my life.  Thankfully, I escaped that racist past and moved beyond that as an adult.

During medical school, I lived in downtown Memphis and walked to my classes every day past Nathan Bedford Forrest Park.  In that park was a statue of Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest on a horse.  For those of you unfamiliar with this man, he started the KKK in Pulaski, TN after the Civil War.  Since I have not been back in Memphis for several years, I don't know if that statue still stands there.  I can tell you, however, that the presence of his statue in that public park always made me uneasy.  I was not in favor of that kind of tribute to a man with such an evil past.  I don't care how many battles he won.  Also, if he did win any battle, it was against the US Army, which I now and forever support.  He was a traitor to our country.  Period.  End. Of. Sentence.

I now live in Knoxville, TN, which was in the area of Tennessee that was pro-Union.  For that reason, in this city, there are very few Confederate memorials.  Three blocks from where I sit in my home now, a memorial to those who died in the battle at Fort Sanders has been vandalized this week with green paint.  I have read that memorial, and it doesn't say anything that is offensive.  People did die there, and they were our ancestors, maybe the brothers of the Union soldiers in the same battle.  That doesn't seem the same as a memorial to Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest.

With the push to rid the country of Confederate monuments, we need to look at the reasons this has become such an issue at this time.

The Divider-in-Chief, President Donald Trump himself, is the reason this is happening now.

He cannot help but to incite anger in those with whom he has even the slightest disagreement.  He takes anything other than absolute devotion to him as a personal slight.  That is not presidential.   It is not even an acceptable social reaction in polite society, much less as a response by the leader of the free world.

Donald Trump has proven himself to be the embarrassment that I believed he would be.

So, why were these monuments not removed during President Obama's term?  The monuments in question are surely no more unacceptable to those who oppose them now than they were then.  The reason is this:  Donald Trump's divisive rhetoric divides this country and emboldens those who have a fringe racist and white supremacist view.  Whether he believes their way or not, he has opened the door for them to feel more free to protest openly.  Yes, I saw KKK rallies happening when I was growing up.  They would be in  intersections with their white robes and pointy hats taking money in buckets while motorists waited for the light to change.  That was an era that I hoped was gone.  Now, with Trump's divisive tone, they are back.  When they show up to protest, other people with better intentions also show up out of a sense of "Southern Pride."  The resulting anger when the extreme protesters are met with opposition enrages all involved, with a mob mentality, and a mob acts in ways that an individual may not act.

With Trump's resulting divisive press conference after the Charlottesville riots, he proved himself to be incapable of  being Presidential.  He lost me completely there.

Don't get me wrong--violence is never the answer:
--Charlottesville
--Ferguson
--Washington, DC Inauguration day
--College campuses when right-leaning speakers are scheduled.

This is what should happen, in my humble opinion:
--Speak your voice, no matter how right, left, or centrist.
--If you are centrist, people are not hearing your voice enough.  Speak louder.
--Don't resort to violence.  Ever.  The result is only more violence.
--If you are right, or if you are wrong, letting the other side air out their opinion can only result in positivity--on the whole, the general opinion will weed out the crazies, and go with a better option.

So, what should we do with the monuments?

I believe the Nathan  Bedford Forrest monument, if not already moved, should be.

I believe that memorials honoring the dead in battle, no matter what side, should remain to remind us to never go down that road again.

And I believe that we should not forget history.  Our country fought, and won, against the Nazis and the Confederates.  Those who fought for the other sides were, and are, traitors.

Unless you live in a different country than I do, it would be good to remember that.

I am afraid our President does not get the gravity of those facts.

Praying for a peaceful sorting out of these issues--

Anthony

The latest unemployment rate was recently reported as 4.3%.  Whether this is due to Trump's policies, or to economic influences left over from Obama's policies could be the subject of much debate.  The reality is that it is probably some of both.  Not being an economist (either a liberal one or a conservative one), I can only give my ideas on employment.

First and foremost, the unemployment rate is not the same as the unemployed employables rate.

What do I mean?  I'm glad you asked!

The unemployment rate is the percentage of people who don't have a job who either have one or want one.

The unemployed employables rate would be the percentage of able-bodied people who are not working.

What are the issues here?  

Every able-bodied and able-minded person should contribute to society. I am fully aware that there are people who are not able to function on a day-to-day basis in a regular job.  A safety net should be available to them.  There are many people who, because of mental illness, are not able to work.  A safety net should be available to them. However, there is a group of people who are not working who could, but instead are sitting at home and cashing their welfare checks monthly. 

Able-bodied people who can work should be looking for a job to continue benefits.

Recipients of a government paycheck should be subject to a drug screen. When someone can't pass a drug screen, meaningful intervention should be instituted and mandatory for treatment of addiction for the betterment of the individual and for society (I don't mean marijuana, which is erroneously classified as illegal).

Many people love to bash some businesses  (Wal-mart or such places) as taking advantage of the system to pay lower wages to their employees, because some of them still take a bit of government help.  Look at it this way:

--Not everyone can afford to shop at  locally-owned businesses (my personal choice when possible), which do not have the buying power to keep prices low.  Even more hypocritical are the people who blast Wal-mart and at the same time shop at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, which are more acceptable to them, but result in the same closure of local businesses, simply because those stores answer to their elitist whims.  Let's frequent local businesses when we can, buy our organics at Whole Foods if we want, but not try to close the store that is more in reach of the people who are the less fortunate in society.  That's hypocrisy. 

--So, a person gets a job at Wal-mart--what of it?  I am thrilled that they are working and contributing to a business that can bring low-priced goods to the less wealthy in the country.  I will say this:  I would rather give part of a welfare check to someone who is working than a whole welfare check to someone who is home on his ass watching TV.  For many (I daresay most), this will be a first step in moving upward to a higher-paying job.

As more people seek employment, and consider moving to where the jobs are available, this country will be more successful economically.  We all must contribute.

We must also diligently contribute to the less fortunate in society who are not able to work for either physical or psychiatric reasons, and generously provide care and rehabilitation with the goal of helping even more people become contributors to a brighter future.

Enjoy life--work hard, play hard!

Anthony