Trump

There’s a common message being projected right now, and that’s how nobody saw this coming. It came as a total shock to everyone. Nobody expected it, and it was written off as a joke. Now, I’m not American. I don’t live in the states, and I’m not really into politics or media (or at least I try not to get sucked in too much). I couldn’t tell you what policies are being discussed or what’s really important to the country right now. I only know what I see through social media, the news, and from conversation with others, which has created my own opinions and feelings.

Trump was never a joke to me. From the moment I heard he was running, I knew who would be the next president. No news stories or early polls or discussions could change my mind, even though I’m far from a supporter. America is troubled, just like so much of the world right now. This election shed some light on how big that problem really is. My Facebook feed was full of people saying how sad they were, how disappointed and ashamed they were of their country. It also showed me how frightened everyone is, and that’s a truly unsettling tone that I haven’t seen before. I’m sorry to see how much this election has stressed everyone out. There’s nothing that can be said that will make it better. Unfortunately you must get through the next four years (hopefully four), whether you like it or not. I’m sure we Canadians will feel it in some way too. But you guys managed eight years of Bush, you are strong! You’ll make it through. Sometimes it gets worse before it gets better. Although I don’t support Trump or anything he stands for, I think he embodies a generalized outsider opinion of America, so it only seems fitting to me that he will take his place in the Whitehouse come January. Celebrity culture and money are where it’s at. Everyone loves a good story and it’s never told better than a famous person. The only missing piece missing from this story was power. Now we’ll see how he uses it.

If Trump turned around and said he wasn’t going to build walls or throw away the rights of people still fighting for them, then I would be shocked. If all of the horrible things said and done were just to bring attention to the desperate issues in the country that he actually wanted to ease and make better, I’d be surprised. If he stood up for all the average folks and disadvantaged, all races and species and the world climate and overall well-being of everything, I’d be totally blown away. But electing a disgustingly rich, yet popular celebrity with no experience and a bad attitude is incredibly predictable to me. You’ve got to step up your game, America. Don’t hope that coming to Canada will make things better. We’ve got our own issues and we also have to contend with yours. You’d probably just end up complaining about how you can’t get a job or how our taxes are too high. It sure is a beautiful place, though. 

You can’t expect one person to be able to please a nation of millions. Everyone is different. We all want things our own way. Make it happen then. Don’t let others speak for you. Have hope that the good will always prevail. If you can’t make it to Canada, just pretend. Be kind and tolerant. Listen to others. Accept criticism. And most of all, work together.