A Break From Whimsical Wednesday

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Hillary Clinton, Inspirational Speeches

I was planning on posting that often repeated quote from Albus Dumbledore about happiness being found in the darkest of times, but to be honest, my heart just isn’t in it. And then I listened to one of the most gracious and inspiring concession speeches from Hillary Clinton. I won’t post the entire speech here as you can easily find it on the internet, but I did want to share a few passages that personally stood out to me.

…And to the young people in particular, I hope you will hear this. I have, as Tim said, spent my entire adult life fighting for what I believe in. I’ve had successes and I’ve had setbacks. Sometimes really painful ones. Many of you are at the beginning of your professional public and political careers. You will have successes and setbacks too. This loss hurts, but please never stop believing that fighting for what’s right is worth it.

…And– to all the little girls who are watching this, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your own dreams.

…Finally, I am so grateful for our country and for all it has given me. I count my blessings every single day that I am an American. And I still believe as deeply as I ever have that if we stand together and work together with respect for our differences, strength in our convictions and love for this nation, our best days are still ahead of us.

Because, you know–you know, I believe we are stronger together and we will go forward together. And you should never, ever regret fighting for that. You know, scripture tells us, “Let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season, we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”

So my friends, let us have faith in each other, let us not grow weary, let us not lose heart, for there are more seasons to come. And there is more work to do.

Enough! #countrybeforeparty

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Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Inflammatory Rhetoric

Y’all know I seldom wade into politics on this blog. I try instead to focus on what I know best, books. But sometimes something happens that is so beyond the pale that I feel compelled to speak out. This is one of those times. Yesterday, Donald Trump, while speaking at a rally, appeared to suggest to his supporters that they could stop Hillary Clinton by exercising their gun rights. Here’s what he said:

Hillary wants to abolish, essentially abolish the Second Amendment. By the way, and if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do folks. But the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don’t know.

Now his supporters and handlers are saying he meant that they could “unify” and get out and vote. But here’s why that just doesn’t wash. As he made this comment, he was talking about what could happen if Clinton were elected, at which point the election would already be over. I don’t believe he consciously meant to encourage any of his followers to go out and shoot Secretary Clinton. The problem is, as with his “sarcastic” comment urging Russia to find Clinton’s missing emails, he doesn’t think before he speaks. While most of his supporters are perfectly sane, rational people who are just fed up with Washington politicians, there are people out there who aren’t, and could view his remarks as a call to arms. Especially when he’s also called her “a monster”, “a devil”, and most recently along with President Obama “a founder of ISIS.” And, he has commented repeatedly that if she wins it means the election was “rigged”.  In addition two politicians associated with his campaign have said Clinton is guilty of treason and should be executed. They’re playing a dangerous game that could have tragic consequences. I think most of the American people are sick and tired of partisan and corrupt politics. Most politicians realize they hold great sway over their constituents and take this responsibility seriously, but Trump and his surrogates seem to take great delight in encouraging a mob mentality. Can anyone who tuned into the Replicant Convention forget Chris Christie putting Clinton on trial accompanied by chants of “Lock her up!” by the delegates. As I watched absolutely horrified, all I could picture were the thousands of participants holding torches and pitchforks. I completely understand why Trump supporters are so eager to have an “outsider” win the presidency. But honestly, Donald Trump is not the right person. He has absolutely no self-control, and his ideas and rhetoric are dangerous to the extreme. While there have already been many prominent Republicans disavowing Trump, at some point the Republican Party as a whole needs to make a decision whether country or party is more important. 

A Historic Day

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Hillary Clinton, Politics, United States

Nearly a century after the 19th Amendment was passed, giving women the right to vote here in the U.S., Hillary Rodham Clinton has officially become the first woman nominated by a major political party, for President! I realize what a polarizing figure she is. I myself was a Bernie supporter, but no matter your views of her, I think we can all agree this is a momentous day!