How You Can Deal With TRUMP ANXIETY …
Have an action plan. Focus on what you can control. Speak Truth to Power
YES There is more Good News in the World than Bad
“Time for the 9 o’clock news,” said Roberta.
“I don’t want to watch it,” said her partner Elworth. “I can’t stand even hearing Trump’s name and what he is doing.”
- His belief he can do what he wants and not obey the law,
- Appointing inept “yes” people to his cabinet,
- The spinelessness of the senators and members of the House of Representatives,
- The pardoning of 1500 convicted people who had stormed the Congress in 2020.
- Changing citizenship requirements at a whim, even though he has no authority
- The threats and tactics of tariffs and presumptuousness because he has the power and military behind him and can scare people to do things such as threatening to take over Greenland, Panama and Canada.
- Eyeing Gaza as a personal real estate development.
- His disrespect and treatment of Zelensky was disgusting and his support for Russia frightened him.
The closing down of U.S. aid is killing and harming thousands of people around the world and the scrapping of DEI shows his racism. His belief in tariffs only hurts people and he continually changes his mind, increasing uncertainty and anxiety.
Vance is no better. He is both a puppet and a parrot
I can’t understand why Trump gets away with so many lies, and this guy Musk is just about as bad. Like Trump, he just bullies his way ahead and has no respect for anyone
Even though Trump is not in my country, the chaos he is creating affects the whole world. No one seems to be doing anything to stop him. It all makes me feel sick, frightened and helpless.
Roberta gave Elworth an understanding and comforting smile and replied softly, “It really bothers me too. He thinks he knows everything when in fact he knows very little about most of the issues. All he wants is more power
However, I have faith and hope many of these threats and events will not happen. While it may not seem so, there are an increasing number of push backs occurring.
Understanding him is a challenge. However, understanding him is key. Those who have worked closely with him know he is a narcissist, considers himself to be a victim and seeks vengeance on anyone he perceives as standing against him.
For example, many believe his dealings with Zelenskyy are motivated by his impeachment that resulted from previous interactions with Zelenskyy. He needs to win and every situation has a winner and loser.
He uses chaos to obscure other happenings and his pronouncements often have alternative meanings. He continually changes his mind, adding to uncertainty and anxiety and adds to his power by throwing people off.”
She believed the altercation with Zelenskyy was set up and was a way to justify his support for Putin.
Most people believe the best way to deal with Trump is to stand up to him.
Elworth said, “This may all be true, but how do we stop him? He does not obey the law or verdicts against him. There are an increasing number of people who fear him and do what he says, and those who feel left out, blindly continue to cheer him on. This, to me, is scary.”
Continued Roberta, “This is not new in history and wrongdoing and injustice have often been countered by the use of, “Truth to Power.”
“I have heard this term often, but what does it really mean?” asked Elworth.
“An informal definition,” said Roberta, is stand up for what is right and tell people in power what’s what… This means sometimes courageously confronting authority, calling out injustices, and demanding change.”
Truth to Power can take many forms and is not just verbally speaking out.
The belief is truth, in the long run, will always win over lies. This concept was first advanced by Bayard Rustin, a Quaker, in 1942.
Some of it is based on “karma,” the universal law of cause and effect, and truth eventually wins.
Perhaps some of the best known and successful examples of Truth to Power are the practices of some of the civil rights leaders, including
- Martin Luther King opposing the racial practices of the 1960’s and 70’s.
- Nelson Mandela and others overcoming apartheid in South Africa
- Mahatma Gandhi and others opposing the colonial practices of British rule in India
More recently, people such as John McCain and Malala Yousafzai were practitioners.
An example closer to home is the opposition to the Green Belt development leading to cancellation of it by the Ontario Government.
If truth always wins, why did Trump win the election? And what can we Canadians do?” asked Elworth.
“Not much in the U.S.,” said Roberta, “except hope that the system of checks and balances work and enough people, by using the courts, laws and public pressure push back.
In Canada, we continue everyday to speak up for and DO WHAT IS RIGHT.
As mentioned, there is already a lot of push-back happening in the U.S. and countries around the world are coalescing against him. Ultimately, it will be the American people who rise up against him who will stop him.
People have resigned from their jobs in protest, (Department of Justice, Republican Senators and representatives are starting to speak out against him).
French President Macron told Trump to his face he was wrong about the size of Europe’s contribution to the Ukraine, that Europe has given more than the U.S. Trump did not respond.
Maine Governor Janet Mills stood up to Trump over Trans Gender rights in front of the media and others in the White House, telling the world he was wrong. They have gone to court.
Canada has been working on a tariff strategy. This has resulted in some positive results, including deferring their implementation. The Trump rhetoric and tariff possibility has unified our county. Governments are working hard to remove our inter-provincial trade and licensing barriers, the polls in favour of Trump have been sliding downward, and over 100 lawsuits have been filed against his actions. The courts have largely been ruling against Trump.
We also must be realistic. The world is changing and we are in it. This creates opportunities and we can choose to be part of them.
There are many who believe Trump is the symptom, not the cause, of what is happening in the U.S.A., and some of his moves make sense, such as getting rid of the penny.
While reducing government waste is popular, as is the deportation of some of the illegal immigrants who have broken the law, the methods and tactics used are deplorable. In fact, according to many reports, Biden and Obama regularly deported more illegal immigrants than Trump is currently.
James Carville, the veteran Democratic strategist has said the way to stand up to Trump is the way Muhammad Ali defended himself as a boxer. Learn how to take the many hits and eventually your opponent will wear himself out.
Trump is trying to do so much at once. By taking the hits of all Trump’s executive actions, Trump will eventually wear himself out and go down.
He also says the Musk alliance will end in 60 days. Not sure if this will happen, but Trump and Musk are antagonizing so many people and also failing to address the real concerns of the people, (such as the economy), who voted for him.
Trump measures the success of the economy by the stock market, which in fact, is tanking and many are predicting a recession and inflation caused by the uncertainty about tariffs and the chaos he has created.
While this made Elworth feel better, they decided instead of watching the rest of the news, it was time for bed.
The next morning they awoke to the news tariffs of 25% had been invoked for Canada and Mexico and increased for China. Some have since been modified and deferred.
Elworth fumed about this and became more and more angry. He knew this was not good. He must get beyond his anger.
He went into another room, closed his eyes and let his thoughts flow. What emerged and coalesced in his mind were 4 things:
- The Chinese have 2 symbols for a crisis DANGER and OPPORTUNITY
- You cannot control the behaviour of others, but you can control how you respond. Only focus on what you can control.
- The Indigenous saying, “Find your gift (skill) and use it to make peace.” (improve things).
- He must act, but how? He concluded:
A) He had to be aware of, but be calm about the issues that primarily affected Americans and other countries, have hope and faith and be optimistic there are enough checks and balances and people who oppose and take action against what Trump is doing. There was no way he personally could make an impact.
B) In all of his daily actions he would try to do GOOD and respect others.
C) He would donate and encourage others to increase their donations to International Humanitarian organizations and support food banks because of the financial impact tariffs will have on the lives of many Canadians.
D) He would use Trump’s actions as a learning opportunity for their family and use this as an opportunity to make Canada a better place whatever way they could.
E) Since there were possible personal financial implications, he would review their finances, be careful with their spending as a hedge against inflation, review his investments and asset mix but not second guess the money managers’ individual choices. He would keep some money in cash in case he needed to withdraw some in the next year or so.
F) Buy Canadian, including taking non U.S. based vacations.
G) He would educate his American friends and business associates about Canada and that we are not the cause of the issue. It is Trump and others spreading false information. He would encourage their friends to do likewise.
H) Support the politicians he believes can make the biggest impact against Trump’s actions
I) Speak to his friends about it and send articles and links such as the attached. (It takes a few seconds to load – be patient).
and try to Speak Truth to Action whenever he has an opportunity.
While this did not cover everything, it gave him a plan of action. This made him feel much better, and gave him hope, as did remembering the Buddhist saying, “NOTHING IS FOREVER.”
Till next time,
Chris Snyder
Climate Optimist
Email: snyderchris74@gmail.com
Check out my new book 52 + Good News Stories Hope in a complex world
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With all of the bad news circulating the GOOD NEWS stories are very timely and a good tonic for what is happening around us
The link below will allow you to read an excerpt, an outline of the chapters and some testimonials.
Another link below will take you to a short video from John Currie, Executive Director of HIP (Honouring Indigenous Peoples). Please have a look and hopefully you will want to purchase your copy to read.
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