Witnessing Crime

ON NO FEWER than three occasions, I have witnesed Donald Trump committing a crime,and therefore consider myslef qualified to call him a "criminal". Iam not alone. Millions of people were witnesses. Recall the telephone conservation in which Trump tried to coerce Ukrainian president Vlodimir Zelensky into providing, fabricated or real, damaging information on Joe Bidenand/or his son. Trump sounded like a mob boss,hinting that he would approve the sale of weapons to Ukraine only upon receipt of such information. Zelensky, obviously ucomfortable, tried to turn the moment into a lighthearted situation, but failed. Blackmailing a head of state.Trump was in deadly earnest. Then recall the telephone conversation with the Secretary of State of the state of Gerogia,in which Trump requested that the man "find" eleven thousand seven hundred and eighty votes. Election tampering. The piece deresistance wasofours January 6, 2021, Trump'sfamous incitement to insurrection, "go to the Capitol and fight ike hell". For the first crime Trump was impeached, for the second and third he has been criminally indicted. As always, the behavior of his cult followers is far more interesting than his criminal behavior. The theory with the most apparent acuray is tht Trump supporters, having investedso much effort and energy, emotional "capital", so to speak, are now trapped,in a situation in whcih to disavow Trump now would mean admitting that he has duped them, made fools of them. People go to great lengths to conceal their mistakes,and even greater lengths to salvage their pride and self esteem. Volumes will be written by historians and sociologists concerning the rreasons for the enduring strong support for a persnof such obvious low moral and intellectual character, cuh liek they have closely examined the reasons for the mass support for people like Hitler, among others. The findings tend to reflect unfavorably upon the supporters of demagogues. Anger, disillusionment, alienation all play a role. Well adjusted, mentally and emotionally healthy people simply do not give thir politial support and devotion to people of such conspicuous shortcomings. We are foe=rced to onfromt the reality that teh Trump phenomenon is a sympton of a deeply embedded societal illness in American society, a soceity in which the illnesses are as apparent as the proverbial sore thumb. The remedy remains elusive.