November 13, 2016

Like most people I know, I couldn’t see any silver lining in the US election results, and was dropping f-bombs with the best of them. WTF indeed!!! I was shocked, deeply disappointed, pissed off, but mostly, scared for the future of our world. I’ve been vocally anti-Trump from the beginning, not only because his character offends me, but because whoever leads America, leads us all – one way or another. However, personally, to see the worst type of person elected as leader of the free world was so shocking – as a woman, as a human – I could hardly speak on election day. Just horrendous.   I definitely wanted to see Hillary win. Not because she is a woman, but because I believe she has the experience and insight to make the significant changes the American people are screaming for, which meant the country wouldn’t blow up in complete division. She’s smart that one. She knew what was necessary. Unfortunately, the electorate decided on blowing up first, and sorting it out later by voting in Trump. Alas we’ll never have the chance to see if she could achieve what I, and many others, truly believed she was capable of. Instead, the vote for change, which resulted is President-Elect Trump, will be so dramatic, it’s effects will ricochet around the world for years to come, and that is what I believe horrifies so many. Let me be very clear. I know the majority of Trump voters are not stupid or racists, misogynists or war-mongers. But a percentage are and that’s what scares me. Unleashing the worst of us and giving them a platform to spew their hatred and fear, can only go one way – down. But those of us being called liberals are fearful, and we’re fearful of the inevitable direction this world is now headed in, because we can’t escape what happens next. We’re all in this together. History playing out So can I ask everyone to please read and share this article – please? Whoever you support, just read it – History Tells Us What Will Happen Next With Brexit And Trump. I’ve been an historian all my life, and this is what I’ve been fearful of for nearly two years. The signs are all pointing in this direction, and they were long before Trump put his hat in the ring. This election just felt like the tipping point. I obviously can’t speak for my fellow liberals. That would be arrogant. But I do believe this is the undercurrent we are all feeling. This is not about Trump. It’s a global movement towards the inevitability of World War Three, and if you read the article, it seems there is no escaping it. When the world hits this point historically, this is the only direction we go. Millions dead. Nations turned upside down. War, hunger, destruction…. And in the end, we’ll draw up peace treaties, still be living next door to the people we hate today, but we’ll move on and be better off as a species. But I don’t buy the inevitability argument. We’re smarter and more connected than we have ever been, so perhaps we can change the tide of history? At least we can try or be called nutters for giving it a go. I certainly want to try for my little guys. You? So what we gunna do? I’m an optimist. I love life. I love people. I expect the best of everyone I meet. I have a deep faith in our ability to rise up as a global community to tackle the real challenges that lay ahead of us. I don’t buy into hate. I don’t buy into fear. I don’t buy into the inevitability of the human cycle that we always have to end up in war and despair before we can move forward. Fuck it. I really believe we can evolve. And then I remembered this video, which I watched before the election…      Did you watch it? Oh please do. It’s awesome, regardless of your political leanings. I know I’d adore that woman. I love people like that. They make the world a better place and energize the world around them just by being in the room. And so I’ve decided I want to be that person, because I am that person. I want to walk into a physical or digital room and say: Are you fired up? Ready to go? Fired up? Ready to go? And when I see womenobjectified, looked past, marginalised, controlled, put down, ignored, told what she can do with her body, raped, abused,  etc, etc, etc… I’m going to get fired up and take whatever action I can take to make a difference. And when I see environmental destruction and disasters that impact all of us and the future of our world (no matter where it happens), I’m going to get fired up and speak to the governments, the corporations, the people, and anyone else who will listen to ensure we change. Because we don’t have time for this shit. If nothing changes we’re all fucked. Every one of us. And when I see the refugees, the abandoned children, the poor and the destitute left to freeze in European winters because we’re too scared (or politically immobilized) to do our duty and take care of our fellow man, I’m going to get fired up and do what I can to change it. Because refugees are going to increase (please believe this), not just with war, but as a side effect of environmental catastrophes too. This is not going to be a thing of the past! Refugees will become more numerous and the obligation to do more will increase. We’ve got to get ready, get prepared, get human and we’ve got to start solving this challenge. It’s not going away. And when the war mongersstart screaming and rattling their drums, I’m going to scream back – NO!! We can be diplomatic. We can talk.