Avoiding Politics

We really are living in a very divided country. The GOPers love Trump more than ever, per the Times' latest polls, and the Dems are splintering into moderates and far left socialists.  These are good times for a middle of the road guy like me to keep quiet. But sometimes I can't help it.

At dinner the other night, my dear friend told me about fellow friends -- far right Republicans, classic old school Miami Cubans. Cubans in Miami have hated the Dems since Kennedy messed up the Bay of Pigs invasion and lied about it.  Cubans aren't naturally conservative -- they hate communism, of course, but typically are socially liberal. Although they claim to be Catholic and pro life, most Cubanas of a certain age I know have had abortions following crazy weekends...

Anyway, this mutual friend has a husband who is a balsero -- a rafter. This fellow was educated well in Cuba, but made no money, so got on a jerry-rigged craft with some friends and made it here. Back then there was wet foot/dry foot, which meant any Cubans who made it to US soil got to stay, as presumed political refugees, if not exiles, like the generation from the immediate post Castro years.

So the fellow had a dry foot, and did well -- married our friend, and ended up starting a business through the largesse of a well off sort of son in law.  And now he thinks there should be no more immigrants!

It cracked me up. To me, wealthy white folks ought to have those thoughts, not rafters who made it here themselves. But that's the time we live in.

The Donald is clearly for the upper 1%, and has the folks (at least angry white ones) on the bottom layers of society thinking he's for them.

The Times has an article this am saying that Dems' outrage about Trump is playing into the GOP's hands -- the Dems are split so badly that there is really no power to oppose the crap POTUS and his cronies are pulling.

The smartest writer about SCOTUS I know, Jeff Toobin, says that Roe v. Wade will be overturned within 18 months, with Trump's new Justice.  Probably gay marriage will likely be again consigned to the bin of recent history.

In my nearly 57 years here, I've seen the pendulum swing. I still remember clearly, on a summer night, watching Nixon resign, and then having real hope that Jimmy Carter would be an awesome president. He was a historical flop, and brought back the right, with their patron saint Reagan.  Clinton was center-left, but then Elian cost Gore, and we got 8 years of W, followed by the black guy, decent enough, but weak politically, leading to major GOP wins.

Maybe Trump will energize the Dems, finally, and the swing will occur again.  But SCOTUS appointments last much longer than presidential administrations, and their rulings will affect us for many years to come.

My friend Kenny has now finally concluded he cannot be friends with any Republicans -- he thinks in light of Trump, anyone from that party is akin to supporting Nazis in Germany in the 30s.

I disagree. But I sure do get a kick out of rafters happily living here thinking they ought to close the border behind them...