Caffeinated Politics

I heard again over the Holidays why some parents will not allow their kids to be around family members who support Donald Trump. More evidence as to why they do not want the kids around the racist and toxic conservative came this week as Trump gestured like a drunk idiot as he made an impression of a transgender weightlifter during his address to House Republicans.

There are moments in our history when we understand why parents grab their kids and tell them to watch an event unfolding on the television screen. Kids are asked to watch the launch of a space rocket, a grand performance at the Olympics, or a moving tribute at a funeral for a national figure. Conversely, there are also times when kids need to be protected, shielded if you will, from elements that run counter to values and norms that the majority in the nation shares and abides by. Our democratic norms are embedded in our everyday experiences. The realization of that begins at a young age when we start to experience and grasp what America means. As such, our values and ideals must not be undermined by the lowest common denominator(s) in the family.

To have the family example of why Darwin was correct spout how God saved Trump so he could protect this country from Brown people, or why teenage boys have lower testosterone than boys 40 years ago, or why climate change is made-up malarkey, should be more than enough reasons to explain to kids that ‘we are just not seeing Grandpa for a little while’.

Once again, the realities confronting parents have just become a bit more daunting. Many parents now yearn to try to explain why the sky is blue and why no one should ever stick their tongue to anything metal in the dead of winter.

Donald Trump has even made parenting more difficult in America.