"Qui Tacet Consentire Videtur" is a Latin axiom that roughly translates to "He who is silent is understood to consent." I am sure this phrase or a variation has come up in an Op/Ed you have read in the last week. I say that assuming you are a person who reads Op/Eds from reasonable news outlets. For the limited audience of my blog, I am going to make a reasonable assumption that you do.
Another bit of information that most people know is that Donald Trump is scheduled to hold a rally on August 1st here in Cincinnati. This will be a couple of weeks after Trump made his racist Tweets about four members of the House of Representatives. and then a few days later at another Trump rally in NC made horrific xenophobic chants, that are clear examples of fascism.
What is going to happen at the next Trump rally here in Cincinnati? Will hoards of local racists, fascists, sexists, bigots, white nationalists, and xenophobic assholes show up? You better believe they will. There are tons of them in the tristate area and they are attracted to Trump and love to vent their hatred and blame on non-white people for all of their troubles. Yes, that is currently the primary motivational strategy of Republicans for the 2020 election.
With this in mind, I am calling out all local Republicans officials to take a stand. Do you oppose racism/xenophobia or do you condone it? You have to take a stand one way or the other. There is no wiggle room here. I'm not looking for Republicans to change their party affiliation or anything, I am looking for basic humanity. Simple acknowledgement that what Trump tweeted and a significant portion of his followers at the rally chanted were racist and xenophobic and that is wrong. Or you could agree with both and come out of the closet, so to speak.That is it, just denounce the racism and xenophobia or embrace it. There are not three sides to this. So, those local Republicans out there, make your stances known. Those people include the following list:
- Senator Rob Portman
- Senator Mitch McConnell
- Senator Rand Paul
- Representative Steve Chabot
- Representative Brad Wenstrup
- Representative Thomas Massie
- Prosecuting Attorney Joe Deters
- Treasurer Robert Goering, Jr.
- Engineer Ted Hubbard>
- Cincinnati City Council Jeff Pastor
- Cincinnati City Council Amy Murray
- Anderson Township Trustee Andrew Pappas
- Blue Ash City Council Jeff Cappell
- HCRP Chairman Alex Triantafilou
- Sheriff Jim Neil
- Cincinnati City Council Christopher Smitherman
How should they take a stand against the racism and xenophobia? Well, two things everyone on this list should do are 1) not appear at the Trump rally on August 1st and 2) denounce Trump's tweets as racist and the chants at his NC rally (and him letting it grow) as xenophobic. For the purpose of what I am asking, that is it.
IF you DO NOT do either of these simple and honorable requests in a reasonable way WITHOUT a "whataboutism" or WITHOUT attempting to shift the blame to something else, THEN I am going to forever believe that you agree with Trump and his hoard of followers. He or She who is silent is understood to consent. If you don't have the courage to go on Twitter or Facebook and denounce this racism and xenophobia, then you are condoning it, even if only as a means to get elected. There is no difference between believing in racism/xenophobia and simply exploiting voters' agreement with elements and policies of racism/xenophobia as a means to gain support for an election. The ends don't justify the means. If you come out in support of it, well, you just might get more criticism, and face the wrath of your god at a later point. I'll stay out of that fable and let your conscious deal with that.
My belief is not much of a punishment, I know, but it is a question of honor. There are honorable people on this list who know better, but are going along with this abomination out of a misplaced sense of fear and a lack courage. Look to the former Governor of Ohio, John Kasich. I don't agree with him politically on much, but I can consider him an honorable person for taking a public stance against Trump on his racism.
There are people on this list who don't claim to be Republicans, but they certainly act, vote in Republican primaries, appear at Trump rallies, or take GOP contributions like a member of the Party, so they get the same treatment. Some on this may have already taken a stance, like Mitch McConnell, which fails on all levels, so I don't expect him to change. Others may have already taken a firm stance against Trump and if they have, good, I hope they repeat it louder so I can read it. They are included because of their chosen Party affiliation, and I won't give them a 100% pass for doing the right thing. I've left off a bunch of other lower officials that I hope also will make a choice.
My list also didn't include the many local conservative media blowhards or social media trolls. I expect most of them either to embrace the hate or be silent like the cowards I believe they are. Also, why give them any more attention, which they crave?
Among the few who read this, I am sure there will be criticism of me. Fine, you can try, but I am not going to budge or falter in your attacks. Yes, I am judging people based on their actions or inactions. That is how we should be judged. The only repercussion is my opinion of other people based on their actions or inactions. Nothing Earth shattering, but if one or two people are nudged to action, that's better than not saying a damn thing. I may call people racist or xenophobic in the future and I will mean it. I will point to this and their actions or inactions and will be more than satisfied with my conclusion. IF you don't like me exercising my 1st Amendment right to redress my grievance with my government representatives, then you have problem with the U.S. Constitution. I am not not going back anywhere. I am an American, love me or leave me alone.