Hello US,
I love you. It’s true. The Vegas part of you is genuinely a sort of home to me. The way you Colorado gets me all hot and bothered. Your Chicagoness is captivating. When I look into your Yellowstone eyes, I can’t look away. Don’t even get me started on the perfection of your LA, or the stories that come out of your DC. Yes, I love you. It’s true.
However, tomorrow you are all going to make what could be the most important decision in your history; and not just your history, but world history. Yes, your decision will greatly impact Canada, Mexico, the Middle East … in fact everywhere.
I know that with your biased media, and all those Facebook articles that are simply trolling for clicks, it can be extremely hard to make an informed decision regarding who to vote for in this election, but please allow me to cut through the noise for a second and give you a balanced assessment of your candidates.
Let’s start with Donald J. Trump. The man is a human wrecking ball, and a walking contradiction. I’m fully aware that you don’t like politicians anymore. There aren’t too many people that do. However, when I speak with you, the two major reasons why you don’t like politicians are because they lie too much, and they’re elitist jackassholes.
Well, there’s no bigger liar, or elitist than DJT. No really, it’s fact. Check out how many lies he’s told here. I mean, shit, he lied as recently as a couple of days ago about something that was easily verified to be untrue. He thinks you’re stupid, and doesn’t care to even try to tell the truth.
Regarding elitist lifestyle, c’mon. The guy was given every opportunity you haven’t been given his entire life. He’s used gross loopholes in the system to get ‘UGELY rich. You think he’ll fix those loopholes when in office? The very reason you hate Wall Street and these big companies that have CEOs with massive bonuses is why you should hate the Donald. You’ve been tricked. He’s never been in the trenches that you’ve been in. He’s never struggled like you have. DJT is just simply not a man that can appreciate what you go through because he’s never had to deal with your problems. Let me put it this way for the millennials out there; if Trump were a kid today, he’d be one of the rich kids of Instagram that you follow and hate—both reasons because you’re envious of their lifestyle. That’s who the Donald is. It’s not that he’s a bad person because he’s always been rich. Good for him. Less struggle for anyone in this world is awesome, but don’t pretend he’s a man of the people.
Now, I will admit that some of the crap the media have gone after Donald for is completely ridiculous. He never attacked a mom with a crying baby, his nukes comments can’t be properly verified (came from a third-party source with no proof), and the list goes on and on. Yes, the media is unfair when it comes to Trump BUT there’s reason for it. His ridiculous, and outlandish comments have made him the easiest target in political history. He’s embarrassing, so in the dying art form of media that’s click-hungry, why not throw everything at the wall to see what sticks? Of course, the media shouldn’t be doing this, but Trump just makes it too easy for them to step out of line.
I don’t actually believe he’ll unleash the nukes on day one, or that he’ll rape his secretary. I also don’t believe he’ll build the wall, or ban Muslims … but his ideas are so disgustingly filled with hate and bias that there is simply no way a guy who tweets ridiculous nonsense at 3am should be in the position to hold the office of the most powerful person in the world. Oh, and lest we forget his campaign has barely mentioned policy at all.
Now, for Hillary. She’s so hated, and in many cases it’s for reasons that don’t even exist. Before I start justifying her existence, let me just say, that as a career politician I believe she’s so entrenched in the tradition of office that it is unlikely she’ll be what the people of the US need, but she sure as shit isn’t a DJT. There’s also a chance, that as Michel Moore has put it in TrumpLand, she’s been waiting like Pope Francis like a wolf in sheep’s clothing to really shake up the government. Let’s hope that’s true. But, I digress. Let’s deal with the reasons you all hate her.
First, the Clinton Foundation. That foundation has done a lot of good in this world. Check out what the Foundation actually does here. The idea that foreign entities are contributing to the foundation in exchange for abuses of power in government is absurd. First, Hillary Clinton makes zero decisions independently. That’s just not how government works. Accept that fact and move on. How do I know? I’ve studied politics for years, I’ve worked in politics, and I know plenty of people inside of politics. Just like Obama can’t go to war without others approving, Hillary can’t fuck up a Nation without approval either. Yes, money can buy favours, but like all conspiracy theories, there is a giant flaw—people. For various reasons, when you involve more than one person in any endeavour, a secret often can’t be kept. And oh man, do you really think that if there was any real proof that Clinton traded on favours, the Republicans wouldn’t have pounced? In a just society, you can call matters into question, but without the burden of proof, the issue is not indictable.
Next up, the emails. Something stinks there for sure. No one in history besides Dubya has deleted tens of thousands of emails. It’s just not a thing. However, the FBI has gone through the emails, and has examined the case time and again. While they found that Hillary was guilty of having a blonde moment using a private server for her emails, they couldn’t find a shred of evidence that she was actually doing anything illegal. Sure, she was really out to lunch using a private email server, and should have probably asked what © meant, but she’s an old lady, and let’s face it, they’re not so good with the tech. It’s an unfortunate side effect, but let’s just hope she’s learned her lesson and has a solid tech advisor at her side from now on. People make mistakes. Stop beating this issue to death, because honestly, you look silly. Let me put it another way. If you were on trial for burglary, and they kept dragging you into court because some random people weren’t satisfied … how happy would you be? How fair is that?
Regarding Benghazi; come the fuck on. Seriously? Donald Trump thinks you’re stupid, and if you subscribe to the “Hillary is responsible for Benghazi” theory then he’s right. First off, it wasn’t Hillary’s job to deal with that situation until it was, which was too late. To read the actual story, go here. Oh, and before you bash Politifact, take a look at the links. It’s undeniable. Benghazi just wasn’t Clinton’s fault, outside of gaps in the system. However, gaps exist everywhere, and then they are fixed. It’s really sad, and terrible that lives were lost to expose them, but no system is 100% perfect.
Then there’s the “Hillary and Obama created the economic downturn” argument. False. That started with Bush, and continued with the fact that Obama was opposed at every turn by Republicans. It’s not unprecedented, but it was downright disgusting to watch a system fail constantly. Obamacare is often bashed, but the original draft without Republicans was much better for the people. Go ahead and read it if you can find it. The original link I read it at is dead. In fact, many don’t even remember that it was Hillary that tried to push through Universal Healthcare a couple of decades ago, but it was shot down, and she was mocked for it.
Lastly, I’d like to touch on Hillary’s flip-flopping. She has changed her mind on many issues including gay marriage and the war in Iraq, but honestly, many of us have changed our minds once more information was available to us. It’s the way of things. Your entire country was out for blood after 9/11, and it just so happened the villain you were given was not the true villain of the story. Once the facts came out, Hillary said, her vote for the war was her biggest regret in her entire life. I too have changed my mind regarding Iraq. I’ve never supported war, but I did support going after Saddam and his government. Hindsight is wonderful, but not applicable in debate. The information presented by Bush and his band of merry men showed that Saddam supported the actions of those who perpetrated 9/11, and that he had WMDs with a plan to use them on US citizens. Once the truth came out, everyone changed their minds.
BTW, many of you hate her because she’s a woman, and not the woman you pictured taking the office. Not all of you, but be honest, there’s a huge issue with sexism here.
Truth be told, I’m not the biggest fan of Hillary, but I can respect what she’s tried to do for the US and the world. So let me say this, when the choice is clearly between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the choice is clear.
Yes, there are third party candidates, who will likely see record numbers in this election, but because of media bias, antiquated debate principals, and some serious fuckery, they’re just not real contenders, so I can’t even cover them at this point. This despite the fact that Gary Johnson is the King of Flubs but has actually done quite a bit of good with his time as Governor of New Mexico. Jill Stein is a great activist, but frankly, makes a pretty crappy politician. Last but not least, you have Evan McMullin. You’ve likely never heard of him, and that’s for good reason. He is a former CIA operations officer, and doesn’t have what it takes to make noise in an election. Seems like an okay guy, but doesn’t have the razzle dazzle of a nominee for President.
So there you have it. Obviously I didn’t cover everything, but I’ve covered what is most important to you (despite the fact that these aren’t even the real issues at hand). Hillary has done a lot with her time in government. Take a look at some of her accomplishments here. Donald Trump has also done good in this world. Here’s the link to that. However, you must consider that he’s a rookie (like completely) and a lot of his first year will be spent learning, then the first term will be spent making mistakes that were clear to others. That just won’t happen with a Clinton government.
To me, the choice is clear. However, if you don’t feel educated enough, or don’t like any of the candidates, you shouldn’t vote. I feel strongly about that. While my man, Obama touts you MUST GET OUT AND VOTE, I decline to agree. I believe a vote should be an educated decision on behalf of the person that inspires you. I also believe that politicians should have prior experience in the issues they get involved with, and that they should be tested regularly, but alas, this is not a perfect world.
In closing, I’d like to say, that you, the average citizen of the US have a much bigger problem on your hands. No matter who gets in, you’ll continue to have a divided and petty government. The only way to stop that is to crash the system long enough so that these politicians remember who actually holds the power. In case you didn’t know, that person is you. Yes, you. The guy that feels powerless right now … you’re the key to the Emerald City.
There’s a lot of talk about the 1% that control the world. Well, they need you to fall in line to do so. If you don’t, government and fat cats have to adjust extremely quick. I’m not endorsing anything but peaceful protest and I’m surely not suggesting a civil war, but you must be smart, educated, and together if you’re going to change anything. March like they used to, and exclude yourself from activity. Present what you don’t like in an organized fashion and just stop contributing to the madness. If any law or bill doesn’t act in the best interest of the human beings that these politicians represent, you must act. Stop the economy for a week, and you’ll see just how quickly things change. BUT, there’s a caveat to that. Educate yourself, and I don’t mean read some random articles from random sites. Join a group that actually reads the bills, and then take action, or if you’re great at research, apply those skills to these matters. Show government that they cannot step on the little guy.
Your vote tomorrow matters, but over the next 4 years you’ll have a lot of work to do. Don’t be lazy. Your lives, and the lives of generations after you depend on action.
I hope you do the right thing on Nov 8th. You’ve come so far in the last 8 years in terms of how the world views you. I’d hate to see that all go away, because I’ve got nothing but love for ya.
Sincerely,
An Informed Canadian