In a recent meditation, Franciscan friar Richard Rohr noted, “We have to trust the messenger before we can trust the message.” Relationship researcher John Gottman, paraphrased by Brené Brown, states that “trust is built in the smallest of moments.” Lots of them. Trust building is an incremental process, whether between kids on the playground or between nation states.
It is sad to witness the Trump administration’s reversal of 70 years of post-World War II collaboration with allies to promote prosperity and peace worldwide. Presidential aide Stephen Miller recently stated on CNN, “We live in a world, in the real world … that is governed by strength, that is governed by force, that is governed by power.”
While this is true, what the powerful choose to do with power matters. Bullies get their way via aggression and intimidation. In the short term, they get what they want. But what do they lose in the process? Trust.
President Donald Trump and the people in his circle have traded the hard-won integrity of the USA for the immediate gratification of applying force for material gain. Betrayal of trust will leave our nation friendless. A dog-eat-dog mentality is a choice. I fail to see how this choice will help the American people thrive in the long run.
In the meantime, I advocate the continued push for governance by rule of law and voting every enabling Republican out of office. Our children deserve a better future than the one this administration wishes to create.
Tim Telep
Bayfield
