Donald Trump, John McCain, and What I Learned This Weekend

There will be much to say about BlogHer '15 and New York City and seeing old friends and friends of friends, but I can't get past what I saw and what I felt in the Dallas/Ft. Worth airport this morning.

The seats at Gate 12 were grouped comfortably around a big screen tv. It wasn't dangling from the ceiling, it was on a bench at eye level. It was very hard to ignore.

CNN's talking heads were taking on Donald Trump. The New York Times reporter and the Republican advisor (What does that mean? Who is taking his advice?) were bemoaning the fact that the media had been sucked up into the Trump universe without investigating his positions.

The Huffington Post's announcement that their coverage of Trump's campaign would now be found where it belongs – on their entertainment pages – was grist for their mill. The moderator made reference to those of us in New York who know about his scandals more intimately than other Americans but he never went on to elaborate.

Having spent the past few weeks watching steam come out of TBG's ears every time that bankrupt, narcissistic, gives-business-a-bad-name ass shows his face on tv, I am well acquainted with his business failings. When I learned of this latest kerfuffle, I saw why it made a difference. The lack of respect he demonstrates towards everyone except himself may have come back to bite him after all.

What in the world made Trump think that John McCain's imprisonment in the Hanoi Hilton was his to assault? He was captured.... y'know what.... I like people who weren't captured is the flip side of his oft repeated I like winners.

What happened to acknowledging the years my Senator refused early release because it was not his turn? He still bears the scars and other physical reminders of living in a cage, a cage he could have left but for the fact that he honored those imprisoned before him. I don't agree with him all the time (cf Sarah Palin) but I've never dismissed his Vietnam experiences as unworthy of a hero.

So, the talk shows are filled with Is this the end of his campaign?

I'm not sure that's the question I'd be asking. I'd be wondering why he got as much coverage as he did up until this point. 

All I can imagine is that it is summertime and people are looking for fluff. That's where I'd been languishing until this morning, when a brief mention of a post on Twitter put it all into a different and more disturbing perspective.

Trump has been calling Mexicans rapists for weeks, and only now are people saying he's through.

BlogHer '15 was filled with eye opening experiences, many centering on the marginalization of people of color. This tweet brought it all to a head for me.

I listened to the founders of #BlackLivesMatter. I listened to AvaDuVernay. And I heard an exquisite post, After Eric Garner, What Do I Tell My Son? Click through, read it for yourselves, and pause, as the author did, half way through, to sob.

I can't imagine what it's like to be frightened for your children every time they leave the house. Not only the universal my-heart-is-living-within-my-child-and-I-can't-be-around-him-and-keep-him-safe worry that all parents share, but that worry with an extra layer on top.

Will the police stop him? Will he behave in a way that keeps him out of trouble? Will it matter how he behaves? How do I explain respect for authority when young black women are dying in jail cells? 

Sure, Donald Trump is the story here... on the surface. I'm thinking that tweet is alerting us to something more … something more important …. something I spent a lot of time thinking about this weekend.