December 22, 2020: 323,000 deaths; January 17, 2021: 396,000 deaths.

How many deaths could have been prevented by effective, honest leadership? Instead, we have a little baby tweeter (“I think we’ve done a very good job”) whining about how unfairly he’s treated and lying about our election process. The president, since his resounding defeat in the election, has checked out of governing (as if he ever was useful at that), and is hell-bent on making the transition to the new administration as difficult as he possibly can. He does have a major talent for taking America in wrong directions. America is well on its way to becoming a failed state, and that is in large part because of misinformed and/or frightened people electing representatives who feign interest in them while consistently exhibiting disdain for problem-solving and moving America forward.

The definition of insanity today has to include a part about Americans voting for ANY Republican, after witnessing four years of incompetence, a massive failure of leadership which has contributed greatly to hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths, and the division of our country by encouraging hatred of others not like them. Seldom have so many gathered in public office only to prove themselves uniquely unfit for any position of leadership, and utterly devoid of any ability to manage our money wisely.

Our president should be brought to justice for his seditious urging of his base (Al-Qaeda in America) to “stand back and stand by,” which should be grounds for impeachment and removal from office, as was his “perfect” phone call with Ukrainian President Zelensky, as was his phone call attempting to coerce election officials in Georgia, as was his inciting his own personal white supremacist domestic terrorist base to attack the Capitol, etc., etc., etc. 

Instead, a majority of GOP representatives continue to enable his sedition and even meet with him to discuss election results denial. Why, our own “representative” from District 11 is already on record as joining in the fight against truth and reality. He even wound up the terrorists before the president’s incitement of them. We can, sadly, count on the GOP to continue exhibiting the same entrenched, lock-step obstruction of all efforts to move forward. The problem is lack of competent management, and the American people are responsible for the terrible job that the GOP and this administration is doing.

It is easy to join a tribe when the chieftains/medicine men/charlatans are so adept at lying, especially if one is afraid and/or a natural or nurtured hater. No reason to look for the truth of the matter, just point and shout.

Bil Aylor

Bryson City