I was initially curious if this site was still up and running! Apparently so. I have no delusions that anyone is actually reading this blog on purpose. However, I will cast my opinions into the cacophony of unrestricted diatribes that constitute political discussion on the internet. I find myself in a disconcerting position. The Republican primaries that resulted in the nomination of now Pres. Trump were truly ridiculous. Several individuals with no real hope of obtaining the nomination remained in the race, or declared, when they had no business doing so. Pres. Trump only won a majority of the primary vote in approximately 16 states. The flagging nominees prevented a consolidation around the better candidates, and the result was that Pres. Trump won the nomination. He also won the presidency, but I feel that the election was much more of a vote against Hillary Clinton then it was for Pres. Trump, at least in the counties and swing states that made the difference. The man appears to lack the fundamental morality necessary for good leadership. He is demeaning in speech, and constantly playing the victim. This used to be the calling card of the Democrats, but Pres. Trump has picked up the banner and carried it forward. Now there have been clear abuses of power by many in the Democrat party, however, you are only a victim when you permit yourself to be so. People can act towards you in hostile and damaging ways without your consent. The concern is in your reaction. Do you permit your perception of yourself to be defined by the things that others have done to you, or do you refuse to portray yourself as an injured party. Many times you cannot prevent others from politically attacking you or incorrectly portraying you to the world. You can control how you respond. Pres. Trump's responses have been whining, name calling, and blaming. I do not think that sits well with a majority of the American people. An inspirational figure rises from adversity with dignity. In his political career, Pres. Trump has not possessed dignity. Pres. Trump is loud, rude, and crass. This was on full display in the 2016 election cycle and Pres. Trump was still elected. However, I believe that the American people's perception was greatly influenced by the identity of his opponent. This cycle, his opponent is a Joe Biden. A man whose mental capacity appears to be declining as a result of age. Of course the Democrats other options were extreme socialists. However, if Pres. Trump acts as though he is a victim of Joe Biden, I do not think it will end well for him. The Republicans held the House and Senate for two years and accomplished almost nothing. Instead, Pres. Trump spent those two years forcing out any Republican that dared disagree with him. It was a terrible waste of political capital. The result is an election that is not based in any coherent way on actual policy issues. Instead, the election is once again a judgment of which candidates has the worse moral failing and personality flaws. Joe Biden himself may win that battle, but as he appears to be devolving into senility, I have no confidence he will actually be running anything. Who then will be pulling the strings behind Joe Biden? I feel like Vizzini from The Princess Bride: "Now, a clever man would put the poison into his own goblet, because he would know that only a great fool would reach for what he was given. I’m not a great fool, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of you. But you must have known I was not a great fool; you would have counted on it, so I can clearly not choose the wine in front of me." Unfortunately, it may be that both goblets are laced with iocane powder yet again.