Dave Phillips wrote:The only way Trump will be ousted is when America learns it's own painful lesson.
That there are lessons to be learned here is indisputable. However, those lessons are not straightforward.
That Trump IS the President is a lesson in itself. As is Brexit. And, probably, there are going to be more examples until lessons are actually learned.
That some of Trump's rhetoric is odious, that some of his policy decisions are short sighted, and that there are strong disadvantages to Brexit are all clear. But, these unwelcome consequences have been allowed to fester by an intellectually arrogant elite that has chosen to impose its will on an increasingly disenfranchised section of society with scant disregard for those other interests. It has used political correctness to silence debate, and it has, certainly in the case of Brexit, used political manipulation to achieve a structure that is forcing great social change against the will of many.
One of the main lessons to be learned is that you cannot force change, however well intentioned, against the will of the people. Change has to be wanted and welcomed with open arms, and you achieve that by debate and informing people, and then most importantly by listening to the response. Steamrollering might get your immediate wishes, but your changes are built on foundations of sand.
Brexit is a classic example. Many people want open trade. Many people want a lot of the other benefits and protections that have come from the EU. However, many people don't want the high degree of social engineering that has been imposed on them. Brexit, sadly, is probably just the start. Le Pen may not be elected, but her influence should not be ignored. Neither should the rise of the far right in Germany, in Holland, and many other countries. These things don't happen in a vacuum.
No, sadly the reality is that it isn't Trump that is the problem. It isn't Brexit. They are indicative of the problem. No doubt both will bring negative consequences, but they are indicative of a complete and total failure of a large part of the population of these countries to have a long hard look in the mirror and recognise that it is merely reaping what it has sowed. That is the real lesson that needs to be learned, and, sadly, there is little real evidence that the people sowing the seed even realise yet what they are doing. Let alone appreciating they also need to change.