Letter to the Editor: "The Trouble with Trump and the Case for Clinton

(Photo courtesy of Wikimedia)

(Steve McCargar of Decorah has submitted the following Letter to the Editor):

For the past 70 years humankind has faced a profound existential challenge - the prevention of all-out war between nations that possess nuclear weapons.  In some respects we've been lucky that nuclear warheads haven't been detonated by accident (several nukes have been dropped out of bombers and were never recovered). 

As a species we're also fortunate that one or more of our national leaders haven't launched a pre-emptive nuclear strike on a sworn enemy.  Imagine the carnage and risk to all life on the planet if Russia and the US, or China and India, or Israel and Pakistan were to unleash their nuclear arsenals on each other.  The fear of "mutually assured destruction" has, in part, kept us from descending into the abyss of nuclear winter, but every unstable world leader (whether elected or self-appointed) raises the chances of a mistake or a willful act leading to global destruction.  One thing is crystal clear...Every person on the planet has a stake in the outcome of any process that puts a new finger on the trigger of a country's nuclear weapons.

In this context every American citizen of voting age must come to grips with the threat posed by Donald Trump and the reality that he and Hillary Clinton are the only two people with a real-world chance of becoming the next president of the United States.  The hard truth is that Gary Johnson or Jill Stein will not become our president under any scenario...it's Trump or Clinton period.  As Bernie Sanders has said on more than one occasion:  "this is no time for a protest vote".  The stakes are simply too high and the reasons are obvious to people across the political spectrum.  DONALD TRUMP IS NOT A STABLE ENOUGH ADULT TO HAVE ACCESS TO THE CODES WHICH CONTROL OUR NUCLEAR WEAPONS.

The evidence to support this statement is overwhelming and expanding with the passage of each day. Donald Trump has elevated lying to an art form never before seen in our national politics (his racist birtherism being the most notable example).  Mr. Trump lashes out against any one who challenges or mocks him.  He routinely threatens physical violence against individuals and countries he disagrees with (demonstrators at his political rallies or Iranian sailors who might flip him the bird).  He has cavalierly suggested that it would be a good thing for more countries (Japan, South Korea and Saudi Arabia) to join the list of nuclear weapons states. 

Trump is also convinced that he is "smarter than all the generals" and possesed of superior deal-making skills sufficient to out-fox any adversary.  The capacity for sober reflection, demonstration of intellectual curiosity or the practice of tactful speaking do not exist in Mr. Trumps repertoire.  He is the antithesis of what the world and our country need to confront the complex challenges presented by a host of nuclear-armed nations.

Truth be told, many of us on the progressive side of our politics have never been fans of Hillary Clinton.  To carry the banner of "first woman to be elected president," I would have preferred Barbara Jordan years ago or Elizabeth Warren today.  However, neither one of them is on the ballot in 2016 and Hillary Clinton is.  Most importantly, she is the one person in the world who stands between Donald Trump and the presidency.  This is a binary choice between an experienced adult who happens to be a woman and an egomaniac with the emotional maturity of a middle school bully in the boy's locker room.  It is no secret that this self-proclaimed emperor has no clothes.

So...all you Bernie supporters and disillusioned independent progressives out there, please vote as if the future of our children and grandchildren depended upon it.  Donald Trump must never get his hands (no matter their size) on the controls of our nuclear weapons.