Friday, February 17, 2017

When Truth is Personalized

Buoyed by his own pompous personality, by the subdued reaction of Party loyalists and by the zeal of his uneducated worshipers, President Trump defines truth as that which places himself in a positive light.  Everything else is "false news."

Threatened by both journalism and science, this narcissist has become our Mythologist in Chief, focused on the perception of his legions rather than on facts.  Like all zealots, Trump has personalized truth, ignoring the ideas and criticism of others when they clash with his beliefs or tarnish his public image.  He is only interested in facts that embellish his bloated self-esteem.

Of course, if he were merely a TV personality, this corruption of truth might be entertaining.  But he is now at the reins of American power, attacking freedom of speech, human rights and the legitimacy of science.  Since there are few statesmen within the Republican Party to derail this assault on truth, We the People must demand aggressive opposition and, hopefully, Trump's eventual Impeachment.