Newspapers / Winston-Salem chronicle. / Dec. 17, 2015, edition 1 / Page 7
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FORUM Donald Trump: A maniac who matches mankind's vilest HBill " S i e g heil!" ? the Itorner Nazi Germany-era Guest *alut(; ~ was ? . . heard above Columnist the clamor as a protester was taken away for heckling Donald Trump at a rally preceding the most recent Republican presidential debate in Las Vegas this week. Ross Douthat, writing in the New York Times a week ago, used the generally off limits "F* word in inquiring of the basics of Mr. Trump's attractiveness: "Is Donald Trump a fascist?" It appears that Mr. Trump meets, matches, and exceeds the trademark char acteristics of a fascist and demagogue. He has a cult-like following that is intensely nationalistic, he is a bully whose brand is unified by bigotry, and Mr. Trump's sweeping tirades, when scaled up, puts him in the same league with select world leaders whose extremism resulted in intol erance at best and genocide at worst. Mr. Trump could become president of the United States next year and would, without a doubt join, and maybe even top, the list of the most despotic and repressive dictators in world history. Americans must remember that what are otherwise unspeakable acts of man's inhumanity to man loom large in the short shadow of American history. Could America find itself enacting some of the over-the-top policies Mr. Trump articulates so dogmatically? Yes, we could. Yes, we have. Take immigra tion for example, one of the most contro versial points in Mr. Trump's cultural war catalog. During the height of the massive immigration of Europeans to the US - in the period between 1885-1910 - many Italians were "lumped" with those who were accused of bringing the Mafia to the US. In New Orleans in 1891, there was a mass lynching of Italians. In reaction to the murdering, according to Dr. Anthony Petrosino of the University of Texas, our country's leaders, like Teddy Roosevelt, not yet president, famously said it was "a rather good thing." The response in the New York Times on March 16, 1891 referred to the victims of the lynchings as " ... sneaking and cow ardly Sicilians, the descendants of bandits and assassins." And John Parker, who later went on to be governor of Louisiana, said of Italians that they were "just a little worse than the Negro, being if anything filthier in [their] habits, lawless, and treacherous." Doesn't this sound like Mr. Trump's brash broadsides toward Mexicans and Muslims? You bet it does. Americans might wake up with Trump as president doing what President Franklin D. Roosevelt did just over 70 years ago, in 1942, when he required "aliens" from Italy, Germany, and Japan to register with the United States Department of Justice which, within a month, resulted in the full scale internment of Japanese Americans. Mr. Trump's demagoguery about Berlin-type walls around America and his mockery of disabled people and his dirty digs on who is ugly or not, also brings to mind the list of other world leaders in times past whose thirst for dominion and power - and immortality ? includes names such as Idi Amin Dada of Uganda, Kim Jung II of North Korea, Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, China's Chiang Kai-Shek, and Joseph Stalin of Russia, among others. Given Mr. Trump's bombastic and ruthless pronouncements that involve potential atrocities, it is not too much of a stretch to compare him to Leopold II of Belgium who was famous for enslaving and killing more than 15 million Africans - in what he called (his) Free Congo State during the late 1800s, when America was just emerging from holding (African) slaves. Supported by the West, including America, Leopold II extracted the eco nomic riches of The Congo, like a "suc cessful businessman." Finally, the German phrase for The Leader - Der Fuhrer - is a brand that fits Mr. Trump quite well because, like Adolf Hitler, he needs no introduction. Would Mr. Trump order the killing of 17 million people, including six million Jews, as Hitler did? Would Mr. Trump lead the entire world into war? Probably not. We won't let him. I don't believe a critical mass of Americans - enough to nominate Mr. Trump, let alone elect him our president - are swayed by the fear and resentment that marks his campaign oratory. But, just in case, if Americans want to keep our coun try's name off the list of having one of the world's most despotic leaders, they should - as Mr. Trump's run for President contin- 1 ues toward the gorge of catastrophe - take note of the warning of George Santayana who said, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Dr. Bill Turner is a noted educator, writer and thinker who called Winston Salem home for many years. Reach him at bill-turner@ comcast net. "Could America find itself enacting some of the over-the-top policies Mr. Trump articulates so dogmatically? Yes, we could. Yes, we have." Hitler Photos Wikipedia Trump The holiday surprise nobody wants Allison Brown Guest Columnist Julia Garrett had not visited her parents in eight months. The 13-hour drive from Boston to Kemersville passed quick ly because she was so happy to be going "home" for the holidays. As she pulled into the driveway, she scanned the well-lit front porch where her mother usually would be waiting, but the porch was empty. When Julia stepped in the front door, she was surprised by the unusual smell lingering in the air. She expected the usual scents of mulled cider and pumpkin pies. It took a few minutes to identify, but the odor of dirty diapers was unmistakable. That was odd; she could not think of anyone in the family who had a new baby. Her moth er swooped into the room . and wrapped her in hugs. As they separated and Julia got a clear view of her mother's face, she was star tled by how tired her moth er looked and by how much she had aged. Looking into the den, she could see that her dad was in his recliner watch ing TV, his back to the doorway. She stepped over quickly to face him and received another jolt: he looked terrible. He had lost a lot of weight, there were dark circles under his eyes, his shirt was spotted with food stains, and he seemed to be looking through her rather than at her. Her close proximity informed her that he was the source of the dirty diaper odor. Coming to her side, her mqther immediately noticed the smell and walked her dad down the hall to the bedroom, speak ing to him as she would one of the grandchildren. Julia stood in shock at the realization that her father was not only incontinent but was losing his aware ness and adult capabilities. In the days that fol lowed, Julia's mother described the drastic decline in her dad's mental health after he fell off a lad der and injured his head in the spring. The inconti nence issues were only the tip of the iceberg, as her father's sharp mind entered the foggy confusion of dementia and his caregiv ing spouse began to reach the end of her rope physi cally, mentally, and emo tionally. Julia realized the situation had reached criti cal mass in a very short time and if she did not act quickly, her mother's health could be at risk. This was one surprise Julia wished she could have avoided! This month, many peo ple will travel to visit older family members for the holidays and have a sur prising experience similar to Julia's. They will observe drastic changes in abilities, attitudes, and behaviors in the person whose health has declined and in the person who is providing care. Without a reliable point of reference, they may make incorrect conclusions about the situ ation and about the alterna tives for solutions. Navigating the options for care and support of aging adults is like entering a maze, where false turns mean lost time and set backs in opportunities for improvements in health and wellbeing. Fortunately for Julia Garrett and her parents, a quick Google search led them to local resources for information about demen tia, in-home care, family caregiver support pro grams, home-delivered meals. Medicare and Medicaid, adult day care. Veterans services, and many other long-term sup port services, many of which they did not know existed. For most people, this kind of holiday "surprise" is inevitable. The experts know that you will need many services to support both caregivers and care recipients so they can age in place with dignity and independence. En the 12 county Piedmont Triad region, the Area Agency on Aging partners with more than 60 agencies that pro vide an array of services authorized by the Older Americans Act to assist older adults, persons with disabilities, and their care givers. To learn more about supports for maintaining independence and aging at home, contact these "lead agencies" in each county: Davidson: Davidson County Department of Senior Services, (336) 242 2290 Forsyth: Senior Services, Inc. (Winston Salem), (336) 725-0907 Guilford: Senior Resources of Guilford, (336) 373-4816 Randolph: Randolph County Senior Adults Association, (336) 625 3389; 1 (800) 252-2899 To learn more about long-term care opportuni ties, such as assisted living or skilled nursing care, call the Area Agency on Aging at 336-904-0300 and ask for the "Ombudsman" assigned to the county in which your loved one resides. Visit www.ptrc.org and select "Area Agency on Aging." then scroll down to the "Funded Partners" link for a com prehensive list of resources in each county. Allison Brown, pro gram planner for aging for the Piedmont Triad Regional Council Area Agency on Aging, joined the agency in 2012. She works with the nonprofit and local government sec tors. V
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