Last week we saw the 80th anniversary of D-Day and were reminded of the thousands of troops who stormed the beaches of Normandy. On the air were numerous recounts of that day and the events leading up to the assault on German forces from land, sea, and air, plus the aftermath of the invasion, which resulted in thousands of crosses marking the graves of the brave veterans of all allied nations who never made it home. My cousin, Norman, was one of them. He was in the 101st Airborne and parachuted down on Utah Beach, shot multiple times before he hit the ground. He survived for nearly three weeks, but eventually succumbed to his wounds. Norman and my mother had grown up as brother and sister and his death affected her terribly. He remained in her thoughts until she died. It’s quite sobering to hear the personal experiences of the few remaining veterans who were there June 6, 1944. President Joe Biden and his wife visited Omaha Beach to pay tribute to those who fought and died there and to personally thank the half-dozen or so D-Day veterans in attendance, able to make the journey.
Then I think of Donald Trump and what he did on his visit to Normandy when he was president. He was driven past the landing areas and cemeteries in a limo, too lazy to get his fat, draft-dodging, blobbish body out of the car, making the point that those buried beneath the crosses were nothing more than “suckers” and “losers.” For any MAGAs out there who deny this (I’m looking at you, Wild Bill Suhayda) because you wouldn’t have seen it on Fox, Trump’s words are recorded, so you can sit on it and spin. That was Trump’s tribute to those heroes who died. Obviously, “For Your Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today,” means nothing to him. A hero is just some kind of big sandwich.
Here’s a point to ponder: A huge number of reformed felons are discriminated against when they try to get a job, even at minimum wage, because it’s mandatory to list their criminal history on applications. Once they do, it’s, “Don’t let the door hit you in the lower posterior on your way out.” So how is it that convicted felon and sexual predator Trump can still apply for the top job in America when these other people who’ve done their time can’t even apply for a job putting “Do Not Eat” stickers on cinder blocks? I have a friend from New Zealand who is puzzled with America and why Americans would allow a convicted felon to even run for the presidency. “Is that the best you can come up with?” he asks. “It doesn’t make sense.” I said it does if you look at the people supporting him.
I have to chuckle and shake my head (not too hard because I don’t want anything of major importance to get damaged) when I hear all the Republican Party vice-presidential wannabes destroying what little integrity they had by groveling at the Trump altar. I love it when their previously recorded statements, where they say what a degenerate and threat to America Trump is, come back to haunt them. Now he’s their Holy of Holies. They surely don’t believe he is, but they’re doing what jelly-spined politicians do: Changing their rhetoric to whatever is convenient for them at the moment. Apparently they forgot about what happened to Mike Pence, who at least had the backbone to not endorse Trump. No. 45 didn’t give a rat’s patoot if Mike ended up dangling from a noose somewhere near the Capitol January 6, 2021, because he hadn’t done what Trump wanted.
So that ends my invective for this week. I see The Voice contributor, Wild Bill Suhayda, has reemerged in full gaslight mode and directed much of his recent prattle at The Voice columnists and (speaking of the military) U.S. Army vets Chaz and me. I’ll be sure to fact-check and counter his witless diatribe next time. Or, maybe I’ll just eat a cookie.