Readers: this blog is set in the future (sometime after the year 2020). Each entry assumes there has been a 5th revolution in the US — the Revenge Revolution. More about the Revenge Revolution and author, Entry #1.  Most entries are formatted as conversations. Characters appear in a number of entries, with many entries building on previous conversations.

Occasionally I do a “sense check.”  Auditing one’s own work is problematic but I try to be objective.  Entries #300 and #301 are the most recent standard “sense checks.”   The last three entries, including this one break from the conversation format.  Characters will return soon.

Ever notice how many adults seem to take statements at face value, never asking, “Why do you make that statement?” or “What’s the source of your data?” The lack of curiosity seems particularly prevalent around elections and among those who quit reading newspapers regularly and rely primarily on the internet and/or specific cable channels for what is often opinion disguised as news..

How many people do you know have joined a “political tribe”?  And as a member of that tribe, no longer question even the most outlandish statements of tribal leaders?  Think about how passive these tribal members have become.  Do you know of any self-respecting four year-old who would take your statements as gospel and quit asking “why?” Chances are you’ll have a hard time finding a four year-old who fits that category.

I know some blog readers think that lately I’ve been beating up the Republicans too much.  Maybe so, but given the behavior of the so-called leaders of the Republican Party, such criticism seems more than justified.

For starters, has anyone in the Republican Party asked “Why do we so ardently support a president whose actions are seemingly contrary to everything the Party has promoted the past decades?”  Maybe the Republicans should start to act like that self-respecting four year-old and ask some questions.  Here’s a start on a list of questions:

• Why are we…yes, we Republicans…supporting a guy who coddles known enemies, starting with the Russians but including a host of other bad characters?
• Why are we no longer supporting free trade, a bedrock of the Republican Party for decades?
• Why are we trashing our best allies in favor of known enemies?  (Ever think about the implications of alienating countries that we might need later?  Do you behave this way toward your friends?)
• Why did we knowingly and enthusiastically pass tax legislation that transfers more money to the wealthy, takes away money from the middle class and is already resulting in ever-larger and unsustainable budget deficits?
• Why are we following Trump and effectively promoting violence against certain groups within the US?
• Why are we ignoring a basic tenet of most religions to treat thy neighbor as thyself?
• Why are we barring refugees from entering this country legally?  (Yes, refugees have a right to enter.)
• Why are we cutting funding for public education, which has been the bedrock of economic growth for decades?
• Why are we encouraging companies and people to pollute when there are numerous directives in the Bible to leave the earth a better place?
• Why are we encouraging discrimination against people who are gay?  (Look folks, nearly every family has someone who is gay.  Get over it.)
• Why are we ignoring a key provision of the Constitution by not letting citizens vote or making it extremely hard for citizens to vote?  (The Republican Party has produced no evidence in any location in the US of voter fraud.)
• Why are we ignoring the 1st Amendment right to a free press?  (Yes, a free press is protected by the 1st Amendment.)
• Why are we supporting claims that a free press is the “enemy of the people” when such claims are used by dictators?  (Need some evidence aside from Trump’s outright statements that the media are the enemy?  Start with the killing of Jamal Khashoggi by the Saudi government…and the tepid, if not bizarre, response by Trump.  If that’s not chilling enough, please read some history about how Hitler and others claimed the media was the enemy as part of their plan to help create dictatorships.)
• Why are we accepting and even cheering “trash talk” and “name calling” by the president when such talk from your children would result in punishment?
• Why are we going to great lengths to support someone for the Supreme Court who lied under oath to Congress?
• Why are we supporting a president who, after a mass shooting in a synagogue, says the synagogue should have armed guards?  (And, who was wounded at the synagogue — a mere four police officers who were heavily armed.  Do you think all religious institutions should have armed guards? )
• Why are we trying to take away individual rights of women (Roe v Wade) yet insist on individual rights for gun owners?  (The gun-owner argument is based on a wild exaggeration about rights granted the 2nd Amendment.)   
• Why do we support a president who is a serial liar and lying more frequently each day?
• Why do we support a president who cheats on taxes and then appoints someone to head the IRS who will minimize the likelihood of any serious audit of Trump’s taxes?
• And the list goes on and on and on.

The questions are not political questions.  No one is challenging whether an individual has the right to be a Republican and/or conservative and/or fundamentalist Christian.  The questions are ethical and directed at making sure Republicans understand the core values of a democracy.

Why have Republicans decided to abdicate truth in favor of Trump?  Why have Republicans decided to abdicate core values of a democracy for a guy who openly courts leaders hostile to the US?  Why have Republicans given up having America be the shining light worldwide for fairness and moral standards?

I am baffled why Republicans support such behavior.  I have no clue other than thinking the  Republicans have been brainwashed.  Whatever the cause of the brainwashing, giving away one’s core values, as have Republicans, is like giving away one’s soul.  And what did all but a handful of Republicans get in return?  Think hard because the answer is “You got nothing.”  Even if you got a bunch of money, whatever amount you got likely wasn’t worth your soul.  Further, once the trade for your soul has been made, getting back the soul will be very difficult, if not impossible.

(Just to be clear, Democrats are not completely clean…but the behavior by the Republicans in supporting Trump overwhelms any bad behavior by Democrats  Claiming the behavior is equal is a false equivalency.)

So what’s the consequence of Republicans selling the country’s soul to Trump and his cronies?  Unfortunately, so many Republicans seem to have sold their soul, the only way the country can likely start to get back on the right course is with a revolution — aka the Revenge Revolution.  And, even with a revolution, the road back will be very long and very bumpy.  Not a pleasant thought, I know, but one all of us should be thinking about.