There are so many words and terms that we all assume we know, so I challenged myself to see if my idea of what a fool truly is was correct. As I opened my dictionary I started to smile at the definition. It enlightened me that a fool is a silly or stupid person who lacks judgment or sense. Hence, the photo of the Fool from my deck of tarot cards is being used to show the power and abuse of power of a fool.
Most people wanted to believe that life couldn't get any worse under the administration of President Fool, but most were shocked and alarmed around the world at the total lack of compassion for anyone except himself. Often, fools can be masters of foolery, tricking large numbers of people to believe in their nonsense, while tapping into the weak mindedness of large groups of people to get them to perform on their behalf. Over 70 million sheep have been brainwashed to believe their thoughts are original, when in fact they were created and planted by a fool. I chose the Fool card because it is a constant reminder of how this weak leader steps on the bodies and souls of neglected individuals that he allowed to die from COVID-19 because of his own self interest that never included the American population.
I wish that I could feel shocked or surprised about the recent siege or terrorists acts on the U.S. Capitol building, but I feel nothing at all. As a black man, you almost become immune to the injustices that have been occurring for over 300 years in a country that claims to be the sweet land of liberty and of the noble free. To be completely honest, from the beginning it's bullshit. During my entire life I have witnessed replay after replay of black people being murdered by proud police officers killing for the sport of it. I have never expected it to change or to stop, but what I do hope is for the tables to turn so that the hunters are truly hunted and treated as they have treated black and brown people throughout my entire life without compassion or sympathy.
If anyone ever doubted the existence of racism and hatred, it's time for reality to wake everyone up. The images from the recent attack on the U.S. Capitol provides the proof of injustices that are as American as apple pie, nooses hanging from trees, derogatory name calling and a strong sense of feeling insecure and inadequate to allow anyone without white skin to be equal. The lies taught to generation after generation are necessary to maintain the fakeness of a so-called superior culture.
When peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters showed up at the the U.S. Capitol building a couple of months ago, Trump ordered the national guard to prevent anyone from entering the building and encouraged brutal force to be used in order to control the protesters all over the country. But in the past few days, the president ordered and encouraged his white supremacist groups to take over the Capitol building by any means necessary. To the surprise of some, but not to anyone who does not have white skin, the violent white supremacist supporters of Trump were allowed by the Capitol police and building security to enter freely. Police were delighted to pose and take selfies with political terrorist acting under orders of the president. Photos of their destruction appeared as a gala or celebration. What do you think would have happened if Black Lives Matter protesters had pushed their way into the Capitol building? If you are puzzled let me tell you what would have happened. Every single Black Lives Matter protester would have been jailed, beaten, sprayed with tear gas, shot with rubber bullets in the face or murdered by the police. No police would have been charged with murder.
In 2017, Brando Simeo Starkley wrote an article about when police officers assume the power of a slave master. Starkley shared, A slave master, four centuries ago, could avoid legal sanction for using lethal force against his enslaved property by simply saying the latter opposed correction. “I was disciplining my slave, who then resisted." Utter those magic words and the state would level no punishment if the master committed homicide. A police officer, now, can avoid legal sanction for using lethal force against a person by simply saying the latter made the officer fear for his or her life. “I stopped someone on the street, and I then thought my life was in danger.” Starkley added, "Utter those magic words and the state will level no punishment if the officer commits homicide. Black people, always the victim in the first context, also bear the brunt of these legal realities in the second. Thus, because of these magic words, black people living today, during police encounters, have the same right to life as did a stolen African in the 17th century."
What happens when a young child throws a temper tantrum in a supermarket or at home because they can't get what they want? Most parents will give in, giving the child what they want to silence the screams. Now, what happens when an adult bully doesn't get his way? It's clear by now that the foolish bully screams loudly, rant and tweets day and night instead of doing the job he stole from a more qualified individual. There are twelve ways to spot a fool and some of them may resonate with you:
Always believe they are right and will not receive the counsel of others
Hate accountability, discipline and practical strategies
Love blaming and reject responsibility
Pursue personal ease rather than challenge
Expect you to adapt to them
Reject any instructions
Arrogant and careless, particularly about walking into evil situations
Express frustrations quickly, openly and loudly
Gossip and cut down others
Deceitful and are full of self-deception. Enjoy spreading lies.
Never stop talking about how great they are as a person
Despise listening to anyone that may have a different opinion
In my recent studying of My Grandmother's Hands by Resmaa Menakem, I am learning so much about racialized trauma and the pathways to healing our hearts, bodies and souls. In observing the recent violent activities in Washington, D.C., Menakem explains that "Destruction will continue until Americans learn to heal the generational anguish of white supremacy, which is deeply embedded in all our bodies". He adds, "Our collective agony doesn't just affect African Americans. White Americans suffer their own secondary trauma as well. So do blue Americans-our police." This is a book that I highly recommend to anyone, of any color, wishing to heal from racialized trauma.
Every country is the world is watching the poor leadership of a once great country with disgust. Every country, whether an ally or not, are angry and saddened over the mismanagement of a nation, as well as the hatred and racism that is being encouraged. Like me, many leaders have admitted to not being surprised after observing the mismanagement over the past four years. Remember, over 360,000 Americans have died from COVID under the Trump administration's timeline.
So what's next. It's time for the new administration to take control of the situation. It will not be an easy task to repair all the mismanagement, corruption and deceit. It's time for the new administration to stop playing safely by the rules when you are working with an opposing team that has never played by the rules. They have used every filthy trick in the book to rob its citizens in order to become richer on the backs of poor people. I believe that it's time to take action to prevent this from ever happening again. Although there are only two weeks before there is a new president, the time is long overdue to remove the Fool.
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