The Choice for Voters

Had to post something on October 25, since it’s this blog’s patron day. Here goes.

Many citizens are voting, not for Joe Biden, but against Donald Trump, and, more to the point, those who control him. The converse is true. They may rue the day.

Unfortunately, a lot of that mindset occur because so many of us most of us make choices based upon appearances, not substance. That is what we have to be concerned with in this coming election. Yes, Donald Trump can be rude, crude, and use bad grammar, but he has led in cutting taxes for all of us, reduced foolish (except for sponsoring special interests) and needless regulations, helped bring manufacturing jobs back from elsewhere offshore, and appointed excellent federal judges and Supreme Court Justices. His brokerage of normalization of relationships between Israel and some of its Arab neighbors should have earned him a Nobel Peace Prize, as similar achievements did for Jimmy Carter. It would have if he was anyone else.

For those who may disagree and favor voting for Joe Biden should consider the following points:

— Biden says he won’t raise taxes on middle class Americans. Maybe he would not, but a Democrat controlled Congress would, and he would let it. “Soaking the rich” never has worked, but it makes for a slogan to fool the uninformed. The rich don’t pile up their wealth in a money bin like Disney’s comic book character Uncle Scrooge. They invest it in productive, job creating activities. The middle class, and the poor, will pay through higher cost of goods and services and diminution of their IRA and 401k values.

— As for climate change, that is not the only area where the left-wing over-uses “existential” (Soren Kierkegaard would be appalled) but is the most. The phenomenon may be troublesome, but it won’t end human existence. To the extent it is human caused, the United States contributes a very small percentage of the emission that might be causing it. Biden says he wants to eliminate fossil fuels in the next decade or so, but he claims he won’t ban fracking, which produces much cleaner-burning natural gas. Anyway, Biden will allow a Democrat controlled Congress to try banning fracking and reduce petroleum production. Wind and solar will never take the place of fossil fuels for many energy purposes. Take air travel, for example. Given the current state of the physical sciences, it’s not even theoretically possible for any except a small model airplane to fly on electric power. The weight of batteries or size of solar panels would be prohibitive, as would a nuclear reactor, for that matter. The current breed of Democrats will also ban or reduce nuclear power, which it the only possible source of energy that could replace fossil fuels for widespread use — and it has zero emissions. (OK, radiation from accidents is a risk, but mostly in the mind of fans of 1950s dystopian movies. That is where safety regulations are needed, and are mostly in place. The only serious nuclear reactor accident in the 60 or so years they have been only was contained within the plant — the safety features worked!)

— Apropos to the last point, Biden and others of his mindset keep using the phrase “follow the science.” Well they should, realizing that “settled science” is an oxymoron. Free scientific inquiry? The first word is redundant, opined a famous author. Science is an ongoing process, not an orthodox shibboleth. Rigorous observation, testing, and analysis produce scientific theories are reliable when describing what and how something happened, or is happening. It cannot always predict the future, particularly when there can be, or are, an infinite number of factors that have to be considered, and no way to perform empirical tests. Dissenter scientists were once burned at the stake as witches. Today they are Twitterized, fired, shunned, or slandered.

— On the issue of labor law, Biden wants to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour, abolish state right-to-work laws and eliminate the possibility of individuals to work independently and start small businesses. A minimum wage eliminates jobs, especially for unskilled entry level positions. Furthermore, it should be a state, not a national issue. Here’s is a link to a Wall Street Journal editorial October 23 that reveals a really dystopian vision. I am all for labor unions so long as their membership is actually voluntary. When it is coerced, the main beneficiaries are the union bosses. We learned that several generations ago. Also, curtailing gig jobs and making independent contractors become employees in all but a few industries (lawyers, for example) will stifle entrepreneurship. Many workers don’t want to be employees; they like the freedom of independence in their work. These are the primary reasons to keep Trump in office and at least a Republican Senate for another four years.

— Most of the articulated con arguments focus on the charges that Trump is a racist, misogynist, neo-Nazi sympathizer, and authoritarian. There is no evidence he is any or these. “Racist” has become an all-purpose epithet to shut down opposing views— on nearly any issue. Show me a racist act that Trump has committed. To the extent that Trump might have been a womanizer and even a philanderer, that is not synonymous with misogyny. He certainly does not advocate women having to wear burqas or hajibs, and he hasn’t drowned a paramour. Just because some neo-Nazi and others of that ilk like Trump, doesn’t mean he likes or supports them. And while, Biden and most of his supporters don’t approve of burning and looting, many are loathe to say so in public. As for being authoritarian, there is absolutely no evidence Trump is one. He might demand loyalty from those who work for him and within his branch of government, but as to the nation, he has been anti-authoritarian. He obviously believes in federalism — criticism of state and local officials is not out of bounds for anyone, much less a President. Some fool writer in the current edition of The Atlantic has opined that Trump is an American Caudillo. That is preposterous.

If one really wants to see an authoritarian government in this country. By all means vote for Biden. He might not last out his term and, anyway, the triumvirate of Harris, Pelosi, and Schumer (if the Senate falls) will demonstrate what authoritarianism really is. (I use that collective noun advisedly considering the sex of two of the three members.)

Finally, for those who dislike Trump for his manners or persona consider this observation: “I would rather have a good doctor with a poor bedside manner than a bad doctor with a good bedside manner.”

I invite dissent to my points, public or private.