Bad Things Can Happen When People Feel Cheated (February/March 2021 | Volume: 66, Issue: 2)

Bad Things Can Happen When People Feel Cheated

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Authors: Amy Denton

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February/March 2021 | Volume 66, Issue 2

What happened at the U.S. Capitol is not surprising. It's sad, disgusting and appalling, but not surprising.

Many Americans believe they have been lied to by the media, and that the good things Donald Trump accomplished have been ignored.

People believe they have been lied to and ignored. They are desperate. They haven't been allowed to work for nine months or more. They haven't been allowed to travel and visit people. And yet, they have their elected officials, who have yet to miss a paycheck, telling them that it was for their own good. How did two weeks to “flatten the curve” turn into nine months of “the cases are increasing!” 

Most of the people who demonstrated at the Capitol were peaceful, the author believes. Photo by Tyler Merbler.
Most of the people who demonstrated at the Capitol were peaceful, the author believes. Photo by Tyler Merbler.

I think these were basically peaceful demonstrations that went wrong. All it takes is a couple of people to start things in the wrong direction. 

This is not any kind of a turning point. It's a momentary aberration. The U.S. has been divided for a very long time. This is nothing new. 

Regardless of President Trump's behavior, he accomplished great things in the last four years.

That is not to say that Trump was totally innocent because he's not. But for four years politicians and the media have been saying what a terrible person he is and how terrible those who support him are. People were allowed to burn and loot cities across the U.S. with impunity and the media said next to nothing. In fact, some cheered the 'protestors' on and said 'Oppression brings about violence.' It certainly did. 

Democracy is messy and when people feel that they've been cheated and ignored, bad things can happen. 

The Trump presidency has not been reported on honestly. There is such a great hatred of the man that anything he has done that was successful, such as the COVID-19 vaccine, will be obscured. To them, he is a terrible person who deserves to be buried. 

That's sad because it completely ignores what the man was able to accomplish. Regardless of his behavior, great things were done. But because they don't like him, they will be ignored.