October 2020 – Straight Out of Left Field

So Many Emotions

As I write this, we are exactly two weeks from Election Day. So, how am I feeling? Let’s start with scared to death. That’s not to say I don’t think Biden will win. I do, but everyone knows Trump will try anything and everything to steal this election. I’m scared because of the inevitable comparisons to 2016. Yes, two weeks prior to that election, Hillary was ahead, but there are several differences between now and then. I’ll list those shortly. I’m scared because there is a large segment of closet Trump voters in our country. Those are the folks who just don’t feel like telling a pollster that they want four more years of bigotry in the White House.

I’m also excited. Why? Well, I honestly believe we’ll have a pretty good idea by the first minutes of November 4th who won. There won’t be a definitive call, but most of us will go to bed that night either very happy or deeply worried and thinking of where in Canada we’d like to move. Joe Biden isn’t Hillary Clinton. He is well-liked and respected, even by some moderate Republicans. Hillary, unfairly I believe, was disliked, even by many Democrats. I’m excited because I truly believe Biden’s lead both nationally and in the battleground states is more real than Hillary’s turned out to be.

So, yes, I’m scared, excited, optimistic, pessimistic, anxious, nervous, and a little gassy, at times. I think what I’m experiencing is the same as most Americans. This election is about more than who will take the oath of office on January 21st. It’s about what kind of nation we’ll be. If Trump wins, and I’m biting my tongue as I write that, the United States will cease to be a Democratic-Republic. (By the way, we are a Democratic-Republic and not a true Democracy) We will become an authoritarian country. Would you like to know a few current members of the authoritarian club? I thought you might. How about North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Russia? What do those all have in common? Their leaders are good buddies with Trump. He’d rather be part of their club than the United Nations or NATO.

The question I’ve been grappling with is how do I handle all those emotions. I’m still trying to figure it out. Life is hard enough these days without the hurricane of emotions I’m feeling. Maybe you have some advice for me, but chances are you’re trying to figure it out, too.

As promised, here are a few reasons why I don’t think 2020 will be like 2016.

There are far more mail-in ballots being submitted than in 2016, and the vast majority of those ballots are being sent by Democrats.
In 2016, Donald Trump was an idea. “Hey, let’s try a businessman who’s not a politician. What do we have to lose?” Now, Trump has a record and the majority of Americans don’t like it. We’ve also learned that he’s a failed businessman.
As I mentioned earlier, Hillary was a deeply unpopular candidate. 20% of voters prior to the 2016 election said they didn’t like either candidate. The strong majority of those folks wound up voting for Trump, especially after Comey announced the re-opening of the investigation into Hillary’s emails. Now, only 7% say they don’t like either candidate, and the majority of those are breaking towards Biden.

I hope I’m right. You should hope I’m right. The country should hope I’m right. The world should hope I’m right. (You knew that’s where I was heading with that, didn’t you?)

TWO WEEKS!

To contact me, please email at mogulnick@gmail.com

I’m Back, Baby!

It has been a few years since I last blogged. So, what convinced me to start Straight Out of Left Field again? A couple of things. First, the biggest election of our lifetimes is just a few weeks away. Second, and most importantly, I noticed a lot of people came across this blog and actually liked it. It made me realize that I have something of value to share. I am making one change to this blog. While it will still strongly focus on politics, I will also write about me and the experiences I face on a daily basis.

Like millions of Americans, I have clinical depression. Setbacks that would normally just annoy others send me into a spiral. As you might expect, 2020 has kicked me in the gut, repeatedly. COVID has certainly dominated my life, just as it has yours, but that’s not all. I have not had a full-time job in over a year. Talk about a feeling of worthlessness. Also, I spent four early July days in the hospital with Steroid Psychosis. I was prescribed steroids for a minor procedure and my body and mind didn’t like it one bit. In fact, my mind decided to take a few days off. I couldn’t remember the names of my two sons and didn’t know what month it was. For someone who spends way too much time thinking, not being able to was incredibly frightening. The one question I was able to answer…who is the President? I not only knew the answer, but I was really pissed off at the question. My mood was already horrible and that question made it worse.

I want this blog to become a meeting place for those who have concerns or fears they need to express. My goal is to create a community for anyone who needs to feel a sense of belonging. With that, I turn to politics.

Too much has happened for me to recap. You all know what a mess Trump has made of everything. He’s not just the worst President we’ve ever had. He’s the worst person ever to hold elected office in our country. Donald J. Trump is simply every villain in every movie about someone trying to take over the world.

Joe Biden will be the 46th President of the United States unless Putin decides to fly to the States and visit various battlegrounds, such as Pennsylvania and Florida. If this election is fair, and all the ballots are counted, Biden will win in a landslide. I do not believe Joe Biden is the next coming of Abraham Lincoln or even Barack Obama. What I do believe is Biden will be an effective and transitional President, who will guide us back to a sense of normalcy. After what we’ve all experienced, that sounds wonderful!

As I write this, we are four weeks away from the Election and the nation is still swimming in COVID. 30 minutes ago, I received a text from my wife, an amazing Kindergarten teacher, telling me that someone at her school tested positive for the virus. I’m scared. My wife is not only a gifted teacher, she keeps our family afloat. No, it’s true. I contribute very little outside of the occasional dad joke. My wife is the Michael Jordan of this family. My sons are Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant. I’m Luc Longley. Oh, and my dog is Dennis Rodman, especially if Rodman was addicted to dog treats and still had accidents on the carpet every so often. My wife’s health is paramount and knowing someone at her school has COVID brings the virus a little closer to home.

I live in Flower Mound, Texas. Dallas is blue but FloMo is apple red. A local dog groomer has a sign on their door that reads “No mask required. We’re not drinking the Kool-Aid”. In a place like this, they’ve probably gained business. In future blogs, I’ll go more into detail about how I feel about mask-deniers and cultist Trump supporters. For now, I’ll end by saying…Screw ’em!