How Trump-ism is damaging us locally, yes

As a young adult I read about the labor/management conflicts that seemed far worse than what I see in the news today. People my age remember the coverage of the Hormel strike in Austin MN, 1985. Disinterested observers had to be troubled by the sheer intensity of the conflict. The gravity of the whole matter led to a musical production called "Spamtown, USA." 

I am thinking about this today because of the kind of political polarization we are seeing. In other words, people find it impossible to find middle ground on certain matters. No ability to relax and try to at least understand the other side. So I'm listening to the Rich Valdés show on WDAY Radio the other night. It is an absolutely boilerplate radio talk show catering to people who call themselves "conservative." 

It is so pathetic with its predictability. The show host himself certainly knows that the topics on his show ought to get more nuanced treatment. 

"Conservatives" across America have begun clamoring for cars to continue to be made that have AM radio. I don't know how much the rank-and-file people really care. But the yapping dogs of conservative media have decided this ought to be a flashpoint. With satellite radio having drawn away many of the more educated listeners, what we have left are the people who might be termed "yahoos." I have written before that these people have signed up for a "tribe." 

How costly might this be for our quality of life? How much might this impact us right here in West Central Minnesota? 

We have an institution called University of Minnesota-Morris. The less sophisticated people are expected to describe it as "woke," to not exactly be fans of the place. And I don't care what our local politicos might say publicly - people like Torrey Westrom are probably inclined to talk up the place - but I'm sure he harbors grave skepticism over the "woke" image and woke practices. 

Do I care about such practices? Hell no. I might have felt at one time that UMM went too far out of its way to advocate for gay rights. To clarify, I sensed that change was coming anyway, thus no need for us to really stick our necks out. Because in the short term, the advocacy was going to rub a lot of the locals the wrong way. Which it did.  

Look how the Hancock community supported Donald Trump in 2016. Look how we were willing to elect Michelle Fischbach, who catered to the least common denominator by voting against certifying the 2020 election results. She refuses to answer my inquiry about this today. Does she still stand by her words of Jan. 6? 

Would rejection of the voting results have thrown this country into incredible crisis, perhaps giving Trump an avenue tor establishing autocratic leadership? To establish in effect a ruling royal family? How could even the "yahoos" be good with that? 

How has the Trump brand of "conservatism" affected UMM? I put "conservatism" in quotes because in these references, I would distinguish it from true conservatism which I actually respect. Conservatives ought to play a very important role in our political process. 

The Trump storm will not pass. It hovers over us daily. And in the meantime we can only pray that UMM will right its ship and become most viable again. Its enrollment challenges are what prompted Steve Sviggum to utter his comments that were at the very least inartful. 

I had the great pleasure on Tuesday of having coffee with the new UMM chancellor, Janet Schrunk Ericksen. A very impressive person obviously. I ran by her a comment I had been told from a well-known UMM instructor/author recently. I encounter this fellow at Caribou Coffee from time to time. We sit in the Willie's Cafe area. 

I tossed out to Michael Lackey the subject of UMM's enrollment deficiency - the troubling downward slope. He sure answered my question, succinctly. "Trump got rid of the foreign students and that was our cash cow." 

That make you feel happy, all the legions of Trump supporters? Or should I say Trump worshipers? They would claim not to read this blog but if they did, they'd respond with ad hominem attacks. Quite par for the course. I might respond "it's your funeral." 

We all depend on a viable U of M-Morris. This community fought hard to get the University branch here. An existential dilemma now? Well who knows. I met with Chancellor Ericksen along with Erin Christensen at Common Cup on Tuesday. I relayed the quote from Mr. Lackey to Ericksen. She had a succinct response. She basically said it was true. So, "Trump got rid of the foreign students and that was our cash cow." 

You all appreciate money, don't you, all you Trump supporters, extreme "conservatives" or however you fancy yourselves? You are all in your corner, listening to your tribe, getting reinforced by your own kind so you can feel settled in with life. Is fear the basis? A sociologist would understand. 

The Rich Valdés talk show on WDAY-Fargo is classic for being predictable along reactionary lines. Just as with the Hormel strike of the 1980s: there was a side that saw black and white with nothing in between. There was right and there was wrong, period. It's easy on the brain, just get one side reinforced, nod along. 

(Westwood One image)

So last night Valdés was on the subject of Adam Schiff. You know how that went. The constant theme of such talk shows, the kind that project from AM car radios, is: "Republicans are good, heroic, even valiant, our heroes." And the Democrats are hopeless ignorant bad people, all the time. 

The talk influences a pretty wide swath of the population, gets them into a particular corner. They all get behind Trump no matter what he has been found to have done. 

Boggles my mind, even though I have come to understand this is the norm. I awake in the morning and it's more of same. Ben Shapiro, Mark Levin et al. It drones. 

And to what extent might Trump be damaging our interests here in Morris? It's in a dollars-and-cents way, you know. Janet Schrunk Ericksen confirmed Mr. Lackey's assertion. 

May I share further confirmation? A friend did this for me. He located an article from Forbes from July 7, 2020. The remainder of this post will share from the article. Thanks for reading. I suppose the only people who are reading this far in, are those souls who are willing to listen to my claims. I have lost friendships over these matters, very sad. The headline for what I share below was "Trump speeds up plans to force foreign students, others out of U.S."

Real positive, eh?

 

Faced with the prospect of losing the power to make immigration policy after the November 2020 presidential election, Trump administration officials are speeding up efforts to force foreign nationals to leave the United States, including a new policy that could push out many international students. The latest policy should be seen in the context of the June 22, 2020, presidential proclamation that blocked the entry of foreign-born professionals and encouraged them to depart the country by preventing the entry of many family members. The proclamation also included a plan, if implemented, that could drive many long-time H-1B visa holders out of America.

On July 6, 2020, the Trump administration announced that international students at U.S. universities “operating entirely online may not take a full online course load and remain in the United States,” according to the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP). “The U.S. Department of State will not issue visas to students enrolled in schools and/or programs that are fully online for the fall semester nor will U.S. Customs and Border Protection permit these students to enter the United States. Active students currently in the United States enrolled in such programs must depart the country or take other measures, such as transferring to a school with in-person instruction to remain in lawful status. If not, they may face immigration consequences including, but not limited to, the initiation of removal proceedings.” (Emphasis in original.)

The announcement sent shockwaves through U.S. universities, many of which decided for health and safety reasons to offer classes exclusively online in the fall. Public universities facing state budget crises already expected to be harmed financially by the near absence of new international students, who often pay full tuition. Administration policies that may drive out existing international students as well will be a further financial blow and are likely to crush the dreams of many students, note analysts.

“By not allowing continuing international students who are studying at institutions that make the decision to continue with online classes, rather than moving to in-person or hybrid models, SEVP has made it more difficult for both these students and institutions. This is very unfortunate,” said Miriam Feldblum, executive director of the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, in an interview. She recommends the administration, at minimum, to continue the current flexibility from the spring on allowing all online classes, which was extended into the summer. Feldblum would also like to see online fall semester enrollment count towards eligibility to participate in Curricular Practical Training (CPT).

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com