Toward a full-fledged UMM welcome picnic

We are seeing the UMM campus come to life again. It's a wonderful annual ritual.
Is a "welcome picnic" being planned again? I just made a cursory check and could not find anything. I believe there was a time when it was called the UMM welcome picnic. Last year it was just "welcome" as if there were throngs of other people we'd be talking about. Who are these throngs? All the well-heeled people who can spend considerable time at their "lake place" in summer? Those are the people, I guess the preponderance of whom are why the summer Prairie Pioneer Days (PPD) was canceled.
How unnecessary and unfortunate. And, it wasn't always like this. I covered PPD for many years with the Morris newspaper, back when the paper had 100 percent more vitality that it has now. I assure you there was no doubt, over a very long time, that PPD could be a total source of joy for the community. I pulled out all stops giving it attention when it was first created.
Certain community advocates decided a shift to the fall was necessary. My response has been: we already have a special fall event with the welcome for UMM, even if "UMM" has been taken out of the name. I have suggested that we could make the UMM welcome event even bigger and better. Be creative. It's fun.
Maybe "UMM" was not acknowledged in the event name because of politics. Today we have a "red state" sense among us that seems to be getting increasingly reactionary. The red state folks see UMM as a place that nurtures future political "liberals." I put "liberals" in quotes because this terminology has became rather like cliches. These are shorthand terms promoted by the reactionary side of the aisle, to at least simplify our thinking if not turn it on its head.
If you point fingers at "liberals," then what in fact are "conservatives?" The self-identifying conservatives of today seem like mutant aberrations of what I remember when I was young. Conservatives are supposed to have a good basic sense of values, a sense of basic right and wrong, a sense of continuity with traditional American values even if that means Democrats are elected to power sometimes.
Democrats are patriots. Hillary Clinton was a patriot, and this is not to suggest I had gushing praise for her. She rubbed me the wrong way, going back to how she wouldn't divorce Bill after Bill's ridiculous misadventures in the White House. Our personal feelings about Hillary - I use the first name to differentiate her from her husband - shouldn't matter much. Hillary as president now would have this nation on a comfortable even keel, keeping our bedrock traditions going.
She would be maintaining our traditional alliances. She would have a basic sense of protocol and temperance. This means she would reserve any raw or disrespectful statements to behind-closed-door discussions. We have a president now who comes right out and calls the chairman of the Federal Reserve "clueless." Don't you all realize how totally unacceptable this is, on the most rudimentary level? Don't you? If not, then what exactly is your problem?
 
Trying to understand
One common interpretation that floats out there, is that Republicans go along with Trump so that conservative judges can be appointed - nothing else matters. This means that only Republicans can get justices appointed to the Supreme Court. Mitch McConnell will not allow any Democratic appointees to even come forward for hearings. He stood in the way of Merrick Garland, a perfectly rational, erudite and civilized person.
McConnell is now quoted saying the Republicans would push through any new nominee, regardless of how close we are to an election. So I guess it's all about "winning." Is this the ethos you really honor when you go to church on Sunday? Is it possible that all the "evangelical" Christians out there are praying for Ruth Bader-Ginsburg to die quickly so Trump can get a new nominee in? They will deny that. But it's true.
So, I guess they want abortion to be outlawed. Except even if it is, well-heeled Republican politicians and their allies will no doubt have a back door way to see they can get an abortion for their mistress. And I suspect the evangelical Christians would only shrug about this. They are just wild-eyed about anything Trump wants to do, and it evokes thoughts of 1932 Germany.
 
The underlying reason?
It's hard to know what's up with our society today, how we got to this place. My theory is this: Russian interference in 2016 actually worked! Russia's place in the world in the face of the stressed Western alliances could be enhanced. None of this happens overnight.
Believe me, there are going to be consequences of the sheer immorality and ignorance of Trump and the people around him. There is no need to feel surprised by any of this - we should have seen it coming. I saw it coming.
Russia's interference was in the form of poisoning our political division and to inflame differences so badly. It was like pouring kerosene on the fire started by the Rush Limbaugh crowd. Limbaugh used to get a lot of attention for saying outrageous things. He gets very little now, because it's the president himself who gets attention for saying outrageous things.
Even Republicans behind closed doors are starting to feel a sense of panic, I feel, and I would assert there are wheels turning for what in effect would be a "coup." I will predict: Trump will leave the presidency because his biggest public supporters will find it essential. There will be a cover story of health issues. Would Trump and his family be relieved of legal liability on various fronts, getting preemptive pardons? That is perhaps the biggest problem.
Republicans and conservatives will find it essential to get the ship righted, if it's not too late, before 2020. But it might be too late.
We may all have to hunker down for some unpleasant times. I'm glad I'm not raising a family today.
So, when the present storm subsides, I predict that the reins of power in our government will be held by: Nikki Haley and Mike Pence. Not sure which would be president, but it wouldn't matter much because they will work in tandem. It will be in the spirit of solving an emergency. They might even decide to do some good things. I hope the "evangelical" Christians approve.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com