The problem is not just Trump

Sam Smith – Our problem is not just that Trump is our president but also a lying, manipulating, self-absorbed convicted felon. Part of our problem is how did this happen?

There are a few factors we don’t deal with enough. The first being the role of various media in creating our presumed realty. A recent report by Pew Research Center found that 56% of American adults get their news mainly from digital devices. Only 32% use TV and 11% radio. And the once major source  of news – i.e. newspapers and magazines – only get 7% of the public’s attention.

Given the vast difference in standards between, say, a biased internet news site and the New York Times it is not hard to see how the effect of news has changed with time.

Another major factor that hardly gets discussed is the relationship of community in our society.  If you examine the culture of media, education, and business there is little doubt that priority is given to individual achievement and power over what we can do together. We are trained, publicized and taught by standards that emphasize individual skills, while what we can learn and do about community, joint action and common goals is quietly ignored.

It doesn’t have to be this way. In fact, I was just wrestling with this matter when I got an email from a school one of my sons had gone to and enjoyed. The front page headline said “THE POWER OF COMMUNITY. MARET ANNUAL FUND.” and I realized I had never seen a pitch for a school fund that had emphasized community.

When I look back over my life, I realize I was blessed with learning that whatever skills or wisdom came my way they were to be shared and learned with others. With five siblings around you, going to a Quaker high school, serving as a white activist in a majority black city, playing in a jazz band where you had solos but most of the time were backing someone up, serving on a Coast Guard cutter where everyone depended on everyone else, and helping to start groups that could turn personal ideas into something with some collective power …. With all this I learned to be part of a community and to respect and admire the power of joint effort.

These are just two examples of how our culture – with its emphasis on individual publicity and power  – has not only failed to serve us as well as  been often claimed but has created the likes of Donald Trump.