by: Marceline Donaldson

Everytime I hear reference to Joe Biden’s age, I cringe. Why? Because I am older than President Biden – now 85 years old – and functioning with no problems.

Amazingly, I know lots of people much younger who are not functioning as well. However, comments would be made to take me down as well as Biden because of age. Somehow, over a certain age your accomplishments and your future are tainted with the same bigotry I have experienced all of my life as an African American/New Orleans Creole woman. This kind of bigotry may be new to Biden since he is a white male – however, he probably experienced some of it because he is a white Irish male.

Growing up in New Orleans, there was extensive prejudice against the Irish.There was that same bigotry across the United States. Some areas worse than others. Now living in the Greater Boston area, its history was also one in which “Irish need not apply.” In some areas where white Irish single women were not available, the white Irish single men looked for Native American and African American women as wives. That shows clearly in their progeny.

In New Orleans, amongst Black women it was stylist to have your hair dyed with streaks of red. That style came from how attractive the mixed Irish/Black children looked – they came out with black hair with streaks of red – or dark skin with red hair – or etc.

Now, Biden must endure, with all the politeness he has shown throughout his life, this new bigotry aimed at that kind of “kill me with racist remarks wrapped in demeaning intentional put down comments using my age” and then deny that is the intent of the remarks. Comments like – “Wow, he will be 86 when he finishes his second term”. What does that mean? It is a very, very bigoted comment and we make that plus others with no problems, in spite of the fact that today we have a problem with anyone using the “N” word. How is using the “old” word any different? The media regularly asks “isn’t he too old to run for a second term.” There needs to be a Court where one can turn to bring a law suit against such attitude and actions. Joe Biden seems quite fit to run for whichever office he chooses. He has the background and has shown his competency. None of what he has done stops the media and others from questioning his fitness for the job of President. He has performed marvelously well – so why would his age matter? Others have said the same thing only with the take line – she pas performed marvelously well – so why would her race and sex matter?

I certainly don’t want to be judged by my age. We take care of friends much younger who can’t take care of themselves, however, the negative “old” comments are not directed at or to them and their deficiencies and their physical problems – they would be directed at me. “Wow, how can you do the things you do at your age.” Same kind of remarks I used to get – “Wow, how could you have achieved what you did as a black woman?”

When are we going to stop judging people by standards which make us feel “better than” and start giving people credit for who they are with their physical attributes not at all considered – who they have sex with irrelevant – how “well” they function as “old” people a disgusting comment in the same category as the “N” word comments?

When we talk about Joe Biden’s age we have no boundaries. There is nothing which keeps us back. If we talked about the color of a persons’ skin in relation to their ability to function the reporter who made such comments would be out of a job or worse.

It is time to hold up those who are doing this and promoting this bit of bigotry and to call it what it is. Anyone doing this is, no doubt, doing the racist bit, the sexist bit, etc. etc.

STOP IT! Try talking about Joseph Biden in terms of his accomplishments not his age.

We have not written anything about Donald Trump for quite some time. So many others picked up the cudgel that we didn’t see where we had anything different to say.

Today, however, as we read, listen to and take in the past, what seems to us most important about Trump is being totally ignored.

Where and with whom did this man absorb the lessons of life he is now showing he accepted and is living?

One might legitimately and seriously ask the question, is his an example of the billionaire group in this society? Those who can cross the line from legal to incredibly foul, living without retribution? Taking advantage of those who go along to get along and who become successful by just either keeping quiet or seeing where they can support without losing, but gaining.

Trump is certainly the poster boy, leading and taking advantage of that group. When he is served by the law – today with these transgressions; in the past with the school he establish;and so much more that cost the public millions – where do they find him? Mar-a-Lago? His Bedminster cottage by the pool or by the water? His condo on Fifth Avenue in New York surrounded by those who wait on him hand and foot and are very skilled at saying “yes sir”?

And after he is served to appear in Court charged with incredible violations of every good, lots of ugly things are said about him, but who is appointed as judge to sit in judgment on Donald Trump in these instances? Judge Aileen Cannon – the woman who showed her own depravity and inability to do her job as judge where Trump is concerned. If the past is prologue she is not capable of seeing anything or doing anything about Trump except exonerate him. If he were a part of Middle-Class America, would these things be true and have happened? Would such a judge be sitting on the bench for one of them?

From where did Trump’s money come? – His grandfather who came to the United States from Germany and made enough to have a hotel and more. What did he do to gain that kind of fortune? Used women as prostitutes and he collected from their work. Does that give you some idea as to where Trump’s sexual abuse, disrespect, alleged rape, etc. of women comes from? Does it tell you the genesis of Trump’s profound disrespect of women and how he will use them? He was trained into such behavior at home.

And then we go through another generation – Trump’s father who reportedly left Trump some $250 million dollars. Check out his history and the lessons Trump would have learned at his feet!!!! Not the least of which would have been Trump’s bigotry! Trump’s inheritance was more than money and property. Not all children with such ancestors hew to the lessons learned at their ancestors feet – not all of Trump’s family have lived their lives in the way they were raised. Trump, however, seems to have not moved away from one wrong step in his growing up days.

And then Trump, living in Queens, New York is picked up and moved to Manhattan by his mentor – Roy Cohn. A man, a lawyer, who defended mafia figures and, it is said, lived like them and had their morals. When they died he became their memorial and worse.

Trump also became who he is today, his “finishing school” was under Roy Cohn. He showed how committed he is to the sin, corruption, ugliness to others, here for the money and nothing else, by the way he treated his mentor. Roy Cohn was the love of Trump’s life until Cohn ran into trouble at the end of his life and slid far down from where and who he was during livelier times. The man who helped to create a monster was abandoned by that monster he created. When Cohn most needed his friends some were there, but the one who was not was the one Cohn had done the most for and on whom he left his stamp – Donald J. Trump.

At the end of Cohn’s life when he was sick, in need of money, etc. who was among the missing ? When Cohn died who arrived at the Synagogue from which he was buried stayed a couple minutes in the back and then left? Guess who!

What we need to recognize and take in are those today supporting Trump. Going through his followers, try eliminating those who are mafia! The number of his followers then drops significantly. The United States has a far flung, large, mafia group. Not just the leaders whose names we know, but those who are involved under the leadership and on the periphery – they have family members committed to the mafia; they are on the sidelines doing a little bit here and there on the wrong side of the line which separates the legitimate from those who cross that line with no thoughts about right or wrong. Eliminate those from Trump’s following and the numbers drop even more dramatically – OH!!! – and lets not forget those who are paid to appear and act like Trump supporters. It is acknowledged there were many when Trump came down the escalator. It would have been a small, sad and lonely group without those paid to look as though they were Trump supporters. Don’t forget to eliminate those. AND don’t forget the wannabe’s here today and gone tomorrow! They come in for some recognition and enlarge the group of Trump supporters.

It is time we in these United States look with clear eyes at our fellow citizens and recognize them for who they are. There are many good, law abiding, gracious, loving, caring people. There are also, unfortunately, the group described above and they are well into the tens of millions.

May God open our eyes to the truth of what surrounds us and give us the stamina, the love of justice, the caring to be able to live without all the games which allows the Donald Trump’s of the world to gain the ascendency.