No Means No, Right? by Art Smukler, MD, author & psychiatrist

When your child runs out in a busy street, we emphatically say, no! That’s dangerous! A car can hit you. Don’t do that.

If it happens again, we don’t let go of our little one’s hand. We can’t allow someone we love to be injured, or worse.

If we love our country, we expect the justice system to do the same, to protect us. And most of the time they do. Dozens of people who attacked our capital are in prison.

If you threaten President Biden, and encourage your followers to rise up against him, you need to be stopped.

Why are our judges and even the attorney-general not stopping Trump? He’s attacking every fabric of our society. They know that if you say no, you must act on it. If you break the law there are consequences. If you don’t back up the law with reasonable action, people will continue to act out. In Los Angeles when the laws for how much you can steal without being put in prison was lowered, there was a rash of smash-and-grabs, until a special police force was set up.

Letting our ex-president threaten our society isn’t helping anyone. If anything it’s encouraging more and more outlandish anti-societal behavior. If the ex-leader of the free world can do it, why can’t we?

Judges, administrators, leaders, do your job. Free speech doesn’t mean continual lying and encouraging insurrection. Right?

Happy Reading, Art

#smash&grabs, #settinglimits, #raisingchildren, #protecting society

Battered Republican Syndrome, by Art Smukler, MD, author and psychiatrist

Ever hear of battered Republican syndrome?

Probably not, because I just thought of it after reading how Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said that she could never support Trump and how sorry she is that her party supports him.

All of the Republicans in congress, except the seven who voted to impeach Trump, are his frightened slaves. Doesn’t it resemble what it must be like for a battered wife who refuses to call the authorities even after her sadistic, power hungry husband beats the hell out of her for the tenth time? Maybe, a small maybe at that, can turn her around after the bully beats up her kids.

Well, let’s think about it. Isn’t the batterer, Trump in this case, encouraging his followers to disparage war heroes, make fun of the impaired, laugh at stutterers, lie, not pay bills, abuse women sexually, and do all the things that you’ve taught your children not to do.

He’s not only attacking your values and your children’s values but threatening to imprison anyone who disagrees with him.

Or maybe Trump’s values are your values?

If so, then you’re probably not even reading this.

Happy Reading,

Art

#Trumpthebatterer, #batteredwifesyndrome, #Lisamurkowski, #batterers, #bullies