Wednesday, June 14, 2017

OpenLetterToTrump

June 14, 2017

Dear President Donald Trump, 

Thank you so much for your speech of today regarding the shooting at various Congressional Republicans in Washington, D.C., of this early morning during a baseball game.

The shooting shocked me and left me very worried about the future of this great country, The United States of America. 

I love deeply America, my adopted country. I care about it as much as, if not more than, my native country. I spent part of my high school years and pursued post-graduate studies here. I met my wife here. My son was born here. I have lived in America for 42 years. I have stakes in this great country. And I want it to continue being great, a beacon and hope of the majority of inhabitants on this planet. 

I thus have serious concerns of your being the leader of America, and the de facto leader of the Free World on account of America being the dominant and influential country in the world today. 

While I recognize several fine qualities you possess (a wonderful father, a fighter, a shrewd businessman, and a leader who inspires loyalty and devotion by your followers), your heated, divisive  rhetoric during the Presidential campaign and after the election has divided and weakened this country at home and emboldened her enemies abroad. The fascist, racist, hate-filled, violent acts by  various "White Supremacist " groups against the Muslims and the Jews, as wells as the increasingly violent confrontations between the those who reflexively support your policies and those who oppose them, have been on the rise. I fear that another civil war is brewing. 

It is my opinion that the deplorable and despicable shooting in Washington, D.C., was a result of your heated, divisive rhetoric. I never condone or accept acts of violence against elected officials. I condemn those acts. Unreservedly. I detest and deplore the display of a bloodied mask bearing your likeness by the comedienne Kathy Griffin, and the current Shakespearean play, "Julius Caesar",  being staged with the assassinated character Caesar being depicted in your image. America is a democracy where Change is effected, brought about by ballots and votes, not by wanton acts of violence to silence the opposition like in other countries. 

President Trump, you are a transformative president. There's no question about that. You are seeking to make America great again and to redress the unfairness practiced in NATO, and trade relations. And I applaud you for these policies. You are truly making history. After you, America will not be the same. The country is going to be better or worse. The choice is up to you. You have the power. You have the means. However, if I may humbly say this, you ought to recognize that your words and acts do have grave consequences. Many people look up to you and take your words at face value and act upon them. You now represent all the people in America, not just those who voted for you. 

I dearly hope that the deplorable shooting incident today would trigger a change in your rhetoric and approach to governance. I dearly wish that you will find ways to bring all the citizens of this great country together. Your task as the President would be more effective if you are perceived as an Unifier, not a Divider.  

Love changes and transforms people. Hate only solidifies, intensifies, and perpetuates the status quo of the relationship. Truly great and inspiring men in history were men of Peace and Love, not Hate and Violence. We are affected and inspired by Buddha, Jesus, and Martin Luther King; not by the likes of Attila the Hun, Stalin, and Mao. 

Respectfully yours, 

Roberto Wissai

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