My Thoughts on the Election: Drowning People Drag You Under

Let me tell you a story.

When I was a little girl, I was invited to a pool party at my classmate's house. It was a birthday party with open pizza boxes, a cake, and a bunch of screaming kids in a fenced-in backyard.

The parents had hired a lifeguard to watch us all, which was smart. Kids ignore safety rules; all it takes is one child gasping for air at the wrong moment for tragedy to strike.

There was another girl in our class. I don't remember her name, but she was very kind and friendly. She was full of smiles and eager to join us at recess, even if she was a little shy in the classroom.

Except for this girl, we were all splashing and playing around in the pool. She was hanging out in the water with her arms wrapped around a floating board to keep her balance. She couldn't swim well, so she needed the help.

I was sitting on the pool's edge, holding on to the ladder, when I noticed something was wrong.

It didn't happen like in the movies; there was no screaming, wild thrashing, or leaping into the air. I just saw her lose her grip on the board, her feet slipping into the pool's deep end, and I saw her panicked face as she went under.

Without thinking, I reached out a hand. I figured that since I was holding on to the ladder, I could pull her over and she could climb out. I underestimated what panic does to a person.

The next thing I knew, I was off the ladder, and my head was under the surface.

She was stronger than I could ever have imagined.

My friend had her arm around my neck, the other hand clawing my swimsuit, looking for something to hang on to. She was pushing me underwater in her blind panic. She was attempting to use me as a floatation device.

I remember that I wasn't really scared at that point; I was a strong swimmer, and I could hold my breath for a while. I wasn't panicking, and I was more concerned about the fact that she was yanking my bathing suit top off in her desperation to survive.

I don't know how long she held me down, but I remember starting to get a little frantic, kicking my feet harder, forcing my head up and fighting with her to try and raise my hand in the air and signal for help.

The lifeguard finally noticed us amidst the splashing and screaming of the other kids, and I saw her leap into the pool.

There was a flurry of bubbles, the world went topsy-turvy, and I found the arm ripped off from around my throat. I was able to kick free, and I took in the deepest gasp of air that I could as soon as my head broke the surface of the water.

I looked up to find my almost-killer being tended to by the adults with a towel around her and a look of horror on her face. She hadn't intended me any harm, and I knew that; she was scared, and I was the nearest port in the storm that she could reach.

She wanted to live, and survival instinct isn't always rational.

I asked her if she was okay, and she finally gave me a tearful smile and a nod. I got out of the pool and took time to shake off my adrenaline before I got back into the water.

I love to swim. Nearly drowning wouldn't keep me out of the water for long.

I'm not telling you this story to brag about saving a life; I didn't. The lifeguard saved us both from drowning that day. My decision to reach out to her instead of screaming to the grown-up for help nearly killed us both.

I tell this story because I learned something that day—something I shouldn't have let myself forget.

People who are desperate to survive will drown everyone else to stay afloat.

Looking around today at what people are saying in the aftermath of the 2024 election, that memory came rushing back to me. All I see are people talking about the economy. They're talking about being unable to afford food or gas, feeling like they're sinking into debt just trying to make ends meet.

They're struggling to keep their heads above water.

Now, let me be absolutely clear: That doesn't excuse this. They voted for fascist authoritarianism in a short-sighted bid to save their own asses, and the fact that they're struggling does not absolve them of that crime.

It damn sure doesn't absolve them of the hatred and prejudice that so many of them have been spouting off at the mouth since he won.

I'm talking about this not to ease their conscience or engender sympathy for them but to highlight what we're up against.

It's the blind, ignorant stampede of a spooked herd of sheep.

These people do not understand the ebb and flow of economic issues.

They have no understanding of the fact that it takes years to build a strong, flourishing economy. The benefits of a strong economy do not come overnight. They think that the economy was previously strong because of Donald Trump.

They're wrong.

Trump's economy was a dumpsterfire. The 'strong economy' of the Trump years was created by policies put in place by President Obama's administration. Trump spent his time in office systematically dismantling it, and letting Covid absolutely ransack what was left.

The bad aspects of the current economy are the leavings of Trump, not a failure on Biden's end. He's actually been trying to fix it this whole fucking time. But they won't hear that. They refuse.

Biden administration bad, Agolf Twitler good!

They're a pack of clueless lemmings chasing each other off a cliff and towing the rest of the world with them.

They're drowning the people who're trying to offer them a hand out of the pool.

I don't know how we can convince these people of the facts at this point. They've been fed so much propaganda and misinformation that they're living in an alternate reality; the land of Alternative Facts.

But it shows us what we're dealing with. As much as we may want to be the hand offering them help to reach the ladder, we have to be careful that they don't drag us under, too.

We can't fix them. We need a functional, effective system that actually makes life better for the people that live within it. So far, all we've done is allow the greed of the rich steer us and strip the ship for parts.

We need a lifeguard, and I'm sorry to say that I doubt Donald Trump can even swim.