Hecklers at Trump's arraignment have a lesson for us all
The scene outside the Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday was a circus, just as everyone expected. As Trump glumly listened to his arraignment inside, crowds raged outside.
“Trump supporters and anti-Trump protesters are separated by metal barriers and heckling each other,” according to a video posted by a journalist on scene.
That’s right. Hundreds of Americans, in the middle of a workday, stood about 10 feet apart to yell at each other for a few hours.
Don’t any of these people have jobs?
Strangers yelled at strangers, to no effect
The reporter also highlighted characters in the crowd, including Trump and Biden impersonators, the Naked Cowboy and “an absolutely bonkers media scrum.”
That media scrum broadcasted all three rings live to an attentive cable news audience.
Legal analysts left, right and center wondered why District Attorney Alvin Bragg even brought the weak case and doubted much would come of it.
But the circus is good for ratings and political fundraising. So, on it goes.
Much like the sidewalk outside the courtroom, strangers yelled at strangers on social media, all to zero effect outside of increasing users’ blood pressure and self-induced misery.
The real world has real problems to fix
Back in the real world, things aren’t going well.
Inflation continues and recession is likely. We’re $31 trillion in debt. Military threats are rising from China, Russia and other hostile powers.
Only 19% of Americans are satisfied with the way things are going. At least we can still yell at strangers about politicians who don’t even know we exist.
Let’s face it: few leaders in D.C. want to put in the work to fix our problems.
No one wants to calm the waters. The political class is content with ratcheting up the divisions until it all breaks apart. This isn’t some grand conspiracy; modern politicians are too incompetent to launch one.
Instead, they’re hyperfocused on winning today’s news cycle and the next election. A few bold visionaries look all the way to the election after that, but little thought is given to the long-term implications for the country.
They want us to keep yelling at each other. It’s a luxury we can’t afford.
No politician is coming to save you
It’s more obvious than ever that no one is coming to save you. No candidate, no party, no movement. You need to save yourself.
Schedule time away from screens and with family, friends and neighbors. Read a book instead of scrolling on your smartphone. Enjoy some silence.
You don’t need to avoid all politics; that’s counterproductive. But most of the news cycle is nonsense. Separate the signal from the noise.
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Volunteering for a school board candidate accomplishes a lot more than yelling at strangers outside a courthouse. Those mobs in Manhattan had no effect on what happened inside the courtroom.
Politics won’t save you, but communities can.
Get involved. Be the change yourselves
Get involved with neighbors and local groups. Many small businesses only survive by working together and building support communities with their customers. (You might even get some free food out of the deal.)
None of the above is an “End Is Nigh” screed. We’ve all seen it worsen for many years and its futility more obvious every day.
As I’ve made several of these adjustments over the past decade, I’ve noticed that I’m happier, freer and have far more opportunities to help others. No one in politics, tech or big business notices, which is just how I like it.
America is made great from the bottom up, not the top down. And while politicos in Washington and New York City are distracted by self-destructive turf battles, We The People can get a heck of a lot done.
Certainly more than those hecklers in Manhattan.
Jon Gabriel, a Mesa resident, is editor-in-chief of Ricochet.com and a contributor to The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. On Twitter: @exjon.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Trump indictment protesters have an important lesson for us all
