Let’s go back a few years, just a few. I am not here to rehash racism throughout America’s history, just a few years back please.

Can you remember 2014? This was before Donald Trump announced from the escalator that he was running for president. And, for all intents and purposes that he was a racist.

In 2014, as had been the case for many years, Democrats were condemning racism in all forms. You know who else condemned it? Republicans. At least outwardly. Republicans have consistently been cited in polls as believing that enough has been done for the African-American community. Back in 2009 26% of Republicans believed that more needed to be done. In 2014 that had decreased to 14% but was on the rise from it’s low just a couple of years earlier. Again, though, outwardly the Republicans were saying the right thing, “Racism is bad”.

So where did that leave all the racists? They didn’t believe they had a party that cared about their values. The Democrats pushed equality, the Republicans went along. Who should this segment of the population believe in. Racism was closeted, locked away in small rooms and dark alleys. You couldn’t proudly celebrate your racists views without getting kicked back to the cave. This rather large group of Americans needed an outlet. They needed someone to say it was alright to be who you are. After all it is the right of every American to fight and vote for their beliefs. In the mainstream media there was no one advocating for this group. No spokesman that would open the closet doors. No one to shed light on the plight of these suppressed citizens!

Then came Donald Trump. From his ivory tower, from the top of that escalator, their savior appeared. He fed their anger. He fed their fear. He fed them their desserts! They could finally bare their souls and be the Americans they wanted to be. It became okay to denigrate other citizens and immigrants. After all if you weren’t white and American you didn’t really belong here.

As we head into the 2020 elections we see more and more of this feeding of the racist community. We hear the words and see the actions and feel the hate. This is a large segment of our population that had been secreted behind a veil for many years. The veil has been pulled aside and our country has to find a way to deal with the issue. We are not going to change their views overnight. Not even the last two and half years have proved helpful. In fact the rhetoric has become louder and stronger as the campaign begins in earnest.

“These four congresswomen detest America as it exists, as it is currently constructed. They want to tear down the structure of our country. They want us to be a socialist, open borders country,” said White House adviser Stephen Miller.

What can we do? We can work harder than ever to change our history. Sweep away the layer of dust clouding our politics. Redirect our country to a new and better way.

VOTE! Talk to everyone you know. There are good people out there that are standing on the sidelines. Preach if you have to. We may not have another chance!

I spent the last five days in one of my favorites places and where we will probably spend most of our retirement years, Florence, Oregon. It’s a wonderful location on the central coast of Oregon with rivers and lakes and sand dunes and beaches. The trip was magnificent except for one problem. We flew.

It’s not the flying that is so bad, it’s the way the airlines try to squeeze every last dollar of you. I understand I chose the economy basic tickets. I knew the restrictions. No refunds, no changes, no seat selection, no baggage (without a fee). What changed from last time was that with this fare you aren’t even allowed a regular carry on, only a personal item that would fit under the seat in front of you. This along with no leg room for someone six feet two inches tall.

No baggage was okay. My wife and sister-in-law were on a road trip visiting friends and relatives up the California and Oregon coasts so my brother-in-law and I flew up to meet them in Oregon. We send our small bags with them.

The biggest problem was that the airline (I won’t name it but the initials are UA) punishes you for not checking bags! I went on line twenty fours hours before the flight only to find out that if you do not check (and pay for) bags you cannot check in until you get to the airport. The website and the app both have you go through the entire process only to say at the end that you have to see an agent or the kiosk at the airport to complete check in. That means that you will always be in the last group to board.

So, we get to the airport early for our flight, find a kiosk, enter all our information and because we are not checking bags a representative from UA has to come over and approve our check in. This took longer that walking up to the counter and checking in.

I could go on about the food(?) and the leg room and the width of the seats but that is normal everyday crap in the airline industry. But this punishment for not spending more money is uncalled for. I would consider it to be elitist.

Oh, and one more thing; on one leg a the journey the plane was rather empty. So empty in fact that the exit rows were completely unoccupied. I was just about to ask if I could sit in one (wanted the extra leg room) when the attendants announced that if some one wanted to move to one of the empty seats they would be happy to accommodate the passenger. AS LONG AS THEY PAID THE UPCHARGE FEE! No one was going to use those seats anyway!

All in all the flights were fine. But I will be looking for an alternative airline for our next trip up there. SW doesn’t fly there, and the only direct flights are at weird times of day or night.