I have an apology to make and it’s this. I’m sorry to say that Trump getting elected might just be the best thing to happen this century. Let me explain my whacky thesis.

Back when the 2016 US Presidential Election was in it’s final weeks, an American friend and I were doing what friend’s do best – arguing. And we were arguing about the benefit of electing Clinton. Now let me state categorically that I don’t have a vote in America, nor did I change the voting decision of my American buddy. Therefore, I’m pretty much in the same category as Russia in that there’s no clear evidence to support a hypothesis that I interfered in the US Election. 😉  But I digress.

My friend contended that Trump was very dangerous and on this basis needed to be beaten. For my part  I argued that Trump was certainly more erratic than Clinton but since she had already proven herself to be an establishment candidate, her election would have little positive impact on some of the most important affairs of the US and the globe. Both candidates come from a stale two party system where big money has outsized influence. The Irish system (using a version of proportional representation) has its limitations but allows nuanced expressions of divergent public opinion without a “one side takes it all culture war”.

I agreed that most of Trump’s ideas were crazy or dangerous or both. Despite this, I insisted that Trump’s election might have one upside: it could lead to a genuinely democratic revolution in the United States. A revolution that I believe is badly needed. So yes, you might say that I hoped a potential Trump victory, might by way of reaction, sow some seeds of deeper re-engagement with the political system.

It’s still my view that Clinton would have brought nothing substantively new or beneficial to the table in terms of tackling global warming or ending international wars. Clinton’s election would have seen a continuation of policies that have created the divide in American political life. Big business still calls the shots in Washington DC. I suspect Hillary’s election would have added to voter disillusionment at a time when more and more people are turning off politics. Sure, Clinton would have improved the perceived status of women and she would never have approached the immigration question in such a racist or ham fisted manner. Clinton was a status quo candidate. It wasn’t enough for Americans, the climate or global prosperity and peace.

And yes, perhaps it’s wishful thinking but my hope was and still is, that Trump’s election might spark something. That it might be the point when the good guys in the US might say, “we’ve had enough.” The point where Rocky, having been pounded for eight gruelling rounds, would get off the ropes and fight back. I hoped that Trump’s election might encourage people to rise up and take control of their politics at a local, national and international level. Because with or without Clinton, if the American public don’t take control of the United States, things are going to get worse for America’s weakest members of society and for the most vulnerable on the planet, putting the lives of millions in danger.

The arms industry will continue to thrive, nuclear tensions will increase and the climate will become more and more unstable. That is where we were headed before Trump got elected. And nothing has changed since except Trumps true derangement has become even clearer. Maybe the election of a lunatic is perhaps the only thing that can change the status quo. Because I want more than the status quo. We need more that that. We need a democratic revolution because God stopped sending miracles years ago.

Need something light hearted after that? Click here for an Ode to Ginger Nuts