Social Insanity

e medical criteria for insanity and there are legal definitions. In addition, people have common concepts as to what constitutes insanity. They see strange, irrational behavior, perhaps dangerous, threatening, or not conforming to reality that may not be medically or legally defined as insanity. A terrorist action is not ordinarily defined as an instance of insanity rather than as a criminal act; but is it not so? Is it just a matter of opinion? When you witness the death and destruction of war, isn't that an example of social insanity? Just because many people follow a violent or preposterous cause, does that make it rational, or would you classify it as social insanity?

Different criteria for insanity are applied to individual and social actions. Social actions are seldom judged on the basis of insanity; but, especially in government policies, they can cause far greater harm than individual actions. An irrational action of an individual which injures himself or a few others may be judged a criminal act, but an irrational action of a government official that endangers or harms thousands or the nation as a whole, would be either a seditious or insane act by any common measure.

When the constitution was written, people lived in an entirely different world. Because of lack of instant communications, critical events happened without forewarning and may not have been noticed until weeks or months later. The Battle of New Orleans took place after signing of the peace treaty in the War of 1812. The science didn't exist to warn us of hurricanes, floods or melting glaciers. Today, it would be a requirement of the president to be correctly informed and to act rationally and expeditiously about all threats to the nation. In today's complex world of accelerated, inter-related actions and imminent perils, the position would require a person of broad knowledge and highly rational wisdom to perform those duties properly. To put a clown or unstable person in that capacity would be equivalent to insanity.

The Trump administration, in its short term of office has, by numerous acts, exhibited an overwhelming lack of understanding of the role of government appropriate to the hazardous age in which we live. Its disregard for the safety and well-being of all citizens in favor of the domination and prosperity of a wealthy elite has returned government to pre-Enlightenment times of autocracy. (Think of the French Revolution.)

The Constitution provides for removal of the president from office for bribery, treason, and for inability to perform the duties of that office. The actions of government officials that are contrary to the basic purposes set forth in the Preamble to our Constitution, and where great harm to the nation seems imminent or unavoidable, should be subject to swift evaluation on the basis of social insanity - not defined by narrow medical or legal definitions, but by the ethical criteria of our times and of our founding principles.

On the basis of the these arguments, I am suggesting that prominent spokespersons concurring with this viewpoint should present a citizens' case to Congress or directly to the Supreme Court to remove Donald Trump from office. If we had a reliable election system, not compromised by fraudulent accounting of votes and voting qualification procedures - as allowed by our defective constitution, he never would have been in office. The Republican Party, as presently constituted and by virtue of its reactionary policies, will always be the minority party in national politics in this modern age, and can win elections only by these corrupt election procedures, including gerrymandering of representative districts, and intensive, deceptive campaigning. Social insanity!