Hurt People and Political Choices: A Deep Dive

How anyone could vote for Trump has baffled me since  2016.

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times:

I HONESTLY DO NOT GET IT. 

No explanation of the Trump phenomenon has ever landed for me. 

“I like his economic plan.” What economic plan?

“The government needs to be shaken up, and he’s a disruptor.” 

Huh?

But in the depth of my despair since this election, I hit upon an explanation that makes sense, at least to me. 

It’s not new or original, and someone has probably written a pithy article about this very thing in The Atlantic.

It’s the idea that “Hurt people, hurt people.”

People who have been hurt, especially when they were little kids, harbor that hurt and pain their whole lives. And unless it’s seen and rooted out early, it festers and grows.

Think of a little puppy who gets a thorn in its paw, but nobody notices it. The puppy limps around for a while, but if that thorn’s never removed, it is forced to live with that pain for its whole life. It’s always there,  throbbing in the background.

This “thorn” for the Trump voter is the mother who never loved him the way he needed to be loved when he was little.  This kid grows up hurt and damaged but learns to adapt, cope, and numb out. 

This “thorn” is the teacher who humiliated him, implied he was dumb and made fun of him. 

“Mrs. Jones hates me. I hate her, too. I hate school. I wish I could burn this school down!”

This “thorn” is the boss who doesn’t appreciate him and denies him a raise or a promotion. His earnings can’t keep pace with prices, so his quality of life plummets. He can’t make ends meet. He can’t support his family and feels deeply ashamed about that.

But he can’t yell at his mother, boss, wife, or kids. He can’t admit that he has a thorn in his paw, so he harbors all his pain and rage inside.

But then Trump came along and gave voice to this rage. He said the quiet parts out loud. What he said sounded bold and outrageous but TRUE! He said what he’d been thinking and feeling his whole life, but could never say because it would get him in deep trouble.

So now Trump says, “Grab ‘em by the pussy!” And that’s now okay to say.

He says, “Burn it all down!” and his minions storm the Capitol and obey. And that’s okay. 

He says, “It’s fake news!” and you no longer have to believe what you see with your very own eyes. 

He says, “Punch that dissenter in the face, get him outta here!” And one of his fans does it!

And you, the Trump voter, think, “That guy is ME!” And so you lob your vote onto that hate fire.

Meanwhile, Kamala is out there smiling and promoting “Joy,” “Working together,” and “Turning the page on all this hate.” 

But to you Kamala is Momala. Your Momala, the one who didn’t love you and care about you. The one who denied you what you needed and craved so desperately.

Kamala is also Mrs Jones, your third-grade teacher who humiliated you. 

So you’ll be glad to get rid of her and her whole Department of Education.

And because Trump doesn’t give a shit about polar bears or melting ice caps or endangered animals or clean air and water, there will be jobs for unskilled, hard-working guys like you in the oilfields. So yeah, Drill, baby, drill! 

So, now I get it. 

Hurt people want to make sure everybody hurts as much as they do. They want retribution and revenge, not joy, peace, or reconciliation.

But even though I get it, I don’t like it, approve it, or condone it. 

I don’t give these Trump voters a pass for what they just did to this country. 

And I will hold each of them personally responsible for all the pain, disruption, and degradation to our society that will likely ensue due to this disastrous election. 

There are a lot of Trump signs still up on lawns in my area, almost two weeks after he won.

I used to hate the people in those houses. I used to curse them under my breath. 

But now, when I see a Trump sign, I see it as a banner that says: The person who placed this sign is broken and hurt. The person who placed this sign can’t think clearly and is filled with hate and rage.

The person who placed this sign has no place for joy in his/her heart.

And I almost feel sorry for them.

I wish they would get to the vet and have that thorn taken care of.