Disagreement Does Not Equal Treason

Diss Traction -- To gain advantage by insulting or disrespecting an opponent rather than deal with the issue in dispute.

"Winning isn't everything. It's the only thing." -- Vince Lombardi or Red Saunders, football coaches.

   In politics, the aim is not necessarily to accomplish anything; rather, the goal is to defeat an opponent, and the easiest way to do this is through insult, abuse and vilification.
   That tactic can be entertaining, of course, especially to devoted followers, but it does nothing to serve the public interest, improve society and advance a social improvement agenda. It does, however, help to win elections. And that, to many politicians, is the only thing that matters.
   Government service is not a game.
   The new guy in the Oval Office seems to approach his new career as a game, and the only thing that matters is winning. To do that, moreover, any tactic that advances that play is useful, up to and including alleging treason by those who disagree with his actions, comments and policies.
   Example: He said that Democrats who did not applaud during his State of the Union speech to Congress were "treasonous."
   That's his latest tactic. Add it to the list of things he has said to denigrate those who disagree with him, and balance it with his demands for personal loyalty from all those he deems to be part of his "team."
   The penalty against those who fail to pledge loyalty, or who do not follow his directions, is to be fired from the team and to be the target of continued insult, vilification and abuse until and unless they come around to his side, even if it means groveling to His Mastership.
   Respect for the office of the presidency is one thing. Abject submission when a president demands total, unquestioning loyalty and obedience to his whims is quite another.
   One wonders, then, what has happened to the Congress. supposedly a co-equal and independent branch of government in the United States. Have Republicans lost what little intestinal fortitude they had, submitting to the leader of the other branch of government solely in the name of "party loyalty," if not personal loyalty?
   Since when has it become essential that more than 500 elected officials in Congress, as well as the many other public servants in the FBI, the Justice Department and all the other government agencies do what the coach says, regardless of legality or even good sense?
   Disagreement is essential for the life of a free society. When the right to disagree is lost, a nation becomes a dictatorship.