Trump And Not Cruz Signals American Demise

I was set back on my heels by the size of Trump's Indiana win. I had thought that the escape from the Northeast would probably see a return to what had been thought of as Trump's ceiling. I was certain that he would not match the 49% support suggested in the NBC/WSJ/Marist poll, and other polls before and after had Trump in the mid-low 40s.

And in most places since the campaign opening Iowa Caucuses, Trump had under-performed and Cruz over-performed his polling. Cruz in fact did over-perform polling a bit. But I thought it could be big with the unreported uncommitted vote and if Kasich's number's faded. If Trump was down to 43-4% and Kasich below 13% as some predicted, Cruz could win. In fact, Kasich dropped down to 7.5%.

Turnout WAS heavy as it had been until the low turnout Northeastern primaries. Before the NE, both pro and anti-Trump turnout was very heavy and the totals were large records. But in Indiana, either Trump turnout was exceptionally high or Cruz and anti-Trump turnout had surrendered and did not match the former. Trump got over 52% of the vote and Cruz was buried under 37%.

But that isn't the big thing that is concerning me now. In light of the stun of the result, I was not as stricken by Cruz' withdrawal as I might have been. But for the past day or two, it's been sinking in how devastating the implications are unless Republican National Convention delegates rise to the occasion and devise to award the nomination to someone other than this abomination to both truth and character..

And they would have to have someone with the character and clarity to at least offer an explanation of why that was absolutely essential, notwithstanding that the most ardent of his boosters have seemed utterly impervious to reason. In any case, I don't viscerally detest the man, but that person is NOT Reince Priebus.

But whatever happens, an inarguable plurality, probably AT LEAST two-thirds of even Republican Americans really don't know what makes human society flourish, right here in the nation that accomplished that to a historically unprecedented degree. And what that bodes for America's future is lamentable for those of us who feel like we do understand it.

The American engine of technological innovation and progress and the benefit that the whole world has gotten from it, will not continue. Health care is and will not continue to improve. Vocational opportunities will not expand. The historically feeble and extended average growth rate of a bit over 1%, will continue.

The seven-year period under Obama has been the longest period of consecutive sub-3% growth years on record. The previous was a 4 year period from 1930-33, early in The Great Depression. If that was "The Great Depression," what is this? These compare to the longest period of above 3% annual growth, the 7 years from 1983-89 under Ronald Reagan's policies.

Mine are in their early-mid twenties. But for the first time in American history, our children's generation will not see the opportunity that we did. Boy, have we lost our bearings and failed to show our children the virtues of American principle, while a large majority of them are starry-eyed about Democratic socialist Bernie Sanders. Obviously the instruction of history anymore is distorted or non-existent. Sad. I don't know how the American idea can recover from this, except that great social calamity might drive people to consider the shine of a strange thing called Truth.