It is hard for me, personally, to care much for the US presidential election as a citizen of a country which, firstly, seems to be detached from it and its consequences, and secondly, to be a citizen that is looked down upon by their immigration system as being less worthy of landing on its soil.
As a result, my knee-jerk reaction to the Orientalist nature of their viewpoints is to say: “Let them all go to hell.” And watch as the country that claims to be the epitome of democracy burn to the ground under its own self-congratulating system.
Indeed, what role can a Bangladeshi play in the goings-on of the American presidential elections except that of a highly entertained audience member? On the surface, the only thing I can think of is whether it’d be easier to enter America, be it as a tourist or a student, once the elections are over.
The liberal campaign, headed by noted celebrities and other important voices in the media, would have me believe that Trump is a monster that needs to be “punched in the face,” as Robert DeNiro so eloquently put it. And anyone voting for him is a disgrace to humanity.
Cooler cats like Robert Downey Jr, James Franco, and Mark Ruffalo (the latter of whom was in Bangladesh recently begging the world to protect the Sundarbans) humorously offer up naked photos of one of their own brethren so that the American audience votes against Trump and the international audience can’t help but identify with their hip, “hey, we’re just like you” lingo.
My more intelligent friends echo the same sentiment: Just because you hate Hillary Clinton doesn’t mean you should be supporting Trump.
That’s just stupid. No matter what you say about Hillary, she has been in the American political system all her life and she at least knows what the hell she’s talking about. And no, saying that Trump at least says it like it is isn’t good enough of an excuse.
Contrarily, a part of me, and I reckon this is true for a lot of us, can’t quite resist the idea of a Trump presidency. Just imagine the ridiculousness: A wig-wagging, flip-flapping, proven misogynistic racist in the Oval Office, pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes. This is what movies are made of, and there no doubt will be one once the dust settles.
Would it be so wrong to feel a tad bit vengeful against the American nation for their continuous self-righteousness in the face of incessantly and without mercy doing the wrong thing around the whole world?
To continue to be friends with monarchies and despots while bulldozing through the rest of the world with pitchforks of pseudo-democracy?
In the 20th century, the American empire supported regime after regime of dictators and corrupt officials, just to keep its enemy of the time, communism, from spreading. Of course, it was proven by the end of it that communism isn’t a virus, and it’s not contagious, and it doesn’t spread just because you’re a country that shares its borders with it.
In this way, they terrorised (or tried to) Cuba, supporting the ruthless Batista before Fidel Castro came in. In this way, they terrorised Vietnam. In the very same way, they terrorised Korea, treating it as their own playground with Russia.
In each of these cases, they retreated, with their tails between their legs, the world all the much worse for its interventions.
And one knows that they haven’t been right with their newfound War on Terror, as they continued to make mistake after mistake, as they built Gitmo, as they practiced racial profiling, as they tortured, as they led to the birth of ISIS, as they supported the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
So, is it any surprise, despite how intelligent some of us may be, to hope that Donald Trump comes to power, to let America have a taste of its own medicine? And hey, what’s so wrong about supporting someone who says it like it is, who admits that he hates Muslims and wants to force himself on women?
When tomorrow comes, and the Americans have a new president-elect, some will say, kids, remember this day. This is the day America went to hell
At least, that’s how the layman thinks. And whether or not I am a layman myself, I have yet to decide.
Perhaps that is the problem with democracy; it presupposes too much knowledge on the part of the masses, when all we really want is to not have so much traffic, have a little money so we can buy an occasional fancy gadget, and watch porn while simultaneously shaming sexual adverts which our cricketers have mistakenly acted in.
How Donald Trump will be as president is anyone’s guess, especially when it comes to foreign policy and foreign relations.
How does a man like that interact with other political heads of state? Does he know how to show respect? Does he know how to conduct himself? Without, at least, resorting to grabbing some genitalia or the other?
I can’t, honestly, wait for the show to begin. I could be dignified and politically astute, I could be a little more reserved, I could talk of the impacts of the election on our very successful garments industry.
But I won’t.
Because the presidential election, especially this year, has been nothing more than the world’s biggest reality television show and I’ve had my popcorn in the microwave for a very long time.
When tomorrow comes, and the Americans have a new president-elect, some will say, kids, remember this day. This is the day America went to hell.
But you know, kids, not many in the history of politics has changed anything really, because figureheads just give you something to look at while the strings attached to their arms and legs are pulled by the various corporations and agendas and deals and clandestine e-mails, from all across the US and the world.
And I know, it’s good to care, and apathy and self-interest lead to the rise of evil, and that those who are crazy enough to think they can change the world actually do, but with this election, I think our idealistic selves can take a breather.
I mean, they’ve just discovered a Hindu god inside a mosque in Brahmanbaria. Surely, we have better things to worry about?
SN Rasul is a Sub-Editor at the Dhaka Tribune. Follow him @snrasul.
