RIP Independence Day

1776-2025

Like many cities and towns across America, my town held its annual 4th of July parade, an event that, save for some rain cancellations and the COVID-19 pandemic, has been ongoing since 1932. My wife and I moved to this area in 1993. Since then, I’ve participated as a parade marcher, I’ve ridden on floats, and, for a number of years, I worked as one of the parade announcers along the 1.4-mile route. Nowadays, one of my sources of income comes from being a part-time City employee who manages a small municipal arts building containing an 81-seat theatre where the lobby doubles as an art gallery. It’s located on Main Street, which has been redeveloped over the past 25 or so years to resemble the western feel of its origin when it was founded back in the 1880s. The parade begins its route on this street, and for the past few years, I’ve volunteered to work the holiday. I mostly get paid to watch the parade, but we also allow the general public to view the gallery (and use our restrooms).

In all the years, whether as a parade participant, announcer, or theater babysitter, I’ve enjoyed our little 4th of July parade.

This year, not so much.

In less than five LONG months, our nation went from what we refer to as “American Democracy” to a flat-out strong-arm dictatorship. Something we never thought could happen here. Something we were told in school COULDN’T happen to us because of the strength of our constitution. And yet, here we are. Not only do we have someone in office ruling by executive fiat, we have a CRAZY person ruling by executive fiat. All while his elected sycophants, propaganda outlets, and supporters let it happen.

In an event designed to honor the military and their families on the White House lawn, Trump gave yet another rambling, chaotic word salad of a speech that quickly devolved into a disjointed political rally filled with exaggerations, personal grievances, and off-topic rants. He prioritized boasting about Operation Midnight Hammer, inflating his legislative achievements, and attacking Democrats over delivering a message of unity. His references to “zero border crossings,” $15 trillion in investment, and “the most popular bill in history” were factually dubious and clearly aimed at self-congratulation rather than national reflection.

The speech was riddled with awkward jokes, bizarre tangents, and clumsy praise—turning moments meant to honor service members into cringe-worthy anecdotes. Even his praise of allies like Scalise and Melania felt more performative than sincere. The tone swung from theatrical to conspiratorial, with mentions of “fake news,” election denialism, and Hunter Biden’s laptop, all of which undercut the dignity of the event.

Even worse, in a speech given yesterday at a rally in Des Moines, IA, the most troubling moment came when Trump openly said he “hated” Democrats, a comment that violates every modern norm of presidential rhetoric and continues to stoke division. While his crowd responded enthusiastically to his flag-waving and familiar slogans, the overall tone of the event was less about unity or patriotism and more a continuation of his personal crusade to reshape American political culture in his own image—aggrieved, exaggerated, and adversarial.

The actions of Donald Trump in this second term of lunacy, almost, ALMOST make his first term look…quaint. This time around, however, there are no “adults in the room” to stop him from acting on his worst impulses. He’s made sure this time around to insulate himself with nothing but yes-men, asskissers, and enforcers. This time around, there’s no questioning whether his requests are in anyone’s best interests. His handlers only serve to get whatever he wants done, no matter how egregious, illegal, and/or downright criminal that request might be.

Trump is also using his position to enrich himself through multiple licensing deals, selling everything from hats to (Ugh!) cologne. He runs the nation as if it were one big reality TV show that’s constantly struggling for ratings. As a result, each day is a new, fresh hell for most Americans not caught up in the show.

And we’ve now entered the “Caligula” phase of American politics as a UFC fight will be held on the White House lawn next year as part of the America250 celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. During the rally in Des Moines, Iowa, Trump said UFC president Dana White will organize the event, which could draw up to 25,000 spectators. WOW! How much moolah will THAT bring in? Think of the ad dollars for such a spectacle! What’s next for the White House? Amateur stripper night on Wednesdays? Trump has turned a once-proud symbol of American Democracy into a house of ill repute.

One final observation I made while at work today. Standing just outside the theater door, where we have a quaint bench on either side of our entrance, I observed the Stonewall.org float passing by, which made me very happy. That is, until a swoopy-haired “MAGA Karen” occupying the bench to my left with a group of friends shouted “BOOOO!! USA! USA!” To which the person walking ahead of the float with a megaphone turned in her direction, smiled, and said, “YES! USA! USA!” She handled the situation positively and didn’t let it affect her pride. After the float passed, MAGA Karen turned to her friends and screeched, “That shit pissed me off right there!” I was wearing a shirt bearing my city’s official logo, which identified me as an employee, so I couldn’t confront her, lest I risk the wrath of human resources coming down on my head. I have to pick my battles. Plus, nothing I could have said would have changed the hate in her heart. It’s not that people haven’t ever had these attitudes before, but it’s how much they’re emboldened to project their hate outwardly and vocally without fear of accountability. I guess when you have a “president” telling the world he “hates Democrats,” then there’s no reason to hold back.

One bright note: Two friends of mine spent the day attending PEACEFUL rallies in downtown Los Angeles, about 35 miles south of the city where we live. She and her husband first went to the federal building, which now sits empty but is packed with National Guard troops surrounding it, as if it were the Bastille in 1789 France. She said she actually spoke to some of the soldiers and knew they hated being there. They then moved on to the detention center. A scene they described as “heartbreaking.” We are not “independent” when a major city in our state is under a federal occupation with nearly 7000 troops standing around doing nothing because of the contempt and loathing of a Blue state on behalf of a tyrant.

So yeah. There’s not much to celebrate in my mind. But, there is always hope, and that’s something I’m not quite ready to give up!