As the news of the indictment of former president Donald Trump has come out today, I cannot help but think of the oath that he swore upon assuming the office of President of the United States of America: "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." Did he do so? From my perspective, I do not believe that to be the case, but I cannot in all honesty say with certainty. But now Mr. Trump has the dubious honor of being the first ever US President to be indicted on criminal charges after leaving office. And what's his response? To rage and rail at those who would claim he was anything less than perfect. Please.
I tend to think of oaths as solemn things - like that oath of office, or the oath one takes before bearing witness in court - "I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God." Well, the truth, at least. Probably not the whole truth, since my lawyer has prepared me to only answer the question asked, not to speculate, and not to give up any more information than the question asks for. "Where is your car?", he asked me in deposition prep. "In the parking lot," I answered. "Is it?" "Well, that's where I parked it this morning." "And have you seen it since then?" "No." "So, I'll ask you again: Where is your car?" "Um...last I saw it, it was in the parking lot?" I suppose that was in fact the truth, but wow. I can have some compassion for Mr. Trump - it's definitely hard to live up to an oath. Even most promises I've ever made have been broken or bent in some way, shape or form, and I am sure I'm not alone feeling this way.
Being human means messing up. Making mistakes. Breaking promises and oaths. Yet to my mind, the real test of character is not whether someone will keep to their promise, but what they will do when that promise they made is broken, or bent. Will they own it? Work to make amends? Or try to cover it up or make excuses for it - "It's all their fault!" Or "I'm only human." I'm all too human myself, but that's not an excuse, just a statement of fact by which I mean even with the best of intentions I am likely to fail, but I'm still going to try, and I will try to make things right when I do fail. Other than swearing to tell the truth before giving testimony in a legal case, the only other oath I have sworn that I can think of would be my marriage vows, if those count as an oath. I'm still married to the same woman after 30 years, and but even those vows have been broken. No, not in large ways like sexual infidelity but in hundreds of small ways, as a therapist lovingly pointed out to us during a session. Once again would venture to say I'm not alone here.
Which reminds me that a good friend of mine once said he and his wife were on their third marriage. I found this amusing since they'd never been married to anyone else that I knew of. But what he was telling me was that as they grew and changed, they renegotiated their relationship and their roles within that relationship on more than one occasion. That has always stuck with me, and has assisted me more than once to weather the rougher seas and rocky coasts found on the journey of my own marriage, helping to turn the tide and steer the vessel of our relationship on to healthier shores. Thank God for good friends and great therapists!
I don't know what will happen with Mr. Trump. I suppose it may be too much to hope he would ever admit to any wrong-doing, to breaking his oath. Not a failure, but still one who has failed to keep the promises he made. Human, in other words. It's been quite the juxtaposition in recent news to hear stories about Jimmy Carter, who himself was all too human and therefore probably not one of the best presidents the US has ever had. But I fear for a nation that, so it seems, wants to be led not by an actual human being who will certainly make mistakes but own them and work to make things better, but instead by someone who claims perfection - a god-like character such as the caesers and pharaohs of old. May it never come to pass!
— Zachary
I tend to think of oaths as solemn things - like that oath of office, or the oath one takes before bearing witness in court - "I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God." Well, the truth, at least. Probably not the whole truth, since my lawyer has prepared me to only answer the question asked, not to speculate, and not to give up any more information than the question asks for. "Where is your car?", he asked me in deposition prep. "In the parking lot," I answered. "Is it?" "Well, that's where I parked it this morning." "And have you seen it since then?" "No." "So, I'll ask you again: Where is your car?" "Um...last I saw it, it was in the parking lot?" I suppose that was in fact the truth, but wow. I can have some compassion for Mr. Trump - it's definitely hard to live up to an oath. Even most promises I've ever made have been broken or bent in some way, shape or form, and I am sure I'm not alone feeling this way.
Being human means messing up. Making mistakes. Breaking promises and oaths. Yet to my mind, the real test of character is not whether someone will keep to their promise, but what they will do when that promise they made is broken, or bent. Will they own it? Work to make amends? Or try to cover it up or make excuses for it - "It's all their fault!" Or "I'm only human." I'm all too human myself, but that's not an excuse, just a statement of fact by which I mean even with the best of intentions I am likely to fail, but I'm still going to try, and I will try to make things right when I do fail. Other than swearing to tell the truth before giving testimony in a legal case, the only other oath I have sworn that I can think of would be my marriage vows, if those count as an oath. I'm still married to the same woman after 30 years, and but even those vows have been broken. No, not in large ways like sexual infidelity but in hundreds of small ways, as a therapist lovingly pointed out to us during a session. Once again would venture to say I'm not alone here.
Which reminds me that a good friend of mine once said he and his wife were on their third marriage. I found this amusing since they'd never been married to anyone else that I knew of. But what he was telling me was that as they grew and changed, they renegotiated their relationship and their roles within that relationship on more than one occasion. That has always stuck with me, and has assisted me more than once to weather the rougher seas and rocky coasts found on the journey of my own marriage, helping to turn the tide and steer the vessel of our relationship on to healthier shores. Thank God for good friends and great therapists!
I don't know what will happen with Mr. Trump. I suppose it may be too much to hope he would ever admit to any wrong-doing, to breaking his oath. Not a failure, but still one who has failed to keep the promises he made. Human, in other words. It's been quite the juxtaposition in recent news to hear stories about Jimmy Carter, who himself was all too human and therefore probably not one of the best presidents the US has ever had. But I fear for a nation that, so it seems, wants to be led not by an actual human being who will certainly make mistakes but own them and work to make things better, but instead by someone who claims perfection - a god-like character such as the caesers and pharaohs of old. May it never come to pass!
— Zachary
You show more concern for Trump than he deserves. You must be a really compassionate human! It's a matter of degree. You have a moral code. I do not think that Trump has anything of the sort. He adopted the cold and mercenary values of his father. Mary Trump's book explains why, but still, it was Donald's choice. About marriage: it is, indeed, really interesting how it changes and changes. I've been married 37 years. No children. Lots of changes. We actually don't talk about it much, just keep adjusting. There are many things we enjoy talking about and laughing about. Some disappointments and weird realizations. Best of luck to us all! (Macoff)
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