What's
Truth?
“The
truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it.”
Flannery
O'Connor
As you may know, there's
a trial going on in the US Senate to decide whether our impeached
President shall be removed from office. Admittedly, I find it almost
impossible to believe that thirty percent of American's still think
the President is wonderful and has done nothing wrong. Watching as
the House Managers lay out the case for removal from office, it
seems crystal clear to me that Trump abused his power, and then
stonewalled Congress when they lawfully tried to investigate what
transpired between him and his liaisons and the new President of
Ukraine. The manner in which the case has been documented in a clear
and concise, step-by-step fashion has made it evident that there were
underground operations with Giuliani and his associates. Sometimes,
the president's own words make it obvious; transparent even. It's
curious that people can watch the same thing and come away with
completely different interpretations of what happened.
Watching this unfold, it
seems clear that “truth” is what we believe it to be, or more
likely, what we want it to be. In other words, it is subjective
rather than objective. Oh, yes, the time-line of events and
conversations are recorded and therefore objective; you can hear them
for yourself. And trustworthy people have come forward and expressed
what they saw and heard. But truth seems to lurk in the gaps between
the words. Facts are not enough. Truth for each of us is based upon
preconceived ideas of what the actions and words mean. My
interpretation may be the absolute opposite of yours.
I am watching the impeachment trial because this is an historic moment, and because this
sort of thing intrigues me. Also, because I believe our democracy hangs in the balance, not to mention our environment. However, with each of the one-hundred Senators
having a different “truth,” the verdict clearly won't be based upon the
facts of the President's behavior. It looks as though
the decision will have little to do with the details of the
case, and more to do with the emotions of our representatives—a
truth that is pretty hard to stomach.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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