My accent immediately gives me away as an American here (although one man did tell me that my accent wasn't so strong, but perhaps he was being kind). So far no one has directly asked me what I think of the monstrosity who is referred to as our 45th president. However, it's hard to avoid him entirely.
I'm always afraid that I will run into someone who doesn't see the festering cesspool for what he is. I'm new to Galway and I'm not entirely sure of what the political balance is here. So far, I have managed to avoid anyone who supports him or even thinks he's just not that bad, but I do feel always a bit of unease when I first bring him up. In Chicago, I never had that unease. We hate the dirtbag and the few guys I was on dates with who told me he wasn't so bad, did not hear from me pleasantly again.
I was also heartened to hear that the baby balloon will be coming over since the trash filled sack has made plans to cross the pond again. However, the best story has to be hearing that he has a golf course in county Clare that people walk their dogs by. And, of course, as they walk their dogs they toss their dogs' poop right onto the golf course. These are my kind of people.
Still, I have had to answer a few questions about how our government even works. Some people are a bit confused about how he lost the popular vote, but still won the presidency. I also have one person ask me about how many political parties we have.
I expect that these questions won't go away and, in fact, I expect they'll increase during the November elections. The rest of the world seems so much more aware of our government's actions than many Americans.
I also expect some questions since today I joined the Failte Refugees society on campus. While I may have joined this society no matter who had been elected, how our sadistic vileness has treated refugees and immigrants has certainly spurred me to find ways to help where I can. I'm not sure if people will ask me, or any other Americans in the group, any questions directly, but I can't imagine the US will skate by without mention.
It was also a bit odd to be here on 9/11. While not a huge deal is made now (or so I feel) in the US since it has been 17 years, it was a bit odd to hear no one mention it.
I also sadly anticipate the US having a tragedy or taking an egregious action while I'm here. On top of the mourning and anger, I think that will be an odd thing for me as an individual abroad. I recall studying abroad in Cork when the Sandy Hook shooting happened and it was like grieving around people who were unaware of anything being so terribly wrong. I couldn't find the normal places to reach out like I could in the US. News was on an odd timeline for me given the time difference.
It was suggested that I do this same prompt later in the year and I think that's a good idea. Right now I'm mostly thinking about all the ways I could be affected or questioned or viewed, but with it being so early, most of that is pure speculation.
I suppose it's also good to speculate on what could happen if something positive happens. What if this terrible excuse for a leader actually gets ousted? He could be historic, which is all he really wants. It would be the first time we forced a president out. I imagine here there would be celebrations and I would get asked only questions like, "how happy are you right now?" Ah yes, that would be great.
One final note on being an American here. I'm constantly being struck by things we do so much worse (like providing affordable education) but also by things we do better (it was way too recent that you needed a prescription for condoms here). The International Students Office here suggests we try to just look at things as different rather than decide something is better, and while I agree that isn't how everything should be viewed, I do think there is a time and place for that sort of judging.
(Prompt by Betsy Rubin)
I'm always afraid that I will run into someone who doesn't see the festering cesspool for what he is. I'm new to Galway and I'm not entirely sure of what the political balance is here. So far, I have managed to avoid anyone who supports him or even thinks he's just not that bad, but I do feel always a bit of unease when I first bring him up. In Chicago, I never had that unease. We hate the dirtbag and the few guys I was on dates with who told me he wasn't so bad, did not hear from me pleasantly again.
I was also heartened to hear that the baby balloon will be coming over since the trash filled sack has made plans to cross the pond again. However, the best story has to be hearing that he has a golf course in county Clare that people walk their dogs by. And, of course, as they walk their dogs they toss their dogs' poop right onto the golf course. These are my kind of people.
Still, I have had to answer a few questions about how our government even works. Some people are a bit confused about how he lost the popular vote, but still won the presidency. I also have one person ask me about how many political parties we have.
I expect that these questions won't go away and, in fact, I expect they'll increase during the November elections. The rest of the world seems so much more aware of our government's actions than many Americans.
I also expect some questions since today I joined the Failte Refugees society on campus. While I may have joined this society no matter who had been elected, how our sadistic vileness has treated refugees and immigrants has certainly spurred me to find ways to help where I can. I'm not sure if people will ask me, or any other Americans in the group, any questions directly, but I can't imagine the US will skate by without mention.
It was also a bit odd to be here on 9/11. While not a huge deal is made now (or so I feel) in the US since it has been 17 years, it was a bit odd to hear no one mention it.
I also sadly anticipate the US having a tragedy or taking an egregious action while I'm here. On top of the mourning and anger, I think that will be an odd thing for me as an individual abroad. I recall studying abroad in Cork when the Sandy Hook shooting happened and it was like grieving around people who were unaware of anything being so terribly wrong. I couldn't find the normal places to reach out like I could in the US. News was on an odd timeline for me given the time difference.
It was suggested that I do this same prompt later in the year and I think that's a good idea. Right now I'm mostly thinking about all the ways I could be affected or questioned or viewed, but with it being so early, most of that is pure speculation.
I suppose it's also good to speculate on what could happen if something positive happens. What if this terrible excuse for a leader actually gets ousted? He could be historic, which is all he really wants. It would be the first time we forced a president out. I imagine here there would be celebrations and I would get asked only questions like, "how happy are you right now?" Ah yes, that would be great.
One final note on being an American here. I'm constantly being struck by things we do so much worse (like providing affordable education) but also by things we do better (it was way too recent that you needed a prescription for condoms here). The International Students Office here suggests we try to just look at things as different rather than decide something is better, and while I agree that isn't how everything should be viewed, I do think there is a time and place for that sort of judging.
(Prompt by Betsy Rubin)
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