The phrase “to go nuclear” can mean“ to get extremely angry and start behaving in a forceful or irrational way” according to a definitive online dictionary.
It can also mean to acquire and deploy nuclear weapons.
In 2017, a forensic psychiatrist associated with Yale University named Bandy Lee, edited a book titled, The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: 27 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Asses a President.
It included a piece by Robert Jay Lifton.
Lifton is a a world renowned psychiatrist and scholar with expertise on both survivors of the Hiroshima atomic bomb blast and the Nazi doctors who facilitated the genocide of Europe’s Jews. He truly understands inter-group violence, human cruelty, and mass murder—and what it portends for future generations.
Dr. Lifton is a man who I have greatly admired for decades. He wrote his forceful essay about Trump’s serious mental flaws for Dr. Lee’s book while in his early 90s. It put his professional reputation and legacy on the line. This was an act of considerable courage—or perhaps, elderly folly.
In any event, his written commentary and interview with TV journalist Bill Moyers is what prompted me to produce this series of graphic images titled “Trump Goes Nuclear.”
As a layman, I fear that Trump’s obvious emotional instability, supreme narcissism, tenuous grasp of objective reality, and willingness to lie about just about anything of consequence, could lead to him to “push the button” and begin launch procedure for dropping nuclear warheads on a perceived enemy.
One might ask:
Is this a plausible scenario or just an artist’s personal morbid fantasy?
After combing through the web for info from respected organizations, it seems that if Trump had ordered a pre-emptive nuclear strike, it would probably would have been carried out.
This would have ended global civilization as we know it.
In 2019, nearly 73,000,000 Republican voters (about 47% of all votes cast) would risk the entire human prospect after nearly four years of Trump’s disgraceful, erratic, and incompetent term as President.
Virtually any of the GOP’s candidates in 2015 would have given these angry and aggrieved “Tea Party” voters an abortion ban, tax cuts, and a brazen “America First” agenda.
But they overwhelmingly chose a preening ignoramus, liar, and demagogue over the tried-and-true panoply of conservative corporatists, religionists, and opportunists.
A large nucleus of “red” Americans seem to be in a state of “future shock” and disorientation. They cannot cope with the uncertainties, ambiguities, and complexities of accelerating social and technological change—and have just given up and shut down.
If Trump does blow the world up, so what.
As mostly White Christian Republican true-believers, they get to heaven lickety split. Their unhappy earthly interlude was nothing compared to the promise of eternal bliss. As for the Democrats, they are all doomed to hell; at least until they mend their far-left ways.
If the U.S. does manage to continue on its merry way with or without Trumpism, those that have will probably get a lot more; and the have-nots will continue make do or overdose on drugs.
Ironically, I suspect when Trump supporters view my graphics of their leader’s beloved face, they might see a strong, avenging, Old Testament warrior king, who will protect them from the liberal heathens.
I suppose that I have hedged my bets.
