(08-12-2016 02:22 PM)GoodOwl Wrote:  

(08-12-2016 06:15 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  I forget - who was Jefferson's ghost writer on the Declaration of Independence?

Jefferson's duplicities are well-documented. The man was in many ways great for our nation, but he was certainly far from a saint, especially in his more private habits.

Ben Franklin actually wrote the first draft of the Declaration Of Independence. The Continental Congress did not accept Franklin's version, and so Jefferson rewrote it, but Franklin's was his source. Furthermore, the wording and ideas used in the Declaration of Independence came in large part from the ideas of British Philosopher John Lock. Franklin had his own proclivities and again, while a great man for our nation, was also no saint.

Trump has been more openly faultful (if that is a word). He shatters the illusion we all want to have of our leaders, but he is who he is without pretending not to be. Hiliary does nothing but pretend to be something she is not, and has made an entire career of her charade. As bad as Trump can be at times, what Hiliary is is infinitely worse. It is certainly hard to watch at times, but Trump has been effective to get where he is, and where Bernie failed, Trump has shown he can succeed, a fact that still seems lost on many.

While I understand the desire to want to have someone who is so forthright, if that forthrightness reveals that the person is a complete buffoon, who: (i) makes fun of people with disabilities; (ii) uses a woman's menstrual cycle to try and discredit them; (iii) openly discusses how much he wants to physically hurt people who say things that are unflattering about them; (iv) advocates for harming protesters he disagrees with; (v) sends pictures of himself on a semi-regular basis with his hands circled to someone who once made a comment about how small his hands are; and on and on and on, I don't think the forthrightness is positive at that point.

It's like children. We all know they run around and act crazy sometimes. No one wants to be around the ones that don't know when it's appropriate to be civilized.