I agree with everything written here except the last:

“Americans don’t look kindly on bullies, people who try to suppress the truth, or people who try to intimidate scientists and the press. In the long run, this always backfires. The dustbin of history is full of people who have tried, and failed. You will too.”

Up until the election I would’ve agreed with this. Now I’m not so sure. The country is clearly divided among those that believe and those that don’t. The believers in Trump and this new regime of intimidation are fanatical enough to stare empirical evidence in the face and shamelessly deny its truth because it defies their beliefs which in their minds they cannot abandon. The more facts you show them the more they entrench like a 5 year old covering his ears and shouting “La-la-la-la-la…” to drown out the sounds of reason.

We are in a new Dark Age empowered by neo-conservatism. It’s a dangerous mixture of religion and politics something that the “separation of church and state” should prevent, but somehow is over looked. As churches are tax exempt they should also not be allowed to make political endorsements or contributions, but that subject is for another time.

Their language has changed over the years to now include liberals and Democrats as “enemies.” Now they will include facts, science and even the Constitution is now under fire. The proliferation ot truth erodes their power and the suppression of it strengthens it — just like the Roman Church of the Dark Ages. Hopefully it won’t take 1000 years (or even 1000 days) until the new Renaissance. But for that to happen there has to be a lot od suffering to be the impetus of change.