Jekyll and Mr.Hyde: How My White College Buddy Turned Into a Trumper!
It’s crazy you think you know someone and BAM you see the real them!
Back in my younger days I was busy living life, doing things that young people do. As I got to my mid 20’s I decided it was time to slow down on the social life and night scene and to start planning my future. Looking through the newspaper classifieds seeing what type of work was being pushed. I started to notice that many IT jobs were slowly popping up. Many of these positions were paying pretty well.
Since back in the 80’s I was a geek I figured computers are the way to go. So I signed up for the nearest college that offered a good computer program and with my GI Bill (which wasn’t enough) I began my journey.
While taking my classes I met another fellow student who lived near by in the BX. He was a white dude, nice guy funny. We became friends and hung out even worked together for local ISP at the time. We became buddies and met his friends and at times was invited to family functions. After college we still kept in contact but as we all know life tends to push us in different directions and we began to start our lives.
Fast forward to now like me he’s married with kids but something weird began to happen. We both follow each other in social media and I began to notice his rhetoric changing. He began talking aggressively in such a way that he was beginning to act and sound like a MAGA. When Trump was President he was ranting and raving about it how Trump is going to make America great again and all that bullshit they like to spew.
It kind of surprised me because unlike many of his MAGA peers he grew up privileged much like I did. He was a little more because he went to Catholic School while I went to Public School, still though he was nothing like those knuckle draggers. I mean the dude has a great job, employable skills, makes good money, has a family that loves him and all the jazz and yet he’s a MAGA!
Then I start to think maybe he was like this all along. Maybe he had those ideas in his head even from way back when and just did not feel comfortable in saying it until the scum bag Trump started promoting the hate. My thing is he grew up in the BX where you run elbows with many different cultures. You know he did not grow up in some red state or a farm which surprises me.
Now he’s hating on Biden every chance he gets as well as spewing conspiracy theories, complaining about Immigrants and the like. As I watch him fall down further and further into the dark hole I want to save him but at the same time he might not respond to change. I’m sure he notices that he gets no thumbs up on his posts and is just shouting into an echo chamber.
It’s crazy how people can turn into another totally different person. Is he mad that White Dudes no longer have the privilege they carried with them for so long? It reminds me of how a House Slave would feel when their Master throws him or her out into the field to work with the field slaves. They feel resented and angry, also they have this feeling of superiority that keeps nagging at them.
Now they have to put in the work like the rest of us. Now mind you I’m not saying all white guys are like this but the small group that is like that, angry and resentful tend to be the loudest. Maybe he’s mad about that. That the propaganda that was pushed to him is no longer true. Seeing the reality has probably made him upset. So rather than accepting the change and adapt he would rather blame others for their lot.
I guess that’s the reason why his change happened. Angry because he feels he no longer has the illusion of privilege that made him and others like him feel as if their life was smooth sailing and now they are finding out it’s not.
The crazy thing is it’s rough for every one of us these days. I look around me and I see it and feel it just about everyday. There is something hanging over us, whatever it is I’m hoping that it’s not chaotic but seeing what’s going on it will be chaotic. I think if Trump becomes President again, his presidency may bring down the whole country.
Who knows! All I know is I can’t waste time wondering why people are the way they are. Politicians are only there to do the bidding of the rich, yes even the red skinned orangutan. They are not there to do your bidding even though they love to say that. They may throw some things to keep you interested but in the end we are all just mere Sheep.
