Who or what is the "Big Bad" in the current world order??

The last 10 years have seen many changes in the world order. Along with a severely fractured split in the political debate, rapidly accelerating in the last two years, how are things aligning today? Has there been a change in the leadership roles by nation stated and their leaders? Are we still living in a primarily east vs. west world or has that dynamic changed? Is the world safe? Are we safer now  than we were ten or so years ago?

Much has changed in politics and the view held by the citizens of the USA - of that we can be certain. There is a daily hue and cry in social media from the far right crucifying former President Obama and the Clintons. For simplicity sake I am focusing on the commentary offered by a single individual. Maybe he is having difficulty accepting that his guy won in 2016 and despite having control of both houses of congress and the executive branch Trump's sole accomplishment has been a tax break that has effectively fubared the economy so badly our grandchildren will still be paying the debt long after the poster and I are dead and gone. One long, eloquent post after another in the same vein. never a mention of the Russia connection between Donald Trump and Vlad Putin. More than once he has posted words similar to these (these are taken directly from a recent post speaking about Obama "The Piece of Shit is a traitor to our only ally in the Mid East. Barrack Hussein Obama should be tried for treason and executed." No comment on how Donald Trump is rolling back sanctions previously placed on  an oligarch who is a strong Putin ally. Never a comment about a White House meeting between Trump and Russians wherein only Russian media was allowed. Never a comment about how Trump constantly lies about the NATO alliance. Trump  lies about Robert Mueller. Trump lies about our intelligence gathering agencies. Trump lies about his accomplishments as president. Simply put, Trump lies. About everything. Constantly. But Barack Hussein Obama should be tried for treason and executed. 

This poster constantly reminds readers that his side has their guns and stand ready to use them. He claims the other side wants to confiscate them. And have the UN establish a new  world order wherein those who do not toe the "company line" will have no place in the new society. One language, one religion, one currency and so on. Liberals are libtards in his world and Democrat is just about the worst thing one can be called unless you add corrupt as an adjective. Or piece of shit.

I trust by now you have gathered I do not agree with this fellow. What you probably have not figured out is he has been a friend of  mine for years. Still is. But the hatred he regularly spews - (he disagrees and calls it patriotism) - is his right and even his duty. He has a regular cadre of supporters that collectively pat him on the back for being their honest spokesperson after each tirade. Many of them are also my friends, though most just Facebook friends.

So what does all of this have to do with the "Big Bad" on the world stage? Simply this - a very real and distinct lack of civility in political discourse in this country has allowed (caused) us to elect as our so-called leader a man who is systematically trying to tear down the institutions of our government, is damaging  alliances that have served us well for decades and has fixated on illegal immigration as the single largest problem we face and is causing so much harm to our country that the harm may not be reversible. THE HARM MAY NOT BE REVERSIBLE.

This hate speak has accelerated to the point that the left wing fringe has now taken up the mantle and are firing back just as haphazardly as those on the right. Pelosi and Schumer sound as bad as Miller and Bolton.It sounds like an American version of what went on between Britain and Northern Ireland and we all know how that turned out. We simply must find a way to disagree and find common ground. We  do not need a concrete wall along our entire southern border but there are places where a substantial physical barrier is necessary. Being pro choice does not make you a baby killer - it does, however, speak to having government make choices for half of the population about their own bodies. Sorry, but I do not feel any government has that right. We must figure a way to beat China at their long game. They play it extremely well at our peril. We must find a way to deal effectively with an increasingly weak (economically speaking) Russia that is becoming more and more aggressive internationally and has the second largest cache of nuclear weapons. We must deal with climate change that can and will disrupt food production worldwide whether climate change is naturally occurring or assisted by man. Without sufficient food supplies regional conflicts will expand and possibly lead to all out global conflict. Plus, the evangelical movement is being more aggressive than ever about allowing God back in our schools and government. We are not now nor have we ever been a Christian nation. We are a secular nation founded on Judeo-Christian fundamentals. There is a difference. Religious clubs are fine, religious,  curriculum does NOT belong in public schools. If that is what you want go to a Catholic school. Attend a religious-affiliated college like BYU, Notre Dame, St Marys - there are plenty of them available.

Those are just of a few issues we could address if civility existed in our political discourse. The hate speech cited earlier is a symptom of the problem, not  the problem in and of itself. The lack of civility that in turn lead to the election of Donald Trump is  the two-headed monster that is in my opinion the "Big Bad" we are faced with. Addressing the civility matter would - also in my opinion - inoculate us from a second Trump term - something I fear we might never fully recover from.

That's my quick take on things. Be sure to check Ramana's Musings