Mano a Mano

Donald Trump

Pro-Trump

By: Kip Biby

It is very easy to say that you hate Donald Trump. It is certainly more fun to root for the underdog than it is a billionaire. Also, you will hear his haters talk about how he is a racist, sexist bigot. While I do not agree with these assertions, I can somewhat understand them. I cannot say Trump is my first choice for the nominee but I would take him over Clinton or Sanders any day.

Trump is without a doubt a qualified candidate. To be at his level of business success takes nothing short of an unstoppable work ethic and a brilliant mind. The equitability of being the president and running a business (or many businesses) is certainly evident. Trump undoubtedly has a firm grasp on economic issues as well as a talent for negotiation. These are skills that nobody in Obama’s staff apparently has.

While Trump does have a certain knack for putting his foot in his mouth, I would rather listen to the occasional “offensive” comment from a man who largely improvises his speeches than a carefully written statement made by the staff of Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders. Trump truly is genuine when he speaks and the American people realize and appreciate this. The proof is in the poll numbers.

I cannot say that Trump is a “nice guy.” He speaks his mind without regard for people’s feelings. Many voters think of this as a bad thing because you know, feelings are important, right? The president should not be a nice guy.

We need a man or woman who can get things done, stand up to our enemies and put the economy of our country first. Donald Trump may in fact be the man to do it. I can only hope that one day people wake up and realize that nothing comes free in this world. We cannot afford to pay for everyone’s healthcare, higher education and cigarettes.

Trump understands the impracticalities of the left’s rhetoric and will preserve the things that are most important to our people: security, financial stability and our many freedoms.

I cannot say the same thing about the folks on the left.

No-Trump

By: Lyndzi Sakowski

Donald Trump slays me every time he speaks, and not in a good way. It physically feels like I am being stabbed by copious amounts of discrimination, offensiveness and unpasteurized, organic ignorance.

Yet, a lot of people defend Trump, “He’s honest and really speaks the mind of many Americans.” Sure, he may be orating the internalized racism, sexism and ethnocentrism of many Americans, but that’s exactly the point—these are things people shouldn’t be saying out loud!

Secondly, Trump isn’t even original. For one, he’s ripping off the old ‘outcast a certain group of people from society with a visible marker’ trick. Hitler did it, and many other dictators before his time. You’re not fooling anyone here, Donald; we all smell what you’re up to.

Plus, Trump is really stepping up my stress game. I already procrastinate hours of studying, but now I have to develop coping skills for every time I encounter another statement he made. It’s like everything he says is supposed to be true, but isn’t. Sort of like a “truism,” but instead a “Trumpism.”

Trying to unravel what his main thesis is in every quote he spews is taking away precious time I could spend regenerating brain cells. My personal “favorite” Trumpism is when he stated his love for “the Mexican people” and in the same breath announced, “but they are ruining this country.”

Is logic still a relevant thing? Not to this guy. I think his statements are truly just a stream of fallacies that are constant, somehow coherent to a large enough body of people. If I could pinpoint his top five fallacies, they would be: ad hominem, straw man, begging the question, appeal to emotion and faulty analogy.

Also, Trump refuses to answer questions. He’s like a pissy toddler who knows for a fact he ate two cookies before dinner. Yet, when you ask about it he responds, “Yes, this is a problem. Cookies should not be consumed before dinner. I understand, it’s an issue.”

A vote for Trump is a vote for ethnocentrism, continuing the cycle of violence against minorities and a vote for ignorance.