As you may have heard, there's a new book for kids called 'Give Please a Chance,' co-written by novelist James Patterson and a TV guy known for his 'Killing' series. The best-seller teaches tykes about the importance of civility and courtesy.
Well, it seems that quite a few grownups could use a refresher course in civility, especially right about now. Many prominent Trump-haters, still in full tantrum mode after the election, are bashing the president-elect and his team without mercy and without fairness.
One prime example is Randi Weingarten, capo di tutti capi of the American Federation of Teachers. She's got a nice thing going: The AFT extracts dues from teachers, then contributes millions to Democratic candidates. In return, those Dems are expected to fight any changes to the educational status quo.
For doing her part to protect bad teachers, fight charter schools, and defend her immoral monopoly, Weingarten is paid about a half-million a year.
As the cliché goes, nice work if you can get it.
Weingarten is also a close personal pal of Hillary Clinton and stood side-by-side with her at numerous campaign events. The AFT even broke an agreement among unions by endorsing Mrs. Clinton nearly a full year before the first Democratic primary, defying the wishes of some of its members.
And now? Well, Randi Weingarten is licking her wounds and sharpening her claws. When Donald Trump nominated Betsy DeVos to run the Department of Education on Wednesday, Weingarten immediately denounced her 'reckless and extreme,' and claimed DeVos actually wants to destroy public education.
It's true that Betsy DeVos has challenged the public school monopoly by pushing charter schools and vouchers that could give poor parents more choice. The AFT, of course, wants impoverished kids to remain locked in failing schools.
Summing up, Betsy DeVos promises to fight the status quo; Randi Weingarten calls DeVos 'an ultra-wealthy heiress who uses her money to game the system.' Who is being civil?
Then there is Charles Blow, a dishonest deceiver who has a New York Times opinion column for no discernable reason. His most memorable moment, perhaps his only memorable moment, came when he mocked Mitt Romney's Mormon faith and 'magic underwear.' To be charitable, Charles Blow is essentially a smear merchant with a byline.
Perhaps craving attention, Blow now calls President-elect Trump a 'fraud and a charlatan,' adding that Trump 'fills me with disgust.' (Charles is not big on subtlety.)
The New York Times spent the recent campaign sliming Donald Trump, both on its news and editorial pages. Nevertheless, last week Trump paid a visit to the Times and reached out to its executives and editors. The paper will continue to oppose the new president, but perhaps in a slightly more civil way.
But civility is a non-starter for Charles Blow, who is being praised as a 'hero' by some on the far left.
That's actually a very revealing difference between left and right. Conservatives tend to praise the bravery and heroism of men and women who actually put their lives and reputations on the line by doing something dangerous, something that could result in personal harm. Progressives, by contrast, hail the 'bravery' of an actor who publicly embarrasses the vice-president elect and a hack columnist who hurls cheap insults.
Of course, many on the right would be behaving the very same way if the tables were turned. Conservative columnists would be savaging Hillary Clinton for picking, say, Randi Weingarten as Secretary of Education. And some right-wingers would be vowing to fight Mrs. Clinton every step of the way.
But the left just seems to do it better.
To get progressives prepared for Thanksgiving, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee actually prepared a guide for dealing with stupid relatives. You know, anyone who voted for Donald Trump. The infantile guide accuses Speaker Paul Ryan of waging war on the poor and literally slanders Trump aide Steve Bannon, associating him with 'The KKK, white nationalists, and neo-Nazi groups.' It just doesn't get much slimier than that.
The Democratic Party is in shambles, but its leaders apparently think the party can find its way out of the wilderness by insulting its opponents and moving even farther to the left. Randi Weingarten and Charles Blow are just two of the more odious examples of the strategy, but there are many more.
It's worth remembering that most Americans, even those who voted against him, got behind President Obama when he took office in 2009. Perhaps something similar can happen in 2017, even though the far left will do everything possible to prevent that from happening.
We'll pray for a Christmas Miracle. And we'll conclude with that timeless quote from John Lennon: 'All we are saying is Give Peace a Chance.'
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