North Carolina Post-Election

I live in the area of western North Carolina were Hurricane Helene hit. I've got friends and family members who could have been killed during the storm. It's a miracle that they weren't. My mother and I made it though because we live at a higher elevation. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris sent help to us right away as soon as they could. The National Guard had to wait until the fog cleared up enough for the helicopters to land safely. Providing us with much needed food, water, and emergency aid. They also sent crews to repair the roads and clear away the fallen trees. So that they could restore power and running water around the communities.

And what did Trump do during our time of need? He did nothing!!! All he was really doing was blaming immigrants needlessly. As if they did something to cause it. Come on people... Think about it!!! It was a natural disaster. How can anyone be responsible for causing a natural disaster? Does Donald Trump live in the real world or a crayon drawn comic book? Or is it simply easier to just make up mindless fiction on the spot? Because it sounds good on TV. If my own basic knowledge of meteorology serves me correctly. Storms aren't caused by a flick of a switch. Or typed in by a supercomputer. They just happen; whether we like it to or not! Pure and simple!

Is it so hard for people to start using their common sense? Trump is basically a spoiled 78-year-old toddler born with a mental condition. One that throws a tantrum because he can't fit a large round peg in a small square hole. And starts World War III because someone takes away his cookie jar and fluffy blanky.

So does Making America Great mean allowing fear and hate run rampant and wild? Hurricane Helene happened over a month ago. And the whole country just forgot about it? Like it never happened? Just a gentle breeze and a light sprinkle. And then it's over 5 minutes later...

Well, newsflash America... IT DID HAPPEN!!! When a storm hits, especially powerful hurricanes, no one can do a thing to stop it. Much less start one like in a comic book or fantasy novel.

I remember those few days almost too well.

Here's how it went... That morning I was about to prepare breakfast when the power went completely out. It was raining rather hard at the time. So I waited a minute for the power to come back on. Then a minute turn into an hour. I waited half the morning and still no power. And the storm outside was getting harder and harder. My mother and I were stuck inside the house. Either of us had access to the internet or cell service. Unable to contact anyone or learn what was going on. I did hear about the hurricane traveling up north to our area in the news. I honestly thought it would just pass us by. But I had no clue on how bad it would really get. And neither did anyone else for that matter. So Mom and I just sat tight in the dark house waiting for the storm to pass. The wind howled endlessly like an animal. And the rain pounded on the windows so hard and so fast that I couldn't the outside at all. I hated the feeling of being trapped and unable to do anything. But it was too dangerous to go outside at the time. The wind sounded strong enough to toss anything lighter than a car like a toy. Little else I could do except play an audiobook on my phone. Or draw some shapes on a sketchbook with a pencil out of boredom.

It a few hours, maybe longer, before the storm finally cleared. It was hard to keep track on the first day. But Mom and I saw the damage the storm had done. The number of trees that were down ranged from fair to staggering. Some were broken at trunk. While others were ripped out of the ground to the root. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know serious this was. The wind and rain came on so hard and loud I couldn't hear the trees falling over. Many of these trees blocked off the driveway at our house. I found a large heavy branch dangerously close to my car. It was pure dumb luck that it didn't land on it. My mother's own vehicle was also safe from the falling branches. But it was parked a different location at the time. And that's not even the worst part. Power lines were laying all over the road. Snapped right off the telephone poles like rubber bands or old frayed twine. The electric companies had to shut them down for safety reasons.

The first couple of days was so stressful! I had moments when I couldn't take a minute, let alone a day, in a dark house. The whole electrical system had been knocked out in the storm. And the town shutting down the water didn't help with much. So I tried everything I could think of stay calm. As stressful as it was. I had enough rational thought left to know that screaming my head off won't solve anything. It's almost amazing that I didn't. Considering the state of things. I had to accept that I wasn't going anywhere in a hurry. Not even to work. To save my phone's battery charge. I tried actually reading and bits of drawing. But only through the limited light from a window. And maybe spent a little time playing a game on my old Nintendo DS. I've had it since my high school years. I'm still surprised that plastic fossil still works so well. And every night I had to go to bed early around 8 PM. Couldn't watch TV... And it got too dark to read a book. Mom did bring home a couple of M.R.E. packs the National Guard distributed. Along with a supple of bottled water.

Half a week passed since Hurricane Helene hit. And the water came back running again. But it wasn't exactly running clear. It might have been fit enough for washing hands. But not for drinking or teeth brushing. Still, it was a good sign. It meant power would soon be restored. It felt almost weird. I was starting to get use to off-grid living. Half a week with no TV or internet was almost like a dopamine detox. Of course I would have rather done that more voluntarily. But during that time Mom, myself, and others were learning how Helene affected everything down at ground level. And what we heard wasn't good. Floods have hit more than several towns like a hammer. I even heard about people bringing out cadaver dogs to search for bodies in the debris. And there are roads that were also washed away or severely damaged. But there were electrical, plumbing, and tree cutting crews at work. Doing as much as they could. To get everything up and running again as soon as possible.

After a full week, our own house had electricity again. Which meant TV, internet, a working stove, and hot water for a shower. But things still weren't fully normal. The roads were still damaged. And some stable patchwork was done in order to make the roads fit for driving. And popular local tourist events were canceled due to the work that still needed to be done. Mainly rebuilding homes and businesses. I logged into my social media page to check on my friends and other people I know. To see if they were alright. So far I was glad to know that they did. Somehow... And I slowly became aware that some people have lost everything.

But after the recent 2024 Election, I still don't see how the Electoral College got Trump reelected. It should not have happened. And the whole county just waved off one the worse hurricanes to occur in our lifetime. As if it were nothing. It should be Kamala Harris going to the White House on January 2025. And North Carolina still handed him the Electoral Votes. Why? How? He would be content to ignore us and leave us to starve. Did anyone forget that he ignored the Covid-19 pandemic? Just waved it off while more than 1 million people died within 2 years. Which was no different than killing every one of them. What kind of human beings would support a man with so much blood on his hands? And when Joe Biden was about to take office in 2021. The US Capitol Attack happened on January 6th. Hundreds of violent Trump supporters tried to murder everyone in the building, including Trump's former VP Mike Pence. Many people in that crowd were members of White Supremacist groups. Especially Neo-Nazis and the highly despised Ku Klux Klan. And what did Trump do then? He was cheering them on.

Maybe the real reason why Trump got reelected is because someone used the Hurricane Helene tragedy as a tool. And it's not hard to guess who helped the worst day in Modern American History happen. Eric Trump, second born son of the orange menace Donald Trump. From what I heard about Eric, he's the least intelligent of all his other siblings. Eric's wife, Lara Yunaska was born in Wilmington, North Carolina Oct. 12, 1982. A fairly accomplished woman and seemingly well educated. And yet... She married into the Trump family. Why? My own personal guess is that working an honest gig got too hard on polished nails. Marry someone rich to avoid working hard at all. And on one of his father's political ads Eric said, "My wife is from North Carolina." And he actually felt sorry for us? Why would anyone trust a word from a Trump? Just because Lara was born and bred in North Carolina her whole life. It doesn't mean that she, her husband, or daddy-in-law, actually cares about the state of North Carolina.

And there's no doubt that Eric Trump is not only one of the least intelligent human beings. But also equally as shameless as his father, Donald. Eric used a small child as a tool to promote his father's political race. And just any child... His own daughter!!! Who happens to be named Carolina! Who uses children like that? Maybe that's why the orange menace got reelected. Because of some bleeding hearts to tug at the ol' emotional strings. So what the American Presidency is reduced to. The old fashion sweet and innocent routine for shameful self-promotion. And enough emotionally weak fools to believe it. Bad enough that the Trump family would use Hurricane Helene as a political promotion. But using a little girl that's lost at least her first few baby teeth like that. A shameful and disgraceful act. No mater what family you born in. Especially one of the most hated families in the US. I feel sorry for the poor girl. Having the Worst US President in history for a grandfather!

If Donald Trump himself has the balls to call me a lair. And has the nerve to call everything I say a hoax. Like he did with the Covid-19 pandemic. Then go ahead and reach out to the people who's lives were turned upside-down in the towns Hurricane Helene hit. Boone, Blowing Rock, Asheville, Banner Elk, Hendersonville, Beech Mountain, etc... It's a long list. Try looking up the number of people who were lucky enough to make it. And the ones who weren't so lucky. Maybe some you may know someone who lived in those areas? A friend? Family member? A college roommate? A football teammate? Maybe an old high school sweetheart you haven't seen or spoke to in 10 or 20 years? The North Carolina town of Chimney Rock was wiped off the map by Hurricane Helene. It took 125 years of human work to build it. And then washed away by a simple and powerful force of nature. Helene was a Category 4 hurricane. Google it yourself and imagine that happening to your own home. Or someone you actually care about?

Despite the fact that the worst Category 4 in a generation hurricane turned Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina into war zones, Trump was still reelected. But these same states still got him elected. How did America fall so low? There's no way of knowing what these next 4 years will bring. But it doesn't take a fortune teller to know that it will be dark and uncertain.