The entertainer-in-chief

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I have no affiliation to any political party nor to any particular ideology, but I have always been interested in politics and politicians. In my view, elected participants provide a form of entertainment, with some performing better or in a more interesting way than others. I scour several international news websites and television broadcasts each day attempting to quench my thirst for knowledge.

In our dramatically polarised and protectionist world, the political leaning of commentators usually becomes very evident with their graphic criticism, whether they are professional pundits, citizen journalists or amateur scribblers. Much of what is said or written these days is pretty hateful stuff coming from all corners of the political spectrum, and am very thankful that I decided long ago to play no part in social media. So many unfiltered opinions without factual base are repeated millions of times over for the most gullible among us to swallow, and then regurgitate.

Have always been a great admirer of editorial cartoons, and frequently check websites such as cartoonmovement.com to see what clever artists around the world produce for the amusement and edification of people like me. A recent Austrian cartoon was of a stylized rollercoaster using the numbers in 2026 showing how the New Year may be full of hazardous ups and downs; it really seems that the current occupant of the Oval Office is taking us all on a wild ride in January.

We have to buckle our seatbelts, but could all suffer from whiplash or worse as the former real estate mogul and reality TV host causes heads to spin, something like the girl possessed by the demon in that scary 1973 movie “The Exorcist”. He becomes totally unpredictable in changing his mind frequently, yet news anchors, political analysts and reporters still try to speculate his next move – without ever daring to admit that it’s an exercise in futility. He doesn’t care who gets a whiff of his verbal diarrhoea, the nasty aroma of which often spreads across continents.

Sycophants suggest we read his 1987 autobiography The Art of the Deal to understand his political philosophy. Love him or loathe him, he has three more years behind that Resolute Desk; so get a grip of the safety-rail, and hold tight to experience the ride with the antagonizer-insulter-disrupter-cajoler-entertainer-in-chief.

BERNIE SMITH

Parksville, BC

Canada