I’ve been mulling over the topic of
this article for the past few months.
The topic seems particularly timely today – Trump’s tweet this morning
about Mika and Morning Joe has triggered the left. They are absolutely unhinged when it comes to
him, as usual. But they’re not the
intended audience for this piece.
I have always enjoyed sailing. I’ve owned several boats and spent countless
weekends sailing the Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, the Chesapeake Bay, and
numerous other beautiful bodies of water.
Frankly, there’s nothing like it.
It’s America’s original green pastime – driven by a fuel that makes a
frugal conservative delighted.
One of the most interesting things I
recall from my time spent in various boatyards, boat stores and marinas was a
metal block called a sacrificial anode which was typically affixed to the
bottom of the boat. This nondescript device
plays a part far more important than its simplicity suggests. Like a lightning
rod in a thunder storm, this thing is essential.
Neil Young (no relation), had a highly
successful album entitled, “Rust Never Sleeps.” There is unequivocal consensus
that the current political climate is corrosive and that Trump has garnered
more than the lion’s share of the mainstream media’s (MSM) caustic coverage.
A recent report from the Harvard
Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy
analyzed the news coverage of President Trump’s first 100 days in office. This
report effectively and objectively exposes the MSM’s animus. The report explains, “CNN and NBC’s coverage
was the most unrelenting—negative stories about Trump outpaced positive ones by
13-to-1 on the two networks. Trump’s coverage on CBS also exceeded the 90
percent mark. Trump’s coverage exceeded the 80 percent level in The New York
Times (87 percent negative) and The Washington Post (83 percent negative).”
Accuracy aside, that’s a lot to
overcome. Even Fox was predominately
negative; however, it, “was the only outlet where Trump’s overall coverage
nearly crept into positive territory—52 percent of Fox’s reports with a clear
tone were negative, while 48 percent were positive.” At least Fox, which was formerly
self-described as “Fair and Balanced,” was.
Given the uninhibited and unrestrained
assaults by the MSM, what’s the answer to Trump’s tribulation? A website called “corrosionpedia.com”
contains the answer. (Who knew there was
an entire website devoted to this problem right?) The solution is none other than a
“sacrificial anode.” As the site
dedicated to defeating and delaying corrosion explains it:
Sacrificial anodes are easily corroded
materials deliberately installed to be sacrificed to corrosion, leaving the
rest of the system relatively corrosion free… In
sacrificial anodes, the protected metal is placed on the cathode side and then
a more reactive metal or alloy (having a larger potential difference than the
protected metal) is chosen and connected to the protected metal as an anode.
The redox reaction will proceed spontaneously. An oxidation reaction occurs at
the anode, which means that the sacrificial metal will be consumed. At the same
time, the reduction reaction occurs on the cathodic side, preventing the
protected metal from erosion. Thus, corrosion on the protected metal is
successfully shifted to the anode, protecting the metal.”
Whether Trump’s employment of the
“sacrificial tweet” is deliberate, devious, or destructive is not completely clear. He has discovered the most successful
defensive measure available given the deceitful and disproportionate
corrosiveness he faces.
Like unrelenting rust, the media has shown
they will not slumber. As Don Casey, one
of the most consulted experts on boat care puts it, “It would be hard to overstate the importance of maintaining the anodes
on your boat. When an anode is missing or largely wasted away, the metal
component it was installed to protect begins to dissolve--guaranteed.”
So, who is the intended audience for
this treatise? It is aimed squarely at
my conservative friends. There is no
debate, Trump’s tweets are disconcerting.
And the demurer my friends are, the more they dislike it. My simple message to you is, like a simple
sacrificial anode prevents rust, trust Trump when it comes to tweeting.
The left and the MSM (I repeat myself)
want Trump to stop – they know the power is in his tweeting. They simply can’t stand not being the
clearinghouse to filter what reaches the American mind. (Owning the public school and university
system notwithstanding.)
To paraphrase Mr. Casey, “When a tweet
is missing or largely wasted away, the man it was installed to protect begins
to dissolve--guaranteed.”
Tweet away
President Trump – it’s a matter of survival.
