Trump’s rhetoric divides us

Before malls were teen hang outs, there were drive-in theaters. In the 1970s, they attracted teens and were a place to dream about bench seat heaven with a date. After all, they were known as “passion pits.”

The crowd at the local “passion pit” didn’t really care about deep plot lines and moving themes. When you pulled into a spot with a date, you were showing your world, you were stepping out. The place was filled with teens.

Movie makers knew what their audience craved, and they fed them. You could watch three movies in one night, and they were the weirdest, wildest horror films ever made.

The newspaper and radio ads sounded like a carnival barker at the fair. They’d boldly announce a registered nurse would be on duty in case watchers fainted from the horror. Not to be out done, another theater across town promised an ambulance team available to resuscitate those who succumb.

So, if they were teen magnets, why are they as rare as dial phones today?

Iowa cars get cold in winter. No matter how much a couple snuggles, they’d freeze in December through April at a drive-in theater. In the summer, If it stormed, movie special effects took on a whole new meaning. Sometimes, the speakers were about as clear as two cans attached by a string. Developers lusted after all that land for housing and stores.

Most of the movies were awful and the hype got more extreme as the movies got worse. After a while, teens started opting for indoor theaters where you didn’t have to walk a half mile to get popcorn and if it rained you could still see the screen.

Trump rallies of today remind me of those drive-ins of long ago. To keep a base entertained, he must get more and more extreme and make more outrageous claims.

That’s happening now.

In 2015, When Trump came down his golden escalator, he played ominous Phantom of the Opera music as he descended. He said, “ Mexico isn’t sending us their best. They’re bringing drugs, they’re bringing crime, they’re rapists. And some I assume are good people.”

His rhetoric became more extreme in 2024.

Recently, he called America “the garbage can for the world.” At every rally he routinely labels his opponent as“stupid, sick, and mentally ill.” Americans who disagree with him are“enemies from within.” Undocumented immigrants are “ vermin and poisoning the blood of America.”

In his Madison Square Garden rally, his invited comedian insulted Puerto Ricans by calling “Puerto Rico a floating pile of garbage,” and made crude jokes about Hispanics, Jews, and blacks. Other warm up acts called Harris the Antichrist and said, “her pimp handlers would destroy the country.”

The extreme ads for drive-ins vanished as they lost their audience. When America rejects Trump for the second time, his hate filled rhetoric will eventually evaporate because he failed again.

We need a leader who feeds our optimism, not our hate. We’ll always be stronger as a united America recognizing diversity. Americans understand they may disagree, but they don’t have to be disagreeable.

Bruce Lear lives in Sioux City, taught for 11 years and represented educators as an Iowa State Education Association Regional Director for 27 years until he retired. BruceLear2419@gmail.com