Opinion: It's trendy to be anti-Trump

Opinion: It's trendy to be anti-Trump

Here's the disclaimer that many people who read this article will choose to ignore -- I am not writing this article to defend Donald Trump.

I am writing this article to defend rational thought, a concept that seems to be increasingly falling out of fashion.

Here we go.

In the olden days someone's political opinions were shaped over a lifetime, coming from a combination of family background and personal experiences.

The rise and rise of social media had led to an entirely new phenomenon -- trendy political opinions which change as often as the weather. Because of the very nature of the internet, which values speed and quantity over quality, our political opinions are starting to tend towards the shallow and the whimsical.

There is no better example of this than people who loudly voice their opposition to Donald Trump. Being anti-Trump is the latest in political opinion fashion accessories.

Let's start with the most shameful point. I keep hearing in New Zealand circles the idea that the only reason Trump has had such success is because Americans are "stupid".

Frankly, this is disgusting. It not only is completely incorrect (take any indicator you like -- IQ, academic qualifications per capita, university performance) but, much worse than that, it implies New Zealanders are smarter than Americans.

And if your average New Zealander thinks they are smarter than your average American then we have a major problem. Granted, this country is suffering an intense bout of self-delusion at the moment, but this really would take the cake.

By the way, Americans, on the whole, love us and they love our country. It's time to stop painting Americans with the 'stupid' brush. It makes New Zealand look pathetic and childish in the eyes of the world. And I certainly hope we haven't got that far.

So, why do people dislike Trump so strongly?

On the surface it appears to be for two main reasons: he wants to put a temporary ban on Muslims immigrating to the US and he says there are druggies and rapists coming across the border from Mexico. You'd hope most of the people who are against Trump would at least know these two basic facts, but I've certainly talked to plenty of 'anti-Trumpers' who don't even know that much.

These are strong opinions, but let's look at the facts.

The US in 2016 is in the worst position it has arguably ever been. The roughly 250-year history of this country has been one of almost overwhelming continual success. Apart from a few major setbacks -- potential destruction in the American Civil War and World War II -- the wealth and power of the US has increased and increased and increased. The history of America has been one of the great success stories in world history.

I'm talking generally. Of course there have been winners and losers throughout, but the overall trajectory of the nation has been on the up and up.

That's no longer the case. Americans in the year 2016 are possibly the first generation, ever, to experience a decline in their country's wealth and power. The US economy is overwhelmed with immense structural problems, the political system seems to have come to some sort of institutional deadlock and now, for the first time in many years, other countries are starting to chip away at US military supremacy. The US health and education systems are in disarray and your average American is experiencing a decline in happiness.

Hillary Clinton and Ted Cruz represent the traditional order of American politics. These two represent, in every possible way, the system which has been responsible for their decline.

The reason why Bernie Sanders and Trump have had such immense success this primary round is because Americans are desperately looking for answers. Sanders and Trump are anti-establishment. This is why Sanders is regularly being screwed over by the super delegate system, and the entire Republican Party seems to be on a mission to destroy Trump. They are both very much outside of the traditional party system.

Here are the real reasons I believe why people are so vocally anti-Trump. And none of them are good enough reasons to warrant such visceral hatred.

Trump in particular has a strong, simple rhetoric. He doesn't talk like a politician. He talks like a guy down at the pub. And I personally believe this is the main reason why people are so vocally anti-Trump, without actually stopping to think why they are.

Trump has an interesting appearance. He's not your standard cookie-cutter politician, especially with that hairstyle.

Trump is rich. Many New Zealanders automatically don't like rich people. In many other countries people aspire to be rich.

Trump had a reality TV show...that many people in New Zealand probably watched.

Trump is regularly ridiculed in the US media (because of these very reasons). And being New Zealanders, we copy almost everything foreign media tells us to.

None of these reasons are good enough for even the most basic of arguments. The next time I ask someone why they're so anti-Trump I desperately hope they'll give me a reason based on thought and critical thinking.

But maybe I'm asking too much.