“The Boy That Cried Wolf” is a fable with a lesson that applies to today’s world. When you protest and argue and go apoplectic over everything, your outrage is unsustainable.  It gets old and tiresome, and eventually nobody pays attention to you anymore.  No one is inspired by your strident drama; rather, they’re either bored or amused.  That’s how the memes of #notmygroundhog and #notmysuperbowl got started.   Your overblown protesting has become a joke.

Since no one wants to be a joke,  I am here to offer some suggestions for how you, the left, can reclaim some measure of maturity and respectability.  It won’t be easy, but take it a step at a time, and perhaps some day you can once again participate as adults in the ongoing debate which is our government.

8 Helpful Tips for People Who Voted for Hillary:

1. First, relax. It’s going to be all right. It’s not the end of the world. It’s not the end of the United States. There are built-in checks and balances in our government.  Stop reading and listening to the liberal echo chamber, and look at both sides of the issues; think for yourself.
2. Stop the silly hashtags. Trump IS your president, and he WAS legitimately elected. You may really and truly hate that he won, but that doesn’t change the fact that he did.
3. Take off the damn safety pins. Wearing them makes you look ridiculous.  Instead of demonizing the electoral majority that elected President Trump, study to find out why people preferred Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton.  I’ll give you a clue:  It’s not because the people that elected him are racist, homophobic, Islamophobic or misogynistic.  Really, it isn’t.  I know that as you are reading this, you are saying “Yes it is! Yes it is!” but truly – it isn’t.
4. And speaking of name-calling – just stop it. It bears repeating since you’ve made such a habit of calling everyone on the right names (i.e. racist, homophobic, islamaphobic, misogynistic, etc.)  that it no longer means much.  (Refer again to “The Boy That Cried Wolf”).  You’ve worn it out.  Ho hum.  With freedom of speech, comes an obligation to be thoughtful and responsible with your words and actions.   Since the election, the words of people on the left have influenced people to riot. People have been hurt.  Businesses have been destroyed.  Streets have been trashed.  That only sets back your cause.  People are watching, and you don’t help yourself with calls for government takeover or physical injury to those you dislike.  I repeat: People are watching, and your drama is helping to ensure that President Trump will win a second term.  I’m okay with that, but I doubt that you are.
5. Be a grown-up. Accept that Donald Trump IS your president.  Yes, he was on a reality show.  No, he’s not particularly well spoken.  Yes, he can be a little reactionary.  Still, he’s your president. Support him as much as possible.  You can’t disagree with every single thing he says or does.  If you let yourself look for the good in what he’s done,  you can find it.  It’s there.  Save your protests and head-bashing for major policy disagreements.
6. Trump is right. Some of the press can’t be trusted.  Sometimes they use “lies of omission.”  Other times it’s opinion passed off as fact. And sometimes it’s the selection of photos or camera angles that give a wrong impression.   Don’t take CNN’s, ABC’s,  CBS’s, FOX’s, or NBC’s word for anything.  Go to primary sources to find out what was really said or what truly happened.  Refer back to #1 – Think for yourself.
7. Donald Trump is a strong personality. He doesn’t fit the image most people have of a statesman. Things won’t be like they’ve been under other presidents. That, by the way, is why he won the election.  People wanted change.  However, Donald Trump is a smart and practical businessman. He has brought in people from all walks of life to discuss how best to solve the problems our country faces.  (Now some on the left have refused to meet with him, which makes no sense at all.  Really, you’ve got to stop working against yourself!)  President Trump will do whatever works within the framework of the law and Constitution.  He will make mistakes, of course.  All presidents do.  However, it’s not business as usual in D.C.  Get used to it.
8. And finally – do something constructive. Moaning, groaning and protesting all the time will only wear you down and make your life miserable.  Instead of writing angry Tweets and Facebook posts or carrying signs and protesting, go out and serve dinner in a homeless shelter, volunteer at a children’s hospital, look for ways to help people in your own community.  Put your words of universal love into action.  Trust me, you will feel a lot better for it.