By Allan W. Janssen
Let’s be honest.
There are days... many of them... when I want to reach through the screen and knock some sense into Donald Trump.
Not out of malice, but out of sheer frustration!
Frustration that someone so allergic to facts, so impervious to truth, can continue to shape headlines, hijack national discourse, and treat reality like a chew toy!
But I can’t punch him in the nose!
And even if I could, it wouldn’t help!
Because Trump isn’t listening...and he never has been!
He’s not built to be swayed by facts!
He thrives on spectacle!
He feeds off outrage!
He weaponizes attention!
In that sense, he’s not a person in the traditional rhetorical arena!
He’s a walking algorithm... an echo chamber with a hair trigger!
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So what do we do with someone who won't shut up and listen?
We stop trying to reason with the noise and start tuning our own signals louder, smarter, and clearer!
1. Change the Audience:
You don’t have to convince Trump. You have to out-narrate him!
Talk to the people who are watching.
Speak to the undecided.
Reach those who still have ears for reason.
Don’t stoop to his level... rise above it with clarity, compassion, and yes... conviction!
2. Starve the Spectacle:
Trump is like a fire that feeds on oxygen. Every angry post, every shocked reaction, every "Can you believe he said that?!" tweet is just more fuel.
Want him to lose power?
Stop handing him kindling!
Focus instead on what matters: Policies, people, progress!
Let his noise bounce off the walls while you build something better.
3. Use the Tools of Civilization:
Courts.
Laws.
Votes.
Institutions.
These are the tools we have... not fists, not fantasy.
They’re slower, yes. Messier, too.
But they’re how grownups change the world.
If you’re angry, channel it into action.
Mobilize.
Donate.
Organize.
Vote like your democracy depends on it... because it does!
4. Amplify Truth... With Style:
Facts alone aren’t enough.
You need narrative.
Humor.
Storytelling.
A touch of poetry.
Remember: People don’t just believe data, they believe meaning!
Give them something worth believing in.
Use satire.
Use science.
Use soul.
5. Accept That He’s Not the Point
Trump didn’t invent the dysfunction.
He’s a symptom of it.
A mirror held up to a society addicted to outrage and certainty.
The real task isn’t to shut him up... it’s to build something wiser in his wake!
Something that honours truth without becoming smug!
Something that uses facts without forgetting empathy!
Something that outgrows the need for cartoon strongmen altogether!
Bottom line?
You can’t punch a lie in the face!
But you can starve it of your attention, bury it in better ideas, and drown it out with louder truths!
That’s not a weakness!
That’s evolution!
And it’s time!
