There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear
There’s a man with a gun over there
Telling me we need to beware.*

Many of that man’s supporters insist they are drawn to his “strength,” yet what they repeatedly excuse is not strength at all, but unkindness.

They look past the mocking nicknames, the cruelty toward the vulnerable, the delight in humiliation. They explain it away as humor, as strategy, as “telling it like it is.” Over time, the explanations harden into indifference. What once shocked becomes normal.

They also look past the signs of cognitive decline that are visible to anyone paying attention: the rambling repetitions, the confused timelines, the slurred or incoherent moments, the inability to stay anchored to basic facts. Rather than confronting what that might mean for leadership, they dismiss it as media bias or double down in denial. Loyalty becomes more important than reality.

And the violence he foments is astonishing and especially terrifying considering this country’s love affair with guns.

It’s time we stop
Hey, what’s that sound?
Everybody look what’s going down…*

This is not just about one man. It is about what happens to us when we decide that cruelty doesn’t matter if it’s coming from someone who speaks to our fears or resentments. When we excuse unkindness because it feels useful, we teach ourselves—and each other—that empathy is optional, truth is flexible, and character is negotiable.

Hatred doesn’t begin with shouting cruelties. With actual violence. It begins with looking away.

It grows when we tolerate behavior we would never accept from someone we oppose. It grows when we stop asking hard questions of the people we admire. It grows when defending “our side” matters more than defending our shared humanity.

If we want to overcome hatred in the world, the work does not start with silencing others or shaming them into submission. It starts closer to home. It starts with refusing to normalize cruelty, even when it comes from a leader we once supported. It starts with choosing honesty over loyalty, conscience over tribe.

We don’t heal a divided world by pretending unkindness is harmless.

We heal it by refusing to excuse it—no matter who benefits from our silence.

• For What It’s Worth by Buffalo Springfield