Well here we sit.

How Low Can We Go? From the Three Stooges of Payson to the Trump Mafia in Washington

The lying and deceit of the Trump gang remind me all too much of the Three Stooges wrecking the place — except in this case, the place is our own town of Payson. When you watch federal corruption and local dysfunction side by side, it feels like two versions of the same tragic comedy: one national, one municipal, both fueled by arrogance, incompetence, and a total disregard for the people they claim to serve.

We used to think the Three Stooges routine — tripping over ladders, smashing scaffolding, knocking down walls — was harmless slapstick. But when our local Stooges destroyed the hope for a new community swimming pool, it wasn’t comedy. It was civic sabotage. It was the crushing of a shared vision for health, recreation, and town pride. They weren’t defending taxpayers — they were defending their own narratives, their own petty politics, their own egos.

Meanwhile, on the national stage, Trump showed America something even darker. He demonstrated how easy it is to manipulate people clinging to a sinking boat — people desperate for leadership, desperate for meaning, desperate for someone who pretends to hear them. He weaponized their loyalty while enriching himself. In ancient Rome, emperors entertained the masses while their armies slaughtered for sport. Today, Trump praises war criminals, laughs at human suffering, and encourages violence as though it were prime-time entertainment.

What kind of America does that make us?

Take a slow drive around Payson. You’ll see hardworking people living in aging, ramshackle homes, families scraping by, elders surviving on fixed incomes while inflation eats away their dignity.

Then picture the other America: the wealthy lining up to place gold-brick tributes on Trump’s desk — not out of patriotism, not out of civic duty, but to buy favors, dodge consequences, and cement their place in the new feudal order. It’s the same old story: those at the top get gilded pathways; those at the bottom get potholes and platitudes.

Have we truly sunk this low? Yes — and we’re still digging.

Now the Trump mafia wants to strip health care from millions, cut vital programs, and funnel the savings upward — yet again — into the pockets of the rich. Every proposal is the same sleight of hand: take from the vulnerable, reward the powerful, blame the powerless, and congratulate themselves for “saving America.”

What have we come to when cruelty becomes policy, corruption becomes loyalty, and public service becomes a punchline?

Payson deserves better. America deserves better. Humanity deserves better.
But nothing changes until people look up from the sinking boat and realize the captain drilling holes in the hull is not their savior.

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