As America journeys down its yellow brick road as a democracy, we need to consider the type of leader we need. All of us are primates. Therefore, this article presents two primates from which to choose.

Two primates

Primates are divided into five groups: the great apes, gorillas, orangutans, chimpanzees, and bonobos. Around the middle to end of the Miocene epoch, 13 to 6 million years ago, chimpanzees and bonobos were our last common ancestors. Our DNA is 98.8% identical to that of chimps. During that timeframe, chimps, bonobos, and humans diverged while remaining as primates.

Therefore, this article is about picking a national leader from two primates. Essentially, it is a Kierkegaardian either/or choice. America’s future hangs in the balance. You decide.

Your first choice is Trump. In a recent essay, I noted that Trump shares similarities with two Greek tragic figures from Greek mythology, one of whom was Narcissus. Narcissus fell in love with himself and spent his life enamored with looking at himself in a pool of water. This is an updated version of the Italian Renaissance painter Caravaggio's painting.

"I love me. I think I'm grand. When I go to heaven, I'll hold my hand."

In this video, Trump acknowledges that he has found a soulmate in the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un. They came to terms with some of their differences, and now they are in love.

There was a report in The Wall Street Journal related to Trump sending a birthday card to Epstein on his 50^th birthday. Trump allegedly drew a birthday card and wrote, “Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret.” Trump called it another hoax that President Obama, Biden, and former FBI Director Comey fabricated. Time will tell what their wonderful secret is when the Epstein files are made public.

Another issue is Trump’s not wanting to take down the statue of Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, VA. He argued that Washington and Jefferson had slaves, and we aren’t taking down statues of their statues. However, the removal of the Lee statue was due to his leadership of the South during the Civil War, not to enslaving people.

Terry Moran of ABC interviewed Trump on his first one hundred days of his second term. Listen to what Trump said about his understanding of the Declaration of Independence.

This is Trump’s explanation of what the Declaration of Independence means to him. “Well, it means exactly what it says, it’s a declaration. A declaration of unity and love and respect, and it means a lot. And it’s something very special to our country.”

Most Americans know the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence by heart. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Now, compare the first primate, Trump, with an alternative primate. Which primate should be our leader?

This video relates to the Great Apes.

Terry Moran’s interview with Trump on his first 100 days of his second term.