BY SHARON MARTIN

Consolidate.

Trim the government to just a few

loyal minions.

Ignore the Constitution.

Create an enemy, and

promise to save us all,

or at least the ones who voted for you.

Profess your base’s religion, and

make their issues yours,

despite all the evidence

of your lack of values,

your belief in only one god,

yourself.

It is enough

that they want to believe

that you believe.

Of course, none of this works

if voters trust the press

or the courts

or Congress

or anybody who isn’t you,

so cast doubt like penny candy

at a homecoming parade.

And there, you have it,

the ease with which a would-be dictator

takes down a once-thriving democracy.

– Sharon Martin lives in Oilton, OK and is a regular contributor to The Oklahoma Observer. Her latest book, Not A Prodigal, is available through Barnes and Noble. Her recent children’s book, Froggy Bottom Blues, can be purchased in hardcover or paperback from Doodle and Peck Publishingand in paperback from Amazon.