OCCAM'S RAZOR

March 17, 2018

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher,

101 Main Street #380

Huntington Beach, CA 92648

Dear Congressman,

Re: Occam’s razor

As I’m sure you’re aware, Occam’s razor is the principle that says the best solution to a problem is the one that requires the fewest assumptions—in other words, the simplest and most obvious.

Vladimir Putin, likely soon to be re-elected as President of Russia, is getting away with murder. I mean quite literally, in the case of the former spy in Salisbury and his daughter. Well, let’s say “attempted murder” in that case. There are many other cases where his close involvement in violent and unexplained deaths is beyond reasonable doubt. Aside from murder, there is ample evidence of his malfeasance—most recently in Syria, where the mercenaries in the employ of one of his oligarch favorites attempted seizure of an oil well, endangering the lives of American soldiers, and where the Russian military has been deployed against innocent civilians to the benefit of the dictator Assad. Not to mention the indisputable meddling in our own presidential election and the hacking of our infrastructure.

Can you doubt that Putin is a very bad actor on the world stage? Perhaps, I concede, you can, given the history of your own Russia connections. Most of the rest of us, however, entertain no doubts on this score. But the American president does nothing, says nothing. When Putin, confronted by evidence of his misdeeds, smirks and says: “So what?” the American president should surely stand up and say loudly: “So what? I’ll tell you what…” And enumerate different courses of action that can be taken to counter Putin’s growing impunity and smug self-satisfaction on he world stage.

Back to Occam. There is one simple, obvious answer to the question, Why does Trump do nothing, say nothing? Why has it taken him so long to implement even the mild rebuff enacted by Congress? Why does he still, personally, remain silent and leave all criticism of Russia to his underlings? That simple, obvious answer is that Putin has some dirt on him. Sex, lies or videotape. Something so terrible that Trump is reduced to silent acquiescence. A history of money-laundering for the oligarchs? Perhaps. A tape recording of those infamous “golden showers.” In view of everything else we know about his sexual misconduct, it seems increasingly likely.

So, Congressman, is the most obvious answer to the puzzle the correct one? I need to ask you, where is your voice? Where is the voice of your Republican colleagues? Are we to simply cave to Russia’s provocations? To their continued interference in our democratic process—in 2018? In 2020? Are we to allow the incompetence, the venal narcissism, the nepotism, the intemperance of this man to continue to make us look like fools and knaves in world opinion?

What say you, Congressman? This constituent really wants to know.

Respectfully,

Peter Clothier, Ph.D.