So Many Levels of Fucked

Tags

45, Christian Identity, Christian Nationalist, Insurrection, Trump

I usually try to make the blog relevant to the happenings of the day. And I like to focus on good things when I can. However, at this point, there is so much HORRIBLE happening, I’m not even sure where to begin. Climate change, the U.S. insurrection and shitty cops, more evidence of the everyday dangers of life in America if you’re Black, COVID, arches of ice holding it all up getting thin?

To assure you are duly warned, LANGUAGE ALERT. Oops. Was that too late? Did the title give too much away? In case it did not, what ensues will be the ramblings on the many levels of how fucked we are. While I typically focus on the Enbridge Line 3 debacle in Northern Minnesota, there is OH SO MUCH OTHER HORRIBLE happening these days, that I will cover a bit of new or strange ground today. For those who’ve been reading a while, nothing too new, no worries. [Though at Book Club Sunday I’m pretty sure they were like, “How do we uninvite the lady who started the Book Club? She’s kinda sounding crazy.” (FYI: I hear ya’. I feel pretty crazy. Isn’t that NORMAL these days?)]

The issue in the Center Ring is the National insanity and, while I heard 45 was banned… is he back? [I swear I did a search for him yesterday and only Don, Jr popped up. 45 used to be @realDonaldTrump as you may recall. Surely this @POTUS account was there too and I missed it?] No activity of late… but maybe this account is managed by… Kayleigh McEnany? Or some other lackey?

Speaking of Kayleigh, it was SHE who – finally, just hours ago, tweeted
that 45 WOULD honor Capital Police with the flag at half staff.

So TWO law enforcement officers had to die for this to happen, one apparently at his own hand and one by skull fracture with a fire extinguisher, and we still see pretty much NOTHING done to those who committed the insurrection? Nothing much anyway. I hear they got the Q Shaman (is this dude serious?), the Arkansasshole, and the podium guy. But many are still at large:

• The duo of 45 and Rudy – who called for the group to march to the Capitol for “Trial by Combat”
• The Capitol Police officers who waved these insurrectionists in toward the Capitol, removing barriers and running away from them as they flowed through the building seeking to reek havoc and “Stop the Steal” [luckily some quick thinkers managed to secure the ballot boxes]
• The Insurrectionists who wandered in as if it was any given Wednesday, rummaging through desks and destroying/stealing government property
• The Republicans who encouraged – even after ALL the chaos – a continued commitment to OBJECTING to the certification of the vote [time to remove them all]

That 45 has been given until 1/11 to resign – like, WHY THE FUCK IS THIS HIS Decision? Remove that motherfucker NOW, eh? – which correlates to the 3% movement’s insignia [as we’ve already heard threats from insurrectionists who acted on 1/6/21 that they would “be back on the eleventh”] should give some rationale for a pause. A requirement that we consider what might be going down today? I mean, after the epic fail at the Capitol, I’d not be surprised by almost anything. Perhaps the police are downplaying it as they have folks staged in all the states to take over? 3% believe the County Sheriff is the highest law of the land and it was disturbing to see Deputies in Olympia, Washington giving law enforcement guarding the governor’s mansion some side-eye as they fist bumped the protestors (who eventually shouted “kill them all”).

The talk that this is “Over Now” – as I heard on On the Media – like, hey, we counted the votes so, all is fine, we’re moving on with Joe! – might be a bit premature. Those who disagree may have other plans [WARNING: that link is a bit creepy, though I think we should ALL be aware there is some portion of our country that feels that way].

45’s delight at the rioters’ response to his command, his complete disregard for what was transpiring, his subsequent submissive speech (obviously given by a clone – see, there’s a reason for everything!), are all reasons for his immediate removal and, to be honest, his commitment to a mental health facility to evaluate his current mental state. At least we get some media folks (FINALLY) speaking to this chaos and asking for accountability? Apparently 56% of us want 45 removed immediately. Regardless, too little has been done, and whatever is done in the end will be too late to allow the U.S. any means of holding authority in the world. We have become the shit-holiest of countries.

I’m not sure what % of his followers are still in love with him (the clone theorists) and what % are finally realizing that he’s never truly given a shit about them at all. But I’m concerned for all of them. For those disillusioned, perhaps suicide will feel an only option. I know how I felt when Bernie wasn’t given the nomination (the first time). It isn’t pretty – discovering of the unfairness and corruption in our government – whether true or imaginary. [I was a late bloomer when it comes to Presidential politics – hadn’t paid nearly enough attention to the Dark Money and Citizens United decisions over the years…] For those still believing in 45, I fear what they can be led to do in the name of “democracy” or “Jesus“.

Christianity is deeply interwoven with many of the ideologies that brought Trump supporters out to the National Mall and into the halls of Congress.

According to Andrew L. Whitehead, co-director of the Association of Religion Data Archives and professor of sociology at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, understanding Christian nationalism is essential to understanding what motivated many of the demonstrators and rioters in Washington.

“I think that [the demonstrators and rioters] believe that God has a specific plan for this country, and that their vision for the country has been given to them by God,” Whitehead said. “Christian nationalism at its core is this desire to see Christianity be privileged in the public sphere.”

The Christianity of Christian nationalism is very narrow and specific, according to Whitehead. It is typically white supremacist, nativist, and authoritarian. Whitehead and his colleagues previously found that adherence to a Christian nationalist ideology was one of the strongest predictors of a Trump vote.”

Sojourners THEY INVADED THE CAPITOL SAYING ‘JESUS IS MY SAVIOR. TRUMP IS MY PRESIDENT’ by GINA CILIBERTO, STEPHANIE RUSSELL-KRAFT 1-6-21

Here’s what Beau had to say… [It’s just a thought… and a good one imagining Trump in Alamo, Texas – so many levels of funny! – just 225 miles away from the actual Alamo. And I’d agree with Beau that, without Twitter, he’ll surely be full of vitriole to spew as soon as he gets in front of his followers; and we should take care to assure the story stays straight. A review of the situation on the 6th by PBS Newshour journalists was quite thorough and I recommend it. Four women journalists: PBS NewsHour’s anchor and managing editor Judy Woodruff talks to correspondents Lisa Desjardins, Amna Nawaz and Yamiche Alcindor.

Meanwhile, in Ring Two, we STILL have a pandemic unfolding!! The country is losing the equivalent of another “9/11” every day… and many still are giving the virus short shrift. We’re too busy talking about the insurrection and getting ‘back to normal’ just as soon as we possibly can!! Yet, since November 1st, Minnesota has lost 3205 citizens to COVID – that’s 57% of our dead in the last 6 weeks. We saw the spiking deaths as Enbridge moved workers into the area. It seems they anticipated Walz and his administration permitting them to flood Northern Minnesota with pipeliners from places like Texas, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, and more. The foreign corporation is now moving at breakneck speed to drill under our rivers as quickly as possible, hoping to eradicate the Minnesota Court of Appeals authority to rule on the legal need for this pipeline. [Ring three could be your choice of: the economy failing, the pending market crash, the death of big oil, climate change, the evictions, food shortages. As all that stuff is interconnected, you eventually get around to all the others!]

But hey, there’s a vaccine! And people are already talking about everything being “over” by summer! [I wouldn’t count those chickens before they hatch.] We’re seeing daily record case counts – equivalent to the population of Cincinnati – and record-breaking death totals, overloaded hospitals, and mutations bringing concerns for more virulent strains.

Many hospitals in Los Angeles and other hard-hit areas are struggling to keep up and warned they may need to ration lifesaving care. Nurses are caring for more sick people than typically allowed under the law after the state began issuing waivers to the strict nurse-to-patient ratios.”

U.S. tops 4,000 daily deaths from coronavirus for 1st time By EUGENE GARCIA, LISA MARIE PANE and THALIA BEATY
January 8, 2021

Nearly 20,000 people in the country have died of Covid in January alone, setting the pace for a month that will likely rival December for the deadliest month yet of the pandemic.”

U.S. reports more than 4,000 Covid deaths for first time as outbreak grows worse than ever 1/8/21

At least on the insurrection front we have The Governator who has spoken clearly on what we saw on the 6th. He recognizes the situation for the disturbing nightmare it truly is… because he’s lived its legacy. Patriotism is standing by the Country, not the President. Indeed, Teddy! Give him a listen – it’s worth a few moments as we face what feels like such a historic moment in time.

And many faith leaders are calling out the insurrectionists. Some with foresight birthed a Christians Against Christian Nationalism petition last summer.

And on the Enbridge front, here’s a bit more good news. [See, I never let you down!!] American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation has reported that they are breaking ties with Enbridge as a sponsor, saying:

We’ve taken pause to reconsider our relationship with Enbridge Energy and have chosen to dissolve our agreement. In hindsight, we realize that this association was perhaps not a clear pathway to engaging conversation in support of education, future change, and ultimately our greater Birkie Green initiatives, nor was it in alignment with our American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation (ABSF) mission. For that, we are sorry. We never intended to cause concern within the Birkie community.”

Guess they finally realized they were being funded by the very source of their demise… thanks to those who helped them.

Good Luck today, Everybody! Let’s hope for the best. [Publishing this early… as I’m a bit concerned about cover of dark operations some insurrectionists might be considering. I mean, they’ve had four whole days to plan deep into the night… so I’m counting on someone planning to do something. Let’s just hope they aren’t as successful as they hope.]

Not feeling like such a Proud American

Tags

45

These days it does not feel like there is much to be proud of here in the United States. We are caging innocent children after transporting them across the country from where we ripped them from their parents arms and some see this as a “good” thing.  And, in the process, U.S. taxpayers are being charged thousands of dollars to not only fly them across the U.S. but to house them at $775/day.  And meanwhile, the administration drags their feet at remedying the situation.

When you think about the expense of child care, it’s pretty astronomical these days, though $775/day/child seems a bit much.  Many parents will tell you that child care is actually more expensive annually than college tuition these days.  And you’d think those who hate immigrants and complain about how much they drain our resources would WANT to FORCE them to care for their own children.  It makes so much more sense for the children to stay with parents economically and logistically.  Is it that there is such an extreme hatred for these people that those running the show would rather cruelly separate them from their children, regardless of the cost to taxpayers?

Some of those crossing illegally into the U.S. may not always be citizens that we most desire ~ you know, only the best of the best, as that is what we [erroneously] think we are…   But in fact, many of these people are refugees fleeing horrific lives or lives where resources are depleted, just like our forefathers.  And worse, many are fleeing situations in their home countries which are a direct result of the actions of U.S. manufacturers and politicians.  Their country’s resources were raided by U.S. corporations, or their governments were diddled with by U.S. meddling, and the weapons currently in use have in large part been provided by U.S. manufacturers who are aided by U.S. politicians, most recently for Saudi Arabia (who are accused of bombing civilians in Yemen).  We could expect refugees from Yemen… except 45DD has banned them.  How convenient!

I was recently reminded that we are not truly “America” as America is actually much bigger than just the U.S., though with our arrogance, I can see how we have taken over the title to completely mean “just us”.  (It’s actually two continents…)

In reality, we are a small part of the globe… and an increasingly smaller part of the global economy (at least the productive part) and 45DD is making that ever smaller with policies and insane rants that are, once again, pushing U.S. businesses overseas.  The interesting part is that Europe and China are retaliating in this tariff war with very specific targets like: bourbon whisky (sorry, Mitch McConnell’s state of Kentucky); butter, cream, yogurt, and Harley Davidson (sorry, Paul Ryan’s Wisconsin), soybeans, sorghum, and live hogs (sorry Iowa and Nebraska, 45’s rural agricultural base); oranges (sorry Florida).  They are quite strategic it seems with their targeting of 45’s base.  Perhaps some will begin to question why they are so fanatically supporting this yahoo that keeps fucking up their lives rather than improving them.

It’s not going to be good for the American farmer. ~ Brian Grossman, a market strategist at Zaner Group in Chicago who used to farm in North Dakota

Bank of America Merrill Lynch US economist Michelle Meyer warned late last month that a “major global trade confrontation would likely push the US and the rest of the world to the brink of a recession.” Here’s how the dominoes could fall: First, businesses would be hit with higher costs triggered by tariffs. Then, companies won’t be able to figure out how to get the materials they need. Eventually, confidence among executives and households would drop. Businesses would respond by drastically scaling back spending.

This is the current President of the United States – what a sad state:

And his supporters love him and sing his praises.  You can watch them in this video – the above quote is at 36:36.  It’s sickening to watch as he spouts nonsense and then they applaud.  How brainwashed they all are… perhaps by Fox Noise?  The only good part of this video is 45DD claiming he has “no organ”… which might explain a lot.

So we are losing jobs, losing allies, losing rights, losing land, maybe even losing benefits (like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security – to which we paid into, they are NOT entitlements) and 45DD calls it “winning”.  Likely because he and his ultra-wealthy cronies are walking away with all the treasure.  Yet, what is winning more and more with the public these days is Medicare for All.  And this is more widespread than just Alexandria Ocasio Cortez’ base, contrary to what Tammy Duckworth seems to think.  The Left needs to recognize that many in their base are ALL FOR a single payer system.

I recently had someone send me a link to a rendition of The Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin which was all about how bad immigrants are to America.  This was the response that followed:

Me: There is so much in here that is not based in reality. Though it is a good performance by whoever sings it. And it does expand that notion that Mexicans are to blame for all the troubles in America when truly, the corporate fat cats are laughing all the way to the bank with every penny they steal as we fight among ourselves. This kind of thing couldn’t make them happier. You really want to win, try NOT supporting those who are making life worse for you. “Patriotism is fierce as a fever, pitiless as the grave, blind as a stone and as irrational as a headless hen.” -Ambrose Bierce

Them: I just don’t want anymore people fleeing to America..she doesn’t need more problems

Me: Lots of immigrants are actually doing good work here. There are fields rotting with food because they can’t get people to pick it. We’re going to see big increases in food prices because of this anti-immigrant nonsense. There are surely bad people who come into our country too, but by and large, these immigrants, especially from south of the border, are good, hard-working people. Think about this… Have you ever seen a latino homeless person? How about one in a nursing home? It’s because they take care of each other. In fact, they take care of us. There are MANY of them who are illegal – and use a false SS# which means that they pay taxes for OUR services – roads, schools, police. And most never file a return because it may draw attention to themselves. AND they cannot access things like food stamps and medicare without proving ID so they are often not using any social services – which is a big claim by the Right. Using common sense, these people are by and large a benefit to the US, not a drain. Our biggest problems are with the rich who keep getting more and more of the pie while the rest of us fight over scraps. It’s time for a living wage – this will help ALL working Americans. Medicare for all – so the insurance companies can go fuck themselves and we can have reasonable costs for good health care. With these two things we can come a long way toward making things better for many. Oh, and I’m all for legalizing marijuana too which would eliminate a lot of our prison population. But that too would be money out of the fat cars hands so don’t look for our prison population to go down for any reason any time soon… We do have a lot of problems in this country but the Right is trying to convince you that they are not the problem while they take your rights, your money, and your health. Think about it a while and you’ll see the only one benefiting from how we’re doing things now is China. Cause all we can afford is Walmart.

It’s frustrating to me how many poorer, less educated white folks believe in the scapegoats thrown at them.  Rich white dolts too but they will not be hurt badly by the orange one’s policies and practices.  If they are more well to do, they might even be part of the “winning” circle.

And I don’t know how to combat it.  These fear-filled ideas are pitched to them with glee and hate and anger and righteousness but the messages are mostly full of lies.  That doesn’t stop many from eating it right up and believing “the other” is the problem, refusing to think critically about the true source of their struggles and problems.

Maybe it’s time to read in full Grandpa John Obert’s book The Fear Brokers.  I started reading this a few months back and found the introduction to be quite relevant to our current political situation.  Politicians have discovered how well fear works in manipulating the general public.  After I finish Democracy in Chains by Nancy MacLean, I think it will be my next read.  Here are some reviews for The Fear Brokers:

This is an intelligent book about the dangers and techniques of the radical right, whose politics the authors say are filled with hatred and whose major technique is described as manipulation; of a radical superpatriotism; of religion, particularly of the evangelical variety; and of racism. ~ The Christian Science Monitor

Though it sounds initially like a political tract, this scrutiny of the Radical Right by former Senator Thomas J. McIntyre is even-handed and in some respects revealing.  Kirkus Review

The former U.S. Senator comments on the Conservative resurgence in the U.S., arguing that the New Right has exploited the fears, resentments, and grievances of the people. ~ Google Review

And we have reason to fear.  It is pretty evident that we are seeing a real push for fascism, not only here in the States, but also in Europe.  The Hitler references, historically a bit over-the-top, are truly becoming apt.  A recent article by Fintan O’Toole in The Irish Times details what is happening, charging that 45’s immigrant-children-in-cages is just a test-run to see how we will react and to concurrently desensitize many to the atrocities to come.

I am, however, proud of many who have stood up in opposition to the forces that work to keep down the masses and fill the pockets of the elites.  A recent Yes! Article talks about a few of these and, as you likely missed this in History class – since we don’t talk about the work and victories of the losers –  you might want to read up on some REAL U.S. history.

We are also seeing a good turn in politicians that are winning (this link is perhaps the best in this blog), although this is sadly being somewhat balanced by the Nazis and openly pedophilic that are running.

The Bronx activist represents a new generation of bold and uncompromisingly progressive leaders, many of whom are women and people of colour who hail from grassroots social justice movements. They stand in marked contrast to an old-guard political system that has relied on corporate patronage and has failed to address the myriad social and economic maladies in the US. This, as the “all white men” of the Trump administration make decisions impacting women, and the members of racial minority groups who will constitute a majority of Americans in coming years. ~ David A. Love Opinion column (above link)

People like the ones in this YES! article, and the activists we see getting more vocal and active every day, most especially my Water Protector friends, truly give me hope for our future.  My good friend Virginia had a saying about cleaning the closet and how, “it’s a lot more chaos before it gets more organized.”  I continue to hang on to the fact that perhaps all of life is like this.  Sometimes we have to swing to an extreme to fully recognize where we have gone astray.  I am working to maintain a hope that we are going to soon turn the corner to a place of more acceptance, love, and compassion.

45DD Not just Pulling Out… but also Going Down?

Tags

45

It was interesting to be at Mom’s this last week – with TV!  She, of course, has MSNBC on non-stop so we got to see some interesting correlations with 45DD to Nixon’s years (which husband Dan has been noting for months now).  It’s almost comical, if not a bit scary (mostly to think it could take as long to remove 45 as it did Nixon) to see the comparisons.

While it was slightly entertaining, I’m not sure I understand this need for constant TV News watching. I believe it’s making our country sicker and sicker by the day.  The constant plugging in to the “news” which seems mostly to be a rehashing of sound bites over and over, only entrenches people more firmly in their stances, depending on which channel they watch… it seems almost everything is biased these days.

And TV does not appear to be doing anything to bring about any common sense, common decency, or progress for all Americans.  What does seem to be happening?  Well, racism seems to be getting more and more out of hand and 45DD keeps making progress on his only apparent goal: turning back any and every thing that happened during Obama’s administration, which mostly means giving more and more to the already wealthy and doing more and more harm to our environment.  I’m wondering if what 45 is doing is also basically racism…

The CONSTANT “news” coverage is really insane – how many ways can we talk about 45’s lawyers and who knew what when?  How many ways can they say the same things over and over??  I literally heard a guy on NPR the other day saying something ~ it was about 30 seconds of saying and re-saying the same simple thing that could have been said in about 6 seconds.  It’s maddening!  It’s like we need to fill the space with talky noise.

And now they are spewing some of what 45DD and the war mongers want them to… Dan noted Media are claiming “Iran” fired missiles into Israel (after Israel fired missiles into Syria, of course… Israel is so ironically good at hanging on the cross) when the source of the missile firing has yet to be determined!

I believe moving to the Harn without TV was a REALLY good idea…  We still have NPR and we can watch Trevor Noah, Sam Bee, John Oliver, Seth Meyers – you know, folks who cover more of the real news via satire than the actual “news” anchors – so we can stay kind of up to date.  But we are not sucked into the insane and repetitive 24-hour TV “news” coverage.  [Though we do get sucked into the FB at times… which is a whole other WTF-is-wrong-with-us subject.]

The orange one has his own catastrophes occurring with new facts emerging almost daily about funding that seems damning.  I just keep wondering why all the investigations seem to be taking SO LONG…  And why there still seems to be so little condemning of 45DD in light of everything that is emerging.  As David Letterman put is last week:

On a good note, we did get some North Korean prisoners out – well, someone did.  45DD doesn’t seem to do much except take full credit for EVERYTHING that happens [or will be happening…“We’ll see what happens”…] while mostly spewing nonsense, often unintelligible or unrelated, that only his followers can think is intelligent.  But this was a second “success” for his administration – I think they are going for one/year.  Last year it was Tax Reform, which really mostly helped rich white people but is seen as victory by his poor white followers who mostly will get fucked by it.  This year it’s three guys returning from North Korea.

But the long, slow, slog to failure seems to continue for 45DD.  He pulled out of the Iran deal this past week – which could have grave implications for the US and the rest of the world.  Meanwhile, there are immediate ramifications for others.  For many in the U.S., the only real downside will be higher fuel prices. But the consequences for those closer to Iran geographically could be catastrophic.  It will be interesting to see if the remaining parties to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) for Iran will continue to abide by it, thus making the U.S. largely irrelevant.

What you may not be aware of are the losers and winners in the Iran Deal Pullout.  The big loser in the U.S.?  Boeing. Tariffs are looming and this pullout could leave them in the lurch with their aircraft contracts in Iran.   And overseas? Germany.  With many companies in Iran, German leaders are working hard to maintain the agreement with the other parties. And who are the big winners?  Oil companies, China (the world’s #2 largest economy on their way to #1 as they continue to fill the void as we pull out of things), and the biggest winner?  Russia.  About a month ago, for the very first time, Iran awarded a prime oil project to Russia.  So this could very well be another instance of Putin getting exactly what he wants from the administration he is accused of putting in place here in America. [Watch minutes 2-8 of this video to see a layout of the potential winners and losers.]  As is evident in Iran, moderates want the deal to continue.  Thus, 45 has now aligned himself with Iranian hardliners who want to see it scrapped.

[If you are reading closely, you will recognize the above as a reverse shit-sandwich.  Have you ever used this technique – you know, couching some crappy news between two slices of good, or at least not so crappy, news?  Well, there are not enough good news items from this administration so I had to do the opposite kind of sandwich, which is a lot messier.]

And if you are REALLY paying attention, you will recognize the happenings now for their stunning similarity to what happened about a hundred years ago here in America, basically the time between the Great Depression and WWII.

• The US is becoming more and more isolated, which mirrors how we reacted following WWI and prior to WWII – largely turning inward and staying as uninvolved as possible globally.
• The talk of tariffs is reminiscent of actions taken just as the Great Depression began.  In an attempt to protect American jobs, the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Bill was passed, which ended up exacerbating the Great Depression.
• A repealing of Dodd-Frank deregulates the banks, which could lead to another financial crisis as some predict the partial repeal of Glass-Steagall  (implemented in 1933 and partially rescinded in 1999) did in 2008.
• And most recently, 45 is looking to rescind the child labor laws, which is ironic in that unemployment is still something in need of remedy.  It was during the Great Depression that we saw major reforms in taking children out of the workforce, as so many jobs were needed for adults.

Speaking of jobs, we can surely not count on 45DD to implement anything like the New Deal or the Civilian Conservation Corps – for all the good they did to stabilize the country and deal with the effects of the Great Depression, Republicans still can’t admit to them being good things.  What we can count on is that 45’s continual “pulling out” is telling the world, “Agreements you make with us aren’t worth the paper on which they are written.”  [Of course I know he could never talk like this!!  His grammar is atrocious!]  And what we can hope to avoid is World War III.  We’ll see what happens!

In actuality, we look much like 1930’s Germany… Hitler reference fully intended.  [Yes, many times this has been abused but it’s more and more apt for 45DD.]  The Anne Frank Center for Mutual Respect laid this out plainly in a 2017 tweet ~ how ironic!

[Big thanks to hubby Dan for all his history knowledge that wrapped up this week’s blog.]

And finally, with a throwback to Dan’s home state…45 took a little road trip to Elkhart, Indiana last week too, where he told the crowd, “America is Respected Again.”  Uh, not sure what universe he is living in but it seems we are losing respect more and more around the world as is evidenced nicely in this succinct video from the UK.  His message is attractive in Indiana.  Dan and I have noted to many here in Minnesota (and I have noted in this blog) that one reason we moved from Indiana is that they seem to be marching back to the 1950’s (1850s if they can).  But as the Democratic Mayor of South Bend put it:

“Trying to turn the clock back socially, economically and racially to the ’50s, that’s attractive to some people. But the alternative is to move to the future.”

Let’s hope we keep moving forward, not back.

Perhaps the natural disaster in Hawaii will yield some relief for us.

What Even Matters Anymore?

Tags

45

I was going to do a full-analysis blog on the State of the Union (SoTU), but I didn’t have the heart to really listen to it and report on the BS.  If you’re interested, you can check out the Politifact report on it.  Of course, there are those who claim Politifact is left-biased, which was disputed by a Media Bias/Fact Check report.  This group also did their own analysis of 45’s statements.  And they also provided a list of his statements by topic which was probably a much more efficient way to hear his address than actually watching it with all that crazy hand-clapping that’s always involved.  And surprisingly, it seems many approved of the speech, according to a CNN poll.  [Not so surprising in the end, as you’ll read later.]

So why am I so disheartened?

SNL did a skit recently called “What Even Matters Anymore” and it really got me thinking, “Does Anything Really Matter?”  I mean, we see so much for which we need action or redress but… mostly things just stay broken and more things seem to be broken all the time.  Nothing seems to be getting done.  And it seems like no one cares.  Here are the topics from the SNL skit, none of which truly ends up mattering:

• 45 referring to Shithole Countries and all Haitians having AIDS – Nope!  Just another day in the news cycle.  A funnier than normal news day watching everyone say “s-hole” and tittering, but no real consequences for 45.
• 45 has an affair with a porn star, just after his wife has a baby, and then pays said porn star a substantial amount of hush money – Nope!  Even his Evangelicals supporters have managed to justify this as a non-issue.
• 45 fires Robert Mueller – ok, this one hasn’t happened yet, but when it does, will it really matter?

I asked Dan after this episode of SNL which also featured Mueller (played by Kate McKinnon) insinuating there really is something coming on 45… and it’s BIG, “Do you really think anything will ever come of all that?”  I mean, we’ve been hearing about this investigation for a LONG time.  We even had four people charged… months ago.  But nothing has really happened that has had much meaning for our government.

And I’m disheartened by the things that we do hear in the news, or don’t, that I believe should be raising our levels of concern.  Like what?

• Our planet continues to see accelerating effects due to climate change and human impact.
• 11 school shootings in the first 23 days of 2018 – that’s 16 school days.
• US incarceration rates per capita, especially among our black citizens. 
  

  
• An unusually rampant flu this season.
• The entire state of Florida, and many large metropolitan areas, are within the zone where Border Control can stop any vehicle and freely question anyone… regardless of our 4th Amendment rights.
• 45 can lie without apparent consequence.  [Too many examples to cite but here’s one… on his “biggest tax cuts in history” comment.]
• Our government can barely manage to stay open for business.

And that’s just in the US.  What about craziness around the world?  I just can’t start listing on these lines… too depressing.

I did watch the Democrat response… because it was shorter, would have less hand clapping disruptions (though the first three or four lines in the speech almost had me giving up on that being true), and I heard there was actual speaking to Hispanics in their native tongue – something I always like to see.  The thing that most surprised me?  There was a topic bar on the left side of ABC’s screen letting you know what part of the speech we were in… “American Spirit”, “Year of Chaos”, “Disunity”, “Unity”… what I realized was a guide to know when the speech was going to be over.  Is this because the attention span of the average American is so short we need to let them know “it’s almost over”?  The good news was that this was a young Dem, albeit a Dynasty Dem, which perhaps cancels out his legitimacy.  Though I am not sure Dems have much hopes for this year, if they continue to not look in the mirror to see where they have gone wrong in the last couple decades.  Unless we get the money out of politics, We the People have little hope of being heard or  helped by the Powers that Be, regardless of their party affiliation.

So, can I give any input on the SoTU address?  Well…

I decided to go ahead and read 45’s speech.  I know, I know!  That means I missed all the times when he went off-script, and yes, those are often the funniest (or scariest) moments, though I hear he pretty much stayed to the Teleprompter this time.

Overall, it sounds pretty good.  There is much to like in the speech.  As long as you don’t think too hard about what he leaves unsaid, or what his word choices imply.  Oh, and if you excuse the exaggeration and outright lies.  Oh! And forget how many of his campaign promises remain unfulfilled.

• 45 boasted about his “biggest tax cuts and reforms in American history” (see above link) because, well, what else is there that’s been accomplished during his administration?  Yeah, that’s about it.
• 45 speaks to “citizens”… implying those among us who are visiting or on VISAs, like students or migrant workers, are not included.
• 45’s refers,  to “America first”, amazingly only once in this address.  What I wonder is, is it akin to the 1940’s isolationist attitudes or the KKK slogan? 
  

  
• 45 speaks to the police and military (and veterans) deserving our “unwavering support”.  But many of these officials are used in the protection of corporate interests and not the interests of the people or the planet.
• 45 speaks of “actions to protect religious liberty” that many read as a call to make laws that allow refusal of medical treatment for abortion and birth control along with rights to refuse a variety of services to LGBTQ people.
• 45 boasts about eliminating regulations.  But what does he think keeps corporations in check with regard to our environment and worker rights?  Remember when we used to not have regulations on releases from manufacturing plants and our rivers were so polluted that they caught on fire?  Remember, before OSHA, when workers were regularly and fatally injured in workplace incidents because business as usual was cheaper than implementing safety programs?
• 45 talks about “All Americans” deserving “accountability and respect” and then immediately calls on Congress to “reward good workers” and “remove Federal employees who undermine public trust or fail the American people”.  But who defines undermining public trust?  What about Edward Snowden, who has recently been in the news again)?  45 says he should be executed but he was one of the biggest patriots for the American People since Daniel Ellsberg.  Which reminds me, go see The Post and then check out the Oliver Stone’s Snowden (a docudrama with a lovely storyline, though partially fictionalized) or  Citizenfour, a true documentary on his final days of freedom and his heroic whistleblowing.  And again, “Americans” implies no allegiance to foreign visitors or immigrants not yet fully recognized as citizens.
• 45 mentions FDA approval of “more new and generic drugs and medical devises than ever before in our history”.  How many of these things will later be proven dangerous or even fatal due to quick and incomplete study?
• With regard to opioid concerns, 45 says we “must get much tougher on drug dealers and pushers”.  Are they going to start arresting more doctor’s?  Or pharmaceutical manufacturers?  Or just the people pushing these drugs on the streets?
• And is anyone concerned that 45’s order of dealing with “terrorists” being 1) annihilate them and THEN, 2) when “necessary” detain and question them?

Yes he made many promises that sound good:

• Expanding US Manufacturing
• Cheaper prescription drugs
• Infrastructure investment
• Vocational schools
• Paid family leave

But there has been some criticism.  Some pretty well stated.

I keep thinking, this is just performance art for the People – going through the motions of saying pretty things.  I keep wondering if this is what Democracy Dying looks like.  Nothing is getting done, at least nothing that is making life much better for the majority of people, especially the working class.  Nothing is being done to mitigate our effects on the environment.  Mostly just more and more wealth transfer to the already wealthy.  Less regulation to free up Corporations to save money by taking shortcuts with the environment and worker safety.  Little actions to help veterans, children, the working poor, the elderly, immigrants, disabled people.

America is an oligarchy.  Our “democracy” is basically up for sale.  Until we get the money out of politics, I suspect we will continue to see more of the same.

There are some good things…

• Millions marched in the Women’s March this year, more than last year in many locations, including Bemidji. But are we really making a difference?  Watching part of the Grammy Awards seemed to be more exploiting of women than ever, though there were exceptional performances, specifically by P!nk.  Maybe the elections in 2018 will tell.  I’m hopeful to see many women candidates win seats in our government, at all levels.
• Macklemore owning his White Privilege, again, and challenging us on ours.
• We’ve declared Eastern Mountain Lions extinct.  Isn’t this bad news?  Well, maybe not as perhaps states will now, unencumbered by laws regarding Endangered species, re-introduce big cats from the West… to cull excessive population of deer, who have few natural predators.
• And one more.  One word.  Logic.  Check this out – watch until the end.

OK.  I think I can keep going now.

Photo Credits:

• Incarceration rates
• Seuss Cartoon & KKK Coin – Google Images

 

Montreal Cognitive Assessment as a Qualification to be President

Tags

45

With many questioning his mental stability, intelligence, and health, GOP Leader 45 recently underwent his first annual physical, given by Navy Rear Admiral Dr. Ronny Johnson*.  And the results were… well, a bit questionable.

We’ve seen many memes regarding his height and weight but we have failed to discuss the details and their ramifications. The fact that he’s only gained 3# since his last assessment (by his personal doctor in September, 2016) seems to defy the weight he appears to have gained during his first year in the White House.  But the even bigger surprise is that he GREW AN INCH in the same time frame!!  In January 2017 he was 6’2”. But NOW he’s 6’3”!! Now that is gravity defying!

I think the most amazing report in his assessment  is his fasting glucose.  I find it hard to believe he is at 89 when he is constantly eating McDonald’s.  However, if it’s true, we might want to pull him for critical study to determine what chemical in his blood allows this to occur.  It could save America by Making us Less Diabetes Prone Again.

Though I am also surprised by the cardiac performance demonstrating “above average exercise capacity” for a person of his age.  I’m wondering if he did the chemical stress test as opposed to the treadmill test.  I’ve heard people say it’s easier.  I just can’t imagine a guy who had to take a golf cart last year during his time in Europe being “above average” in exercise capacity.  Remember when he pushed that other world leader out of the way because he was later on arrival for the cameras?  Not the leader of the pack by any definition.

Some experts have “weighed” in…   And they give some pretty good photos with which to compare 45 to others in the same height range.   It’s uncanny how he can make himself look shorter than people who are reportedly shorter than him!  Must be a talent only a Stable Genius has.  Oh, along those lines, Eugene Robinson has written a lovely letter to 45 on this topic.

I think if we really want to see a “stable genius”, it’s this kid… and he knows how to use a button.

What I haven’t seen is much outpouring of concern over his mental assessment.  With all the concerns being expressed of late, hearing he had a “perfect score” on his cognitive assessment was confusing.  So, we at the Gaither Place decided to do some research.  We wondered what exactly the questions were on this mental assessment and we found it!  The Montreal Cognitive Assessment:

Doc Ronny Johnson noted that 45 did “exceedingly well” on this assessment.  But is this truly meaningful?  I mean, if a second grader got a 30/30 score I might be impressed.  But really, every grown adult who is free from Severe Mental Retardation, Dementia, or Alzheimer’s should be able to easily answer these questions correctly.  And should we be concerned that the part we (ok, I) mostly expected him to fail is not worth any points?

The foreign press says his exam did not include a psychiatric evaluation.  Well, the Daily Mail is fake news, of course!  But the Guardian did not expect news of his mental acuity to be shared.  And were they right?  Was all the reporting on his evaluation modified?  Possibly for National Security reasons?

Should We the People have concerns due to the fact that the White House Physician is selected by the President?  Though Ronny was selected by G.W. Bush, and appointed by Obama, are his loyalties truly with us, the American People?  Or is he somehow guided, heck even directed, by the National Security Administration or the Department of Homeland Security?  Why would they lie to us?  Why would there be any cover up of what their responsibilities are in the process of the Annual Physical for the President?

Which brings us to the Super Bowl…  “What?”  Yes. The Super Bowl.

One of the interesting news bits of late in Minnesota is concern over whether the Federal operatives will push out the Minneapolis Police Department – there was a recent blurb on MPR but I can’t find it, though I did find this article that notes: “The Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) is the lead agency for security at this year’s Super Bowl, and they are being supported by an impressive team that includes dozens of local police departments and public safety organizations, along with federal agencies including the FBI and multiple components of the Department of Homeland Security.”

However, our experience in Indy for Super Bowl XLVI indicated DHS was truly in charge.  The DHS built a Command Center in Indy [a “gift to the city” that was so poorly built it was falling apart a year later] in which camera monitoring and security oversight took place.  While they may say local officials are in charge, the fact is that if anything happens, DHS will be running the show. As they probably already are.

Why should we believe there is any difference in what they say about the Super Bowl security and the information they provide on 45’s physical? They are really only telling us what they want us to hear.

The good news for Mikey Pence is that they have told us some things that could work out well for him.  With a declaration of 45’s cholesterol issues, the plan for taking him out in a year or two can now go unquestioned.  They can reasonably claim, “It was a bad ticker!”  Then Pence can get a short term, to finish out The Don’s first term, and then still be eligible for 2 more terms!!  They just have to be sure to keep him alive long enough to get to that point where it won’t make Pence ineligible for that third term in the Executive branch.  And how long is that?  Well, here’s a meme that gives you a hint.

Imagine if next year we see:

1/20/2017 Trump Inaugurated

1/20/2018 Government Shutdown

1/20/2019 Trump in Critical Condition after Heart Attack

Then we could see 10 years of Mr. P.  [Or, if they take him out before then, whoever fills Paul Ryan’s post.]  You see, the Twenty-Second Amendment says a person can only be elected to be president two times for a total of eight years. However, if said person (typically a Vice-President) takes over for a president who can no longer be President and serves two years or less of the last President’s term, he or she may serve for two full four-year terms.

Now that is something to ponder.

* Dr. Johnson… and he’s a Rear Admiral!!  Think about it… You can’t make this shit up!

Image Credits:

• Stable Boy with a Button

• Running the Government Like his Business