Debate One

First debate is over and it seems clear and obvious that Hillary won easily.  Trump probably kept most of his supporters though, because they are people who hate the Establishment, those powerful officials who run and ruin their lives.  Hillary would certainly have to be right at the top of that pile of power.

Yet the primary duty of the President is the job of politics.  He (or she) will not get everything they start out to do.  They will have to give as much as they get, and that will not make any difference in the great scheme of history as long as they can weld together what they did get, into a workable program.

One of the biggest differences between Trump and Clinton last night was their demeanor while listening to the other one speak.  Trump appeared to be not listening, or trying to pick up a favorite theme of his, and constantly in the process of interrupting even as he kept his lips pursed. He appeared (to me) to show signs of contempt  while she seemed to maintain an aura of listening with the apparent intent on reaching out and elaborating on his comments. 

Will Trump Leave the GOP?

Hard to say right now.  Trump seems to have the GOP under his command, but he is not going forth to meet a bride, no, he goes forward to take charge.  And many of the old party members are very, very quiet. 

Some long term members are restless  Some, like George Will, are announcing their departure.  And the Repbulicans who are leaving are not becoming Democrats but offering wisdom to a new, still congealing mass of political ideology. 

There will be a showdown later in Cleveland, a city known to some as “The Mistake by the Lake”, when the GOP holds their convention there.  It is not at all improbable  – in my mind at least – that Trump may slam the door there and stomp out, claiming to take the “Real Republicans” with him.  

Well, that would split the Republican Party and hand the election to the Democrats, fancilly engraved on a silver platter!  Or, or would it?  This is the year of Brexit, after all! Could it be that such a stomp n’romp by Trump would open the door for an old socialist Jew to also consider running, seeking liftoff for his last flight into glory?  

Well, who knows?  Now, anyway.  But that would give both Trump and Sanders a chance to make America what it could have been, once upon a time . . . all this while the Democrats and Republicans are just running to make themselves great again.   And – that would throw the 2016 election into the realm of English glory.

Brexit!

Not the worst mistake that England has ever made, but it is a pretty good one.  Too bad they didn’t work harder at being a better member of the European Union.  Apparently, a large number of Brits figured that they could scare the EU folks by showing them how little England was concerned about the “union”.  Whoops.  Now, more than 2,100,000 of them want to vote again  But like too many things involving elections, it is too late to vote again – they (we all) have only one vote to cast.  

Of course we Americans understand the importance of voting.  In fact we turned out 36.4% of eligible voters in our last election.  That’s almost half of the eligible voters who turned out in Brittian this week.  They hit 72%. 

 We Americans may well face a similar problem this November.  We may have to decide in advance.  And like the Brits, we will only get to vote once.  And we don’t want to try to scare anybody!

Donald Trump and the Stairs

The truth about Donald Trump is he is the type of person that those of us who are parents had all tried to keep from raising our kids as.  He IS the Boggie Man Under the Stairs.   He IS the incarnation of the great concepts of Evil, Pitiful, and Ignorance and he shines in the great glory of brilliant greed. He was created by the power of wanton money.  He has attracted the Republican Party and they have begged him to notice them, and now he has grabbed them and won’t let go. 

Is this how the Republican Party ends?  Maybe.  They now have to decide whether an increasingly obvious errant committment to Donald Trump is more important to them than the duty they have to the American People.

Trump's Biggest Surprises . . .

. . . are yet to come!  It is not so much that he will continue to tell us more, as it is that we will gradually learn to understand him better.  We will begin to see what he is trying to show us and some of us will become different people for his taking care of us.  He apparently knows which parts of our democracy work and which parts don’t work, He knows which judges can render “good” decisions and which newspaper and TV reporters can tell the “Truth”, and we really just have to hang on and follow Him.  

The Republican Party is doing as good a job as it can.  Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has come along and apparently accepts The Donald, although it is obvious that he really doesn’t understand a lot of the details.  It is hard to know where Mitch McConnell is, probably because the senate majority leader doesn’t want to tip his hand,  and he is an expert at presenting a “poker face”  under all conditions so that no one else knows whether or not he really understands an issue or not.  We really don’t know what the Republican Party means anymore, so this is a new opportunity for it.

The “grand OLD party” descended from the Whigs of England, which represented a forceable transfer of power from King to Charter.   Only certain actions were permitted by government and these all had to be few and concecrated in writing.  All other power was left to “the people”, meaning whatever you can get, grab!  This brings us to the era of Scrooge and this is where the grand OLD party has become deeply mired. Thankfully, The Donald has emerged, rising to a new crescendo of surprising guidance.  No longer do members of the Republican Party need to take positions on changing conditions of the world, no more stress and concern, just follow The Donald.  Just press the button . . . the head will pop up . . . and an answer will come forth in great glory!

Now The Donald has graciously offered to serve us as President.  He will rebuild our country and make it great again.  He will build walls, and approve religions.  He will choose judges and select reporters.  He will always know what is in our best interest.  He will lead us onward and approve our actions.  No longer will we have to wonder, and test our theories by discussion, there will be no more different issues, no more new opportunities. No more concern.  All we will have to do is just try to carry out orders.

VA Secretary & Disneyland

VA Secretary, Robert McDonald,  told reporters on Monday, May 23, 2016, that the VA should not use “wait times” as a measure of their success because Disney, in their operations at Disneyland, doesn’t use “wait times” either.   Disney relies on how satisfied their clients are.  What Mr. McDonald clearly doesn’t understand is that there is a significant difference between the services Disney promises to provide to their would-be clients, and the service already promised by the VA to those Veterans who have already paid.  AND - if you want to compare the price and service “promised” by Disney to would-be clients, with that “price” already paid by many Veterans - some of which were life-altering, then go ahead and play that game, Mr. McDonald, but first you need to step down from your position and let someone who understands the issue take over.  

More on Trump's Mother

Another connection between The Donald and his mother is the gesture of hands-up – usually it is a woman who would use that as a sign that she has tried EVERYTHING else and she has no idea of what remains to be done!  And therefore, it is THEIR responsibility for whatever consequences follow.

Donald Trump's Mother

Of course I never knew her, but I think we all know some of her features.  She had to have been a fiercely protective creature.  That much is obvious.  She was also a person of power.  She almost certainly intervened between the world of practical problems and her son, Donald.   It is obvious that she constantly assured him that what ever seemed to be happening would be “all right” and would “turn out OK”, that whatever got broken would be made whole and would be great again. He clearly could forget what he had just done, and could look forward to a future devoid of his own personal consequences because what he was going to do in the future was going to be better than anything ever done by anybody any time in the past.   Everything was always going to be much better than it was now, and everything was going to be far better in the future than it had ever been before.

Why Trump WILL Run as an Independent.

There’s never been a better time for this to happen.

Republican Party is fracturing, awash with Reaganomics and Tea Baggers. It seems to be collapsing and spending its last days tearing each other into pieces.

Sixteen candidates have announced, Seventeen . . .  do I hear eighteen?  There may be more to follow.

No leadership is apparent in the party from Boehner or McConnell, or anyone else.  Other Republicans stand around behind these two, looking sad, white and male, a bit like the faces on Mt. Rushmore.

Democrats have a different problem.  But it’s still a problem.

Hillary is sure bet to win but nobody likes her.  She is tied up and encumbered.  Democrats are prepared to hold their noses and vote for her, at least some are.  How many will actually go to the polls, hold their noses, and vote, for her, is a good question.

Bernie is great!  EVERYbody likes him!  But he is still a socialist Jew.  And he is too old!  Bernie is 73 which has been made to seem much older than Biden (72) and Hillary (67).  By way or comparison Trump is 69 (his last chance?)  Still people gather round Bernie to hear what he has to say.   And they like it!

Bidden is everybody’s friend.  But it is widely known (?) that he doesn’t have the internal fire necessary for a long and bitter campaign.  He would obviously make the best possible president because he has the natural ability to bring the nation together after a destructive campaign.

But back to Trump.  He is not a solid Republican.  Many Republicans see him as a “late-comer”.  As someone who wants to take over and run the show, but many wonder what he will do if he can’t run the country by fiat and has to go through the democratic process.  Would he walk away? Would he send the army marching in under the great dome?  The Republican Party will not let Trump run as a Republican, because they have too much to lose.  

And who would be his vice-president?  Hard to say now.  Palin is out.  Ben Carson might think about it, especially if he gets shuffled out of the race for president.  There could be others.  If Trump called you up and asked if you would be willing, how would you answer? 

If the Republican Party won't let Trump run, this would be his way to take over.  If they have problems with that, then “you’re Fired!”  And perhaps his version in this case of “firing” would be to take over, run for president as an independent, win the election and THEN, after totally shattering the Republican Party there would be a day of massive reckoning.  He would know how America should be run!  And he doesn’t need any damn constitution to tell him what to do.

And if he lost?  Which he would, what would rise out of the smoldering ashes?  That’s a really good question.  

But the bigger question is can America run politically without the two party system?  There IS a third party now, has been for a while.  It has no name but is widely known to be The Money Party.  And without having to travel either the Democratic or Republican highway into power, then will the members of that party become free to rip each other apart and wreak havoc on America?

Debate?Fox?News?

The tree of facts was twisted into unrecognizable shapes last night by the clinging vines of opinion and hidden from sight by the great leaves of loud noises.

No presentation of governing, of how governing is done, of how it differs from making a profit or issuing regal edicts. Not even a  pretense of that knowledge.

No important issues were massaged or discussed, just a series of regal executions, killing questions and trying to make the “news” staff look even dumber than they actually were.

Just a chance to show each of the Big Ten were as quick as Fox “News”.  

Obama - Iran - Negotiations

Obama is catching a lot of flak now from his successful negations with Iran.  The Republican members of congress are uniting against him and preparing to disapprove of the agreement by voting it down in the next two months.   We – those of us who are not members of the new fascist organization now known as "Republican" – need to contact our three Blind Mice in congress.

Call them up.  And tell their Answer Guy or Gal that you APPROVE of the agreement.  Tell them you are proud of it for many reasons.  Particularly for the collective negation by members of the United Nations.  This represents a real breakthrough in dealing with  problem nations.

Ask your Answer Gal or Guy how differently it might have turned out after "911" if we had taken the matter to the UN then to deal with the fact that 15 men from Saudi Arabia attacked our country.  We might not have invaded Iraq.  Think of the misery that would have been spared.  We had the world united behind us, ready to help anyway they could.  But when George Bush said "You're either with us or against us!" and proceed to attack Iraq, those nations drifted away.  We were on our own, and still are.  This is a major step toward building a better world.

Redefining the Confederacy

Seen the day after the Charlestown massacre:  the American flag and the South Carolina flag flying at half-mast, while the Battle Flag of the Confederacy remains flying at full staff. What has the confederacy come to mean?

Lost.   Ignorant.  Not educated.  Lost.  But with firepower and   

hate. Ignorance. Lost.  Confusion.  Alcoholic.  Innuendo.  But with firepower and hate.  

Again and again, we see losers who have been passed by in education, nutrition, religion, history, understanding, comprehension, intelligence and awareness of history,  smirking or glaring as they display their flag of mass destruction and unbridled terrorism together with weapons that appear ready to kill or maim. 

And after the carnage, as black victims of terrorism so often forgive their terrorists, we see these Sons of the Confederacy having their actions explained as being caused by the problems they've had in their lives, by their poor upbringing, by their difficulties in school and obtaining work and having been mis-understood.  

That is what the CONFEDERACY has become now.  While its BATTLE FLAG still flies over the state capitol grounds of of South Carolina, proudly standing at full mast, waving in defiant intimidation, it has become a new symbol of ignorance, stupidity, mass destruction and terrorism comparable to the battle flag of Isis.  

And  yes.  I was born and raised in Vicksburg, Mississippi.

MORE Than Just a Chance

In 1983, Donald Rumsfeld, a special envoy of President Ronald Reagan, shook Saddam Hussein’s hand as he supported Iraq’s war against Iran by supplying Mustard Gas, Sarin, and other poisonous chemicals and deadly biological viruses, such as anthrax and bubonic plague and other chemicals produced by Dow Chemicals and Monsanto. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/wp/2013/09/04/history-lesson-when-the-united-states-looked-the-other-way-on-chemical-weapons/).

Twenty years later, in 2003, President Bush said, speaking of the coming American war against Iraq, "We gave peace a chance . . ." then he paused, raised his eyebrows and clenched his fist, the glare in his eyes implying that peace didn't work. 

But Peace is more than just a game of chance, it needs a home, a place to grow, somewhere it can be cared for, watered, fed and cultivated. It needs to be protected and cherished and it needs to be shared. Too many times people work hard for war, spend money for war, train young men and women for war, are always ready to fight, and then will give peace just "a chance." While wars are caused, peace is left to happen by accident. If we are ever to have real peace it will have to be wanted, prepared for, paid for, trained for and we will need specialists who can become experts in the arts and sciences of peace. Impossible? Not really. What if we did create a Department of Peace in our national government? Just started it off and gave it a place to grow, supported it and shared it? We might find a miracle there someday, instead of just more "consekquences".  How do we get such a radical thing started? It really begins at home, right here and in the other small towns of our country. Peace is not a game of chance at all, it's more like planting a garden, or raising a child. Peace must be caused to happen.

I congratulate President Obama and his team, especially John Kerry, for ploughing back into all this mess and giving peace more than just a chance, and for moving it into the front stage of the world.

Who Can Afford to Run for Office in America?

One of the problems faced by any government that elects their representatives concerns WHO is it among their population can actually afford to run for office and then serve if elected?  

Certainly not a person who is working for a retirement, or someone who needs that next paycheck to pay family bills, or who has a family to help raise or works for a boss who might put pressure on him or her.   

So . . .  we need to find someone who doesn’t have a full-time job?  Or somebody who has a job but also has a lot of time off?  We are really looking for lawyers or insurance salesmen, maybe a Realtor who already has an office and can begin from there.   Or . . . if you could find someone who has a LOT of money already, and doesn’t need to work, then perhaps he or she would be able to run.  

So we are really “requiring” anyone who wishes to run for congress to be People Of Money, and thus we have to select people who are not of the same class as those they will govern. 

Once in office they will need even more money to stand for election again.

So someone elected to office in America will need to represent two constituencies:  1) those who cast the votes  and who may or may not vote, and 2) those who provide the money.  And those who provide the money expect results – to them it is not an expenditure, it is an investment in the future.  An investment in THEIR future. 

An Open Letter to my senators and representative:

Letter to Iran?  A State of the Union delivered by Netanyahu?  This IS the UNITED States of America.  If you don’t like that - then you might consider leaving.  Perhaps  you saw this as being a note to Obama that he is not necessary, but the message you delivered is that Americans are not necessary.  I do not expect to see ANYthing like this ever repeated.

Homeland security

The Department of Homeland Security – shut it down?  Right now?  When, apparently Issis and perhaps other Islamic terrorists are “headed our way”? 

IF a major attack occurs after the Republican Party has shut down  Homeland Security WHO is going to get the blame?  Not Issis, Not Islam, no, it will be the Republican Party!

Ferguson

Weird night on TV.  Part of it took place in Ferguson.  Really put a lot of pressure on the “ordinary people”.  First, the grand jury set up for the release of the decision, not on a Sunday morning, but the following night.  At 8:00 P.M. the word came out that the police officer would not be indicted.  Then followed a dismal presentation by the county prosecutor.  Words full of nothing new, he apparently knew nothing pertinent, or else he could not say it because of laws or rules or traditions. Much of his statement was intentionally ambiguous and conflicted with other parts of his statement.  It became clear that the timing and the method of the release of information was deliberately set up to provoke  citizens to demonstrate, hopefully to riot so their actions would gloss over the stupidity of the entire proceedings and lack of justice and to assume the blame for the shooting upon their own black bodies and souls.  Even as the prosecutor  was speaking, crowds began mulling about and problems began developing.  

Then Obama came on TV and had his own Bobby Jindal moment.  He seemed to really know nothing about the case, either that or he wasn’t going to speak about it or something.  He just hoped everybody would put up with the outrage and get along.  Did he mumble?  Meanwhile, on the split-screen TV, while Obama was mumbling on one side of the screen, objects were being thrown on the other.  A police car was almost turned over, then its windows were smashed in, then the police showed up, then the gas and smoke began to cover the streets. 

Obviously it was intended to go this way.  It was constructed to unfold like this.  The citizens were made to feel like they could either accept being trashed, or urge each other on to riot – so their outrage would transfer the attention of the world to them and away from the stupidity of their elected officials. 

Veterans Memorial Amendment

I hereby propose a Veterans Memorial Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This amendment will permit American combat forces to engage an enemy or to attack a foreign land ONLY under the following conditions: 1) An income tax of at least 50% of all gross revenues will be levied on all people, all industries and all private businesses for the duration of hostilities. 2) All Americans between the ages of 18 and 45 years of age shall report to a draft board to be inducted into the American Military Forces. This will be enforced without regard to occupation and will include all politicians, sports figures, CEOs and staff members of all corporations. 3) The money collected under this taxation will be used to provide for a) the medical care of all injured members of the American Armed Forces for the duration of their injuries, b) for continuing education for all who served, and c) reparations and repairs of damage done to the nation we attack.

This amendment will provide that ALL Americans will become participants in any future wars, not just a small collection of people who are basically too poor to obtain any other employment than the armed forces.

Who Did You REALLY Vote For???

The Hickory Daily Record reported today that several voters in Greensboro reported their machines were not marking their ballots correctly.  At least two voters said they tried to vote for Democrat Hagan but their machines marked their ballot for Republican Tillis.  If you are using a voting machine, check the "transaction receipt" shown (under glass) in the bottom left of your machine and make sure it is registering your vote correctly.  If not, call one of the poll workers.  If it happened to me, I would shout in a loud voice that my machine was stealing my vote and ask for help –  this would alert other voters.   If you do not know how to verify the accuracy of your vote – most people don't – ask the poll worker who shows you the machine.

Make Your Vote Really Count – Vote Twice! Here's how:

Note:  This only applies to voters who will be voting in Catawba County, NC.  but if you live elsewhere, you can probably pull this off there too.

First, go to your computer.  Enter www.ncsbe.gov/  Then on the left column enter “view my sample ballot”.  Next, fill in the data, and click on “search”.  Then click on your “Full Name”, and then check on the line for “11/4/2014 General” and see what your ballot number is (mine is “GO10 - yours could be from GO01 to GO14).  Click on your “ballot type” (which is blue and underlined) and your ballot will appear.  You can print it out if you want – mine was 7 pages. 

Now, you vote the first time.  Over the next day or two.  Even while consuming coffee, tea or beer or wine.  Sit down and reflect.  There are a few long choices (some with over 100 words - and up to 15 “ands” and several “ors”).  You can think about some of these for a day or two, even pick up the phone or ask questions on Facebook or Twitter or Whatever. 

There may be some positions you have never heard of and a lot of names you have never heard of.  But now you have time to think about all this, even get with your friends and ask questions, get a conversation going, get a dialog, man – talk about your problems.

Finally, you vote the second time.  This time in your polling place.  You are ready!  AND you can make this vote REALLY represent you, AND you will move through the voting process quicker than anyone else who has not already voted for the “first time”.