One of the more disgusting issues which individual 1 has inflicted on “we the people” is his repeated denials of “Climate Change.” Well, he just canceled his trip to Poland because Tropical Storm Dorian decided to bypass Puerto Rico – which, while they were bracing for the storm, our so-called president was STEALING money from FEMA (the agency which deals with emergencies like HURRICANES) so he could get a few more feet of his “wall” built (essentially, his sycophants are rebuilding structures which already exist) – apparently unconcerned about Puerto Rico which he showered with a couple self serving and, of course, DISHONEST “tweets” suggesting he could care less about an island full of American citizens! But Miami?

Well, Dorian skipped Puerto Rico and now is headed straight for Florida, and quite possibly, individual 1’s properties in the Miami area. And, largely due to the increased temperatures of the South Atlantic Ocean Dorian has increased from a “Tropical Storm” to a very dangerous “HURRICANE” – presently a “category 3” hurricane and expected to be a “category 4” hurricane by the time it reaches Florida – with MASSIVE amounts of rain and winds in excess of 130 mph. It appears Dorian has gained the attention of individual 1 because it will very possibly affect him. Maybe he’ll be regretting taking the money from FEMA although is there any doubt if Mara Lago gets “hammered” he’ll get more than rolls of paper towels to help dealing with it.

OK, I started this rant yesterday and by today the National Hurricane Center says the “route” of Dorian, which is now almost a Category 5 Hurricane with winds of 150 mph, has changed and Florida may well be spared a direct “hit.” As of the last day of August it appears parts of the Bahamas could bear the initial “brunt” of the storm and the various “models” are suggesting Dorian may “wander” (my characterization) up the Eastern Seaboard with the Carolina’s in more jeopardy than Florida. The weather “experts” are essentially saying the storm could turn into Florida and it also could turn out into the Atlantic – which would, obviously, be the best scenario for the people who are preparing for the worst.

It wasn’t long after I heard the reports that Florida, especially South Florida – where you find Mara Lago and the Doral resort which is where individual 1 wants to hold next year’s G-7 summit, thereby bringing in MILLIONS to individual 1’s OWN resort – was looking as if it was going to escape the storm’s worst winds and rain that reports came out that our so-called president was on his way to another of his golf resorts – this one in Virginia. Apparently he doesn’t want to spend too much time at Camp David for fear that people will be commenting on how, usually, that’s where events like the G-7 Summit would be held. (Of course, that would cost him a lot of money pulling it away from Doral)

What very possibly could get lost in the “eye of this storm” if it ends up moving out to sea and causing minimal damage will be how quickly it went from Tropical Storm status to a HUGE HURRICANE with 150 mph winds (and, by some accounts, soon to be a “Cat 5” hurricane with winds of 157 mph or higher. The only explanation for that, in my mind, is the increased temperature of the waters in the South Atlantic. That is where the hurricanes draw their energy and one degree of warmth makes a huge difference in the intensity of the storm (These waters have been increasing in temperature by about half a degree every decade for the past 50 years). The change in the intensity of this storm has been alarming.

I’m no scientist, but it also makes sense to me that with the warmer air temperatures there would be more water (evaporation) in the air, leading to more rainfall in these massive storms – like Dorian, or Harvey from a couple years ago which dumped MASSIVE amounts of rain on parts of Texas. (And, of course, Texans didn’t receive the paper towels like those in Puerto Rico. Go Figure!) My point is we have a climate change denier in the “Oval Office” (among other things) and every year “we the people” fail to act in regard to mitigating the causes of this warming – whatever it is we CAN do – the worst it’s going to be for the coming generations – and, I’m talking about worldwide.

Individual 1 has been repealing environmental regulations at an alarming rate since the day he took the “oath” of office, some suggesting it’s because he HATES former president Obama so much that anything Obama did he’s going to “undo” out of SPITE! The list of Obama era regulations being repealed is already long and it’s getting longer – almost as if he’s (individual 1) acting in desperation because he’s seeing the writing on the wall that he’s going to lose in 2020 (unless he can come up with new ways to CHEAT – kind of like the reports of how he plays his golf game) and his base has been programmed to believe repealing Obama’s ideas is good. Our so-called president is a prime example of a “hater.” (The sad reality is the regulations being repealed, in almost every instance, will work AGAINST those trying to mitigate the climate crisis)

It’s late and I’m going to pause this rant AGAIN – when I return the storm will have likely made its course much clearer and my hope is it would spare the Eastern coastal areas, turn out into the Atlantic and “fizzle out.” But, at the same time, I hope our leaders don’t loose track of the message this storm is sending – “clear as a bell” – that the increase in the World’s temperature is causing much more intense “natural disasters” and, likely, there is MUCH “we the people” can do to mitigate future damage to property and destruction of lives. If we have the will to do so!

It’s been a couple of days and Dorian “stalled” over the Bahamas (That’s REALLY bad for the Bahamas) as a “Cat 5” storm with winds at 185 mph when it originally hit landfall. This is the most powerful hurricane on record and the images I saw of the damage to the part of the Bahamas that took the “direct hit” was devastating. The “jury’s still out” on what damage it will do to the U.S. mainland as it moves north. Regardless, due to the predictions it will miss South Florida with the exception of a lot of rain, individual 1 saw fit to play a second 18 holes while he was “directing” the storm response from Camp David. (In the campaign, as he was criticizing President Obama for playing golf, individual 1 said he would be too busy to play golf. Wouldn’t you think a hurricane with the force of Dorian SHOULD have caused him to be “too busy?”

Now, a bit of reality coming from a retired school teacher who loves to play golf. I can usually afford a couple trips to the golf course each week, at the most. I try to play courses that are nice and challenging, but I’m limited to the public courses that charge $40 or less for 18 holes. And, despite my issues with arthritis (artificial hips, and artificial knee, and herniated disks in my lower spine) I always try to WALK the course. This past weekend our so-called president used Marine 1 to get to the golf course and back to Camp David TWICE apparently while also “directing” the government’s response to the storm. His golf outings cost “we the people” hundreds of thousands of dollars EVERY time he chooses to “play” – and, almost EVERY time it’s at one of his properties so the money goes into his “pocket.” This is bad! (Reports are he’s spent well over 250 days in his term – of 900+ days – at his golf resorts)

I “get” that there are many Americans who can afford to play golf at the many beautiful private clubs that exist in most American cities – clubs that require an initiation fee in the tens of thousands just to join and then monthly dues payments of $500 or much more in many places. I don’t begrudge anyone fortunate enough to be able to participate in these places, including individual 1. However, telling “we the people” he’s canceling a trip to Poland (a somber remembrance of the Nazi invasion of Poland 80 years ago) to direct the storm’s response and then (charging we the people for two trips to his golf courses) to play golf while this nation is wallowing in red ink – to me, that’s a bad look. (Here’s another bad look. Individual 1 was quoted as congratulating Poland on their entrance into WW II. Evidently oblivious to the FACT their “entrance” to the war was at the “hands” of Adolf Hitler????? Our president is an idiot and an embarrassment)

I understand America’s president needs security every where he/she goes and Marine 1 is how the president would go to and from Camp David. My point is, here, that our so-called president is running up HUGE bills almost every weekend for his passion to play golf – which, if you remember, he criticized President Obama for who played golf much less frequently and at far less expense – not to mention that when individual 1 takes his security detail onto his own properties he’s not only running up a HUGE bill for “we the people” but he’s the one COLLECTING the money – in direct defiance of the emoluments clause in the constitution. Remember, there’s a “foreign” emoluments clause AND a clause tied to the president’s compensation – which may NOT be increased by “any other emolument.”)

Getting back to Hurricane Dorian and how this hurricane is just one more example of how serious the climate crisis is and how “we the people” can’t wait for our leaders to figure out that the WORLD we rely on for life is in danger – and, while individual 1 has been quoted as saying it’s not a problem for him – it IS a problem for our children and grandchildren. If those of us who are “baby boomers” don’t aggressively support those who are committed to fighting climate change we deserve the indignation which will be coming our way. While Mara Lago is going to be spared, it appears that almost all the structures in the Abaco Islands in the Bahamas were virtually destroyed. The pictures of the damage drew tears to my eyes – I can’t imagine anything that devastating.

So, the bottom line here is that it’s easy to see how little individual 1 is doing as regards to “running our government” and how the republican party is passively hunkered down waiting for this nightmare to end – with only one – who’s now an independent – reading the Mueller report and realizing our so-called president is a criminal and deserves impeachment. That brings me to the democrats – are they going to do the same thing and simply wait for this “nightmare” to end? Or, are they going to show some initiative in the face of all the disasters piling up on individual 1’s administration and “we the people?”

Democrats have the opportunity to show their reputation as “spineless” is a thing of the past. Nancy Pelosi continues to block an IMPEACHMENT inquiry (spineless?) – something beyond the impeachment “investigation” which Jerry Nadler is saying is the same thing. Well, then, say it as what it is. I’m bringing up the democrats because I believe no matter which democrat emerges as their nominee, we’ll see, at a minimum, the climate change commitment of President Obama, and hopefully something more in line with what Jay Inslee was proposing before he ended his presidential campaign. These disasters, which likely will continue for the foreseeable future, it seems to me, require trying to mitigate what we KNOW is making them worse as a national focus. This will require what I’ve been arguing for since Bush/Cheney and that is voting out the present day republican party – into the history books.

Final Thought: I have to admit that as long as individual 1 is our so-called president it’s hard for me to get my attention off how he’s such an embarrassment to our nation. People all around the world are asking: how could the Americans have elected this man as president? Of course, the Russians know how we could do so. Those around the world who are nationalists and are wearing Nazi armbands at their rallies, while they maybe don’t know how “we the people” could have elected him, they are delighted we did. Vladimir Putin is in the middle of all of this – apparently to the indifference of our republican party. That’s the most quizzical of all this to me. I’m presently reading “Putin’s World” by Angela Stent and it’s clear what is going on in the United States, Great Britain, and many other places in the “Western world” represents the work of Vladimir Putin.

Putin’s goal, for years, has been to cause division in the Western democracies which make up NATO with the plan of causing NATO’s demise. With what is referred to as “active measures” (cyber attacks) Russia has been succeeding at using, in the example of the United States, our freedom against us in a brazen attempt to turn one American against another. And, obviously, it’s working. What is really curious to me is this is NO secret and the republicans have been “missing in action” while they SHOULD know it’s Putin behind this. I wish I could be more positive but every time I get that thought I hear our so-called president LYING again!

This morning, apparently with the worst fears of Dorian subsiding, (unless you’re in the Bahamas) I heard individual 1 speaking about his “wall” again and, of course, LYING through his teeth. Claims the “wall” is going up “in many places” is, based on what I can find out, simply NOT true. What has been “built” has simply been re-doing already existing structures. This “wall” thing is a monster individual 1 created during his campaign and, of course, Mexico is supposed to pay for it. Evidently, the Mexicans aren’t going to do so and now the money is coming from funds appropriated for our military – which should let everyone know there’s too much money appropriated for the military as many have claimed for years.