In the United States today, June 12, 2020, there were OVER 27,000 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 with around 800 “new deaths.” Of course, those totals are just guesses because various republican governors around the country continue to LIE about the statistics. Well, maybe LYING is too harsh a word, people like Ron DeSantis in Florida are simply not allowing the complete statistics to be published. (That’s essentially LYING isn’t it?) I’ve been saying for some time I believe, in Florida, they are blocking the release of the cause of death on people dying from Covid-19. When you look at the numbers of cases that suspicion seems to be borne out. And, of course, when a member of the state’s health department lost her job for refusing to hide these statistics there’s further evidence of some kind of “hanky panky” going on.

This has been an issue all across the nation and we’re seeing ballooning numbers of cases almost everywhere – except in New York and New Jersey which still have a declining number of cases, but….. As many of us have suggested this year, the problem with NO national “plan” is that you can’t run away from this virus. People in New York have been diligent in “mitigating” the virus, but now they have to worry about visitors coming from Florida or South Carolina or……… you get the idea? The cases we’re seeing today are largely the result of the “opening” of the economy during the Memorial Day weekend. Soon we’ll be seeing the results of the protests of the MURDER of George Floyd. And, the one thing we can count on in all of this is that individual 1 will be “AWOL” in showing ANY leadership. In fact, he’ll begin his tour of America where he’ll be holding rallies (where you have to agree to hold him harmless if you get Covid-19) with lots of people in a confined space with no face coverings. OMG! What could go wrong???

Clear and simple, our national government is in the “hands” of IDIOTS! Larry Kudlow: “There is no second spike. Let me repeat that, there is no second spike.” Well, technically I suppose you could say he’s correct – because the FIRST “spike” is still RAGING. Apparently, the way to make sure there’s no “second spike” is to ensure the FIRST spike never ends. As health experts have said “we’re in the 2nd inning of a 9 inning game.” This is far from over and the lack of leadership coming from the “top” is more apparent every day. Take for example Mike Pense – remember, he’s the head of the coronavirus task force: “By Memorial Day this will all be behind us.” OK, well, that was STUPID. How about Jared Kushner “senior adviser to the (IMPEACHED so-called) president: “By June we’ll be rockin!”

I suppose if by “rockin” he meant hospitals around the country would be searching for ventilators once again and health care workers would be, once again, scrambling to find enough PPE to keep them from contracting the virus from their patients – then, I guess, “we’re rockin.” For heaven’s sake what on earth has Jared Kushner EVER done which would qualify him to be a “senior adviser to the president” – even an IMPEACHED so-called president? If you want to get a good idea of who’s creating the “Middle East peace plan” among the other incredible things in his “portfolio” read “Kushner, Inc.” by Vicky Ward. It should both enlighten you and scare you to think someone as …… while I’m trying to think of the right word there all I could think of was he married individual 1’s daughter and even though he’s the “son-in-law” the only thought I can “muster” is the saying, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

It’s easy to see why, when you read all the books you can about individual 1 and his administration – OK, you probably don’t but I do – those who have not worked out in this administration starting with Steve Bannon always refer to “Jarvanka” as being a MAJOR problem in the “White House.” Bannon, for example, while I loathe him is actually very SMART in my view. In fact, I always considered him DANGEROUS in a more DANGEROUS way than I consider individual 1 DANGEROUS. He’s a true schemer! I believe those of us who can’t stomach this (IMPEACHED so-called) president should be thankful Bannon was “banished” and Jared has remained as the “senior adviser.” Between himself and his wife, Ivanka, the “advice” they give just keeps the poll numbers going down for individual 1.

I still remember reading how Bannon, for example, was saying the firing of James Comey was the worst decision in… well, I don’t remember how long he put it, but he knew what would happen next – the special counsel. It was Kushner who thought “everyone,” including democrats, would by happy with the firing of Comey. Even though individual 1, with the help of his “lap dog” William Barr, is busy trying to get history rewritten in regard to the “Russian thing” that adventure is likely to end up just like everything else they do – an unmitigated disaster – from the standpoint of our IMPEACHED so-called president. You can’t change history – the FACT the Russians “interfered” in the 2016 election is undeniable. And, the FACT the FBI felt obligated to investigate that “interference” would only be a SCANDAL had they not done so. My point is that many of the STUPID decisions coming from the “White House” likely would have been much different had Bannon actually been the “senior adviser.” (Of course, it still would have been incredibly BAD!) But, onward we go!

The other half of “Jarvanka” is, of course, Ivanka who was, apparently, the “brains” behind the now infamous trek across Lafayette Square to stand in front of “The Church of the Presidents,” St. John’s Episcopal Church, brandish a Bible (upside down), and pour “gas on the fire” regarding the protesters who are demanding change in regard to the systemic racism which has been an issue in America forever. With the help of William Barr our IMPEACHED so-called president had those protesters cleared from the “square” with the use of tear gas, rubber bullets, flash bang grenades, and officers on horses. I believe individual 1’s photo holding up that Bible will be a lasting image from his administration because of the context around it and the suggestion by many he should open and read that book. My point is “Jarvanka” as “senior advisers” to the (IMPEACHED so-called) president clearly shows why nepotism is a bad idea!

Today, our IMPEACHED so-called president – who avoided service in the 1960’s by getting his doctor to LIE about “bone spurs” which, to him, was “smart” (he got 5 deferrals to avoid service during the Viet Nam era) – gave a speech to the graduating Cadets at West Point. I couldn’t force myself to watch/listen to the speech (It was probably all about his “winning”) but the fact he insisted on doing this caused the Army to fly over 1000 cadets back to West Point – 15 returned with the virus – for a service which was originally planned to be digital. I’ve personally “graduated” three times and it is a time to celebrate and maybe the Cadets wanted to return to go through this ceremony – the hope is they avoid being affected by the virus which is “picking up steam” as I’m writing this. Does anyone but me wonder why individual 1 wanted to do this THIS year? I’ve been unable to find evidence he’s spoken to these troops at graduation in previous years. Curious!

The next few months, as individual 1 restarts his campaign with rallies putting his supporters in venues where “social distancing” is unlikely if not impossible (likely, they don’t care – as the attendees will all sign a statement holding individual 1 “harmless” should any of his supporters contract Covid-19), the number of confirmed cases of the virus – if you believe the scientists – are likely to be skyrocketing. Scientists warned that “opening too soon” could lead to a disaster and, it appears, that is exactly what is happening. Hospitals are again feeling the danger of being overrun with really sick people – with many needing ventilators in order to save their lives. It’s curious to me this would be a campaign strategy of individual 1 because, I guess, he believes a new “spike” in the virus will not negatively affect the economy.

Right wing governors can LIE about the cause of death for people in their states and they can try to hide the number of people infected with Covid-19 but they can’t hide the numbers of people needing ICU care in their hospitals. As the hospitals in Florida, Texas, Arizona, the Carolina’s, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and other states – mostly in the South or Southwest – fill up with people needing ICU care we’ll then know for sure whether this “First wave” of the virus is spiking up again. Everything I see would suggest that is true and, of course, individual 1 continues to pretend the virus is a “thing of the past.” How “we the people” respond to this abandonment of responsibility for leadership remains to be seen, but it appears our IMPEACHED so-called president is looking at dropping poll numbers each and every week.

While I’m encouraged about individual 1’s dropping poll numbers this November’s election is about far more than getting him out of office. The reality is it has been the republican party which has been BLOCKING the changes people in this nation have been wanting and, now, are finally demanding. I believe the protests go far beyond the demands of reforming the police. The issues which have been boiling under the surface are coming out as you see a wide diversity of people marching in the streets after the MURDER of George Floyd. The obvious “change” being demanded by protesters is the police reform – being “suggested” in many ways – especially those who are saying “defund the police.” Well, when I try to process what “defund the police” actually means my mind starts spinning. That’s a post for another day. The bottom line is it appears “change” is on the horizon. I can hope!

Final Thought: Today I was at church “digitally” and our service was a conversation with the pastor of my church and an African American pastor of a church in Portland, Oregon. My pastor was born and raised in Alabama and the pastor from the Church in Portland’s family migrated from Alabama to Oregon back in the late 1930’s after a race riot which ended up with the person who would be the Great Uncle of this pastor in Oregon being lynched and then, while “hanging in the tree” being riddled with bullets. The pastor from the church in Portland became very emotional as he was detailing the history of his family in these days where people are still protesting the MURDER of George Floyd. Reliving really BAD memories are difficult for African Americans! (And, likely impossible to fully comprehend by people like me – although I totally agree with the African American pastor I listened to this morning – the key is just that, listening to each other)

I have to admit I was surprised this happened, but, at the same time, it was a real encouragement. I’m really feeling so many white Americans watching George Floyd being MURDERED in such a horrific manner very well may lead to the changes in our society many have been lobbying for, unsuccessfully, for years. I’ve been saying, in my naive manner, since my children were young, “we the people” have the power to make the change we want via the voting booth, and it’s looking to me as if that may be happening. My prayer is and has been that we would have a nation whose government would work from the bottom up. That, by focusing on “the least of these,” our nation would begin to heal spiritually and we could become a nation where accumulating wealth is not the goal but working to achieve the lofty ideals of our constitution would be. (And, to me, the beauty of the constitution is that it’s malleable)

Our history is full of dark places, the “original sin” being the issue of slavery, the – I can’t find the words to explain my thoughts about Native Americans other than “it’s another one,” and, because we are the world’s melting pot, (a blessing and a curse?) the issue of racism and discrimination have been part of our DNA since the beginning of this great “experiment.” At the same time, we’ve had the privilege to GROW and govern ourselves and this feels like a real inflection point to me, right now. There are disasters piling on top of one another but all that is going on has awakened our people, especially our young people, and I’m encouraged in the face of what looks like disaster. Of course, in my mind, success is predicated on what happens in November and, I’m sure, my pastor would remind me of who’s “in control.” So, I’ll end by saying I don’t think anyone would have to wonder what I’m praying for.

Oh yes, if you happen by here you’re very likely a “bot.” I write to vent my own feelings and frustrations with no intentions of anyone reading them. If you do, thanks for stopping by and I hope I’ve caused you to think.

As I’ve said recently, “throwing the bums out” this November is simply the beginning, not just the end of individual 1’s reign. By “beginning” I’m talking about turning this nation back to the ideals which were originally implemented with the New Deal back in the 1930’s. Of course, back then there were a plethora of problems which “progressives” were attempting to address and here we are again. The majority of complaints following the MURDER of George Floyd have related to police reform. And, I have to say, it has not just been African Americans calling for this since the 1960’s it’s just that white people like myself, while recognizing the need for the reform, have continued to live in an environment of “white privilege.” It’s hard for us to even begin to comprehend what our Black brothers and sisters have endured.

Just the issue of marijuana, for example, is telling. My first attempt at college occurred in the mid 1960’s and, after I quit playing basketball, I was introduced to marijuana. While, eventually, I chose to refrain from any drugs not prescribed by my doctors, I never considered marijuana as anything close to a “dangerous drug.” In fact, I always felt keeping it illegal was a manifestation of who was profiting from it being illegal. Additionally, I always felt this led to corruption in police forces all across the land. I FOR SURE know of instances where people were “busted” for possession of marijuana and ended up doing jail time while the “cops” took the “pot” from the evidence room and, eventually, resold the “pot” on the street. There are people all across this nation – most of them “Black or Brown” – sitting in jail for some reason connected to marijuana being “illegal.” To me, that they’re in jail is what is CRIMINAL!

In the state where I live marijuana has FINALLY been “legalized” and, to make it as clear as I can, I see no difference from when it was illegal. The most significant difference, likely, is the temptation to participate in the illegal trafficking of the “pot” by public officials is gone. Additionally, the source of illegal profits by organized criminals is gone. All other drugs, in my view, should get this same decriminalization. I’ve said for years it would be cheaper (and, in my view, better for the users) if our government facilitated the giving out of drugs like heroin, etc. as opposed to spending untold MILLIONS to stop something which, obviously, is unstoppable. We could spend the money used for “catching people” to “helping people.” Of course, the protests which are ongoing are reminding us that MILLIONS of non-violent prisoners are predominantly “persons of color.” To me, it seems completely STUPID to spend MILLIONS “caging” people who’ve been smoking or selling marijuana – there has to be a reason and I’m convinced the reason is all the money “officials” are making due to the absurd criminal statutes.

The protests of the past couple of weeks were “triggered” by the MURDER/LYNCHING of George Floyd as a young lady with a cell phone created a “witness” for all to see with her “smart” phone. I’m outraged just like the MILLIONS of other Americans who’ve finally said, “enough already.” However, in regard to the issue of policing and the absurdity of “drugs” being illegal I can’t stop thinking of Breonna Taylor of Louisville, Kentucky. While she was asleep in her bed undercover police officers enacting a “no knock warrant” which was intended for someone else who was already in custody – showing the incompetence of the Louisville Police Department – a story for another day – was MURDERED while her boyfriend was attempting to defend their home from what he thought were burglars or ???? Breonna ended up dead and, of course, her boyfriend was arrested for attempting to protect their home with his licensed weapon. Ms. Taylor is dead because of a botched drug bust! That’s every much a call for reform, in my view, as the MURDER/LYNCHING of Mr. Floyd.

As an aside, I can’t help thinking of individual 1’s response to the MURDER of students at the school in Florida (Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School) suggesting the teachers should be armed. As a retired teacher, when I try to imagine my fellow teachers shooting guns in the hallways of the school during an attack it makes me cringe. So, in this instance, Breonna’s boyfriend has a gun and the attackers (the cops) put 8 bullets into Breonna and many bullets into the apartments adjacent to theirs. In the era of individual 1 this example of “force” will be what our IMPEACHED so-called president will be remembered for.

That gets us to the protests which are the result of these recent MURDERS – including the MURDER of Ahmaud Arbery – and how individual 1 continues to show himself to be a “tin pot” dictator. By now, everyone who’s had their head anywhere but in the sand knows individual 1, along with William Barr, ordered the removal of PEACEFUL protesters from Lafayette Square, which sits right across from the “White House,” via the use of tear gas, flash bang explosives, rubber bullets, etc. so our IMPEACHED so-called president could do his now infamous “photo op” brandishing a Bible he has no idea what is inside. Individual 1 went from cowering in the “White House” bunker to the photo op back to cowering in the “White House” by installing fencing to protect him from “we the people” who are protesting outside. Further campaign material for Joe Biden which he may not even need.

The people who are marching in the streets and demanding “change” know that as long as individual 1 occupies 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue the only change which might happen would be NOT the “change they can believe in.” And, of course, Congressional republicans are every bit the obstacle to “change” of our IMPEACHED so-called president. That’s why I was encouraged to hear, over and over again, leaders at the protests using the word VOTE and, actually, registering people to vote. When I listen to these young people I can picture an “army” of progressive leaders on the horizon and many of them represent diverse communities in our “melting pot.” To me, some of the most inspirational leaders we have in this nation are members of the “Black and Brown” communities.

Yes, there are “white nationalists” (who make up a significant proportion of individual 1’s base) who seem to “fear” the FACT us white people are soon to be a “majority minority.” I can tell you, from my experience, we should be excited about the young leaders who are emerging who come from all walks of life and who are committed to moving America closer to her ideals. There’s NOTHING to fear from that. I’m anxious to see who Joe Biden chooses for his running mate in the upcoming election. I believe it is a critically important choice and, why I understand he may choose Elizabeth Warren, I believe choosing a “woman of color” would be inspirational to so many Americans at this point in time. However, we need to understand reality and WIN in November!

Back in 2008 when Barack Obama was chosen as the 44th president of the United States I still remember talking to my former teaching partner, who has since “gone home,” a distinguished African American who I could write volumes about – a retired member of the Air Force who carried a bullet too near his heart to remove from the Viet Nam era until his death, a pastor, a sixth grade teacher, and a mentor to an untold number of children who were struggling – about the election of President Obama and agreeing neither of us thought we would live long enough to see a president of African descent. Of course, him being wiser than me, he correctly predicted the backlash coming from what, originally, seemed to take the form of the so-called “tea party” – a group which, despite their denials, was founded on racism – clear and simple! The “backlash” exposed, to me, a white nationalist segment of America much more significant than I understood – further evidence of how it’s so difficult for White Americans to understand what our Black brothers and sisters experience every day.

The “tea party” set the stage for individual 1 and, it seems, is a predominant reason why the republicans in Congress seem to have “lock jaw” regarding the behavior of our IMPEACHED so-called president – behavior I can only imagine their response had it come from President Obama. Many of us, including me, did not understand the intensity of the white nationalists in America which I bring up because assuming individual 1 gets voted out of office this November, it’s why I keep saying that’s just the beginning. The FIGHT which seems to be going on right now MUST continue. The people at “stormfront” or the “boogaloo bois” aren’t going to disappear. They may head back under their “rocks” but, they’ll be doing what they always do and that is to create division and chaos in order to destabilize our government – should we work to repair the DAMAGE which has been caused by individual 1 and his sycophants. And, that DAMAGE is immense and could take a generation to repair.

I’ve listened to Stacy Abrams on several occasions and, to me, she’s a brilliant young public servant. You know individual 1 fears that she might be Biden’s choice for VP because he’s already calling her names and making fun of her weight. (Keeping in mind, of course, that he is obese) Another African American woman I admire is Kamala Harris who also comes across to me as a brilliant young leader. Susan Rice is another very impressive, intelligent, and strong African American woman who has a lot of experience in the international scene. Val Demmings, to me, was one of the more impressive “House managers” in the IMPEACHMENT trial of individual 1, where republicans botched their opportunity to end this nightmare and possibly save their party, and I think she’d be a great pick. Of course, there are many others – although, I’m guessing Biden will choose Warren, who I also really like, and may be considered a “safer” pick. That’s just the reality of the “times we live in.” Bottom line: getting rid of individual 1 is what’s important at this point in time.

America’s young people don’t have a great history of heading to the polls but I sensed something different over these past few days. When it comes right down to it, there are a plethora of reasons to believe this time will be different. If the protests of the past couple of weeks don’t get someone’s attention, then there’s a reality looming for when the protests die down and that is Covid-19 is still here and it was “gaining steam” before the protests – and, from what scientists have been saying, the protests are likely to cause significant outbreaks. I hope I’m wrong on that, but I didn’t see a lot of “social distancing.

So, there you have two crises young people care about and, then, on top of that individual 1 is a “climate denier” and he’s filled his government with climate deniers – actually getting rid of the scientists. (like when he got rid of the pandemic task force left behind by President Obama) Trust me, young people understand the significance of climate change – and, the looming hurricane season and wildfire season very well could be additional reminders. And, then you have an IMPEACHED so-called president who spews propaganda about “your second amendment rights” in almost every speech and these young people are sick of seeing people killed by gun violence – many have witnessed it in their schools or their neighborhoods – and, they don’t consider an “A” rating by the NRA to be a “good thing.” In other words, the list of reasons our young people are going to vote AGAINST individual 1 is a long one.

Keep in mind, he wasn’t looking that strong via the parents of the “young people.” In fact, older white Americans apparently don’t like the idea of sacrificing their “autumn” years for Wall Street via the Covid-19 pandemic and he’s now “under water” with a critical voting group from his standpoint, those older than 65 (like me). However, no one is going to forget what happened in 2016 and, hopefully, Biden and whoever he chooses will campaign (somehow) vigorously in EVERY state. Democrats need to win elections from the presidency to the local dog catcher in order to change the direction of this nation to one where the government works from the bottom up instead of the top down. In individual 1’s case he’s trying to make the government work for himself and his cronies. The issues where he’s stepped over the line of legality are too numerous to list here (and, I’m sure, I know of only a small number) but accountability for him, Barr, and the others who’ve chosen to violate our laws SHOULD be on the horizon. They simply refuse the attempts of Congress to hold them accountable, but once out of office that SHOULD change. If, as I suspect, individual 1 is actually a criminal he should be treated as such.

Individual 1 is the expert at projection: When he’s making an accusation at one of his “opponents” (to him, enemies) in almost every instance it’s something he’s guilty of. He based much of his shtick in 2016 on “draining the swamp” when he and his cronies are “the swamp.” When he talks about the “deep state” he’s talking about apolitical public servants who actually believe in our constitution and are willing to stand up against an IMPEACHED so-called president who doesn’t. People like Colonel Alexander Vindman, Fiona Hill, William Taylor, George Kent, and Marie Yovanovitch are all committed public servants NOT part of some “deep state.” And, for heaven’s sake, Gordon Sondland was part of individual 1’s administration as was as was Laura Cooper and others. All of these people testified in the IMPEACHMENT hearings in the House which led to individual 1’s IMPEACHMENT for EXTORTING the president of Ukraine. None of them are part of any “deep state” – EACH of them are patriots who will end up in the good part of the History books.

Our IMPEACHED so-called president has created a CULT following of about 40% of America – although, based on polls of the past couple of weeks that 40% may be dwindling a bit, but the reality is individual 1 has governed by creating a sense of FEAR among republicans in Congress and around the country. No one, it seems, wants to be on the receiving end of one of his NASTY “tweets.” Here’s the bottom line – he’s corrupt, he’s the poster child for anyone wondering what a narcissist is, his pathological LYING has numbed “we the people” to the point where every LIE is, well, “just another LIE,” he has no idea how America is SUPPOSED to work, and his incompetence has created a situation where we have one crisis on top of the next – with “more to come.” Apparently, that is what his CULT wants as individual 1’s fascist tendencies are now on full display, but MOST of us are “sick and tired” of his shtick and we can’t wait until November 3rd.

Individual 1 is smart enough to see “the writing on the wall” which is why “we the people” will be witnessing voter suppression tactics which very well could remind people my age of “the (not to) good old days.” I graduated from High School as the Voting Rights Act – which was gutted by our Supreme Court a few years ago, leading to the tactics I’m talking about – back in 1965. I’ve witnessed example after example of (mostly) republicans working to keep our communities of color subservient. Things, to me – as a white person, seemed to be improving until I started to realized the depth of the problem during President Obama’s two terms in the “White House.” I’ve been writing about the need to put the republican party into the history books via the ballot box and, in my view, this November is when it SHOULD happen. But, they are the “end justifies the means” party and the end, for them, is POWER under any circumstance.

We’ve seen their “plan” in Wisconsin’s primary election and now Georgia’s and Nevada’s primary elections. The LONG LINES always happen in the districts which have significant numbers of “likely democratic” voting populations. I have to say I was inspired by the numbers of people in Wisconsin willing to stand in line for hours to vote and then, the other day, people waiting, in some instances, for 7 hours to vote. That’s the commitment “we the people” need all across this nation in November. We need to go to the polls in RECORD numbers to make sure the CHEATERS (ie individual 1) won’t determine the outcome of the election. Remember, we already KNOW the Russians are busy spreading FALSE information designed to create chaos and division ALREADY. If you use Facebook, beware! If you see it, call it out! This country is worth fighting for and “we the people” have the opportunity to change its direction. There are ALREADY several bright YOUNG progressives in Congress (which, of course, will be targets of those with big money in the election) and the opportunity to “flip” the Senate and bring in some more “new blood” who are progressive thinkers is REAL! Remember to VOTE!

Final Thought: The “dog whistles” coming from the “White House” are getting less covert all the time and, simply, out and out messaging to the so-called “base” of individual 1 – what I referred to above as his CULT following. So, he’s really anxious to start holding his rallies again – with large numbers of people in arenas around the country. So, he’s holding his first rally in Tulsa Oklahoma on “Juneteenth.” That would be June 19 and it’s a day of celebration for the African American Community which you can read about HERE. I’m not going to prejudge why individual 1 chose his first rally to be held on that day will just wait to see how it goes and whether or not it’s a rally to celebrate that “holiday.” (It actually is a holiday in some places around the country.

Individual 1 is giving his “acceptance speech” in Jacksonville Florida on August 27th which, to African Americans, is the date which commemorates “Ax Handle Saturday.” You can read about it HERE. I certainly am not sophisticated enough to understand what is actually individual 1’s point in where he’s holding these two events and how they’re related to his view of the African American community – all I can do is question is the coincidental are is there a “deeper” meaning. Time will tell. I must add that, of course, if you’ve read any of my previous posts you know I view individual 1 as a RACIST so I’m feeling a bit skeptical toward these coincidences.

One more thing: I find it really interesting that in individual 1’s upcoming rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma (on Juneteenth) his supporters, when they apply for tickets, must sign a waiver agreeing to hold individual 1 “harmless” in case they contract Covid-19 while at the rally which will have people without masks jammed into an enclosed venue shouting and yelling. Of course, no one with the virus would dare attend, but “just in case”…………………… Stay tuned…..

I can’t stop without saying I find it interesting (curious?) individual 1 will cover your legal expenses if you assault someone who is a heckler at one of his rallies but he’s not interested in your medical bills if you contract Covid-19. the next few weeks will be interesting to say the least…………………..

There are so many reasons why “we the people” should be doing whatever is necessary to vote individual 1 into the history books this November it’s hard to keep up with them all. I’m an old man but I’m going to do a little activity which is good for us old folks – and, that is to test my memory. Like in what are some of the reasons individual 1 needs to “go” – and, I might as well start with the obvious: He’s truly shown his fascist nature by not only calling for American troops to “dominate” American citizens as his way to quell the protests over the injustice African Americans have finally had “enough” of but, in the process, he’s used tactics of the Nazi’s – as explained to “we the people” by none other than James Mattis our former Secretary of Defense. The tactic? “Divide and Conquer.” And, I’ve been saying since day 1 of individual 1’s administration another “tactic” used is “The Big Lie Theory” coming straight out of the Nazi propaganda “playbook.”

Americans don’t like anyone to even reference Hitler or the Nazi’s in any way other than to be condemning the Holocaust as they rightfully should. (And, “Oh by the way” many of the white nationalists in individual 1’s base are Holocaust deniers) Their (individual 1 and his republican sycophants) use of the “Big Lie Theory” is obvious to virtually everyone (what isn’t obvious is their use of a Nazi propaganda strategy) – in the sense everyone I know or watch or listen to are constantly commenting on the LYING which has permeated individual 1’s messaging and virtually EVERY republican – and, at least with the republicans – the LYING is calculated, organized, and pre-planned right down to using the same key terms. With individual 1 it appears to simply be pathological LYING – which should surprise no one who’s either known about him or read about his history. The reason they do it is because it works when your ideology wouldn’t otherwise work – they’ve developed a cult following who actually believe what they’re saying is true. I have a friend who is an individual 1 supporter who has actually said to me he believes our IMPEACHED so-called president “tells the truth.” Yikes!!!

All that, in itself, would have been enough to defeat any democrat – because democrats don’t operate as a cult. But, of course, there’s a lot more. While individual 1 has been calling for American troops to attack American citizens the Covid-19 pandemic continues to rage and, in fact, it has been increasing in intensity since the Memorial Day weekend when there were multiple gatherings of people at vacation resorts around the country where “social distancing” was NOT apparent. And, of course, these demonstrations are full of people who consider expressing their anger toward our nation’s continued failure to treat “Black and Brown” people with “equal justice under the law” as more important to them than their concern for the virus. Many are wearing masks, but I’m guessing the numbers of people infected with the virus are going to be on the upswing for the next month or so – based on what I’ve learned about the disease caused by the virus so far.

That means once these protests calm down the focus of “we the people’s” attention, I’m guessing, will be back on the virus and there’s no way individual 1 can run away from the FACT his incompetence was fully exposed in the first couple of months when Covid-19 was spreading across America. At this point in time it’s clear, with discipline and a coordinated national plan, the effect of the virus could have been significantly mitigated. We are now at the point where our IMPEACHED so-called president has “thrown in the towel” and is simply saying let the virus do what the virus is going to do which means, if the scientists know what they’re talking about, the next six months are going to be really bad. The bottom line in all this for individual 1; it just further exposes his inability to handle the job he’s been given.

I read a post today in the Daily Kos where individual 1 was characterized as a parasite who, throughout his career, has attached himself to various entities and “sucked the lifeblood” from them subsequently abandoning them after they’ve been, essentially, destroyed. I instantaneously was able to picture in my mind that’s exactly what he’s doing to our government. He’s placed cronies and “lap dogs” at the head of the various departments of our government and the result will be, once he’s gone, that these departments will be like the children’s Sunday School at the church in front of which he chose to brandish someone’s Bible (probably not his, but….) upside down for a “photo op” designed to send a “dog whistle” to his evangelical “base” – and, that is gutted. Public Servants who are experts at their jobs have been purged from our government unless they’re willing to pledge “loyalty” – as we learned from James Comey (who’s largely responsible for individual 1 being in the “White House” in the first place).

I just can’t bring myself to believe MOST Americans want a president (especially an IMPEACHED so-called one) to be dismantling the very government he takes an oath to defend and uphold. For example, destroying the Agriculture department seems antithetical to the job, in my view. Just imagine republicans had Obama done that? What about gutting the State Department of career diplomats who are apolitical public servants and experts at doing the fundamental work necessary to carrying out diplomacy around the world – and then, say, putting Kim Jong un on a world wide “pedestal” and then claiming they were ‘in love” with an “agreement” written on a napkin? Again, just picture republicans had Obama done such a thing!?

Standing in front of the world’s press along side Vladimir Putin at a summit in Helsinki and “throwing our intelligence community under the bus,” saying Putin “was very strong in his denial” and that he believed Putin. When asked directly if he believed the Russians interfered in the election to help him – as reported by every member of our intelligence community – he said, “I don’t see why they would.” This did create a response of outrage EVEN from some republicans so the next day he tried to LIE his way out of the “crisis” (what else is new – he’s LIED almost 20,000 times as of this writing) by claiming he meant to say “wouldn’t” instead of “would.” I have no idea why that seemed to calm the outrage – but, again, how would republicans have responded to President Obama “kowtowing” to Putin like that? That fiasco followed a two hour meeting between individual 1 and Putin with no one else present – at least from the U.S. To me: disqualifying by itself.

Individual 1 has virtually destroyed America’s relationship with our European allies with the possible exception of Great Britain who have chosen Boris Johnson, an individual 1 devotee, as their prime minister. Our relationships with our traditional allies around the world, including Canada for heaven’s sake, are teetering on disaster. Should “we the people” somehow give individual 1 a second term our nation will very possibly NEVER recover from the DAMAGE inflicted and our “friends” around the world will likely STOP wondering “What the hell has happened to America? And move on to “we’re on our own.” I believe we’ll have our so-called “Black and Brown” community to thank for saving us from becoming a fascist state come November. And, if you believe that’s hyperbole i would respectfully suggest you’re not paying close enough attention. I believe the name George Floyd will obscure individual 1’s for – well- FOREVER!

The list goes on: Picture if President Obama had chosen an Attorney General like William Barr who appears to be nothing more than a lap dog who is willing to destroy the reputation of the Justice Department at the whim of our IMPEACHED so-called president. Of course, both individual 1 and republicans will suggest Eric Holder was there to “protect Obama” which is absurd on its face. For one thing, President Obama didn’t do ONE thing which would require “protection” – despite 8 years of harassment coming from republicans.

Individual 1 has been busy encouraging the Justice Department to “go after” his political opponents who he considers his “enemies” and he’s willing to use the power of government to attack them. How many false accusations against Obama, for example, have come from the “White House?” Obama didn’t wire tap our IMPEACHED so-called president, he didn’t illegally “unmask” Michael Flynn, etc. etc. Everyone of these false accusations are spurious on their face and simply more of the deflection “strategy” coming from the “White House.” Picture, again, republicans had Obama been doing such “nasty” stuff.

Sadly, at our Southern border there are still children in cages from what I can tell. This issue has pretty much slipped into the “darkness” due to all the other crises “we the people” are dealing with. But, for me, this is a nation of immigrants – our diversity is what makes us a strong country and the idea people fleeing poverty and violence in South and Central America should be turned away at our Southern border is EXTREMELY offensive to me. I had the privilege to teach NUMEROUS students, during my career, who came from various countries in our Southern Hemisphere, and I still “light up” when I hear one of them call out my name as I’m walking through a local business where they’re now working. Amazing young people, some who began learning to speak English as they were “thrown” into the classroom, who were/are hard working brilliant young people. The thought of them in cages just causes me to feel a sense of disgust toward anyone who would think that’s OK.

I’m not sure I can accurately characterize the republican anti-immigration policy when the FACT we’re a nation of immigrants is undeniable. In fact, I believe this animosity is the root behind protests which are happening right now. As a white person it disgusts me to realize there’s so many Americans in the “white nationalist” movement who don’t understand they are the ones with the privilege – they’re NOT the victims. Historically, African Americans have been in this country for over 400 years and, I’m guessing, many of the young African Americans feeling the brunt of police billy clubs this past couple of weeks have a heritage connected to America which dates much farther back than that of the “cop” wielding the billy club. And, Native Americans? For heaven’s sake, to suggest they haven’t been oppressed is absurd on its face.

Clearly, you can’t place all the blame of what people of the “Black and Brown” communities have endured on individual 1 but the FACT he’s an overt racist and has been encouraging police to “get tough” when they’re arresting “criminals” is, well, a provable fact. I’ve heard him make suggestions as to how police should arrest people which made me cringe. He exposed himself in his response to the protests at Charlottesville when he called neo-Nazi’s “very fine people” and when he was encouraging white nationalist groups to “LIBERATE” states which were experiencing surges of Covid-19 – one day after he provided a “plan” to re-open the states which, obviously, they hadn’t yet met. This is incompetence in plain sight! Redundantly I’ll say, what would republicans have done had President Obama called on masked and armed Black men to converge on a state capitol building during a pandemic and spitting in the faces of the capitol police? What’s the saying? “Come on man!”

The ONLY “success” of individual 1’s ENTIRE term, legislatively, would have to be the tax SCAM which put something like $2 TRILLION into the bank accounts of the wealthiest Americans who were already so flush with $$$ that they had over a TRILLION just, essentially, “sitting there,” money added to the deficit. (meaning not being re-invested in their companies) Yes, that gave the rising economy he inherited from Obama a temporary and superficial “boost” (Which, of course, is “long gone”) but, the reality of individual 1’s term in office has been the silence coming from all the deficit hawk republicans who were “squawking” on a daily basis at Obama as President Obama worked the deficit down about 70% from what he inherited – after “inheriting” the “Great Recession.” Obama’s administration pulled “we the people” out of that recession with virtually NO help from republicans – similar to what happened with Bill Clinton and likely what is going to happen with Joe Biden – expressly why it’s so important to vote out as many republican Senators as possible – because, it’s guaranteed whoever remains in the Senate will stand in the way of any progressive legislation in the next legislature.

I can only try to imagine where the national debt will be after individual 1 leaves office and what republicans will be saying. I’m already hearing “peeps” the deficit hawks are re-awakening after the “jobs report” suggested our unemployment rate is “ONLY” 13.3%. (Although the Department of Labor Statistics later reported there was a mistake and the number should be about 3% higher) So, republicans will very possibly “balk” at agreeing to the HEROES Act which is proposing $1 TRILLION for the State and Local governments who are going to be in big financial trouble from this pandemic possibly leading to massive layoffs of police, firefighters, teachers, and others who are paid via state payrolls. Wouldn’t that just be republicans being “smart” right before an election? Honestly, these republican deficit hawks are really annoying because they “hibernate” until it starts looking like a democrat is going to be in office. You see how it works, right? They create HUGE deficits and then blame it on the democrats who are voted in to “clean up the mess.” We all thought the “mess” left behind by Bush/Cheney was historic, but it will be “small potatoes” compared to the “mess” left behind by individual 1.

Virtually ALL the gains made in this country over the past 200 years have been the result of “liberals/progressives” and this time will be no different. While “we the people” are all focused on the numerous reasons listed above why any other so-called president would be voted out of office this next reason should maybe be at the top of the list instead of “flying under the radar.” While all this “stuff” is going on – especially the Covid-19 crisis which is likely getting worse as I’m typing these letters – individual 1 is in COURT attempting to get rid of the Affordable Care Act once and for all. Should he succeed the ripple affect would be like someone shooting off a cannon and would be disastrous for well over 20 MILLION Americans who would lose their health insurance and then another close to 100 MILLION who have “pre-existing conditions” which would no longer be protected against health insurers discrimination. We’re hearing virtually nothing about this but just the FACT our IMPEACHED so-called president is doing this, especially in the middle of a pandemic, is unconscionable – but, with him, not surprising.

There’s more, but I’ll end this one here – I just wanted to point out our IMPEACHED so-called president keeps the scandals coming at a rate which we just can’t keep up. However, the reasons he SHOULD be voted into the history books (and the courtroom once he’s no longer protected by that OLC memo) go well beyond what is in today’s news “cycle.” He’s been committing disqualifying acts since he took the oath of office. I didn’t even get into the Mueller stuff because I could do another full post on that or the ILLEGAL payoffs to the two women. He’s acting like a mafia boss and likely is/was a pseudo mafia boss in his businesses – it’s certainly been documented he was doing a lot of business with members of various mafia organizations (Russian, Italian) – it’s time for the authorities to fully investigate what he’s done as our IMPEACHED so-called president and what he was doing prior to becoming our IMPEACHED so-called president.

Final Thought: Joe Biden was not my choice to be the democratic nominee, but I’ve always felt if people get out and vote they come up with the right person for the time and there were record numbers of voters in the democratic primaries prior to the pandemic – so, I believe Biden is the right person – even though he’s closing in on being 77 years young. The critical choice, for him, is his running mate, if for no other reason his age. I can’t see him running for re-election and young people and progressives MUST realize the “change” they want will take a massive participation in the process. That will include winning again in 2024 (I might still be around) and Biden’s VP candidate very well could be the nominee should things improve over the next four years. (At that point we’ll be wondering if America’s voters have amnesia toward the DAMAGE of the republican party circa individual 1) Should he choose Amy Klobachar I believe his chances in November would go way down. As I’ve said here I believe it should be a woman of color (we know it will be a woman) and, if not, to me, the ONLY other choice would be Elizabeth Warren. Whoever it is, they are going to face the nastiest campaign we’ve ever seen in America I’m sad to say. It should be interesting!

I have to add: I’m certainly no public health expert but I listen to them these days ad often as I can and what is happening in America is rather alarming. I’m with everyone else who wants to be “open” but I’m alarmed at the number of people I’m seeing who seem to have forgotten we are STILL in the middle of a world wide pandemic. And, I live in a state where the “numbers” have been going down (although, there is a “trouble part” of our state – Washington). I regularly mention the Kinsa thermometer I purchased which is connected via bluetooth to a lab at Oregon State University which creates a “temperature map” that gives a “head’s up” on areas of the country where they’re seeing “atypical” increases in temperatures among “we the people.” Just the other day I was showing the map to my son and pointing out Florida, Arizona, California, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and many other states were suggesting another “spike” was on the horizon. Well, it’s happening just as the Kinsa “thermometer weather map” was suggesting it would happen.

With an IMPEACHED so-called president who has decided to “move on” from this crisis “we the people” are looking at a situation – which is already the WORST in the world – that may be bringing even more comparisons to the “flu” outbreak of 1919. Individual 1 is now planning to cram as many of his supporters into facilities willing to allow it – likely where masks will not be allowed – so he can have his rallies again. The concern, from me, isn’t for those who choose to participate in the rallies in person, the concern is for those who may be affected indirectly. I’m still listening to the “experts” and, so far, they are being proven correct. The “numbers” don’t look as if there’s a big “spike” occurring until you take New York and New Jersey out of the statistics – then it looks bad. And, I wish the TV pundits would stop talking about the fear of the “second wave” happening. We’re still in the FIRST “wave.” Michael Osterholm is a VERY distinguished professor of public health at the University of Minnesota and he does not mince words when talking about this virus. He likens it to baseball by saying, “we’re in the second inning of a nine inning game.” In my mind, he’s well worth listening to. Stay tuned…………..

I keep thinking the book “The Family” by Jeff Sharlet continues to be relevant as we watch a group of people who clearly believe the rich and powerful should rule the rest of us. The book was an inside look at a group of right wing republicans who lived in a place on “K” street in Washington DC if I remember correctly. They also had a compound somewhere else in the D.C. area (obviously I need to re-read the book) where they held their secret meetings. One of the things I remember about the book was brutal dictators from around the world showing up for meetings and the National Prayer Breakfast – which I believe was initiated by this group. As I watch William Barr and some of the other sycophants of individual 1 I keep wondering if this crew finally has their grip on the power they’ve been working for.

One of the reasons this keeps coming to mind is while I keep being alarmed by the actions of individual 1 you don’t even hear a “peep” out of the republicans in Congress with the exception of an occasional “peep” from Mitt Romney. Today, Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski kind of “peeped” but it certainly, to me, was nothing more than her checking to see which way the wind is blowing. Clearly, individual 1 has gone off the “edge” and no matter how absurd he gets we hear nothing from republicans in Congress. I’ve been saying since day 1 he’ll be in office until the republicans decide to do the “right thing.” Democrats gave them the chance this past January and they failed. I doubt they’ll get another chance before November.

The proper solution to this problem is voting them all out of office in the next election. Of course, there can be a lot of DAMAGE between now and then. And, I believe some of them see what is on the horizon so they’re now suggesting to judges who are in their sixties or above to retire so they can put more young right wing judges on the benches of America’s Jurist Prudence system – of course, this is exactly why people are marching in the streets – the system which has had its “knee” on the necks of African Americans for, well, forever. Apparently, in the eyes of individual 1 that’s OK while Colin Kaepernick [and others] taking a knee prior to a FOOTBALL game, in the mind of our IMPEACHED so-called president, makes those football players who were trying to save George Floyd’s life “son’s of bitches.”

It’s almost certain the House will not IMPEACH our so-called president again, but they definitely SHOULD impeach William Barr. From what I’ve seen and read he’s stepped “over the line” on numerous occasions. In my mind, he’s almost as much a threat to our nation as individual 1. But there’s more. Of course, these next two (or should I make it three) men, if they were really part of the West Point honor corp – they would resign immediately and ask for forgiveness. Both Mark Esper and Mike Pompeo graduated from West Point and they’re giving our nation’s Army college a bad stain with their repeated LYING and their actions which make them look like “lap dogs” to our IMPEACHED so-called president. It’s very sad and disappointing to see graduates of that school acting in such a deplorable manner!

Of course General Mark Millie couldn’t help himself but to walk across Lafayette Park with individual 1 who was on his way for the now infamous “photo op” while wearing his combat fatigues. What was the message with that? Is he like the rest of those in the republican caucus and AFRAID to stand up to our IMPEACHED so-called president? Is he willing to actually send in American troops to “dominate” American citizens? The “impossible” in regard to our government just continues to seem normal. I remember reading Sharlet’s book and thinking the idea of this SMALL group of people who believe in their right to “rule the world” was absurd. There are too many “checks” to prevent this from happening. Right? Well, they came close in the Bush/Cheney regime only to be stopped by GW Bush’s inability to complete a sentence and, of course, LYING (us into a STUPID war) and economic disaster.

Wall Street was in a state of shock when “we the people” voted in a “person of color” as president back in 2008 and, of course, the result was pulling “we the people” out of the “Great Recession” and seven years of a recovery on a steady rise until the even MORE right wing republican party managed to win the “White House” in 2016 and, of course, those in the “Family” must have thought this was the time – which, I believe, is why individual 1’s poll numbers have remained steady for over 3 years – but, alas MORE LYING, more INCOMPETENCE, and now economic disaster once again almost as if this is the definition of “deja vu all over again.” And, wouldn’t you know it, people on Wall Street are already speculating what is going to happen to their “profits” once Joe Biden is the president.

These people, to me, are “deplorable.” The world is in a pandemic, 40 MILLION Americans have applied for unemployment benefits in the past 10 weeks (thankfully, many are going back to work – hopefully for the “long haul”), and, yet, you see Jerome Powell standing along side of Wall Street with, what I’ve called the “tire pump,” pumping $$$ into Wall Street so the people at Goldman Sachs and other Wall Street financial institutions can prosper – in the face of an economic disaster reminding many of the Great Depression. As I’ve said in previous posts the “deficit hawks” have been in hibernation since the day individual 1 LIED about the oath he took on January 20, 2017 and they’re starting to wake up as they fear another democrat in the “White House” who will actually attempt to bring some balance to America’s economy – while, at the same time, promoting a progressive agenda.

I’m already reading warnings coming from inside Goldman Sachs about how they will be forced to react should Biden become president. Their hunger for MONEY – which seems to have no bounds – is offensive to me. The idea of addressing the issue of income inequality, which I believe is paramount to the future of America (and other places around the world), will be “tackled” by the Biden administration or they’ll only last one term. (Actually, at almost 77 I believe Biden will be a one term president regardless – the issue is whether his administration will be the beginning of a true turning point in America) The Wall Street billionaires are going to be FIGHTING this “progressive change” every step of the way – that, you can count on.

I believe the concern that individual 1 had been fully exposed via his incompetence in “leading” the response to Covid-19 had put the people at Goldman Sachs (and their brethren on Wall Street) on edge and now, seeing MILLIONS of young people – black, brown, and white – in the streets protesting America’s systemic inequality while, at the same time, registering to VOTE really has them looking at their “red flags.” Their goal is suffocating control of America’s “levers of power” in the government – the “White House,” the Congress, and the Courts which they refer to as the “permanent republican ‘majority.'” The bottom line is these people are way too similar to fascists – and, we’re hearing that comparison by way more than me of late – like, for example, General James Mattis – and, it’s up to “we the people” to vote individual 1 and as many republican Senators out of office this November as we possibly can.

There will be a lot of MONEY spent in this upcoming election and it seems clear to me the members of Wall Street and “K” street are in a sense of panic at this point. God help us if they find a way to pull off another “win” with a significant loss in the “popular vote.” The difference in the poll numbers, at this point, are seemingly not possible for individual 1 to overcome – however, the Electoral College – which is antiquated and gives the votes of people in Wyoming much more power than the votes in California – is what will define the winner of the election. What is encouraging to me is my hope young people will vote. I believe the future is theirs and if they are voting in large numbers I will be happy with the result – even if I disagree with it. Of course, I can’t imagine a majority of young Americans voting for individual 1. They are fully invested in issues like Climate Change, gun safety, income inequality, universal health care, affordable college (tuition free?) and, of course, reform of the role of police in our society. (I could, and likely will, write a full post about that)

Here’s the bottom line – I just don’t believe America will EVER stand for some kind of fascist type leader in the “White House.” As individual 1 makes his pseudo dictator tendencies more evident while Americans mourn the MURDER of George Floyd his poll numbers drop – and, he can’t help himself. The question will be whether or not this is possible again – because his shortcomings were all too apparent prior to his ascension into the “White House.” I’ve said many times the right wing group of people who believe the wealthy few should rule us all are not going away – they just continue their push to turn America into a fascist state and will continue to do so. They’ll be fighting for individual 1 right up to November 3rd – which is why “we the people” need to flood the polls with our demand for change.

Obviously, in 2016 there were two candidates who were “under water” in regard to “favorabilities” along with Russian interference on individual 1’s side and then, of course, James Comey stepping into the situation in a way which TOTALLY favored individual 1. In fact, I was closely watching the polling at the time and will go to my grave believing Comey was the reason individual 1 “won” the election. I keep thinking, will it be Barr putting himself in the “fray” in late October next time in an attempt to save individual 1? Democrats must be prepared to dodge the “kitchen sink” because our IMPEACHED so-called president will be “throwing it” at them between now and November! Individual 1 will be focusing his campaign in a way to turn Biden’s “favorabilities” toward his own. Personally, I don’t think that’s possible. Stay tuned….

Final Thought: I’ve said from the beginning individual 1 is NOT going to be re-elected based on the economy (which he inherited from President Obama and which he is in the process of decimating). So, today it was announced there was an increase in jobs by about 2.5 MILLION jobs when the expectation was another loss of MILLIONS of jobs. Of course, the jobs situation among people of color remains bleak, but none of this, in my view should be relevant to what needs to happen on November 3rd. I’ve said several times the democrats are doing everything they can to help “save” the economy (for individual 1) with proposals such as the PPP program – which, in my view, may be the reason for this unexpected “jump” in job numbers. Employers were required to rehire workers via that program and, on this I’m not sure, there’s a question as to for how long they must be rehired. If they had to rehire the employees to turn their loans into grants – they may be able to turn around and furlough them again if things don’t pick up after a month or two.

Individual 1 will face re-election with a record I can’t imagine anyone would relish running on. And, the fact he’s virtually abandoned any response to the pandemic suggests he’s all in on the “herd immunity” theory and, we can already see the numbers of Americans infected with the virus going up. He’s likely to be going into “election day” with over 200 THOUSAND Americans perished due to the virus. Add that to his response to the protests of the MURDER/LYNCHING of George Floyd and I’m having a hard time with the idea there’s more of “we the people” who approve of that than those who, like me, can’t wait for the day when individual 1 is dealing with the aftermath of his four years at the helm of this nation – beginning with answering to the TWO felonies which were key to sending Michael Cohen to prison for three years. And, that will simply be the beginning of the issues he likely will be facing in various courtrooms.

I have to add: While I’m pleased that a number of “Generals” are coming out to “protest” the actions of individual 1 as he’s calling out the military to “dominate” the very Americans they take an oath to defend via the constitution I have to throw in my “two cents” in regard to John Kelly. While it was encouraging to hear the words he spoke yesterday I’m unable to forget the words he spoke when individual 1 called on him to defend his (individual 1’s) “deplorable” phone conversation our IMPEACHED so-called president had with the wife of the soldier killed in Niger a couple of years ago. While at the press podium of the “White House” Kelly exposed his own racist and misogynist issues as he LIED about the African American congresswoman from Florida in addition to LYING about President Obama. I’ve never heard an apology coming from Mr. Kelly so, personally, I’d much prefer to be listening to people like James Mattis, John Allen, Mike Mullen, Richard Myers, Martin Dempsey, William Perry, William McRaven, James Stavridis, Raymond Thomas, Mike Hayden, and Ash Carter – for starters.

Rick Wilson wrote a book titled “Everything (individual 1) touches dies” and, I would suggest, to those of us who remember Mr. Kelly’s performance at the podium that day, he lost his status as an honorable member of the military. I believe he’ll be remembered similar to Mark Esper and Mike Pompeo – two West Point graduates who have totally forgotten their pledge to the honor code. And, Mark Milley, who chose to walk across the street in D.C. to St John’s Church for individual 1’s “photo op” while holding a Bible (upside down) which he likely has no idea what’s in it other than knowing there’s “two Corinthians” – with Milley standing next to him in his battle fatigues was “deplorable.”

I don’t believe we’ll ever know the true affect of the Covid-19 pandemic on America because I’m convinced there are several republican governors who are LYING about the number of deaths in their jurisdictions and, likely, the number of people infected as well. These are places where “opening up” happened quickly (in some instances they never instigated “stay at home” orders) and, in my opinion to protect the politicians, the full extent of the disease in their states was/is being covered up. This “feeling” has been confirmed by various people in regard to Florida, Georgia, Iowa, and Texas (off the top of my head) – with instances like not reporting the deaths in nursing homes and/or meat packing plants – as if the people there don’t count. And, I don’t think those states are the only ones. Despite all that; we’re already seeing another “spike” – this one, I believe, resulting from the Memorial Day weekend. The results of these protests and Covid-19 will be determined in the next few weeks. Stay tuned………………

Here’s another thing: For all those who are listening to the generals coming out opposing individual 1 with surprise, they should read “Anonymous” which was written by a “Senior (individual 1) Administration Official” where you get over 200 pages of “evidence” corroborating what James Mattis and all the others are now saying. This should not be surprising to anyone. Individual 1 has a history of being affiliated with organized criminals and he appears to think that’s a “good look” as our IMPEACHED so-called president. Originally, I wasn’t going to buy and then read this book because I, like many others, thought the author should identify herself. (I used that pronoun because I had the sense all the way through the read that it was written by Kellyanne Conway – we’ll see) After reading it, I believe every American SHOULD read the book. It makes it very clear “we the people” MUST vote this thug out of office in November.

I’ve made reference on numerous occasions to the parallels between individual 1 and Hitler’s Nazi Germany – to me, starting with the use of the “Big Lie Theory” to push their propaganda – all over social media – and, to anyone who might listen. The reference I heard the other day of the Nazi’s strategy of “Divide and Conquer” fits individual 1 “to a tee.” (This reference came from James Mattis, former Secretary of Defense) And, individual 1 won’t change and as the polls look worse he’s going to act with more desperation with tactics most of us could NEVER even imagine coming from the “White House” of this nation. I’ve been saying for a couple years now it will be America’s young people going to the polls who will save this nation from this “deplorable” IMPEACHED so-called president. Originally, I thought, at some point, the republican party would come to its senses and they’d be the ones saying “ENOUGH.” Obviously, on that one, I was wrong – they’re going to go down with the ship. At this point I just hope it’s a thorough “thrashing” come November. The future of this nation is at stake.

I’m in my 70’s and had the great privilege to spend the last 20+ years of my working life as a sixth grade teacher in a “low socio-economic” Middle School where, at the time of my retirement, the percentage of students participating in the “Free and reduced” lunch (and breakfast) program exceeded 90%. It was a “tough” school in which to teach and it was filled with a staff of amazing public servants – from the teachers to the custodians – people who loved and cared for the students who came through the doors and, of course, it was full of some amazing students. As my career moved forward the diversity of our school increased. After I retired I was called back to “help” for a few more years until, at one point, I realized I was too old to relate appropriately with 12 – 13 year old students. However, I look back with thankfulness to virtually every day I was able to spend in the very classrooms I was a student back in 1959.

I mention this because my hope is many of my students are participating in the protests of the MURDER of George Floyd as most of them have graduated from high school by this point in time. I wasn’t the most sophisticated teacher – I had spent 7 years in a sawmill prior to becoming a teacher with the help of the federal government initiating the “timber workers re-location act” in regard to the “Spotted Owl” issue which closed down the mill for which I was working – but one thing I always emphasized to my students was the purpose of their education was to help them become “productive, responsible adults.” I never shared my personal opinions or beliefs regarding politics to my students, but I always emphasized to them the importance of them voting. That America is worth fighting for despite all her shortcomings and my hope was they would take their responsibility to vote seriously.

I’ve often wondered, since retiring, how many of my former students are “Dreamers” because many were/are first generation immigrants. My final days in the classroom included the day individual 1 was “elected.” (With, of course, 3 MILLION fewer votes than his opponent and the help of the Russians and James Comey) I was a substitute at that point in my career and had notified the administration it was “time” for me to call it “good.” I will never forget spending two of the final days of my career simply allowing the students to talk among themselves about what was happening. These were 7th graders who were not “good” students but who were extremely “street smart” – most of them Hispanic. The students were quizzing each other with questions like, “Are you legal?” The very day individual 1 “won” the election allowed these students to begin my education of the reality we were all to be facing in the next 4 years.

Clearly, I’ve read a lot of books since then and feel I now “get it,” but back then, right from the start, these 7th graders “got it.” These are kids who were rejecting school because of their collective experience in their previous 6 years and my “old school” ways wasn’t as effective as I would have liked – but, in teaching, it really does take a “village” and it’s critical for teachers and administrators to be on the same page which wasn’t clear to me at the time was the reality. School wasn’t working for these students and, to this day, I feel “school” had given up on them, but I still have hopes they “heard” some of what I was telling them – because, they were smart – as I said, “street smart” – and, I can picture them marching in these protests and if they remember anything from me I hope they are going to remember to VOTE!

These students knew individual 1 was an immoral, racist, xenophobic, and dishonest so-called president from day one. I was caught off guard because I was so focused on teaching them “pre-algebra” and frustrated by their unwillingness to “learn” when the reality they were really smart and they were the reason the changes which need to come from these protests are so incredibly important. These students were/have been living in “generational poverty” which I studied and tried to address – but, when I look back, I was just unable to really fully understand what was going on with them. These students were the children of fathers and mothers who get stopped by police at the whim of the officer. Often times thrown in jail at the whim of the officer. I realize MOST police officers are wonderfully awesome public servants, but the bad ones are like the “rotten apple” in the barrel – it affects the “whole bunch.”

My hope for the future of this nation is that our young people will fight for the “ideals” we all know are NOT being met. Those of us who weren’t as knowledgeable about individual 1 back in 2016 – we knew it was going to be bad, we just had no idea how bad it would be – have no excuses now. At this point it’s obvious “people of color” have been facing the brunt of virtually every crisis in this nation – income inequality, Covid-19, police racism, environmental crises, the economic crisis, etc. – and, hopefully, it will be all these people in the streets who become the leaders we need to turn the direction of the “ship of state.” That will begin the day individual 1 has officially been defeated at the polls. And, the turnout this November MUST be massive to offset the voter suppression tactics you can count on coming from the “White House” and his sycophants.

One thing I came to realize as I was understanding my time in the classroom was coming to an end was the use of technology – both what I wasn’t doing and what the students were doing. As the use of iPads increased and the use of pencils decreased I knew “it was time.” However, I tried to emphasize to my students the importance of checking multiple sources when “researching” and to, hopefully, avoid opinions created by someone else. I still believe in READING! This is why outlets like “Facebook” and “Twitter” (among others, many of which I know nothing about – I know next to nothing about Facebook and Twitter because I don’t participate), to me, are so dangerous. I consider, for example, Mark Zuckerberg as a contender for what Keith Olberman used to call, “The worst person in the world.”

Zuckerberg created “Facebook” – as I said, I don’t use it so I just know what I’ve picked up peripherally – but that all encourages me to NOT use it – which is a breeding ground for misinformation – or, in the words of individual 1 – “fake news.” Of course, this is the real “fake news” which was the result of the Russians’ cyberwarfare attacks on Western Democracies, including, obviously, the U.S.A. and the tactics of the Russians have been “adopted” by who knows how many others. Well, one entity we KNOW has “adopted” the Russian’s tactics is the republican party and the campaign of individual 1. They’re spending MILLIONS (obviously, why Zuckerberg encourages it) to spew political LIES to a targeted group of Americans which was sophisticatedly put together by Cambridge Analytica – at the urging of Steven Bannon and others affiliated with individual 1 – (Read; “Mindf*ck Cambridge Analytica and the plot to Break America”) – Cambridge Analytica is “gone” but the data they “mined” is still in the hands of individual 1’s campaign and they’re surely using it to continue their propaganda campaign. (I’ve always believed the Russians and Cambridge Analytica were working together)

So, to me, Zuckerberg is a danger to our republic. But, then there’s “Twitter.” Another “social media” platform which is being masterfully manipulated by people who, like our IMPEACHED so-called president have no “scruples.” I’ve written lately about reading “Rising out of Hatred” by Eli Saslow – what to me was a great read and considerably increased my knowledge of the white nationalist movement in this country. As I’ve said in previous posts, I knew it was there I just didn’t know to what extent. Well, it appears “Twitter” is another place where right wing thugs are using their lack of moral clarity to foment misinformation, conspiracy theories, and outright violence. To me, these “social media” platforms are a menace to our society and, obviously, there are many more than just “Facebook” and “Twitter.”

I bring up “Twitter” because I’ve now read reports about white nationalist groups creating fake “Twitter” accounts so that they can “pretend” to be members of “Antifa” in order to place the blame of the violence they were committing in the recent protests away from themselves. And, with our IMPEACHED so-called president suggesting “Antifa” should be listed as a terrorist organization – well, why not place the blame there. Obviously, between individual 1 and William Barr you have two ready and willing recipients of any accusations toward – what appears to me to be almost no group at all – “Antifa.” From what I’ve read, “Antifa” is a “loose” group of left wing individuals who oppose the right wing fascist movement in America – which would include the administration of individual 1. I guess it should be obvious why individual 1 is making outlandish claims they are a “terrorist organization.”

My hope is the WHITE people who brought claw hammers, clubs, baseball bats, incendiary devices and other “stuff” not necessary for peaceful protesting to the protests around the country – and, then instigated violence, destruction of property, and arson have been arrested and will be identified as to whether they’re from “Antifa” or one of the many white nationalist groups who were, online, calling members to the protest with words like “we should be locked and loaded.” Regardless of which side of the political “spectrum” the instigators fall on, they were simply opportunists who are part of the problem which was exposed by the MURDER/LYNCHING of George Floyd. And, I have to add here, EVERY person I saw who was caught on video smashing a window or breaking down a door was WHITE. They were instigating the looting. Where they came from, that remains to be seen – I hope it comes out in the “wash.”

I knew, back in 2016 (as my students were almost in a state of shock) that the next four years were not going to be “good.” I just didn’t realize how BAD it was going to be. I’ve written about the DAMAGE being caused by individual 1 and his sycophants, I just had no idea how BAD it was going to become. It took me about a year to start viewing him as a mafia boss and virtually every day, it seems, he compounds all of his corruption. He’s attempting to destroy our traditional institutions and, when all is said and done, I believe we will all thank our young Americans for being the ones to say ENOUGH already! We’ll be thanking those Americans who live in the African American dominated communities for saying “NO MORE!” There absolutely MUST by systemic change in America and, hopefully, the “seeds” were “planted” this past week. I believe George Floyd will “live” as a martyr leading the “change we can believe in.” At least I hope that is the case – as opposed to simply moving on to the next crisis created by “you know who.”

Joe Biden must now make a critical decision because, well, he’s older than me. He MUST pick a “woman of color” to be his Vice Presidential “running mate,” in my (sometimes less than) humble opinion. Personally, I really admire Stacy Abrams who I consider a brilliant young leader who hails from Georgia. I also really like Kamala Harris of California and several others. There is a likelihood whoever he chooses will finally break the “glass ceiling” which Hillary Clinton would have broken – save for the Russians and James Comey – and we need someone strong because this white nationalist movement I’ve been writing about “aint goin nowhere.” They “hang around” like a bad cough which just won’t go away.

If I could say anything to the young people marching in the streets it would be first to VOTE! (That should be obvious from my previous remarks) Then I would add that VOTING the republicans out of office is simply “step one.” Once they’re gone, that’s when the hard work starts – and, those who are then in control of our nation’s capital MUST understand what “we the people” expect and we MUST continue to push for the changes which will create a nation where there truly is “Equal Justice for all.” No one’s asking for “privilege.” In fact, in my mind, (and, I hope I’m correct) it’s just the opposite. What “we the people” are asking for is a nation where one group is NOT privileged at the expense of others. Do we (white people of which I’m one) owe “reparations” to those in the African American community? Well, to me, that makes sense. How that actually “looks” – I don’t know. I can say this, it really is time for “we the people” to be listening to and supporting each other! And, there are many brilliant Black leaders in our country who MUST be part of Joe Biden’s administration. As I’m writing this I’m thinking Native Americans? Latinx Americans? Just sayin………….

The issues in America are complicated and, on top of all that, there are multiple crises to deal with – crises which affect as all with no discrimination in any way – and, I’m certainly not someone who understands where the solutions lie – other than where we MUST start. And, that place, as you could probably guess, begins with sending individual 1, William Barr, and hopefully the likes of Moscow Mitch, Lindsey Graham (I wanted to say Leningrad Lindsey), and a long list of republican Senators to the dark pages of the History books. I’ve said this many times here; individual 1 will end up next to Benedict Arnold in our History books. I have to thank my former students – students who I feel I failed to understand at the time – for helping me understand the seriousness of the threat individual 1 is to the foundation of our republic!

Final Thought: I’ve said this repeatedly in various forms, if you only watched what is happening on Wall Street you’d have NO idea of all the crises “we the people” are dealing with. A global pandemic continues to intensify, there’s likely more than 20% unemployment, MILLIONS of Americans in the streets, Hurricanes and wildfires on the horizon, and an incompetent pseudo fascist in the “White House” and, yet, every day the “DOW” continues to rise. Does that mean the economy is in good shape? I think this disconnect is going to be one of the headlines before long. Congress can’t come up with money for “Main Street” but, Wall Street? Jerome Powell has emphasized there are plenty more “tools in the toolshed” to keep the market propped up. Well, I guess the reality is he’s propping up the businesses which are in major stress, and investors are speculating he’ll continue to do so – no matter how depressing (pun intended) things get! (This morning it was reported there was an increase in jobs which brought the unemployment rate to [still] over 13%. More on that another day)

Do you think they (republicans and ???) will prop up Medicare? Medicaid??? Social Security??? Food stamps??? Do you think they’ll find the money for the Postal Service, an American treasure??? Will they agree people should be able to vote from home because of the pandemic – to protect their health??? Do you think they’ll support the State and local governments who’ve been fighting the pandemic and losing massive amounts of revenue??? Do you think there’s money to INVEST in our infrastructure which is falling WAY behind what is necessary and what is happening in other places around the world??? I could go on, but with republicans – and those who have purchased them (and, any democrats who may be “guilty”) – it’s been about Wall Street and not Main Street since the days of Ronald Reagan (at least, according to my memory ;o) Most notably, after what we’ve experienced in the previous week and a half, do you think they’ll find the money to address the needs of the communities in America which have been marginalized for – well, forever??? VOTE!!!

And, when you start wondering how bad do these Wall Street millionaires want to protect their “turf?” Well, I haven’ heard any of them publicly supporting the protesters. When I log into “Yahoo Finance” to check out what is happening with the market and read the comment sections following articles I’ve read a significant group of people have, what comes across to me as, abhorrent views. It appears they would be part of the group of Americans who would, sadly, support the use of American troops being called to “dominate” our streets. I can’t even imagine that happening in this country which just compounds my concern regarding the DAMAGE being caused by our IMPEACHED so-called president. As I’ve said, those who support individual 1 aren’t simply going away. The division in America is real and I’m thankful for the voting booth. The “changes” “we the people” will be pushing for once the Senate has turned “blue” will benefit even these Wall Street mavens over the long term. However, I believe the “markets” have been artificially propped up and there’s a lot of “pain” on the horizon. Our economy is in “tatters” not to mention the pandemic is on the rise. Hold on……………….

There’s so much to talk about these days. I still haven’t recovered from my disgust watching individual 1 last night walking across the street from the “White House” for his “photo op” holding a Bible as if to – well, I can only speculate on his motive – what I’m sure of, it had nothing to do with what is written in that book he was holding up. Shortly before he did this offensive action he did something worse. There was a PEACEFUL group of people demonstrating their frustration with police brutality against African Americans – in this instance – specifically the MURDER/LYNCHING of George Floyd and they were “dispersed” by police on horseback firing tear gas into the group and shooting “flash bangs” (i guess that’s another word for fireworks) to push the crowd out of the area for our IMPEACHED so-called president’s ill-advised attempt to make himself look like he cares about the church he was standing in front – or, actually, who knows what he was thinking.

In his press briefing just prior to his Bible photo op he suggested he was declaring war on the American people who are in the streets protesting the MURDER of Mr. Floyd and, it appears to me, their understanding individual 1 has NO empathy for what they’re protesting. Individual 1 expressed his wish that governors and mayors around the country would call out the National Guard to “dominate” their streets. And, if they don’t do as he “orders” he’ll call in our military to “solve the problem.” What the hell does he mean by that? He had a military leader in his combat fatigues walking to the photo op along with (surprise surprise) William Barr – who I nominated for “The worst person in the world” in my previous post. As I said yesterday, the entire shenanigan was OBSCENE! Instead of walking across the street with him, his “advisers” SHOULD have been telling him to “shut up!”

So, today I got up, and as I usually do (I’m an old “creature of habit”), I checked out Yahoo finance where I keep track of what is happening with Wall Street. I don’t invest in stocks but, for some reason, I follow what is going on there – and, in today’s world, it’s coming across to me as almost as obscene as what individual 1 chooses to do on a daily basis. I’m beginning to think what we’re all seeing is how individual 1 has intimidated virtually every person involved in the running of our government – including Jerome Powell, the “head of the fed.” (I’m really not a poet) I mean, every day Wall Street is moving upward as the “news” would suggest things are almost beyond “dire.” I think, in the end, “we the people” will realize what a phony economic reality we’re all dealing with. The disconnect between Wall Street and Main Street is, to me, almost as obscene as individual 1 holding up that Bible apparently as a “dog whistle” to his base.

Oh yes, what have we heard from the Senate republicans who had the opportunity to remove individual 1 in the IMPEACHMENT trial – well, as usual, we’ve heard NOTHING. These are the same republicans I’ve listened to over the years suggesting they believe in “free markets.” Of course, it didn’t take me reading more than a book or two to realize there is no such thing as “free markets.” The markets are free to those who can create regulations which work in their interests but, in my lifetime, they’ve NEVER been unregulated – and, I might add, I believe they SHOULD be regulated, that should be obvious to anyone paying attention these days. Clearly republicans have been at the front of the line with their hands out as the government is handing out TRILLIONS due to the Covid-19 pandemic – which is now in the background as cases of infections are increasing.

Sadly, my guess is that individual 1 is happy the protests have taken the focus off of the pandemic which, as I said, is not only continuing to rage, it is increasing in intensity – which would be expected from the people who gathered in large groups over Memorial Day weekend and now all the HUGE groups of protesters across the country. The next couple of weeks should be very interesting, to say the least. Something I never expected happened today, by the way, which was George Will, of all people, writing an Op-Ed in the Washington Post which agreed with the crux of what I’ve been writing about for the past many years. He said, “It’s time for individual 1 and his republican sycophants (meaning republican senators) to be voted out of office. Of course, Will is a conservative who was, from my perspective, a mentor to republicans.

Republicans in Congress are showing themselves to be as gutless as the IMPEACHED so-called president they continue to support. Some are more disgusting than others, to me, but the bottom line is I really hope “we the people” stand up and cleanse the party of as many as we can. And, as I’ve said, voting them out is not good enough – it’s just the beginning of what needs to happen and they need to be voted out simply because they continue to OBSTRUCT virtually any progressive legislation aimed at “The least of these” (which individual 1 would understand if he’d ever done anything more than hold that Bible up for the picture – a photo which very well could be the defining moment in his reign for reasons OPPOSITE than what he intended – actually, there was a photo of his walk to the church which included all his sycophants – that may end up being the real defining photograph)

There are so many issues which need to be addressed in this nation which have been stymied over the past few years, but the reality is until individual 1 and his republican sycophants are removed from office NOTHING is likely to happen. At this moment in time, I believe, realistically, getting the HEROES Act passed is imperative and you can count on all those republicans who have said NOTHING about what individual 1 did yesterday (Monday June 1, a day which will stand in infamy) being the problem. The bottom line in America is, over the past 40+ years our nation has created a “haves” and “have nots” society – and, I can guarantee you, those in the “haves” category who are the donors to the republicans will not give up their privilege without a fight. And, of course, even should Elizabeth Warren succeed in her idea of a “wealth tax” – the top “1%” will still be the top “1%.”

The need for funding to our “State and Local governments” is more imperative than ever after all these protests. The fact republicans are even stalling their obligation to consider the HEROES Act is enough to cause “we the people” to vote them out of office. If our police officers, fire fighters, hospital personnel, etc. aren’t worth supporting at this point in time we are at a sad point in our history. Well, as I was typing those words, I realized, regardless, we’re at a sad place in our history. However, we can’t allow these “essential workers” to be furloughed because of the inaction of the Senate. We can’t allow republicans to destroy the Post Offices around the country. And, we MUST protect our right to vote in what is likely to be a still raging pandemic come November.

I’ll end this by saying the solution to America’s problems is to listen to her young people – the people who are filling our streets with their passionate protests to the “status quo” – which is not only killing more people of color – but the list of “issues” (grievances) is a long one and won’t be solved by old people like me. That is the positive I’m seeing out of these protests. I keep hearing leaders shout out the key word – VOTE! I’ve been lamenting that the key to having a government which works toward our ideals requires the participation of our Young people. As I looked at all the crowds marching in the streets, all I could think of was register to VOTE! That’s where the “change” starts! I’m optimistic by nature, I remain hopeful.

I believe it’s my Christian faith which is the foundation of that optimism. I’m always questioning God because of my lack of ability to understand so many things. But, ultimately, I believe we’ll understand why individual 1 became president and my hope is that the “backlash” to his pseudo dictatorship will be a return to leaders who actually understand what’s in that book he was holding up for his photo shoot – and, I’m not talking about the Evangelicals who’ve made the “deal with the devil” as they’ve supported his fascist behavior for the past 3+ years. I’m talking about those who know the Beatitudes, who understand our obligation “to the least of these,” etc. “We the people” are facing multiple crises which are going to require a sense of togetherness and a lot of hard work to overcome, but I believe it’s an opportunity to turn America closer to those ideals liberals have been pushing for since the 19th Century. And, as we’re seeing during all these protests one of the key parts of any solution will be the ingraining of “Black Lives Matter” into our public psyche. Stay tuned……………

Final Thought: Individual 1 was “elected” thanks to the work of Vladimir Putin whose Russian surreptitious cyber warriors were busy from the early parts of the campaign to the deciding “victory” – to levels we’ll never know the true effect and, since then, we’ve seen an IMPEACHED so-called president “cuddling” up to Putin in almost unbelievable ways (ie Helsinki) and many have openly wondered what the Russians “have on him.” Additionally, he’s complemented the Philippines’ Duterte for murdering journalists and his own citizens, he’s cozied up to Erdogan of Turkey and MBS of Saudi Arabia – circumventing Congress to send MBS weapons reminding me of the Iran/Contra scandal, And, maybe worst of all, he’s having a “love affair” with Kim Jong un of North Korea while Kim is making him look even more the FOOL than what is obvious.

All of this is despicable and I would remind anyone who still believes they are a “republican” to picture in their mind what their reaction would be had I been just talking about President Obama. Our IMPEACHED so-called president spent the Viet Nam years fighting for deferments to prevent him from serving his country including LYING about “bone spurs” and he spent the last few days, as Americans all across the country are protesting ANOTHER Black American LYNCHED by the police cowering in one of the “White House” bunkers well under the surface of the ground – afraid of what, I do not know. And then, apparently in another futile attempt to make himself look “tough” he threatens to “sick” America’s military might on, well, brace yourself, America! Which, of course, is legally questionable – but that, of course, matters not to him.

He has spent the year + since democrats took over control of the House of Representatives refusing to follow the laws, refusing to produce subpoenaed documents, refusing to allow employees to answer subpoenas intended to elicit testimony in search of truth in varying aspects of our government – in the constitutionally guaranteed role of Congress – all while republicans have stood silent. Shamefully, silent! And, then when protesters, after a series of African Americans are brutally MURDERED simply for being Black, erupt violently to police aggression our IMPEACHED so-called president wants to “dominate” the protesters via America’s military. Sad!

To top it all off by standing in front of the “church of the presidents” holding a Bible he has know idea what is written in it for a photo op after BLASTING peaceful protesters with tear gas and rubber bullets and “flash bangs” to clear the area for the photo is, well, I want to say “as low as you can go,” but I KNOW he’ll find a way to even go lower than that! To all you adults who support this thug if you’re wondering why your children are walking away from Christianity, well, your answer was standing in front of that church holding that Bible as if – well, again, all I can think of is that it was the crudest, most offensive, form of “dog whistle.” Shame on him and on anyone who’s falling for his shtick!

It’s late, I’m tired, so my apologies for all the phoo pahs!

Minnesota: This morning I saw a clip of “The worst person in the world” (in the words of Keith Olberman), as William Barr was suggesting the violence caused in the protests to the MURDER of George Floyd resulted from a group (my friend who is an individual 1 supporter is constantly referring to) labeled “Antifa” (anti Fascists). At the same time the leaders of Minnesota were suggesting those who were coming into the state and instigating the violence were “white nationalists.” Of course, Barr was acting as the head sycophant for individual 1 who was “tweeting” threats to bring in the military – proving our IMPEACHED so-called president is impaired. I don’t believe our “military” is intended to be used against our own people, in fact I believe our constitution prevents it (Isn’t that why we have the “National Guard?”).

I did a bit of searching on the internet as I wondered who might be moving into Minneapolis to instigate the rioting, looting, and arson attacks on the very community which is suffering from the issues leading to the MURDER in broad daylight – the cop was staring into the phone of the young girl video taping him as he was MURDERING Mr. Floyd with what appeared to be no emotion, he had his hand in his pocket while his knee was suffocating Mr. Floyd via his neck – I was trying to figure out who might be joining the protests with the idea of causing trouble. Obviously, African Americans are (understandably) very ANGRY and they’ve had “enough!” Which makes the instigators, whoever they are, even more obscene, in my view – like leeches simply looking for an opportunity to “suck the blood” out of a community.

The reality is there are a lot of ANGRY members of the African American communities around the country because the MURDER of Mr. Floyd is not a one off. We’ve been listening to African Americans as long as I can remember (I was born in the 1940’s) complaining of being harassed by police simply because they are Black Americans. (“listening” to the ones who haven’t been MURDERED) Obviously, racism is real in this country – I’ve been writing about this for years (essentially, since I started putting my thoughts in this blog – or whatever it is). I must admit to being uninformed to the degree of the white nationalist movement in this country. I remember individual 1 leading the so-called “birther” movement after “we the people” voted a person of color into the “White House.” But I was naive enough to think the election of a President who is a direct descendant of a Kenyan meant things were getting better. Of course, that didn’t change the beliefs of any of the white nationalists – just intensified their views.

Recently, I finished reading “Rising out of Hatred” by Eli Saslow which is the story of Derek Black’s “journey” from being the heir apparent of the white nationalist movement to realizing the damage his HATE was doing to untold numbers of people. It’s a great book, by the way – extremely well written and, to me, inspirational. A diverse group of students, one in particular, included Black in various social gatherings despite their disdain for his core beliefs. They were able to see, outside of the beliefs he was raised with, he was/is a brilliant scholar, kind person, and someone who didn’t really understand the ramifications of his belief system. His father operates (still does) the website “Stormfront” along with his “mentor” David Duke. Both Black’s father and Duke have been, at times, the “Grand Wizard” of the KKK.

My point here is, after reading this book I started a more involved “content” in my web experience and I’m discovering how involved the white nationalist movement actually is. When I was still teaching I received (regularly) the newsletter of the Southern Poverty Law Center ( the “SPLC” – I kept up a yearly subscription to help support them while I was still teaching), a group which the people at Stormfront despise – because, they are busy identifying hate groups around America. After Obama’s election I remember them exposing the increase in “cells” of white nationalists all across the nation and it was alarming. I just didn’t take the time to investigate – shame on me! However, I knew (somewhat) about these cells from, of all people, Chuck Norris who was the first I listened to suggesting “we need to take back our country” in regard to Obama’s election.

So, along comes individual 1 leading the “birther movement” and deciding to run for president – with most “establishment” republicans seeing him as some kind of “kook” in the words of Lindsey Graham. I don’t believe many understood where his support was coming from and, I believe, that misunderstanding continues to this day. (Although, there’s obviously a group of republicans, Graham at the front of the list, who are interested in keeping their jobs over any principles they may want to project – to me, Graham is the most pathetic of all the republicans who’ve willingly become sycophants) Of course, individual 1 is far from the first RACIST to be elected to the “White House” and to suggest he “converted” his “tea party” republican “faithful” is absurd on its face. If you witnessed the “tea party” reaction to President Obama’s election you know it was founded on racism and the republican party welcomed the “tea party” caucus with open arms.

What I’m getting at here is that individual 1 had a very strong base of various factions of the white nationalist movement “loyally on board” right from the start of his campaign and the republicans who now have a bad case of “lockjaw” in regard to the continued scandalous behavior of our IMPEACHED so-called president have pretty much made their “deal with the devil.” It appears to me, as an aside, that Mitt Romney is the ONLY republican who will emerge from individual 1’s reign with any sense of honor. So, how does all this relate to Minnesota’s riots and William Barr suggesting the “instigators” are “Antifa” (with, of course, NO evidence)? Sadly, the DAMAGE I’m always writing about coming from individual 1’s administration seems to have no bounds. From what I’ve read and what I’ve heard from people with inside connections to the FBI this is just “more of the same” coming from Barr and individual 1 – scandalous behavior.

Of course, just as I am “uneducated” to a (pretty high) degree on the white nationalist/supremacist movement so am I on the group identified as “Antifa.” As I said in a previous post I, personally, am “Anti Fascist” – my father was part of the Army in the 1940’s as America fought to stop Fascists from over-running Europe, Asia, and presumably North and South America. The first I heard of “Antifa” was when they were identified as the “counter protesters” to the neo-Nazi’s who marched on Charlottesville carrying Tiki Torches, wearing swastikas, carrying Nazi and/or Confederate flags while chanting “Jews will not replace us.” It was at that rally, of course, when a neo-Nazi drove his car into a group of counter-protesters “Antifa?” killing a young woman and injuring over 20 others. Of course, individual 1 was obligated to defend the neo-Nazi’s because, well, they’re a much larger part of his “base” than most of us realize.

The question, to me, becomes why all of a sudden is William Barr or individual 1 threatening to list “Antifa” as a terrorist organization? Well, the obvious answer, to me, is they apparently show up to protest at individual 1’s rallies. Another interesting “fact” I found as I was reading about “Antifa” was The “Web Brigades” – a Russian “Troll Farm” has been lobbying for “Antifa” to be listed as a terrorist organization. Is this coincidental? Here’s the “deal” for me – I hope the people who matriculated to the various protests arising from the LYNCHING of George Floyd and then instigated the violence, looting and arson are identified and prosecuted, no matter their affiliation – just as I agree all four of the police officers involved in Floyd’s MURDER need to face accountability. What I saw on the video was horrific – what African Americans are trying to get across to “we the people” is this has been going on for, well, FOREVER! Cameras are a recent phenomenon.

I’m not pre-supposing anything about who the “instigators” were – I’m just writing about what I was able to find or what I observed. From the “observed” point of view, time after time, I saw young white men with HAMMERS walking the streets of Minneapolis (and, other cities) smashing windows and throwing “Molotov cocktails” into businesses and into one of the police precincts. It’s hard for me to envision they were there because of their grief toward Mr. Floyd’s MURDER. I hope as many of them as possible will be apprehended and prosecuted for the damage they’ve caused to the various communities around the country. Individual 1 is using this unrest to go after “Antifa” which, from what I can tell, isn’t anything more than a bunch of left wing radicals who are organized via Facebook and other social media “tools.” This, as opposed to the white nationalists who appear to be a much larger segment of the population and much more organized.

I had never logged into “Stormfront.com” until I read “Rising out of Hatred” and it’s a large, well organized, website/platform. If you want to check it out click HERE. Now I’ve logged in twice, but I’ve yet to “peruse” the site and likely never will. But, it is a significant place for what they call themselves as the “white minority” and, I believe, they are connected to a significant number of the “cells” referred to by the SPLC and Chuck Norris as mentioned above. While I was reading about Mr. Black I didn’t get the sense they were promoting any kind of violent attack on government – in fact, almost the opposite – call me naive, but I sensed they feel individual 1 is their “ticket” into “mainstream” American politics. (Despite knowing both Black and Duke were part of the KKK’s leadership) However, subsequently, I’ve been reading about other white nationalist/far right wing groups like “Patriot Prayer,” “The Proud Boys,” and various groups tagging themselves with versions of the moniker “Boogaloo” who openly are trying to instigate a racial “civil war.”

Additionally, as the protest of Mr. Floyd’s murder began to materialize I managed to find several different websites where members of these right wing groups were saying the protests were a “call to action.” Leaders were suggesting they be “locked and loaded” as their members dispersed to different protests around the country. To me, that would suggest it’s more likely these white nationalist cells who’ve been looking for opportunities to create chaos and instigate racial violence were the primary culprits in what took place in Minneapolis, Louisville, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, Oregon, and many more places around the country. The fact I was unable to find a “call to action” from anyone associated with “Antifa” doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. My point is, I hope whoever the instigators were would be identified and prosecuted.

One person I listened to who has direct connection inside the FBI suggested their intelligence was indicating the “boogaloo bois” were on the move with the intention of instigating the rioting which ultimately took place. (May very will be continuing) The suggestion was “cell phone tracing” – which has been used in the Covid-19 pandemic – may very well help the authorities to identify who was matriculating where. I’m guessing if that is actually true and the troublemakers are identified by their phones that will generate even more anti-government sentiment. Although, I’m sure, sophisticated thugs know how to shield themselves from being followed digitally. Personally, that’s “above my pay grade.” I have to add, I’ve witnessed numerous people who came to the protests with hammers and they are the ones breaking the windows, usually after dark. EVERY one of them, that I have seen via the video cameras of the news organizations, has been white. Hopefully, many have been arrested and “we the people” will be able to understand where the perpetrators have come from.

I don’t believe individual 1 has any more of an idea who was instigating the violence than I do, but he’s using this tragedy to further another item on his “bucket list” and that is to label “Antifa” a terrorist organization. What’s interesting about that, to me, is I’m not sure it’s even an organization – anything more than another “Facebook group.” From what I can tell, there’s no designated leader, no manifesto – or whatever you would call a set of principles – and, it appears, there are a significant variance in the degrees of beliefs between the different people who identify with the movement. I guess what I’m saying, it seems to be more a “movement” than an organization. Whatever – another deflection strategy coming from the “White House.”

Above I referred to William Barr as “The worst person in the world.” If you remember when Keith Olberman was on MSNBC he had a segment of that title on his show every night – which I always found quite interesting (I miss Olberman) – and, I almost feel Barr is more dangerous than individual 1 because he’s more “flying under the radar.” His actual title is “Attorney General” – but his role is of chief sycophant to our IMPEACHED so-called president. He, in fact, prevented the FIRST impeachment which SHOULD have taken place when he cut off Mueller’s report “at the knees” with his disingenuous four page “summary” where he declared individual 1 “not guilty” of OBSTRUCTION of Justice – which CLEARLY was NOT the “gist” of the report. In fact, quite the opposite. Mueller WANTED Congress to investigate and act on whether or not they considered the OBSTRUCTION impeachable behavior. (Which, it certainly would have been in the eyes of republicans had a democratic president committed such vile behavior against our rule of law – we’re seeing the results of that example in the streets of our cities right now)

Reports are that Barr is continuing to placate individual 1 via instigating “investigations” into his political opponents – just as you would expect in some third world nation ruled by a “tin pot dictator.” He’s the lead sycophant in a long line of republicans who, for some strange reason, continue to STAIN their own reputations in their feeble attempts to avoid getting one of individual 1’s NASTY tweets. At this point, from the standpoint of individual 1’s obsession with somehow “winning” the November election, I don’t think there’s much he can do other than unforeseen CHEATING – which, I have to say, would NOT surprise me AND Barr will certainly be helping in that regard – but, it seems, virtually everything he/they do is the opposite of what they should do – if their goal is to gain voter support. And, it’s as if Barr is now individual 1’s “puppet.” They are destroying our nation – their actions are pathetic and the results of their actions are depressing – and that’s aside from all the rioting going on right now.

As I said above, labeling “Antifa” a terrorist organization is simply another act of deflection by individual 1. I’ll end this on the stray thought which just went through my head. Sadly, after individual 1 is voted out of office, I do not expect ONE republican (with the possible exception of Mitt Romney) to attempt to work with democrats – ie Joe Biden and whoever he chooses as a running mate – to solve all these significant problems. It’s just not in their “DNA” – especially if Moscow Mitch manages to somehow win re-election – shame on Kentucky should that happen. This is why it is of paramount importance to vote out republicans “across the board.” While this is a sad time in America my prayer is, as we look back “down the road,” we look upon it as a turning point which has revived what Abraham Lincoln called our “better angels.”

Final Thought: Earlier I suggested everything individual 1 does is the OPPOSITE of what he should do if he had any idea of what it means to be the president of the United States – even if you’re the IMPEACHED president of the United States. Today he decided to suggest he’s going to do some kind of military takeover of our country. Is this a precursor to November? Is this why he doesn’t want people voting by mail. I have to say I was offended twice by his actions today (what else is new?); First, he ordered the PEACEFUL protesters removed from the streets around the “White House” by police officers riding horses and shooting canisters of tear gas into the crowd of protesters who were doing NOTHING wrong and were not violating the curfew which had been implemented in Washington DC.

Apparently, he did this so he could do the second – and maybe most, to me – offensive he did – which was to walk across the street from the “White House” to hold a photo op at a church where he was holding up a Bible. Now, as I’ve said here many times, I’m a (liberal, I guess) Christian and seeing individual 1 holding up a Bible in a photo op is almost as ugly as it gets for me. There’s no question in my mind his “connection” to Christianity is that Evangelical Christians seem to support him no matter what. He’s apparently trying to hold together his so-called “base” with an action which, to me, was obscene. As I’ve said, I have found NO evidence that he’s someone who EVER goes to church. Apparently, the church was vandalized in the protests – but, the reality is he is incapable of finding an HONEST way to express anything.

I haven’t been watching the protests day and night, but I did hear that individual 1, along with his bone spurs, spent the last couple days in the “White House” bunker. I don’t find this man to have a “lick” of courage – he’s an incredible bloviator who would like “we the people” to think he’s “tough” – when he comes across to me as a complete coward. Not only in times like this but in virtually everything he does. He doesn’t even have the guts to fire people to their faces – he leaves it to others or to his “twitter” finger. This man is showing himself to be more pathetic by the day and he has no clue how to deal with what “we the people” are facing in the LAST few months of his administration. Whether it be Covid-19, Climate Change – ie Hurricanes and wild fires which are likely to be more intense, the economic depression he’s leading us into, or all this unrest in our cities. He’s in over his head and he’ll NEVER admit this. He has no idea what to do and “we the people” can’t trust republicans to work to help democrats attempt to solve these problems – so, it’s up to us – meaning “we the people” to vote them all out in November.

And, that’s just the beginning. If democrats think winning in November is their challenge, they shouldn’t be running for office. “We the people” need to DEMAND that there will be no “business as usual” – and the rebuilding of our nation MUST start from the “bottom up” – meaning, this idea shareholders are more important than workers must change – universal health insurance is a MUST – I’ve got a long list of issues which I believe are imperative and you can find them in the archive – but, the protesters are absolutely correct – until we’ve corrected the issues they’re dealing with we haven’t solved anything. The challenges are immense and the solution requires action by “we the people” and leaders capable of listening.

I keep thinking of a photo I saw the other day where the cop had his knee on George Floyd’s neck and, in another part of the photo a picture of Colin Kaepernick taking a knee prior to a football game in 2016. When I listened to individual 1 refer to the football players who were taking a knee as “sons of bitches” and then realized the owners of the football teams were, essentially, with him – well that’s when I lost interest in NFL football. Kaepernick has been black balled and we now understand everyone would be better off had EVERYONE listened to him and the other players supporting his protest. Kaepernick gave up his career due to his belief in the critical importance of his “message” – to me, that’s courage and integrity. When individual 1 called him a “son of a bitch” it was just one more in a long line of his cowardly actions!

Today I spent a few minutes watching individual 1 demeaning our electoral process in regard to CHEATING relating to November’s election as he was making his case against voting by mail. I’m going to hurt my neck one of these days as I’m shaking my head while listening to this DEPLORABLE person. He’s back to his suggestion – made much earlier this go round compared to 2016 – the election is going to be “rigged.” Apparently, if he’s unable to “rig” the election – keep in mind, that’s how he got IMPEACHED – trying to “rig” the election – apparently then, well, it’s bad. Of course, voting by mail is NOT a problem and there’s NO evidence of fraud, but as he looks at the polls I believe he’s ginning up all the “very fine people” who support him in case they need to hit the streets in November.

I can guarantee you he’s NOT going to be a “good LOSER.” The ultimate bad thought in his mind is HIM being the LOSER in the election. It’s already going to be a “rigged” election from his point of view – we’re going to get tired of listening to this – I’ll call it “pre-BLAMING” – I don’t think that’s a word, but I’m doing the best I can under the circumstances. It’s five months until the election but we’re already hearing the “rigged” accusation! Yikes! And, this will continue no matter how MANY crises “we the people” are facing. Right now, the pandemic seems to be “flying under the radar” despite the FACT the “numbers” are going up (thanks to all the get togethers over Memorial Day weekend) because of ANOTHER African American being MURDERED by a white police officer. I’m sure individual 1 will again say, “I take no responsibility.”

So, let’s take a closer look at the issues “we the people” are facing right now, as I’m writing this. Of course, the novel coronavirus is on everyone’s mind (closing in on 110,000 Americans dead “officially” and likely many more – from the disease caused by coronavirus – Covid-19) and the news about the pandemic was suffocating the airwaves until George Floyd was MURDERED by Minneapolis police – while being videotaped from multiple angles. The virus had further exposed the disparity between the “haves” and “have nots” in America – especially those in the “Black and Brown” communities when Mr. Floyd was MURDERED for all to see.

Of course, now the “news” is focused on the reactions of the “Black” communities around the country and those who support them – and, by the way, from what I could tell there are many white Americans in the protests – which makes me feel just a bit better on the one hand and uneasy on the other. Of course, individual 1 had to chime in, as usual speaking out of both sides of his mouth – first giving his “condolences” to the Floyd family – and, of course, he couldn’t help himself as he added to his “tweet” something like “when the looting starts the shooting starts.” I guess that will make some people feel better although those are the same words once used by George Wallace. I woke up last night thinking the attack on the various businesses very well could be coming from people outside of Minneapolis. Could it be the white nationalists who are focused on starting a racial “civil war?” We’ll see……………..

When I hear all the stories about the racist behavior of the Minneapolis police department over the years I can see why there is so much anger. I’ve never had a family member MURDERED by police. I’ve never felt I was the target of police because I was out walking on the street or driving my car down the road. What happened in this instance was CRIMINAL behavior, just as what happened to Breonna Taylor was CRIMINAL, just as what happened to Ahmaud Arbery was CRIMINAL – three MORE cases of innocent BLACK Americans MURDERED at the hands of police or faux police (racists) – a list of tragedies which just keeps going on and on and on………………….

So, from the stand point of individual 1, I suppose, all the attention on the MURDER of Mr. Floyd takes the focus off of his ineptitude in regard to the Covid-19 pandemic while he’s seemingly “betting” his re-election on re-opening the economy “come what may.” Well, of course, that “flies in the face” of the recommendation coming from MOST scientists who are cautioning “we the people” that we’re not through the “first wave” so worrying about the “second wave” is premature. To me, it would make a lot of sense for our federal government leading a coordinated response to this pandemic but, obviously, that “aint happenin” so we should be bracing ourselves for what is on the horizon. I’m guessing any chance for the baseball season to resume may have gone out the window with all these gatherings over Memorial Day weekend which could serve as massive “super spreaders.” As I’ve said, the next two weeks will determine if that’s true.

If you look at the Kinsa “Health weather map” and consider their accuracy in predicting outbreaks of “flu like” illnesses, it doesn’t look good for Florida or Arizona – two of the places MLB, I believe, have been thinking would work to open the season and, based on my previous “reporting” (OK, my guessing) two of the places where republican governors have been LYING about Covid-19 and how it’s affecting their states. I believe, for example, Ron DeSantis has “allegedly” ordered people to LIE about the cause of death in numerous cases in Florida – to make himself look better for his ineptitude – similar to our IMPEACHED so-called president.

Well, now I believe DeSantis and individual 1 are going to be having something else “disaster” wise to deal with. Reports are that this year’s hurricane season is going to be “more active” than normal. Which could be more horrible than normal under these circumstances. I hope this isn’t true, but, just in case, I do hope preparations are being made, just in case. The other issue which I heard about the other day, which was no surprise to me, sadly, was the danger of the “wild fire season” this year. The drought (Climate Change anyone?) continues in the West and, essentially, there could be three disasters going on at once in America. I have to say I’m not one to feel comfort knowing it’s individual 1 at the helm as this all is on the horizon.

I’m convinced the ONLY thing on the horizon for him, as I’ve said numerous times, is trying to find a way to suppress enough votes to allow himself to “win” in November. I pray for our country on a regular basis and I must admit (no surprise to anyone who’s been here before) my main prayer is that “we the people” end this nightmare which is the individual 1 administration in November. I’m not sure how much incompetence Americans need to see all at once, but this summer could put incompetence by an American (so-called) president in record territory. Of course, the challenge for Joe Biden goes way beyond pointing out the obvious DAMAGE which is being inflicted on America by our IMPEACHED so-called president and his sycophants – he MUST put forth a plan.

It is up to Biden to choose a Vice Presidential running mate who will inspire Americans to vote in large numbers in this upcoming election. It will be up to Biden to recognize he’s an OLD “codger” (like me) and we’re actually in the 21st Century and he MUST be making proposals which will effectively deal with ALL these crises – proposals much more “progressive” than he’s previously suggested. Just a reminder of what lies ahead; Covid-19, Climate Change, income inequality (which includes the issues of health and issues of police killing African Americans and the issues of generational poverty among others), and the issue of how to rebuild “Main Street” as it appears “we the people” are headed into an economic depression. I had NO confidence in individual 1’s ability to deal with ONE crisis, let alone four, all happening at the same time. And, you thought Bush/Cheney left Obama/Biden a mess?

I read, yesterday, how Jerome Powell (and the Fed) have now “pumped” $7.1 TRILLION into Wall Street to help stabilize it in the face of what is likely to be unemployment numbers closing in on 25% – the worst since the Great Depression. I’m not sure how many people actually have confidence in individual 1 and Moscow Mitch to know what to do to create a recovery from this disaster but I do believe the reality they can’t find the money to fund our “first responders” but can come up with over $7 TRILLION for Wall Street in a matter of days – and then call additional funding for “Main Street” “Dead on Arrival” – pretty much “says it all.” I believe more and more Americans are going to see the incredible hypocrisy in that.

I’ve been listening to republicans complaining about the generous benefits which have been included in the unemployment benefits for people who very well may not get their jobs back. People like Lindsey Graham see putting a few extra dollars into the pockets of “the least of these” as if it might encourage some of them to stop seeking work. I’m having trouble putting the frustration of my gut into words right now. Of course, if you’ve been watching the news the past few days it’s not focused on the pandemic or the HEROES Act both which are so important at this point in time, but the focus is on the reaction to the MURDER of George Floyd.

The protests have spread across the country into virtually every major city. And, as I suggested above, I feel many of the people creating the damage to property and ginning up the violence are “outsiders” who are using these protests to spur on what they hope will be some kind of “civil war.” I listened to the mayor of St. Paul Minnesota this morning and they arrested around 20 protesters last night and NONE (later revised to say some were from out of the area) of them were from Minneapolis/St. Paul – they were ALL from out of state. My guess is not all of them were there to “protest” the MURDER of Mr. Floyd. Time will tell – I listened to the Attorney General of Minnesota this morning and they are attempting to identify the people who were starting the fires, breaking the windows, and encouraging the looting. Apparently, using cell phone “data mining” they can identify people coming from out of state into the protests. Stay tuned……………….

Final Thought: Individual 1 will be doing everything he can to use this crisis in Minnesota and around the country to twist it into some kind of campaign slogan. I don’t think there is anything which can happen in America right now that will cause him to take his eye off of November’s election. He was unable to figure out an organized federal response to Covid-19 which was his best bet to look “presidential” but was unable to “rise to the occasion” and ceded responsibility to the 50 governors, city mayors, etc. It will be interesting to see how he responds to racial unrest all across the country when, in reality, he’s been ginning racial division up since the day he announced his candidacy back in 2015. (In fact, the public knowledge of his history of racism goes back to the 1980’s) I’ll say it once more; As the polls grow bleaker and bleaker for our IMPEACHED so-called president he’ll be claiming the election is “rigged” almost daily – and, this is before the election has actually happened.

I don’t believe most Americans understand individual 1 is attempting to destroy the Postal System and trying to prevent Americans from being able to vote from home during a time when voting in person could put their health at danger. Reports are that 70 people who showed up to vote in Wisconsin’s primary election (there was a right wing judge on the ballot – who LOST) a month or two ago contracted the Covid-19 disease. It was entirely unnecessary and I sincerely hope none of the 70 ended up dying from voting. I do have to say, those people were inspirational to me – watching them stand in line for hours, part of the time during a rain shower, determined to cast their ballots despite attempts by the republican legislature and right wing Supreme Court to discourage them.

Stay tuned…….. I’m going to write more about who may have been the outsiders coming in to Minnesota to instigate violence – whether it was “Antifa” or “white nationalists” it is imperative “we the people” don’t get confused about the real problem. And, that’s why I suggested Joe Biden MUST address the systemic problems we face – which are serious and numerous – and not simply because we need to get rid of individual 1 and what he represents – which is true. I do have to add; yesterday when I took to the “web” to find out who was instigating the violence I found NUMEROUS instances of people who seemed to be in a group identified with the moniker “Boogaloo” in varying degrees – these groups seem to be committed to instigating a “race war” in America. They were white nationalist organizations and they were calling on their “bois” to head to Minneapolis with the purpose of instigating trouble. There were several white nationalist/supremacist groups calling their members to “action.” And, they were encouraging their members to show up armed.

The ONLY reference I found to “Antifa” came from individual 1 and websites affiliated with individual 1 including, surprise, white nationalist type groups. I’ll keep looking. All I found regarding “Antifa,” so far, was they show up protesting at individual 1’s rallies and counter protesting at white nationalist rallies like the one which took place in Charlottesville. I will try to educate myself – although I must admit I’m NO fan of fascism – not sure if that makes me an “anti Fascist.” We certainly know which side individual 1 falls on.

In all this, “We the people” MUST not lose our focus that goal number one, if we want any progress in dealing with the issues which have caused the people in the area where George Floyd lived to hit the streets, is to get rid of individual 1 – vote him into the history books. We MUST vote a bunch of his republican sycophants in the Senate into the history books with him. Moscow Mitch has been blocking progress which people like me favor for longer than since the day President Obama took the oath of office. Obviously, racism is the original “sin” of America and we will likely never totally expunge it from our midst, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be working to that end – and, having a racist as our IMPEACHED so-called president is DEFINITELY not the solution!

OK, I have to say this: I looked at the images of all the protests around the country and, obviously, people are not concerned about the coronavirus as they head to a protest. Selfishly, I really want the virus to subside – at least for the summer – and, based on what I saw and what I’ve heard from distinguished scientists, I’m concerned for what we might see in the next two to four weeks as far as a potential spike in cases once all these protests subside. Yikes!

I’ve pointed out numerous times here – where I spend MOST of my time and energy trying to expose individual 1’s incompetence and CORRUPTION – that the ONE thing he’s REALLY good at is manipulating the media. He’s been doing it since he walked down the stairs of his New York (former) home calling Mexicans “murderers and rapists” up until, well, right now. Yesterday, he was at a Ford plant in Michigan stirring up more controversy about whether he’s going to wear a mask or not and LYING about accomplishments which he didn’t achieve. But, sure as “shootin” our so-called “liberal media” is following along as a puppy follows his master.

I remember, back in 2016, how individual 1 dominated the air time coming from MSNBC, the so-called “liberal” alternative to Fox “news” (AKA individual 1 TV), and how MSNBC either wittingly or unwittingly worked as one of individual 1’s “useful idiots.” I still remember Chris Matthews, essentially – or that’s how it seemed to me at the time, trying to normalize individual 1 and his campaign. (Fortunately, Matthews can’t do this again) At the time individual 1 was trailing badly and I thought MSNBC was attempting to make the election more competitive in order for them to make more MONEY. There was rarely much more than a passing mention of Hillary Clinton and there seemed to be a conscious effort by MSNBC to create a false equivalency between the two candidates.

Well, individual 1, I’m sure, was very happy for the untold MILLIONS in free campaign advertising and he’s continuing to dominate MSNBC’s airwaves to this date. (Of course, I’m sure MSNBC was very happy with the ad revenue they received) Rarely, do we hear from Joe Biden (which may be a good thing due to his propensity to stick both feet in his mouth) but, more importantly, during this pandemic – while the economy is stuck in “neutral” we RARELY, if ever, hear about what our Congress is attempting to do to prevent “we the people” from falling into another economic “great depression.” In fact, it appears to me the democrats are trying as hard as they can to help individual 1 save this economy – but, their work is “flying under the radar.” For example, the ONLY time I’ve heard any real reference to the so-called “HEROES Act” has been about two or three interviews Nancy Pelosi has given on various MSNBC shows.

Not once have I heard anyone who would be an expert explaining the details of what is in this bill so that people could understand to what degree they should be supporting or opposing what the democrats are proposing. The republicans, of course, are reflexively opposing the bill, but if enough of “we the people” understand it’s a “good thing” the support generated could have an effect on whether the bill ends up getting passed. From the few interviews I’ve seen with Speaker Pelosi this bill, for the most part, should be considered essential – even by individual 1 who wants to run on a strong economy. It appears to me the HEROES Act would go a long way to protect our economy from the “ravages” of this virus.

I’ve been pointing out the disconnect between Wall Street and Main Street for some time now and, from what I can tell, the HEROES Act is aimed directly at “Main Street” which SHOULD be something republicans, at this point in time, would be wanting to support. I started this a few days ago and I’m convinced republicans SHOULD agree to the HEROES Act – it appears there is, at least, some negotiating going on and even republicans KNOW they won’t be looking that great as states are forced to start furloughing police officers, firemen, garbage workers, doctors, nurses, teachers, and a whole lot more of “essential workers.” Republicans want to destroy the Postal Service and they certainly don’t want “vote by mail.” We’ll see if democrats have the guts to stand up against them and FORCE these really important pieces into the legislation.

Today, according to John’s Hopkins the U.S.A went over 100,000 deaths from Covid-19. According to the “Worldometer.info” we went over that terrible “milestone” yesterday. Regardless, there’s going to be thousands more people dying from this pandemic and based on what i saw from people who went to various places where there seemed to be water – in large crowds with people close together and refusing to wear masks – if the scientists know what they’re talking about there should be some increased “numbers” of Covid-19 cases in the next two weeks. The report I saw at a lake in Missouri indicated the people crammed together came from many different states and then dispersed once the holiday weekend was over all across the country.

For people like this who clearly are not concerned about the virus they are the ones who have the possibility of being the “super spreaders.” They very well could infect many other people with no idea they’re doing so. We’re looking at the reality there really does seem to be “two America’s.” The cult members are fed up with the idea of “sheltering in place,” “social distancing,” and even “wearing masks.” Some of them are angry enough to participate in the demonstrations at various state capitals, some showing their manhood by carrying automatic weapons, and in the demonstration in Michigan’s Capitol building I saw protesters SPITTING in the faces of the Capitol policemen who created a barrier so the protesters were unable to break into the Capitol’s Rotunda.

I look back on that protest – and, others including the one which happened in the Capital of my state, Washington – and, so far, I haven’t seen one African American among the protesters (although, that does not suggest there weren’t any) – most if not all of the protesters were white. After, yesterday, watching ANOTHER Black American MURDERED by a white policeman I couldn’t help wondering what the reaction of the authorities would have been had those protesters carrying those AK-47’s (or whatever they were) with ammunition belts around their torsos and SPITTING in the faces of the white Capitol police officers were Black?

What will happen if a group of African Americans grab their weapons and protest like these “militia” groups at Minnesota’s Capitol building? I’m pretty sure you know where I’m going with this. I’ll just say, I wouldn’t expect the police officers to just stand there getting someone’s spit in their faces and doing NOTHING. So, now, in the middle of this pandemic, “we the people” have yet another person dying because of being Black which SHOULD get everyone’s attention, but, of course, there’s this pandemic which has had NO organized federal response and there WON’T be one, PLUS it’s the beginning of the HURRICANE season with predictions of an ACTIVE hurricane season.

I’ve written about the DAMAGE individual 1 is causing to this nation on numerous occasions and have suggested MUCH of the DAMAGE is “behind the scenes.” I still remember Steve Bannon suggesting their goal was to “deconstruct the administrative state” – which, essentially, means to destroy our government from within. Well, we’re seeing more and more evidence they’ve been doing a good job of this while MOST of us (including me) are “chasing our tails” in regard to the “scandal a day” administration of our IMPEACHED so-called president. More and more of the DAMAGE is going to be evident as we struggle as a nation to get through the rest of this year – individual 1 will be our IMPEACHED so-called president until next January 20 thanks to the republicans who had the chance to end this nightmare courtesy of the democrats IMPEACHING individual 1. Only ONE had the guts to do the right thing and now we’re all paying for it.

I’ve suggested there is no provision in the constitution which would prevent a second IMPEACHMENT, but, of course, that aint gonna happen at this point, so people need to prepare to VOTE – and, in some instance that is going to require some extra energy because republicans are attempting to prevent as many likely democratic voters from voting as they can. “We the people” need to respond to this CORRUPT, immoral, disgusting IMPEACHED so-called president with an OVERWHELMING turnout at the polls so his whining about a “rigged” election will fall on deaf ears. He’s already setting his cult up for his likely defeat – and, he’ll blame it on illegal aliens voting by the MILLIONS. Count on it!

Individual 1 is working hard to continue his manipulation of “we the people” with his obscene use of social media, but apparently it’s backfiring, at least to some extent because he’s threatening an “executive order” giving himself power I DON’T believe he has – just like cutting aid to the WHO, I believe, must be done in concert with Congress, so his dictatorial instincts are working in high gear. Apparently, he’s angry with Twitter and he thinks social media isn’t being fair to “conservatives.” I’m guessing what is happening (I don’t do social media) is “we the people” are starting to wise up to the REAL “fake news” – which is a hallmark of Russian cyberwarfare and, subsequently, individual 1’s campaign apparatus – and, people very well may be responding to posts with factual rebuttals! (I’ve been lamenting for years the republicans use of the “Big Lie Theory” of the Third Reich to spew their misinformation and, maybe, “the secret’s out))

Clearly, the TV networks – well, I mostly watch MSNBC – are infatuated with individual 1. Lately, on MSNBC, our IMPEACHED so-called president is the subject of a lot of derision, but he still seems to be attempting to force himself onto the main segments of their programming with one scandal worthy action after another – causing him to get airtime and the rest of us to get numb to stuff that at any other time in my lifetime would be disqualifying. He’s got a cult which doesn’t seem to care as long as he continues with all the judges – apparently, that is enough to make these four years worth it to them. I’ll just add the last 9 months of his term could be the most consequential 9 months of any administration in this country’s history. I hope I’m wrong, but, stay tuned……………

Final Thought: I suggested this a couple years ago and, obviously, NO one who matters heard me or cared (or both); my suggestion was take the airtime away. Leave the cameras and report on anything he says which is important – like, for example, people SHOULD know he suggested drinking or injecting Lysol or Clorox as a way to fight the virus – when an IMPEACHED so-called president has gone off the “deep end” “we the people” should be aware.

When this all started I predicted, correctly, that the only way individual 1 would be removed from office would be when republicans realized he was going to cause them to lose their jobs as well. I think that day is fast approaching if it’s not already here. Of course it’s early, but when I look at the polls at Five Thirty Eight (They average ALL the polling) there are more and more republican Senators who are looking vulnerable. This would include Lindsay Graham and, even, Moscow Mitch. They’re in a real “pickle” because if they’re not totally subservient to individual 1 the “tweets” are going to flow and things will get even uglier. This next five months should be very interesting – historical times!

As usual of late: I didn’t post this the other day and since then the Minneapolis police have MURDERED another Black man – George Floyd – this time in broad daylight with multiple video cameras “witnessing” the act. It was deplorable just like all the other MURDERS of unarmed Black Americans by police or white racists (ie Ahmaud Arbery ) which led Colin Kaepernick to, essentially, give up his career as a NFL quarterback in protest to these continued outrages. The FACT Kaepernick is no longer “working” in the NFL was the reason I gave up fantasy football and stopped watching the NFL on TV. Individual 1 referred to the athlete’s protesting the FACT African Americans are being killed for being Black as “Sons of Bitches” and suggested they should be “fired.” Well, obviously, Kaepernick has been “fired” despite having the ABILITY to take an NFL team to the Super Bowl. Kaepernick, obviously, deserves credit for his courage and leadership.

I’m white and all I can say is I support Black Americans in their fight for equality and equal justice in the country. This needs to be of paramount importance to the incoming administration of Joe Biden. This country needs healing and that is where it should start. The MURDER of Mr. Floyd was, hopefully, the “straw that broke the camel’s back.” The man had his hands cuffed behind his back (likely for committing no crime – he was unarmed, of course) and they threw him on his stomach and one of the officers pressed his knee onto Mr. Floyd’s neck until, well, he was DEAD. I can’t even believe I’m writing this AGAIN!

I just mentioned the importance of Joe Biden’s administration addressing the issue of inequality as of “paramount importance.” So, I will add one more thing to that thought. It is also of “paramount importance” that if Biden was actually considering Amy Klobuchar as a VP candidate (which I hope is NOT true) that he would end that consideration as of RIGHT NOW! At this point I believe that’s the ONLY way he can lose. (Although, he me try to find other ways as well)

Covid-19 is continuing to “rage” – and, will likely be picking up steam as “we the people” open our economy too soon – and, way too many people continue to act as if it’s just another “flu.” We’re potentially looking at a depression. Individual 1 continues to believe he’s a dictator – he’s pulling the U.S. out of the WHO (World Health Organization) ??? (can he really do that without Congress?) and he’s creating an even worse situation with China (maybe as a way to blame them for his ineptitude in the pandemic) and now we’re looking right in the face of an active hurricane season and a disastrous wild fire season. Is there really anyone who’s confident in America’s leadership (outside of the cult, of course)? Stay tuned……………..

I’ve pondered the thought many times here, “how can individual 1’s supporters be so STUPID?” And, of course, I know that what many of them are supporting is their long standing belief the republican party is the party for “pro lifers.” (They think I’m stupid) So, they’re happy because individual 1 is simply funneling potential judges who are selected by the Federalist Society to Moscow Mitch, who in turn, is able to get them confirmed. Obviously, they want Roe v Wade overturned. It’s true the lasting legacy of individual 1 (for “conservatives”) will be the right wing judges he’s nominated who will tilt the courts to the “right” for, at least, a generation. I just have to wonder if it’s worth it to them due to what comes with their “marriage.” For me, as a Christian (obviously, not part of the “conservative Christian” movement), the worst part in all of this is how individual 1 is using the “evangelical Christians” in his desperate attempt to remain in POWER as the November election sits on the “horizon.” (To me, not a good “witness”)

Our IMPEACHED so-called president has more to worry about than simply losing an election as he could be facing multiple indictments once he’s no longer protected by that OLC “memo” written after Watergate suggesting a sitting president can NOT be indicted. That is what protected individual 1 from the Mueller investigation – despite William Barr’s shameful manipulation of the TRUTH of what was really in Mueller’s report – “cutting it off at the knees” with his “summary” where he suggested there was no OBSTRUCTION of Justice charges warranted from Mueller’s report – which was, essentially, the OPPOSITE of what was in the report. I was, for maybe the only time in my life, part of the “1%” as I actually read the entire Mueller report (TWICE) and, clearly, the ONLY reason Mueller didn’t seek an indictment of individual 1 was that memo. Barr expertly (from individual 1’s perspective) cut off any IMPEACHMENT resulting from the report – which (Impeachment) was the implied remedy for the OBSRUCTIVE behavior suggested by Mueller.

So, how is individual 1 trying to overcome the odds of him losing his re-election bid – which, according to every poll I’ve seen (and, there are many polls) paint a grim picture for November? Well, how does he approach EVERYTHING? He’s LYING, he’s lashing out at his perceived “enemies,” and, of course, he’s manipulating those in his “base” – as if he really cares about them. For example, and, to me, this one says it all – this past week he was all about churches being open for Memorial Day weekend – so that worshipers could “flock” to their church gatherings while this pandemic he’s so egregiously mismanaged is still raging. He tried to make it look as if this issue was “dear to his heart.” Naturally, you would assume that’s where he’d be on Sunday after his proclamation that all churches would be open, right? Nope, of course not, he was out playing golf instead of going to church. “What else is new?”

In fact, as he’s been pandering to Christians since it became apparent to him he needed their support to “win” the election (with three MILLION fewer votes than his opponent/enemy) I looked online for evidence of his church attendance. What do you think I found? Yep, NOTHING! He’s exposed many of the “mega Christians” for exactly what they stand for over these past three years. I’ve only read through the Bible twice (along with re-reading many of the books several times) and, honestly, I can’t find a good Biblical reason for supporting what individual 1 stands for. I mean his infidelity and his pathological LYING along with his demeaning of “the least of these” would seem to indicate a problem for a Christian. Think the “Ten Commandments” for starters. Just sayin……….

His base is a curious combination of the aforementioned “conservative/evangelical Christians” and the white nationalist movement in America – which includes those affiliated with the neo-Nazi movement, the KKK, and other right wing militia movements in America that seem to be tied together with their racist beliefs and their automatic weapons. To me, this is almost like deja vu all over again as I think back to reading books like “Bonhoeffer” by Eric Metaxas and other readings I’ve had over the years about the Germans of the 1930’s. I’ve written many times (with frustration toward our so-called “liberal media” for ignoring this) about how America’s “right wing” adopted the “Big Lie Theory” of the Nazi’s back in the days of Ronald Reagan. There are way too many parallels between Germany back then and individual 1’s administration right now.

I first noticed this (the organized LYING) when I happened to listen (for a while) to Rush Limbaugh back in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s when he had just started his misinformation assault on unsuspecting Americans. Of course, I chose NOT to be a “ditto head” – just the idea he calls his loyal listeners by that moniker pretty much suggests his audience isn’t made up of “free thinkers.” At the time I started to notice ALL the “conservative” pundits were LYING about the same things with the same key terms – over and over again. That they would adopt the propaganda strategy of the Nazi’s repulsed me. I’ve watched this evolve ever since and, it seemed to me, the election of Barack Obama caused those behind Limbaugh, who were on the fringes, to create a very sophisticated response – starting with the so-called “Tea Party.” But, they were still in the fringes – looking for a place to “land.” The GOP seemed to have “open arms.” When I heard individual 1 was giving the “medal of freedom” to Limbaugh I almost gagged!

The republican party has been steadfast over the years to be, essentially, the party in American politics which was dominated by white people, without overtly being the party of white people. There always seemed to be kind of a half-hearted effort to become more inclusive – that is, until Obama came along. And, while republican party leaders understood the election of Obama SHOULD have caused their rank and file to realize the need to be more inclusive – we are, after all, a nation of IMMIGRANTS – they seemed to “double down” as they welcomed those in the “Tea Party” into their midst. Of course, we’ve seen, since 2010, the “Tea Party” faction of the republican party pretty much drive out the “establishment” members of the party and now you have individual 1, who very well could be leading the “Grand Old Party” to the “graveyard.”

Without doubt, we’ve seen this before. George W Bush and Dick Cheney (from my perspective, mostly Cheney – but that’s a story for another day) took the republican party to the precipice after LYING America into the disastrous fiasco of Iraq, mismanaging the fiasco in Afghanistan, and leaving office with the country headed into the Great Recession, shedding 800 THOUSAND jobs per month and leaving Obama with an annual deficit of $1.5 TRILLION. This got a lot of people’s attention. I will say this about GW Bush, however – there was a lot I didn’t like about him, but I NEVER considered him a “white nationalist.” In fact, as I look back, I don’t believe I ever even considered him a racist – despite my feelings the republican party was dominated by whites protective of their “privilege.” Obviously, the issue facing African Americans in our country has permeated presidents of both parties for the entirety of this nation’s history. Yes, it’s gotten better at times, but this pandemic is exposing how far we have to go as a nation to deal with issues of inequality – whether in the Black community or elsewhere.

And, sadly, thinking about what Bush/Cheney left as they “snuck” out of town, it looks almost good at this point in time. As they left office it appeared the republican party would be on the “outs” for years to come – but, the “Tea Party” – along with the realization America’s racist past (Can you say “birther movement?”) was far from purged as certainly I had foolishly believed – revived the party turning it farther to the “right.” And, their brazen willingness to OBSTRUCT virtually everything President Obama attempted to accomplish was greeted as “business as usual” by our so-called “liberal media” and now, well, here we are. The “birther movement” not only empowered individual 1 but it exposed our media to being, essentially, numb to all the racist rhetoric which surfaced after Obama’s election, gaining only sporadic attention.

At the time Obama was elected I was aware of the Koch brothers I just didn’t know much about them, like how much wealth they possessed, and how much they were spending to turn America toward their John Birch Society viewpoint. From what I could tell they were the money behind the “Tea Party” and, for longer than I’ve been paying attention to them, they’ve been funding right wing, libertarian like republicans. I remember David Koch running for Vice President in 1980 as part of the Libertarian party ticket. Their platform pretty much says it all as far as where the Koch’s are coming from – if you’re interested here’s an article which lays out their priorities – and, remember, they’re the main funders of today’s republican party. (Of course, the Koch brothers are now the Koch “brother” as David Koch has died)

If you haven’t figured out what effect money has on politics just keep in mind the Libertarian ticket Koch was on back in 1980 got about 1% of the vote. Now, along with all the other right wing organizations which have come together to form today’s republican party with their funding, they’ve got around 40 – 45% support among “we the people.” To me, that in itself, is a sad state of affairs. But, it also suggests those, like myself, who are claiming this election coming up is the MOST important election in our lifetimes (I’ve been voting since the 1960’s), are not just “blowing smoke.” Yes, at the time, I did say the 2018 election was the most important election (up to that time) in my lifetime, and it was. Thankfully, Americans showed up in great numbers to repudiate what individual 1 stands for, not just what he’s been doing. Just try to imagine what would have happened had democrats not gained a check on individual 1!

Without the results of the 2018 election things would be extremely dire – far more so than they are – in America today. The 2018 election brought that desperately needed check to individual 1 – leading, of course, to his IMPEACHMENT – although, the republicans, for some reason, continue to cower from their leader as if they are collectively devoid of conscience – except, of course, Mitt Romney who had the courage to vote to convict in the IMPEACHMENT trial – a vote which will put him above all other republicans in the history books of this era, but I digress. (again) Yet, the 2020 election is the real “test” of the American people as to whether our constitutional republic is worth keeping. Obviously, if we believe it is, then individual 1 has got to go!

Not only should we be VOTING him out of office, but we SHOULD be targeting as many republican Senators as possible and democrats should continue attempting to turn as many seats in the House blue as they can. In other words, don’t back down anywhere. Challenge people like Mike Bloomberg and Tom Steyer to put their money to good use in an attempt to win elections all the way from the White House down to dog catcher. Send a message to the republican party that their surge to the “right” is going to push them into the history books. And, this is coming from someone (me) who’s been a lifelong independent voter and believes we need two vibrant parties in order to represent some kind of a coalition of ideas in our nation.

The combination of individual 1’s incompetence, the republican party’s willingness to accept it, and the novel coronavirus which has infected likely close to 5% of our population and resulted in the deaths of well over 100,000 Americans has exposed weaknesses in our nation which MUST be addressed and. likely will only be addressed if “we the people” do what I’m suggesting and vote individual 1 plus a LOT of republican Senators out of office – because, it seems almost as if they would do the opposite of what seems obvious to people like me that we MUST do!

So, what is it that seems so obvious to me? OMG, where to start? I’ll start with health care, because it affects EVERYONE. If Bernie Sanders’ push for “Medicare for all” hasn’t sunk in as imperative – or at least some comparable alternative – then you must have your head in the sand. Our government has come up with something in the order of $10 TRILLION to combat Covid-19 (the disease caused by the coronavirus) in the space of two to three months. Of course, MOST of that money has been provided to the Fed to prop up Wall Street, but as far as I’m concerned our people are more important than Wall Street. It seems as if EVERY republican administration creates HUGE amounts of national debt and, I can guarantee you, they’ll be blaming this debt on Joe Biden as early as next January if he wins the November election! Yikes!! But, my point is the idea we can’t afford “Medicare for all” should ring preposterous at this point when you look at the money which magically appeared to save Wall Street.

The increase in the debt during individual 1’s regime could be near incalculable, but I’m not one to say any more than I hope “Main Street” is propped up first and foremost. So, aside from health care, the next OBVIOUS issue which needs to (finally) be addressed is the issue of income inequality along with the issue of addressing the needs of people of color in this nation. Of course, there are many Americans who are “white” who fall into the category of “left behind” by our economy so this issue (income inequality) is a complex issue which MUST be addressed with the goal of eliminating poverty in our nation.

We have been slipping toward something resembling a third world nation for several years and, in my view, that started with the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980 when I, personally, started thinking America was becoming a “me” society as oppose to the “we” society in which I grew up. Shareholders started to become more important than workers – which has evolved to almost unimaginable levels to someone like me who grew up in the 50’s and 60’s. Unions have nearly been eliminated and companies finding ways to avoid providing “benefits” beyond wages to workers has become acceptable. Part time jobs are what is available to millions of low wage workers in America. The idea of monopolies – which were broken up since the days of Teddy Roosevelt have become acceptable – like Facebook, Microsoft, Amazon, and Apple (off the top of my head) – all of this is creating a very dangerous risk to our fundamental society.

When I was young, business people and entrepreneurs were taxed at 90% of earnings over (what would be in today’s dollars) $1 MILLION per year. The idea was to encourage them to re-invest in their business or to donate to charity (with the deduction reducing their tax liability) with their EXCESS income. To frame my disdain for what is happening in today’s economy, I read the other day Jeff Bezos has “earned” $32 BILLION during this pandemic and Mark Zuckerberg “only” $25 BILLION (keep in mind, that’s in three months) while the country is likely headed to a depression. To me, this is obscene.

In fact, it appears to me, the only thing which will cause our economy to avoid a depression is the government BORROWING well over the $10 TRILLION I’ve already mentioned. Yet, these digital entrepreneurs are raking in the BILLIONS – I guess that just seems like something which is OBVIOUSLY wrong – with Americans lined up in food lines all across the country and unemployment approaching 20%! And, reports I’ve read suggest people like Bezos and Zuckerberg find ways to rake in this money without paying ANY taxes – certainly, at a time when “we the people” need corporate interests to be paying taxes to support our government in a real crisis. This all is reminding me of some of Elizabeth Warren’s proposals. VP????

OK, I do seem to get sidetracked – if I haven’t shared this here – I am most certainly ADD. I’m sure when I was in school in the 50’s and 60’s it was full blown ADHD, but they didn’t diagnose kids for that, as far as I know, back then. Anyway, another key area which has become even MORE obvious to me which needs to be addressed is it’s TIME for America to rebuild her infrastructure. And, we need to do it as if we’re aware it’s actually the 21st century and that should guide our thinking. If we can funnel almost $7 TRILLION to Jerome Powell in order to make the stock market look as if there’s “nothing wrong” while we’re headed toward a depression then we can come up with maybe something like $3 TRILLION to INVEST in America’s future by building a 21st century infrastructure.

Here’s some things I SHOULD have been aware of, but I have to admit I was not. There are many rural places in America which have no broadband – which I wouldn’t have given a second thought to until I’m realizing many critical issues today REQUIRE a broadband connection. I’m trying to picture in my mind are their hospitals in these areas operating without a broadband connection? Or, do they even have hospitals? I suppose it can be done via satellite, but, to me, that SHOULDN’T be necessary. Also, as I’m listening to issues regarding Native Americans and the Navajo reservation, there are many Native Americans living without electricity and running water. I hope I heard that one wrong, but if not, that should be part of the plan. Our government should function from the “bottom up” instead of from the “top down.” “Trickle down” economics has just been a sneaky way for businesses and wealthy elites to pilfer taxpayer dollars!

Obviously, our roads are falling farther and farther into disrepair and not much seems to be getting done to address that issue. I remember staying in Pittsburgh with my brother-in-law and telling him how bad the roads in Pittsburgh are, and then when I got home, I realized when I get to parts of the area around where I live that have needed road repairs I’m seeing the same thing – and, in the last couple of years it’s gotten worse. These types of investments, obviously, benefit almost everyone. They are INVESTMENTS in our future! I still remember when I was very young hearing adults talking about Eisenhower’s plan to build roads across America – The “Interstate Highway System” – a project which took over 30 years to complete.

We need to invest in our children – their schools and their schooling, right up through 4 years of college. It’ a national disgrace, from my vantage point, that students who want to go to college in our country and don’t have parents who are well off end up owing enough to pay for a home mortgage when they get out of school. And, then many are unable to find the type of employment they thought was “promised” when they began. I agree with Elizabeth Warren that all school debt should be forgiven and I agree with Bernie Sanders state universities should be tuition free. This all is INVESTING in our future – our young people. (Although, many older people would return to school if it was affordable!) Oh yes, there should be a plan in place to retrain workers who are displaced. (That is how I became a sixth grade school teacher)

Individual 1 (and his republican sycophants) are doing everything they can to destroy the Postal Service. If you read the Libertarian Party platform of the Koch brothers (which I linked to above) you saw that, even back as far as 1980 these right wing wackos were attempting to destroy the Postal Service – to me, a national treasure. The Postal service has been here since the beginning of this country. Talk about undermining our culture! These are the same people who want NO taxes, they want Medicare and Medicaid abolished along with, obviously, Social Security. The list goes on and on, but, in my view, “we the people” need to support a rebuilding of our infrastructure which accomplishes almost the opposite of what today’s republicans stand for and that includes shoring up the Postal Service.

In reality, most of what I’m suggesting here would be beneficial to the rank and file republicans who continue to support individual 1 and will likely continue supporting whoever the republicans put forward in 2024 and beyond. This is why “we the people” must remain diligent in our efforts to push forward a progressive 21st century agenda which works for ALL Americans. It’s also why Joe Biden’s choice for a running mate is so important – because, I don’t believe he’ll be a candidate in 2024. His purpose is to take out Trump from office via the 2020 election. His running mate, we know it’s going to be a woman, will likely be the “front runner” for the nomination come 2024. And, I’ll just say, if he chooses Amy Klobachar, he very well could lose in November. I agree with those who believe he should choose an African American woman as his running mate.

It appears individual 1 has decided to begin his attacks on Biden’s potential running mates already. I don’t do social media but, today, I read reports where our IMPEACHED so-called president attacked, among others, Stacy Abrams on Twitter. I didn’t see the “tweet” but, from what I read he disparaged Ms. Abrams for her weight. This just reminded me of how I’ve wondered why someone as disgusting as individual 1 could feel so enabled to attach derogatory memes on various people, especially women, when he’s an overweight disgusting human being himself. To me, the classic “Throwing stones from a glass house.” If he wasn’t causing so much DAMAGE to this country I believe I would pity him for his apparent mental illness. Does he ever look in a mirror? Are judges worth all of this?

Final Thought: I’ve been saying this for weeks now that as I watch the statistics closely regarding Covid-19 I’m more convinced than ever there are republican governors around the country continuing to LIE about the affects of this disease. It’s as if they would love to pretend this isn’t really happening, but the reality is it is and it’s NOT going away because governors have decided to LIE about what is happening in their states. I originally was suspecting South Dakota, Georgia, and Florida. Since then there have been “whistleblowers” from both Florida and Georgia to confirm my suspicions. Now the governors of Iowa and Nebraska are on my list and I’m sure there are others. The reality is the virus is still here and as people begin acting as if it isn’t we’re going to be seeing hospitals bulging at the seems again.

I’ve already heard reports that hospitals in Alabama are filling up as the stay at home restrictions are being softened. I’m guessing this is just one of many reports we’ll be hearing in the weeks to come. I “get” that, without a vaccine – which may NEVER be made – this virus is going to run its course through our country (and countries around the world). Additionally, we can’t expect people to stay in their homes indefinitely. It appears to me, the challenge is to protect our health care system from surges which overwhelm them and do the best we can to “test, trace, and treat” in an attempt to minimize the spread of the disease. The next few weeks should be interesting as we’ll see the results of many places where “social distancing” has been considered, well, I don’t think it was considered. Let’s hope hot weather gives us all a “break.” Stay tuned…………………