Into the Dark: Late Spring Speculatron - Saturday Political Soap Box 304

 Will we find our way out of it? Will we ever see the other side of our authoritarian nightmare and return to a more civil democratic republic?  Will we escape like Hungary finally turning aside Orban, or will we live in a dystopian nightmare for decades like North Korea?

I don't know.  We can only turn to the SPECULATRON *   and guess.  

Will we plunge ever further into the dark? Or will we finally turn to the light of democracy and resume America's path to greatness and freedom?

I don't know. 

Well, that kind of destroys the spirit of prognostication, don't it?

There are many reasons to fear that we will not return to democracy anytime soon.  Many of our institutions are hanging by a thread.  Courts dominated by right-wing extremists who could negate progressive legislation, an Electoral College skewed towards advantaging small rural states and southern conservative states, relentless gerrymandering by conservative legislatures designed to lock in power for generations, a media largely dominated by rich right-wing zealots, a Christian Nationalist church with over-sized influence, and an increasing debt that will saddle future progressive efforts.

Is there hope?

Yes.  Consider the picture above.  Yes, Republicans use ridiculous cultural issues to inspire their supporters.  Vilifying trans persons is just the newest boogeyman.  They've been doing stuff like that for generations.

But sometimes, the fires rage too high, and they bring enough people over to make a difference. Optimistically, I feel like we are approaching one of those times.

What could that mean?

MIDTERMS

Everything else being equal, given (I pray) a minimum of election interference, the Democrats should take control of the House.  There may be no amount of gerrymandering that could prevent this - they are overestimating how many solid Republican voters there are, particularly in the Hispanic community. 

The Democrats should have a solid majority, somewhere between 20 and 40 seats.

The Senate may be closer.  I think the Democrats will eke out a thin majority (two to five).  Nice, but not a 60-vote filibuster-proof majority.  But enough to halt the approval of the most heinous Trump nominees, and (hopefully) freeze the Supreme Court.

And yes, the Democrats should use hearings to investigate the administration's wrongdoing and, if necessary, impeach. But no impeachments will work - there will still be too many Senate Republicans.  So this effort should not be the only thing that Democrats are known for.

They must pass popular progressive legislation in the House, even if the Senate filibuster stops them, even if the President vetoes it.  There must be a clear record not just of stopping the administration's constant excesses, but of a traceable record showing the American people the path they will take when we elect a Democratic President in 2028.

2028 President

And in that 2028 election, Democrats need to nominate a TRUE Progressive.  Mealy-mouthed candidates who receive large corporate donations are not needed.  AOC, Talarico, and Ro Khanna would all be significantly better choices than corporate centrists like Newsome, Buttigieg, or Harris.  Don't get me wrong.  If one of the centrists wins the nomination, I will still vote for them.  And I do believe they can be competent, practical leaders.  I just don't think they meet the moment.  Without decisive progressive legislation that favors the working class, the Democrats will once again be fleeting, as the Republicans rev up the cultural nonsense and tell the working class - see? They didn't do anything for you, did they?

There is little hope that the Republicans will nominate a decent candidate, one who, although conservative, supports constitutional democracy.  The shrinking base has shown in recent Republican primaries that they do whatever Trump wants, no matter how irrational.  So they will nominate from a narrow band of extremists - Trump (in direct violation of the constitution and ignoring his crumbling health), Vance, a sold-out Rubio, and even someone from the America First crowd - MTG, Tucker Carlson, and others, even more vile and disgusting.

So, yeah, that's my more optimistic take.  Even if we take this path, it may take many years to self-correct.

But I got high hopes.

At least for this post.

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

AOC 28

*patent pending.

Return of Wednesday Wanderings!

 

 Back in the Golden Days, when I would post almost every day, I had a feature called Wednesday Wanderings.  It would allow me to comment on multiple topics, things that I didn't think justified a full post of their own, or I was too lazy to expand.  Well, I'm back!

Health Update

I'm doing pretty good!  I had a follow-up rheumatology appointment, and I got my best analysis of the problem to date.  What I had assumed was primarily rheumatoid arthritis may be as much osteo-related (bones) as it is.  It has helped refocus my treatment, and I feel much better.  I should be going in for a bone density test very soon.

They asked me if I had broken any bones.  Uhh, just twice.  Once, around 8 or so, when a kid shoved me out of the garage window, I tried to brace myself with my right arm, and I about snapped it in half. The second was in high school, playing soccer, when I ran into a kid and bent my right-hand index finger back. Come to think of it, I might go back and make a whole blog about these incidents.

My Dad, who grew up on a dairy farm and chugged milk and dairy products, developed osteoporosis in his 80s. My mother, who was lactose intolerant and avoided dairy, had bones like a rock.

My son Benjamin has broken two of the hardest bones to break, his shoulder blade and femur.  He might ought to have a bone density test.

Talarico Tracker

Stuningly, last night, Texas Republicans selected Ken Paxton as their Senatorial candidate.  Ken Paxton is super corrupt from many different angles - financial, political, and sexual.  I mean, really, he's corrupt enough to make even Trump envious as to what he gets away with.

I saw an interview with a Texas voter who said he was going to vote for his incumbent Senator Cornyn, but he switched to Paxton after Trump endorsed him.  I mean, really? Can you imagine being that far up the butt of a cult?

Paxton should be an easier candidate for Talarico to defeat.  Unless Musk deploys his space lasers again.

Reading

Currently reading the second novel in the Beartown hockey series.  It's by Fredrik Backman, a Swedish writer, set in a small Swedish town, and rich with interesting characters.  Fortunately for me, it has been translated into English, which helps me immensely.

I'm also reading a collection of the earliest Supergirl stories, dating back to the late fifties.  I like reading about the early character developments of our most iconic superheroes.  

Movies

Not seeing too many. Looking forward to the Supergirl movie in June, and will soon re-read the graphic novel it is based on, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.

Continuing my watch of the Top 100 Science Fiction movies of the 20th Century, I am stuck on The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms. A 1953 movie that helped start the giant monster trend has been difficult to find.

TV

Just finished The Boys.  Loved it! I've read the entire Boys comic series (some 60-plus issues), and yeah, I realize the TV show ended somewhat differently, but I'm more than ok with it.  I'm super tired of everybody whining about how series end on TV.  It's impossible for writers and others to come up with an ending that will make everyone happy.  The parallels between the series and our increasing drift towards fascism were incredible, especially since some of the storylines predated some of Trump's vile antics.

Well, I've wandered enough for one post.

Wanderingly Yours,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

Ya Gotta Get Up! Ya Gotta Get Up! Ya Gotta Get Up in the Morning!

 Come on, Scout!  Up and at'em!

Alison started her new Summer schedule at work.  The good news?  She'll have Fridays off! Yay!  The bad news? Mondays through Thursdays will be longer days, starting work at 7 AM instead of 8 AM!

I usually get up (or am rousted) around 6:25 to help take care of the pets (letting them out, feeding them, etc.). That time is now 6 AM.

You would think I'd solve this by simply going to bed earlier, to balance things out.  But nah, I'll stick with my 11:20 time to turn off the TV and start the headed-to-bed routine. I'm stubborn that way.

It could mean I drift off while reading, or fall asleep during a cabinet meeting.  But I have to be careful.  Any nap may make it harder to fall asleep that night.  

I normally get about five and a half to six hours of sleep a night.  If I try to do more, insomnia could result.  At least enough to keep me in my usual range of hours.

I know all the theories about how much sleep people need, but I feel like everyone has their own internal clock.  There is greater variance in the amount of sleep required than is popularly expected.  At least that's my non-medical expert opinion.*

But without heavy drugging, there doesn't seem to be much I can do about it anyway.

Oh, well.

Anyhoo, I like being awake.  I...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Sorry.  Took a brief nap.

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

*just think. If I were RFK Jr., all my non-medical expert opinions could become Federal law!

Quickie Georgia Primary Update

 

Just a quickie review of last night's Georgia Primary.

Governor

Keisha Lance Bottoms was the decisive winner in the Georgia Democratic primary for Governor.  She won 56% of the vote in a crowded field, with the next-closest candidate mustering only 19%. This means she can hit the ground running, while the Republicans...

have a very divisive runoff ahead of them.  Burt Jones, the Trump-endorsed lackey, receiving 38% of the vote, while the most racist candidate I've seen in this state since Lester Maddox, Rick Jackson, finished with 33% of the vote.  The best news is that my congressman, Buddy Carter, finished third and is now out of politics, at least until 2028.

Speaking of good news, the Democratic candidates for Governor received 54% of the vote, while the Republican candidates received only 46%.  Yes, more Democrats voted than Republicans!

Unfortunately for me, the bad news is that the county I live in continues to be MAGA SOAKED REPUBLICANS, with 91% voting for the Republican Governor candidates, and only 9% voting for Democratic Governor candidates.  This godawful percentage has held true for a decade or more. 

US Senate

Incumbent Democrat Jon Ossoff was unopposed.  I would still love to know his total vote count, but I have not yet found a site reporting it.

The Republicans have two awful candidates in their runoff: Mike Collins, a Trump-backed extremist with 41%, and Derek Dooley, a nepo baby with 30%.  His father, Vince Dooley, was the much-loved Georgia football coach.  This apple, however, is very far from that tree. Georgia Republicans have a tradition of foisting sports-related names on a distracted populace (re: Herschel Walker).

US Congressperson 1st District

Speaking of nepo babies, Jack Kingston's son, Jim Kingston, snagged 52% and thus avoids a runoff.  I don't know much about him, except that he was endorsed by the orange conman, and he's not Buddy Carter.

The Democratic runoff will be between Joyce Marie Griggs (35%) and Amanda Holloerll (25%).  The person I voted for, Patrick Wilver, finished a distant 5th with 7% of the vote.  I'm not ashamed.  I will ALWAYS choose the candidate that I think will move us most quickly to true universal healthcare.

I lean against Joyce Marie Griggs.  She is in the moderate/conservative wing of the Democratic Party. I will likely vote for Amanda Hollowell, but I need to do a bit more research about her positions.

Georgia Supreme Court

I am sad to report that both pro-civil and human rights candidates lost to far-right Christian Nationalists. This was non-partisan, with no party labels, and not enough Democrats did the research to figure this out.  Had they followed the Governor's voting pattern, we would not be looking at such a disaster.

Well, I said I would be brief, and I have failed to do that.  I will try to address other races in subsequent posts. There are a number of Democratic runoffs, so Democrats need to show up in large numbers!  Let's keep outvoting the Republicans!

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

Georgia Primary: Lost Who to Vote For? Saturday Political Soap Box 303

 

PatrickJ Wilver, candidate for 1st Congressional District

This is a tough one.

Many of you have probably already voted in the Georgia primary, but I'm voting on Election Day this year only because that's what best fits our schedule.

It'd be difficult to come up with endorsements this year.  There are many candidates this year, and it's hard to find much information about many of them.  

I'm going to tell you where I'm leaning, but I highly encourage you to research for yourself.  

This is only for the Democratic Primary.  If you want to vote in the Republican primary, I really don't know what to tell you.  Most of their candidates are groveling to be the candidate closest to Trump. Good luck with that, attaching your star to a President whose star is falling to Reath, disintegrating before our very eyes.  The only thing I beg you is not to vote for Rick Jackson - a vile bigot running racist and cruel ads.

Governor

Keisha Lance Bottoms

Former Mayor of Atlanta...considered for Vice President by Biden

In this one, I have decided not to fight the inevitable.  She may not be the most progressive candidate, but she is competent and more than capable of being Governor.  She's the most likely to get over 50%, and I would really like to avoid a runoff.  The Republican race is likely to end in a divisive runoff, and I would rather our candidate have the lead time to consolidate support.

Another good choice would be Jason Estaves.  He may be a bit more progressive than Bottoms, and he seems like a good person, with some charisma and speaking skills.

Nabilah Parkes

Former State Senator. Gwinnett County

I'm leaning here right now.  She is experienced as a politician and an activist, and I believe will be good on healthcare and insurance issues.  Since she has legislative experience, she may be able to herd the cats in Georgia's legislature.

I'm also considering Josh McLarin.  He is also a State Senator representing a district that covers parts of the northern suburbs of Atlanta.  His legislative priorities are similar to Nabilah's, and I have seen some TikTok Georgib-based progressives endorse him.

Secretary of State

Cam Ashling

A progressive who also has financial and small business experience. She has the experience to handle all the needs and concerns of small businesses, with licensing and other services offered by the Secretary of State.  She is being on election integrity (OUR kind, not THEIR kind), and I believe has the analytical skills to be a good Secretary of State.

I'm also considering Adam Consonery, Jr. He is the candidate who has most clearly endorsed ranked-choice voting.

Georgia 1st Congressional District

Patrick J Wilver

He's a veteran (West Point Graduate), an activist, and a college student at Georgia Southern. He's young, energetic, sharp, and able to connect with the younger voter while still appealing to the rest of us (including this old man).  His platform is the most progressive, and he most clearly states his support of true universal healthcare.  He's capable of attracting the working-class vote and moving Congress away from corruption and toward addressing 21st-century issues, not gridlock and culture-war madness.

Joyce Marie Griggs is likely to receive the most votes because of her name recognition, but she is not my choice. A conservative-to-centrist Democrat, she has run and lost before and is unlikely to build the coalition needed to win in the General Election. I am most likely to vote against her in a runoff, so I am hoping that a genuine progressive is her opposition.

I won't go into all the others.  There is a lot. You do need to vote for Miracle Rankin and Jen Auer Jordan for the Georgia Supreme Court.  They will help protect us in matters of women's reproductive rights, voting rights, and workers' rights and interests.

Without details, where I'm leaning on other races -

Attorney General  - Tanya Miller

Commissioner of Agriculture - Sedrick Kent Rowe, Jr.

Commissioner of  Insurance - Keisha Sean Waites

State School Superintendent - Anton Anthony (Otha Thornton also looks good).

Commissioner of Labor - Brett A Hulme

Public Service Commissioner - Angelica Pressley (only if you want someone advocating for YOU instead of the insurance companies).

Court of Appeals of Georgia - Will Wooten

Court of Appeals of Georgia - Fatima Harris Felton

I normally don't vote for unopposed candidates, but I am making an exception for Jon Ossoff. He has been an excellent Senator, and I am proud he represents Georgia.  We need to send a message to the lunatics running on the Republican side that we will keep the best, like we did with Ralph Warnock (the best speaker in the Senate). 

Please, if you read this and have other recommendations, please let me know. I'm open to any thoughts as to who the most progressive candidates are.

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

President Talarico

 

In hindsight, some things seem obvious.

When Barack Obama spoke at the 2004 Democratic Convention and electrified everyone who saw it with his "there are no red states, there are no blue states, there is only the United States of America" speech, it began a trajectory that quickly launched him towards the Presidency.  His message of hope, his cool, calm intelligence and empathy, connected with what many Americans wanted to return to after the years of unnecessary wars, massive deficits, botched disaster relief, and a crashed economy.

President Obama achieved many things, and he ably served two terms, righting much of where America had gone adrift.  He left a gap, however, in that he campaigned as a progressive but governed as a centrist.  This left some disappointed in the breadth of his achievements. 

On the darker side of the inevitable, the resentments simmering, especially by the white working class, led to the consideration of something I thought no one ever considered. In retrospect, the path was determined when the orange grifter came down the escalator with his Epstein wife in June 2015.  With the Democratic elites' rejection of Bernie Sanders, who could have had a broader appeal to the white working class, and the selection of legacy centrist Hilary Clinton*, the ascension of that narcissist was sealed.

And we as a country have suffered irreparable harm over the last ten years.  The Constitution is being shredded, Republicans move solely to the whims of their mad King, racism is ascendant, the economy is declining, and democracy itself is evaporating.

Now, many want to move away from the madness of Trump, from the rule of old men**, from a time when every day you wake up to a new horrific action from an administration built on greed and corruption, revenge and racism. 

Not only has the government been corrupted, but so has the very religion that many in this country have followed.  Christian Nationalism has led the faith into a dark place, worshiping power and control instead of love and generosity.

Enter James Talirico, State Senator from Texas.  Unlike many Democrats, he does not shy away from Christianity.  But his is not a Christianity of fear and hate.  His is one of love and light.  He calls us to use our Christianity to love and help others.

He is running for the US Senate in Texas.  His opponent will either be current Senator John Cornyn (an older mainline Republican who nevertheless kowtows before the antichrist-like Trump), or Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (a deeply corrupt politician, both in money and in sexual misconduct). If Talarico wins, I believe that will launch him on a path to be President of the United States.

Some Talirico quote -

"We as Christians are called to do more than charity. We are called to challenge the systems that make charity necessary." 

"As the hymn says, 'they will know we are Christians by our love.' We have to get back to that."

"The covenant that binds “We the People” together rests on this promise: Power flows from the consent of the governed. When that covenant is broken, when leaders choose their voters instead of voters choosing their leaders, we are not merely witnessing a political maneuver; we are confronting a moral trespass against the very heart of democracy."

He often uses quotes from Matthew that emphasize the importance of taking care of those in need - 

for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.”

Although I very much like James Talarico, this is not a direct endorsement, just a likely path.  I still am very much for AOC to be our next President.  And current polling shows her to be one of the most popular politicians in the country.

Many things could happen that could divert us from this path.  Talarico has a lot yet to prove, and I don't know of any skeletons (or, with Trump, whether that even matters anymore).

But I do know this.  Whether his path leads to the Presidency or not, his path shows the only way forward for Christianity to survive.  If  Christianity continues down the path of Christian Nationalism. It will either wither away or make Christianity completely unrecognizable.

Even more important than the light that James Talirico shines on democracy is the light he shines on our restoration of faith.

Until next time.

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

* this is not to flame Hilary Clinton. She was the most qualified person to be President, had the talent and temperament to be effective, and she won the popular vote.  She just wasn't meeting the moment that fit the anti-establishment mood.

** make no mistake.  I feel that Biden was a good and arguably great President.  The things he accomplished with the small Congressional margin he had were nothing short of miraculous.  But he was old.  And with the cyclical nature of our politics, like when the elderly Eisenhower was replaced by the younger, more charismatic John F Kennedy; between Biden and Trump, we are ready to turn to a younger generation.

A Look Out the Window

 This is Scout, my kitty pal.  He's on the porch side of our kitchen window.  He can climb anywhere.

Actually, he's not really a kitten anymore.  He'll be one a week from now. That's our best guess for his birthday, and we're sticking to it.

I'm not a cat person, but I am a Scout person.  I've never had a cat want to be with me so much.

Personal Health

At 70, health can be like a game of whack-a-mole.

Diabetes? Bam! Under control! Blood pressure? Bam!  Better, but not teenager-like.  Weight? Bam? Lost about 30 lbs! Prostate biopsy due to slow rise in PSA? Bam! No cancer or abnormalities!

Arthritic flare-ups in feet, knees, and legs?  Bam! Went to a Rheumatologist in Valdosta and was prescribed a better medicine that has greatly reduced pain!  Enough where I can sit at the computer a little bit longer and write more!

Writing

Now I can return to The Strait Line more (now with over a million views!) and pursue some of my other writing projects.

For the second time, I am a runner-up in the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine's Mysterious Photograph contest. Maybe I should expand and try some other contests.

Future topics for the Strait Line:

President Talarico

Top 100 Sci-Fi Films of the 20th Century continued

More stories from the Kingdom (near-future flash fictions that extrapolate into a darker future if we allow fascism to continue to grow and thrive)

More stories from the Stony Land (adaptations from my father's research into my family's history of the Straits in America, going back 13 generations)

Stop! In the Name of Democracy! How to fix the happenings with the Supremes!

More Scout, Pixie, Alison, Benjamin, and Retta! 

Television and Movies

I finished Season 3 of The Diplomat last night.  You would think that, given my personality and interests, I would love more political series, but I am often drawn away from them because of their lack of realism.  With THe Diplomat it's not so much that's not realistic, it's thast it's sometimes amoral.  Even the lead characters commit subtrefuge that I'm shocked thatthey're willing to do that. The acting sometimes is a little stiff or overreaching.  It had enough good moments though, thast I will watch Season 4 when it comes out.

Alsion and I started Season 2 of THe Pitt last night.  It's very, very good, but both of us are squeamish during some of the surgery scenes, and we turn to each other and ask, "Why are we eatching this?"  It's compleeing characters and important social commentary - that's what gets us through.

Not much to say about movies, other than i am really looking forward to Supergril.

Sports

I'll just list my favorites.

MLS: Atlanta United

NWSL: Portland Thorns

MLB: Detroit Tigers

NBA: Detroit Pistons (in the playoffs! Woot! Woot!)

NHL: Detroit Red Wings

NCAA any sport: Michigan Wolverines (my alma mater)

Can anyone tell by this I grew up in Michigan?

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

Top 100 Sci-Fi Movies of the 20th Century!!! Part 5 No. 58 - 52

 

  I received this issue of Remind, which Alison calls "my old people magazine," that ranked the top 100 Science Fiction movies of the 20th century.

Remind does feature many pop culture stories, primarily from the 1950s through the 1990s, though there are references to earlier decades as well. Each issue focuses on different topics, such as country music, westerns, and "where are they now" issues, among others. I enjoy it, as I love pop history. They also have puzzles and a monthly guide to what's on TCM (Turner Classic Movies).

I thought it would be fun to review the movies on the list in reverse order and share my thoughts on them. The magazine's ranking of the movies is not mine.  

I won't go into detailed reviews, but I will share the IMDb ranking and my own rating on a 1-10 scale. I am starting to grade some movies by fraction, such as grading a 7 as 7.3.  

58)

Soylent Green

Year: 1973  IMDb: 7.0 Tom: 7.0  Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Library Rental

Imagine 2022 New York City.  Pollution is rampant, there is overcrowding, poverty, unemployment and hunger. The only food in abundance is Soylent Green.  And what is it made of?  Huh? Eh? Eh? At the time, it was perhaps the biggest surprise I had experiencec in cinema.  It features a disillusioned cop in Charlton Heston, and Edward G. Robinson in his final film role. I enjoyed revisiting this science fiction mystery thriller.

57)

The Andromeda Strain

Year: 1971  IMDb: 7.6 Tom: 7.3  Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Pluto TV

Well, this time we did it to ourselves.  Achrashed sattelite brings in deadly microbes, killing an entire town, except for an old man and a baby. Wickedly realsitic, sometimes plodding, but always focused on the crisis at hand, aa small group of scientists try to figure and neutralize the virus. This was based on a bestseller by Michael Chrchton (Jurrasic Park), a writer I followed until he went globel warming denier.

56)

Starman

Year: 1984  IMDb: 7.0 Tom: 8.1  Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Roku

It's no secret that I am a huge John Carpenter.  I seldom see movies more than once, but most Carpenter films I could watch again and agian.  This one is one of his best, and is unique in it's romantic ... stariness.  Jeff Bridges plays an alien doing his best to emulate human behavior. He was nominated for Best Actor, a rarity for a scince fiction film performance.  And he deserved to win.  He is aided by a Karen Allen (also a steller performance), assisting him in trying to return to his home world, while being persued by those pesky governemtn agents.

55) 

Strange Days

Year: 1995  IMDb: 7.2 Tom: 8.3  Had I seen before? No  Service found on: Library Rental

Yeah. I have no idea how I hadn't seen this before.  To date, of those movies I had missed, this was the biggest surprise. Set just four years in the future, it's use of VR and other elements are more prophetic for now than 1999/2000. I found the story very engaging, and the two leads, Ralph Fiennes and Angela Bassett, very engaging. It really rings true today, not just thte VR, but with AI, and the increasing racial and social injustice of our times. Successful both as a social commentary and an action thriller, I highly reccomend it.  But, oh boy!  Is it ever hard to find!  Your best bet is a livrary DVD rental.

54)

The Thing From Another World

 

Year: 1951  IMDb: 7.0 Tom: 5.9  Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Roku

This is based on a famous novella by John Campbell.  I'm not sure how close to the source material it is.  John Carpenter may have benn slighltly closer in his 1982 adaptation. It's strenght is on a more realistic dialogue and presentatiion than many science fiction movies of it's time. It's scare factor is fairly muted.  James Arness (Gunsmoke's Mattt Dillon) plays like a giant alien carrot.  Not phenomenal, but impressive fot it's time, and worth a watch,

53)

 Starship Troopers

Year: 1997  IMDb: 7.3 Tom: 7.4 Had I seen before? Yes  Service found on: Pluto TV

Another film whose thmes hit harder today than they did at the time of the film's release. Based on Robert Heinlein's sceince fisftion novel, the film presents a mix of younf adult angst  and outright fascism.  Earth fights off an invasion of giant bugs, eventually trying to take the fight to the bug's home planet. There are news clips and TV ads icleverly interspersed throughout.  I understand what director Paul Verhoevan (Robo Cop) was going for, but the message against facism is somewhat lost in the miltary glory of the young soldiers, fghting as much for their home planet, as they are for the right to be a "citizen." I'm not sure everyone gets what they're watching, but that just might be me. Yes, the scariness of what we're going through now effects how I view this movie.

54)

Year: 1976  IMDb: 6.6 Tom: 4.0 Had I seen before? No  Service found on: Puto TV

I'm sorry to end this segment on this downer of a note, but this movie is terrible. Maybe you'll find it palatable, but I didn't.  It just meandered incoherently, and i didn't understand much of it. This is not a crticism of David Bowie.  He's a great musician, and he probably just did what they told him.  Sotry line is somewhat similar to Starman, I guess.  I'm not sure. In my opinon, a waste of celluloid. 

 As an added feature, I would like to keep a running list of those movies I have rated 8 or higher.

90) Akira 8

89) Cocoon 9

88) They Live 9

84) Face Off 8

77) The Time Machine 8

75) The Truman Show 8

          70) Galaxy Quest 8

          68) Time After Time 8

          67) Superman 8 

          63) Men In Black 8  

           56) Starman 8.1

           55) Strange Days 8.3

Next up? More John Carpenter! Perhaps the best of 50's science fiction planetary visits! James Cameron enters the charts! Star Trek chase whales! And much more!  Well, two or three more.

Until next time!

T. M. Strait (thanx, H. G. Wells!)

AOC '28

 

In The Land of Fairy Tales

 

Many of us thought it wouldn't happen.

No matter how much we shouted, the Emperor had no clothes; we thought that those who could or would not see it would remain blind to the truth forever.

I mean, it worked with Reagan, didn't it? No matter how much I tried to communicate this to others, no one would listen.

Time and time again, the boy would cry wolf, and no wolf was coming. It got to the point where no one would listen to him. When the wolf finally arrived, the warning was ignored because the villagers no longer believed the boy.

But, lo and behold, things are starting to change.

I'm not precisely sure of the exact trigger. Maybe it was different things for different people. But the end result is that many who used to think he was clothed realize now he is a naked charlatan. Many who were Pavlovian in their response to his wolfy warnings no longer believe him.

Maybe it's because they now see the Emperor lying about things they can easily see are not true. It's one thing to lie about an election he lost; it's another to lie about the prices that people can see are clearly going up, not down. All it takes is a trip to the gas station or to the grocery store, and you can see he's lying. All it takes is seeing your health insurance premium rise and your 401(k) wobble.

Maybe it's the sudden realization that he's not going to truly open the Epstein Files, because lo and behold, it's not a Democratic Party hoax. It's not just filled with Bill Clinton and other Democrats. It's filled with billionaires and elites, people that Donald Trump wants to protect. And the dawning realization that the Number One person he wants to protect is...himself.

Maybe it's the "No New Wars" peacenik America First isolationist, suddenly plunging into an unnecessary and brutal conflict with a large nation of 90 million people. The reasons shift, but the biggest one is the wolf warning cry that they were two weeks away from a nuclear weapon, and we wouldn't want an unbalanced, mentally deranged leader to have a nuclear weapon, would we? These are the same potential weapons that the Emperor had declared just a few months ago that we had completely obliterated in Operation Midnight Hammer.

Now, those who had supported him are beginning to question other things. I was surprised to see the Butler assassination attempt re-emerge recently on social media. And it wasn't because of left-wing accounts. The suspicions were coming from MAGA!

The suspicions had grown so great that the recent incident at the White House Correspondents' Dinner was largely disbelieved. The immediate response by many was that it was also staged. The credibility of dear leader has declined so badly that a significant swath of his own supporters no longer believe him.

Were these assassination attempts staged? I have no idea. Many open questions surround both incidents. I really miss effective independent journalism, and I really wish that some modern-day Woodward & Bernstein would get to the bottom of it.

The deterioration is finally affecting his poll numbers. His approval rating has plummeted to the low to mid-thirties. Personally, I feel like his popularity should never have risen above one percent, but I have always recognized that he has no clothes and that he CONSTANTLY cries wolf.

For those of you who are finally waking up to this and are finally absorbing the lessons of these fairy tales, I welcome you aboard. I'm sorry you didn't wake up until democracy was in the ICU, but I'm glad you're here now.

Now we have to emulate Hungary and vote in numbers that are too big to ignore, with a single voice that no amount of gerrymandering and voter suppression can silence.

Please join me in voting out every Trump-loving Republican in the midterms this Fall.

My Irish Eyes

 

My Irish Eyes are Smiling

A'Smiling Up at You

Except my eyes aren't Irish.  If green means Irish, that's a pretty rare eye color. It's less than 2% of the population, and although the Irish may have a slightly higher concentration, it's nowhere near a dominant trait.

My father carefully laid out his ancestry, dating back to the Welshman who first came here in the mid-seventeenth century.  He carefully traces the subsequent 13 generations, but he doesn't often identify the original nationality of those they're marrying. I know they're references to English and  German, but nothing else specific. I'd like to think we played the field.  The only other reference is a vague late 19th-century warning not to marry the "damn Dutch". That type of warning makes me think somebody had already done did that.

My mother's side has no equivalent history.  There is a notion that many were Scotch-Irish.  That doesn't mean Irish. They were Scots who were enticed to go to Ireland (particularly Northern Ireland) to tame the native Irish and keep them in Great Britain. The plan kinda worked and kinda didn't.  The island is now divided between Northern Ireland (part of Great Britain) and the independent Irish Republic.

I've never taken a DNA test.  It may be interesting, but ultimately, I see myself as me, not as a personality driven by the "cultures" of arbitrary nation-states.

Tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day. I don't drink beer, green, or any other color.  I've never been to a St. Patrick's Day party. Sometimes I wear green - if I think about it and am going to be around people who care. This year, probably not.  I don't expect to see many people.  But who knows? Because of this blog story, it's more on my mind than it otherwise would be.

This is me.  Yes, I'm lousy at taking selfies.  It was everything I could do just to keep my eyes open.  It's not enhanced like the model's up above.  Hard to tell on the interwebs whether that one is a natural eye color.

Hazel brown?  Hazel green?  Just brown?

I have no idea.  I'm glad there is no place I have to identify my eye color.

I'm not sure how relevant it is that I am or am not Irish.  I do know that Alison and I visited there a few years back, and we fell in love with the place. We have, on occasion, looked at what it would take to move there.  

In this age of the Orange Conman, there are a lot of places we've looked to move to.

The Most Fiery Consequence of Who is now President

 The blog article just before this answered the question Does it Matter Who the President Is?

It listed many consequences to the Trump Presidency, but I inadvertently left off the biggest one of all.

That's climate change. Global warming. It's not a myth. It's a scientific fact. And it's rapidly changing the viability and livability of our planet.

It's not happening as fast as originally projected. It's happening faster. Scientists are constantly having to accelerate the timetable for the deterioration of our climate.  

Extreme weather is becoming more and more common. Global average temperatures continue to soar. And, in the near future, climate refugees will even dwarf political refugees.

Our time to effect this is dwindling. Even if we had the right leadership, at this point, we can only mitigate rather than achieve a complete reversal.

The Orange Conman and his billionaire cronies are putting in policies that put us at the very top of this temperature pathway chart. Rather than embrace new technologies, they firmly embrace fossil fuels and all the devastation that their continued use will cause.

We are galloping, GALLOPING in the complete opposite direction we need to go.

The only way we could bring a quicker demise is if Trump's warmongering leads to nuclear war. Sadly, I can't rule that out.

It Makes No Difference Who Is President? Are You Serious?

 

The following is a Facebook post I posted on February 28th:

Shortly after Trump was announced the winner of the 24 election, someone told me not to worry. It really didn't matter who the President was. After one year of this madman, and especially this morning when the "Peace Presdient" has taken us to an unecessary war that will very likely result in the loss of lives of ourr sons and daughters (and the slauglter of countless Iranian citizens), I have to ask him, "Do you still think it makes no difference who is President of the United States?" But I can't. It might cause a rift in the organization we both attend.

He thinks himself neutral. He is not. He is very conservative, but with so much extremism around here, relative silence stands out as middle of the road.

For the last ten years, I have felt pent up and angry. It has been everything I can do to hold my temper in check.

I had an opportunity to ask him this about a week ago. I passed. Call me a coward if you want. But I have to constantly measure the collateral damage a remark can cause. And I decided it wasn't worth it.

But the question remains. Do you still think it doesn't matter who the President is?

Would we be currently engulfing the world in flames due to a war of choice? Would a school filled with young girls still be with us? Would any other President be stupid enough to be sucked in by Netanyahu's idea of obliterating Iran? The answer is no. No other president would have done this, especially without explanation or preparation. Bush and Cheney propagandized for a year or more before invading Iraq.

Would any other President been stupid enough to think that blanket-level tariffs were good economic policy? All that it has done has raised prices for average Americans and turned many of our allies against us. The big lesson for other countries is to build up their markets by excluding the United States. And hey, let's give 40 billion dollars to newly fascist Argentina, and prop up their beeef market over the Uniyted States! And hey, American farmers, don't worry! We'll bail you out with billionsmore of US taxpayer money!

Would Renee Good and Alex Pretti still be alive if we had a different President? Of course they would! And countless others who have been killed and/or dragged away by ICE. They're not going after the worst of the worst. They're dragging off and kidnapping US citizens, and that's bad. But they're not targeting the worst of the worst - those undocumented who have committed violent felonies. No, they're persecuting even those playing by the rules, people showing up for immigration hearings, trying to follow procedure. They're arresting people at workplaces - going after individuals - not the businesses that hire and exploit them. People are going to detention centers and then disappearing - no one knows where they've gone -deported, moved to another camp, murdered? We just don't know.* There is no exemption in Christianity where you get to treat people like they're less than human.

Would we have a President who, along with his cronies, is making billions off of corruption? No, there has never been anything like it. This is at a level we have never seen before and would never see with any other President.

Would the lgbtq+ community be made to feel less safe with any other President? I don't think so. The trans community, less than 1% of us, is being scapegoated and villainized. This is a trend in Republican politics, to attack and persecute minority communities, but the focus on trans people has been vicious and dangerous. Of course, hatred is not just reserved for them; they are just the most vulnerable. Somalis, Mexicans, Muslims - anything to make the blood boil in reich-wing America.

We elected someone who WEKNEW was a close associate of Jeffrey Epstein, the most notorious pedophile of modern times, who appears in the Epstein files more often than God and Jesus do in the bible. We have those in this country who close their eyes and pretend Trump wasn't involved. Trump wasn't a client. Trump was IN on it, part of the small inner circle planning and perpetuating this monstrosity. He owned teen beauty pageants and "modeling" agencies. He bragged about how his celebrity allowed him to get away with sexually assaulting women. They have tried to censor his name from what is released, but enough has slipped through that you have to know in your heart that he is every bit the monster that Epstein was.

I could go on and on. There are some things that are only happening, or happening at such an intense level, because we have a narcissistic, adjudicated sexual assaulter, adjudicated fraudster, convicted felon, racist, dementia-riddled, body-disintegrating, mad conman as President of the United States.

Of course, it matters who is President of the United States. Sometimes the differences are subtle. And sometimes they are apocalyptically crushing.

Guess which one Trump is?

Great Moments in Olympic History

 Please do not interpret this as a comprehensive list.  These are just moments that have stood out to me and had some impact beyond the sporting event.  They are not ranked; instead, they are listed in chronological order.

Jesse Owens at the 1936 Berlin (Nazi) Olympics

The 1936 Berlin Olympics were designed to be a showcase for Nazi ideology and demonstrate Aryan athletic superiority.  Hitler's racist statement was clouded by Jesse Owens winning FOUR Olympic gold medals in track and field.

Not all was golden memories, however.  Jesse Owens did not come home to a glorious welcome.  He was mistreated and ignored. He had great difficulty earning a living.  No advertisements.  No endorsements. Most of what he achieved was through the African American community.

We tend to forget that the Nazis were inspired by how historically Americans had treated blacks and native Americans, and helped develop some of their policies in persecuting the Jewish community.

Protest at the 68 Olympics

At the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, two American athletes, Tommie Smith, who won gold, and John Carlos, who won bronze, raised their fists during the playing of the national anthem during their award ceremony.  It was to call attention to human rights and the racial injustices faced by Black Americans.  Martin Luther King, Jr. had been assassinated earlier that year.  

The two athletes experienced much criticism and ostracization after that.  Nevertheless, it was an important moment in demonstrating the influence that athletes could have on important social issues, and the salute they gave has lived on as an important symbol in black communities and others that have been repressed.

The Perfect 10

It was a breathtaking moment.  Young Nadia Comaneci, a Romanian gymnast, was all of 14 years old, scored the first perfect ten on the uneven bars at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

It was spectacular, heartstopping.  It was also a bit dangerous. 

It took a while, but it did bring up age concerns.  Is 14 too young? The current age to participate is now 16.  I believe it raised some safety concerns, but I'm still researching that.  

Miracle on Ice

At the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics, what is considered one of the greatest miracles in sports occurred.  A team of amateur athletes from the US defeated a team of professionals from the Soviet Union. 4 to 3.  The Soviet Union had long dominated the sport at the Olympics, and no one anywhere was expecting this outcome.  

It also marked the beginning of the end of the Olympics as a contest for amateurs.  Always an iffy proposition, with authoritarian countries doing things like placing their athletes in the military, and making it the only job they do. 

Eventually, pro athletes, including NBA and NHL stars, competed in the Olympics.  The effect in some events, like basketball, was to weigh heavily in favor of countries like the USA.  

Yes, it's kind of a recognition of reality.  It's also kind of sad, in that it was one of the last places to let amateurs shine.

Simone Biles and Mature Judgment

Gymnast Simone Biles is one of the most accomplished athletes of our time. Her 11 medals are the most won by an American gymnast.  Even those who watched little Olympics would seek out her performances.

But it is not just what she did that made her such an important sports figure.  It's having the maturity to know her limits and make wise judgments.  Gymnastic performances require and incerdible balance between the mind and the body. And she was wise enough to know when those were out of synch, and going forward would put her at considerable physical risk.

She brought that balance into sharper focus and encouraged people to respect their mental health as well as their physical health.

I admire her greatly.

The Incredible Spirit of Freedom and Joy

What an amazing breath of fresh air!

A performance not only memorable for its physical and athletic accomplishments, but for the sheer joy and explosion of optimism it encircled us with.

I'm not sure I've ever been as captivated by a performance and story as I have by Alysa Liu.  Everything in this post about the greatest moments of the Olympics is represented in her.

Her family story is captivating.  His father was a Chinese dissident who challenged the authoritarian government in Tiananmen Square. He came here to find freedom in America. She is a first-generation American, and her family shows the VITAL contributions made by our immigrants.

She is not shy about her political beliefs, standing up against ICE and other progressive causes, including her support for the LGBTQ community.

She treats her fellow competitors with support, hugs, and love.

She's a freaking nerd, into anime.  She and Amber Glenn remind me so much of my son, Benjamin.  If Earth moved in that direction, I think they would be great pals.

Where some of our other athletes were getting too far into their own heads, stressing out and making mistakes they normally wouldn't, Alysa had a carefree attitude, where the most important thing was just to skate and have fun.

She broke the stranglehold that coaching has on many of our athletes.  They are overcoached and overtrained, limited in what they can eat, do, or even think.  They've surrendered their identity to the machine, which is more concerned with promoting itself than with their athletes.  

She left the sport at 16 because it was no longer fun with everyone overcoaching and controlling her.  When she came back in 2024, it was on her own terms, and the idea that whatever happened, she was going to have FUN!

And so have we all!  In these dark days, as America gets swallowed whole by a brutal and growing fascism, she has let back in the joy of being who you are.

Whether she retires or goes on to the greatest achievements in sports, I will never forget this moment in time.

She has lit up the world for all of us.