Battle of the Septuagenarians! Saturday Political Soap Box 238

Hokey Smokes!

When did our election turn into

The Battle

Joe Biden, 77

Update:  The man who has never won a primary finally won one in South Carolina.  The corporate media is wetting all over itself in excitement.

Of

Bernie Sanders, 78

Update:  THe problem for Bernie is not that the state that ALWAYS upholds the establishment candidate**  stunningly upheld the establishment candidate.  No, his problem is that he was supposed to be adding people of color to his base of support.  And in South Carolina, he did not.  All the press caterwauling aside, this is the true danger sign for him, and for the progressive movement in general.

the Septuagenarians!!!*

Mike Scrooge McDuck Bloomberg, 78


Hoe did the most important political contest of our lives turn into a battle between old white guys?  

Weren't we supposed to be turning a page to a new kind and age of politics?  Shouldn't the Millenials start picking up the ball, and start to straighten the mess the Baby Boomers have created?

What the hell happened?

WAIT!
What about these people?

Pete Buttigieg, 38

Ok, maybe this one is too young.  But, hey, maybe he has already accumulated a lot of experience, with positions in state and national governance.  Ok...well, it's the thought that counts.

Update:  Buttigieg now has an opportunity for the next four years to garner that experience.  His strategic withdrawal just before Super Tuesday was to curry favor with Biden and corporate Democrats and put a final shiv to Bernie Sanders.  Oh, well.  Politics ain't bean bag.

Amy Klobuchar, 59

Hey, the Goldilocks candidate! The one whose age is just right!  Too bad her politics is not appealing to progressives and/or people of color.  Oh, well....can't have everything!

Update:  I believe she is staying in solely to dampen down Bernie's vote in Minnesota.  After Super Tuesday, she will withdraw posthaste, either explicitly or implicitly endorsing Biden.

Elizabeth Warren, 70

Oh, crap!  My favorite candidate is a...

Septuagenarian!

Ok, well, at least she's Septuagenarian Lite.  And a female.  And whip-smart.  And high energy.  And with plenty of new ideas.

Update:  She raised $29 million in February, some of it from me.  Please don't quit.  I beg of you.  Please don't.  Your voice is needed.


And waiting on the other side...

Donald Twitter from the John Trump, 73

Representing Septuagenarian, Maroon Division,

Our Narcissistic, Racist, Would Be Dictator and beloved Conman,

President Warm Weather Will Kill the Beer Virus Donald J Trump

*septuagenarian is someone between the ages of 70 to 79.

**Barack Obama in 2008 was a slight exception to this rule.

The Vanishing Speculatron: Saturday Political Soap box 236

I used to do a feature within Saturday Political Soap Box called the Speculatron, where about once a quarter, I would speculate as to coming events in the political world.  I wasn't always accurate, but for the political buff in me, and my love of speculative fiction, it was a fun thing to do.

It's been a long time since I 've done one.

Why?

The future has been hard to face.  My usual long-term optimism has fled me, and I see fewer and fewer ways out of our current dilemma.  Problems are so severe that even the election of the very best we have to offer may not be enough to save us.

And it's becoming clearer and clearer that we may not elect our best.

I would love to project that the Democratic nominees will be a team of Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobuchar, or Warren/Kamela Harris.

I can't predict that.  Because it appears that I am totally out of synch with the Democratic primary voter.  Somewhere, somehow, the fear of Trump is so strong that we've turned our back on female candidates, and also people of color.  We're scared that these people will not be effective in running against Trump, that only a white candidate can draw the votes needed to win.

What poppycock and horse hockey.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

Women and people of color drive Trump crazy and cause hin to say more and more disgusting things.  His allies will not be able to contain themselves, and go too far, if not for the dedicated Trumpeteer, than for a significant majority of Americans.

This irrational decision of Democratic voters was driven home to me by an Iowa exit poll.  58% of Iowa Democratic caucus-goers were women, but even though they had two incredibly well-qualified women as candidates, they did not support either one in a significant way.  There was going to be no surge of sisterhood like there was for Hilary in 2016.

So my preferred outcome for 2016, female candidates for both President and Vice-President, look increasingly unlikely.

So, where then are we headed?

Bernie is the front runner right now.  I like Bernie.  Bernie is building support among non-whites now - did you know that?  Nah, the media doesn't report on that.  To be the nominee, he must show he can grow support beyond the base of his highly-dedicated supporters.  He not only has to achieve, but he also has to overachieve.  No one is going to let a Progressive be the nominee unless he is beating everyone else by significant margins,  He'll have to take not just the lion's share of the delegates, but a MAJORITY of the delegates.  Being slightly in front will not be enough to stop the large army of media and political pundits from savaging him.

Mayor Pete is a reasonably nice guy, and he has a chance to throw up enough smoke that people aren't sure whether he is Progressive or Corporate.  This may work for a while, but I don't know if he can keep it up.  I would feel a lot better about Mayor Pete if he had a bit more executive experience (statewide) and legislative experience behind him. 

Biden...I don't know what to say.  It's clear to me now, particularly from his Iowa Caucus night speech, and some other recent times I've heard him, that he has lost a step.  I still think he is highly qualified to be President, but he is a lousy campaigner and the most visibly aged of the candidates. I would not rule out a comeback - Super Tuesday has states with more diverse constituents, and most of them will know him primarily from ads and the great job he did as Obama's Vice President, rather than his town halls and campaign appearances.  It's not likely, but it's not out of the realm of possibility. 

I am Team Warren.  I make no excuses about that.  I will be with her until she withdraws.  She is not likely to leave before Super Tuesday, so that is who I am voting for.  It's dim for the home team, but nevertheless, we Warrenites persist.  She has the talent and abilities to be a first-rate President, and a greater ability to work with all sides than she has been given credit for.  Not only does she have to fight the current prejudice against female candidates, but she is being squeezed out from the Progressive vote by the loyalty to Bernie Sanders, and on the moderate side by the rise of Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Klobuchar...she is far too conservative for me, but...I have to admit she is demonstrating the skill set to be a good President.  I find her the best of the moderates.  I wouldn't be overly thrilled if she got the nomination, but I would be comfortable with it.  She has to demonstrate an ability to win votes beyond her moderate base and pull in Progressives and people of color.  Her, in combination with Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, or Julian Castro, might be quite an exciting ticket.

Bloomberg...I find his candidacy very upsetting.  I can't talk about it, even write about it without getting overemotional.  Nominating him would signal our country's complete surrender to the wealthy oligarchs.  How any Democratic, of any stripe, could consider this super-rich Republican/Independent is far beyond my comprehension.

It's hard to speculate about what I fear.  And I fear a Bloomberg candidacy.  Would I vote for him over Trump?

I would vote for Ted Cruz over Trump.  I would vote for a ham sandwich over Trump.  So, yes, I would vote for Bloomberg over Trump.

But it would make me very sick to my stomach. I would not want to be the next person in the voting booth after me.  It might not be pretty or smell very good.

I haven't got to Trump and his accelerating march towards authoritarian fascism.  This is something else that is too disturbing to speculate on.  He has learned from his Senate acquittal.  He has learned he can get away with anything, and he won't be stopped.  God help us all.

Bottom line?

I can't accurately predict the Democratic nominee.  My hopes for a good outcome are too low, my fear of a bad outcome are too high.

Pushing me to make my best guess?

Klobuchar/Booker.

If it can't be Warren, that's the next best outcome I can project.

Please, just don't let it be Bloomberg.

Choose Your Speed!: Saturday Political Soap Box 234

How fast do you want to go?

The only real decision in voting in the Democratic Primary is trying to determine how fast you want to go.

Do you want to get to the achievement goals of improving our society and bringing us into the future quickly or slowly?

YOU BE THE JUDGE!

16 RPM

Want to play it safe?  You really don't have too many problems with the way things are except for the erratic orange clown in charge, and how he endangers everything we hold near and dear?  Only looking for incremental improvements in health care and the environment and the economy?  Then JOE BIDEN is your candidate!  He will follow the Obama model of surrendering large chunks of the agenda to get done what he can by impressing moderate Republicans and bringing a handful on board for minor incremental changes.  Things may move forward, but the pace will be slower than a Zanaxed turtle.  MICHAEL BLOOMBERG is also in this group, but God help us if in the current environment if we to another billionaire.*

33 RPM

Want things to go a little faster, but still prefer modest change to faster change?  Want to see the current system basically intact but with some expansion of things like health care and working towards checking climate change?   Then PETE BUTTIGEIG and AMY KLOBUCHAR are your candidates!  There would be slight differences in their calibrations.  Pete might move faster and wish to progress farther on some issues than Amy is, but both have their limits as to how far they want to go.  Pete has a sharper vision, and Amy has a greater streak of pragmatism.  But both should move faster than Joe.

45 RPM

Want to move forward faster but with at least some caution and desire to bring as many people on board with your priorities as you can?  Beleive that parts of the system are corrupt and need major reform? Then ELIZABETH WARREN is your candidate!  Elizabeth has changed her Medicare For All plan into one designed to do everything we can as quickly as we can - to build the consensus step by step.  She is clear on where we need to go, and how to finance it, but is willing to take steps to build it on a solid foundation.  TOM STEYER may fall into this speed as well, but really, I do not want to talk about billionaire candidates.


78 RPM

Want us to get there at what the movie Spaceballs calls "ludicrous speed?"  Then you want the one and only, the great progenitor of truth, justice, and the TRUE American way - BERNIE SANDERS.  He's not messing around with moving us to where we need to be on all the issues I care about.  Also (maybe) in this category is ANDREW YANG, because he is voicing concerns about what our economy is really going to look like in the next ten to twenty years.  He is proposing solutions to problems that have not even occurred yet.  On a side note, however, Andrew Yang's platformed changes in health care blows BIG TIME.


Me personally, I prefer the 45 RPM speed, moving forward in a specific direction, but working towards building the consensus that will keep us from flying off the rails again.

But really, choose whatever speed you like.  At least you will be moving towards something better and different.

Because do you know what speed the opposition is moving at?


MINUS 78 RPM

That's right.  They are spinning us backward as fast as they can.  You know, the ones where when played backward, say stuff like, "I am Satan."


So, compared to that, even Joe Biden seems pretty darn sweet!



Impeachment Update:

Yeah, I'm not posting on impeachment and the upcoming trial very much.  What can I say?  Every day, it becomes more evident and more apparent how criminal and dangerous the narcissistic, racist clown really is.  Should he be convicted/found guilty?  Hell, yes.  Should he be removed?  Double hell yes!  Will he be removed?  Not in our current reality.  The best we can hope for is that enough Republicans join in demanding witnesses and that when the American people see it, they say (at least 60% or more) "Damn!  He's guilty as F... and the Republicans are trying to sweep it under the rug, but damn, that rug is now really lumpy!"

I know.  Not very likely.  But...truth, justice, and the American Way, baby!  Gotta keep up the neverending fight!





*yes, I know.  Trump is probably not really a billionaire, but he plays one on TV, and the Trumpeteers are snookered into believing that he is one.

Raising the Universe: Saturday Political Soap Box 225

Whether you support him or not, whether you're ok with people left out of our healthcare system or not, Bernie has to be acknowledged as our Moses leading the way out of our broken healthcare system.

I am for universal healthcare.  It is my most rock bed central position.  It is the closest I come to being a single-issue voter.

The system that has been most talked about is Medicare For All.   I like the name.  Medicare is a popular program, and it makes the idea instantly recognizable to almost every American.

But I am not wedded to the name.  I am wedded to the concept.  Everyone must be covered.  Everyone must have access.  People should not go broke trying to get the healthcare and medical procedures they need for the well-being of themselves and their families.  Access should not be determined by wealth or whether your employer has (FOR NOW, EXISTING ONLY AT THE COMPANY'S WHIM) a gold-plated deluxe healthcare policy.

I posted this recently:

Imagine if I pay rent of $800 a month. I pay for my utilities. I pay for any repairs or maintenance. I pay the property tax and insurance. This costs me, on average, another $800 a month. That's a total of $1600, maybe more if things go badly. Now I have an offer to pay rent of $1000 a month, BUT my utilities are included, and the landlord covers repairs, property tax, and insurance. Should I change to the $1.000 a month rent plan?

Note that I am comparing one rental plan to another.  This is not a commentary on homeownership vs. renting.

Given the facts presented, a rational person would select the slightly higher rent that covers more of the other costs. 

Unfortunately, when it comes to healthcare, the American people have shown little rationality.  It's not all their fault.  There are significant forces in the country (private insurance, pharmaceuticals, hospitals, etc.) that have a vested interest in ginning you up to hate universal healthcare.  So they spend beaucoups of time and money (often filling the campaign coffers of politicians) to get you to stress more about taxes than total cost.

The bonus of a universal system is that not only is it morally right, it is also the most cost-effective system.  Administration costs shrink considerably (no multi-million dollar CEOs to keep afloat).  Private insurance is not trying to increase profits by denying care or setting up bureaucratic roadblocks.  Hospitals and doctors don't have to deal with tons of paperwork by multiple insurance companies.

We now have the most expensive per person medical system in the world, almost twice as much as our closest rivals.  Going to Medicare For All is going to close that gap, not increase it.

People have been fussing at Elizabeth Warren for not giving a more decisive answer on how she would fund Medicare For All.  She talks about total costs when the media and other candidates want her to say something about increasing taxes so they can go GOTCHA!

Yesterday, she came out with a plan that structures it so that the Medicare For All program is funded without raising middle-class taxes. I have not read the details, but she is a very meticulous, well-thought person, so I am sure there is a method and rationale behind how she wants to fund it.

Me?  I'm not running, so I don't know why we can't do the common sense thing- if it's Medicare For All, why not increase the payroll tax percentage that comes out for Medicare?  Don't cap it, and extend it to unearned income as well.  Worried about the effect on middle-class taxpayers?  Reduce the amount of income tax they pay - maybe even extend a tax credit to taxpayers with low to moderate-income.

With no premiums, no deductibles, no co-pays, most Americans will come out way, way, ahead.

Some want to stay gripped to the plan that comes from their employer.  You know - the plan you will lose if you are fired, laid off, or just try to get another job.  The plan that the employer can change form year to year.  The plan that leaves most of us fighting to get our bills covered, having to be lawyers/advocates/accountants/Type A personalities just to get things covered.  How exhausting.

I try not to say too much about the Democratic candidates that is negative.  The truth is all of them, even the most conservative and cautious, will be light years ahead of the Republicans.

Nevertheless, I am sick of the moderate Democrats trashing the progressive Democrats over healthcare issues, handing the Republicans talking points on a silver platter.  If they want to say universal healthcare is difficult, fine.  To say that it is impossible and a pipedream, angers me and breaks my heart.

I am an Independent Progressive who votes Democratic because I believe that is the quickest route to covering everybody.  I will always vote in the primaries for the candidate that will most quickly bring us to that.

Do I want to beat Trump or whomever the Republicans nominate?  Hell, yes.  Do I want to abandon my healthcare position to do that?

No, I won't do that.  And I believe it has the extra bonus of being the strategically correct thing to do.  The working class has to once again see the Democrats fighting for them, and things that benefit them, and not as Republican Lite, just as beholden to their high dollar donors as the Republicans.

Unless we become an authoritarian, fascist country (a path many have undeniably started on), we will one day have universal healthcare.  It is inevitable.  Like other great social movements in our country, it looks impossible until it isn't.

It's just a matter of whether it happens slowly or quickly, incrementally or all at once.

I vote for quick.

No more canisters in convenience stores.

No more Go Fund Me healthcare.

No more medical bankruptcies.

No more people dying for lack of access to decent healthcare.

Please join me in supporting candidates who will move our healthcare system into the 21st century, and bring us into the rest of the civilized world that already has universal healthcare.

Musings on Mueller's Eve

'Twas the night before Mueller, and all through the House
Not a member there who was not conferring, even Nancy the mouse
The questions were considered with all due care,
In hopes that Mueller would soon be there
The report they all should have reads
Had now to be crammed into their heads
And Nadler pacing, and Schiff with his thinking cap
Had just settled in to handle all the Republican crap
When out on the White House lawn there arose such a clatter
And they sprang to their Twitter to see what was the matter
Away to the toilet his little fingers the keys he did mash
And tore out the country's soul with his infantile trash
Schiff threw open a window. looked up, and saw the waning moon
Giving a glow of pale yellow, the dawn it could not come too soon
When, what to his wandering eye should appear,
But an Uber, with the Squad that the Twitterer did fear
Led by a young woman, so lively to see,
Schiff knew in a flash that it must be AOC
"Now, Rashida!  Now Ayanna!  Now Ilan and more!
On, Adam!  On, Jerry!  On all who defend truth's shore!
To the top of the Hill!  To the top of the hearing room!
Now dash away all!  We do not need to stay in gloom!"
So into the House they flew
With a sack full of questions - and AOC too:
And they crammed all the night
Brainstorming whatever could make this right
As they drew in their questions and turned around,
Down the hallway came Mueller with a bound.
A bundle of hope was flung on his back,
And he looked like he been through a lot of flack.
"Will you answer our questions, or will be like Yoda,
A mystical Buddha with nothing but code-a?"
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Made them think they maybe might not have anything to dread.
He said not a word but went straight to his work,
Making each there feeling a bit like a jerk.
He sprung to his limo, and bid all adieu
Leaving them lost as to what they should do
But they heard him exclaim as he drove out of sight

"Just read the report!  For God's sake, could I lay it out any plainer???"



I know not what tomorrow brings.
But I fear nothing will sink into the Trumpeteers.  Nothing.
"Twas the night before the Mueller hearing,
And into my heart, fear is searing.

God help us all.

Fox News Changes Formats!

The Disney/Fox merger hits Fox News bigly!  Fox News has spun off into its own entity, and with hosts that advertisers are fleeing, along with a rapidly aging viewer base, Fox News has decided to do a major revamping!

Gone are hosts like Tucker Carlson, Jeanine Pirro and Laura Ingraham.  Also gone are Neil Cavuto,  Lou Dobbs, and all the hosts of Fox & Friends.  In fact, the only significant talents retained by Fox are news anchor Shepard Smith and news interviewer Chris Wallace.

7 AM to 9 AM

Morning Soul

Two hours of news and information anchored by Soledad O'Brien and Melissa Harris-Perry.

9 AM to 11 AM

Morning Joy

News and information coanchored by Joy Reid and Joy Behar.  Joy Reid is one of several talents taken from MSNBC, and Joy Behar is coming over from The View.

11 AM to 6 PM

Straight news will be offered at this time, with a number of different newscasters, including Shepard Smith.  There will be a substantial increase in investigative reporting, utilizing Fox reporters, and the resources of VICE news, Mother Jones, and TYT. Some of the early in-depth  reports will be uncovering the damage left in Puerto Rico and how much federal neglect has been complicit in the harm done to the territory, the real conditions in the Central American countries that are causing so many refugees to flee there, and an expose of what's it like to be uninsured in the health care system of America,

6 PM to 7 PM

The Damage Report

One of several shows brought over in the cooperation agreement with TYT network, The Damage Report with John Iadarola covers many of the most burning topics of the day.

7 PM to 8 PM

Pod Save America

One of the most successful and entertaining of all the podcast shows comes to television! Natasha Bertrand also joins the Pod Saves America team.

8 PM to 10 PM

The Young Turks 

The crown jewel of the new Fox lineup, incisive exploration of the day's headlines, and spirited progressive debate centered on the primary team of Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian, but featuring many other guests and the best of the investigative reporting done from the whole network.

10 to 11 PM

Live with Lawrence O'Donnell

A tremendous get from MSNBC, Lawrence brings his incisive commentary and interview skills to the new Fox Lineup!

11 PM to 12:30 AM

Full Fox with Samantha Bee and Stephanie Miller

Fresh and funny, a humorous take on the news that features some of the most excellent comedic talents in the country.  John Fugelsang will be on every program, and also a great rotating slate of comedians, including Michelle Wolf, Trae Crowder, and Randy Rainbow!

Catch the entire new Fox Lineup starting today.... 

April Fool's Day!

Aliens Attack 2!

I love science fiction!

From my earliest years, I was mesmerized by it in all its forms.  I sat entranced by The Twilight Zone and  Star Trek.  When The Outer Limits took control of my television's vertical and horizontal, I'd stay with it even though half the episode I would watch with my hands covering my eyes.  I read everything, from H.G. Wells to Issac Asimov, and I started buying science fiction magazines when I was only 8.  When school ended, I would rush home to watch the old science fiction films that the local channel would run in the afternoons, even the ones where giant octopi would overrun San Francisco.  And when I saw Star Wars, I wept with joy, as the type of movie I had dreamed of all my life was finally on the big screen.

One of the more common themes of science fiction is that of the alien invasion.  Starting with the Martians of  H. G. Well's War of the Worlds, and running through more recent epics like Independence Day, the aliens would invade, and through the inventiveness of Mother Earth and/or humankind, they would manage to defeat the invaders.

In many of these, the world would unite to challenge the alien invaders.  All the nationalistic and philosophical divisions would fade away.  We were mankind, and there was more that bound us together than that which divided us.  But it took a common enemy for us to see that.

And that's just about where we're at right now.  There is an alien in charge, an alien who does not believe in all the principles that we as Americans have struggled to achieve.  An alien to our civic culture, who does not believe in democracy and the constitution, who openly pines after the worst authoritarian dictators in the world.

But do not fear.  Forces are starting to reunite.  This can be seen in the recent funeral that honored the passing of an American hero, John McCain.  It united figures from across our political spectrum, working together to show respect for the beloved Senator, and for our American civic institutions. Men who had stood in fierce opposition, like Presidents Obama and Goerge W Bush, now stood together, sharing the eulogy, and in the case of W and Michelle Obama, even sharing candy.

Who was not there was the man who has been an alien to America's civic culture, a man who would take us down a dark and divisive path, the alien in the White House, President Donald J. Trump.

But do not despair.  We are at the point in the tale where more and more are standing up to him.  The opposition to him is increasing among even Republicans (well, at least those not up for re-election).  Books, including the upcoming book by Watergate Reporter Bob Woodward, that paint a chaotic and dangerous picture of a White House out of control, ruled of by an amoral dictator, who operates without any knowledge or caring, without any constitutional underpinnings.  We even have the chaos confirmed by insiders in the White House, in a dramatic anonymous letter to the New York Times.

So take heart, my fellow Earthlings!  This invasion, aided and abetted by foreign powers, will not stand.  It cannot survive if we stand together!

Reality is not like science fiction stories.  The good guys don't always win.  But I have faith, faith in our civic institutions and our basic human decency, that in the end, we will emerge a better and stronger nation and planet.

As Mongo sez:  I like Candy!

Marching Monday Musing

Go Blue!  The Michigan Wolverines continue their March through the "March Madness" NCAA College Basketball Tournament.  They had one blow out win, but most of their wins have been tight and queasy-inducing.  But there they stand, the fourth-place team in the Big Ten (but still Big Ten Tournament Champions), the only Big Ten team in the Final Four!  Next, they play Cinderella 11th-seed Loyola-Chicago.  Under any other circumstances, I might pull for the underdog.  But not these.  Wolverines all the way, baby!

It was also the weekend of the March For Our Lives Rally.  The turnout was fantastic, throughout the United States.  Hundreds of thousands of America's young people turned out.  They loudly declared that Gen Z will not be the apathy generation.  As they protest, march, and speak out, and then most importantly register to vote, they are going to provide an important counterweight to the NRA and the alt-right.

There were many brilliant, articulate and informed young speakers at these rallies. The student pictured above was one of the youngest and most compelling.  Naomi Wadler, 11 years old, spoke out eloquently about the effects of gun violence, particularly about its disproportionally heavy effect on young black women.

Emma Gonzalez, 18 and from Parkland, brought the crowd to its symbolic knees with her moments of silence.  Edna Chavez moved me to tears when she talked about the gun violence in her South Los Angele neighborhood.  David Hogg, the young high schooler from Parkland, made it clear that this would have an electoral element, and that they would do everything they could to counterbalance and defeat those who enriched themselves with NRA money.

My prediction is that we are beginning to see the emergence of a new generation of leadership and that we will see one or more of these young leaders in high office one day.  Maybe even the highest office.  

When I see what this new generation is doing, speaking out with fire and hope, it makes me believe that we finally will have a generation worthy of our Greatest Generation, that battled depression and fascism, and set the middle class into its golden era (well, at least until Reagan and the trickle-on theory of economics).

And the way we're going, the damage we've caused to the planet and America's standing in the world, Generation Z can't come to leadership fast enough.

To all my young blog readers - register to vote!  You got the power!

If you choose to use it.

Perdue Chicken Surprise

If it was just Senator Dick Durbin, the above question may have a point...but it's not.  The sources for this story predated Senator Durbin's reaction.  Senator Tim Scott verifies what was said, and that Senator Lindsey Graham was very vocal about his objections within the meeting, even though he has not been as clear outside the meeting (although not denying it either).  Trump was reported to be bragging about and testing what he said to close friends - I think he thought the reaction would actually be positive about it  - which is why he took a day or two to go into his normal super-liar mode.  There are a large number of political figures, Democrat and Republican alike who have spoken out against Trump's horrible remarks, including Georgia Senator Johnny Isakson.

Meanwhile, my home state Senator, David Perdue, seems to be at the forefront of those denying or obfuscating what happened.  Who knows?  Maybe he is the poorest listener in the world.  Or maybe he is so used to the President swearing and his racial tirades that it doesn't stand out to Perdue.  He may also be hanging his hat on the fact that the Trump racist quotes may not be 100% perfect.  Like maybe he said s---house instead of s---hole, AS IF THAT WOULD BE ANY LESS MONSTROUS.

Senator David Perdue is an embarrassment to the state, and to decent thinking people everywhere.  His blind subservience to our racist, narcissistic con-man President, is a sickening site to behold.

Damn Strait is Running for Congress! Saturday Political Soap Box 170!

Let me officially announce that I, Damn Strait, am running for Congress, to be the Congressional Representative for the First District of Georgia.

I will not be running as a Democrat.

I will not be running as a Republican.

I will be running in a new party, the Can'tBelieveThisFILLINTHEBLANKisReal Party.

Of course, to make it an official party, I only need to get like 7 million verified signatures from the 6 million registered Georgia voters. A daunting task, but I'm sure I'm up to it.

As anybody who actually reads my stuff knows (Bueller? Bueller?  Bueller?), I am first and foremost dedicated to universal health care.

Here is how I propose to achieve it -

A glorious Three-Tiered System!

Tier One:

For those who can afford it....THE FINEST HEALTH CARE SYSTEM IN THE WORLD!!! Private hospital suites!  First class doctors!  Surgeries with no wait times!

As a special bonus, those who make incomes of $250,000 or more, we will give you AND your employers TRIPLE tax credit for your plans!!! Remember our party motto...WELFARE IS FOR THE WEALTHY, NOT THE POOR!

Tier Two:

The working class gets their very own...MEDICAL CREDIT CARD!!!  Need to see a doctor?  First, are you absolutely sure?  If so, CHARGE IT!!!  This credit card will cover all your costs, and you only have to make the minimum monthly payment, and let the balance accumulate with the low rate of interest of....35%.

Can't make payments?  That's okay!  You van declare medical bankruptcy, and everything you own and love will be stripped from you!  You can do what every American dreams of...start once again at the bottom and work your way back up, Horatio Alger style, just like Donald Trump does!  Especially if your Daddy has millions to make you flush again, or failing that, your friendly neighborhood Russian mobsters!

Tier Three:

For the rest of you, you will have the privilege of visiting a specially designated area called....MEDICAL EMERGENCY BACK ALLEY!  Yes, everyone will have in the municipality or district, a specially designated street you can go to, lay out in the street Gone With the Wind Atlanta burning style, and have someone dressed like Scarlett O'Hara come to you and say soothing things like. "Oh, fiddledeedee!  Why worry?  Tomorrow is another day!  Well,for me, maybe not so much for you!'

BAM! A plan that covers everyone!  Some covered from head to toe in white sheets, but nevertheless, COVERED!!!

This is just the first problem solving plan in my bigly, detailed platform!  More to come - INCLUDING.....

TWO GUNS IN EVERY POCKET!

AMERICHRISTIANITY NAMED THE OFFICIAL RELIGION OF USA!

INFRASTRUCTURE WHONEEDSASTRUCTURE?  PAVED STREETS ARE FOR SISSIES!

WHO NEEDS SO MANY TV CHANNELS?  WE JUST NEED FOX NEWS AND THE DUCK DYNASTY CHANNEL!

NO MORE IMMIGRANTS!  UNLESS YOU'RE RICH AND NEED LAWN CARE AND/OR A NANNY! OR A RICH HOTEL/RESORT OWNER!  OR CORPORATE AGRICULTURE!  OR...WELL, OKAY THERE MAY BE MORE EXCEPTIONS THAN I ANTICIPATED BUT YOU GET THE IDEA!

Keep posted!  More exciting details to come!

Collected Signature Tracker:  0

Amount of Contributions to Date: $0

Personal Investment to Date:  $0.89.  No, scratch that.  Flash foods has a Baby Ruth for that amount. I'll start investing tomorrow.  Maybe.

Alternate History Wednesday Wanderings

I love alternate history!

Speculating on "what if" is one of my favorite things to do!

And, if nothing else, the Donald is entertaining for that!  A man more ignorant of history than most fifth graders, he can bring up the most entertaining scenarios!

Frederick Douglass is ALIVE!

His meager Electoral College win, and the biggest popular vote loser to ever become President, is actually a LANDSLIDE WINNER!

History has shown trickle down economics WORKS!

Global warming is a hoax perpetuated by the CHINESE! Pay no attention to the rising global temperatures or the increasingly more frequent extreme weather events!

His inaugural crowds were the LARGEST in history!

Andrew Jackson could have prevented the Civil War if we had just let him!  Yes, Zombie Jackson could have come back from the grave and preserved our nation without a bloody civil war!  Of course, this slaveholder probably would have prevented it by preserving slavery, but c'est la vie!  The nation cannot exist half slave and half free!  .....Or maybe it can!  Who knows since we didn't let Old Hickory try!


Andrew Jackson could have stopped America's involvement in World War 2!  With him and Lindbergh heading the America First movement, they could have kept us from getting pulled into that morass.  It wouldn't be all bad.  I mean. just think about how united the EU would be right now! Trump would love it, as he admires dictators.  Sieg Heil!


Can you imagine what a President Andrew Jackson could have accomplished in the Civil Rights Era? That march from Selma to Birmingham could have been turned into a real trail of tears!


What an alternative history treat President Drumpf is!  Even before he opens his mouth, you feel like you've stepped into an alternative history glimpse of the nether world.  Really?  Is this how American history is supposed to go?  That we end up in the hands of a narcissistic, sexist, racist bully with no grasp of reality?  That a good day is any day we wake up and find he hasn't started WW3 yet?  That every bit of progress and decency we ever strove for is slowly being peeled away?

Somehow, I feel like we've left the real world, wandered off Earth Prime, and now are in Alternate reality #666wtf.

This was an interesting and scary speculation, but I'm ready to go back now.

Please.

Why I Now Support Donald Trump: Saturday Political Soap Box 161

Look at that wonderful man!  All the charming, smirking confidence of every high school bully you ever met.  And what more do you want in a President than the ability to brutally and senselessly attack everybody you know and love?

Hail to the Chief!

Victor of the 46th largest (out of 58) Electoral College victory in the history of the United States! Winner of the popular vote except for the millions of illegals that voted in states like California and New York that Crooked Hillary would have won anyway.  Thanks and a gigantic hat's tip to the Russians for all the support they provided, through hacked e-mails, and Russian trolls micro-targeting the crucial Rust Belt states.  Truly, he couldn't have done it without you.

Why do I support him?

1) He has bent over backwards to support every American

...except, of course, the undocumented, Muslims, African Americans, the media, Democrats, liberals, progressives, women, college students, the intelligence community, the Freedom Caucus, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. 

2) He's found Twitter and knows how to use it

He may not be able to use e-mail or operate a laptop.  He may not be able to read daily briefings, and have to have his updates in a few short paragraphs with plenty of pictures.  He may prefer Fox News, Breitbart and InfoWars to intelligence reports.  But no matter.  He knows how to insult and demean anyone on the planet in 140 characters or less. Heil Twitler!

3) He's going to turn his back on climate change and double down on heavily polluting fossil fuels

It's not so much that I don't believe in global warming.  I do.  It's that I want Blackshear to become beach front property.  Ka-ching!

4) He'll build stuff.  Maybe

He'll build stuff!  Like walls and hotels and things.  If he gets his proposed infrastructure program, not much may penetrate down to the worker level, but by god contractors will be swimming in it. A beautifully created contractor heavy program!  The whole country will learn what misdirected first draws mean!  It will be a perfect opportunity for me to quit accounting and become a....contractor! Woohoo!  I am riding the Trump train to gravy town!

5)  He's all about America First

Because our relations with other countries just don't matter.  I am so tired of less than 2% of our budget going to foreign aide.  Think of the rounding error worth of money we'll save, and how much all our foreign imports will cost, and how little other countries will want our exports.  Think of how exciting a world will be where diplomacy is neutered and aggressive bullying reigns supreme!

6) Shorter lines to public bathrooms

....because so many will be confused as to which bathroom to safely use now.

7)  I never liked Big Bird

Damn bird creeps me out.  You think the aristocrats on Downton Abbey would let their tax dollars be used to fund the arts, do you?  Well, okay, they probably would, but that's beside the point.  We need to save the money!  Someone's got to cover Melania's New York expenses, and Donald's Mar-A-Lago trips!  He's got to break Obama's golfing record!  What?  Oh, he may already have done that.

8)  You may not have to worry about that pesky Congress actually doing anything

Given the spectacular failure of TrumpDon'tCare, and the inability to pass anything of significance so far, you may not have to worry about Congress passing anything.  With the incredibly ineffective duo of insult machine Donald and Ayn Randian Ryan, combined with the superhuman stubbornness of the Freedom Caucus, we may see very little come out of this Congress.  And would that be a bad thing?

9)  Schools will return to what they once were

Exclusive and private.  Who needs everybody to go to school?  no more programs for special needs. No  more free and reduced school lunches.  We'll have private schools that know what the most important thing is - making money for their corporate overlords.  We'll also have private schools that indoctrinate into specific religious philosophies - hail creationism and the bible soaked constitution! If you want to go to college, you either need to come from a super rich family, or be able to saddle yourself with huge college loans with usurious rates of interest. And let's have campuses with complete freedom of speech for every right-winger, and firings for any professor to even hint at a left wing thought.   

10)  It's like watching the world's largest reality show!

It's like the Real Housewives and Duck Dynasty writ large!  Embrace your Honey Boo Boo and enjoy the show!  What could possibly go wrong?

Thank you for enjoying this year's April Fool's post.  Through it all, it should be clear,  that the Donald is, by far, the worst and most dangerous President we've ever had.  I pray every night that this country will survive him and eventually right itself.

  

Journey to La La Land: Saturday Political Soapbox 159

To quote Charlie from Lost:  Guys...where ARE we?


Where are we indeed?

Things that shouldn't be happening keep happening.  Events unravel in ways that even our most gifted fiction writers couldn't come up with.  Victories are snatched away.  Events congeal for the most unlikely of victories.

Hillary, on her way to clear victory, winning a decisive margin in the popular vote, narrowly loses three rust belt states, and we find ourselves staring into the abyss of the unthinkable -  a narcissistic toddler-man now possesses the nuclear codes.

The Atlanta Falcons have a commanding lead in the Super Bowl, only to see it miraculously frittered away in the last minutes.  Every play has to break just right for the New England Patriots to mount their unexpected (and for me, undesired) comeback.  Instead of the Super Bowl victory going to a young, up-and-coming team, it goes to the same ol' same ol', a team that has had a reputation in the past for cheating.

I have no opinion on the merits of La La Land versus Moonlight, but it was terribly embarrassing and unexpected.  Even though the La LA Land people were gracious and understanding, it had to be deeply humiliating and disquieting to think for a minute that you had won, start your victory speeches, and then see it all be snatched away.


So where in hell are we that these things keep happening?


Some scientists have speculated that we are actually in a computer simulation and not reality.  That sounds ridiculous, but they are actually serious about it, and when you hear their logic behind it, it at least seems remotely plausible.  We are rapidly increasing our ability to create visual reality, immersing ourselves into it to an unprecedented degree.  How far away can direct mental implants be?

If so, then something has gone haywire with the simulation we are stuck in.  The staid computer programmers have been replaced by Mr. Mxyzptlk, the impish other dimensional foe of Superman, who capriciously alters reality just for the heck of it, just to watch Superman and friends squirm. Some young genius slacker/hacker who just wants to play out unlikely scenarios and see how we react.

Then there is theory of parallel/multiple/infinite universes, that actually has some basis in physics. That there are an infinite variety of universes, and that as individual decisions are made, they spin off into a different reality.  In this conception, there is a universe where JFK was not shot, or where the Cuban missile crisis went nuclear. or the Germans won World War II, and on and on.  Or there could just be a universe where Uncle Charlie actually did buy "that" lottery ticket.


DC Comics has a version of this where there are alternate Earths where the advent of the superhero age played out different on each one.  The main characters that were started in comic's Silver Age (primarily the 60s) are Earth One.  The original heroes that arose in the World War Two era are from Earth Two.  There are many more, including one where the primary hero is a rabbit known as Captain Carrot.  The universe without super-heroes, our universe, is known as Earth Prime.

Marvel Comics has something similar, but there number system is wilder. Earth 616 and even Earth 200508.  They may even combine letters and numbers, like Universe XK483.

My theory is that we are no longer on Earth Prime, if we ever were.  But along about the time of Trump's announcement that he was running for President, we began to slip somewhere else, and that by the time of the election, we were clearly somewhere else,

We are no longer on Earth Prime.

We have entered a deeper, darker alternate universe.

Welcome to Alternate Earth #wtf666.

Superman was able to defeat Mr. Mxyzptlk if he could get him to say his name backwards.  Maybe we cam get the small-handed fascist to say "Pmurt!"  Or someone could run up to him and say "Trumplestiltskin!" three times.

It's worth a shot.

After all, nothing else makes sense anymore.  Maybe in this new, strange reality, it would work.

If not, let's click our heels three times.

I want to go back home again.  Earth Prime, I miss ya already.

Good Morning, Comrades! Saturday Political Soap Box 153

Радуйся, Козырь! Новый лидер Союза советских Штатов Америки!

(Hail, Trump!  The leader of the Union of Soviet States of America!)

Good morning, Comrades!

No, this is not a scholarly treatise connecting all the dots and footnoting to oblivion and back.  I wish I had time for that.  Maybe when I retire....

But

There is enough there to make anyone question, even the most devout Trumpeteer.

There is enough there to make some Republican Senators demand a full investigation, and now the Senate Committee on intelligence will commence one.

There is enough there that an MI6 agent, one with a great reputation for accuracy and decades of experience in  Russia, has continued to work without pay to get intelligence agencies to look at what he found.

The only part of the Republican platform that Trump gave a flip about, enough to force it to be changed, is to insist that the United States would not give military insistence to Ukraine to defend it against Russian incursion.

He's had a series of prominent advisers who were close to the Russians and had made considerable money doing work for them.

His nominee for Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson (Exxon CEO), has at stake a deal with Russia that is worth a half a trillion dollars, and has been awarded the Order of Friendship by Putin.

Trump, no matter how pressed, will not say anything bad about Putin,  In fact, for Trump, Putin seems to be golden, and just showers him with praise.  Trump is already stating that he is likely to reverse sanctions.  Nothing Trump does lends one to think the allegations of collusion are not true.

His proposed National Security Chief, Michael Flynn, was on the phone to the Russian Ambassador a reported five times on the day of the sanctions,  This is quite unusual.  Well, maybe except Nixon with Vietnam or Reagan with Iran.  OK, maybe not so unusual for Republicans.  Still not good, though.

But like I said.  There are no citations here, no references.  I encourage you to check out these stories for yourself.  That's dangerous, as both sides have their own news filters, and the truth is often the victim.  But take a chance.  Go outside your bubble, alt-right or lefty progressive or whatever, and see if you can't smell the fire.

Hope y'all like vodka.

Crowley New Life Baptist Church Voter Guide

Pastor Dan, and the friendly servants of Christ at New Life, are well aware of the rules that do not allow us, as a charitable religious organization, to officially endorse any candidate from the pulpit.  And we will faithfully obey that vile federal interference with our rights, because we like our 501-c3 charitable status.

We are, however, allowed to distribute voter guides to our congregation and other interested true believers, that merely summarize the issues and where candidates stand, and let the individual voter come to his or her own conclusions as to who will further the cause of our dear Lord and Savior, and who will send us closer to the fiery pits of hell.


President

Looking closely at this all important race, we see we have successful businessman, Donald J Trump, versus Satan's step-daughter, Hillary Clinton.

Granted, Donald Trump has some problems with misogyny and racism.  It's true that he has an authoritarian streak and admires strong-arm dictators from around the world (but really, is that a bad thing in someone who could do so much good for this country?  And don't we Christians love a strong father figure?  Requires a lot less thinking on our part).  It's true that some of his business practices have been questionable, hurting small business people by not paying them and going bankrupt several times.

None of that is the most important thing.  The most important thing is the Supreme Court.  He will place on the Court justices who will eliminate the greatest scourge of this land, Roe v. Wade.  It is shown that if the power of banning abortion is returned to the states, those states that will ban abortion could eliminate as much as 10% of the abortions that occur (assuming no one crosses state lines).  Of course, abortion rates have drooped more than 40% in places where there is better sex education, access to birth control, and greater support of  the poor.  But that is neither here nor there. That route does not emphasize the control of women, and placing ourselves between women and their doctor.

He will place the Second Amendment in safe hands, preserving it for decades to come.  We cannot emphasize enough the Christian importance of having enough weaponry to overthrow a tyrannical government if elections don't go our way.

Senator

If the election is rigged and the evil Hillary Clinton squirms her slithering body to power, then control of the Senate becomes vital.  That means a vote for Republican Johnny Isakson over whoever his opponent is (frankly, we haven't bothered to learn his name).  He can be persuaded to be part of a group that will block all of Killary's nominees, even if the Supreme Court dwindles to nothing.

Congressman

The only person in the race is our very own church member, Dotty Mathers.  God bless gerrymandering, as the godless heathen Democrats are not even able to run an opponent.  Truly, elections as God intended.  Dotty has promised to vote to eliminate the food stamp program, as we all know that God wants the lazy to fish for themselves.  She also will work to impeach the Devil's Priestess (should she happen to steal the election) from Day One. Why wait around to do God's work?



Georgia Amendment One

This will be the blessed poison pill that will destroy public education, the source of much of the evil that this country faces.  It will start with minority communities that have behaved irresponsibly, and bring those communities closer to the glories of Christ and capitalism.  Then it will slowly expand, year after year, until finally it consumes even Dixon County schools.  We can restore prayer (as written by Pastor Dan, of course), stop teaching evilution, destroy the separation between church and state (as long as it's our church, of course), purge the satanic books from the library (bye-bye, Harry Potter!), deny climate change, and preach abstinence (because it works so well).


Thank you for reading this important voter guide.  Of course, you don't have to vote the way this guide suggests.  You have free will.  And, please, if you vote for Killary and her heathen associates, enjoy going to a different church after you are ex-communicated from this one.

Have a blessed day, y'all.

Tom Strait for Congress 2016!

Vote for the candidate that will be Strait with you!

Tom Strait for Congress 2016!

Tired of the same ol' same ol' in Congress?  Want somebody completely different, someone who will represent the best this country has to offer, and will be totally "Strait" with you?

Then if you live in Georgia's First Congressional District, vote for the common man, and with like, ideas and things, such as.....

Abolish the IRS!!!

.....and replace it with my more modern, simpler to use, four-tier system (patent pending) -

NO MORE INDIVIDUAL INCOME  TAX!

NO MORE CAPITAL GAINS!

NO MORE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A HUNDRED LOOPHOLES!

....instead......

1)  social security and medicare, uncapped, taken out of both earned and unearned income.

2)  a progressive sales tax that taxes luxury goods at a higher rate.  Want regular coffee?  Pay 3%.  Want rare, fancy coffee beans that have been shot out of a cat's butt?  Pay 7%.

3)  a transaction tax on all investment transactions.  Buy $1,000 worth of stock?  Pay, as an example, a 2% tax - $20 and done!  Later sell that stock for...woohoo...$1,500...pay $30!  Sell it a loss for $500?  Pay $10!  No fuss, no muss!  No more of a nuisance than a broker's fee, and the US Treasury raises billions!

4)  Business gross income tax.  No more zillion loopholes!  Make a gross of a million?  Pay one low flat rate and be done with it!  No more deductions and negotiating through reams of loopholes!

Restore the country to Christian Values!

......by returning this country to the very core of Christian principles...caring for your neighbor and each other, and stopping the exploitation of the poor and powerful by the rich and weak (the by far most frequently mentioned sin in the bible!).....

ELIMINATE FOREIGN AID that only benefits a country's military and props up dictators, and replace it with even more humanitarian aid, supporting projects that actually help people, empower women, and raise their standard of living.  We will not have a better world until women everywhere are treated with equality, decency, and respect.

SLASH WELFARE AND FOOD STAMPS by reducing economic inequality and restoring the dignity of work, including service and retail work.  I will be on the forefront of establishing a living minimum wage in this country, starting at $15 an hour, and then forever after keyed to cost of living measures, and not the whims of politicians and the corporate masters they serve.

GET RID OF OBAMACARE and replace it with Medicare For All.  It is hard to call us a nation utilizing Judeo-Christian ethics when we allow so many to fall so cruelly through the gaps.  I will always act to strengthen and extend the Affordable Care Act, but I will also endeavor to bring us to the system that has been adopted by every other civilized nation on Earth - universal health care!

Global Warming is not as bad as the media says it is!

....it is actually much, much worse, as evidenced by a recent scientific report signed off on by dozens upon dozens of countries.  It is past time to stop it, but I am determined to do everything I can to help Georgia's First District "weather the storm"!  I will be on the forefront of greening America, and bringing our district more than it's share of Green projects and Green jobs!  

And that is just the tip of my incredible platform!

Vote The Strait Line Ticket in 2016!

Tom Strait for Congress 2016!

I'll steer you Strait!

I unfortunately don't have any billionaire friends, so if you would like to donate to the Tom Strait for Congress campaign, please check out my donation site, wtf.thisisaprilfools.con.  Or if you see me, just throw money at me.  I'll take it!