Speak Now Or Forever Hold Your Peace???

Our system of government is predicated up the assumption that good men and women, with basic decency, moral values and high ethical standards will be running our country.  I honestly, do not think that our Founding Fathers could ever in their wildest nightmares have imagined the well-coordinated levels of malfeasance and downright depravity we have borne witness to during this 2020 Presidential Election cycle –and over the course of the past 4+++ years.  Political operatives, aided by well-funded Democrat donors and PACs, in coordination with a corrupt few government officials –both elected and unelected (e.g. FBI)—a 24/7 dishonest/fact-omitting and propagandist mainstream media and Big Tech bias have, emboldened by a profound lack of accountability for their covert and disruptive deeds to date, now positioned themselves to outright steal a Presidential Election on behalf of a candidate who will be a puppet for the interests of the American Elite, the Radical Left and China at the expense of the very people they will claim to represent.  Sadly our system of governance, assuming the basic decency and high standards of those who would answer the call to serve our nation, does not presently have the necessary safeguards in place with which to combat the of behind the scenes corruption, fraud, and dark manipulations that are currently being wielded to favor a predetermined elitist outcome.

Given the above, I would strongly urge honest citizens concerned for their country and fearing they have or may have been disenfranchised –had their votes stolen—in this most pivotal Presidential Election to get petitions going in their states to submit to their State Legislatures who are in charge of overseeing elections in each individual state.  Where these petitions would demand a formal independent investigation (i.e., by U.S. Military Intelligence, for sadly given their actions of the past few months in particular –with the withholding of information regarding the Hunter Biden laptop from the U.S. Congress for the better part of a year -- I do not believe the FBI can be fully trusted any longer) of Dominion voting systems in order to look for instances of: 1) changing votes –either digitally or via the print option in these machines; 2) deleting votes; and 3) counting a single ballot multiple times.  If we are truly concerned for the sovereignty of our nation and the integrity of our democracy then we cannot merely sit back and let President Trump and his legal team bear the sole burden for getting to the bottom of some version of truth as to what happened in this historically unprecedented election of massive mail-in ballots.  We owe it to ourselves and to our nation to speak up now, or we may be forever required to silence our voices under the weight of an impending new world order.

10/16/2020  And let us not forget the pollsters either, whose projections were once again this election cycle wildly off the mark in their prediction of Biden blow-outs across the board (e.g., "Biden will win the State of Wisconsin by 17% points"?!?).  These pollsters learned absolutely nothing from the 2016 Presidential Election?  But perhaps we incorrectly assume that the function of the polls is purely to provide an insight into what might transpire, a wager of sorts if you will.  When in reality the true intent of many of these pollsters --given the fact they did absolutely NOTHING to correct for their gross inaccuracies in calculating their prediction from the last Presidential Election cycle-- may actually be more sinister in nature.  Perhaps the intent of the grossly eroneous polling data is actually voter supression (i.e., the losing side assumes, given the numbers that their candidate cannot possibly win and thus voters don't even bother to show up to the polls).  Perhaps the intent is to enable the media the call elections long before the majority of the vote has even been tallied and reported in specific/keys States and counties therein, thereby enabling the media to 'hold the power' --although, in truth, there is no constitutional provision for this!-- in proclaiming the victor and helping late voters to decide they should not even bother to cast their ballot.  Or in instances where there are legitimate challenges to vote totals in key states, the media can throw their support behind the intended candidate in order to sway public perception even before we have a certified winner, enabling the creation of a heretofore non-existent "Office of the President Elect" --ALSO BY THE WAY:  NOT IN THE U.S. CONSTITUTION!  Per the U.S. Constitution we have one President at time and until January 2021 that President is Donald J. Trump.  We shall see what happens after that:  TBD.

Games People Play

Time to finally put an END to the current "Congressional Oversight" Abuses of POWER ....

It has come my attention that the Ghost of Christmas Past --i.e., Nancy Pelosi-- and her compatriots, Adam Schiff, Chuck Schumer --Ghosts of Present and Future (a.k.a., the Reaper) respectively-- have once again began to rattle their oversight chains.  [Where in Liberals' fantasy Trump would play the role of Ebeneezer Scrooge to these ghosts 'enlightened, visionary way thinking' ... wishful thinking indeed? For President Trump's actions defy their stereotyping time again and time again, but some people never learn??? Think the American people are starting to see through this whole charade, however.]  Yes, we need more Congressional oversight in the midst of our national crisis?  I think NOT.  While most of us are trying to work together in a concerted effort to fight off a global pandemic these antithetical leaders don't want to waste any opportunity to bring the President down.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for convening committees --ones we already have in place, standing committees in the U.S. Congress-- in the aftermath of our hopeful triumphant victory where Covid-19 is concerned ... Emphasis on AFTERMATH (i.e., once the dust settles and our lives begin to return to some sort of normal, albeit likely a new normal), where "lessons learned" would be evaluated and documented for use in preparedness for future wide-scale epidemics/pandemics.  However, to convene a 'special oversight commission', in the here and now, would sorely wreak of rank partisanship, not to mention the fact that it would serve to distract and take attention/focus away from the current crucial leadership efforts the President of the United States of America, Donald J. Trump, his administration and advisers are taking, with aid of the CDC, NIH, FEMA, scientists, military, doctors, nurses, first-responders and everyone on the front-lines of our war against an unseen deadly pathogen, in a heroic effort to save hundreds of thousands of lives ... actual people, not merely numbers.  Simply put, such a partisan 'oversight' at this particular point in time would jeopardize the very lives the Ghosts of Christmas are claiming their newest commission would help to save ----with a rather weak case, I might add, both from a facts as well as a numbers perspective.  There is clearly no shortage of hypocrisy dripping from these ghostly chains?  Governance literally is a game to Nancy Pelosi, Adam Schiff and Chuck Schumer, where POWER is the ultimate PRIZE, and the lives and concerns of actual American citizens are merely tokens that enable them play yet another round.

Left: Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and Right: Adam Schiff

"The Ghastly Trio"

Looking back at the endless string of 'oversight' conducted at the behest of the ghostly trio one could rightly conclude that the U.S. Congress under their 'leadership' has willfully chosen to shirk all of the  other normal Congressional duties --much to the detriment of you and me, "We the People"-- in the hopes of undermining, and ultimately defeating their nemesis who is none other than the duly elected President of the United States.  This egregious behavior begs the question:  What will we, as citizens, choose to do about their **?%! blanked-up priorities?  I suggest drafting a widely-circulated citizen petition to have Nancy Pelosi and company censured by their respective Congressional chambers, and if the votes are there to even consider have them removed from office.  It's time to put ACCOUNTABILITY back on the table in a BIG way!  Because, I don't think --given previous election cycles and the fact that these Congressional members are still in office-- that we can rely on elections alone to save us from their ineptitude.  Then again, maybe a national petition might make a rather sizable dent in their re-election campaigns as well?

And speaking of accountability, I cannot help but wonder" will China be held accountable for hiding the fact that this virus was on the loose in their country for many months --maybe even up to an entire year-- and heading out from their country to INFECT the entire rest of THE WORLD???? And if the Chinese Government is to be held to account, in what ways will this accountability take form?  Ongoing travel restrictions, stricter permanent screening measures and mandatory quarantines for anyone entering the United States after having traveled within China from now on?

4/20/20  Seems relevant that I should take a moment in order to make a comment about the notion of POWER here, particularly with respect to our government and power.  There are basically two types of power:  1) the type of power that seeks to collect/gain power (e.g., in pursuit of an unwavering political ideology);  and 2) the type of power that seeks to give power back to the people.  And you have to be extremely diligent in your dissection of the end-objectives of politicians by carefully considering (discerning) their true motives.  This careful contemplation applies particularly to the words of politicians; for actions are often far easier to discern intent from, whereas words can far too often be misleading.  One should be wary of a power that promises to give the people something ("FREE"), but with a cost --often not readily discernible up front-- that requires surrendering basic rights and liberties.  This power appears benevolent at its surface, but upon deeper inspection it is in truth much darker at its core.   One should question a power that seeks to make people dependent upon government for their very existence.  On the other hand, a power that seeks to care for the people in their time of need, while simultaneously lighting the way to independence and true FREEDOM, thereby ultimately giving the power back to the people is a true beacon of LIFE, LIBERTY and HAPPINESS, thereby affording each of us the opportunity to evolve more deeply on a spiritual level by owning our own choices in this blink of an eye we call the journey of LIFE.

“10 Things that All Americans Can Celebrate Together"???

Recently, I have been trying to come up with a list of “10 Things that All Americans Can Celebrate Together.” Up until yesterday, I would have cited our sporting events as a possible list contender ... Two decades ago this undertaking would not have been such a daunting endeavor, but sadly in the current United States environment of political divisiveness compiling such a unifying list is no longer a straightforward, simple endeavor.   That being said, four years ago I think we all could have rallied around the idea that bringing down a top ISIS leader was actually a good thing. Four years ago, I think we would have all agreed that ISIS was and IS still a terrorist group responsible to the loss of far too many innocent lives.  Four years ago, I think we all would have agreed that ISIS has little, if anything, to do with the religion of Islam … the distinction between Islamic (of Islam) and Islamism (using the religion of Islam to justify a warped political ideology) being crystal clear. Alas, these days we, as nation, find ourselves trapped within a circus carnival house of smoke and funny mirrors, with the mainstream media being the carnival operators. Illusion is truth and truth is now allusion? I have always held that truth is a matter of perspective and sadly we, in the Divided States of America, seem to have lost sight of any meaningful objective perspective these days.

Bottom line, despite the bizarre rantings and ravings you will bear witness to in the mainstream media: the aftermath of taking out the number-1 ISIS leader, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi , and his number-2 associate by means of a coordinated and decisive military action DOES indeed make the world a better, safer place for 99.9% of the people on the planet, and a failure to honestly acknowledge this glaringly obvious fact borders on the obscenely immoral to my way of thinking.  Why would any sane, rational thinking human being ever trust a single word these mainstream media Bozos –in keeping with the carnival theme-- utter again moving forward? Instead of praising President Trump for taking out a really horrible and evil extremist leader, in the name of saving countless thousands upon thousands of future innocent lives, the mainstream media, aided by politically divisive pundits and elected ‘leaders’ on the Left, choose to focus instead on “the President’s tone”, or the fact that “President Trump initiated a withdrawal of U.S. Troops prior to the execution of the military operation to take out Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi .” Well, I’ve got news for you ... In the first place, despite what the Left would have us believe, we still live in a world where ACTION speaks volumes louder than mere words –despite the Left’s best ongoing efforts to convince us otherwise.  President Trump is, first and foremost, a man of ACTION. His promise to defeat ISIS necessitated the military operation in northwestern Syria as the next logical step –given the intel and reaching an accommodation with Bashir Al-Assad-- towards the end of accomplishing said promise. Did anyone ever stop to think that the likelihood that Bashir Al-Assad would have allowed U.S. Military troops into northwestern Syria is highly unlikely, had not the U.S. been in a position of removing troops from Syria in the first place???  Oh that’s right, people who word-spin for a living have a difficult time actually thinking ….


As for the President’s tone and his “words being used in future ISIS recruitment videos”, while I do not think it is ever wise to speak ill of the dead, the actions of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi in this lifetime do not merit much in the way of any respect.  Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi was probably the furthest thing one could ever possibly imagine from being an “Austere Religious Scholar” [thoughtless word-spinning brought to you by way of the Washington Post]. This evil-inspiring ‘leader’ single-handedly unleashed waves of unspeakable violence upon hundreds of thousands of innocents.  President Trump in recounting the death of this truly evil man – a cowardly man who did not hesitate to use three of his own children as human-shields and then took their lives along with his own when cornered-- speaks with clear and concise words that these terrorists can easily understand, stripping away any notion of glory, honor or righteousness from the heinous, depraved deeds of ISIS carried out in the name of Islamism. The President’s words are, if anything, antithetical to future ISIS recruitment. Anyone who cannot see this must have a few screws lose somewhere???


The difference between words and actions is simply this: that actions typically speak for themselves, while words on the other hand can easily be misconstrued … And in point of fact, the Left tries to leverage this distinction on a hourly, daily basis. Although, the mainstream media surely does their best to also use their words in an ongoing effort to bend, twist and distort speculations as to the motivations behind President Trump’s actions for just about everything he does. But at the end of the day, honest people will see through the unimaginative --ever notice how the mainstream media these days all use the exact same catch-phrase talking point (a.k.a. the sanctioned "words of the day") in their daily broadcasts across multiple networks and platforms?  It's like they're all merely puppets being controlled by some unseen external universal ventriloquist ...it's actually downright scary?!!-- paper-mached, word-spun facade being fabricated by the Left. The prospect of this happening, people exercising the ability to think independently, absolutely infuriates the Left, because they have decided that “We the People” are “basically stupid and as such we should just shut-up, accept, obey and follow.” Perhaps that’s why the Left –politicians, media and academia alike-- is now, more-so than ever before, so BIG on pushing the idea that “words [alone] matter.” Because the Left, largely by way of the mainstream media and academia, currently have the ultimate stranglehold on words in modern day America?  “If you can control speech, you will control thought”? Which brings me to my parting thought: The Price for Freedom in our modern age seems to have become a courageous willingness to seek empirical facts toward the end of unearthing organic truth, to step outside the box of mainstream orthodoxy in order entertain the uncomfortable in contemplating ideas not widely considered ‘popular’ and then to speak up, loudly, on behalf of a truth that will ultimately benefit –as opposed to control-- the American People as a whole, the ruling class be damned. Freedom is not worth having that is not worth fighting for … and this fight, this struggle to maintain our Freedom is ongoing. It requires vigilance on the part of “We the People.” For without our First Amendment right to “Free Speech” --and thereby Freedom of Thought-- none of the remaining Rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution will hold their ground.


10/30/2019 I am reading over the "Federalist Papers", looking for some insight as to what the Founding Fathers might have been thinking with regards to impeachment proceedings, and it occurred to me that the Founding Fathers could never have imagined the state of affairs we are presently witnessing in our modern-day United States of America: the elitism, the self-serving nature of politicians, the outright lies and manipulation --aided by a corrupt, propaganda driven media-- all toward the end of preserving power at the expense of the governed. It is truly shameful! One is left wondering, what if anything can ever be done to set our representative democracy back onto its true course? I suppose, President Trump has gone a long way towards injecting some small measure of course correction. I am thankful for that, even though this Independent  did not vote for a President Trump the first time around. The future has yet to be written; therefore, let us, as citizens, remain engaged and ever-vigilant. As I write, I see the news stories covering the ongoing protests in Hong Kong where brave young protesters are fighting for their own right to self-determination in the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness and it truly gives me hope. May God continue to Bless and Guide them in their struggle! And may the protesters in Hong Kong serve as a source of awakening renewal and inspiration for us here in the United States, that we may not fall into a slumber of complacency, taking the freedoms that have been entrusted to us by former generations for granted.

10/31/2019  This clearly partisan 'impeachment inquiry' -- given today's vote in the U.S. House of Representatives-- is ripe with hypocrisy?  That is to say, does not the timing of this informal inquiry --especially given the flimsy, unsubstantiated charges to date ... I mean we have the ACTUAL transcript now and investigating potential interference into the 2016 election to prevent it from happening again is NOT A CRIME-- itself "interfere with an upcoming election"???  Such an impeachment inquiry leading up to a Presidential election is unprecedented in our nation's history.  This is truly such a sad state of affairs, and it not at all what our Founding Father's had envisioned when they contemplated the rare occasions in which impeachment would potentially be invoked.

11/01/2019  Federalist Papers, "Federalist no. 57" .... "What then are we to say to the men who profess the most flaming zeal for republican government, yet boldly impeach the fundamental principle of it; who pretend to be champions for the right and capacity of the people to choose their own ruler, yet maintain that they will prefer those only who will immediately and infallibly betray the trust committed to them?"

Technology: Does it make our lives better or worse?

So I am driving home from a full day of classes a few days back.  I'm listening to talk radio and at the top of the hour the hosts commence  with a run-down of cool/top stories in the news around the planet.  One topic in particular jumps out at me.  Apparently, a town in China is planning to launch an artificial moon into earth orbit by January 2020.  Instantly, flashes of the dreaded Deathstar from  "Star Wars" movies pop into the forefront of my mind.

The purpose of this artificial moon?  Well, the Chinese city officials claim their faux moon will serve solely to act as source for gathering light to reflect down upon their city at night, thereby eliminating the need for electrically powered street lights. This sounds plausible and is maybe not an entirely 'bad' thing from an energy conservation standpoint, right?  But what about the other ramifications of such a BIG artificially imposed man-made structure looming in earth-orbit space? Surely we cannot entirely dismiss the potential for weaponizing such a space-based structure?  And how about the fact that the artificially imposed light source might actually be considered a form of light pollution from certain perspectives (e.g., an influx of super-imposed light would greatly hinder star-gazing into the nighttime sky).  And wouldn't they have to change the children's nursery rhyme to "I see the moons, the moons see me?" ; )  One wonders exactly how bright  (in terms of lumen) this moon's artificial light would be?  Then there are "biological clock" issues.  Meaning, would the net result of this additional artificially imposed light be something akin to near 24-hour daylight cycles witnessed by those living in Alaska and the like?  What long term impacts would this extended light cycle have on biological processes, people, animals and plants alike?

At the conclusion of my pondering all of the above, I am left wondering:  if we look the sum of our modern-day technology are the collective benefits derived from our technology --the whole spectrum from cell phones and social media to faux moons and everything in between-- a net-sum 'good' or 'bad' thing for our society as a whole? Beauty as well at truth lie in the eyes of the beholder, I suppose.  But at some point, don't we have an obligation to begin an honest discussion about the long term ramifications of where we are headed, and more importantly where we want to be headed, technologically speaking? And then, of course, there is the whole issue of 'governments' having the monopoly on scientific investigation.  We, in the United States, have this 'control' with respect to the government funding dispersed via  National Science Foundation --offshoot of 'National Academy of Science'-- which is responsible for driving, funding and deeming credible the larger portion of scientific research, particularly at the University level.  Then of course, there are the numerous other government funded contracts to private corporations and some universities --I happened to work on one of these in my earlier college days.  One could argue that such 'regulation' --mostly by way of controlling funding for research-- is not necessarily beneficial to the overall process of scientific discovery from an outcome bias and limitations standpoint (e.g., 'climate change' study).  Creativity and innovation, not to mention objectivity, from what I have personally witnessed function best outside the rigid confines of a bubble, any bubble.  One wonders if government 'oversight' of the process of scientific discovery also does the people a disservice by biasing/controlling the information that actually reaches average citizen with respect to specific scientific discoveries --most especially in the absence of a robust media coverage ... for media benefits from an apocalyptic take on science, do they not?  That is to say, a worried audience is more likely to tune into to news coverage each day, aren't they?  I would argue further that in the absence of a truly informed citizenry, the voice of "we the people" is diminished. What say you???

10/28/2018  Well, it may be awhile before we have to worry about China launching its faux moon? But at least the Chinese get some credit for trying to decentralize government control of some science-based entities.

Old Lang Syne???

Up late again, migraine and my mind won't shut down.  Did not get to celebrate the 'New Year' this year.  Things went south for us, here.  We did, however, thoroughly enjoy a totally pristine -- just 3 to 4 inches-- white fluffy snow on Christmas Eve and day.  I got my Christmas wish: A White Christmas, despite the statistical odds pointing to the contrary.  Sledding and snowball fights on Christmas Eve was kind of magical.  It was a welcome opportunity to shift gears and recharge. You really can't beat that, so you have to look on the upside, right?  No artist's Birthday celebration either, but then I did not celebrate my actual birthday this year either.  Maybe sometime in the weeks ahead?  Time seems to be a rather fluid concept where my life is concerned.  So anyway, it still feels like I'm stuck back in 2017.  2017 was a LONG year, not an entirely bad year, just a long year.  Leaves me wondering: is a long year better than a short year?  Perhaps a long year gives you more time to get meaningful stuff (or feel free to insert a more colorful expletive here) done? What say you???

One of these days, I'm actually going figure out the meaning of the song "Old Lang Syne".  The lyrics in that song have always bothered me, on some level, for some reason.  Maybe, I'm just reading them wrong or reading too much into them? Anyway, how many of you actually took the time to take stock of 2017.. Reflected back on the good as well as the bad?  If you did you probably wound up searching for answers at the bottom of a bottle or glass --be it punch or otherwise.  2017 was one tumultuous year to say the least, but that being said it wasn't all bad.  Seems to me we have had accountability restored in the White House and that surely goes a long way to returning power to "we the people", in my humble opinion. President Trump is not your typical politician, but in many ways that's a good thing because he doesn't waste time tip-toeing through the politically correct tulips.  Trump just tells it like it is and then proceeds to get meaningful stuff done.  With President Donald Trump WSWYG (what you see is what you get).  I have to respect that on some level, even if I'm not always fond of the Presidential Tweets.  That being said, the biased mainstream media has absolutely LOST ALL perspective where President Trump is concerned, because a Twitter account and colorful, fluffy language --what the media would desire to see as per the previous President ... But don't forget President Obama's calm, collective and repeated assurances that wound up being flat-out lies (e.g., "If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor" and "If you like your health insurance, you can keep your health insurance)-- does not a meaningful Presidency make.  Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather have brutal honesty over colorful and deceptive lies any day of the week.  Contrary to what the liberal mainstream media and elites --on both sides of the aisle-- believe, "we the people" are not stupid and many of us are no longer willing to be blindly led, while being told what to think and say (i.e., politics of belonging).  The time has come for true rebels, rebels of independent thought, reason and action to speak boldly and to begin coloring outside of the feel-good 'belonging lines', while firmly rejecting the narrative of absolutes.

With the media's off-the-rails coverage of the Trump Presidency it seems to me 2017 has ushered in the final death-blow to objective journalism.  How SAD is that?  Objective journalism used to play a vital role in support of our representative democracy.  These days, however, many journalistic voices do little more than stir and feed frenzy toward overt political ends.  So very sad!  Our founding fathers would be greatly disappointed in the America of today, in this respect, I think.  At the end of the day rhetoric may serve set the tone, but in the end it is actions --and not words-- that speak volumes to what is being done on behalf of "we the people" (e.g., record-breaking stock market highs, millions of new jobs, unemployment at all time decades low, energy independence becoming a reality --thereby lowering energy costs for everyday hard-working citizens, while stimulating the growth of new businesses-- and how about that historic revamping of the tax-code to the benefit of over 80% of Americans, which along with trade deal re-negotiations will likely bring back hundreds of thousands jobs back from overseas).  Granted we still have a long road ahead, but from where I'm standing we're off to a great start.

My biggest hope for 2018 is that the mainstream media will finally screw their heads back on straight and begin to give the Office of the President of United States the respect it is due.  That the media will finally begin covering the substantive actions of the President and his administration, instead of endlessly obsessing over the President's rhetoric, while "we the people" must continually suffer through the media's inane attempts at varying degrees of interpretation of the 'true meaning' behind Trump's words with the non-bonus of their quasi psycho-analysis of the  man behind the words.  Trump is his own man and he's redefining what it means to be Presidential in terms that work for him and the way he does business.  You don't have to like President Trump, but the Office he holds demands a certain level of respect, which heretofore has been sorely lacking, and that in and of itself portrays the entire United States of America in a really bad light to the rest of the world.  To my way of thinking true patriots want whoever is in office to do well, because that winds up benefiting the country as whole.  We seem to have lost sight of this important fact somewhere along way?  Something is terribly wrong when you want your political opponents to fail miserably, at the expense of the country, just so your party looks to be a better alternative in upcoming elections.  I think the American people are beginning to see through this smoke and mirrors and tactic.  Now that "we the people" have had a long over-due taste of actual accountability, I suspect we are not likely to relinquish it anytime soon.

On that note, I'm off to hopefully find a few hours of sleep --hopefully in the absence of dreams and visions.  Can't quite bring myself to utter the predictable phrase "Happy New Year."  Maybe tomorrow. For now, let me just wish that you find satisfaction --and maybe even joy-- in the singular moment presently unfolding right at hand.

1/6/2017(8) Well, what do you know ... Most people don't get the song "Old Lang Syne" either according to CNN polling data/article.  CNN was kind enough to provide us with the full lyrics for this 'time-honored' song --considering it was written in 1788 by Scotsman Robert Burnes.  Reading the lyrics for this song does little to ease my own confusion or dislike of this poem-song.  How about you?  If I were to modernize this song a bit, I suppose you do wind up with the 70's Dan Folgelberg song "Same Old Lang Syne", which starts off with the lyrics "Met my old lover in the grocery store. The snow was falling on Christmas Eve. I stood behind her in the frozen foods and I touched her on the sleeve." Maybe it's just me, but isn't it healthy to review and questions our "time-honored" traditions now again?  If less than 3% of the general population knows the lyrics and almost no one really understands them, maybe it's time for some new lyrics??? I'd like to challenge some of our many talented contemporary lyricists or musicians to come up with some more modern, more readily understandable (not to mention easier to remember) lyrics for this ballad.  Hey, it could happen .... My wish for 2018???  My starting pass for new lyrics is here.
1/11/2018   I finally find myself in actual 2018.  Yeah?  Another one of my tangible wishes for 2018 is that some artful communicator will give a TED talk on how to have a meaningful political discussion with someone who might not agree with your own positions, on key issues, 100% right out of the gate.  Think this insight would be extremely useful in the divided America we find ourselves in today.  Given the right skills and an open mind-set, I remain ever-hopeful that meaningful political dialogue can be restored in our nation once again.

Justice for All?

Leadership means having a clear vision for the future. It means making tough calls in difficult times in order to advance the agenda you were hired/elected to move forward. In the case of the U.S. Congress that means advancing the agenda of "we the people", not "we the establishment." The outcome of the Alabama election has made two things readily apparent to me:  1) The American people are finally starting to awaken to the behind-the-scenes power-wielding machinations employed by the elites on the left, in the Democratic Party, and they are tired of being played, tired of being used --witness the Roy Moore's comeback, losing by a mere 0.7% (the last count I saw, with over 91% of precincts reporting);  and 2) The leadership of the Republican Party --chiefly Mitch McConnell--have failed their party, their candidate in the critical Alabama Senate race, and failed their Commander in Chief, by throwing their candidate immediately under the bus at the first hint of trouble, in the absence of any due process, for an allegation of misconduct not only suspiciously timed but dating back well over thirty years.

I have to say, given the outcome of this crucial Senate race, coupled with Senator McConnell's poor legislative track record to date, that the time has come for the Majority Leader to resign from his duties so that he may be replaced with a more effective leader capable of advancing the President's agenda.  Perhaps the upside of this election outcome is two-fold.  First off, Roy Moore wasn't forced to withdraw from the campaign in the face unproven allegations, which he adamantly denied.  His supporters rallied in the absence of solid and timely evidence, and in the end the easily-spooked Republican Party came back around to support Moore's election bid.  So in the end, the nation dodged a bullet by not setting the dangerous precedent for future political elections that well-timed moral hit-jobs involving allegations of sexual misconduct can force targeted politicians out of key races after being tried solely in the court of public opinion. Then secondly, another upside is the fact this election only serves to fill the remainder of the former Senator's (Jeff Sessions) term, that remaining term being only two years of a standard six year term --Sessions having already served four of the six years in a given term.  So in two years, the Alabama Senate seat will be up for election once again.  All of the above being said, #1) above gives me enormous hope for both political parties moving forward.  The ability to think critically, logically towards the discernment of truth is crucial to the survival of our representative democracy.  In the absence of this independent reasoning and thought on the part of the electorate an elite 'ruling' power structure settles itself into place, being near impossible to remove once it is established, and this elite power structure is not focused on the needs of "we the people"; it is focused on selling influence and maintaining power in order to advance an elitist agenda.  Sadly, today in Washington D.C. there are elites participating in a well-established power structure on both sides of the political aisle.  Perhaps this is why we need to begin a discussion about the benefits of term-limits where seats in the U.S. Congress are concerned?

On a different note, I also think that the time has now come for we, as a nation, to begin having the discussion that would allow us to prioritize claims of sexual misconduct and the appropriate repercussions thereof, for not all offenses are created equal.  Not all offenses should result in the immediate destruction of a man or woman's entire career in the absence of any due process.  Don't get me wrong, I think the #MeToo movement is truly empowering.  It has allowed .. is allowing women and men to step out of their silence and suffering in order for their voices to be heard.  This movement has begun a long overdue conversation in our nation, a conversation with the potential to move us further toward a truly egalitarian society, which is rather remarkable in and of itself. That being said, we really need to get a handle the ramifications of sexual misconduct allegations in the absence of  any prioritization.  Prioritization of sexual misconduct allegations --even though there will likely be many grey areas-- would allow us to begin building the frame-work for prosecution in order to ensure justice for all.  For in the absence of prioritization, the positive progress this #MeToo conversation has made thus far can just as quickly run right off the rails, with countless opportunities for abuse in the face of false or unproven allegations.  Having this important conversation will also allow us to put past allegations (e.g., Senator Ted Kennedy, President Bill Clinton, Senator Tod Akin) --and the response of individuals from each political party-- into perspective when discussing current allegations (e.g., Judge Roy Moore, Senator Al Franken,  Senator Trent Franks and Representative John Conyers).  It may also help to shed some light on the motivations behind a radical change in behavior where some groups are concerned (i.e., rank-and-file Democrats). "Hypocrisy is the homage vice plays to virtue"?

12/14/2017  I heard that Roy Moore has requested a recount of the election results, as allowed by Alabama State Constitution for closely contested races.  

Undermining our National Security?

Some thoughts from a middle class citizen's perspective as our nation teeters on the brink of its "fiscal cliff" ....

Would I like to receive my “2K” tax break this tax year? Of course. My family would put this additional ‘income’ to good use. Do I think that the net combined effect of this middle class tax-break will have a significant positive impact on the economy? No I do not believe that this middle class tax- break will have a significant impact on the economy. I believe that the impact on the economy will be marginal at best. What we need in order to get our economy moving once again is long term job creation (i.e., create an environment favorable to bringing jobs from overseas back to the United States and heavily penalize goods & services brought back into the U.S. by companies choosing to have their products and services 'made' by foreign workers).

Do I think that raising taxes on those individuals making over $250,000 a year will be a major source of revenue generation. No I do not think that raising taxes on those individuals making over $250,000 a year will be a major source of revenue generation. That being said, if we are looking to slash benefits for programs like Medicare and Medicaid --in a effort to reign-in and reduce deficit spending-- then is asking the top income earners to pay a bit more that outrageous? I don’t think so. And as for the Republican argument that “raising taxes on individuals making over $250,000 a year will hurt small businesses who are job creators, employing approximately 25% of the American workforce”: then why not just enable a tax-provision whereby those who file taxes as a legitimate small business owner will continue to pay the lower tax rate as they have done in previous years. Why is it so difficult to make the latter distinction? But if Republicans give on the raising taxes for individuals making over $250,000 --with the business caveat—I don’t think that Democrats should be able to slide addressing concrete spending cuts to entitlement programs in order to address deficit spending over into next year. There has to be a give and take --on both sides of the aisle-- right now.

I think that we have become such a sharply divided nation, in terms of politics, these past few years –and after this recent Presidential election most especially—that our elected representatives have come to approach the problems facing our nation from an “all or NOTHING!” or “winner take all” perspective, totally overlooking the possibility of a middle=ground for viable solutions to move forward.

So in light of the above: Am I willing to forgo my middle class tax-break? Absolutely!! … I will gladly forgo my tax-break if the elected representatives of “we the people” will stop playing political volleyball with our country’s future and national security, by finally getting their butts to the negotiating table, rolling up their sleeves, sitting down and doing what it takes to stop sequestration cuts from going into effect. Enough with the party politics already?! With a 49 -51 split on the Presidential vote neither side has sweeping mandate to do ANYTHING. The sequestration cuts –which will go into effect after the first of the new year-- will greatly undermine our National Security, in my humble opinion, at a time when we can ill-afford to have our military undermined in such an egregious fashion. It’s been four years since Congress has been able to pass an actual budget: I think it’s about dang time they got down to business!! If they can’t: maybe “we the people” should recall* them ALL?



[* That is to say vote them out of office when they are up for re-election.  Technically there exists no formal provision in the Constitution for recalling elected officials by the people they represent ... a senator or congressman can only suffer expulsion via the elected body in which they serve (i.e., via Congressional vote or Senate vote).]

Maybe ... The Times Are A Changing?

One can only hope ...

Song:  "The Times They Are A Changin' ", By Bob Dylan
[Yes, love the irony ... on multiple levels ... maybe it's just that we've finally come full circle?]

"The People's Seat."  ~Scott Brown (quote of the day 1/19/2010)

  'Charters of Freedom', U.S. Government Archives on-line

Victory for 'We the People' in the state of Massachusetts! Maybe this is a sign that the times are changin'?

[Note: Contact me if you want to sign the e-petition requesting that the new Senator from Massachusetts be seated immediately and I'll send you the link.]



As I've said before:  INFORMATION IS POWER ... BE INFORMED ... STAY INVOLVED.  I am sincerely proud of the American people today!  Keep it up!

"Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the
people alone. The people themselves, therefore, are its only safe
depositories. And to render even them safe, their minds must be
improved to a certain degree."
~Thomas Jefferson: Notes on Virginia, 1782.


  "Whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice, the
people, if well informed, may be relied on to set them to rights."
~Thomas Jefferson to Richard Price, 1789.


President Obama had post-poned his State of the Union Address to the Congress, pending the outcome of the Senate race in Massachusetts.  He's now scheduled to address the Congress on January 27th.  Let's see if the President gets the message being clearly sent by the American people ... doesn't seem as if Pelosi and crew (in the Senate) have.  In parting ... here's some interesting history on the State of the Union Address.