Take our health care away, get slaughtered next election (#3156)

     The republican party doesn't seem to care about what the consequences are of them taking our health care away. They are laser focused on dismantling and eliminating Obamacare which is the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act". This law is designed to bring insurance companies in line with helping people with health care and not for them to continue to line their own pockets with money taken from those who are sick and desperate. In trying to repeal Obamacare the republican party is telling big pharma and the insurance industry that they can go back to setting prices where they want them instead of being forced to keep prices low.
     If the republican party does succeed in destroying the only tool we Americans have to keep health care for over 32 million people and keeping costs low for those who are left that can afford health care then there will be a price to pay. They think now that they are being pressured by their much smaller right wing base and billionaire donors but wait until they feel the wrath of the majority of Americans who are furious at their attempt to put the insurance companies and big pharma back in control. It is as if they don't recognize the power of we who are being denied a life saving law. Despite their grumbling that when Obamacare was initially passed that it didn't go through regular order, which is a lie as it did, http://www.snopes.com/aca-versus-ahca/, they themselves are pushing through this repeal effort with barely a hint of regular order.
     However this new repeal effort turns out republicans will pay next election. But if they get their repeal they will pay harshly as the effect of the repeal will begin to be felt and the horror of the effect will be highlighted by all. The republican party does not care if we Americans can afford or even deserve health care. They are the survival of the fittest crowd who have a leg up on those they would climb over so their greed drives them. There is no negotiating with a vast majority of them as they are in lockstep to not only dismantle the power of our democracy but they are rooted to undermining it at any cost. If republicans have their way we would be a plutocracy with only the wealthy in control of our lives.

I am not special, I am just normal (#3155)

     Often I wonder why others that I have met do not have the same passion about learning or discovering like I do. I used to think that maybe I was just unique that way and others were not. But that isn't it. There is nothing unique about me other than I am an individual like all others. What I have come to find out is that wanting to learn and discover is within all of us but we have to choose to utilize these curiosities individually ourselves. We have to make the effort to discover and learn. I know that I do and my life has been a value to me because of it. I am not out chasing the dollar or raising myself up to be admired. I am putting my nose to the problems in life and trying to understand them so I can help resolve them into solutions.
     There is no greater reward to me than to be part of the solution. I know this because the few times I have gained some wealth I didn't feel the same level of satisfaction like I do within me like when I can help to make life better. There is something unique about that for sure and that is what I am striving to experience. The older I get the harder it is for me to learn like I did when I was younger and it is because I am more complex now and the simple learnings in life have pretty much been achieved. So the hard learning is all out in front of me but that to me is a reward for getting where I am now. I love to learn, I love to discover. I could spend my whole lifetime just learning and discovering if it were possible.
     So I say this to all those who may chance upon reading this, don't spend your time chasing money, spend your time chasing knowledge. Not only will you succeed but you will find that your soul is more at ease and your outlook on life becomes infinitely more satisfying. Plus you will find that learning in itself is a method for attaining economic wealth as a side benefit. Not for me so much but for many it is true. In our normal human state of being learning and discovering is paramount to defining the attributes we human computers exist as. We are biological data processors who need data to exist otherwise our senses, mind and heart are wasted on us.

As it should have been, President Hillary Clinton (#3154)

     The latest news from the Mueller investigation into the Russian connection with our elections last November 8th are beginning to show the evidence of collusion between the trumps and the Russians to hack and finance our elections. Many have wondered what the motive for this may be, well really there are a few. First and foremost trump is a despicable human being and him trying to do anything, even commit treason to win the presidency is plausible. Second is that the Russians wanted sanctions reduced on them and with trump and some scenario involving blackmail as a motivator trump became their patsy. Now this one sounds a bit far fetched but consider that trump has done nothing but hail putin as a great man and as well has fought to defend Russian activities.
     My guess is that both played a key role in getting trump the White House. The vileness trump has displayed is certainly a clear indicator that he is not above being devious. No doubt he, like the republican party, is all in for doing anything to win power and wealth. The indicators for that is the disdain for the emoluments clause of our national constitution. He is all about his wealth and using the Presidency to increase it. As for the blackmail angle we have been hearing about a tape and given his lies about meetings with Russians before and during the elections leads me to combine his pro putin stance that indeed there may well be a blackmail angle that trump is operating under.
     We will know soon enough as the Mueller investigation has grown wide in its scope to capture many different aspects of behavior and conversation by those who work closely with trump. The time is coming shortly where we will see if our election for president and other offices were hijacked by not only the Russians but in collusion with Americans in the republican party. If this is proven to be the case and the facts align with the evidence of a stolen election then the proper course of action is to install the actual winner who had the election stolen from her. Again I say, President Hillary Clinton.

Civilization is being undermined by republican traitiors (#3153)

     The only God republicans honor is money. Never doubt that! They will say anything and as we have seen do anything to achieve their lust. We have laws here in America but it seems those laws only work against the poor and downtrodden while the wealthy and powerful republicans are mostly exempt. And now that republicans have stolen our election to give themselves power, through treason no less. The law is even more in their grasp to do as they wish with it. They surely are the minority here in America but act like they are immune to revolution if that is what we finally decide to do as the majority. Because the taste of freedom we majority have known will not go away quietly into any good or bad night!
     The time for rolling up our sleeves and firming up our jaws for a fight is upon us. We cannot let the republicans do any more and instead their influence and power must be turned back. Otherwise America as we know her will not survive and in her place will be the oppressive atmosphere of fascism. Any vote for a republican now is a direct agreement to destroy democracy and stamp out the ideals of equality, justice and fairness. How about that republican voters, is that your choice for your legacy? I for one will fight you hard and forever as long as I draw breath. Never have we faced such a despicable lot who have not an inkling of what sacrifice and duty mean to our Constitution. Never have we had such traitors openly colluding with our enemies to solidify their power base.
     The anger within me is as real as if it was part of my being. I had thought that joy would be our legacy in life yet it seems that retribution to those who would steal the American dream will be our attempt instead. Well so be it as reality dictates my thoughts and actions. I will not be one of those who burrowed his head into the ground out of fear for making a stand for democracy and the rights of all human beings. Instead I will not only defend my space but I will take space back from any of the republicans who thinks they can bully those around me. I will not, nor allow others to be treated thusly and they will pay harshly for discounting my resolve.

Republicans see humanity as mean nasty and brutish (#3152)

     The republican mindset of cynicism toward anything that enlightens or evolves is palpable. They have settled irrevocably on the idea that the human experience is a dirty nasty one. They see within themselves all the woebegone tells of animalism and that the idea that we can evolve or become more enlightened from our ancient roots as an impossibility. Their cynicism has us all dying off in some near time frame due to their perceived inescapable delusions about our natures. To republicans humanity is just not meant to exist beyond what we were originally imprinted to do to survive. It is curious to me that they cannot see that our survival techniques of antiquity were evolution to begin with.
     Since we are now not of such a survival mode we are changing into another dynamic and this republicans are not able to process into their way of thinking. Their minds won't allow them to consider logic and science as the norms of our society. They are still stuck in antiquity with the myths mores and superstitions that helped us along in that ancient beginning. Yet we don't exist in that beginning any longer much like we sapiens are no longer neanderthals, http://listverse.com/2013/03/18/10-transitional-ancestors-of-human-evolution/. You see the problem right? The republican party is more in tune with the "we were created not evolved" stereotype yet they are in a conundrum since most all evidence points to evolution.
     Their cognitive dissonance comes in handy though since republicans are able to separate fact from their narrative of ancient thinking as the only reality. Which is why when we discourse with them their inability to be rational about reality confounds us. Well we know the root of their thinking and it is not modern so debate on that scale is moot. I am not the animal that they would depict me as from history nor am I the robot they liken me to be if we continue with logic and science. The less animal I have evolved toward and the more logically thinking I become does not change my heart and the goodness of the soul within me. The republican party does not get that and because of their obstinance to maintain that we are filthy creatures our lives at the moment are in a state of turmoil.

With every cell in my body! (#3151)

     The final attempt to repeal Obamacare is happening now. We are waiting for the CBO score of how many people will be kicked off of health insurance but with this latest bill it seems that it will be a huge number, larger than with the previous versions of repeal. Well I can tell you this will not be a cakewalk to keep this bill from happening. The trumps know they are under the gun and must get this last attempt done before the September 30th deadline hits. That is when the congressional reconciliation process they are using expires and then it will take 60 votes to repeal not the current 50 + pence. We know that that squirmy idiot in Kentucky, rand paul, has said he won't vote for it but he is a gutless non wonder so we should not count on him keeping to his stated no vote.
     Then there are the two republican women who have shown that they are tough as nails when it comes to voting to take away health care for their constituents, Murkowski and Collins. So who is left? Capito has shown that she can be bought so there is no tough as nails moniker for her. It remains to be seen for now who will be the 3rd vote again against repeal since mccain has also broken and said he could vote for this worse version than the one he didn't vote for, go figure with him! All I know is that we have to get our focus on this last attempt that the trumps will be pushing mightily to get.
     There has to be a national outcry to stop this latest Obamacare repeal and if we do that then the repeal efforts will stop until after the 2018 elections. By then we may well have changed the dynamic in the Congress enough so that the republicans will not have automatic majorities to do as they will. But until then the next 14 days are the most crucial for those of us who do not want 10's of millions of folks to be thrown off of health care. It is insane what republicans are doing but I have been saying that about them since I came of age. They are a national embarrassment bent on hurting the helpless and kicking the underprivileged. With every cell that makes me Carl I will fight these assholes to my last breath and not ever quit until all my cells are done.

The women in my life (#3150)

     The women in my life have been incredible. They had to step up because the men, who were less incredible did a poor job of being fine examples of their own gender. If it hadn't been for the women I would have been far less than what I am now. In fact I can say with little doubt that I wouldn't even be alive if it hadn't been for the force of will the women in my life instilled in me through their own words and acts. This is why I think women should govern our society. Now there are some women who are as vile as the many men I know but there are far fewer of them than there are men. We men have fallen hard because leadership takes a commitment that is both grueling and continuous.
     I have not had the fortune to be married in my lifetime yet the women who at times were my companions were remarkable enough to be admired and loved. Apparently not loved in the way I needed to love them for a marriage to occur but loved nonetheless. Even in those relationships I always found that it was me that failed them, not them me. It is hard to admit that I am the root of the problem but it is truthful since I was never really sure how to function as an equal partner in those relationships. Regardless of my personal life, all the women I have held dear have been powerfully strong in their vision for what life could be like if we would just stop hurting each other. It makes perfect sense since we men have been treating and hurting women unfairly since at least the dawn of civilization.
     Well now women are not to be underestimated, especially by me since I have found that it takes real courage to be kind and helpful in life instead of being like many of us men who are mean, brutish and cruel. It is the traits that women exhibit and exemplify that draws my attention. I have no time for the bullying aspects that men feel they need to express to show they are "real" men. No, real men are kind and motivated to be helpful like women have been showing us for millenniums. It is the women in my life who have shown me how to be a real man and for that I am eternally their advocate and ally. When we decide to let the women in our lives govern how to think and act with respect and dignity is when our society will finally begin to heal itself of the worst we men have wrought upon it.

Policies drive my political affiliation (#3149)

     I am a liberal who is firmly in the democratic party. The reason being is that liberals who are the force behind the democratic party are the ones trying to institute policies that I am all for being made into law. Like keeping social security, medicare/medicaid, unemployment, food stamps, children's health care etc... These are the reasons among many more that long ago I decided my political affiliation. There is much still to do to right the ship of government like demanding that we have public financing of elections thus eliminating all the private interests that would choose our candidates instead of our candidates choosing their own agenda to be found good or bad by we the voters.
     Standardizing voting requirements across state lines so that all our American citizens can vote no matter what jurisdiction they happen to be in at the time of voting. There should be no hindrance to voting that is a burden to any class of citizenry. Standards for allocating the districting of voters should also be uniform in their design with no gerrymandering as a factor. There are other policies I and my democratic party also have an eye toward and that is maintaining and improving our standard of living. Minimum wages must reflect the dignity and respect we have for each other as a civilized society not a wild west one where people are played off against each other to lower costs instead of improving the products they market.
     Women must be given the same rights as men in all aspects of our society. From equal pay for equal work. Standards that do not discriminate in job placement solely on the color or gender of a person. Government is here to help our society improve and evolve into a greater ideal. Civilization demands it and if we are not on that track then we are pulling out the rug from under our own feet. Democracy is the vehicle and it should be driven with all due deference and honor. We as a nation have shed much blood and spent much treasure to not only protect democracy for ourselves but for many other nations throughout the world. America is best when we are protecting the weak and fighting the bullies. This is what we democrats do and why I will live all my life being one.

Keeping my sunny disposition while blistering all things trump (#3148)

     I had expected like many others a different result from the November 8th 2016 election. But since it didn't turn out the way I had expected my life has altered. Instead of being happy about politics for the most part and enjoying the advancement of our society into an even more modern mode, I am left with trying to enjoy the other aspects of life while tormenting the hateful rhetoric and despicable laws the trumps are trying to implement. In other words I have split myself into two halves of the same whole. the one half is relentlessly determined to obstruct, deny and call out all the rotten vileness the trumps stand for while the other half of me is bound and determined to remain carefree and happy.
     It is not easy keeping these two halves of myself in harmony but since this is who I must be now, then that is my problem to solve. What I need is for the light of day to hit the trumps and hopefully justice and fairness will end them from positions of power. I suppose it is selfish of me to think that the world should revolve around what I think but in a fair sense it is a selfless thought I have. Our world getting better for all. It is not such a hard thing to imagine nor a hard thing to work toward. So until the trumps are gone the two halves of me must coexist. I need to remain the happy go lucky guy I am in order to have an example of what life should be like when I rebut the forces who are trying to make life what it shouldn't be like. A counteractive example so that I never lose sight of what is right and good in the world.
     So as I look to find the happy in life I still must endure the struggle to make it so. How unfortunate that it is this way but no amount of burying my head in the sand will change the reality of this moment. Like many of us I thought the great battle for our democracy was over and that now the time for building a model society was upon us. Well it isn't and that fact needs to be understood by all! The most the trumps can hurt us is for 8 years. I expect at worst that he will survive just the 4 years and my hope is he will be gone much sooner than that. Yet we are where we are right now and despite me trying to be happy in the meantime there is much work to be done standing firm against the lying thieving trumps and blistering them with facts and truths at every turn!

Voter apathy led to this current dehumanizing era (#3147)

     46.9% of eligible voters did not vote in the 2016 presidential election, http://www.cosmopolitan.com/politics/a8265143/almost-half-eligible-voters-did-not-vote-election-2016/. To say that voter apathy led to our current dilemma is spot on! The most enthusiastic of voters make sure to vote but those who are not enthusiastic for whatever reason still must find it within themselves to vote or we end up with a government that is not of the people by the people for the people. Instead we get special interests that are not for the people as much as they are for themselves. There is one absolute responsibility we have outside of defending our democracy with arms and that is to vote for politicians who reflect the will of we the people.
     That 46.9% of us failed to do the most basic function required by our democracy shows a disdain for the process that validates our liberties and freedoms. I am appalled at my fellow countrymen/women who felt that their time was better spent doing something else other than claiming their right to participate in their own governance. Let me be clear here, there is no perfect candidate and never will be so not voting because we were angry over some perceived slight to our way of thinking is childish and dangerous. The best candidate is the one who needs to be elected despite their flaws in some areas of our concern.
     So instead of getting a slightly flawed candidate we got a tyrant who lied, stole and cheated his way to the presidency because not enough of us cared to stand up to him and his corruption. So not only are we abdicators of our own right to choose we are now cowardly for not being brave enough to stop the carnival barker who was a wolf in sheep's clothing. This is the most disgusting era of American politics I can ever remember and if not for my own indomitable will to see this era end I would have left this nation to you who cannot find the will in yourselves to throw the bums out! This next round of elections should prove to show whether we have learned this simple lesson that should have already been learned, that being vote like your life depends upon it because surely it will if you don't.

I have my curiosity for knowledge, science and logic, what more could I need? (#3146)

     Well outside my heart anyway. Yet the question remains the same. I don't need magic, superstition or myth. I have reality and the awesome ability to interpret it based upon civilized factors. I find it a privilege to live in a civilized society where my basic wants and needs are mostly provided for. I was raised in a family where we were given the structure of education and discipline, well mostly discipline since I was rebellious in my younger life, and the opportunity to improve my station in life. We were and for the most part are still lower middle class and/or upper poor class yet the freedom we experienced allowed us to at least become critical thinkers if we so chose. I did choose to be a critical thinker and thus I needed to explore the boundaries of my chosen field of study.
     Curiosity is the impetus for learning at least something that catches our interest. I have that all the time. There is no limit to the things that intrigue me. The fortunate thing is is that for the most part I live in an open and free society that allows me to discover the answers to questions that were previously unknown to me. I have the foundational tools of science and logic to help me along in my understandings. For after a while the simple becomes the complex and there has to be a set of logical formulas that I can use that govern the sequencing of those simplexes into complexities. The same with science, it grows upon itself either adding or shedding theories as we comprehensively acquire more information.
     When proofs and facts change the dynamic of previous conjecture we must move on from the previous conjecture and apply the new proofs and facts. It has been this way since at least the dawning of civilized living. We don't change the rules of evolution to satisfy something that has no foundation in reality in order to make ourselves feel better! No, we jettison the outdated and unproven as theory and let them set aside from what is real and provably true. I don't live in a magical world, I live in a real world where the facts of biology and physics dominate our lives on this volatile planet. There is plenty of understanding of our environment that needs to continue without me adding in the myths and superstitions what makes us feel comfortable in opposition to our fears.

The lesson of the hurricanes (#3145)

     There are many natural events that are happening in our world and the fact that they are getting to be much more intense should end any discussion about them not being influenced by man made activities. The fact of climate change, despite republicans banning such words, does nothing to change the forthcoming wrath that we are significantly responsible for creating. As we will see shortly another aspect of republican denial was the need to upgrade and improve our national infrastructure. The damage through deaths and property damage are going to be incalculable. With republicans also against the American working middle poor class having livable wages to earn, the many who are in poverty are not able to protect themselves like the wealthy from the effects of natural events.
     I am sick and tired of republicans who would rather ignore having foresight in lieu of maintaining privilege and advantage for the wealthy. The republicans should not be in public office where the hard work of preparing our society for a better future for everyone is required. Instead the republicans only maintain a better future for the wealthy and themselves. These hurricanes are going to unleash the destructive force of nature upon us and despite the limited preparations we now have many will pay dearly who cannot afford to protect themselves or their meager way of life. No more than ever I am convinced that the republican party is not only devious and despicable but they are a miserable reflection of what the worst of America has become.
     I write this before the latest hurricane makes landfall on the continental United States and although it is my hope that this hurricane withers and veers away it is not the reality we are going to face. There will be those who could not afford to leave who will pay harshly and it is because we won't fix our economy away from the greedy unregulated capitalism and the mindset that only the survival of the fittest deserves the bounty of the marketplace. It makes me sick that there are Americans who are so cavalier with the lives of others. Not all republicans are mean nasty brutish souls but it isn't a surprise that those who are, are all in the republican party.

Resistance resistance resistance... (#3144)

     "You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you get what you need".-Rolling Stones lyric. I am often reminded that I rarely get what I want but I do seem to do okay in the meantime. However with our current politics I cannot say that with any sense of confidence. But there is a reaction I have at most everything that is being tried by the trumps to destroy our democracy. I resist. I will not ever accept anything less than positive for our society. I will not! Now I can't legally stop the majorities that the trumps have to do their dirty deeds to us Americans and the world at large but I can scream at the top of my lungs the method and the intent of their destruction so that all can know what they are doing.
      There will be no hidden attempts by them to slide their corrupt agenda under the radar of the national electorate. There filthy contempt for the American working class will be exposed for its deviousness as long as I live. Now I don't expect that once they notice me that somehow I'll be around much longer if they think my vitriol at them may be detrimental to their cause to make the wealthy the only worthy class of privileged citizen. I put nothing past those who are on a single mission to disenfranchise and discount the masses as nothing more than cannon fodder. Death to the masses and condescension are traits reserved for republican politicians. Control and power are republican goals and nothing will get in their way not even treason to the stars and stripes.
     Money is not speech and corporations are not people but unlike reality, the republican majority supreme court has decreed it so. Well the republican dominated supreme court is wrong and not only that they are disappointingly unwise. They let their own greed and their own lust for power to drive their thoughts on what can be twisted into law, as long as it fits their narrative. Much like forcing a round peg into a square hole. Never in my life had I seen such a total lack of intellect from an independent branch of government until the trumps. The arrogance it must take to bend logic into a pretzel all the while not fooling anyone and still be so pompous. Resist resist resist.

Mother Nature will have her say despite the ignorance of us humans (#3143)

     If it isn't abundantly clear now to most of us critical thinking humans that our planet is an ecosystem unto it's own then we are still in for some hard lessons. With hurricanes, fires, droughts flooding and earthquakes happening with harsher frequencies we humans have to ask ourselves are we part of the problem or part of the solution. I know we cannot stop our planet from it's natural eruptive forces but are we fueling them to greater effects to our own demise? I can only look at the scientific reasoning and logical conclusions those analytics offer, https://www.edf.org/climate/9-ways-we-know-humans-triggered-climate-change.
     So given that we humans are part of the problem cannot we then stop our progression toward our own demise and then start on a path of creating solutions that alleviate our harmful contributions to our planet's warnings? Do we have to sit here and keep allowing the greedy forces of industry to remain short sighted about our environment so that they can continue to reap profits? How will they spend their ill gotten gain when our planet has unceremoniously booted us out of existence through natural disaster. Make no mistake about it, we are one supervolcano away from ceasing to exist as a species. The totality of the devastation that our planet can throw at us is beyond anything we can prepare for so it would behoove us to not piss of the lady that keeps our lives in existence.
     Our planet will survive any of her tantrums but we won't so if we can stop what we are doing to make her more volatile than she would normally be, then we can save ourselves in the process. We are beholden to our planet and no amount of greedy financial accumulation will be logical if we are no longer an entity. Turning our planet into a gray one instead of the blue and green one we were given will trigger the worst of what our planet can do to us in order to return to her preferred nature. She is alive now and has been since before humans existed, surely she would be better off without us if we cannot find it within us to be better stewards of her care.

No Russian dictator nor American tyrant have sway over me (#3142)

     In each person's life there is a line in the sand moment. Mine was drawn many years ago when I realized that if I didn't speak up and call the truth out for all to hear I was not being the human being I thought between my ears that I was. Knowing in my mind and heart that I am a decent respectful person is not enough. I had to prove it so that it has real value for all to see. I am no thief or liar nor cheat. I am a good person who will not stand by and let bad people bully or otherwise have free run against those of us who are too afraid at the moment to act. I have crossed my line already so there is no going back. There is such a relief in knowing that whatever happens to me, I am true to myself and being courageous is at the top of the list.
     This is how we all should live our lives. Where we put our courage before our fear. I know it is easy to say and so difficult to do because many see that their lives are just beginning or their lives are finally making good sense and don't want to gamble with sacrificing their lives to make political points. Well let me say this about that. Political points are what keeps wars from starting, political points keeps the least among us from cruelty and suffering to ultimately death. Political points are what keep our own dignity and respect alive to teach to our offspring. Weigh the cost of being more cowardly than courageous and then tell me that doing nothing to upset your particular cart is a better option.
     So when the bullies in charge of major nations or the loud bullies in the neighborhood try to hold their power over us it is because we let them instead of saying no to them and then staring them down with a look of "I'm all in on stopping you"! Our own personal lines in the sand have to be real and matter. We cannot fake our courage. It has to be real regardless of how scary that is. Be willing to lay it all on the line for what is right about we humans and then you will find that you have never felt more alive when the bullies, dictators and tyrants shrink back to under their rocks where they need to be sent. I had to learn to be courageous by looking at others be courageous and then I knew I could be too despite the fear that brings. Courage grows on you and then eventually you find that being courageous about most all things is as natural as breathing air.

Not even the concept of a God bullies me! (#3141)

     Here is how I see it. First I am not a believer in any man made religion. None! But let me get to some reasoning first. If there is a God and the God says I have free will then so far so good. But the problem comes when the God says that if I don't believe in him and follow the God's "commandments" written by men who were allegedly inspired by the God, okay that is weird, I will not be able to enter some Kingdom of a Heaven and instead am forced to live in a Hell of everlasting fire. So the idea of me having a free will sure seems to me to be irrelevant. Because either I do what I am told by some men who wrote what they thought the word of some God was relaying to them, or I am burned in hell for eternity.
     Of course there is the second line of reasoning which is that it is all made up in order to instill fear into us so that we become pliable as useful resources. Not such an outrageous thought given the nature of we men who can't seem to do right by all of humanity. Control is our big problem and with a form of religion that makes it clear we have little to no choice to follow, the control becomes available. We are still a fearful lot we humans and the use of fear by old institutional forces to maneuver humans into some compliance is a value that they don't want to lose to enlightenment so keep the myths, mores and superstitions alive in order to keep us where we are easily suppressed.
     So if there is a God, I don't care for the God because I will not be told how to live my life based upon a threat. If there isn't a God then why would I follow the dogma that powerful forces want me to accept for their own benefit? I live my life for me. I have my own principles of honor and doing right without the need for an artificial one. I don't need to believe in any religion to feel safe from life, on the contrary I fight to make life safe for all that I can. I sort of laugh when fear presents itself. Fear, if not used for caution when caution is necessary is a detriment and is a useless paradigm and not something I would ever shy from. I live in courage and being a coward is not part of that. Live one life and enjoy it without being shackled by religion or those who would put a collar and rein on my neck.
  

Holding Dreamers hostage to build a wall (#3140)

     The latest in terrible news from republicans besides wanting to start a nuclear war with North Korea is the republican strategy to kick 800,000 immigrants out of America who were brought here as children. The reasoning here from the dastardly republicans is that they will hold off kicking the Dreamers out if Democrats will agree to build the wall between the US and Mexico. You do get how despicable this don't you? Now if you are still for republicans I need you to look in the mirror and ask yourself what kind of person you are who would use the hopes and dreams of nearly a million law abiding immigrants who know no other home but here in America.
     How low a person do you have to be to threaten children and young adults to get your way when you already have majorities in the controlling executive and legislative branches? This right here is so despicable that if I were to cuss here to show my contempt it still wouldn't be enough to express my real anger about this. Using young folks who for the most part are some of our best neighbors and most industrious souls in our society. They should be granted immediate citizenship without delay yet now republicans have once again shown how despised they are as human beings in using these young souls as bargaining chips like they are nonentities.
     This wall that the narcissist in chief demands from us and Mexico is a straw man in that it will serve no great societal purpose other than to alienate our neighbor to the South. But it will fulfill a campaign promise the trumps made to his racist violent base. He cannot seem to keep any of his other campaign promises but this one he goes to hostage taking for? I cannot tell you how many ass kickings I would give if I had the cloak of invisibility. How many republicans are there who want to hurt America through racial, misogynistic punishing and insufferable policies? Like Popeye says in his cartoons, "I can stand so much and then I can't stands no more!"

It is September and we are all not dead yet (#3139)

     So far so good as to still being alive. I had thought that trump would have at least killed me off much earlier. The silver lining, other than me still being alive, is that he is inept as much as he is hateful. So although we will be lucky to escape death under his dictatorship, we may just may survive it because of his inability to annihilate us with efficient cohesiveness. We have already seen him thwarted in policies that he promised not to destroy and then promised to destroy and finally ended up doing little damage so far. With a sad excuse for a human like trump we were fortunate that his mind is addled by narcissistic tendencies which makes it difficult for him to work in conjunction with his nefarious republican majorities in Congress and the Supreme Court.
     Thankfully there is an investigation in the background that has him spooked so that along with his inability to live in a rational real world we may just slip by his control. Now the odds are still in his favor of killing most of us but at least we are this far along and it hasn't happened yet. If this is scary to you then good. Maybe you will wake up and realize just how important it is in a democracy to vote. Maybe the fact that our nation is on the verge of extinction will be the cold hard slap in the face the many who didn't bother to vote need to get them up to speed about our current danger. Let's hope so since all we have left is some resistance and a few legal moves.
     I will wait until December to blog in another post about where we are if I am still here. There is one thing I know for certain though is that trump doesn't scare me. All he does is infuriate me to the point of me wanting to stand in his way every second I have left to live. My life is nothing compared to what the trumps are doing to our nation. I would be honored to figure out a way to stop this trump madness but as yet I have been unable so all I can do for now is write about it and declare my allegiance to America and not to the trumps and their wanton desire to kill us if we don't bend our knee to them.
   
   
     

If democracy were a patient, democrats want to save it but republicans want to kill it (#3138)

     We the American people are on life support at the moment and there are two doctors waiting to treat us. The first doctor is the democratic one who wants to try all the science and creative innovation available to save us. Knowing that a little bit of everything combined may just be the formula for us to get healthy and live long lives. Then you have the republican doctor, who after looking judgingly upon us turns and walks away with no remedy for our ailment. Because republican doctors don't think that we all deserve to be healthy. Only those who can afford to be healthy are allowed a remedy from them. Otherwise just let nature take it's course no matter the ailment or affliction. The difference between these two doctors is life and death in most cases so which doctor shall we have as ours?
     The republican party is well decided that democracy is not for all Americans any longer. We as a society of all the people are not their concern any longer. The only ones who matter to them are the ones with enough money to pay for it. Capitalism it seems has run roughshod over democracy so that now not only does money have speech but the entities that control it are considered people. This is the effect of what greed can do. Greed is now a virtue not a sin. Look at the churches that preach prosperity, they hold up the golden calf as not a symbol of what ruins societies but as one that improves society. Well if greed is what will build America into a future, one can only surmise that very few will survive the survival of the fittest scenario as equals. Most all will either be killed off or made as servants to the few who succeed.
     The form of our democracy will no longer exist and in it's place will be a society that measures a person's respect and dignity by the size of their wallet or purse. Where character and personality are trivial and instead the acquisition of wealth, through hook or crook, is the standard by which we are judged "human" enough. Think about this for a moment, those who can lie, cheat and steal better than those who are honest and noble will be judged as greater souls if their bank accounts are fuller. This is what the difference is when we talk about which party did you vote for. Democrats want to save the patient and republicans don't care about the patient except to go through their pockets looking for spare change.

The arrogance of bluffing with bullshit instead of the humility of dazzling with brilliance (#3137)

     It is so much easier for the lazy and procrastinators to utilize baffling with bullshit to cover their ignorance than it is to be humble and dazzle with brilliance. We don't even have to be brilliant most of the time, just honest with some effort. Yet ignorance seems to be the choice. I suppose it is a short changing short cut thing where people think they don't have to think because others will do it for them thus making their lives less complicated. Yet to trust others to think for us is a trap waiting to be sprung by those who prey on others for benefits. Skating through life is a choice but it has it's consequences. Not only do we not know what is really going on around us we are unable to comprehend it at a crucial moment's notice.
     We abdicate the one unique thing about us, our ability to reason, rationalize and conclude. The one amazing facet each of us individual humans has is our understanding and comprehensive analytics. We can take a new thing and add it to what we know and it can change our whole perspective if we allow for logic and common sense to guide us. But we have to be willing to be objective and not so set in our ways so that we fail to see the differences in what is real and what we want. I don't mind that my hopes and dreams are rarely answered. I have them anyway and just every now and then one will come into being. I accept that the vast majority of the time that my hopes and dreams will go unanswered. It is the way of things with 7 billion people on the same planet. Yet that does not stop me from advocating the truth of things based upon society approved calculations.
     I had hoped that all of we humans would at least try to understand and form new ideas from the same base of knowledge. Yet it seems that many humans are content to form rationalizations that are not grounded in logic nor common sense but in some hoped for ideal beyond the laws of physics. Apparently it is easier to baffle everyone instead of impressing them with a wise brilliance. I prefer to remain silent rather than baffle with bullshit. It is beneath me as a functioning human being to disregard honesty and fact so that somehow I can gain a benefit at the expense of some others. I try to live to the ideal, not bend to the cursed. I would have hoped I wouldn't be in the minority on this but that seems to be where the other many of us are.

The worst with trumps is yet to come (#3136)

     It has been a tempered disaster so far with trump at the helm but the worst is yet to come in my opinion. His fumbling through his first 6 months has allowed him to learn, although inadvertently, what he can do better to make things worse. His on the job training to screw our democracy is in no part due to a calculus, no, it is due to a hateful trial and error. He will come to realize that in order to destroy the best parts of America he needs to bribe and cajole better within his republican party. If he knew how to be a leader he would have already accomplished much damage in the area of health care, immigration, taxes and what's left of women's rights etc... But it is dawning on him that his bullying ways can only get him so far and unless the hoped for mental break with reality hits first he will eventually stumble on the formula for putting many working middle poor class citizens in our graves.
     He has not been bashful or used ulterior motives to mask his agenda. He lied to get into office but since then his true nature has been on display ever since. What is absolutely astonishing to me is the base support he still receives. I could not have imagined that 5% of the country would be for him now but we still see close to 30% still rabid about his, as they see it "successes". The trumps are not all stupid or ignorant, they are mostly just anti-democratic and hateful. It seems that being anti-democratic and hateful has a large enough following here in the what was the land of the free that it would be difficult to force the trumps into a more conciliatory paradigm. So they will continue to stumble less and gain more traction for their enlightened society destroying measures.
     There may be some hope for a respite though if legal considerations are confirmed and adjudicated. However we have seen that the safeguards we thought were inherent within our democracy to prevent a power grab toward authoritarianism are simply an illusion. The more than 200 years we have been a democracy have made for some complex and institutional changes in our government that could prove to be too daunting for the trumps to crumble but given the trump disdain for logic and facts it doesn't make me feel comfortable that trump would understand his limitations to obstacles but instead charge ahead with a lust of mowing them down. The further the trump regime continues on at the helm of our nation the closer we get to being lesser subjects instead of equal citizens.

To whom much is given much is expected (#3135)

     This old adage is the backbone of a democracy. For those who have been gifted with the extraordinary there are millions who are not gifted with anything. What may seem to those who have unlimited success as their own special uniqueness, it is less that and more circumstantial fate, luck of the draw and many times a devious nature to manipulate. But whatever one has to tell themselves is what they do to keep their own ego filled to the top. But many are not such people. No, many are such people who realize that fate has smiled kindly upon them and that luck indeed is good for some and bad for many. But most of all to whom much is given has been earned through a maze of support and dedication. These are the ones who exemplify democracy because they know without a doubt that they are not the beginning and the end of all things.
     So they immerse themselves in not only continuing their successful enterprises but they look out beyond themselves and make ways for those who have not the magic touch of Midas. They give back to the society that gave them the opportunity to progress. They help maintain that structure and try to improve upon it. These are the ones who much has been given and now are the ones who expect from themselves to give back. It isn't about who can have the most while never letting go of what they have. No, it is about having the care to let go back to those who have not the resources nor the opportunity to progress on their own. We lift up our society so that the floor is not living in poverty but the floor is living with dignity and respect.
     Many find it hard not to accept that poor people are lazy shiftless and ignorant. They would be wrong. Poor people are defeated people who have been cast down, used and demoralized for so long that their will to brighten up and shake off the too many boots to their necks is inconceivable. They have been used, lied to and thrown away by a society that only measures success as respect, while giving no such respect for those who have tried but were defeated, fairly or dishonestly. It makes no matter if you lose regardless if the losses were deserved or not. Those who have made it to a place of benevolence and then actually are benevolent at least make up for some of the worst our natures allow. We need more of such folks and less of those who lied, cheated and stole to get their earthly rewards with no intent to give back.

Conservatism should never be the majority political party (#3134)

     The only function of a conservative is to be a watchdog on liberal policies. First you have the liberal policy and then you apply conservative measures to it so that it doesn't go to any extreme. I have never heard of a society helping conservative policy where liberalism is needed to expand it. Never! So for me it is simple, conservatives ie.. republicans, should always be the minority party but only as a counter to liberalism when it is too hubric. Think about it this way, you only need to conserve if you actually have something. Then it is wise to ration your whatever in a way that it is utilized to it's fullest efficiency. That is right and good.
     But only liberalism can bring us something to conserve. Conservatism does not bring us something to conserve, it by it's nature would not bring us anything as it's way of conserving. We are a society that needs to have an interconnectedness in order to satisfy our needs so there are times when we need to allocate liberal policies to make that so. It is then that conservative ideals can play an important role but only after the implementation of the liberal policy. The horse before the cart concept and not the other way around. If we want to keep our democracy we must get back to this type of dynamic where the conservatives are the minority and function as an efficient restraint on the liberal majority.
     What we currently have is a conservative majority everywhere and with that we will get nothing done except the tearing down of democratic ideals and liberal policies. It is as if we have been tricked into believing that the republicans are here to save us from ourselves. In actual truth the republicans are here to destroy us while blaming us for the destruction. They have always wanted less democracy and more authoritarian type rule so if we don't stop them from their agenda of turning us against ourselves so that they can reshape American government into an authoritarian one we will soon find that our democracy is gone and there will be no recourse for us to reverse the effect. We will have been done in by our own prejudices and hatred. I suppose we should deserve the outcome based upon our arrogance and naivete but our children and their children do not!

The Pearly Gates moment (#3133)

     Imagine if you will your belief that their is a God and Heaven exists. Okay, what will you be thinking when you are on your deathbed waiting to die or say to God or Peter when you get to the Pearly Gates? Will you tell them you were a proud republican voter who voted to discriminate against those who were not white? Will you say that the poor and the downtrodden were not worthy of your help? Will you say that women are a lesser human species than men? Will you say that money is greater than compassion? How do you plan to respond if an actual Heaven does exist? I am curious because the way religion is supporting some of the most vile acts humans can commit it makes me wonder if there are any who are religious, are worthy of being allowed into a Heaven if it exists?
     You religious need to think about that when you support the republican agenda. I know that there are imperfections on the democratic side as well but at least we allow for the individual to make choices that are not our's to make. The religiously conflicted on the democratic side at least know that they do not have to choose to follow the democratic platform if it conflicts with their beliefs. Whereas the republicans have to because the republican party will not allow for the individual to choose. We democrats, believers and nonbelievers have found a simple way to coexist. We don't pass laws that make one group at the mercy of another. We protect the rights of all citizens to choose their path in life but we give them options for it. Now if I don't agree with having an abortion then I shouldn't have one and that works for me. But if others think that having an abortion works for them then that is their choice and they have the right to make it regardless of what I "believe".
     In the republican way of thinking there is no right to choose for nonbelievers. They must follow what the believers think or else they are punished. If there is a God and a Heaven we all must answer for our lives based upon our free will not on what we were forced to do by others. I feel sorry for those believers who at the time of their dying must reexamine their lives and under the shock of the moment realize they were not disciples of Christ but were instead the Pharisees who undermined Christ. the republican party should NOT hold Christians as its followers since the republican party is antithetical to the teachings of Christ. If there is a God of course... 

The Supreme Court or the cowardly court (#3132)

     I have been hoping all along that our Supreme Court would put an end to what the trumps are trying to do outside the rule of law and the intent of our national constitution. Even with the absurd placement of an alleged racist on the court, I expect the more moderate republican members to be abhorred with the direction the trumps are taking our society. But we won't know until we get to some rulings that will give us insight into how the court considers its value. Will they stay a strict originalist majority allowing for the intent and actual words of the law to rule or will they allow for change in society and the general overarching ideal of protecting the institution of democracy itself?
     It is clear to me that a man who walks with his head down to make sure his footing is always precise often misses out on what is going on around him. Yet that is the way the court has operated for much of its walk through our history. There have been times in the history of legal precedence when the court raised its head and practised judicial wisdom beyond the intent of legislators and actually applied the doctrines of our constitution as the blueprint for contracting with the American people. But those times have been missing of late and to expect them to come back even when the trumps are staggering our democracy close to the edge of disaster, is still an unknown. I have hope but not a lot.
     But like all things, there could be some surprising moments and when this court does take up the new cases that do reflect the trump agenda. We will see how far the court will go in bending or not to the trumps demands. With trump already castigating the court and the rule of law it would seem like a prime to me to put the trumps back in their place as just one of three branches of government, not the only one. So will the Supreme Court uphold it's dignity and responsibility to American democracy or will they cower and kneel down to the bully trump. I for one have a flicker of hope that the 4 liberal leaning justices will influence one or two of the moderate conservative majority and stop the democracy destroying trump before he does to the Supreme Court what they surely must know he is planning to do, which is to brutishly turn the court's cowardice in upon themselves.

America has no moral high ground (#3131)

     Even the religions here in America have lost the value of moral esteem. Where once we could count on the church as a place where all could find refuge, respect and dignity we are seeing that the churches now are actually instigating exclusion and hatred as moral value. The correct definition is moral bankruptcy. America was the melting pot where the poor, tired and oppressed could come and find an opportunity for a better life and a happier one. Well no more! America has instead closed in on its ugly racist self and has begun to purge those who are too ethnic or not white enough. This is my country and it infuriates me! Yet I can do little to change this direction except to voice an opinion and stand by my values in my own personal and public life.
     I am fine with that since I am the only one who lives inside my skin. I value the morality of democracy and all its inherent principles. My life is a record of my time here in this existence and if there is a recording of it in some unknown paradigm I can stand firmly by and say overall it has been a good life spent. I do let the best of humanity reside inside of me. I don't follow those who would harm and hurt out of some misguided lorded belief that pain and suffering are good things. I am not wise enough to know what is in the hearts of men and women other than their actions and words as they come forth. But with those actions and words I can see their morality or lack thereof. Which is why I am writing this piece about America and our arrogance to lecture against criminality when we are in actuality, culprits.
     So with our current atmosphere of racism and hatred we are not only dropping the ball on improving our society and the world around us but we are also making the world a more dangerous and intolerant place. We Americans are a shameful lot and it would behoove the world to quarantine us from infecting them with our own egregious brand of unwarranted condescension. There are many elements of American society that are struggling mightily to change this current era of despicableness but we are up against it in the worst of ways with the republican party being in control of our politics and as well feeding the current dynamic of despair.

Society is built for humans not humans built for society (#3130)

     This is the problem with republicans, they think of humans as resources. We are not resources, we are unique one of a kind individuals who happen to live in a fixed reality. Society, through civilized acknowledgement is devised to better enhance the human experience, not humans that are procreated to enhance the needs of society. We have allowed this mindset of we are not worthy to infiltrate our consciences and we therefore lose our will to fight for our innate right to exist equally in a democracy. Our foreparents fought long and hard for us to get the kind of society we could live in and if it weren't for republicans devilishly destroying our democracy so that they can once again use us as a utility, we would have an even better democracy!
     The bottom line for republicans is always money so if they cannot make money from any endeavor, whether their endeavor or a shared endeavor like democracy, then they will change the rules so that they can benefit. They don't care about the good will of others because they subscribe to the survival of the fittest dogma. All of this illustrates to me that we are a species in turmoil and we can't seem to decide to move forward into the logic of enlightenment or backward into the brutishness of being controlled. I am part of this species and for me the question isn't about being afraid, it is about whether we are bold. I know we are afraid, even I am but my desire to be bold about my life is much greater.
     I have little time left in this existence so doing things half assed or in fear is not an option. I am all in on living to my potential under the rules of democracy given us by our foreparents. I will not relinquish that gift to some bullies who would threaten and cajole so that they can lie cheat and steal our future. No, I will fight them with all that I have and when the fighting time is done for me I will at least have died with a noble purpose in my heart. I matter and so do all of us so what will it take for all of us to find the will to die with a noble purpose in our hearts? What will it take to move away from our own childish fears? Rather a hero to my heart than a coward!

A stitch in time (#3129)

     The trump reign must be ended before we can hope for a better future. Every new day I see something that trump is doing to destroy our democratic ideals. I know these things he is doing are by executive order and thus can be reversed by the next democratic president but the further we go down into the morass of tyranny the harder it will be to arrest our fall and climb up back out. The vote rigging through gerrymandering, poll tax like required identifications, voter list purges and actual voter fraud by republicans makes it necessary for all who are voting citizens to show up and vote this next election. 46.9% of registered voters did not bother to vote in 2016. We cannot have a replay of that if we are to bring our democracy back from it's hellish downfall.
     The investigation into the russian connection and the trumps and other colluding republican's campaigns is slow and painstakingly methodical and as such may not be ready for prosecution for another year or more. So girding ourselves up for the next midterm election in about 14 months is the best course given our unknowns. If we cannot end the trump presidency through criminal prosecution then we must severely damage his ability to legislate by taking out the republican majorities in both legislative houses. We can do nothing about the supreme court seat that was stolen from the Obama administration by the despicable current senate majority leader but we can make sure that no other of his ilk is allowed to sit on our highest court.
     A stitch in time to me is the rallying call to end the republican leadership in our great nation. To allow for the trumps and their acolytes to serve 2 terms with their legislative majorities would all but end democracy as we know it. We have no other choice but to fight back with everything we have to obstruct and defeat the conservative/nazi agenda. I cannot believe I am writing this about our nation but then again I have been in a stunned state of reality since November 8, 2016. The American spirit has to be greater than the worst of human nature and simply getting all of us to the voting booth will prove that democracy is greater than tyranny.

Religion and it's shaming (#3128)

     Here in America we hold that the right to practice religion is as important as the right to not practice religion. It is what separates the church from government. The clause in our constitution's first amendment is this, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;...". So in another way of describing it, we can practice or not practice religion, that is our choice. So since no religion can compel anyone to practice it then it must attract its members in order to be able to offer its principles. Well many religions have sprung up over the history of our civilization and the one theme they all have in common so far is their attempt to make themselves worthy of attention.
     We here in America have houses of worship of all types and sizes so each has to be able to survive by making it's best case to us that we need to accept their doctrine. But lately over the last few decades some religions have taken to shaming those who are not holding their particular views instead of attracting followers. Personally, I am not a follower of religion. To me it is myth and superstition all rolled up into one. But back to the recent course of shaming by religions to those who are not their followers. This shaming is an attack on those who are not attracted to their dogma and or cultish practices. The purpose to me for the need for religion is for a lifting up of the spirit but we are seeing not a lifting up of the spirit but a condemnation of it.
     Which is ironic since there has never been a person or a group of people who have not been a "sinner". So these religions that are shaming people are in essence hypocrites to their own dogmatic principles. Now to me it further illustrates the lack of necessity for religion at all but I know people who find comfort in their belief systems and who am I to dispute the rights guaranteed under our constitution's first amendment? Simply it is this, religions that are out there condemning people for not being like them have failed to attract followers with their unwanted actions and words. So they choose instead to work the shame angle. I find it contemptible that as I live to honor and uphold the constitution of our United States others don't and instead want to have you obey them.

The unraveling of the madman (#3127)

     It is my fervent hope that one day, sooner rather than later, we will be able to look back on this time in our American history and see just how close we came to destroying our great nation. The collusion with a foreign nation by republicans to gain victories in the 2016 general election is one treasonous action we need to punish those complicit for making happen. Elevating a candidate like trump to the leader of the free world is another action that should never have happened and republicans need to be held to account for letting an obviously disturbed man run our country. What also must be addressed is the base of support trump carries with him no matter what he does or says. Like Charles Manson, there will always be those who are hypnotized by him in a nation as diverse and eclectic as ours.
     The mounting evidence of an illogical break with reality taking form as a weed, has it's root and that root needs to be plucked out wholly with a care to preserve new fertile ground for the planting of new ideas to emerge. We have an epidemic of ignorance and bad behavior to confront and the sooner we get to it the better we will be in going immediately into our better future. If any one thing can be utilized as a silver lining in the madness displayed by trump and his enablers it is that hatred and division are not compatible with democracy and intelligence. We see the path forward now and as such we must apply the rule of law and conscious to the furtherance of a modern society if we want to continue to strive to be a nation without equal in human rights, equality of opportunity with justice and fairness for all.
     The unravelling of trump before our eyes gives us the chance to create a do over in our immediate future and if the truth of things show themselves in a timely fashion we will get that opportunity. I have had to work hard to be able to put logic and democracy at the top of my list of principles because I am a slow learner sometimes and need an extra moment of two now and then. But the rest of us are able to see first hand the madness trump displays and being unable to equate logic and common sense to his actions and words is sadly easy at this point. He is unable to hide behind pomp and circumstance any longer so fooling anyone else other than his hard core base is impossible. His madness is there for all the world to see.
     

Make sure you are registered and eligible to vote (#3126)

     Everyone needs to check their voting status to make sure they were not part of any purge that republicans are working overtime to accomplish. This is how republicans see their best chance to win elections. They eliminate as many non republican voters from eligibility as possible whether those voters are eligible or not. There is practically no voter fraud in a world where nothing is perfect yet republicans claim that there is mass cheating but never provide proof of their claim. That their claim helps them is irrelevant in their eyes. But it isn't irrelevant in ours since we are the ones who are fighting to keep our voting rights.
     The vitriolic and infectious way republicans push past logic and common sense in order to get their way should have gotten them nothing from us voters yet for some inconceivable reason they continue to have followers. How many they have left we will find out by the end of voting in the next national election of 2018. We have seen the republican party earn horrible approval numbers over the last many months but when the political ads start to come fast and hard next year will we electorate once again be bamboozled by the lying rhetoric of the conservative republican party? My guess is that given the last election we will be taken in once again by the sheer magnitude of republican ads lying their asses off to make their best case.
     Well republicans don't have a case in my book. They try to cheat to win by suppressing voters from voting. They have never been about building a strong working middle class and they stomp on the rights of Americans who are not beholden to them. They are the scourge of our nation and yet because they have money and are still powerful politically we keep allowing them to bully and lie to us. There is only one way we can be sure to end their domination of our politics and that is by voting them out of office everywhere. We cannot do that unless our priorities are set to make sure we are still eligible to vote as well as those who we can help.

The genetics of freedom (#3125)

     I would think that after many generations of being a free nation for the most part that our genetics would have picked up a tick in that direction. To say that we all can't be taken control of by the forces of tyranny that threaten our lives unless we submit is still very possible but the will to be free again is now part of who we are, ingrained in such a way as to be in our DNA or at least feel like it. I have a stubborn streak in me that is not just the much of Irish blood in my veins but the idea of freedom to choose as my will decides provided by this very democracy we are gifted with in America. Why do you think I fight so hard for democracy? Because it allows me the liberty to choose from lawful activities and thoughts without fear of death or reprisal.
     Democracy is the vehicle that allows all of us the drive to wherever our happiness will take us. Without democracy we are left with choices made by others for us that do not take into account our individual uniqueness. We become cookie cutter humans with lives that are controlled by those who think of themselves as greater than us. Where distinctions among us are based upon superficial identifiers are the rule with no room for the depth of creativity and merit. Democracy is our lifeblood for existing to our potential and without it we are not able to fulfill any purpose we may choose for ourselves. This is why we cannot let our democracy wane in the face of tyranny and brutal egoism.
     I always call upon my favorite Continental army member and Revolutionary war hero, the 21 year old at his hanging, Nathan Hale, to describe what democracy means to me. "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." I may only have one life but it is a life worth offering to defend the vehicle that keeps us free from oppression and wrapped in the arms of freedom. Democracy is the value many underestimate and/or ignore because it is the all that encompasses our lives. We forget it is there because we expect to be free as the logic of enlightenment pronounces. Yet it is a dearness that must be defended at all times because there are too many human scourges out there who have no illusion about their own personal greatness in a way that diseases the rest of our society at the expense of our freedom. Freedom is in my blood and my nature now and nothing will stop me from protecting our democracy that allows it.

Equality over privilege and advantage (#3124)

     Democracy demands that we place equality over privilege and advantage yet in America we have abused that principle and instead have placed privilege and advantage over equality. When I say we, I mean those whom we voted to represent us who have otherwise dishonored that trust. They instead work to satisfy the wealthy and the powerful more often than not. The paradigm of we the people has been subjugated by the weakness of our representatives. No more should the wealthy and the powerful have an honored place at the table of our democracy. They should sit with all the rest of us with no preferred status.
     Our laws and the application of our justice system truly does need to be blind. It is abominable that the wealthy can buy their way out of law breaking. There needs to be no amount of personal wealth that can subvert the cause of justice. The problem doesn't just lie with our representatives. Too many judges, attorneys and law enforcement in the judicial system have lost the intent of their oaths to their professions. The weakness of our own individual characters has allowed for the gray areas in the law to overwhelm the righteousness of it. The gray areas are not for furthering the advantage and privilege of some more than others, instead the are areas that have yet to be fully encompassed into practice with equality at its core.
     Like many different elements in our society, equality has been shuffled to the back when it comes to priorities. We have lost sight of the value that equality brings to our lives. Instead we have poverty, anger and an overall disillusioned citizenry all at the expense of the wealthy and powerful who conjure the idea that they must have their privilege and advantage. Well I say enough of privilege and advantage. Democracy demands that equality be the avenue that which decides who among us can attain through merit, innovation and creativity. Each of us must put forth our best effort if we want to achieve. No more should the wealthy and powerful be able to dictate or interdict in our right to live in a society that holds all to the same standard without privilege and advantage. With much comes much responsibility. We all deserve the same right to try without condition or disadvantage.

Wedging the cracks in the republican party (#3123)

     I find myself at odds with this current administration because they do not hold democracy dear. They see democracy as an obstacle to how their agenda will play out. This is why they embrace such harsh policies as ending social programs and creating a two tiered citizenship in America. Not only do they want to restrict voting they want to eliminate most of what is left of the working middle class. Either you are wealthy or you are struggling to make ends meet. The republican party wants the workers to be fighting for jobs that pay less and less by creating more demand with less opportunity. The opposite of what democracy demands here in America.
     The republican party wants to cut down on education for the masses so that they can hold their monopolies without true competition. The opposite of what democracy demands. The republican party wants to stifle the equality of women to men so that they can still think of women as their property. The opposite of what democracy demands. The republican party wants to curtail immigration so that they can control the types of racial allowances for entry. The opposite of what democracy demands. The republican party wants to end free speech as it is and change it to what they deem is the best utility for their own propaganda, alternative facts and fake news as examples. The opposite of not only democracy but of what logic and common sense demand.
     These are just a few examples of why we need to wedge the cracks in the republican party even further so that the exposure of the inner workings reveals its nefarious intent and the strife it creates within the republican party cabal will expand. Divide and conquer has been used by republicans for so long against us liberals that it only seems karmic that the same strategy be used against them. Resisting and exposing their plan for the takeover of our democracy is our best defense and offense. We have to protect the principles of democracy if we are to withstand the treason the republican party is willing to embrace to destroy the greatest democracy on the planet. Come join us in smashing the attempt by republicans to harm and cause suffering to any and all who would get in their way. Remember, always vote for the democrat in every political race in what is still our country!

Women's right to vote (#3122)

     Today marks the 97th year in American history in which women have had the right to vote, https://www.archives.gov/historical-docs/19th-amendment. Our national constitution came into force in the year 1789. Which means that for the first 131 years of America as a nation, women did not have a legal voice in the form of a vote in our politics. This has always been a struggle throughout human history, cleaning up the mess we men have made not only in politics but in religion and economics. From the selfish egos of kings to the destructive nature of tyrants, we men have shown the ability to force ourselves into whatever we desired wherever possible. 97 years ago that male domination was cracked wide open here in America.
     Today we have world leaders who are women; top flight commanders in our own military and legislators in our politics. Women have shown that they are not to be discounted in the philosophy of men simply by never relenting in the quest to be more than just property to men. How absurd this is to write for me but the fact is that women are still fighting the perception that their place is to be quiet, barefoot and pregnant. I am a man who always seems to be add odds with my gender and my ethnicity. I am an older white male who sees the bigger picture much more easily than my fettered and blinded brethren. I see the principles of democracy as sacred and worthy of defending. I am not one who has any trouble with being humble about my own self worth.
     Women have been on the steady rise to make America more democratic since my first breath on Earth and although it has been a slow slog it is inching forward. I can take some satisfaction in that, despite my hubris to accomplish much more through enlightened common sense. Women birth all of us men. They are our wives, our sisters and our children so why is it that us men have such a hard time admitting the truth of their equality to us? Our selfishness is abominable and that doesn't seem to matter to us men. It does matter to me and like racism, gender prejudice must end and end it will if those like me continue to push with women and minorities to uphold our constitution and all of it's protections real and intentional.

Democracy cannot abide racism (#3121)

     The whole idea of democracy is an equal, fair and just opportunity for all. Nowhere in there is there room for racial discrimination! So those who choose racial divisions living in a democracy have made their choice to put racism over democracy. That is logic and if you cannot grasp that then you are ignorant as well as a racist. In a country that boasts of the most freedoms for its citizens how is it that some of its citizens are incapable of rationalizing that? Hatred for another race stems from a lack of understanding and a fearful perception of differentness. However the color of our skin we are all the same on the inside so how much more illogical can it be to place racism over democracy?
     It doesn't take courage to be a normal person and accepting of all citizens as our family within the human race. But it does take cowardice not to. So those who are racist are in effect living in their cowardice. They may thrash out and bellow inanities to hide the fact that their choice to be racist is cowardly but we know by the laws of logic that racism is cowardice so no amount of hiding it will ever mask it's ill nature. I see all these strategically angry people making life miserable for those who are not them and I think about their lives. They have chosen to live in the slippery slope world of who is next to be not like them once they dispose of those who they initially target.
     The racists will always live in fear because they cannot trust their own good natures of caring and compassion. So they are left with the more vile natures we humans have shown from antiquity. They may justify their behaviors as our true nature but then again they are not prone to believing in evolution like the enlightened among us. Evolution is the paradigm by which an object, plant or being changes over time to adapt to increased knowledge or physical/biological processes. We are not the humans of antiquity because we have advanced into a more modern era. We can choose to be the best of who we are despite the past traits that we needed to survive in a more inhospitable world. Well the evolution of our nation into democracy has no room for the archaic practice of racism just like we have no room for the willfully ignorant.

The end of the racist trump! (#3120)

     The republican party is going to weigh it's mess with either keeping trump or impeaching him. My best guess is that if Mueller doesn't come down soon on the trumps the republicans in Congress will. As unlikely it would have seemed back 9 months ago it seems much more plausible now. As trump continues to align himself with nazi rhetoric the further republicans have to move away from him. That trump has already shown that he cannot maneuver legislation to actualize his "agenda of killing Americans" along, republicans in Congress are getting much more upset with his blaming them for his own ineptitude. The alienation keeps growing for trump as more and more people of good will have seen enough of him to know that he is not of good will himself.
     Which leaves trump now surrounded with the ilk that least want America to succeed. The anguish republican politicians must feel for selling their souls and defending trump must be wearing them down and with that wearing down is the real possibility that if they don't do something real soon about trump the 2018 elections could be a slaughter for them. The congressional republicans are either going to go down with the trump ship or they are going to bail and set about eliminating the scourge that now occupies our white house. We will see but my best guess is that congressional republicans will feel such heat from their constituents that they will have to disband their absurd party loyalty to this malignant cancer called trump.
     However it plays out the end of it will not be kind to republicans. First they are a party that likes to steal elections and not win them. Second, they have no agenda for improving the lives of the American working middle poor class and third they would rather harm people than help them. For me the republicans have always been about saving their own asses because that is what people of no character do. So the idea of trump being on the chopping block is a logical one for me but I cannot nor will not say absolutely because republicans have also shown an ignorance to me that defies logic and common sense. So will trump go or will republicans feel the wrath of the voters in 2018? My best guess is that trump will be impeached if Mueller doesn't get him first.

Take down the Southern monuments to the confederacy (#3119)

     Much like in Germany after the fall of the nazi party, all monuments that were up were taken down. The defeat and then the disgrace of the nazi party demanded it! It was the right thing to do. There is little difference here in America with the confederate monuments. The confederacy declared their independence from the United States and then proceeded to fight a war to make it happen. Well they lost and their attempt to keep slavery as a right was defeated along with their aspirations to make a nation for themselves. So having these southern monuments dispersed around the south as a testimony to their attempt is anti-American and a reminder of the sedition the southern states took at that time.
     There is another disturbing aspect of having those monuments up for children to grow up and admire. Feeding the deeply held belief that the south would have another run at seceding although having slaves this time would seem moot but who knows? Still like in Germany, when the architects of naziism where defeated their monuments were destroyed and their ideology was swept aside so that a new beginning could take hold and a Germany without naziism could emerge. Well we didn't get that done here in America and instead allowed for the defeated ideology of slavery and rebellion to be planted firmly in the minds of the southern population. We were wrong not to pull every monument down to the perpetrators of secession but we even allowed for new monuments to be erected and placed in public squares.
     Enough! The southern states have to accept that the past is not always pretty and that their ancestors were not all in for America. If nostalgia for that history must be saved then let it be in museums. To perpetrate the myth that the south did not fight over slavery is against the laws of logic and common sense and does not heal our nation but instead stokes a flame of distrust. Our southern children need new heroes like the slaves who fought and won their freedom from an otherwise intolerable reality wherever slavery was practiced. Those should be the types of monuments that appear throughout the south, not monuments to the southern generals and politicians who fought against their own nation to protect slavery and keep the black race as equal to property.

The silent majority again killing our democracy! (#3118)

     Leaving the protesting and our voices out of the racial discussion leaves us vulnerable to the psychopaths who are calling for a racial divide. There were almost half of eligible American voters, 46.9%, who did not vote in 2016, http://www.cosmopolitan.com/politics/a8265143/almost-half-eligible-voters-did-not-vote-election-2016/. How can we secure the foundation of democracy if our electorate doesn't treat voting as a dearness? I know that many find that they have objections to voting for candidates that don't align perfectly with their own sense of the present and future but the consequences of not voting for the next best candidate are clearly illustrated in what has happened to us here in America with the trumps being elected.
     Instead of making slow steps forward with a candidate that is not our ideal, we have allowed for a candidate to get elected by not voting who is taking us backwards by leaps and bounds while inflicting horrors on us at the same time. Given logic, steady progress will always be better than regression don't you at least agree with this statement? If somehow we survive the hatred and incompetence of the trumps and he doesn't blow us all to hell with nuclear wars, then all of us have to take the voting rights we have left and make them precious to us. We have to engage in our politics if we are to keep what is left of the bet of America alive.
     There are many factors and reasons for the silent majority to keep a distance from politics and keep their heads down so as not to rock the boat. I get that. But what I also get is that fear and bullying cannot be rewarded with the prize. America was and still can be an honored nation where courage and the fighting spirit are the hallmarks of our behaviors. There is no more time for sitting quietly with our hands over our mouths. Each of us has a duty to the guiding principles of democracy that have given so much to us. For there to be a better America that finally washes away the stains of hatred and ignorance we must all vote with the intent to improve our society despite not having our favored candidate in the race.

Racist hatred is an immature mental illness (#3117)

     The idea that hating someone for having a different look about them is inconceivable to a normal person. We as Americans have enshrined in our constitution a tolerant and diverse notion of existence. We are not all cut from the same cookie cutter, we are unique, which gives us not only our individuality but our personal identity that is all our own. We celebrate our diversity within a form of democratic government that recognizes that we are all human beings and therefore are owed the right to be equal with all others. Our intellect demands it of us given logic and common sense as defined by scientific observation. So when we see today the kind of racism that has a root in illogic and ignorance we can justly note that an imbalance of mental acuity has occurred.
     Our human natures require of us to be caring and curious so when we see the lack of that we know that those afflicted with racial hatred have lost the ability to distinguish between fact and delusion. They have somehow arrived at a place in their lives where the information of fact and truths is dismissed to favor some deluded idea of self worth. I am a white man who is proud to say that I look up to many folks who are diverse in not only culture but in life experience. There is no distinguishment with me as to the arbitrary coloring of their skin nor the design of their gender. I find it utterly reprehensible that there are those who fear difference as much as they are proud of sameness. There is no formula for what is acceptable in who or what a human form takes. It is a cosmopolitan and comprehensive approach we all must take with each other that accentuates the right attitude we should have toward each other.
     Behavior and character are what determines the best of who we are and the worst of who we are. Nothing as simple as skin pigmentation will ever be a factor in deciding the value and worth of a human being. I had thought we had all moved to a place beyond this immature and irrational categorization based upon racial appearance. We are human beings with a heart and mind to be human beings to our fullest. Not some lesser being that has not the sense to assimilate the facts and truths of logic and science. The nature of this particular mental illness is childish and correctable but until it is too many of us clearly cannot move on. It is disheartening and insufferable and to this day makes me mourn for the lack of enlightened thought dispersed too heavily throughout our society.

Racism is an ignorant man's folly (#3116)

     The unoriginal idea of racism is like a child's tantrum. It makes for little sense and only causes disruption. Which is my point to wit the ignorance of using racism in a world full of facts and figures that denounces differences between our racial heritages is on full and unadulterated display. The white nationalist march at a major southern university last night is an example of how little enlightened thought has made a dent in the foundation of modern learning. That these protesters were students of this university makes me shudder at what they are not being taught in their respective high schools.
     Yet these "students" have made it through the screening process to be accepted in an atmosphere relegated to what I can only assume to be as "lower" learning. Is this a pride issue that these students want to claim given the destruction the white race has leveled on the other races? Do they not see that overpowering and controlling the lives of others who are not them is a crime against humanity? Do they not realize that humility should be there credo, not arrogance? Again, like with trumps, the world is upside down. Where the right and good are not the goal but the worst and most terrible are. If this is what we can expect from the southern universities, a refusal to accept equitable equality, fairness and justice for all then what is the value these universities offer to society on whole?
     I would be embarrassed even further if my university allowed for the racist chants of unenlightenment. It is bad enough we live in the political whirligig of trumps and their nasty brutish ideology of advantage and privilege but are we now condoning the atrocities of the past by allowing a goose stepping ideology to permeate our supposed facilities of higher education? Will the calmer more sensible institutions of higher learning condemn this latest attempt for destroying our rights as equal free men/women? Will the shame of ignorance be allowed to masquerade as enlightened thought? I am aghast at the turn our nation has made toward ignorance as a virtue and by doing so, if it continues, will be the death knell of our once great democracy!

Are we trying to help people or are we trying to control people? (#3115)

     The only one I need to worry about controlling is me. I do a piss poor job of that some of the time so the idea that I would even consider trying to control others is in direct opposition to my own life as observable data. What is even worse is that if I think I could control anyone other than myself I have crossed a line into a mental condition that is not only unhealthy but is demented. For me to think I could control anyone is an ego driven calculus of an immeasurable illogical proportion. What I can do though is help people so that they have more information as to help themselves. I can offer advice when asked, I can provide proofs when asked, I can direct toward answers when asked.
     I can be a wealth of information when asked. Sometimes in extreme situations I can offer to give information or advice without being asked but only if it is accepted. I don't lord over anyone my design for anyone's life. I do pronounce my positions on any number of policies or visions for our collective future but the subtle decisions that must be made by all of us individually is left to each of of us to make. I do restrict my associations to those who have a progressive liberal slant on how our society should operate but only because I cannot for the life of me see any other position to take that does not help people, all people.
     My point here is really simple, I remain objective with respect. I know that the greatest thing I have to offer the world is a clear sane approach to whatever obstacles there are that exist. I am best served, as well as all of humanity in whatever little way, when I am controlling me with all my might and ability. I offer what little wisdom and information I have to help others find their own way toward their best selves. That old saying of attraction not promotion usually wins the day and I agree with that. All my life I have looked around me to see something out there that I wanted to be like or encompass into my own life. Being the best I can be and living hard to just help people not control them is hopefully worthy enough of attraction.