If Kentucky doesn't vote mcconnell out there is no hope for Kentucky (#3895)

     Back in the day there was some prestige having a politician in a high ranking position in government. States who did had better chances of getting appropriations to help their citizenry. But as we see now there is no more "pork barrel" politics. So the advantage of having a politician in a powerful position has been substantially muted. Yet that same politician can now line his own pockets much more easily because of the nuances of dark money from wealthy donors. So what Kentucky would like to think is that having republican mcconnell as the senate leader is somehow a boon to them but, in reality it isn't any longer.
     In fact, since mcconnell has not done anything much to help his hurting constituents except to bring in a Russian commercial business with Russians controlling profits, the logic of keeping him is not sound. Kentucky is one of the worst states with poverty yet mcconnell does nothing to alleviate that immediate effect. He has not brought up any bills already passed by the House for the Senate to vote on that would bring health care, food stamps and a raising of the federal minimum wage to his desperate lower income constituents. So why anyone who wasn't wealthy in Kentucky who would put their own struggling existence behind some illogical loyalty to a man who has become wealthy as their senator is beyond me and the rest of America.
     So when the election comes about on November 3rd. 2020 it would be a travesty if the highly qualified democratic opponent of mcconnell isn't elected to that senate seat. Besides all the condescension from mcconnell he is tied at the hip to the racist misogynist bully trump. We know that trump is tyrannical in nature and that same tyrannical trait can be seen in mcconnell. As well as the ties to Russia that can hardly be denied given the financial and political ties already in evidence between mcconnell and the Russian effort to cause upheaval to our precarious democracy. I expect that mcconnell will be defeated but my expectation is based upon logic and not the past reality of Kentuckians voting against their own best interests.

The slippery slope of sanctioned murder (#3894)

     We all know that the fanatics of our world are always scratching for an inch so that they can take a mile. So when we allow murder under the guise of national security against anyone, regardless of where, we are just slipping closer to our own deaths being legal without the murderers having to justify our deaths. State sanctioned murder, much like when trump said he could kill anyone on Fifth Avenue and get away with it. It may seem absurd that I could leap to link wartime tactics with domestic murder but consider this first. We have not declared war on anyone for some time yet we are fighting wars all over the globe through third parties.
     Also consider that trump and mcconnell have been stacking our federal judiciary with their ilk so that rulings may begin to alter what is now unacceptable to become acceptable. The tyranny trump is trying to displace our democracy with is not some fantasy on my part it is real and happening daily. So for me to think that trump would be adjudicated innocent if he killed Americans on American soil in the name of national security without oversight is not much of a stretch at all. The time for this to be happening with the recent ruling of a journalist placed on a drone kill list makes our awareness of this all the more important, https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/legal-issues/us-invokes-state-secrets-privilege-to-block-american-journalists-challenge-to-alleged-spot-on-drone-kill-list/2019/09/24/15580b88-dee9-11e9-b199-f638bf2c340f_story.html.
     As we are now full fledged into impeaching trump the outcome is now more crucial than ever. With trump and his cruel brutish agenda hobbled we can hope to reverse these types of policies that not only endanger innocents but would lead to tyranny and retribution against those of us who fight to keep our democracy alive. I know the trump agenda is to subject all Americans to his Kingship. The trumps admire dictators and if trump can turn himself into King of America then he will stop at nothing to do so. The only way to stop this hijacking of our society is to stop what we are doing and put our energies toward ending the trumps from rule and then putting them on trial for their lives!

The beginning of the end for trump (#3893)

     All we democrats needed was to begin and commit to that beginning and the end would surely come for trump. The reasoning here is that trump has spent his whole life ineptly cheating and manipulating as a rule not an exception so finding evidence of his exposed crimes was always going to be simpler than not. We just needed to get to the point where we had had enough and said no more. Well the Ukraine extortion attempt was that final straw that broke the hypothetical camel's back. It was dispiriting up to this point that it took us nearly 3 years to find the courage to say no more.
     There will be no slithering out of this by trump. He has made many mistakes since his appointment to our presidency and all those who have been tromped upon by his narcissistic ego and manic insecurity are available now to confirm the trail of evidence. Because trump over this last 3 years has come to think of himself as invincible and as we all should know from our own personal experiences is that once we think we are above it we find ourselves down below it. The mistakes in covering his tracks are numerous and his inability to think that he was vulnerable to the truth will be his albatross to bear.
     Most all of us were absolutely caught unawares as to this moment in time where we had mostly accepted that trump would serve out his first term and fight to secure a second term. Well most of us don't feel that way now. We expect that trump will be impeached in the House and depending on the final haul of guilty evidence against him may not escape his insulating republican majority in the Senate. However, we are going into the presidential election cycle with trump having been impeached in the House and even if he survives conviction in the Senate will be tarnished and so will his republican protectors who will have to answer to the majority of us who know he should have never been in office to begin with.
      

The strength of my Mother (#3892)

     If ever there was any doubt about the will to live coming from inside my Mother it was shattered to pieces yesterday as I watched her fight with all her might while in the coma state she was put in. The nurses were trying to get her to help them cough up the "phlegm" that was in her lungs. She may have been under sedation but her face told the story. Her anguish was visible with every effort to discharge the unwanted mucus. Even the nurses were apologizing to her knowing full well that the effort she was putting forth in her state was extremely painful. But like my Mother has always done in her life she did what she had to do in order to keep going.
     Getting the liquid mess from her lungs is the greatest priority. But to see her face wrenching in her coma state told me that she could feel the necessary act and it made me cringe inside. Afterwards when they moved her in the bed to keep her more comfortable my aunt, uncle, brother, sister, and I talked to the nurse about her history a bit and it was decided to increase her pain medication amount because the nurse wasn't aware that my Mother lived with chronic pain and that the level they were injecting into her wasn't enough. It then made me realize that she must have been in excruciating pain while retching up the liquid from her lungs.
     However immediately after increasing her pain injection amount you could see the relaxing of her facial muscles and her monitor numbers began improving. This is to show that medicine is still all about not only the advances in technology but also the history of the patient. The color began returning to her cheeks and she was resting much more peacefully in that necessary coma state. This morning if all went as expected last night she should be weaned off the respirator and brought back to cognizance in about 2 hours. I have decided not to be there since so many others will be in that ICU room and I don't want to be part of a spectacle. I will hear soon enough the news of her improving recovery as I expect it to be. :)

The twists and turns of life (#3891)

     It doesn't matter how convinced we are of our own ability to control things we are soon reminded that nothing is ever fully under our control. Which is why it is important to be doing the correct things in life so that when things do get haywire or chaotic we can always fall back on our hard and decent work. Unlike some who can only fall back because they have nothing of any value to support themselves. Sure they have their ill gotten gains but nothing that is dear can be found. We know that fate dictates to us what it will do when it does it and we must just prepare ourselves knowing that time and space are just a rental to us and no amount of delusion will change that.
     Which is another reason why making life even better than what we grew up in is so important. I can live with life knowing that I helped to contribute to it's betterment. What I won't tolerate from myself or others is the lustful approach to ignoble selfishness too many have accepted. Human and lower animal life are far more interesting than any plan of mine to make their lives less happy. Instead making their lives more happy when possible actually brings me an inner peace that is precious and absolute. The kind of feeling that justifies my actual being. This is the value in life not the houses, vehicles, nor jewelry that less than honorable acts achieve.
     Of that I know since although I have never had any great wealth the extra I have had seems to always go to others for their benefit. Which is consistently a pleasure of mine to be a part. More than a pleasure because my soul finds a connection to being helpful to others in no other way. No vainglory or self adulation here either. Just a real sense of belonging to our human race and a purposeful justification that our species is not a waste of space. The simple motto of doing the next right thing I picked up in a self help program designed to highlight what is best about us has taught me how to live. I am grateful for that inner look at how to live and for me it is of a great value alongside the axiom of doing no harm.

...and so it begins (#3890)

     Indeed yesterday trump was formally charged with an impeachment investigation in the House of Representatives. The breaking point being for this official investigation was the whistleblower information about possible crimes that trump may well have committed that was illegally being withheld from House oversight committees. It isn't the only malfeasance trump has committed with impunity so far but it is the most recent and through trump's own words actually did happen. So we take that allegation and add to it all the other allegations even from the Mueller report and we should have plenty of evidence to vote for impeachment in the House.
     Now getting 67 senators to agree is a tall task as the majority in the 100 member senate is 53 republicans. Normally that shouldn't matter but we don't live in normal times anymore. Republicans have gone out of their way to ignore and dispute obvious truths to protect their majority and their appointed republican president so far. Yet when the evidence does become clear for all to see it will be much harder for republican senators to defend trump when there is no defense. Unfortunately that still won't be enough to get republicans to turn from their meal ticket but it gives the voting electorate a stark choice between retaining them in 2020 those who are up for election.
     A price will be paid and the Senate republicans have to ask themselves who will pay it? The dastardly conman who defiled our executive office or themselves for collaborating with him. The strategy of standing firm against all odds is breaking apart and who will be left to stand by trump when the whole of the growing anti trump electorate throws him out of office if he is still around by November 3rd. 2020. Will they go down with him or will they try to salvage what is left of their corrupt souls? We shall see sooner than later I suspect as an unofficial impeachment inquiry has been going on for months now.

Time to get hard behind impeachment of trump (#3889)

     I know that nearly 50% of Americans don't want impeachment right now but if we make the case they will change their minds. It is about presentation of the charges with evidence to support them. Most of us Americans believe in the rule of law and if we follow hard those rules we should get the support of the American people. For us not to do something along the lines of impeachment now will only give trump more confidence that we don't have the will to hold him to account and will only embolden him to further harm our society for his own gain.|
     The evidence of his crimes is mounting on several fronts and with a formal impeachment process in action more evidence will surface. Those who continue to obstruct for rump will also be dragged into the process and their livelihoods as well as their freedoms will be in jeopardy. It is time! I have been one of the ones who was for holding out longer on impeachment unless real smoking gun fool proof evidence appeared. Well we won't get that it seems so the waiting time needs to end and action begin. What I hadn't figured was trumps view that the longer he was not impeached he would grow more belligerent in his behavior and actions.
     Enough! The time to put his head on the chopping block is now and all of us who now support impeachment must make it clear that we will wait no longer. The devastation he has already caused is plenty sufficient a reason for him to be over with. I know the election is still 14 months away and he is digging himself further into a complete slaughter come November 3rd. 2020, but we can't wait for that happy day. trump will only worsen our lives and have more opportunity to rig an election that somehow allows him to remain the appointed president. Let us all Democrats and Independents gather our will and resolve to impeach the lying greedy subhuman trump and take down his appointed presidency and his sycophantic enablers now before he and they can slither away from their due.

conservatism = bitch and complain, and do nothing to help! (#3888)

     This is just one aspect of the scourge of conservatism. When they do decide to tackle a problem it is usually followed by death. Either try to kill the problem off our ignore it and hope it dies away. The conservative following is nothing more than an elitist view exemplified through condescension and prejudice. Here is an example from my daily life. I know this fellow who gets all worked up over the hate radio of limbaugh. Last time he was bitching and complaining about transgenders. He isn't a transgender, knows no transgenders yet is hating on them like he has every moral right to hate them.
     My view is that since I am not a transgender I don't need to judge them because I am not them. If they were doing something wrong that was affecting me like murdering people then I would judge them on their actions of murder not on who they are. To me it is our choice to be whom we want to be as long as it does no harm to any others. Being transgender does no harm to any others. If the fellow I referenced had his way there would be no transgenders at all. But what he doesn't understand is that if it wasn't transgenders hate radio was vilifying for no reason then it would be something else or maybe even he himself whom I am describing.
     The slippery slope of demeaning people for no reason is endless, until of course there are no more people left. So even if the haters got their wishes and all who they could hate were no more then surely they would turn on themselves to hate the littlest differences between themselves, that slippery slope I mentioned earlier. The thing is that if conservatives see a problem and instead tried to help to resolve it as best they could our society would be so much better and easier to live in. But no, they prefer to hate people they don't like because they don't live life like them even though they are doing no harm.

The stench of trump's fear (#3887)

     Each day we get closer to trump going to prison and he knows it. His greatest fear is losing on November 3rd, 2020 and then having to face all the charges against him while he will no longer be in a position of authority. Much like is going to happen to netanyahu in Israel. Once out of office the real life reality of prison becomes overwhelming for those two, guilty as hell, living cadavers. One wonders if epstein didn't set the example for how to end the madness that is coming for these two. Ending themselves before the long daily routine of prison can molest their senses.
     So although we Americans are still in danger of trump trying to pull off a political coup we are not going to be caught unawares if he tries. In fact most of us expect him to try some kind of irrational martial law trickery. But the 2018 election may have staved of any attempt that way when we retook the House. So trump's path toward trying to legitimizing a god like tenure in the presidency is hobbled significantly. There is another way he may try to stay in power and that is to start a world war. If you think for one second that he wouldn't dare do such a thing as set up to be killed millions of people then you don't know trump and his personal survival ambitions.
     The only way trump can delay his prison time is to make sure he cannot be prosecuted because his guilt is unequivocal. So over these last days of trump in his appointed presidency his fear is beginning to smell like no other stench has ever come from the oval office. We really will need to fumigate the White House when he is finally dragged out in handcuffs. I say that because it is my belief that he won't go quietly and will contest the results that show his defeat on November 3rd. 2020. And I say November 3rd. 2020 because there will be no doubt early on that he will be beaten and beaten badly!

No president is above the law, None! (#3886)

     It seems that the weakness and cowardice of the republicans who control the Senate and Supreme Court is not allowing us to charge and convict trump of his multiple crimes. Yes crimes because the evidence is overwhelming. Shucking off the responsibility by republican leaders is as despicable as it gets when the ruling party will not enforce the very constitution that put them into power. But choose to instead interpret clauses and laws favorably toward trump. I know they don't want to create even more chaos in their long term plan to end our democracy but this is the end of them or it should be when election time comes.
     Then after we get the collaborator republicans out of office we can hold them accountable for their obstruction and lack of moral, legal, ethical, and political duty, to protect the integrity of the office of the Presidency. The end of them in no uncertain terms according to their crimes is mandatory. There cannot be any mercy on these souls who do the dirty work of undermining our constitution while telling us that they are unaware of any trump malfeasance. The audacity it takes to play dumb when they have spent the rest of their time telling us how smart they are and that we need to sit down and shut up so that they can think for us.
     Our democratically controlled House cannot waste a second in hitting back at republicans with the worst we can summon to our response to them. There can be no second guessing or hedging on striking hard and fast with all our might. No mercy means no mercy and I don't care how amiable they are when they interact with us or the public. Their deeds behind closed doors and often in the open are not to be borne with any amelioration. I don't care if trump thinks he is a god or not, he is not above the law and if the republicans, who are in control now will not defend the laws of our country, then they themselves are as guilty through obstruction as the weasel trump and should bear the same punishment he is due.

Climate change rally today (#3885)

     Greta Thunberg is leading a climate action day today in DC to give voice to saving our planet. This is not a drill it is the real deal if we want a planet that is sustainable for human and otherwise life. The fact of greenhouse gases that are man made is indisputable yet republicans dispute that. Not because of reasoned science but because they don't want to admit it and it would make them poorer. They have donors who have vast resources of carbon based energy and they don't want to negate any of it. So instead of doing the correct thing and reducing their dirty energy and transitioning over to green energy they are denying that climate change is real.
     I suppose greed and power can make people do illogical things but the cost of this illogical thing by republicans is species extinction. How on Earth can republicans be so callous? Well greed like any addiction can make a sensibly reliable person into a devious conniving one. Yet those who enable them are not struck with power or greed. So why do they enable them? Because they are loyal to a political party come hell or high water. Which is a nice segue since high water is a direct effect of global climate disaster from man made causes. Those humans who fight to deny climate change are really confounding to me. They have everything to gain from green energy since they are not the owners of dirty energy, yet they refuse to help themselves.
     I will be at our state capitol today to lend support to the ideal that facts in reality are what we must defend especially facts that expose a clear and present danger to our existence. The Universe will go on without us so unless we help ourselves we may well be doomed. The time for inaction is over and any false hope that a miracle will occur to save us is absurd. Space and time are harsh so thinking they are not is denial. We have to care for ourselves and we can do that with all the emerging green solutions. Today our children will lead the way and if we adults are as smart as we think we are then we will get out of their way and let them design their futures without planet destroying dirty energy and greedy power grubbing republicans.

The groundswell has not changed since trump was appointed (#3884)

     I like to refer to the groundswell as our blue wave. Because after the shock of Hillary Clinton not being our president most of us were deflated and angry. But since then we have mustered our will to battle back against the demeaning and destructive trump with all we can. We went into the 2018 midterm election resolved to take back the House and tried mightily against the odds to capture the Senate as well. We did get the House by plenty but were not able to wrestle control of the Senate. Yet we inspired each other regardless and now that the 2020 election cycle is much more favorable to us to take the Senate we are more than ready to accomplish it.
     The presidency is the constant that binds us in defeating trump. He has been underwater in his approval/disapproval polls since day one of his appointment. The at least 10 point deficit in approval since his first day in office has not changed and if anything it is getting worse for him. This tells me that nothing he has done in his first almost 3 years in office has had any positive effect on the majority of us. He will get his base of about 40% to follow him even if he takes them to their death but outside of that it really does appear that the rest of us are at minimum wary of his effect on us. That will be his undoing in that we are not even at pitying him we are beyond that and as angry as a disturbed hive of bees.
     Our blue wave is still hanging above his head and in the countdown to the time when the votes are finally counted for the 2020 election he will not have a way to stop it from crashing down on him. I expect that like any spoiled rich kid who never grew up that he will find some way to try to keep his appointed presidency despite being defeated but we will cross that bridge when the time comes. For now though the many more of us than him will keep the pressure on him and make damn sure that he feels our wrath in no uncertain way. There is nothing for trump to do to make himself beloved and for that he will pay dearly. We the blue wave are not the kind of people to be spat upon and then thank the spatter!

The despicable privilege of republicanism (#3883)

     The republicans are the ones who say "do as I say and not as I do". An elitism that has an arrogance about it that sucks the life right out of anyone who comes in contact with them. Their advantage and privilege notwithstanding are sacred yet any of us who are not republicans are looked upon by them with condescension. There is a sickness to them and their outlook on life that cannot be ignored. They rail against immorality and yet suckle at it's breast in their hidden closets. The hypocrisy it must take, to set oneself up as a shining example for nefarious purposes when in reality the scourge of debasement is their truth, has to be incredulous even to them.
     Much like Plato's Allegory of the Cave, republicans want us all in blinders and fetters so that we are shielded from reality. That way they can expand their own lusts while claiming to be magnificent with no one the wiser. If there has ever been a political party like republicans that had not turned against the citizenry they were supposed to represent I don't know of such. These republicans of our time are the least educated in enlightenment that has ever been in charge of our government. Their manifesto regards science, common sense and logic as irrelevant to their goal of profit and power.
     They have drunk the elixir of an illusory godhood and it has gone straight to the spot where their hearts should have been. They care not a whit about all of life only their own. Yet they have convinced enough souls who are beholden to them that they are not a serious evil. They do maintain that tough love is their byproduct but what they don't say is that their tough love is strategically aimed at those who are not deserving of being punished. They rely on prejudice and bias to form their repressions and for all intents and purposes they are just dodgy enough to pull it off. Yet we who see through them because we want democracy for all will not let them advance if it is the last thing we ever do in life.

Again with compassion and curiosity (#3882)

     This blog came to life for me when I knew that our human nature at it's best was all about compassion and curiosity. We survive because we not only want to live but because we, our species, has a purpose. We want to know while we take care. It is who we are and nothing left in time and space will change that unless we choose to deny our nature and focus instead on what we had to do to survive the early harsh circumstances of our evolution. The myth mores and superstitions of the past prevailed because we were not able to rise above them but now we have and yet the clinging to past remains.
     We are at the jumping off stage of our human evolution with sophisticated logic and science to lead us yet there are those who resist for the sake of fear. Well I wouldn't have thought that a species that fought for millenniums to survive would be afraid of venturing into its continuing future when our past came from the microbe's of first existence. Yet the paradigm of fear has gripped so many that the ability to leap into our future is as if we are cemented into concrete. What will become of us when we stop evolving into what magnificence awaits us?
     There is no witchcraft nor magic that is spellbinding us, it is our own uncertainty to be courageous. So it isn't like we can't overcome the hurdle of fear, it is whether we can muster the momentum to move forward instead of staying static. The inertia of our existence is not going to stop despite whatever we do so following the example of a living Universe should be our common sense goal. Nothing is unique to us as a plateau to remain indefinitely on so up and up an away we should be going. Time will have its say in our species' outcome and the space we take up will likely hinge on our ability to continue to evolve.

The parallax view (#3881)

     A rudimentary ability for limited general calculations. When our species first became aware of time and space we needed to measure things in some simple way. Using the parallax view, extending one's arm out straight with thumb up and closing one eye to see an object in the distance aligned with the thumb and eye. Usually everyone's arm is about 2 feet long from eye to thumb when extended. Then closing that eye and opening the other gives us another line of sight to our thumb to another point out in the distance. We also can generally say that our eyes are about 2 inches apart. With this information we can with much more ease determine the distance between the two distant points.
     By measuring our walk to the first distant point we can then take every two foot increment there is and multiply that by 2 inches to generally get the distant to the object we observed with the second eye without having to walk the distance to determine it. Rudimentary like I said but effective when trying to measure great distances in our early human development. This is how science came into being. Using tools whether our bodies or some device we created, to make our world more understandable to our thinking.
     We humans didn't create anything here to make this existence. But we can make of what we have and create a life here while we are alive to bear the living here more comfortably than not. We are not gods nor are we masters of all things. But we are capable of advancing our species through ingenuity and innovation so that thus becomes our default manifest destiny. We all need to have a purpose in life so making life more bearable for our species is a purpose all humans can claim as theirs. Like the parallax view, understanding what we can do or could do is a start and then actually doing it is the goal. Let's all get going on our goals and live the best we can in an existence that evolution has made us a part of.

Saved 3 lives and killed no one (#3880)

     At the end of my Marine Corps career I was sitting in the E-club one Saturday morning having an early bloody mary when 2 carloads of off duty marines came and told me they needed my help. I won no favors from the many brown nosers and was somewhat known as a badass but otherwise a real good person to good people. A fellow marine was off base threatening to kill himself over a dear john letter from home. I put my drink aside went with them, and slowly walked up to the house where he was at and calmly told him that things would be okay, he was crying with the barrel of the M-16 under his chin. I got to him and took the rifle away and was escorted back to my barstool without a second thought to finish my bloody mary.
     The next time was when I was working in an underground copper mine in Arizona. I was about a mile underground working in a drift pretty much with just an old time miner when an unexpected explosion of dynamite occurred. The old miner knew that it was desperate in that a fellow was drilling up in the undercuts along the drift and had been buried alive; we hoped he wasn't dead. The old miner started down the drift popping off control boards while I followed helping him. I stopped at one and to this day don't know why and started digging. I found the bottom of his boot and yelled for help. I was clawing at that muck until the old miner and I, and some others who showed up got him out. His head was covered in blood, unconscious with a gash down the length of his forearm. I took off my shirt and wrapped his arm as we prepared to take him to the tram for immediate extraction. He was back to work 6 months later.
     The final life saved was a woman running across a field toward a four lane busy road at about midnight when I heard a man behind her screaming that she was going to kill herself. I was walking home from work and took off in a sprint toward her along the sidewalk. I went into the superman pose just as she got to the sidewalk and I tackled her before she got to the curb. We talked a bit and the police showed up and they took her away. I had two real chances to kill someone but both times I didn't pull the trigger and instead put the gun down and dealt with it with my fists in one case and the other was lucky because I was just fooling around with a gun I didn't now had a round in the chamber.

Keep wrongly arguing to keep your assault rifles (#3879)

     When I see someone who continues to argue that they deserve to have their assault rifles after so many people keep dying from assault rifles it rankles me to no end. I get that they think they need to have high power shooting rights but we don't live in a war zone. However with the high powered assault rifles assimilating everywhere into our society maybe the war zone concept will be with us shortly. So keep arguing and threatening to keep your assault rifles while innocent children and adults keep dying for your lust.
     I can't think of another word to describe the need to have an assault rifle unless one is in the military and engaged in enemy conflict. Lust, the desire that overrules common sense and dismisses tragedy as just a by product of a suspicious right of demand. Join the military and volunteer to fight in order to have a just reason for a killing machine. I mean come on what the hell is wrong with you if you cannot see that the death of children is greater than a lust for a hunk of killing metal? It is so childish and arrogant of the selfish to dismiss the continuing deaths as "not my problem". A byproduct of some imagined convoluted constitutional right from nearly 2 1/2 centuries ago when assault rifles didn't exist.
     How utterly absurd it is that too many democrats along with most all republicans are complicit in keeping weapons of mass destruction flowing through our society. The dearness too may feel toward their death weapon is astonishing to me in that life which is amazing is discounted below that. I am ashamed of my fellow species who cannot grasp that the death machines are a last resort not your greatest love. However the time will come when we all get done with the senseless deaths and we do something about getting the assault rifles off of our streets. Until then you can unequivocally blame yourselves for all the deaths that are surely about to become real.

You can lead a horse to water but... (#3878)

     You can tell republican voters the best of what democrats have to offer but you can't make them understand the value of it. In fact it seems that you can't even get them to understand what value actually means. I don't get them other than to think they don't care and are just happy enough in their lives to not care about anyone else. It baffles me that they have no consideration for objectivity. In other words they won't listen to both sides of the question and then form a logical conclusion. They just won't. So here we are with a conundrum, how to teach what is basic and simple to those who will not listen.
     I don't know how we got here when all of us have free will, and choices that are real and our own. So how is it that so many are unable to free themselves from their perceived bondages? They have chosen a lifestyle that has no compromises to it and it alone is all that others should do as well. My way or the highway regardless of the incompetence and irrationality of it. I sometimes wonder what millennium we are living in. Is this still the dark ages of the 8th century where superstition and oppressive rule are the paradigms or are we in the 21st century where enlightenment and the thirst for knowledge is bountiful?
     All I know for sure is that there are forces and they are in the republican party that don't want a modern society. They are laser focused on having a society that is beholden to them and their creed. They do not want for us to have the kind of knowledge that sets us all free from absurdity, instead they want us unfocused and on our knees for their handouts. I will not live like that when the fighting time is now for us to save our democracy. I would rather not live in a world where the republicans have free reign to take our freedom for their own gain. If I were being led to the water of knowledge you can bet I would drink heavily of it.

Ruthless republicans (#3877)

     There is but one agenda in the republican party and that is to get their way no matter what they must do. We see it with the treasonous Russian/republican association to undermine our democratic voting process. We see it with the closing of over 1000 voting stations in the south. We see it with what North Carolina republicans did yesterday by voting on an override of the democratic governor's veto after having given their word they wouldn't call a session during the 9/11 memorials. The list is long and cruel so if you still think this is just politics then you are a nasty soulless person yourself.
     Gone are the hopes in my soul that we would vote with our innocence and vigor to change the world for the better. Instead it seems too many Americans are voting with their cynicism and need to punish those who are not them. I will always be altruistic and shoulder more than my burden whenever the opportunity arises but it seems for now that those like me are not as abundant as I had hoped. Yet I do understand that the voting in special elections is always smaller than general election numbers but at such a time in our history when so much is wrong and can be corrected simply by voting, I fail to see what else in life is more important.
     However my hopes are not diminished with the fact that republicans are liars, cheats and traitors. Because in the end whether I am here to see it or not the best of human nature will triumph over the worst of human nature or the end of our species will be due. Either we improve our behaviors or our behaviors will end our species. I am fine with either but would much rather our species shake off the demented culture brought about by greed and hatred and rework our society to not only improve our relations and interactions throughout the world but to move past the levers of division and forward ourselves into what has always been the human species manifest destiny. To reach out beyond who we are and include all that we find along the way!

We need to get our vote out! (#3876)

     If I were advising anyone in our democratic party it would be to highlight that nothing will change unless we vote. Not only that it will get worse. So it isn't so much about what we want to offer the electorate as a vision as it is about mobilizing our democratic voters to get to the polls. Every cent spent on getting people to the polls is of such a great value. Relying on our voters to understand the nuances of our policies will always be moot if we don't get them to the polls. Outreach is the key and then making a plan for voting is next.
     As we saw yesterday, our voters didn't come out and do us any favors in North Carolina. This should be a huge wake up call. We need to make sure that our voters are voting more so than spending capital elsewhere on messaging. All the messaging in the world will not get on person physically to the polls. Most all we democrats don't need to be convinced that we should vote for democratic candidates. That is already established. the hard part is getting our democratic voters to actually vote. So that should be our number 1, 2, 3, etc... priority.
     The vote in 2020 is so crucial to not only ending the reign of terror from trump and republicans but to establishing the boundaries for our next 10 years of representative districts. The end of gerrymandering will finally make our voices heard with representation. I am so full of optimism for our species but if we don't do what we need to do we won't achieve even basic advances. Get our voters to the polls no matter how we have to organize it. Whether it is helping them set up mail in ballots or actually making appointments with them to take them to vote. Whatever we have to do and there should be no cost too great to spend to do it!

Special elections today in North Carolina's 3rd and 9th federal districts (#3875)

     Here we go. The main thing we should all be aware of is that both these districts are currently republican districts that have lately been light to deep red. So going in knowing that a democratic victory in either one of these will be a turnaround from the results of the last two decades. But that is exactly what is hoped for today. Of greater hope is the 9th district where the political pundits have rated this previous republican seat a toss up for both parties. The 3rd district is less an opportunity for a democratic turn around but a close showing would highlight the narrative that the blue wave is still ascending especially if we overcome the the 9th district with a victory.
     Either way though even if we lose both races today it will be revealing exactly what the vote margins end up being. The republicans have had much success in these districts by 10 or more percentage points in the past but if those numbers are in the low single digits it still portends to hurt the national republicans. But we democrats are not settling for a close race in either district. We want to win the 9th and have an even chance in the 3rd. Because we know the republican party is having difficulty with trump as a leader and his coattails are what we are fighting hard to shorten this cycle.
     It begins today with these September races and gets going even more in November when many states races come about. Today though is the beginning of the narrative for 2020 that the republican party will be facing a blue wave similar if not stronger than the one in the 2018 midterm elections when we democrats won over 400 state races from republicans and retook the House back at the federal level. The stakes are high today and for anyone to get cocky about the results prematurely only shows their immaturity. These two races are dissimilar in that the 3rd. is expected to stay republican because of historically heavy republican voting, but the 9th has already shown that is in play and although it has been a republican safe harbor in the past our blue wave is crashing down hard on it's shores!

No mercy for republicans (#3874)

     The time for being civil with our opponents has passed. The reason? Because they are not civil in their ideals. They are brutal and cruel. So this isn't about finessing agreed upon foundational policies this is about republicans destroying our democratic foundations and replacing them with authoritarian rule. There is nothing civil about that. So if you were wondering at what point we need to take to the streets and demand accountability from republicans you missed that boat 2 decades at least ago. The time is long overdue to tune out whatever republicans say and tune into your own moral and ethical democratic compass.
     Whatever that is telling you to do then do it and be a real live human being who is part of our society and not just some bystander with no heart or courage to share. I say no mercy for republicans because the point of mercy is to offer a redemption. We cannot do that for republicans because they don't seek it and if they have no remorse for their continued attack on our society then they should receive the harshest of outcomes. If a black widow spider is coming at me to attack me I don't hesitate to squish it under my foot. The same analogy goes toward republicans. They take and take until we have little left and then they want to take more. Well the metaphorical bottom of my shoe is what they deserve without any guilt on my part.
     I have remorse for the things I did in my life that were brutish and uncaring and as a result of my remorse have changed my behavior and attitude to reflect the bettering of my life from the shame it was in the past. Those kinds of mercies we can provide to those who want to become a better person but that is not what we have here. We have republicans who have sold their souls along with any redemptive remorse to an ideal that has no good in its intent. Their mission in life is to destroy the good of democracy and burn it to the ground. They hate too many while loving nothing more than pleasure and greed. Their time in our lives is coming to an end and the ending of this time must be crushing and final.

With trumps it isn't like with sports (#3873)

     When the home team loses a big match we the fans are disappointed and down but there is always tomorrow or next week for us get our mojo back. Not with trumps. The trumps are not like a competition on the field of play, they are a very real threat to our way of life. Politics isn't a trophy or championships to be celebrated. Politics is our very way of life. It is our society and how it will operate for some or all. The permutations of how a "civilized" society can exist have been littered throughout time for us to examine and as of this moment in time democracy, where all have a say in how we exist, has become the chosen political structure by most enlightened folks.
     When a threat to our democracy like trumps unveils itself with no real clear alternative other than to regress into some form of authoritarian society like Russia and North Korea then we should be resolved to not let it happen. Like I said, this isn't some sort of sporting event where the winners and losers are all playing within the design of the game. No, this is politics where the worst of who we are can actually make the rest of us conform to them through a denial of our democratic rights. Their aim is to enrich themselves with our power and treasure while making us serve them at their whim. This isn't a competition between two fan bases, trumps politics is a pitting of themselves against all fan bases.
     Sports can be a fun leisurely distraction from the hard tedious work of refining our democracy to become more perfect. In fighting against trumps, it isn't just an all out battle to save the principles of democracy but to actually surviving the authoritarian nature of trumps and their ilk. Where the idea of sports becomes so insignificant in scope because those trumps who control our politics have made sports and the fun of them seem childish and selfish. When the lives of many are being subjected to un democratic upheaval it is difficult to justify being ignorant and going about our lives immune from those facts. When the trumps are no more then and only then will we as a society be able to return to the enjoyment sports provides without having the blade of democratic severance dangling above our sport enjoying necks.

trump needs to be on suicide watch (#3872)

     As the desperation of his coming defeat hits him there will be nowhere for him to run or hide. His only chance is to stay in power until he dies and that is not going to happen because we are prepared to stop his power grab. So like his buddy epstein, he has only prison to look forward to and as the arrogant ass he is, he won't accept that. Therefore he will try to end his life to avoid anything less than remaining the appointed president. I don't wish suicide on anyone but believe less so with some however the fact remains that a civilized society must protect even our most vulnerable despite their caustic natures, behaviors and lack of remorse.
     Yet I doubt there are a lot of folks like me who would rather see him in prison when the alternative is for him to save us all a lot of time, trouble and expense and just end himself. Some people are born into this planet with a contorted view on normal acceptable behavior. Somehow through a corrupted divinity or through his narcissism, he has a confused reasoning. There are those who believe that they are above all others and therefore not subject to the laws of man or nature. They sense and live by the code of "I am a god/man". It is understandable when the genetic disposition of no conscience is observable.
     How no one was able to disqualify trump from running for president is baffling to me yet not so much when considered in the context of him just being a puppet for others to successfully pull at his strings. The thing is though now that trump has come into creating greater trouble for himself personally those who are pulling at his strings are finding resistance. Not only has the power of his appointed presidency gone to his head but he is feeling that power and acting as if he is invincible. Nothing worse than a puppet who realizes he doesn't need to be a puppet any longer. Especially a puppet who has no heart and vengeance in abundance where it should have been.

The British are solving their conservative party problem (#3871)

     They have a different form of democracy there and because of that the liberals/labor have found a way to not only convince some conservatives to join them but enough of them to put the brakes on a stubborn conservative effort to force a "no deal" brexit. All of this brexit nonsense came about because the electorate there was lied to often enough to convince them that leaving the EU was a smart decision. Yet now that the truth of things have come out the smart has disappeared being replaced with " oh golly what have we done?" Undoing this mess will take leadership from other parties not conservative. So as the ebb and flow of this is about to find it's home we will see what happens to brexit or if it becomes bremain!
     I have been a staunch supporter of bremain and although it seemed I was one of only a few who remained vocally adamant it appears now that a bremain option is not just spitting into the wind. We will see but what makes me somewhat satisfied is that the obstruction to staying is becoming less and less an obstacle. Give the European Union lots of credit for sticking to their negotiated stance and not rewarding the conservatives demanding to leave with advantages and privileges beyond their due. Also give the British parliament credit as well for not falling for any of the rubbish lies the may and johnson administrations were peddling as scare tactics.
     A new referendum on brexit/bremain is the only path forward and sticking to that tired and false argument that this decision to leave has already been decided is crap as well. The first vote was based upon falsehoods, kind of like what happened here in America with the trump appointment. Bringing about a new vote to stay or go now would be correct in that the facts are now knowable as to the effect an exit would have as opposed to what a remain will continue to offer. In my mind there is no real choice here other than to remain. A stronger and more cohesive European Union can accomplish much more than a wounded European Union and an isolated British nation ripe for an American privatization of British society.

The racket of belief systems (#3870)

     Once again I will cause suffering and angst to those who swear by the belief system they hold as true. Even though there are hundreds of belief systems held by others as true. So it goes with this subject. A belief system is a hoped for reality that has no scientific fact or logic to it other than as a possible theory. But like all theories it is not provable. Now those who apply faith to their belief system argue that faith is all the necessary proof they need. Yet in a logical argument for or against some paradigm, truths and facts are more important than faith.
     Beyond all that though is the actual living under a belief system that supposes a greater moral life. What we actually find is that morality is not the goal of religion instead the goal is subservience. I know that one hurt but just listen for a moment. There are usually books that are associated with each religion and in these books are some infallible process for living in reality and then in eternity. Yet the guidelines are varied and often contradictory. Then when we question these contradictions we are told of some understandings being greater than our own ability to know and that we need to just follow what the belief systems leaders describe as the solution and be accepting. Like I said, subservience.
     Most all religions that have ever been devised by men, and I actually mean men because it has been we men who create them, rely on a voluntary giving that is couched in a mandatory way. So much so that one can be denied acceptance into the belief system for not contributing an agreeable share of their resources; thus the racket part. I am no moral or ethical giant in life but I do see a con when it comes about and there has been no belief system in my understanding that rises above a con game. Those who manage the con are the ones who most benefit from it. Now if a belief system had leaders who were constantly impoverished for their efforts then the belief system would show more heart than greed and would have at least a chance of being more than just a con!

Revote brexit! (#3869)

     For all that has been found out about how brexit was thrust upon the British people under unscrupulous circumstances makes for the original vote to become questionable. When information is withheld in order to get a preferred outcome the outcome is tainted and no value to democracy. The same is happening with brexit under consideration today. The powers that be in the conservative party have other designs on what brexit would allow them to do. Notwithstanding playing on the fears of racism and sexism. The destruction of institutions that help all British citizens is the goal and will be achieved with brexit.
     The lies that were told and the information withheld is considerable, https://www.independent.co.uk/infact/brexit-second-referendum-false-claims-eu-referendum-campaign-lies-fake-news-a8113381.html. When a society is asked to decide the fate of its existence the information cannot be twisted to fit a preferred outcome and still be democratic. That is what happened here with brexit. Now that the facts of the consequences are clearer to all the time for a re vote is necessary. To remain in the EU is now much more appealing given the negatives of leaving. The whole idea of leaving was to privatize British social programs out of existence. The American ideal of survival of the fittest is brexiteers goal and let me tell you it is crap!
     Bremain in the EU Great Britain and solve problems together instead of dissolving partnerships in order to make the wealthy even more wealthy and poor even more poor. That will be the outcome when privatization takes hold and the loss of control of British society by British citizens is realized. We here in America have been going through something similar in that our society is being taken over by the con men and carpetbaggers of the world. We are in the process of stopping that and if you are wise Britain you will stop your takeover before it gets as bad as ours over here. Conservatives throughout the world have one goal in life and it does not include democratic principles!

Still medicare for all (#3868)

     I won't stop until we get medicare for all. I know it will take the form of a public option if it is going to succeed and that is fine enough. As long as the private insurers are held to account with strict regulations. I am no purist who thinks things have to be perfectly equal. I want equality that has different forms to achieve the best possible outcome and workers who have insurance through their companies need to be able to keep that if that is their desire. We can make it work with a mixture of public and private insurance as most developed nations already do.
     The goal is to cover everyone not to make everyone accept one plan. The sooner we get to doing just that the sooner the health of our nation will improve. Health care is but one area where we need to provide universal coverage. Education and housing are critical paradigms that need addressing as well as fair pay for fair work. But we must start at health care because we are already far down the road with the advent of Obamacare pushing us toward universal coverage. What must happen next is to vote out republicans en masse so that we democrats can control the narrative and the power to implement the necessary changes to Obamacare to keep moving forward to universal coverage.
     In less than 428 days we will get to vote again and it is at that time that we democrats are best situated to change the course of our nation away from the greedy dirty profiteer republicans. The trumps and their allies are all sitting ducks for us if we show up at the polls and vote. I am confident that with the anger that is built up because of republicans causing so much damage to our people and our society that at least 70% of our eligible voters will vote this time. If it does happen at the 70% rate then we will swamp the republicans with our blue wave election and they will no longer have any majority in Congress or the Executive branch. We will deal with the majority republican Supreme Court when that time comes.

428 days left of trump and mcconnell (#3867)

     As each new month arrives naturally there are less days left of trump and his evil metaphorical twin mcconnell. Yet we know it won't be easy getting both of them out. The polling for each is terrible for them now but as election day comes they both have the ability to rally through whatever underhanded possibility it takes. So although I am happy for what I perceive is a dawning new day in America on November 4th, I am also aware that for that vision to come true we all must never stop in our relentless efforts to do all we can to end them. There can be no break between now and election day for any of us and I won't listen to the quitting excuses that say I am tired and this is hard.
     Nothing in life is worth having or doing unless there has been a heavy price paid for it. Our founders paid for our liberty and just now trump/mcconnell want to take it away. We pay a price for our own personal successes in life and trump/mcconnell want to take those away as well. So no excuses about our vigilance to defeat trumps and all his knee bending cowards who follow them. 428 days may seem like an eternity to have to fight when each day is such a struggle but I can attest that I have been fighting trump from his first appointment to the presidency and for the difference to be only little more than 400 days is like the end is so near for me.
     I feel like I am getting my second or third breath in a long run and although the side aches were painful I keep running and now as the finish line is much closer than the starting line I am rejuvenated with an exhilaration that can only come from the process of a long battle fought and won. Again, I know we haven't won anything yet but I am fighting and not dying so that to me is enough of a victory to tell me my fight against trump/mcconnell, as our fight against trump/mcconnell is going well enough to give us all some confidence that we will endure if we remain relentless. 428 days of hell left before we can rid ourselves of the greatest threat to our modern democracy we have ever faced. Go us!

Drive a stake into the heart of the republican party! (#3866)

     If it isn't Russia being allowed to hack into our elections then it is crazy people who are spurred on by trump being allowed to load up on weapons and ammunition to shoot up our society. This is what the republican party is all about. They don't care about anything other than money and power. Well as we have seen also they care about lust as well. How this political party can be allowed to continue to hold public power is insanity! They must all be voted out of office and then charged for whatever crimes can be proven against them!
     Every day it seems we get some new information about how foreign entities are infiltrating our voting systems, yet republicans do nothing. The republican controlled Senate has numerous vote protecting bills sent to them by the House and yet they do nothing. Every day it seems we see another mass shooting by the unstable right wing controlled by white male republicans. The republican party tries to blame it on Obama or video games or the gay community, but not on the easy access to these weapons and ammunition. It is easier to get a weapon of mass destruction than it is to get a lawn dart. The republican party is responsible for the doing nothing part and we should punish them at the voting booth.
     Another paradigm that republicans try to claim moral high ground over is sex addiction, yet it seems that every day there is another republican who has been caught in the web of illegal sexual engagement. They run for office on being wholesome while they live a lecherous lifestyle. There is nothing wholesome about the republican party. Instead they are mostly borderline or more, cruel and brutish. They are not a shining example instead they are what actually ails our society. Until we let go of the vice of republicanism there will be no shortage of election interference, mass societal shootings, nor will our children and young adults be free from the sex addicts in the republican party.