(#5446) I felt like a tourist yesterday

      This was how I felt it would be when I first thought about making this trip up to Seattle. Let me say this first before I get going on my day yesterday. Driving up into Seattle on the Interstate Highway and coming into the city was as remarkable as I remembered from the past. I am sure there were more festive lights out because of the holiday season but the city was a magnificent display to behold. Nothing quite like the feeling I get when turning the corner so to speak on the highway and seeing the panoramic view the emerald city of Seattle projects. Seattle is my second home and getting here a few days ago filled me with so much welcoming.
     So when I say I felt like a tourist yesterday it was because I did touristy things. I got on a ferry boat and went over to one of the islands in the Puget Sound and visited my sister, nephews, and niece. My sister Caroline is an artist and creates beautiful resin covered ocean shore and wave type designs for wall hangings and counter top display. While there we all went out into the not small waterfront community of Poulsbo and walked the streets filled with local enterprises and a multitude of people. We stopped off at a fish and chip restaurant and had our fill of the excellent local seafood cuisine. We then walked the marina area and then headed up into more shops to admire their products.
     Afterward, when we left the bustling waterfront, we went back to my sister's place and then spent the next 5 hours having a hilarious time remembering and describing our favorite movie and gamer scenes. All in all we had a full day of fun and relaxation that I could not have scripted had I been given the opportunity. I have a few more stops to see family and friends planned and after yesterday's adventure I am l excited to experience whatever they hold. I will say this though, this type of vacationing has its own tiring out aspects and my body has yet to recover from my drive up. It is not like I am hunkered down somewhere and doing nothing but lounging. However the memories I am creating here will carry forward with me like I had hoped I can now say will absolutely be precious to me.

(#5445) A blank slate

     It is Saturday morning and I am sitting at the table with nothing on my mind. As it should be for me since I am supposed to be vacationing and relaxing as a default. So me having a blank slate about a topic for today is the message I want to convey. If you know me you know that I have opinions about just about everything yet today all I am thinking about is my time schedule for visiting my sister which includes a ride on a ferry boat. That being handled and the tickets purchased all I am concerned now about is when to leave and start moseying toward the ferry terminal in about an hour and a half.
     What am I going to do in the meantime before the leaving toward the ferry terminal? I am sitting around right now in my house lounge clothing so changing into non house sitting around lounge clothing will only take a few moments. So what else should or will I do? Finish writing my blog for the next 10 minutes or so, then what? I suppose I could gather together all I want to take with me for the trip. Still there is at least an hour left of nothing yet to fill that little bit of time with. Perhaps, nothing is what I will do but that sounds so mundane.
     What I will say however is that having the choices to do whatever is possible is a wonderful thing. Read into that whatever you will! Today is really now the first day of starting my time here as to planning and doing things. Yesterday was a day of rest and a few errands. Let the public fun begin. :) I am not a public person by choice but it seems I am overruling myself. And getting out there in this beautiful state of Washington is worthy of my putting my homebody persona to rest. What my mission was for this trip included getting to see the faces of those who are my true friends and welcoming family. I find that it is important to make human contact possible whenever the opportunity arises and thankfully I am at that point.

(#5444) A day of rest for me

     I am trying to rest today and knowing I have to write my daily blog post has me struggling to come up with a topic for thought. There is lots of news to chew over like Maine blocking trump from their primary ballot and California not doing so. There is the awful missile attack Russia's putin unleashed on Ukraine last night that killed over 30 civilians throughout Ukraine. While Israel is ramping up their assaults in Gaza. But for me today there is little between the ears to make sense of. I actually am starting to feel a little better than the numbness I felt earlier but I still need to find a good sound sleep for at least a few more hours yet.
     It is a little after noon here in the state of Washington but it might as well be 4 in the morning. I forced myself to get up from bed to at least type something and then post it but I regret that there is nothing I am writing that has much value today. I drove hard all day yesterday so that I could spend a bit of time up here visiting and exploring but I now know that this day number 1 is going to be about getting back to feeling somewhat normal. I will work on that the rest of today and then hopefully tomorrow I can get out into the flow of things and stop in to see folks I haven't seen in too many years.
     I have been wanting to make this trip for so long and now I am actually here doing it. What is even more special is that the University of Washington Husky football team, out of Seattle and my alma mater, has the region up here excited by their still undefeated season and a game coming up on Tuesday January 2nd against a rugged Texas football team. The winner moves on to the championship on January 9th. I hope that both the Texas game moves us on and the game on the 9th is a undefeated culmination for our team. It is special being up here during this time regardless of the outcome but if so it would be remarkable and a memory I will hold with an even bigger grin than the one I already have now.

(#5443) Ukraine bleeds while republicans show indifference!

      This particular instance of republican intransigence while Ukraine is fighting for their lives is one of the most horrible instances of republican indifference. I am ashamed that they are backed by too many American citizens who have somehow forgotten the good that democracy brings. Ukraine is fighting against a tyrant in order to install a democratic government for themselves. You would normally think that a democratic nation like ourselves would be on the side of those who also want to choose democracy. But not in this case. The republican party has seen fit to help Russia, who is not a democracy, against Ukraine that is fighting to become a democracy.
     Some one tell me how a political party like the republicans in the world's greatest democracy is failing to stand up for a new burgeoning democracy that is pleading for their help. I cannot fathom the reason even though republicans scoff and say the money isn't worth it. What good will money be when our own democracy comes under attack because we fail to help secure democracy around the world? How do the republican accountants square the cost of losing our own democracy to what little in relative terms Ukraine is asking for? How can an individual with any human decency not understand that helping our friends against our common enemy is the correct thing to always do?
     Instead the republican party is purposefully aiding Russia to help them defeat Ukraine. I don't know any other logical way to spin the truth of this that is not an outright lie! The American republican party has lost it's identity and is now supporting our enemies instead of our friends. For those who still will not accept the fact of this post by me then you are also a putin ally. How has this happened that too many American republican citizens support the tyrant and his regime of oppression when they should be supporting the Ukrainian effort to establish their democracy. This time in history will be a baffling one that jeopardises our own democracy for what? So putin can be a world tyrant? I just don't get how American republicans can support those whom our foreparents fought so hard to defeat!

(#5442) Love will find a way just like the will power of Ukrainians

      We all know the power of love, it is indefatigable. Which is my segue to Ukraine. They will not be stopped no matter what happens to them. If they were down to their last bullet they would go to hand to hand combat. There is nothing that compares to a nation of patriots like in Ukraine who are fighting for their very survival against a tyrant in Russia who would wipe them off the map if they don't bow down to him. Well maybe one thing that compares, our forefathers and mothers who fought against what seemed like an insurmountable enemy to claim our own freedom and liberty in 1776. Love and Ukraine, are two like peas in a pod at the moment.
     The sooner Russia understands that Ukraine will never relinquish their nationality nor their sovereignty the sooner Russia mothers and fathers will not keep losing their male children to the killing fields in Ukraine. So the Russian parents of these soon to be conscripted cannon fodder had better find their love for their children and act on that love by stopping the putin hellscape they are currently trapped in. Whatever they must do they need to come together and stand up to the bully tyrant who is fine with having the Russian youth pay with their lives for his own ambition. The payment is too high to pay for the insecurity of an empiralistic tyrant who has no empathy for the truth or the deaths of his countrymen.
     Love and the will to survive are two resilient emotions that are connected because they both require a response that is purposed and resolute. As love often defies logic so does the sacrifice of some in order to overcome a much stronger aggressor. Little Ukraine against the giant Russia was supposed to be no contest. Well when the greater good is tested the obstacles no matter how impossible at first will be found out as just speed bumps. If you think about it the Ukrainian story here is a love story that is in the midst of their own struggle to survive. Ukrainians are freedom and liberty loving yearners for democracy and are putting their lives on the line in such a show of passion and immediacy that their resolve will not be denied!
     
     

(#5441) My last week of storage work

      3 more actual days of work left on my calendar in the full time position at UHaul storage. I can say right now that it is a welcome thing to finish up this week and then start a new work schedule back to transfer driving. I am taking a week off to go up north to visit family and friends after January 1st as a reward for being such a hard worker these last 10 months or because I am just tired and need to rest and do something different. :) I am so looking forward at the moment but still I need to finish what I started at storage and then catch my breath. A day of organizing and then I am off on the road like I have done so many times before in my younger days,
     This was not easy for me to plan and prepare for because I have been living on a limited income for quite awhile but working these past 10 months has provided me some cushion to be able to go somewhere different for a bit just to change my perspective and give myself a chance at reacquainting and acquainting with old and new friends. I have no illusions about my trip other than I will bring with me a smile that is genuine. I plan to enjoy every second of my trip even the drive up and back. Having a full size SUV rental will be a treat for starters and assure me of an uninterrupted trip. My vehicle could make it easily but it would need some attentive service first.
     With the 4 wheel drive rental vehicle I will be ready for any weather once I get up north which I would not have with my own vehicle. So transportation is accomplished and as for housing when I get up north a wonderful friend has offered me a guest room for however long I need while I am there. For that I cannot express how fortunate I feel. Good company is my goal and I am starting out with good company from the moment I arrive. I have family and friends that I wish to see again in person and places I wish to revisit and visit for the first time. All I have between me and my leaving plans are 3 days of work which I will be starting again today, Thursday, and ending on Sunday.

(#5440) Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays but most of all I am thankful for Ukrainians

      Today is the day most celebrate some form of festive attitude toward their given traditions. Me, I am not much for one to get involved in traditional festive associations because it is my best knowing that every day is a festive one that should not be just for one or a handful of days. I try very hard to make every day a special one without the trappings of extracurricular reasoning and cultural mores. I do not diminish the day today for anything less than special as it ingrained in our psyches also as a hope and gratefulness. So today with all the wherewithal the day brings I am reminded that there are soldiers on the battlefield who are defending the rights of all free people who would enjoy a day like today as their choice.
     The strength of the Ukrainian people is an example for all who would look at them. Don't turn your head away from these special people who are not playing life and death games in some rhetorical sense, they are living life and death reality. I am still feeling less than thankful for what the republican party is doing to the promised US aid that Ukraine desperately needs to save many of their people who are now in deaths sights. The republican party is nothing to be proud of on this day. They are the worst of who democracy needs in the moment to protect and preserve the ideals that founded our very own country.
     Despite the republican betrayal on promised aid to them the Ukrainians are determined to fight on no matter what may come. More of them will and are dying because republicans are fools playing with fire. But nonetheless Ukraine fights on. I am saddened by the loss of heroic life but Ukraine will endure despite republican psychopathy. But I am also in admiration of their steadfast approach to the truly American ideal of democratic stewardship. They are fighting to preserve what our American forefathers/mothers established for us and the world should they choose. Well Ukraine chose our American democracy and they are showing the world and history that nothing is more important on any day of the calendar than to defend democracy at all costs.

(#5439) Time has moved along since the last older brother John update

      There is no easy about all of this that has happened to my older brother John. He knows he is not well but he cannot understand why he is not home. I keep telling him that he needs to be able to go to the bathroom by himself, shower by himself and make his food for himself. Until he can he has to stay where all those things are done with his help for him. I have told him a hundred times or more that I cannot do those things for him because it is too hard physically on me and I have no time since I am working and taking care of this house as well. Plus I am only just younger than his 70 years so my ability to muscle and strain are becoming more difficult to accomplish.
     It hurts me to say these things to him but they are the truth and he does seem to understand until the next time when he has forgotten all of this. He is maddeningly frustrated that he has had a stroke and blames those around him for his condition. I keep reminding him that those at the care facility are there to help him not hurt him. He is prone to going off into small rages at times because his imagination and fears tend to boil over into somewhat living hallucinations. Once he has had his medications he seems to calm back down and can have a somewhat lucid conversation.
     I have the day off today which is out of normal for me because on Sunday's I usually work until 4:30 pm and then go to see John afterwards. But today I will go earlier and see how he is doing when he is not expecting me. He does need my visits as his care workers tell me that he does look forward to seeing me on the days I normally show up. So his cognition is still there even though sporadic and he continues to recognize me as his brother. John is not getting better, he is just at a plateau for now and though I keep hoping he will find the inner strength to somehow defeat the effects of the stroke I know I am being optimistic but I will never tell him otherwise. What I want most for John is to keep his hope of getting better alive while also not going off the deep end of hallucinations and fear like feelings. John is still inside his body but it is just a shell now of who I know him to be.

(#5438) Clearly Ukrainians are much smarter than the arrogant Russian invaders

      The Ukrainian people on whole are a marvelous example of intuitive complex thinkers. Although the Ukrainian island defenders flipping off the Russian navy is about as simple as it gets. What I am referring to is the continual victories Ukraine has in skirmishes over the last nearly 2 years. The mighty Russian army against the upstart Ukrainians was supposed to be a cakewalk for Russia. Yet it is Russia that is suffering losses in incredible amounts while Ukrainians are very efficient in their efforts to protect their soldiers. It is almost like the Ukrainians are playing chess while the Russians are fumbling with checkers. The idea that the russian military is some awesome entity is being exposed as a bad joke.
     The obvious rot in the Russian military complex because of paternalism and favor, not merit and hard work, is proving to being their undoing. The Ukrainians on the other hand are studied and practical in their approach to defending and reclaiming their stolen territory. As the russian losses mount to unimaginable heights the closer putin and his kremlin bootlickers get to being undone by their own people. The deaths of Russian boys in Ukraine is absurd and cannot be sustained for much longer. I don't care how many call ups for new troops they have they have already lost over 350 thousand men and as many wounded. Russia has already lost a staggering amount of equipment and munitions.
     Every day it seems that some fuel depot or Russian concentration of forces is being blown up by either Ukrainian military strategy or Ukrainian resistance fighters. The momentum against this ill conceived Russian invasion is growing and it won't be long before all the foundation beneath putin's effort to destroy others crumbles into oblivion along with him and his cabal of enablers. The day is coming for the end of this murderous conflict of putin and when that day comes Ukraine will be even stronger than before the invasion. All putin has achieved is his own demise and the ascension of Ukraine to replace the mightily withered Russian military.

(#5437) The world's billionaires need to support Ukraine!

      If the nefarious forces of ill will toward democracy are keeping governments from supporting Ukraine to keep their democracy then the billionaire class needs to step up and supply Ukraine with whatever it needs to keep the tyrant putin from destroying another burgeoning democracy. What will the billionaires do with all their billions anyway? Might as well do some good in keeping the world an enlightened and evolving environment. By doing so they will preserve the forces of democracy that create opportunities for all to participate thus enhancing capitalistic and social improvements.
     The extremely wealthy have got to realize that when all of us do well then they do even better so investing in preserving democracies and defeating tyrants is an actual cost benefit analysis that makes sense and more than cents for them. A win/win situation where they are actually the heroes and not the villains. Meanwhile the people of Ukraine who are in need of help deserve the chance to succeed and all they need is not for us to fight for them but to give them the munitions to fight for themselves. Otherwise the world will likely fall into a world war if Ukraine does not prevail in stopping the greedy putin and his monstrous land grabbing ways.
     Already several nations of the world are trying to get frozen Russian assets to Ukraine in order to help with governmental supplies that allies of the tyrant putin are obstructing. But a commitment from many of the billionaires of the world to fund Ukrainian armaments would do wonders for the morale of Ukrainians and also for those of us who wish we could help but have no resources to do so. It would be a tragedy to the world in general if Ukraine is not able to defend its society and democracy. For those of us who hold democracy precious above all else it is a must that we protect it from all who would take it from us or deny it to those who love it as much as we do.

(#5436) 350,270 dead Russian young men in Ukraine with more to come

      The audacity of putin to kill his people is astounding. For what? To stop Ukraine from being a freedom loving nation? That putin would destroy his own people so that freedom can be oppressed is not to be allowed. Yet it is allowed by the Russian people. Again, I call on the Russian people to rise up and stop being complacent about their children dying in huge numbers every day. The Russian conventional military is being decimated as well so for all who are looking at this horrendous Russian invasion from the outside we can only see putin on a mission to destroy his own country.
     No matter what Ukraine will not fall to the Russian invaders. If Ukraine is seen to be faltering to Russia because of the overwhelming numbers Russia keeps throwing at Ukraine then other forces from outside Ukraine will become involved. We all know that Russia will not stop if they conquer Ukraine. They will go on to attack Poland, Moldova, Finland and the other European pact countries. The tyrant putin has no qualms with murdering his own people to gain what others own so him not caring about killing other nation's people is fact. The world will fall into a war on a scale that brings all nations into it. So stopping putin in Ukraine is an absolute to keeping peace.
     Fighting a war to keep peace is how it is done when the aggressor nation is willing to kill at a level such as putin. I should not have to explain this in any complex way. It is simple folks, stop putin or get ready to fight from every nation on Earth. The tyrant in Moscow and his kremlin bootlickers are not going to be stopped until they are stopped and keeping those killing fields restricted to Ukraine and Russia is the world's highest priority. With what the republican party is doing by stalling the military aid to Ukraine is to help putin bring about a world war that will involve all peace loving people. The republican party is helping putin achieve his world war fantasies.

(#5435) Recharging my perspective

      My perspective hasn't changed much given no new mind bending information but my perspective at times gets slogged down in the muck that is erroneously presented as a plausible alternative to reality with the obvious ulterior motives. There are forces out there who have only one thing for a purpose and that is to destroy the fact of reality with nuance and hypothetical supposition. Their goal toward achieving the destruction of factual reality is to kill enlightenment and the renaissance of wisdom. They who are failures in honorable knowledge and lesser than wise and honest have the goal of dominating all of existence to their pleasure.
     I posted a song earlier this morning on Facebook entitled Battle of Evermore but my take is that it should be the battle for evermore. Because we are in the battle for good over what I will call evil in this case. The evil is the lessening of what it is to be human. We humans are compassionate and curious by nature so diminishing those traits is the lessening of who we are as a species. The forces or wannabe overlords of our time are hard at work reshaping reality with fantasy and too many followers are being caught up in their drunken miasma. The stench of dishonesty and ego is apparent to me and many more like me. It's effect on me is like crud stuck on my shoe which must be cleansed with an agent of purity.
     I find the simplest agent of purity for me is my generational music. I listen to a couple of songs from my youth and the next thing I know I am back to being that young child/man who was full of vigor and confidence to make our world the better and best it could be. This is how I recharge my perspective. I remind myself why I care and what form I want my care to take. It is not always easy being resolute when so many are not, so whatever works to make sure I am not less than what I expect of myself is appropriate if no harm to anyone or myself is involved. I suppose I will check the noise level of my earphones as a precaution not to harm myself. :)

(#5434) Don't procrastinate on helping others

      There is no time like this very moment to get done what we know is the correct thing to do. I was faced with such a choice a moment ago and chose to do the helping thing over the convenience of my time. I have been on the other end of needing help and then the promised help took so long to get to me because the other party kept waiting on the convenience of it to them. So I will not be like that other party when my part is the helping one. Generally I find procrastination just a lazy way of living. Which in some cases hurts me because I push to get things done despite the possible harm to myself. Physically speaking.
     Like when at work when I see tasks that directly help the service to our customers I prioritize those tasks to accomplish on my shift so that there is no lag to another day. My body is the one that suffers when I push too hard to accomplish my tasks before the end of shift and I feel it until I get back to work. Which is why I am tapering down from full time work to part time work. I cannot stop from being that 20 year old in a 68 year old body so I have to regulate the time I am actually putting myself into difficult physical situations. Me choosing to regulate myself by denying myself opportunities to work. It kind of makes me laugh a bit because hard choices about my instinct to produce forces me to slow down another way.
     I know when my life does end I will miss the times that I felt exhilarated in accomplishing things in efficient and productive ways. Even when I am working I am finding the beauty in how I manipulate every second and inner resource to complete what I am doing. Joy is a product of being the best of who we are and life for me is although painful too much of the time it is not so painful that I can't find the joy despite the pain. Anyway, back to not procrastinating. Like avoiding the pitfalls of doing things through shortcuts, not procrastinating eliminates lost time and as well leaves for more time for other tasks to be considered. Living in an efficient mindset free from procrastinating has few downsides and the upsides are everywhere.

(#5433) I am no god, I am a human being

      I had the misfortune of having to endure a conversation with a proselytizer yesterday while at work. His big emphasis was to imagine a world run by jehovah's witnesses. Where all accepted this belief. His big finish was wouldn't the world be in a better place? Well let me see here. I stood there and listened and then told him that first off starting a paradigm based upon a fairy tale is your first mistake. Second expecting that all would accept being religious within one denomination is absurd. Third, fantasizing about controlling folks as a way to be human was impossible. Later he ended up telling me that I shouldn't judge him for when he judged me. I said I am not judging you, I am judging myself.
     He then said that I must think I am a god for judging myself. I said to him that judging myself is my right since I am the only one living inside my skin. Again he said I must think I am a god because I judge myself. I paused for a moment and then said that I am a human being who has the faculty to understand logic and my environment. Since I am a human being I get to judge my own existence as a consequence. I turned from him and walked away because he obviously wasn't hearing me and he continued his attempt to moan about the state of existence without a godhead to lead us. Again I left him with the fact that fairy tales are not the answer to serious questions.
     Those that try to persuade me to their religions are wasting their time. If I could find it helpful to be religious I would have chosen that path for myself but I haven't since logic won't let me. My curiosity has taught me that making things up to satisfy my own fears or wishes is of no value. I will not be persuaded to accept the illogical so that I can exist in a manufactured bubble. I need reality to focus me toward facts and hard truths that are often as uncomfortable as they are undeniably conclusive. My objectivity will not be assuaged by any false sense of safe subjectivity no matter the allure. Anyway, it is nice to know I know who I am despite the insistence of others and their illogic.

(#5432) My drive up to Seattle

      Each day that arrives gives me a little bit more enthusiasm. I am getting things organized as to how the trip that I am about to make will go. Making sure that all is safe and secure here at home is foremost. Budgeting and logistics are complete so the fact of the trip is now eminent. I always in the back of my mind expect some type of obstruction at the last minute because I have lived long enough to know that reality. But nonetheless I am feeling much more likely that things will go smoothly from here on out. I have a plan that seems doable and the idea that my enthusiasm will be abashed becomes less possible by the day.
     In other words I am already imagining myself leaving my home and hitting the road for the trip up north. That feeling of being carefree and alive to what comes next is exhilarating. Imagining is one thing so when the actual moment of me leaving the driveway here is upon me the real feeling won't be just a thought. I am going to drive up and that is going to be something I have done in the past many times. I don't know how long I will take but I know myself well and at that time I will figure out my agenda. I am renting a vehicle that will give me some comfort in operating it so being on the road will not be a chore.
     Not a luxurious vehicle but sensible one and ready for the weather once I get to the cooler/colder climate. What I will do up there for now is also open for possibilities but I at least will be spending time with friends and family that are the kind of people that I admire and respect. This trip is going to be good for me and hopefully those who will get to be in my company. I spent a lot of time in the Seattle area. About 20 years. My bachelor's degree came from the University of Washington and it is an exciting time up there now. I was born in Sacramento and it will always be my home but not the only one as the Seattle area is as precious to me as my home town.

(#5431) I like my new schedule

      I just finished my first week of limited days work. I only work 3 days a week now and it feels much better for me. When I get home at night I am invigorated because the next day is not a work day. I work Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. So no consecutive days of work for me anymore. I am getting things done at home again even though I have a pulled muscle in my back from work. I use the medicated patches and they seem to work pretty good but overall the pain won't go away until I can rest for a sufficient amount of time. Over the last 4 months this home of mine has not been attended to like it needs to be and now I can get back to those chores in a much more timely fashion.
     What is curious but understandable is that I still wake up and get moving at the same time each morning but I don't have the pressure of each day going to work. It is a psychological thing more than anything and although I still feel somewhat tired I am able to sleep during the day when I have the day off. Eventually I will catch up on my sleep and start to feel alive again such as I can. I am also going on a trip up to the Seattle area at the turn of the new year and that will be peaceful and exciting at the same time. Something I haven't done in so long that I really cannot remember the last time I took time just for myself.
     Working 3 days a week is maybe more than I want to but it is easily manageable. I will probably work my way toward 2 days a week but not yet. I need to stay active outside my home so that I keep a balance between being too introverted in my settled ways. Being out in the mix of life offers some interesting takes on how our society is functioning. I have also met some cool folks who I would miss if I wasn't out working. The 5 day a week thing is a bygone paradigm for me and I won't miss it. Even when I was young I didn't like the drudgery of a 5 day work week and even less so now. In the bigger picture I would hope that society would go to a 4 day work week so folks could have real time in their lives to do more than spend it away working.

(#5430) Courage is a constant state of being

      The ease at which many can just ignore the hard in life is why we are in this predicament at the moment. So many choose to ignore the difficult that we all face and instead focus on their safe mundane activities to get them through. Well like the proverbial Ostrich, sticking one's head in the sand to avoid the difficult is not a solution but instead a cowering. Surely this statement of mine will once again be ignored because we who are gifted with much can't seem to find it within us to defend it for others. We have ours and that's all that matters it seems. I don't feel that way because like I just said I was gifted it not earned it.
     So fighting for freedom of choice to decide our own individual fates is my purpose for living. It is a heroic purpose and one I will always humbly work to create. I am no hero but I am no coward either. I do not unsee the truth when it is convenient or scary. I am full of the vigor of being a better person no matter what the challenge. So I carry my courage with me everywhere I go. It isn't something I pull out when the safety is assured. It is always my default position even when the conclusion is a detrimental possibility. I cannot become less than courageous based upon a calculation. I can assuage my actions to lessen danger but in no circumstance will any fear change my purpose to live as a free and strong human being dedicated to protecting the best of what all of us can become.
     Ideals are not for fools or cowards, they are for the strong and those of us convicted by a greater purpose than just ourselves. We who choose to live in the light of honor and noble purpose are what the less than noble fear the most. They would use their cruel and brutish ways to subjugate the many in the name of their own frail egos. When is the time for us to be with our courage every single moment? Right now if that is what you choose. Otherwise stick to your distractions and continue to ignore reality in real time. We don't find the precious in life by being less than worthy of it. No one can tell you to live in your courage and fight for what we all know is the best of who we are as a species but yourself.

(#5429) The republicans are abandoning democracy in Ukraine

      I never would have thought that one of the two major political parties in America would abandon democracy but I have lived to see the day. It is a political strategy by the republicans to deny democrats anything that could be perceived as a positive. So they invent their lame reasons for now stopping help to Ukraine so that the democrats are seen as weak and ineffective to voters. The people of Ukraine are the ones who will suffer because of the republican gambit to take power by thwarting democracy. To me it is insane that the republicans would think that by stopping democracy in Ukraine and helping putin the tyrant they would get more votes here in the 2024 election.
     But it seems that insanity is the new strategy for republicans because they have no sane way of attracting voters without changing their party platforms. So they will stop funding the defense of democracy in Ukraine, blame it on the democrats, and expect the electorate to believe them. With the American corporate media behind them they figure by controlling that narrative that eventually more people will begin to believe their propaganda. I have seen enough of the American electorate to know that it is at least possible because too many here in the states are so short sighted and forgetful. Yet I and many more like me will not let the corrupted American corporate media spin the deception of republicans to their favor.
     We democrats will unite behind our leader Joe Biden and then begin to tear into the lies of the republican party and the western world media will help us. Ukraine by the way will find a way to survive Russia without our help and when the voting happens here in little more than 10 months the republican party will be thrown out of leadership and we democrats will again support ukraine with a gusto because there will be no republican obstruction. So many good things will happen after the vote in November 2024 but getting there is going to be harsh and cruel for countries like Ukraine who are only trying to save their democracy. Eternal shame of republicans!

(#5428) The republican party has sided with the tyrant putin!

      I often leave off punctuation marks at the end of my titles but not in this case. An exclamation point was needed to make sure there is no doubt as to my disgust and shame for what has become of the republican party. Ukraine through its President Zelenskyy was in Washington yesterday pleading with republican leaders for the aid package democrats have proposed to help Ukraine defeat the democracy destroying attempts of putin and his Russian allies. Well it was shown that the republican party is not an ally of democracy but instead an ally of Russia. We know that republicans are against democracy in principle through their actions here in America but to abandon Ukraine to Russia is another step down for them.
     The republican representatives in the Senate and House have enough power to stop the aid package from ever being voted on in an up or down fashion. The Senate rule that a 60 vote threshold has to be reached before a bill can be voted on with a simple majority clearance stops bills in the Senate as only 51 voting for democrats are available. So the republicans would need to provide 9 votes out of their 49 votes for the aid package bill to get to an up or down vote. Yet no republican will vote to help democracy in Ukraine. In the House the republicans have the slim majority but they won't vote to produce a bill of their own to help Ukraine.
     The idea that the republican party can thwart democracy in favor of the tyrant putin who is overjoyed by the republican stance to kill democracy is the furthest thing from being a hero. All American heroes who are/were, present and past defenders of democracy are as nothing to the republican party. The anti American republican party must be chastised and punished for their betrayal to the ideal of democracy. Those who vote for these anti American creatures are themselves an abomination to our constitution and our Declaration of Independence. These republican supporters are either ignorant in their own perceptions or are of the same stripe. The republican party wants to destroy democracy in Ukraine, much like they are trying to destroy democratic ideals here in America. The rest of us have a duty to stop them from doing either!

(#5427) Are you scared of republicans enough to bow down to them?

      The time for fighting for democracy is right now! So what will it be? Will we all fight to keep our democracy or will too many of us fall down on our knees and beg for the republicans not to be too harsh on us in our new role as servants? I will never be a servant to a cruel master nor serve one who has taken away my liberties. But that is me how about you? If you are still in denial about this then you are not even able to decide which course of action to take and will have the course chosen for you when you finally figure it out. But then it will be too late and your plans that were more important than protecting your democracy will be for naught!
     America is now at the point where it is either put up and fight for democracy or shut up and accept that democracy is being taken away. There is no sitting on the fence or sitting this fight out for any of us. The time to decide is today and the decision must be final. Because the forces that would take democracy from us are building up a war chest of collusion, coercion, and confusion that will inundate us to the point of bringing chaos instead of peace. So we each have to look to our own inner self and find out if we are a brave people or a cowardly people. The moment of truth is here so don't be caught not knowing what you are willing to fight for.
     This call of mine is not a drill. It is not a howl into the night. It is real and a clarion call that is much like the ride of Paul Revere. Prepare to fight or prepare to cower. Your choice! I will fight and I ask that if you are afraid of what republicans will do to you if they somehow win then use that to stir your emotions toward an anger at them which will push you past your own personal fear. Find yourself on the correct side of protecting democracy from the worst of what humans can become. Only democracy has all of our interests at heart so help us protect that heart and stand up and give the republican party the middle finger!

(#5426) My processing unit, my brain, is still functioning

      I have posted about this several times over the years and it hasn't changed because it is about how I absorb information. I am sure as I get further into age my physical body, especially my brain, will falter to lower levels of cognition but for now the gears of my mind are oiled and humming. My five basic senses are my probes into existence and bring me information on a constant basis. As this information is accumulated I apply my logical sequencing to it. Reason, analyze, and conclude. Now that is for current information and long term memory information at the same time. Being able to understand the difference between short term knowledge and its long term consequences is an imperative for a more complex foresight.
     Much like there is a past, present, and future, the rationale for knowing what will happen in the future is often found in our present and past. This chain of linkage is not absolute but in most cases they are. So it is with information. What we learned in the past and now in the present will often dictate what our futures will look like. At least in theory. Our minds are amazing but not full proof. Which is the genesis for us not being an omnipotent species. In lieu of that I and many before me find that a continual gathering of information to envelope into our knowledge bases is critical to our own further understanding of this existence and our future in it.
     Like the two Voyager probes, we humans are on a path toward information gathering. I like to think of us as biological probes who are also the mission control. We adapt to circumstances that obstruct or try to shape our destiny's with maneuvers that continue the mission we have for our own discoveries. As long as we still have the faculty of our minds in good order we are on an flight path that is adept at keeping us moving in our preferred direction. Most likely none of us has the real time to achieve our furthest out goals but like all things in a time centered life it is the journey much like with the Voyagers that is important. We go until we cannot go any further and then we commit our information to the rest of existence so that someone else can benefit from it.
     

(#5425) We need more private funding to help Ukraine

      Since the republican party is holding the Ukrainian aid package to their own agenda then it is time for the private sector billionaires and the rest of us to step up and defend democracy against putin. All billionaires in America are thus because of democracy so them paying forward their appreciation is needed. Keeping democracy for all of us is what got them their ability to succeed financially in life. So them defending democracy where it is being attacked is what fighting to protect democracy is all about. Life has given them an opportunity to be bigger than themselves and actually do good with their gotten gains.
     The republican party has taken hostage the Ukrainian aid just so you know. Where the aid would immediately help Ukraine rebuff putin and actually go on the offensive is now not available. That putin knows this and is now attacking Ukraine with the expectation that the funds won't be allocated is to me a collusive act by republicans who are now aiding Russia with their tactics. The republican party knows this but is acting like they are doing a noble thing. Well border security is important but not as important as being complicit is killing Ukrainians by aiding putin. Border security can be obtained but not at the hostage taking and murdering level. Shame on republicans for this despicable political tactic.
     Which is why we need another source of revenue that is not obstructed by the republican party. We democrats, independents, and even some like minded Ukrainian friendly republicans can make a start at gathering a donation to Ukraine that would likely help to offset the hoped for public aid that republicans are now forbidding. Playing politics with people's lives doesn't seem to faze the republican party because they are so hardened to uncaring for lives in jeopardy. The republicans sit back in their comfort and safety and through denying aid to Ukraine effectively accept losses of life that need not be for their inaction. The republican party is the worst of what people can become and a hypocritical stain on the democracy that they otherwise enjoy!

(#5424) I am now in the wind down phase of my working schedule

      The way I have my days set up for the end of my time as a storage worker is that I will not again work back to back days. Every day I work from now on I will have the next day off. My plan is to finish 2023 by winding down to 3 days of work a week with only 2 days during christmas week. That way I can get my body back to some semblance of normalcy while still helping the storage facility replace me. Working Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays will leave me a day off each day to recuperate. When the last Sunday comes around on New Years Eve I will officially finish my last day.
     When the new year starts I may go back to transfer driving immediately or take a week or two of time off before switching occupations so that I can go visit family and friends in the Seattle area. I have not been on what one would call a vacation since I don't remember when. It would be nice to have the time to do what I want when I want without the daily responsibilities of chores and duties. I will be taking Billy my long haired Chihuahua with me as company so there are some chores and duties with that but not much when I think about his company. I am not positive yet I will go but I am gearing up for that probability.
     The best part though of this storage job wind down is that I will not be working 2 days in a row any longer. When I go to work on a day it is like a Friday with a day off afterward. There is something uplifting about this kind of schedule because I still get some hours in but not the grind of doing it day after day. The money I was earning will be missed but I will still be making 3/5's of what that was at full time. My time that is left here in existence is more precious to me now so I am in a win/win situation. Plus it has been far too long for me to see some faces I have known and hope to know better and to look them in the eye will be welcome. These next few weeks will be me also getting my truck road worthy of a trip up north. From the way this post is writing itself it appears I will be making this trip.
     

(#5423) Ukrainian democracy must defeat the tyrant putin

      I don't know how many times I will end up saying this but Ukraine must defeat Russia and send Russia back to its original borders. There is no other scenario that is just and correct. Russia invaded Ukraine not the other way around. Ukraine wants democracy and Russia does not want Ukraine to have democracy. These simple facts should be enough to energize and mobilize all the modern western world who has democracy now to have Ukraine's back to the fullest. Yet some forces of power and privilege would deny Ukraine the right to self rule and instead reward the villain putin for murdering another country.
     For all the apologists of putin out there the fact remains that putin invaded Ukraine. If you reward him for doing that then the next country on putin's list will be that much closer to yours. If you are an American and support the tyrant putin over democracy then your foreparents would if they could be turning over in their graves. How much shame did you ever think you would place on their legacy because they were your foreparents? They fought and died for democracy so you could be free individual human beings with free will and the right to pursue your happiness. Not for their offspring to throw all of that in the trash for a murderer like putin.
     For those who support the egoist putin the right to be free in one's own skin becomes impossible. The tyrants of the world are not about the rights of human beings, they are about their rights over everyone else. So as putin supporters continue to deny Ukraine the necessary means to stop the monster putin the closer we all get to our democracy becoming vulnerable. Ukraine must be allowed to not only defend their territory but to oust those who are attempting to annex it. Democracy is the greatest form of human rights ever envisioned as a societal structure. Where everyone has the right to be free and as brilliant as they want. Why would we not protect that right like our glorious foreparents did before us?

(#5422) Republicans voted against democracy in the Senate yesterday

      I know how politics works and that a no vote yesterday may well be a yes vote tomorrow given some changes in other areas of the bill. This is how politics works in our current form. Yet it is undeniable that the republican party has taken it to another level. This isn't just about getting extra security at the border that is needed it is about reshaping border policy to deny immigration to a class of people. It is the extreme view of republicans and their concepts for a white America that are at the core of their demands. Reducing democracy as a price for saving it is about as low as you can go but we expect that from republicans and their self privileged point of view.
     Another attempt to include some border security measures will be offered by democrats in the next few days but the republicans will still likely find a way to say no to a yes. The most inept politicians who have ever been voted into office on the republican side are about to destroy their one talking point going into the 2024 election. They are all about border security in their drummed up narrative and when they get a result from Joe Biden to alleviate many border concerns they are again likely to say no or just be able to pass the Ukraine foreign aid bill into law. Either way it will look to all voters that republicans got what they needed to relieve the border crisis and then said no.
     I think of a petulant child when I think of republicans. They make demands and then won't accept movement toward their demands. In the 2024 election they will be ousted from any majority in Congress plus they will lose more state house majorities. So in the meantime they will do what they can to fester and destroy any attempts to process necessary politics. The worst of the republicans in the House is not all the republicans so if a deal can be struck in the Senate for the Ukrainian aid along with among other things border security measures then the bill may pass in the House with a few not insane republicans and all democrats. We shall see but the republicans will rue the day if eventually they kill Ukrainian aid and border security come November 5th 2024.

(#5421) I do fight against death but it's eventual coming is inevitable

      You won't see me cry at the end of my life because I fear death because I don't. I know it will happen at some point but it does not scare me. In fact I have accepted the inevitableness of it. Now that is not to say I embrace death as a process but logic in this existence gives no other conclusion. How I look at death, the word is often scary just in itself, is to remind myself that I had to be alive for death to even be a factor. This knowing my life having been lived gives me the strength to accept death on its terms. Whenever that occurs I am satisfied that I have been conscious of the amazing spectacular existence we are born into in this dimension we know.
     I have ideas about what happens after we are dead but they are just hopes for continuing on out of a sense of curiosity. This human life I have now is full of curiosity and I hope that after I die that the curiosity will take another form with me involved in it. More likely I will just cease to exist in any other dimension or existence but at least I can hope. I don't buy into the religious doctrines that tout eternal life for well done deeds and eternal fire of punishment for unwell deeds but maybe something else that is beyond our ability to discern will surprise us after we demise here.
     Either way though if nothing happens after I die I can rest assured now that I appreciated my life and lived a lot of it in that appreciation. So when death comes for me I won't be angry or sad, I will just be ready because I accept that it is the way after we are done living. I wasn't expecting to write about such a morbid subject but there are instances surrounding my life that make it appropriate for me to discuss. Many around me are meeting their final days and for us to not be prepared for them in a honorable way is unseemly. I will always strive to thwart death with every breath I have but when I can no longer do that I am well satisfied that my life has not been without appreciation nor undercut by fear for my ending.

(#5420) I am now really done working full time

      I have given the official notice of leaving my full time job at the end of the month. My boss is good with that and his boss is good with that. Mainly because they both know that as an older man who is trying to do the work of a younger man the toll is getting beyond my ability to manage it. They get it and I am satisfied with my decision. At 68 the wear and tear of a lifetime of hard working jobs like, working on many framing crews, logging crews, and underground mining crews to name a few occupations has left a lot of aches and pains that I still feel to this day. For over the last 3 months I have endured these physical hurts and countered with lots of rest at home.
     Yet resting at home just so I can go back to work the next day and do it all over again has become a liability to all the other needs I have as responsibilities. I can only say that I gave it my best but nature has shown that my best is less than what I had hoped. So at the end of the month or even sooner given how I am going to be replaced I will go back to part time driving. With that I will still have a bit of an income but more time at my home to do my duties here. I will also be able to take some time to travel back up to the Seattle area in order to visit with people I would like to see in person again.
     I thought I had resolved this last month by staying on full time because of another issue but it seems that the effects of aging and gravity had other plans for me. As much as I hurt now and the new aches and pains still arriving I know that the next few weeks will be a lot less stressful for me because I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I will remember this year as my last stab to go back to who I was as a working man on a full time schedule as a reminder to my flexibility to change when change is needed. I needed to work this year for financial reasons and I did. Now I need to take more me time in order to heal up and enjoy life as it is for me and what the future may bring.
     

(#5419) More Russian soldiers are surrendering

      The meat waves in Avdiivka Ukraine is having an effect on the morale of the Russian soldiers. The leader of Russia, putin, has told his generals in the kremlin that he wants Avdiivka taken before his next election in March 2024. So there are basically 3 months for his demand that Avdiivka be taken before his election which is secured anyway because cheating is allowed in Russian voting. Why meat waves are needed is because the defense of Avdiivka is so strong that the surrounding areas of it are littered with devastation. So little in the way of armored support is available.
     So according to putin's reckoning sending in a what seems like to him an unlimited supply of soldiers to overwhelm the Ukrainian positions is his strategy. Therefore meat waves, much like cannon fodder, is the destiny of too many Russian soldiers. So it isn't surprising that the Russian troops are not happy about an abrupt ending of their lives in their near future. So instead of following orders like rats off a cliff, the Russian soldiers are surrendering to their civilized counterparts. It is a maddening development for putin because he doesn't want any controversy leading up to his signed and sealed election. Yet that is what is happening along with the protesting wives of more than 332 thousand dead Russian soldiers in Ukraine.
     We are at the cusp of 1/3 million dead Russian soldiers with at least that many wounded as well from the fighting inside Ukraine. How much longer can the Russian society absorb these deaths among their youngest generation without repercussion? In the next few months if things stay static then we will know. Something has to give and my bet is that the mesmerizing of putin is finally going to wear off. The historical story of this time nearing the end of putin is going to be a most tragic story with Ukrainians as the heroes and the Russian people as the duped who followed their pied piper leader with an egotistical bent off the cliff of insanity.
     

(#5418) What putin is doing is turning Russia into a factory farm

      As of this morning over 332,000 Russian soldiers have died in Ukraine. What is clearly apparent is that despite these enormous losses of Russian lives the battleground has stayed static. Since winter conditions are now setting in on the frontline in Ukrainian territory the usage of heavy equipment by Russia is not feasible in most offensive operations. So what does Russia do? He orders the infantry into battle with little to no artillery or mechanized support. So Ukrainian defenses are tasked with a simple response to these offensives by Russia, simply destroy these Russian infantry advances. 
     The killing fields of what are described as "meat waves" of Russian soldiers is becoming so commonplace now that 1000 of them a day are dying is the new normal. I know Russia is a big country but when their leaders are allowing the slaughter of their young men to happen with little benefit the vast supply of young men available is dwindling. So what is the response from putin about this reality? He wants Russian women to have about 8 births apiece. He thinks that the Russian women should be like chickens laying eggs everyday for putin to scramble into an assault omelet.
     Think about this for a moment. I entitled this post with the term factory farm included. Because in a factory farm the owner takes his property, livestock, and makes it recreate to grow it for his purpose. Well putin telling Russian women to have more babies for him to manipulate is the same concept. Russia is becoming putin's property for him to manipulate however he sees fit. The Russia people for their part are part of this psychosis of putin as they seem to favor his continued failed invasion of Ukraine and the wholesale loss of their sons and husbands. We shall see how putins latest gambit of turning Russia into an incubator for mass destruction goes and if the Russian women finally say enough of this demented tyrant and his lust for power at their expense.

(#5417) Russia is in trouble!

      So the wives of the soldiers who are dying in Ukraine have finally found their voice. It seems that they are starting an uprising within Russian society that is worrying to the kremlin and putin. Even so much so that Russia is now offering money to those who are prone to protest. Paying off some folk who are in desperate straits may work for a while but many more of those who are without their husbands and fathers to their children are not going to be impressed with the Russian authorities attempts to silence them by bribing them. This may be the real impetus to undermining putin and his murderous cabal.
     The news at the front, although filled with propaganda controlled by putin, is still not encouraging. Instead of boasting of great victories the kremlin is forced to downplay losses instead. Losing in Ukraine along with dissent at home putin and the kremlin are under tremendous pressure to keep control over the Russian society they have constricted. The boiling point with the Russian populace has not gotten hot enough yet but this new wrinkle of wives protesting is one that may well be too much for the notorious Russian imperialists to squelch. Leaving a whole generation of Russian children with no fathers is maybe the bridge too far putin did not anticipate.
     More than 331,000 Russian troops have died in Ukraine to date since 2022 with many more to come. How many more fatherless children will the Russian wives allow? Bread and butter issues have always been the key factors in keeping a society intact but eliminating those who normally provide bread and butter to their families is about as close it gets to being the same. The unrest in Russia with the deaths of so many husbands to young wives is getting really palpable. The pressures on putin and the kremlin are only surmounting and the boiling point is about to be reached. How much longer will the Russian people allow their nation to be decimated in blood and treasure?

(#5416) Never stop doing the correct thing

      Learning this lesson is vital for a happy life. When you realize that doing the correct next thing is always your go to move you will see the benefit of it. It is almost karmic in a way. The self care it takes for us to be happy and confident is rooted in doing the correct thing regardless of what form that correct thing appears. Our one core human duty is to do the correct thing when the correct thing time comes. Whether it is in the little things or big things we must find ourselves doing what is correct no matter what we may find to object.
     We are not the arbiters of how life should be for anyone other than ourselves so whenever the time comes for doing the correct thing is in front of us them let there be no doubt as to what we will do. If we don't respect ourselves enough to be on the correct side of any example then we have failed to be esteemed. No one can take away the respect you deserve when the correct thing is your mantra. It doesn't make any sense for us to withhold the proper path of our presence and future because we could not bring ourselves to do the correct thing.
     I speak from experience as a younger man I tried to take shortcuts and skate through some things that deserved better from me. Not only did it affect me in troubled ways it also deteriorated others who were relying on me to do the correct thing. I learned from those earlier in life mistakes and find now that if I can do the correct thing I am more than ready to do it. I owe a duty to honor a noble principle of carrying my weight. Even when my weight is the weight of others who need me. I know the clock is ticking on my days here in existence so being the better and best of who I can be is precious and a worthy value. So never stop doing the correct thing, and if you are not, then start doing the correct thing!

(#5415) What democracy provides

      It seems that too many need a primer on why we all should be under democracy and not anything else. I can only begin with freedom. There is nothing more sacred to a human being than the freedom to pursue their own destiny and happiness within the law. Speaking of law, the rule of law in a democracy should always be the same for all who seek fairness and those who are held to account. Our democracy today is not quite there yet but at least we are striving to reach that pinnacle. Whereas in any other form of government there would never be a fair rule of law striving.
     Which segues into justice. Being able to correct harms and wrongs in a society is how we maintain law and order. Justice gives law and order a positive outcome that all can support unless of course one is bent toward injustice. Our society cannot function unless we are secure in our endeavors. The freedom to create our own happiness is based in justice and the liberty to pursue it. Which now follows liberty. When I can move anywhere in my country and enjoy the efforts of my endeavors I am truly free to live as whom I am. If I want to marry or have children on my terms then my liberty for example is being upheld.
    Another as important aspect of a democracy is knowledge and the passing down of it. Generation after generation must be allowed to learn facts and truths through the logical process without encumbrance. Because ingenuity and innovation will not rest so neither should our opportunities for education for all who would desire it to keep up with them and apply them toward what will be even a more spectacular future. Keeping our democracy safe and functioning is the duty of all of us and should never be allowed to be attacked from without nor within!

(#5414) trump knows he can't win so he is taking down the republican party

      The pact republicans made with trump is coming back to haunt them. If they were anywhere near savvy they would have found a way to silence him and move on. But no. They still think that he is their best option and cannot for the life of me see that he is their destruction. Me for the most part I am pretty happy about it all because it means that people will start seeing that democratic politics is actually their own politics less the violence, hatred, and misogyny. We democrats don't need to do too much except to sidestep away from the republican war on itself. We need to help explain what they are doing to each other and by extension us as well but for the most part just letting them talk is our best campaign advice.
     As the bickering and lack of cohesion by republicans continues unabated the fault lines are growing larger. There is still another 11 months to go for the next election but that isn't enough time for the republican party to heal itself when trump is the problem. He will bring his brand of confusion and chaos to their inner debates while controlling the narrative that republicans had hoped to hide. He lets the quiet part out about how republicans want to negate progress for the working middle poor class out into the public square with a unflinching regularity. So many key republicans are intertwined with him so that they cannot extricate themselves without causing themselves a world of hurt.
     So as the metaphorical trump ship goes down so do his republican political allies who have tied themselves to his ill fated future. There is no way back for them and when the voting time comes they will be so unpopular that for many of them to hang on to their Congressional seats will be no less a miracle. I will say this about the republican party, they brought this upon themselves. They got a short term benefit in 2016 and are now paying a tremendously high cost. That cost continues to accumulate as trump continues to control the republican narrative of deceit and intolerance. We dems need to just keep making progress on our working middle poor class policies and let the republicans through trump burn their own house down.

(#5413) Russia's endgame in Ukraine is not looking good

      As another winter is ready to settle in on the demoralized Russian army the prospects of Russia gaining back any of the occupied land they lost over the last year is dismal at best. They keep throwing troops with little armor backing them into the killing fields at Avdiivka and Bakhmut with no results worthy of mentioning. Remember denial is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. As the Russian infantry is being leveled in Ukraine the Russian high command is insistent that they will eventually be successful. Ukraine on the other hand is patient and eager to allow Russia to continue it's wholesale slaughter of its own troop personnel.
     The Russian military command, through the kremlin and putin, are showing the world that brute force is not a winning strategy. Yet brute force is their go to plan. With over 326 thousand dead Russian soldiers on Ukrainian soil it is no less evident that Russia is not a first class military. They are not even the best army in the attempted genocide of Ukraine. So much for fearing the Russian bear. The myth of the metaphorical Russia bear as fearless and strong is being exposed as folly but the Russian high command has no time for reality. They believe that the Ukrainians will eventually tire of killing so many Russians that they will just give up and surrender to the Russian army.
     Let the russians believe what they will. The fact remains that Ukraine is never going to relent to Russia no matter what Russia does and the continuation of the Russian occupation of Ukraine will only end with Russia being ousted out of Ukraine for good. There is no other plan. Russia will be pushed from Ukraine and Ukraine will become a member of the European Union and the NATO alliance. Russia would be well advised to listen to some good advice here. Remove your troops and personnel from Ukraine. Pay war reparations to Ukraine for rebuilding their country's infrastructure that you are still destroying. Then allow the world to try your criminal leaders for their war crimes against humanity. Do it now!

(#5412) Endure even when enduring seems impossible

      In my experience the worst part of having to endure is the physical diminishment that comes with aging. I know that my life force is not as stout as it was when I was younger. It is almost a grind each day even when grinding is not required. Getting old sucks in other words. But, the opportunity to get old beats the alternative. Yet that doesn't negate the difficulty getting old presents when having to endure whatever trial or tribulation before us. There is no other choice in my book because life is preferable to not being alive. Of course there are times when the sacrifice of the one is for the greater of the few or the many but those are rare circumstances indeed.
     So putting one foot in front of the other is how I endure. One moment after another is my formula for getting upward toward a new or different plateau if you will excuse the heightened metaphor. I used to be able to tell myself just how exciting things would be to move past a difficult time in my life. That old ploy doesn't work as well now because the energy I had for the unknowable future is tempered with the knowledge that there really is not a lot of anything new under the Sun. Before when I was being tested for whatever reason I had an unblinded hope that my life was building toward something special. Now it is just maintaining and existing with less future available for some magnificent happening to occur.
     My endurance is still there for me to utilize but the activation of it is harder to start. I am much like an older battery that is sometimes barely able to start the motor. I do get the motor started but only after a few tries. Do I give up? No. But I admit that life has taken a measure of me from my beginning and lessened it to a point where the struggle to do what was never a problem before is only getting more difficult. So endure I will to push beyond my aging physical and mental limitations toward hope and it's possibilities. That is how I endure, through hope even when it is mostly hopeless. Yet even now I see that the last one little bit of hope is still greater than not trying to endure at all.

(#5411) Keeping dreams alive

      I don't know why I seem to want something more in my life but there it is. I suppose it is because I am getting closer to the end of my life than when I began. I keep thinking about what could be as I move forward in my current state of still working full time to make ends meet. I don't have to do things this way as there are other options I haven't explored yet. I am in a comfortable situation where my options are good ones if I decide to change things up. I also suppose that keeping my thoughts on possibilities helps to invigorate me when I am not properly motivated. Find a way to get through another day is my main concern.
     I am not at an imminent risk of losing anything dear but I do worry about my health with the full time work that is not easily accomplished. I can do the work but the cost of how I feel each day does worry me. I think about the benefits which are very positive like the extra pay and the busyness of the activity which keeps me stronger than I would be if I were not working like this. But the downside is that I hurt everywhere and the pain is not subsiding in a quick way. It is with me when I go to sleep at night and then there in the morning when I awake. I know that something must give but the timing of that give is still beyond my view.
     So ponder away like I have been this morning for the previous 45 minutes on a pathway that is starting to develop in my mind. I will flush it out further today as I have time within my work today and see if it makes sense once I have it all outlined. I want to have my time back but I don't need the pressure of paying bills on a tight budget. I need to reduce my bills and that is the gist of how this idea of mine is shaping. All of this is telling me that my body is demanding a change while my mind is not as sure the change needs to happen right now. I can moderate for the time being but I leave myself vulnerable to the unexpected and my own less than stellar logical protections.

(#5410) Brother John got to his 70th birthday today

      It is quite early this morning right now but later in a few more hours I will go see my brother John in the hospice care facility. Back when he had his stroke the odds weren't good that he would make it to his birthday. But today he is still alive and fighting to get better. The doctors don't think he will make it in the long term but I don't much care about what they think as much as I care about how John is trying to get himself back to how he was even though that seems impossible. But he doesn't want to give in to the idea that he will never leave the hospice facility and I support him.
     The only real avenue for John is his hope and he is not letting go of it. Nor shall I. He called me last evening about some fear he is experiencing and I tried to calm him on the phone about it. What is happening in his mind is that his fears are taking on a life of their own and affecting his reality. What is just television or offhand conversation becomes real for him. This is not uncommon I am told about the stages of his affliction but with reason and calm he can be assuaged. None of us know what it is like to slowly lose who we are in real time and what john is going through is beyond what many of us can decipher. Yet being patient with him and letting him know that I care about him makes him less anxious and intense.
     John is surrounded by good people at the care facility as they are very aware of the symptoms of the dying. But they also are aware that some make it out of there because of sheer will and determination with a little bit of luck. So it will be for John if he is to recover to some semblance of himself. I am happy for John to have made it 70 years in his journey in this existence and today I will be with him for a bit to celebrate that. He wants to come home so badly but he cannot take care of himself for now and if he is able to care for himself I will bring him home. That is his hope and he is striving to attain that but his mind is working against him at times. What we have is today and hopefully many more to come.

(#5409) Russia's losses in Ukraine are unsustainable

      Russia has scraped the bottom of the barrel for infantrymen to do the front line dying and are now left with sending their average citizens into battle. The average Russian citizen who is not a criminal nor conscripted Ukrainian traitor is not likely to want to die for putin. I can feel the ground start to move a bit when it comes to the stability of the current Russian government. Not a movement formed out of noble or honorable principles but one of which the fear of dying is starting to show its face. However the Russian people get to the point where they say enough of this and create a backlash to putin and the kremlin is ok by the rest of us.
     We don't need a real Russian hero to step forward and reverse the death spiral track that Russia is on. We only need pressure from within the nation of Russia to build up enough steam to change the course of Russia's military ambitions. Stopping this putin/kremlin cabal from further activities in Ukraine will satisfy not only the unsettled Russians but as well all of Ukraine and those of us who support them. If Russia is not stopped from its campaign to annihilate the Ukrainian people through the annihilation of its own citizenry then nothing but devastation is plausible. As winter is starting to set in on the Ukrainian invaded battlefield the dark thoughts of the average Russian soldier must be building into plots and strategies to save their own skin instead of being thrown into a continuous killing field.
      The Russian economy is already shrinking and despite it war spending will eventually become even more restrictive. Between the western sanctions and little innovative opportunities for the Russian workers the daily life in Russia is not one of much pursuit of happiness. Fewer younger Russians exist in Russia now with nearly 323,000 dead so far and more to come that the hustle and bustle of an ordinary society is tempered with sorrow and a gaping void. As Russia loses by a thousand paper cuts the realization will soon set in that the folly of war for nothing more than greed is not be born by what's left of Russia's younger generation. How many more Russians will die in Ukraine before the rest of Russia says enough?

(#5408) There is no peace in Russia

     I have thought a bit about this and it occurs to me that the Russian people prefer warring to peace. Already over 321,000 of their sons have died in the Ukrainian invasion and not a peep about stopping this slaughter of their children. Initially there was some protest but that was quickly abated and since then nothing that has crossed my antenna. It seems that following along with whatever putin and the kremlin wants is their stance. Which is why I say that Russians prefer war over peace. So my expectation that the Russian people will finally rise up and say no more is more fantasy than reality.
     A nation that settles for the worst of what we humans can do to each other is not a noble or honorable nation. In fact they are like a locust that only exists to consume that which is around it. I have tried to have empathy for the Russian people who are being led around by a crazed ego centered establishment but I can no longer feel like that for them when they continue to support the war crimes of their leaders. The Russian people cannot go about their lives like nothing horrible is happening in their name without challenging and overcoming the blight that they are currently allowing on Ukraine and the world. The 
Russian people need to change their lives in order to stop the devastation that is happening in their name.
     1000 or so Russian sons die each day so that putin can claim some victory within Ukraine. Yet each day putin can claim no victory. Is time suspended in Russia and does the suspension go on forever? The Russian people can still stop their maniacal leaders but there has to be a will for peace for that to happen. Otherwise warring for the long haul is their legacy. What is the reason for the Russian people to be warring with Ukraine? Apparently it doesn't take much as for now it seems the Russian people are content to have their children sacrificed in Ukraine for whatever. A civilized nation does not do this and the people of a civilized nation would find a way to stop it now if they were both a noble and an honorable breed.

(#5407) I am thankful for Ukraine

      What Ukraine has done for me through their courageous attitude toward the Russian giant is incalculable. The upstart Ukrainians were totally outgunned at the beginning of this latest Russian invasion back in February of 2022. Yet they stood tall and announced to the world that they would not relent to the fear many of them must have felt and instead leaned into their bravery and began the defense of their country with all their might. What has happened since then is miraculous. Suddenly the Russian giant isn't so tall and the Ukrainian fears have all but subsided.
     This in a nutshell is the single most impressive event of my later life. How the determined to be a free people Ukrainians mustered the will to fight for democracy with such resolve. I am humbled by their focus and fortitude. It has been nearly 2 years now since the Russian invasion but if anything the Ukrainian people are growing even stronger in their quest to be free from the shackles and cruelties of the brutish psychotic putin. For its part, Russia is being taught a lesson it has yet to fully comprehend. There are those in the world, like Ukrainians, who will not be intimidated by the bullies no matter who they are.
     I am thankful that a country halfway around the world is willing to die fighting for what in essence is American democracy. How proud I am of Ukrainians. They inspire me to rally my own part of the world to defend democracy at all costs. We here in America have what Ukraine is dying for right now and I will not let anyone take it from us even though that is a real threat with the republican party and the trump cabal. We the people is all of us, not just some of us like the privileged and advantaged. "We the people" is what I advocate for to keep our democracy alive and healthy. If it comes down to fighting I will, like my brothers and sisters in Ukraine, make the ultimate sacrifice in order to keep our democracy alive for all the generations yet to come. This really is bigger than any of us which is what the current Ukrainians are showing us now!
     

(#5406) The republican voter will rue the day when we lose our democracy because of them

      The US House of Representatives is controlled by the republican party. The House is the chamber of Congress that controls the money we as a nation spend on our governance and foreign aid. With the Russian invasion of Ukraine threatening Ukrainian democracy you would think that the House and the republicans who control it would be in support of keeping Ukraine and their desire for democracy a priority. But the House republican majority does not. They think that putin and Russia are more worthy of their support and will not allow an aid package for Ukraine to be forwarded.
     Think about that for a moment. The American republican party is not an advocate for democracy in Ukraine. Instead too many voices in the republican party are for letting putin take Ukraine and establish tyranny over the Ukrainian people. If I have this wrong please enlighten me? It is plain to see I don't have this wrong and that the republican party has gone from being pro democracy to pro putin and his tyrannical governance. So the republican voter who keeps republicans in power by extension are also pro putin and anti democracy. It is logic not some nonsense spewing from me. If you vote for republicans then you are voting to end democracy at minimum in Ukraine.
     What is worse is that republicans are attacking democracy here in America. The republican party is not an inclusive one given the many statements by their leaders. They would rather non white persons be left out of their ideal of what America should be unless of course as a servant or such thing. So not only are republicans anti democracy they are racist in their rhetoric. This is logic speaking, not me. I am only relaying the present condition in real time. If you vote for republicans you are voting for the worst of what humanity can become without honor or respect of all human beings. Just know who you are as a republican voter. Don't hide your baseness behind some wave of your hand and dismiss what is actually right in front of your face!

(#5405) If you are good with tax cuts for the extremely wealthy then vote republican

     I would think that helping the poor and disabled would be a better policy for a political party but it seems that I am mistaken? So here we are in the 21st century confusing who needs help more. The many are the poor and disabled, or as I like to classify them as the working middle poor class. The few are the wealthy which need no classification by me because they are, well, wealthy. But it seems that the republican party has it in their heads to make the wealthy even more wealthy. You may ask why and I will say it is because they don't want to help the working middle poor class. Beecause a lot of the funds for helping the worse off among us comes from the extreme wealth that the wealthy accumulate.
     In capitalism it is against all principles to collude on pricing because the marketplace is supposed to be a bartered experience. For example, when all in the petroleum sector decide to charge the same amount for their product we the consumers are left with no real bartering power. By giving the wealthy more wealth they are left to decide what we pay not we who decide what they provide at what price. Insane wealth helps the wealthy own and manipulate our laws to the point like with trump who started an insurrection on our capitol and is still not behind bars for the doing of it. We cannot allow the wealthy to control our marketplaces because the next step, which they are already entrenched in taking, is our democracy.
     The wealthy don't want democracy, they want some form of power sharing among themselves to dictate all things concerning our societies. The republican party is their useful idiot in maneuvering our democracy away from us to create their version of government that has no boundaries on them and nothing but shackles for us. I am an optimistic person by nature but even I see how this is not anything democracy can withstand. An assault by the wealthy on our way of life because they think they deserve more that the rest of us. If you are sure you want tax cuts for the wealthy then just know you too are part of the duped who will forever be a stain on the fabric of our original American revolution. No doubt as a republican that won't matter to you will it?

(#5404) Fight for freedom; don't be a victim!

      I remember almost fifteen years ago when I started this daily blog thinking that I am about to put myself out there and come what may. I knew that some would be highly critical of my stancess on many issues despite them being positive and equal to all. There are a lot of forces out there that are ambivalent or hostile to American freedom under democracy. Yet the convincing argument to do this was that I am not a victim to others who would deny what our forefathers/mothers fought to bring to us. I am stronger than that and I will fight to keep our democracy no matter what the challenge to it is.
     So here I am today as proof that fighting to preserve our democracy is a value and a duty to living a good and honest life. I don't just fight for myself I fight for everyone who would join with me. I know I am not alone because many every day die trying to bring democracy to all in the world. This isn't just about me I know and is greater than myself. The good of the many outweighs the good of the one kind of Spock from Star Trek moment. I also know who I am. I am no subservient follower nor weakling who would shy away or hide from a battle that has the very essence of what it is to be human at stake.
     I am no great warrior but I will fight in the spirit of one to defend the better and best of who we humans are against those who would take our freedoms away. We humans care and we are curious. We have to have freedom to accomplish both these natures of ours. For those who are against freedom for all let me remind you that no one is better than another. Those who would try to think of themselves as greater than others have a defect within their souls and should never be allowed the trust of any, or more importantly, all of us. Which is why we all must find it within ourselves to fight and not hide from our daily battles to keep our freedom. Freedom is not free when others want to take it from you. So fight!

(#5403) Why I advocate for Ukraine

      Democracy! In a nutshell. The Ukrainian people are striving to lift the yoke off their necks that putin and Russia have placed on them. They are striving to implement democratic principles as a governing ideal while authoritarian Russia would enslave them and make them serfs in their own country. It isn't hard to see the similarities from what Ukraine is doing right now in fighting for it's freedom and what we Americans did to claim our own freedom from the monarchical British. Whether monarchy or authoritarian, the tyranny of both is cruel and brutish with no absolute human rights.
     I live in a country, The United States, that has democracy and the rights of humans enshrined in its constitution. Ukraine does not but that is what they are fighting to achieve. I will always be against the forces that would enslave or dictate to folks their purpose for living. That is what putin's Russia is trying to do to the Ukrainian people and if successful many many more. So not only am I an advocate for Ukraine I am a fierce enemy of dictatorships and tyranny wherever they/it exists. Which is why Ukraine for now needs all of our support to thwart the ego maniacs like putin. Russia must be stopped and pushed back to their own borders with no mercy if necessary.
     We cannot count on the people of Russia to stop their tyrannical government so we in the west need to do the stopping through the Ukrainian people. Ukrainians can achieve their freedom if we in the west continue to supply them with the munitions and equipment they need. None of this is what Ukrainians want. They want peace and normalcy but Russia is not letting them so fighting back against the aggressor nation Russia is their only option. So let us not be shy in the west but instead strong and ready with our fists to help repel the Russian horde from their insane murderous quest to conquer democracy with the freedom and human rights democracy provides!

(#5402) For some of my shortcomings, root canal this morning :)

      The moment has finally arrived where I am just less than an hour from leaving home to go sit in a dentist's chair. I don't dread it actually I am ambivalent pretty much. The last four times I have had my dentist work on drilling in my mouth I have not had one episode of a sharp pain from a wily nerve. So it is with some confidence that I expect the same this morning. Teeth are kind of weird in my book. They are so important for keeping our food edible but are a real pain to keep healthy. I, like many before me did not appreciate their value at a younger age and am now paying the price for that too often choice of neglect.
     Such is my morning anyway. I didn't know what to write about this morning but the dental visit was always in the front of my mind. So that is what I have decided to describe. I spent the early part of my life with the effects of a rock fight when I was 8. I was hit squarely on my two beautiful big front teeth and both were permanently dislodged. So I heard all the toothless jokes growing up until my mouth stopped growing and I could get a permanent bridge fitted. So me being less than careful with my dental needs is baffling in a way because with my experience I should have known better. I guess subconsciously I was doing some things to help but surely not enough.
     We all have our little burdens in life to carry and this morning this is one of mine. Yet it is a positive thing that I can have such work accomplished when it is really needed. I haven't eaten since yesterday late afternoon in preparation for this procedure through my own precaution. I am sure my stomach will be rumbling later this morning after I get home with a mouth full of numbness and an advisory not to eat for several hours afterward. But my mind will be thinking about the next meal around noon or so and that is a pleasant distraction. Root canals are not fun things but I will find a way to make it so. At least that is my goal. :)

(#5401) The struggle between my body and my mind

      I am not in total control of these two complicated parts of what makes up me. My mind is still the young boy who was full of adventure and discovery while my body has become this older shell that is very limited in what I used to be able to do. The evolution of my body from young to old has done a real number on my mind. I have had to slow down my body to accommodate for it's lessening functions and meanwhile remind my mind that I cannot run and jump like a 10 year old. We all have this struggle when aging is the catalyst but mine is unique to me because I am experiencing it within me.
     The struggle is where is the line between acceptance for both my body and mind in an evolving situation that has no clear delineations. At times my mind refuses to stick with the protocol I try to implement for both and it makes me hurt in ways that my body pays for. Then other times my body reacts from previous knee jerk conditioning that my mind as yet has little control over. Either way my body is the one to suffer. I know I am the one who should be able to control these two paradigms that make up the whole of me but that is not my reality. My reality is two halves of a whole that have yet to come to a consistent mesh point.
     So it is with me and I suspect the many other of us. No one said that life would be easy but being in a struggle with my one being was not one of the factors that I thought I would be spending much time with especially given my age and the time I have had to bring both together. I am fortunate in that I have both physical and mental attributes that still have a lot left to give me but the winding down of them is what I must have left off my agenda for living. I will adjust and eventually make both halves of me work together for our own benefit but it is like two spoiled children both wanting their own way. As the boss of them I will find the discipline to mold them into one tight enterprise and that is now a priority with me. :)

(#5400) Will you fight to preserve democracy?

      All of my life I have assumed that we Americans, despite our differences, would always rally around the ideal of democracy. Where freedom, liberty, justice, fairness and many other evolved principles for the rights of humans would flourish. A concept so unique in history that most all other nations on Earth are trying to emulate it. Nothing about our self rule is ordinary. It is instead extraordinary in its application. Yet there are forces out there who would destroy our democracy and stop other nations from having it. They are wealthy and greedy souls who would rather they rule all while the rest of us served them at their pleasure.
     Well now I know that not all Americans are behind the idea of democracy. I look at what the republican party has become and am ashamed of them. They used to be stalwart democracy defenders but now it is evident they care less about democracy and more about control. Which puts them into the same category as those who would undermine our democracy for the sake of wealthy control. The republican party has been nothing more than a puppet for the wealthy for several decades now. The concept of we the people is not a motto they are ever heard uttering yet it is the marrow in the bone of American democracy.
     What we will find out over the next year is just how much Americans will care to fight and defend our freedoms under democracy. We are either going to continue to be we the people or we will not. If not then we the people will be serfs to be used by the wealthy with no respect or dignity of our own. If we do fight and defend democracy then the wealthy who are working so hard through their republican proxies will suffer a blow that will deny them future options for overthrowing our democracy and leave them exposed as the scourge they truly are. Not all the wealthy are bad but too many of them are so cleaning up that group of anti democracy influencers will either occur at our next election or the last election we have may be this next one.

(#5399) The rule of law must be rock hard no matter who commits a crime

      One thing we have learned from the trump fiasco is that our rule of law is less certain when wealthy or powerful people are breaking it. That cannot be allowed to happen. First there is no deserve nor dispensation written into the law that would allow some an escape from culpability. Regardless of station in life. No political public or private office holder is automatically excluded from adjudication despite their protests otherwise. If a court shows an individual is guilty of a crime then the punishment must be steady and continuous. There cannot be a just sentencing if justice is not blind to each person's guilt.
     Our international courts that are signatories of authorizing countries must also be firm and unyielding. Where crimes are committed then justice must be served. There cannot be turning a blind eye to any crime when it is convenient to not see it. If the rule of law is not foolproof in its application then our societies are a lie. If some may escape justice simply because they have the wherewithal to do so then having that wherewithal must be adjusted. There cannot be pathways to escape justice when the majority of us don't have those pathways to commit crimes and be excused from the cost of them. I have not seen one person who is deserving of harming others with impunity. I have seen many harm others with impunity but they do not deserve it. The rule of law must be applied equally or not at all!
     Let me say that again, the rule of law must be applied equally or not at all! Our society will never improve when there are some who can do as they please despite being against the law and many others who cannot. That is not democracy it is more tyrannical. The ideal of democracy is a perfect example of how we all share in the pursuit of happiness without harming each other but only if we are ALL held to account for our actions. Whether foreign or domestic all law breakers must be brought before a court where they must be judged by the rule of law and not by some special rules they make up as they see fit.