(#6319) Of course trump spins that he will be in our White House in 2032

      For those of us who have been sounding crazy to you all these years warning about trump this is just another example of what we have been trying to tell you. He believes that the con he has spun on the rest of you is so strong that he can now do whatever he wants. He is incapable of admitting truths only ultimatums. If you still think he is just trying to piss democrats off and really isn't staying beyond his constitutionally mandated 2nd term limit, then why is he so adamant about building the ballroom with of course a bunker beneath it? He knows putin has one in the Kremlin and that allows putin to remain in power when he is under siege.
     I am no genius but even I can see far enough into the future where he has his not supreme court rule that the 22nd Amendment to our constitution is void. It is the one that sets the limit for serving as president to two elected terms. Instead of being honored to serve our nation as president trump is only interested in remaining in power until he finally does die. For a couple of reasons obviously. First because he is a narcissist who feels like he deserves to be a ruler and secondly because when he does leave office which he won't let happen, he will be tried for his many crimes and spend the last years of his life in courtrooms and prison.
     When many of us heard this yesterday our retorts back included never! If trump was trying to demoralize us with his ambition to be in the White House in 2032, he did the opposite. His negativity among us is already abysmal but now it is even worse as we the people are even more determined to stop him. When the boiling point of our anger spills out then will he be sure that he is no longer worthy of the air we all breathe. He has done this to himself with all his decisions to treat human beings as his servants or cannon fodder. He has no bunker now nor an east wing of the White House. He got no funding for it either yesterday. He may think he is going to be president in 2032 but what most of us know is that given his penchant to disrupt we the people he may not even be president next year.
     

(#6318) Unless billionaires like bezos are raising wages they can shut the fuck up!

      Let me say this much, there are some, not many, but some billionaires who are trying to do the correct thing about the disconnect between our government and it's democratic principles. But there are still way too many who are either silent or complicit in trying to deceive we the people into believing they are worth their enormous profits at our expense. Since 2009 the federal minimum wage has been at $7.25 an hour. Here let me say that again, since 2009, the federal minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 an hour. We democrats have not been able to convince republicans that they need to help us raise it to match current price increases in those last 17 years.
     No one in their right mind thinks $7.25 an hour is fair at this point but you will hear republicans defend the current rate nonetheless with very pretzeled illogic. Knowing this background about the federal minimum wage it is easy to see why bezos offered his opinion about the lower half wage earners not having to pay federal income tax. First, bezos and his ilk have been  notorious about killing union talk and efforts at Amazon. Secondly he pays his employees less than livable wages. Thirdly the idea that not paying federal income taxes sounds initially like a good idea here is the reality. When we don't pay our taxes governmental good and services become more difficult to fund. The common good of government in effect shrinks, which has been a lifelong goal of republicans.
     When the lower half of wage earners are not contributing to federal taxes it is easy for republicans to argue that we are not part of the common good but just moochers. Opening the door to disenfranchising us later with other nefarious intentions. All the while bezos and his ilk keep making profit hand over fist. What we the people need to do is instead force billionaires to raise pay to meet living standards and we the people continue to fund our government through being taxed. That is how our society will heal itself when the billionaires aren't able to kill our government and they are forced to compensate their workers fairly. Anything else like this latest childlike ploy by bezos to make himself and other billionaires look like decent folks is just hogwash!

(#6317) So trump still controls republicans but democratic turnout remains high!

      The incumbent trump kept his grip on the republican party and what that means going forward. The democrats kept surging in turnout and what that means to trump. First off let me say right off the top that trump is the incumbent but he is also an incompetent. He forced a strong opposing Kentucky republican from an election while also endorsing a miserable senatorial candidate in Texas. I felt going into this primary election last night that trump would come out of it with some wins and losses. But I didn't think he would make Texas so vulnerable to the democratic blue wave.
     Despite the outcomes last night the general election is being set for an unconventional outcome. Democrats are encouragingly enthused to get out and vote while republicans are much less so. Even in states like Texas and Georgia the democratic turnout has been invigorating to behold. There can be better turnout numbers for democrats and that is still a work in progress but nevertheless well done to this point democrats. With republicans their enthusiasm is not encouraging. They are infighting over morals, ethics, economic issues among others and the lack thereof which is a physical and emotional downer for them. Many of the previous republican voters are scuffling to even cast a ballot.
     The republican party is not a majority party with voters, even though they have achieved majority rule. Despite the cause of their manipulations, they are not an attractive alternative to objective voters. Which signals a decline as time goes by and with a resurgence of appreciation for liberal/progressive policies the democrats are reaping the benefit of the chaos of the republican party. So trump can wrest a stronger grip onto the republicans but the rest of us are just as determined to end his reign of bullying and deception. We the people of America have decided that the only way to end the republican crippling of our democracy is to show up and out at the voting booth and that is still happening with just five and a half months to go before the next general election.

(#6316) Big day today for primary elections in the US.

      Today will give all of us a new data point for seeing how the blue democratic wave is faring. Will it continue to drive turnout for democrats? There will be enough elections around the country to see if indeed the trend to drive democrats to the voting booths is still with momentum. The republicans on the other hand are fighting amongst themselves over their degree of loyalty to trump. There focus has been intraparty politics not inclusionary ones. It is a strange dynamic where one party, the democrats are reaching out to all citizens for inclusion and the other party, republicans. are not interested in what the majority of Americans want or need from their candidates.
     I know the trump administration is arrogant and condescending but how can they not know that outreach is their only hope to win if they don't work to achieve it? My guess is that they don't know or don't care because something else is afoot. I will continue to support the concept that the trump administration still thinks that the average American still supports him and he doesn't need to press them or encourage them to continue that support. Anything beyond that would be nefarious and even though I wouldn't be surprised by such an eventuality I mostly doubt it. So tonight will be a snapshot going into summer just how the mood of the nation has evolved.
     There will be two narratives I will be waiting to see. Will democrats and independents supporting democrats continue to turnout in record numbers; and will republicans oust the most vocal against trump and instead install more trump friendly candidates. With democrats and like minded independents the continued growth in voters actually voting is huge if the trump administration is to be curtailed. The greater the turnout for democratic friendly voters the better chance the republicans will be reduced into the minority in Congress. As to the republican purging of anti trump candidates, I suspect it will occur but with mixed results. Either way with republicans though they will not have much luck come the general election in November if the democratic blue wave is still riding high!

(#6315) The not supreme court may have to put up or shut up!

      So the redistricting case from Virginia that the not supreme court didn't bother to rule on had one argument to it that said the voting, vote by mail, had already begun so the process for allowing the redistricting vote to stand was nullified. That was a big piece of the Virginia not supreme court to rule the vote illegal. Our US not supreme court obviously found no contradiction with that part of the ruling otherwise they would have heard the appeal and made a ruling on it. So now in Louisiana with early vote by mail already in play, and part of the election halted, the high court may have to hear this case where the Louisiana redistricting of a black district into a diluted one was done after early voting had already started. Exactly like in Virginia.
     Do you stop Virginia democrats and the will of it's people and then allow republicans and their political leaders a pass on a point of contention? The chief justice roberts has said that the court is not political yet contrary to his statement that is all the court appears to be. Even now the republican justices are now refusing to recuse themselves from cases they are integrated with and more so now are using false data to justify their votes. Most all of us already know that the court is biased so proof of it is just another justification for knowing their bias. We can't do much about it now as the political power is resting solely in republican hands. But time is on our side. There will be an election in November and the outcome will surely shock republicans!
     Until then though the clusterfuck chaos in Louisiana will have to be dealt with judicially. We will see the US not supreme court either pretzel more illogic or come back home to sanity. Either sanity by choice or resignation, sanity it will have to be if they want to preserve any credibility. If not then the democratic wave election 2028 will for sure have an expansion of the court by 4 more justices. It is my hope that beginning in 2026 and culminating in 2028 we the people, through two huge blue wave elections, are finally able to rid and prosecute republican politicians, justices, and donors who put party and nefarious acts first before the survival of our democracy!

(#6314) trump is using extrajudicial means

      The Justice department has always been independent of the presidency until trump! Now he is using it as his own attack dog on ordinary citizens and opposition political and social leaders. He truly is a tyrant in the making and the idea that it is acceptable to too many is enough to break with tradition. There cannot be any tolerance of the destruction of our democracy. As trump uses extrajudicial means so must those who will not let him triumph. He is not a democracy loving president, he is on the contrary a despiser of democracy because democracy allows one citizen one vote. The trumps want to end that!
     His ilk are of the mindset that anyone not rich, powerful, and republican, shouldn't be allowed to vote. He is a wannabe elitist who is so absorbed into his own mind that he cannot nor will not allow anyone to disturb his fictional reality. So he is now using the Justice department to round up those who he feels have slighted him without regard to the facts. He is out of control and those powers within the not supreme court that allowed it are as culpable. The midterm elections are coming and trump can see the writing on the wall. So he is amping up his terror campaign within our society so as to keep us from denying him his current control in November.
     What is our recourse? For the most part the lower courts have been stalwart in denying trump complete control of our society but they are often undone by the not supreme court. The legislative branch is also majority republican and as such mostly neutered. We the people have been the lone bright spot for our democracy as we have withstood the cruelty of trump to this point. But the stakes are rising and so it the pressure. Time is not on trump's side so he will increase his activities to crush the will of we the people. The exact opposite of what a democracy loving president would do. As trump applies more pressure on us so must our response be to him. The good of the many is greater than the ego loving good of trump in every reality imaginable!

(#6313) I will never stop fighting for democracy which is why I oppose trumps

      It has taken me a bit of sitting here at my desk to come up with some kind of topic today mainly because I am so tired. My mind and especially my body is worn down and there is little left in reserve. All I want to do this morning is sleep but not before I write a post. So it is about why I keep fighting and not just stop fighting and relax like nothing is wrong. My mind knows that our democracy is under assault here in America and the likelihood of it ending is greater than since the Cuban missile crisis. We Americans have allowed an incompetent creature who would rather be a king lead our nation and it is the destabilization intent of his agenda that is so dangerous.
     Obviously he could not do this alone which makes the republican party his accomplices. They allow for his acts and behaviors to go unchecked by our democracy guardrails. First off his republican coconspirators allow him to use our justice department as his own defense attorney. They allow him to usurp congressional oversight since both chambers of Congress are majority republican. His coconspirators or not just legislative they are also judicial. The current not supreme court is majority republican and I will add heavily majority republican. So much so that they don't recuse themselves when in conflict with decisions they make and they use faulty data to defend their twisted arguments.
     None of this is secret or new. We who will remain objective know what is happening and doing nothing about it is really not in my wheelhouse. So tired or not I will continue. What is refreshing and satisfying is that there are many more like me who are also tired to the bone but still fight like our lives depend on it. I know maybe not all our lives depend on it but I will say that all of our democracy does! The drip drip drip of water torture is how trump operates. He thinks he can outlast us with constant attacks on our democracy. He hopes to demoralize us to the point of resignation. What he doesn't get is that we who are being ground down are not going to reward him for his efforts. Instead we are going to keep fighting until his day of reckoning is at hand.

(#6312) There is no honor in letting trump play out his destruction!

     The bite the bullet concept may work with some things but not with trump! Allowing him to destroy our rights as we watch and do very little is to me dishonorable. I can only imagine that those who think of some greater good of our society is to let a petulant unfeeling creature such as trump have some leeway for his efforts is negate and degrade our natural, ethical, and moral will is a bridge too far for me. I know I am not alone in my thoughts about this but I will just use my own perceptions. His total disdain for anyone not as sociopathic and narcissistic as himself is evident yet the powers that be seem to be okay with it. Not all powers that be but too many who keep him in a safe harbor.
     If his "handlers" master plan is to try and control him and hope enough time runs out of his 4 year term then they haven't been paying attention. He will not go anywhere if his term is over. He has made that clear that our White House is really his shrine and no amount of arguing with him will ever change that. I can hear it now from his followers. He will leave when he is done. Yet they too are not being in reality. He is so obvious in his intent but one little word of fabrication from him fuels their no doubt about him meter. He is trying to build an opulent ballroom onto our nations capitol building for criminy sakes. He is going nowhere unless we put him out. I am even saying using force.
     So there is no doubt about his character, he cannot be shamed for any act he perpetrates. His narcissism is so ingrained that he is the epitome of righteousness as any person ever born. So it is left to we the people to change the direction of our nation if we are to survive the self idolization of trump. A big tell in that will come in November when the midterm elections should be held. If they are held and a resounding uprising against him occurs then so be it that will neuter his intent. If not then the last resort of we the people is us. We have to stop him at all costs regardless of the pain and suffering some or many will endure. All I know is that America is at a crossroads in November. What path will we be taking given our possibilities?

(#6311) Russia's desperation is showing about their invasion of Ukraine

      Previous to the all out attack on Ukraine by Russia in 2022, the world at large considered Russia as a formidable foe. What we didn't know back then that when Ukraine was part of the soviet union it was the true hidden power within Russia's mystique. Now after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reemergence of nations previously within the soviet sphere, we see nations like Ukraine for their real ability. Moscow had thought that Ukraine as a much smaller nation would be a cake walk enterprise to conquer again. What Moscow and the tiny minds in the kremlin didn't understand is that Ukraine is not just some rag tag outfit unable to think for themselves on the global stage.
     Today we see the brilliance of the Ukrainian people. Together they banded together their strength and minds to defend against the much larger Russian army and their leaders. Not only did previous to the 2022 invasion, in 2019, did Ukraine elect what turns out to be a master politician, they also got a fearless leader. With Zelenskyy at the helm, and his highly motivated colleagues intelligently dispersed to carry out the functions of state and military, Ukraine is becoming a force in the world few can replicate. Certainly not Russia and it's incompetent arrogance. Which is why after 4 years, Russia's invasion of Ukraine is a quagmire of attrition for Russian blood and treasure.
     So much so that now after most of Russia's reserves are depleted they are trying to involve their allies. Russians already have North Korean soldiers fighting in Ukraine but are now trying to get Belarus to stage another attack on their northern border with Ukraine. By building up it's forces on the 600 mile border Belarus shares with Ukraine the threat is noticeable. Russia cannot break out from their stalled invasion so they are trying to divert Ukrainian forces to the northern border to weaken existing western border defenses. The Russian pawn Belarusian president lukashenko has so far been able to keep Belarus out of Russia's invasion of Ukraine but that may well be coming to an end. All I know for sure is that Ukraine will outsmart the simpletons in the kremlin no matter what desperation they attempt!

(#6310) Destroying things, then trying to fix them is not praiseworthy!

      In human history in my limited time, I have never seen anyone who breaks things, tries to patch them together again and then wants adulation for his effort. Never! So in that sense trump is a new experience for me. That he is in the position he is in our government is not a good reality. He is constantly putting we the people in positions of incredulity with his ego oriented ideas. He tears into our White House eliminating the East wing of it and then decides he wants an expansive ballroom as a replacement. First with private funds and now with taxpayer funds. He bombs Iran and then decides he can fix Iran. Yet all he got there was a closed Strait of Hormuz. We the world got higher gas prices for his in effect horrible idea.
     When asked if the American citizenry were part of his considerations in determining his actions with Iran he said no. Not one bit! He instead said that the only thing he thinks about is Iran not getting a nuclear weapon. Which they didn't have before he bombed them. They had already signed a nuclear deterrent agreement with President Obama. Yet because Obama signed the agreement trump tore it up and instead wanted to force Iran not to build a nuclear weapon with an agreement with his signature on the document. We the people are left with trump not caring about the consequences of his acts, he only cares about being idolized for his fascination with him being some sort of a demigod.
     If it isn't obvious that trump is using our federal government to harm us and promote himself then explain to me why he has eliminated our virus control safeguards. Why he has eliminated our extreme weather safeguards for hurricanes and tornados. Why he has vastly reduced food credits for the poor. Why he has reduced health care while increasing funds for his ice thugs. Women have lost federal rights of autonomy over their bodies. His medical advisor tells folks not to vaccinate themselves  nor their children. He sits in the White House and manipulates the stock market that only benefits him and his close confidants. His childlike need of put his name on money and/or public buildings or his picture on passports is the same fever he applies to the statues of himself where he can. Go ahead and tell me!

(#6309) What a mess republican voters created!

      First off the wealthy and republican political leadership are the ones who devised this plan to usurp our democracy and make the votes of we the people irrelevant! The blame for this idea is all theirs. However, they could not have implemented it without the consent of the republican voter. They were the key to activating this despicable strategy. Even now as the results are showing the obviousness of the destruction in progress they the republican voter are still either on board or ambivalent to the continuing process. It is as if they were conned into supporting the death of our democracy and now most are just shrugging it off as an oh well.
     What really disappoints me is that they don't seem to comprehend the effect they are causing. The loss of human rights to the many of us so that a few wealthy and republican political leaders can have way more than they should. The equation is so one sided that you would think the republican voter would say hey wait a minute we want more out of this arrangement, yet they don't even do that! They just quietly avoid the reality and continue on with their lives like nothing filthy is going on. Albeit some republicans are coming around as we see the polling and special election results raise some eyebrows. Yet overall, the outrage from their republican base is practically nonexistent.
     We democrats and independents for our part are trying to stand up to the republican powers that be but they are so ingrained and rule with majorities that our fight is difficult to say the least. What we need is what is left of the intelligent republican party to join us in bringing an end to the whole failed experiment. We do that through strikes and marches. We show an overwhelming sense of anger and tenacity to stop the further destructive processes trump and his conspirators devise daily. We say at any time and everywhere that we are not going to allow this to continue! When we do that we will begin to address where to start in cleaning up this unfortunate, unnecessary democracy threatening mess!

(#6308) According to republican leadership we the people of the working middle poor class are parasites!

      As technology continues to find ways to replace we the working middle poor class the giddier the republican party and their wealthy donors become. Because they are tired of all of us who are not wealthy and dog eat dog like them. They think of themselves as the privileged class with advantages as normal. The rest of us are for now a necessary burden for them. However long that lasts is still debatable but the truth of the republican party and their wealthy donors is that they see us as parasites. Leeches who take and give nothing back to them. For the republican party they are of the mindset that they are the only ones who deserve everything and the rest of us, for them, should just not exist anymore.
     What is the saving grace in this moment for the we the people of the working middle poor class is that technology cannot replace most of us as of yet. So the republican party will have to keep many of us around and believing their promises to us. What you have to understand is that their promises, of which historically they most always break, are just illusory. They still think of us as parasites while glad handing us to get our votes. Their hypocrisy is livable to them as they have a higher priority. Stay in power long enough to wipe out any opposition to themselves. Because they know that if we the people get our democracy back they will be summarily charged for high treason crimes.
     Now I will tell you why we the people are not parasites. Parasites attack like locusts, coming from another place to devour and destroy all that is good, We the people are not coming from another place. We are here paying forward with our taxes to set up a life of inclusion and safety. Parasites don't do that. Now lets look at the republicans and their wealthy donors and see how they align with parasitical examples. The current iteration of republicans and their donors want to come in and devour our economic security and destroy our national health care. They want to take what we the people have built for all of us and eliminate it as a safe harbor. That is parasitic behavior. So who is the real parasite here?

(#6307) Reality is settling in to ordinary Russians

      After all the bluster and threats from putin, we are now seeing the truth of putin's actions with Ukraine! As Ukraine is able to fly pretty much anywhere and attack Russia's military infrastructure, Russia is unable to stop the destruction. Russia's economy was already pretty bad with all the sanctions that caused dwindling supplies but now with electricity, natural gas, and fuel being interrupted the shock of the truth concerning invading Ukraine is clearly awakening Russian society. As if losing more than 1.3 million Russian lives in Ukraine wouldn't be enough, the recent onset of fear and the cost of living in Russia is becoming unbearable.
     The once untouchable putin is now in real jeopardy of being displaced. The propaganda can only work when there is enough confusion about reality. But now the propaganda is unable to fool as reality is front and center in most of ordinary Russian life. Burning fuel depots, burning military bases and equipment, air sirens all over Russia. Now we even see the usual mighty Russian May 9th parade spectacle as a shadow of itself. There can be no other explanation to the Russian people that their leader putin has failed to achieve his boasts. he said he would conquer Ukraine in 3 days. It has been 1,538 days since that boast of putin and there is no end in sight for a now improbable victory.
     Although putin said he would conquer Ukraine in 3 days he is now into his 4th year, 2nd month and 18th day with not being able to conquer Ukraine Instead Russia could well likely be defeated in their invasion. No one expects Ukraine to conquer Russia but reclaiming their land from the 2014 initial Russian annexation of their land is highly possible now. As things are currently going Russia may well have to cede back the land they stole from Ukraine and feel lucky Ukraine doesn't want more land from them! One mans ego, putin's, has done so much harm to Russia that they will be hard pressed to get back to where they were before the vain arrogance of putin cost them so much in blood and treasure!

(#6306) The republican plan is simple, steal districts!

      The republicans are winning the redistricting wars as of today. However those are just lines on a map. They are not votes! So how do we defeat the lines on a map? We show up and vote with every one of our like minded democratic and independent voters. We overwhelm the election with votes. After all, no district can be won without votes. Too often our American elections are decided with about 50% of eligible voters showing up to vote, and by the way at 50% the republicans usually do better than democrats. The reasoning is that republicans are much more reliable to vote in every election. Thus their minority often becomes the majority of the vote.
     We democrats and independents are less inclined to vote in every election. For myriad reasons but the outcome usually leaves us at the mercy of republican agendas. The only way we democrats and independents can regain majority representation is for us to understand that our vote, is the most important device we have in pursuing our happiness. When we democrats and independents vote with passion and determination we win big. With the redistricting now heavily favoring republicans we won't win as big as we could have but win we still will. If we vote, in record breaking numbers, the redistricting advantage republicans currently hold will easily be offset.
     The republican party doesn't have many more voters rallied to their agenda this cycle. Which means we democrats, who will align with a massive amount of independents, are on course to break the 60% to 65% voter share threshold. At that level we win big not only at the federal level but at the state level everywhere. We see the republicans, their wealthy donors, and their aligned public office holders doing their part to give republicans advantages they don't deserve. So the only way we the people will ever get our democracy back is for us to vote. We need to vote, every one of us. This coming election is our last hope to save our democracy so what other reason to not vote can their be?

(#6305) The republican party can go to he..

      Well the will of the people be damned when it comes to republicans. The conservative not supreme court in Virginia just handed down their verdict in the redistricting case they have been sitting on for the last 16 days. They struck down the vote on subjective reasoning that disfavored the will of the people of Virginia. Personally I figured that this case should have been decided almost immediately and when it wasn't I then figured that time was likely being paused so the court could try to find a way to discount the will of the people. This case has always been about the will of the people and the powers that be on the not supreme court in Virginia wouldn't let power slip back to we the people.
     Now that the dirty deed ahs been done to favor republicans what will we democrats do to ameliorate the act? We could appeal to the US supreme court but that is also discouraging as the conservatives on the national not supreme court cannot be trusted to consider the appeal objectively. Which really leaves only one option now. In previous elections the democratic party has only turned out about at most a little over 60% of our eligible voters. When we turn  out about 65% of our voters we do pretty good. We need to do more than pretty good this time. We need at least 80% or more to turn out all across the nation.
     If we get to that threshold of 80% or more and independents join us it won't matter how the redistricting of our national districts goes. The republican party will still be crushed by our huge blue wave! So from today forward we the democratic party must make our greatest mission going forward momentum to drive out our voting base! Every eligible voter must find the will and time to vote in these upcoming elections. From the remaining primaries straight into the general midterm election. There cannot be any reason for not voting! None! All of we the people who want to keep any semblance of our democracy alive will require all of us to vote no matter any obstruction or inconvenience!

(#6304) I am still amazed at our human being potential

      It is easy for all of us who live separately from others to think we know quite a bit. But once we are exposed to a larger group of folks we begin to see how much we don't know. On some issues we are very good at understanding and other viewpoints are less about new information and more about less logic. while on the other hand some of our conclusions are illogical and more about the easy comfort that brings.. Overall though, for the most part, most of the beliefs in our own understanding is less logical and in need of more input. Which is why the diversity of opinion is so important. We cannot discount thoughts by others simply because we think we have heard it all. Which here in the States seems to be a real problem.
     Most of us know what being ethical and honest is. Most of us know our own morality when it comes to our own behavior under the rule of law we live within. But what all of us don't know is everything. So we have to keep an open mind to ideas and opinions that at least jostle our own perceptions into an awakened state. When words on paper take on the form of three dimensions full of emotion and inspiration we are this transformed from who we were previous to who we just became. Words on paper from thousands of years ago suddenly strike deep within our hearts and minds as relevant to today. Our human being species is not perfect nor never will be but one thing we are absolutely is evolving.
     We may at times repeat history and it's often terrible outcomes but we also avoid what history has taught us and move to a different response. Our lives are more on a straight line than encaptured within a circle. We may take steps backward at times but we always return to move forward. The evolution of our current species started approximately 7 million years ago. About half a million years ago we controlled fire. We have been evolving to get to our current species since our beginning. With each step forward we are learning that there is much more we need to understand. Thus the beauty of our species. Never learning it all but always learning more.

(#6303) June 2nd is California's primary date

      What is happening in California's primary is that only the top 2 can move onto the midterm general election on November 3rd. It seems kind of crazy that with about a 2/3rds majority the democratic party may well be shut out of the general election. That is because there are still too many democrats vying for the governorship. Which dilutes democratic votes and gives republicans a real chance of having their only two remaining candidates left in the race a viable opportunity as the most vote getters come June 2nd. Today is May 6th and for the candidates who don't have enough time to surge anymore they need to drop out today. Then endorse a candidate with a real shot at making the top two in the primary.
     For me I am doing my part. I have my mail in ballot but will hold off until nearer June 2nd to make a choice. Hopefully by then the democratic field will be winnowed down to 2 or 3 candidates. I do not want to waste my vote if a candidate does not have a chance of getting into the top two. What each candidate must ask themselves is if their own personal ambition is greater than losing the governorship of California to a trump loving republican? I suspect that none of them does but they also don't want to give up on their dream. Well all but one of them will lose eventually so getting to that point where they see the best opportunity to drop out really helps the democratic party and we the people by extension should be the greater priority.
     If on the other hand none or just 1 or 2 drop out leaving democrats vulnerable to being shut out then those remaining will pay a price for that. Effectively ending their political careers and tying an albatross around their own necks. What happens if we the people have no democratic candidate on the ballot after June 2nd? What would need to happen is that the California legislature would need to pass a 2/3rds majority bill to allow for a write in candidate in the general election. If that happens then a grassroots effort in the name of one of the democratic candidates needs to begin and then despite 2 republicans being on the ballot the write in candidate will have an excellent opportunity to win the election.

(#6302) For whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee!

      I have been considering causse and effect lately more than usual. We have all seen the polling lately and it is going backwards in popularity for trump. Not that he would admit of course and that is another reason I see some hope on the horizon. He won't admit that he isn't the most popular person on the planet. Now if he could acknowledge reality then he would know for a fact he is if not the most unpopular person in the world at least in the top two, along with his pal putin. My hope stems from his inability to assess reality concerning his agenda to upset and unsettle our democracy. His ineptitude to me is the only thing keeping the many of us as yet safe.
     As morbid as this may sound another reason is his advancing age and the problems that accumulate with that advancing age. He is less his usual incompetent self and that is good for we the people in that he cannot sustain his dislike for we the people very long and is easily distracted due to obvious mental difficulties. So when I first thought about what this post was going to be about the bell tolls idea immediately popped into my mind. Of course Ernest Hemingway entitled his book with the phrase. But like all good literature it lives on past it's initial story. To me the bell is time ticking down on a creature too obscene to be called a human being. I know that is harsh but so is his dislike for we the people!
     In my own life I know that decisions I made back in my earlier life were eventually going to have a determination as to my time at the end of my life. We are all witnessing the effects of trump's decisions in his earlier life come full circle. He is decaying before our eyes and his time is tolling. What will he do to we the people before he can no longer punish us with his condescension? Will we be able to put the brakes on his final attempts to force his will on the rest of us? The answer is coming soon and I for one am ready to stand against any and all of his flailing throes no matter how much he desperately tries to grind us down like with a pestle and mortar!

(#6301) The underbelly of America is exposed with trump

      Most of us are not part of the underbelly but enough were fooled into supporting it for trump to come into power. So what does that tell me about the moral and ethical persuasions of not only the crass underbelly but those fooled into supporting trump? It tells me that the core of the underbelly is decayed. It has no honor or nobility to it. The decay is void of logic and common sense. Yet what it does have is emotion. Misplaced emotion but emotion nonetheless. The emotion takes the form of hatred and condescension backed by rhetoric. I cannot find logical sequencing with it is what I mean.
     For decades too many of these lazy souls did not want to learn for themselves. Instead they relied upon the voices on the right that seemed understandable to them. False arguments pitting some in the working middle poor class against others in the working middle poor class. These false arguments served to create chaos among we the people instead of where the real problems lay. At the feet of the wealthy and their republican political party. The wealthy and the republicans have had a long run in convincing the lazy learners in our society that everyone else is either a liar or a crook. For these lazy learners these stereotypes work as a backstop when they are confronted with their own inadequacies and cognitive dissonance.
     So trying to have a debate or civil argument with the lazy learners can never begin because the lazy learners do not accept the rules of logic as a common fact finding exercise. They dismiss evidence as false and their own opinions as fact. No bridge can span between the two opposing concepts. So all that is left to do is keep trying and hope that some within the lazy learners will evolve and/or just move on without them. Sadly it is what I have done personally as I have no more patience left when wasting my time over and over again. There has been one silver lining in all of this and that is that trump is so clueless in his administration that he exposes the the right wing viewpoints daily as illogical and false.

(#6300) If only this was the calm before the storm!

      For me, this time feels like a term used in baseball. The dog days of August. Where all the teams are weary from a lot of games played and the temperatures are hot to boot! This political climate is similar to me in that I am weary and it is still just May. We have 6 months to go before we can change the dynamic of this horrendous time. Then two months after that before we actually get to implement our change. The usual framework for our national politics is the candidates are well into their strategies for winning. Yet not this time when so much is still up in the air as to district boundaries all over the nation. The Virginia case as a prime example.
     As the high court there continues to mull a decision about the legitimacy of a vote to change district boundaries, the candidates are left in limbo. Where now also the United States not supreme court has opened the door to racial gerrymandering many republican states are now changing their district boundaries to exclude minority vote. To keep up with this advantage republicans sought, democrats must also consider changing boundaries so as mot to get bushwhacked by this republican abhorrence. Too many candidates for federal office are not even sure where or if they can run for office. The republican party has turned our natural election season into a clear clusterfuck! So no rest there!
     It is bad enough that trump spends everyday attacking the working middle poor class, minorities, women, old folks, children, our allies, and even his own supporters. I feel like everyday I am inside a clothes dryer on a cycle set to infinity! Yet I am a survivor! Whatever it takes to keep breathing and moving forward while keeping my honor and principles intact is my charge. Because each day I wake up and he is still punishing us is another day behind us that we have survived. He is running out of days to break us. Even though he is grinding us down as he can he is also grinding himself down from the sheer volume of his recklessness. I yearn for the calm to return. But it can't return until the time of trump is diluted or stopped.

(#6299) Our political future has to get greater than our sports teams.

      I know how tough it is to put anything above our sports that we follow with passion. I get it that not even our political future is as capturing as our hope for our teams to win win win! Yet in the big picture these teams we so fervently identify with are not really ours. They belong to very wealthy people who make money off of our devotion. It is difficult to see that way because of our investment of time and energy into a lifelong sense of a pseudo community ownership. Truth is I haven't been able to afford tickets to see any of my favorite teams for quite a long time.
     If it is difficult for me to prioritize expenditures on entertainment how much more difficult is it for those who have fewer resources than me? Which I presume is not a small circle of folks. Anyway, not so much about the cost of supporting my favorite teams is the cognitive dissonance of putting them above my and others' general welfare. Our politics is the most important element in our future. Politics decides which people live easy and which ones live hard. At the moment the ones living easy are the wealthy and the ones living hard are the working middle poor class. That dynamic is turned on its head as it should be the wealthy living less easy and the working middle poor class living a lot easier.
     We the people have allowed this to happen by not engaging in the priorities of the day. We listen to our favored speakers whether they speak truth to power or not. We tell ourselves that we are just one person unable to make a difference so we turn away from the struggle. We go about our day still putting the hopes we have for our sports teams on a higher priority than our actual day to day living. We don't consider as much the value we have to leave for our children so that when they are faced with horrible conditions in their lives they won't know how to fight back for a better world. They will only see that sport outcomes are more important than an honorable fairness in life.

(#6298) The longer it takes for the Virginia Supreme Court to rule on redistricting the benefit goes to Democrats!

      I, Like many, are every hour looking to see if the ruling by the Virginia Supreme Court on the referendum on redistricting voted on by Virginians last April 21 has been published. It to this moment has not. Oral arguments were last Monday, 4 days ago. There were several points of contention offered by the Tazwell judge so obviously each needs to be addressed. But that isn't all. There were other lawsuits filed by republicans that are being folded into how the final decision will be adjudicated. Simply corralling all the complaints and addressing all the concerns will take a bit of time. However, there is another factor at play here and that is timing.
     The longer it takes the Virginia high court to weave the logic of their decision the more the opportunity for the new maps from the vote to stand. Even if later they are found to be unconstitutional. The reasoning here is that there is a vote about to take place that affects each district in this case. So time is critically short to getting to a decision even though it takes time to get all of the contentions correctly cured. So as I wait for the decision to come I am not overly anxious because by default the outcome may well be a good thing for democracy if the wait time is extended.
     My sense is that the high court understands this as a factor and are diligently working to complete their task of ruling one way or the other. They may have already completed their decision and are just working out the textual nuance of writing it. Yet to get to a decision they would already have the general concept of their reasoning at hand. For me I am leaning toward them still not at a final decision because they have not incorporated all the available evidence they need to rule with wise intent. If it does seem to be the case that they need much more time they could well rule that the new maps apply for this 2026 election with a decision coming later as to any future election under the new maps.