A SINKING SHIP OF STATE?

    As a kid I always liked the image of a ship of state, imagining the President at the helm, steering the country safely thru danger, shallow waters and rocks. Big waves could not stop that ship of state. Oh, no, for that ship was almost magical. Too sadly, as an adult I began the process of disillusionment, watching the ship founder from LBJ, Vietnam, Nixon, Watergate, Oliver North, Reagan and his Alzheimer's, Clinton and his apparent male disease or arrogance, all the way through the dirty campaign of 2016 and today's presidency. But today? Today the ship is actually listing, severely so.
     The President, G-d help us, sits and lurks in the hidey hole corner of his residence, obsessively watching TV and tweeting away for all he is worth. His tweeting finger has moved disastrously so many times and yesterday was no exception as he tweeted before the full news was out and his campaign officials - with more to come - were tainted by the swamp waters he claimed to have drained. Those waters are rising swiftly, climbing the waterline of that ship of state and the question now is - will the captain of that ship, the President, go down with that ship.
     Are there any life saving measures? Perhaps, if Mueller is fired - but that will raise a storm and even his blind base might recognize that action for what it truly signifies. How much lower will Trump go in his approval ratings as he is already at 38%.
     He can issue a blanket pardon, but trust me on this - the stink of the fetid waters that the ship of state is presently mired in will overwhelm all, including the big fish or alligator right there at the helm. Will announcing that he will not run in 2020 do something to raise the ship, to rebalance it? Perhaps, and that is why perhaps Senator Rand and Chris Christie have announced they are not planning on running again for their office. Will Trump? Or will his ego convince him that he is above all this, that he is Teflon?
     There are so many questions left unanswered this morning. Who exactly are those campaign people? Where did Trump actually come in and when? Who gave the orders? Will there be a much longer line in a walk of shame in Washington and will that line be composed of more than Republicans as it seems that all of Washington is tainted, have lost their minds in the pursuit of power, lost sight of all that is right and civility and public service have long ago sunk into the muck of the swamp.
     And yet the Trump machine runs on with canoes and lifeboats dropping off the ship of state. Deregulation is a growing menace and does not seem to have an end to it. Lack of respect for the right of a woman to control her own healthcare and body, corruption in the hiring of companies for contracts even going so far as to hire the very enemies of the people as the administrators of government. The stink of that muck grows ever stronger.
     Right now the Republicans must be putting on their waders thinking they can stay clean, untouched by the muck, safe on a lifeboat, but I would not be too sure about that. There is that looming 2018 election coming closer every day. There is the lack of bipartisanship. And there is the disgust of the people. How much more will the people tolerate? That question is the one that is thundering silently thru the houses of government today. It deafens the crowd even as it frightens the heart.
     One other question. How will Russia take this whole thing. Will Putin just shrug his shoulders and keep on moving along, thank you, or will there be consequences. Money goes very far, does it not, in this administration so will consequences have to wait till the next administration. But not if it is Pence or one like him, for he and others come out of the same mold as Trump.  Even as Nero fiddled, Trump golfs, and the rest all have their little sidelines of relaxation.
     So perhaps we will be saved from a ruinous tax scheme to benefit the wealthy. Perhaps Trump will be very careful and behave himself as he starts out on a 12 country journey and G-d help us if there are no controls for how many more will he antagonize?
     I dream of a time now when the leaky holes of the lies will be patched ad perhaps we can right the ship of state. Perhaps we can get people such as Kelly out of office, even as he masquerades as a decent individual but lies through his teeth and says that immigration should be best kept between zero and one. Lovely. So heart warming. I find it very frightening that this ship of state has so many military people in civilian office. The line of separation is shredding and not in a good way either.
     To sum up - get out your rain gear, your waders, your boats and your oars. We will need strong backs to row us out of the wake and the pull of this leaky and stinking ship of state. We need to pull ourselves out of the swamp on to a clean and clear river - if we can actually find one after all the deregulations!
     It is a long haul we have. We are only at the beginning and we must stay resolved, strong in our determination to clean out the mold and the rot infecting the ship of state, polish it up and send it back out gleaming and shining with the dreams of good people, with the hope that we can reinspire ourselves and the people who represent us in office. Then, perhaps, we can inspire our young and convince them that America can still be the country of the idealist and the dreamer. May that time and day come soon.

COPY THAT? PLEASE DON'T

     Sad. Anxious. Confused and bewildered. Fear of the future - or if there is one.
     These are the emotions that are not only afflicting me, but also much of America and the world, especially its leaders. We are living thru such a time that has never been seen before, an almost total repudiation of the responsibilities of the American President, particularly to the people, and the pointed dissemination of ravings that border on the jingoism of the past in its urging and telling of war, war between the "Dems and the R's!" This is not what America is all about but this is what Trump and cohorts have made it become.
     The elephant in the room today is the bated breath of the millions as we await Robert Mueller's first indictment. Who will it be? A family member? A political ally? An underling of the administration and/or the campaign? What will be the proximity towards Trump? And what will it mean for the nation? Will it come close enough to the presidency to actually possibly interfere with its reality and existence?
     Trump is reacting by behaving as a maddened child backed into a corner, shouting epithets and threats as he behaves as if the whole world is against him. Well, perhaps they are, but if so, he has earned this by his behavior, by his infinite lies, by his repudiation of all that keep Americans safe, from predatory banks and lending institutions to environmental regulations designed to protect the air we breathe and the water we drink, to the land that belongs to all of us.
     He has encouraged postures of war both here within the country and without. It should not be the Dems vs the R's. It should not be a positing of the wealthy against the middle class and it most certainly should not be majorly screwing the lower economic classes by taking away their safety net from benefits to healthcare to educational possibilities for them and their children. When it was pointed out to Trump that his supposed tax reform would stick it to the middle class, he waved it off, literally, and tells the Republicans at the meeting to 'take care of it." It is no wonder that his approval number is the lowest ever - 38%.
     The man is a disaster, not in the making, not in the offing, but in reality, in his present existence as the President of the United States of America, of the supposed to be leader of the free world. Instead we have him picking wars with any and all, from football players who are now told they are inmates of a prison, to the mayor of San Juan and the people of Puerto Rico who are still living in the deep heat of an airless, wrecked environment, getting sick from the water, still dying from a hurricane of weeks ago, supposed to be satisfied with thrown towels and a crooked contract for restoration of electricity. The corruption of this administration has risen to alarming proportions and we are sinking beneath its weight.
     Maryland is investigating the Kushner empire there for its behavior and alleged violations of rules relating to tenants and physical condition of its holdings. Bannon is going after a Trump donor who crossed his lines and Trump is well aware of this. Talk of inmates running the asylum!! Who should be in the asylum?
     And if all this is not enough, we add to all these negative emotions and fears this statement by Kissinger. “It cannot be that North Korea is the only Korean country in the world that has nuclear weapons, without the South Koreans trying to match it. Nor can it be that Japan will sit there,” he said. “So therefore we’re talking about nuclear proliferation.”
     Is it all to end in a nuclear catastrophe and then it will not matter who is screwing whom, will it?
     And for all of this, for all these actions or lack thereof, we say - Do not copy that! It is time to make the president and his henchmen realize that they are truly alone out there, that he is NOT our president and time for him to go. Would that Mueller would come up with a Trump indictment. When the fuss would settle down, there would be a combined breath of relief. And hopefully, Pence would have gotten the message loud and clear. Or so we hope. So we pray.

WHERE DID CIVILITY GO?

    Growing up in NYC I never thought about civility. One answered a question, gave directions, and moved on. One did not become buddies with the stranger. As an adult, I read that this was a distinct NY characteristic, shrugged my shoulders and moved on. One was polite, but one did not exchange family histories.
     Then came 9/11 and the change was amazing. Strangers held hands, talked and cried with each other, exchanged stories and experiences, shared emotions, and that was with strangers in the streets, in the parks where there were memorials, on the trains, simply standing in line. It was a polite and warm city and it was nice.
     When we moved down here one of the things we loved best was how helpful and polite people were. Standing on a line could net you a new friend or two or at the very least, service with a smile. We laughed when people complained that people were rude down here. Hah!! They did not know the meaning of the word.
     But today it seems the whole world has gone down this nasty side path, one where there are only cruel and cutting words, insults, damnations and yes, even hatred. How has this happened? Where did we get off the right path and how do we get back - is it even possible?
     In my mind I see that politics led us here. There were always strong feelings in the realm of politics and families often split votes, but there has never been such a  time when politics are off limits at family gatherings, at social gatherings. The explosive emotions politics brings out now is a terrible sight to see and hear.
     I, and many others, trace this nastiness back to its source and its chief proponent - Trump. Does he do it knowingly or by nature or by disease? Take your choice, but the conclusion is simple. When the nastiness comes from the top, when others see this supposed role model dishing out the crudity, the what is there to stop them from going the same way. It is the childish excuse that "everyone else is doing it" ramped up on overdoses of uppers, steroid rage going national and mainstream - without the 'roids!
     A major cause is also to be found in Twitter and its tweets, I am sorry, but one cannot express a well thought out opinion or remark in144 characters, no matter what abbreviations are used and these trains of tweets that Trump uses are even worse. There is no room in tweets for thought, for compromise, for decency, for good old fashioned civility. They are written to shock, to horrify and to hurt. Period.
     Civility flies out the window when lies and untruths and such crazy terminology such as "post truth" or "alternative reality" are made up and used. The only alternative reality is that found in a science fiction world of parallel dimensions, not here in our earthly dimension. These terms only encourage the voicing of old hatreds, or the rearing of the ugly heads of eternal hatreds of the other. And this hatred comes now from both sides of the matter and understandably so. It is difficult to know whom to trust, who is normal, who has a working brain rather than a screaming mouth. And a silent brain.
     What is the need for a statement that "the inmates are running the prison". Certainly that was not well thought out to say the least. Why do we scream that Black Lives Matter or its counter group White Lives Matter? Why can we not say that ALL Lives matter. Why do we have rallies of hate, especially among white supremacists and why do we forget that this hatred grows every day to encompass more and more within its odious boundaries.
     And yet there is a strange phenomenon. Here in everyday life I see black and white, Jew and non Jew, Protestant and Catholic - all mixing together. All live within each other's bounds and all are Americans and why have we forgotten this? Why have we forgotten those classic WWII movies where there was the Italian from Brooklyn, the southerner, the Jew, the American Indian and the African American. Sure, they jostled each other in first greeting but then solidified into a group of Americans - what we all should be. Where has that ethic and ethos gone?
     I will confess right here that I have used strong words and statements in my postings, horrified as I am at the daily insults that this man, Trump, and his cohorts, impose upon us. I shudder at the nastiness, at the corruption, at the turn of the clock back to politics in the dirty bathwater, in the contempt that these "public servants" have for their constituents, at the rampant greed among the highest in the administration and the awful message it sends down the line.
     Perhaps even worse is the fact that this nastiness, this populism that damns all others, this nationalism that has reverted to nativism, is contagious and one sees it all over - be it France, Russia, the Crimea and Ukraine, Hungary, Poland, Britain, the African republics with their tribal warfare and yes, we have all devolved into tribes rather than countries. Civility has no place in these realities and yet unless and until civility does return and we actually open our ears and eyes and brains to the words and feelings of others, there will be no improvement. And here I will just insert my comment that the awful genocide and ethnic cleansing going on with the Rohingya in Myanamar is a throwback to other genocides and the world stands silent and  the supposed figure for democracy stands there and even encourages it. Shame on her and on her countrymen. Shame on all those religious leaders who encourage hatred and murder, be they Buddhists here or imams elsewhere or ranting pastors or hateful rabbis.
     We are all one under the eyes of G-d. Take the skin off and we are all the same so what difference does that pigmentation make? What difference does an accent make? I have no answers for myself, let alone my grandchildren who are bewildered by all this when they have been taught in their lives to be kind and helpful, to listen, to use words of aid and not hate.
     Where has civility gone? Somewhere deep inside or thrown on the trash heap of society. Perhaps it is time we dig it back up and try it on for size. Nothing to lose and so much to gain.

ADDICTIONS

    Perhaps Trump has started one good thing, a campaign to try to deal with the opioid epidemic. Give him that, although he spoke about it months ago as an imminent thing and it took quite some time. As usual, however, the plan is incomplete and inadequate.
     There is not enough funding, nor plans and pathways for more and exactly how these funds are to be used. Platitudes that are repetitive in nature but scarce on details are not the way to go but no surprise there as this is the Trump way, babble on and have no facts, no details,no plans.
    However, what was even more disturbing is the aim of his program, at least his stated aim.
   “The fact is, if we can teach young people — and people generally — not to start, it’s really, really easy not to take them. And I think that’s going to end up being our most important thing: really tough, really big, really great advertising so we get to people before they start, so they don’t have to go through the problems of what people are going through.”
     But the fact is, to use his own words is that in the opioid syndrome much of the addiction comes not from the kids, not from the purloined pills from medicine cabinets - and yes, there are those who start that way. But the truth is that much of the epidemic begins and stems from and continues with those people who were prescribed pills for pain relief, be it a chronic condition or a surgical situation, but the pain relief was needed. Then horror struck when these people tried to stop and could not. Their bodies were telling them otherwise. 
     So today we have a story of a billionaire who needs them and other days we read of people, plain people, just like you and me, who are stuck in a place they never wanted to be - dependent on pain pills. This addiction is different from other addictions. Trump talks of his brother who was a drunk, had alcohol addiction. That is an addiction that one starts on one's own, not via a doctor. 
    And yes, alcohol addiction, any addiction is terribly difficult to shed - hey, I am still trying to shed my chocolate addiction! People have all sorts of them but, and a great big but, this addiction to opioids via a doctor's helpful prescription is difficult indeed.
     So who to blame. Do we tell the people only take three days or some such limitation? But what if the pain is still there after a surgical procedure. Do we depend on the mind power of the patient? Do we tell the doctor to limit the amount of pills but again, what if the pain is still there and pain can be debilitating to the point of non functioning. So what to do? It is a difficult area, a conundrum.
     So talking to the young is not really the answer. For sure, talk with them, try to limit exposure, though we know that is difficult enough, but the main thrust must be via the main road - the legitimate users of opioids. I know that I have been prescribed pills and was very limiting in how many I would take for fear of addiction. I was told not to worry, but I did and thank G-d have had no problems after any of my surgeries, but it is not always possible to self limit.
     Research must be undertaken for non addictive pain relief. The young must see a world for them that has hope so they need not retreat into a drugged up world that will hide their despair. And for all this huge quantities of funding are necessary, not just pie in the sky talking and words. Details are necessary and that is what is always missing in a Trump plan. That and denying the truth.
    Trump seems to think that the fact that he has never taken a drink or smoked a cigarette makes him a hero. It does not. Neither have I or my husband or many others, but addiction is addiction and Trump has a severe one in his demand for adulation, for praise, for telling lies to cover the truth when that truth is not complimentary for him.
     And today we all have a Trump addiction, and I am the first to admit it. Me and all those who give over the news, who analyze it, who respond to it with thought pieces. How much harm can this man cause? How much danger can he gin up for us and for the world and how many people can he hurt with his blindness and nastiness and damaged brain pathways? The people of Puerto Rico are still waiting in their heat, in the dark, in their piles of rubble. The people of America are still waiting for their health care, undamaged and whole, shorn of political nonsense. The people of the world are waiting to see if America goes down the path towards demagoguery and dictatorship and war.
     We are all waiting. Those people stuck on pills and pain scripts that they wish could be undone. Those kids seeing despair and hopelessness for their future who turn to ways of escape. Those of us who are waiting for Trump to at least try to be presidential and turn away from his addictive behavior. That harmful behavior. Those plans that go nowhere. The addictions that remain.
     We are in a bad way today in our country. Our leaders are not. Period. They are engulfed in their own addiction to wealth and to perceived power. They are obsessed with remaining in office. They are consumed with past misdeeds and the hope that they are not exposed.
     We all have issues and problems so let us at least approach addictions with open minds and clear pathways, with honesty, with no moral judgements, with proper funding and realism in the plan. If we do not- who will and where will people go for help?

WILL THE FATMAN EVER SING?

    The saying goes that a fat lady has to sing before something is over. Well, what if we change it to the fat man who has to sing, that big overgrown and nasty child who stalks the halls of our government like a menace, casting a shadow over the entire country, and indeed, even the world.
     This man, who is naturally a buffoon, a nasty one at that, gives himself hugs every night, seeks the hugs of others, boasts of standing ovations either that never were or that were given to him by chickens masquerading as Senators, as servants of the people, this man is a danger to us all.
     This fact has been stated all along but even more important, is being said by members of his own Party. He gives himself sobriquets that praise himself, for no one else will, even those who suck up to him. He calls himself the "builder president", he who is deconstructing every safeguard that the Obama administration put in place, the very safeguards that will protect our lives and the lives of our children. But this man pulls them all out, crushes them, and takes glee in it. He makes dumb statements that if all had installed greenboard drywall, a water resistant drywall in all the first floors of Houston, why the damage from the flood would have been almost nothing!! I kid you not.
     So never mind the unholy cost. Never mind the fact that all the furnishings would have been ruined. Never mind the bacteria and filth of the mud left over. Never mind the fact that greenboard is resistant not waterproof, just never mind all the facts! But on he natters away.
     His poll numbers keep dropping, even from his base, the white non college educated male, and so many are expressing disgust at his behavior and actions or lack thereof. And that is from a FOX news poll too! Yet his nastiness continues as he baits a dying hero Senator, as he calls Jeff Flake names, as he belittles Corker, and worst of all, as he declares a war of words on a war widow; it is simply disgusting.
     And the stink expands. A company that is incapable of doing the work of rewiring Puerto Rico is hired due to its ties to the administration. This company of TWO permanent employees now has to come up with all the people needed. The mayor of San Juan, that brave woman, calls them out and they tell her they have 300 people on the island and then take it down to 40 in San Juan and 44 in the rest of the island. Are they nuts? This is a drop in the bucket. They need hundreds of workers, tons of supplies and the knowledge and wherewithal to do the job but all their qualifications devolve onto their 'who they know' IQ. We are back in the morass of corruption and inefficiency and inability.
     So what is left if this fat buffoon sings? Well, we have that stone hearted man who pastes his hair to his head - always a sign of rigidity and lack of goodness - just look at Junior! So Pence is not a good hope for us either, he who calls his wife "mother", who is afraid to talk alone in a room with a woman, thereby cutting out so much talent, displaying his own coarseness. Then there is the chinless and spineless and balless wonder of McConnell, that weasel, followed by another rat, Ryan, who could care less about the people, only about his heartless Ayn Rand inspired so called principles. Time to grow up.
     WE, America and Americans, have allowed ourselves to deteriorate into a third world country in disguise. We have allowed ourselves to accept the behavior of demagogues and allowed them to surface here. That is what Bannon is, an ugly souled being who talks of wiping out his enemies. We have abandoned responsibility for our own country in the search for wealth and privilege.
    We need to return to the principles. We need to restore the humanity in our government. We need to toss out those who have no heart, whose guiding principle is Big Business and banks, who step all over the People. And we need to do this ASAP. G-d help us if we do not get it together stat. Poor us and poor kids. Poor world.

THE THREE D'S

      Despair. Dismay. Disgust.
     Can there be anything but that after the debacle of yesterday's political shootout at the Senate corral? It both highlighted a principled man and the ignorant hateful man and these impressions were reinforced by the servile behavior of the remaining Senators.
     Disgust at their cowardliness.
     Dismay that they still have not found either their spines or their manly parts.
     Despair that this is the point we have reached.
     Bonnie Tyler sang how we needed a hero and wonders aloud where have all the good men gone. I do not know how to answer that question because to find a good man today is hard, very hard. It is hard, difficult indeed, to find a proper response to a grandchild's question of why grown men are acting as they do these past months.
     Jeff Flake and Sen. Corker were or are on the opposite side of the spectrum from me and yet yesterday I admired them. Each chose to fight back against the rising odds, against the pathetic fellow Senators who still cannot bring themselves not only to condemn Trump openly, but who gave him a standing ovation at their luncheon. Pathetic!
     And that is exactly the point that Flake tried to make. He spoke of the lack of principles politicians had these days. He spoke of the wrongful attitude of in office characters who think that they are there to maintain their office rather than serve the people. How often have I bemoaned that attitude, that loss of honor and courage. So where are the JFKs of today, and yes, the LBJs who pushed a Great Society for the American people? Where are they? They have morphed into the Senators who voted yesterday to cancel the Obama era ruling that one could not be pushed into the arbitration rule, that one could sue a big business or a company or a nursing home or a credit card company rather than go to slanted and fixed arbitration, rather than allow a class suit, where power can be shifted into a fairer equation.
     So this 'man of the people' - and I choke as I type that, is exactly the opposite. We are the ones who will choke on the air we breathe, filled once more with particles and chemicals. We are the ones who will imbibe poison with every drink of water. Soon it will be a world where the rich and wealthy will have water to drink while the rest - to hell with them!! Pence is making sure of that with his tie breaking votes all for the detriment of the American people. Base - wake up before it is too late.
     There is disgust at these weasels for their lack of honesty and principles. There is disgust that this is what the grand country has become. There is dismay as we look towards a future where there is no future, a world that will be the worse off for our kids and grandkids, a world where the top layers of society comport with the enemy and are outraged when they are revealed and question how dare they do that!!
     “We must never meekly accept the daily sundering of our country — the personal attacks; the threats against principles, freedoms and institutions; the flagrant disregard for truth and decency.”
     And yet that is exactly what we are doing, what we are even allowing to be applauded. We have given the American values away. We have turned on our own history, our own foundations and turned upon the world. We have left billions bereft of a leader and allowed selfishness and greed, me tooism, to rule the country. Even as the creep in office makes fun of Puerto Rico, even as he watches in glee as they struggle, sicken and die from horrific disease, from simple dehydration, as they sit in the hot dark world they have been shoved into, even with this, Trump et al have managed to award a huge contract to a tiny company incapable of rebuilding an electric grid in the island and why - because the owner donated thousands to Trump and his campaign, because both Zinke and Tillerson are connected to it, this company of TWO permanent employees. So to hell with the people of the islands, fellow Americans, for money is to be made here, so trample, trample over all who stand in the way.
     So we allow this "dangerous and untruthful" man to remain in office, to spread his infection. We laugh at his craziness but it is not funny. It is disaster. It is despair and dismay and disgust and we do nothing!!! Almost a year after his election the man still chases after Clinton instead of chasing after the benefits for the people. No, for he is too busy trying to benefit the wealthy. This man who is a definite low life, a man with no honor, a creep of the nth degree. He will stop at nothing and no disrespect is too much, no detail too small, so for sure, let us take away the name Denali from the highest mountain, the name that it had for thousands of years from its native dwellers and let us go back and rename it McKinley. At least the Senators from Alaska said a resounding no. Huh!! Let us see the outcome.
     And with all this, no one in the country feels their 'side' is winning. That is because the three d's are rampant. We have lost our way and the flashlight is running on dim, on low batteries. WE are overwhelmed with the corruption, with the lack of a principled government, with a return to days of politics such as we believed had long gone, to traitorous Americans who masquerade as patriots and who sell us down the road even as they spout slogans.
     "Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?"
     So plaints Bonnie Tyler and so we plaint all. Dismay. Disgust. Despair. We all need a hero. But the cupboard appears to be bare and for the most part, the cowards and the liars and the cheats and the nasties have taken over. We need a hero but where is that hero? Where? Where?

   

PSYCHOTICALLY

     Are you scratching your head now, wondering if I have lost it? Well, no, I have not, but someone else has. Guess who? Yup - him. Again.
     Speaking with Fox Business Channel's Maria Bartiromo over the weekend, Trump definitely lost it - not that he ever had found it!! It was a very softball interview, with the interviewer constantly trying to get Trump back on track but the man wandered all over the place, answered questions with weird responses, not connected at all to the question but the best was his response that the Federal Reserve is "important psychotically".
     Now one could get a serious bellyache from laughter as one either sits thru the interview or reads it, but then one has to understand that the tears of laughter are actually tears of despair for this is just about one of the worst ever if not THE worst. When the President of the country talks as if he is Senor Wences, then we, the country, and the world in general, are in deep trouble, up to our necks. Seriously speaking, I have stated it before and will do so again and by the way, there is a book written with the opinions of 27 psychologists and psychiatrists who maintain the same feeling - that Trump is mentally ill, that he is off balance somehow and for some reason.
     What is the cause? Is it chemical? Is it a degenerative disease? Is it hormonal? I do not have the answers, only the questions raised by his behavior and actions and state again that the man needs to undergo neutral testing, not by his doctor but by one who has no connection to him, by technicians who will not fudge the tests nor the results and the truth will come out. In the meanwhile, he needs to be removed from office and there is Constitutional  provision for that.
     And all the while, till this is done, what do we do? Well, we have to protest. We have EPA scientists protesting their removal from a conference as Trump et al continue their head in the sand approach to climate change, as they turn back the clock so we can again poison our waters and the very air we breathe. We can demand that Trump pay attention to the electorate and pay attention to his numbers as he has fallen to a new low in the polls. Even his so called base is shrinking and his swing voters are deserting in droves, complaining about his mouth, his tweets, his temper, his disrespectful behavior towards others,  his lack of detailed plans, his tax reform for the wealthy, his deathcare that leaves so many with no care at all, his wild talk about war with North Korea and it just goes on and on.
     Tax reform? What? How? By adding 1.5 trillion dollars to the debt, totally against shouted Republican statements thru the past eight years? And details? None forthcoming.
     By taking responsibility for his actions? Nope, that will never do. Better to blame it on others, on bureaucrats and bureaucracy. Shout military threats but have no clue as to what happened to a patrol of ours in Niger and what the hell are they doing there anyway. Never blame it on poor planning and oversight - turn to the constant bogeyman of the times - terrorists - and blame it on them but I ask again, how is it possible that we send out our people so unprepared, so poorly armed or trained that ragtag groups of so called terrorists can overwhelm them and how do we send them out without proper backup and support?
     I have a question that no one seems to have addressed. Special Forces are supposed to be the elite of the elite, the toughest of the tough and I have no quarrel and in fact am amazed at their achievement of this title, but, a big but, if we are shipping them all over kingdom come, then are we not diluting this training, for how can we have so many elite of the elite? It is like the terrible practice of giving a trophy to every kid in a league, watering down achievements and cutting incentives. Are we sending them out unprepared for what we are asking of them? And on whose shoulders does that responsibility fall and for a general to have to say he will make inquiries? Really? If the general does not know then who took that responsibility and where are the channels and the processes? How do we lose sight of a soldier and leave his body there for days? How have we fallen to this level?
     And for that matter, I believe we are now in approximately 72 countries around the world, I have even read a figure of 77 so what's a few countries among friends!!! What the hell are we doing? We are fighting alongside people like Duterte in the Philippines, a murderous dictator? Not sure what the difference is between him and the 'terrorists' he is fighting. Is there a difference in the end result if one is killed by a Moslem extremist or is killed by a dictatorial despot? Dead is dead. The end. And where does it end? No clue. And sadly, neither does the army or our President or our government apparently have a clue either.
     And so the saga continues. Even as we are deteriorating around the world, destroying our legacy, and destroying our own country by ignoring safety regulations for the environment, even as we are looking at ways and means to protect the 1% and the hell with the middle class and the lower classes, no retraining for them, just scapegoating the immigrants, that will teach them, even with that going on, we are still investigating the Russian effect on our election and G-d help us if we have truly become a subject country under the table to the Russians. They have perverted the social media, from Amazon to Facebook to YouTube. We have had members of the Trump campaign and administration tie themselves closely to the Russians and we have a president whose main motivation as president appears to be to publicize his golf clubs now paying attention to his Virginia one, and increase the value of his holdings. How we have fallen.
     So, 'psychotically' speaking, we are in a bad way. Perhaps if we paid attention to the psychological harm that we have inflicted upon ourselves we might get somewhere.  Laugh or cry at the man and the situation and the disasters that emerge from his mouth and mind? Do both? But we need help here, folks, seriously so and soon, or I believe the tipping point will be reached and then, who knows. Scary thought.

BREAKING THINGS

     I borrow these words from a wonderful writer, Elana Sztokman whose articles I read as often as they are written. She wrote this article discussing how things are often in a position of having to be broken before they can be fixed, or at least recognized as broken. She states that sometimes there is no other way than to start allover again, so much are things broken.    
     At a point in her essay she reaches this conclusion and I so totally agree with her.
   
"I think about this regarding the world we are living in now. We are living in such a broken place.
The election of Trump was the act of such wanton destruction.
His election broke so much.
It broke hope,
it broke integrity,
it broke belief in humanity,
it broke compassion,
it broke decency,
it broke honesty,
it broke care,
it broke logic,
it broke truth,
it broke progress,
it broke bridges,
it broke connections,
it broke cooperation,
it broke generosity,
and it broke the movement towards creating a better world.
     We are all experiencing the impacts of that breaking on a regular basis.
And there is so much that is breaking that he allows to continue to break. Floods. Fires. Hurricanes. Mass shootings. One after another, breaking, breaking, breaking.
And he does this actively and on purpose, not just by neglect or stupidity. Trump seeks to continue breaking everything that he can.
He is trying to break health care,
to break education,
to break justice,
to break the economy,
to break poor people,
to break women,
to break people of color,
to break Muslims,
to break immigrants,
to break the media,
to break democracy,
to break history, to break America,
to break alliances,
maybe even to break the world.
     It looks that way some days. It looks like he might actually want to start a world war. That is the breaking that we are in the midst of."
   The question remaining -
What does it mean to break the trump world in order to rebuild a better world?
 "What does it mean to break the trump world in order to rebuild a better world?" 

BLURRING LINES

     Just read an excellent book, The Vengeance of Mothers, by Jim Fergus, and intend to go find his prior books. The book deals with 1873 America, its attitude and actions towards and with Native Americans, its ridiculous plans that caused tragedy to so many. It touches on the attitude towards women, the liberation of certain women at times when one might think otherwise, and it could be read as an allegory of the times of today in many ways. It raises the question as to whose America, whose nation, whose land, it truly is and the lines are blurry, just as they are today. Or one could read it just as a super story.
     The lines are blurred - or do we really need to draw these lines? It is difficult to find a distinct separation today between two units or topics. Where does fiction end and  fact occur, or are both intertwined beyond distinction. This is where it gets edgy for when we have a man who forever calls into doubt any factoid which criticizes him, then we are in a new age called post truth and I, for one, have a great deal of difficulty of even accepting that term. How can one be post truth. Truth can be explained, actions explained, but truth is truth - unless one wanders into the world of Animal Farm, 1984 and Brave New World. Unless one wanders into the bizzaro world where actions can be explained away in this manner - “Keep hearing about ‘tiny’ amount of money spent on Facebook ads,”  “What about the billions of dollars of Fake News on CNN, ABC, NBC & CBS?” Accuse the other side of doing something and that will explain away your sins, but what if the accusation is not true, yet gains ground as a post truth statement? The whole incident of the "veteran" of Vietnam with a whole  host of medals, weighing in on Trump's side on Fox News, with the kneeling actions - Fox buys all in and guess what - never was a veteran, was not wounded, no decorations - is this post truth or can we simply call it a lie?
    And how are we supposed to raise our kids, the future of all of us, if they see that a lie is not necessarily a lie and the truth is not necessarily that either. The ground we then stand upon becomes very shaky, like a mass of quivering quicksand and who will be there to pull us out?Will the support of yet another liar or tyrant do the trick? When such as Putin tells Americans, scolds them, that Trump is not respected enough, that Americans elected him - he of the country that bought those ads, that messed with the election, do we tout his statement as proof - and proof of what for is he telling the truth or lying thru his miserable teeth?
     In the meanwhile we have the sad truth of the 1200 people funeral for a Sergeant killed in Niger under very blurry circumstances, with the tears of a family and a nation, and Trump makes it all about him, trumpeting the fact that he is now UPSing letters to all servicemen killed as far back as July and August. So what does that count as for to me it is the "I'm sorry" ordered to be said in a school fight or a scandal uncovered. It is the "pardon me" stated by the likes of Weinstein and yes, Trump, who himself is a self acknowledged molester. And then off he goes again, claiming in his self praises that no other President has done as much as he has in nine months and then proceeds to boast of the disasters he has caused - cancelling of laws that protect Americans and the world with the water they drink, the air they breathe, the land they walk upon, with his pandering to Big Business, with his 'triumph' at disrupting healthcare to millions and instead, giving them deathcare.
     So we have former presidents calling for unity, Tom Hanks and others calling for us to read history, use it, understand it for it tells us of our present and future, and we are at the level where Costco has to point out in its reports that the new trade issues and regulations and cancellations are dangerous to their business - and to those of many others. But the man and his toadies do not see that, do not see the intertwining of business across borderlines, does not recognize that lines are so blurred that nationalism, nativism, is a dangerous relic of the past and has no place in our world. Go back to the beginning and read the book I recommended. Read it and weep and laugh and feel pride in the women of the novel.
     I no longer feel pride in our country of the moment and I hope against all hope that we will break out of this mold and find our way back. I hope it can be done in a peaceful manner, but my doubt grows apace daily on that issue.
     Lines of truth. Lines of falsehoods. Lines of danger and lines of war and those of peace. Lines of pride. Lines of historical warnings. Blurring lines. We need to redraw them clearly and use the blurring lines in a positive manner, to draw us and the world together. What is going through my head is the refrain of that oldie but goodie: 
      "We are the world
We are the children
We are the ones who make a brighter day, so let's start giving
Oh, there's a choice we're making
We're saving our own lives
It's true we'll make a better day, just you and me."
      Please, let us make the right choice and right now.

THE CUP RUNNETH OVER

     Well, it is never a really good day in Trumpville, USA, not with all the tweeting and the lies and the lies and the selling of souls, and the shrieking silence from those who do not step up and say what needs to be said. But yesterday? Wow!! If we stretch yesterday to mean a few days, then it is even better for then we can include a troika in the mix - McCain, Obama and George W. Bush.
     I was most impressed by Bush. The man has kept a deep background cover, busy at his ranch, his Institute and stayed out of it. He is also a man not noted for his powerful speech or statements and yet yesterday? Double Wow. He spoke as a statesman, as one disgusted, actually frightened at the stage we find ourselves and put forth a great big warning that we are losing our place, our place in the world and its history and trust me, that was all aimed at you know who. In my mind I saw his head whipsawed in every statement of Bush, in the pointed remarks and the challenge of McCain and in the statements of Obama who has finally decided to come out of hiding and stand up for what needs to be said, to fight against what needs to be fought.
    I must say, though, that McCain was disappointing in that he then went ahead and approved a budget that will shove us into more debt - and  this from the Party that were supposed to be hawks on deficits, but then again, hypocrisy reigns, does it not, and the Republicans march on trying to run the country with one dictator and one dictatorial Party - chills on the spine yet, people? All this in preparation for a unilaterally, partisan passing of a tax "reform" which is in all truth a bill of welfare for the wealthy and the hell with the middle class and as for the lower economic class - well, to hell with you too as you will almost be invisible what with no health care, no money, no rights!! Time to atone for your foolish Trump votes. Time to wake up and smell the contempt the man has for you, those he supposedly champions, he of the billions and the billionaire friends, he who is going to send a check - heard that before, he who lies before breakfast and after dinner in an unbroken chain.
     Kelly sold his soul with lies re Wilson, the Congresswoman, lies easily refuted by facts and timing and this is sad, the last hope of some containment and control over the madman in the Oval Office. But take heart in some of these statements from Bush, take hope in the chants against Spencer and then step up, work with the people to get out the vote next November, publicize the records of those who screw the people, get out there and help people register for the vote. Do something before it is too late to do anything. Now read - music to the ear and balm to the soul:
    
- “Bigotry seems emboldened. Our politics seems more vulnerable to conspiracy theories and outright fabrication.”

- “We’ve seen nationalism distorted into nativism.”

- “We’ve seen our discourse degraded by casual cruelty. . . . Argument turns too easily into animosity.”

- “It means that bigotry and white supremacy in any form is blasphemy against the American creed, and it means the very identity of our nation depends on passing along civic ideals.”

- “Bullying and prejudice in our public life … provides permission for cruelty and bigotry.”

- “The only way to pass along civic values is to live up to them.”
     Come, let us all pick up the tatters of the American dream, sew them back up together and emerge even stronger than before. The alternative? We do not want to go there.

THE PROOF OF THE PUDDING

     There are always three sides to a story - side 1, side 2 and the two combined, usually a truer version. We look to proof to know what and whom to believe, not always an easy task, and we come to know the inveterate liars, those who could not, cannot, tell the truth if it rose up and slapped them in the face. It appeared that these people had a trait that compelled them to lie, and an inability to recognize the difference between truth and lie. Worse, it often appeared that they could care less.
     Today, the proof is in the pudding with Trump and crew. I wonder if he ever tells the truth, has an inborn need to tell a lie and then convinces himself that it is the truth and everyone else is picking on him. Perhaps that is why he is often pictured with that grump pout on his face, the one that just completely puts me off. And lots of others.
     Proof is what he always says he has. Proof that he did not emotionally abuse this widow. Well, no proof there.  Just as an aside, I wonder if anyone checked if there was a difference in how Trump behaved with wounded and killed warriors based on race and ethnicity. Just wondering, as this particular soldier was African American. Proof that he was being tapped. Well, not there either. Proof about Comey and the firing and memos. Well, not there either. For some reason unknown to anyone with a modicum of intelligence, there never seems to be any materialization of his "proof".
     Is this a choice to lie or a sign of mental illness? Take your choice, but whatever the cause, it cannot remain status quo. One cannot run a country where from one day, one hour, to the next one cannot be sure one is standing on firm ground. An example? First he goes after Obamacare, the only lifeline that many people have for the maintenance of their health, for some, the first they ever had. Then he thunders like a madman against Congress, the Senate, individuals, whatever target he favors at the moment. Then he agrees on a bi-partisan agreement and the very next day he says no.
     He supposedly 'feels' for the DACA kids, yet takes away their protection, wrongfully asserting that they and theirs are a danger to the country, the same country where they grew up, live, study and have become part and parcel of its economic system. He claims that DACA is unconstitutional yet the Dept. of Justice on its website states that it is. His representatives lie thru their miserable rotten teeth and with forked tongues, a prime example of which was Sessions yesterday at the hearings. My hands twitched to reach thru the radio and grab and shake him.
     He supports candidates who come from the extreme and provides a firm base for haters to stand upon. Spencer tonite in Florida. Moore, in Alabama, states openly that G-d is the basis of our Constitution and G-d is the Sovereign in the country. Well, that tingles right down my spine and not in a good way either. Who is he to determine that "fact" for others? Who is he to determine that all HE believes is G-d's view while anything else is not. LGBTQ people? Nope, against G-d. Same sex marriage? Nope yet again. Abortion or choice rights. NO! His son wants to hunt without a license and shoot a deer on another's lands, why that is okay. Guess G-d spoke to him at that point? It is not only ridiculous but dangerous. I believe in G-d, but do not want to hear that in a court of secular justice where religion should have no place. I want to live in a country where religion is not imposed on another, where the rules of one religion becomes the rules of the country, like it or not.
    We live in a country where we are gifted with certain rights based on our Constitution, based on the principles expressed in the Declaration. That is our religion. And if one is an atheist or agnostic or pantheist or Jewish or Bahai, or Hindu or Moslem or Evangelical, Catholic or Protestant or whatever - court is not where it is nor where it belongs. The state legislatures are not where it belongs and neither does it belong in any level of court system.
     The proof of the pudding - we now have one of the worst administrations ever, full of swamp critters, ugly big ones who are devouring all else. There is not an ethical or brave one in the lot. Quite frankly, I think I will go have a chocolate pudding today - a much better choice overall. These puddings of Trump and crew? Toss them out, quick, before the mold they breed truly infects our whole system, beyond a point of no return. And quite frankly again, unfortunately I believe we are well down this dastardly road and we had better wake up, smell the pudding and change spoons. 
Tonite - Party Room 7-9 Storyville CV Style.
Come tell your tale, Speak what is in your heart and mind.
     

BORDERS? RED LINES?

     Every day I hope and pray that this will have ended overnight. Every day I dream that something has happened, that spines have stiffened and the madman has gone away, into retirement, into a jail cell, wherever, but then again, I wake up and there he is. So I ask, are there no borders, no red lines that he will not cross and nothing out there that will force people to wake up and get him out of office and send a warning to those next in line that there are borders, there are red lines and they had better not be crossed.
     The first article that opened this morning was one in which Trump tells a young widow that "he knew what he signed up for, but I guess it still hurt," . Yes, the crudeness, the lack of human empathy, the coldness all demonstrate that this man is one of the coldest, most selfish people ever to walk this earth and the rest of the day's news backed up that fact.
     Next up? Well, seems that the USA is now involved in setting up concentration camps for the thousands upon thousands of illegal immigrants that they are picking up and planning to pick up. Yes, we here in America will be treated to see concentration camps in real life. Guess the camps we set up for Japanese in WWII, the concentration camps of Hitler, the more modern ones in Serbia and Croatia, all these are not enough to keep such a thing, a horror from occurring again. Nope, Trump's government is planning on setting up lots more, all privately run, to hold these "terrible" people. So what is next? Does he then set up one of his more insane committees to go down the rolls of voters and find which voter had illegal immigrants as parents and then throw that person in jail, as tainted goods? Where does this end? And where do we stop with those captured. Do we hold total control over them as we do with a poor kid who was caught, needs an abortion, the state allows it but the reps of the federal government are saying no!!
    Where does this control end? And for how long are we ceding control to corrupt and perverse individuals who go along with these horrors, with these restrictions of rights, with those appointed to Trump's committees who are found out later to have major conflicts of interest or as in today, are being arrested for child pornography!!! WE are as corrupt and immoral as any of the countries around the world who kill those who differ from them, just as bad and probably worse as we are supposed to be the leader of the world, to set an example , to prove that morality can and should be incorporated into government. That there is a heart beneath those heavy books of law. That those laws can be held up to examination and fixed where necessary, with compassion and justice.
     Now Trump is being sued by a victim of his sexual molestation and good for her! I wish her the best. Yet even more, he is now named in the collusion suit by Kaepernick's suit re collusion in the NFL, even as the owners now say they will not, NOT, penalize those who do not stand or kneel during the anthem and will contribute to some of the organizations out there that fight for equality and justice. So eat that, Mr. Trump and all bigots out there!
     Trump rides roughshod over his own aides and people, this time dragging the death of the son of Kelly into the light, a death which Kelly has never brought into public affairs, in grace and private mourning, yet this Trump rides roughshod right over him and then Kelly does not show up at a presentation with the Greek minister as he usually does, so what, is the last and final set of controls over Trump finally taken off? Has he given up and why the hell do we need to worry and talk about controls over the president? He is supposed to be an adult. I still think that the man is suffering from some form of dementia and must be checked and if so, all our sympathies, but not to serve any longer as President. Article 25 needs to be invoked and soon before he acts on the statement of the general in charge of forces over there by Korea who now says that he "thinks of the unthinkable " - nuclear bombs and missiles on American cities.
     People, this man is a disgrace to us, to all people and a danger to the Republic for which he is supposed to stand! Borders? Red lines? Already crossed and crossed again. Sickening.

Reminder : Thursday nite, 7-9 PM, Party Room, Clubhouse, Storyville CV Style.
Come share your tales.
     

IS IT POLITICS?

     Why is it that when someone does not like something a politician says or does yet likes the same pol, why is there an excuse ready and waiting. "It's just politics." Oh, so that makes the act of telling a lie, cheating, misbehaving, etc. okay to be excused, written off? I hope not.
     Or we have the second excuse, used a great deal now. What is it? This: Well, so what if Trump did this or that - put in your own favorite misdeed - it is okay because someone else - put in your own choice of name - did the same thing or worse. Truly, that is not an excuse. What one does rests upon one's shoulders. Cosby is guilty of his filth, Weinstein of his, and Trump of his. It does not excuse him when Bill Clinton's reprehensible behavior is brought up. There is and should not be any tie between them other than to remind people that men, especially in positions of power over women, seemingly are incapable of fastening a zipper shut. One man's behavior does not excuse that of another.
     Trump was heard on the tape boasting - yes, boasting, of his groping of women. As far as I am concerned he, too, should be brought up on charges, thrown out of his clubs, and thrown out of the Oval Office. He is not fit to be there by any measure and even his own Republican Party agrees. But where were they when he could have been prevented? Certainly not standing on any moral principle!!
     So today we have a teacher who can scream at students on free time - not for educational purpose - to speak "American". Not sure what that is, and yes, I think all kids should be immersed in the English of their newly adopted country or the country they were born in, but that does not make it illegal to speak in another language. Should I be arrested for speaking Hebrew in a federal building? I think not and that goes for all languages as well. But hatred rears its head!
     We have lost tolerance for all but the lowest common denominator. Spencer is speaking at a college in Florida and the state goes on emergency footing. What the hell!! So he will speak his words of hate and what will be outside that room and for that matter, what will be inside? Will he or another shout the equivalent of Fire!! Why are these creeps so entitled now? Well, look to the head of the ugly beast, the man with the orange hair who proudly boasts that he and Bannon are good friends and they work together.
     Yes, this man who bumbles and mumbles lies so often that one cannot keep count goes of his destructive manner. He accuses other presidents of not contacting families of dead soldiers and why? Because, he, the uncaring fool, is too busy boasting of his tossed towels, of his imaginary accomplishments, his "hard" work, even as he appoints more liars and creeps and filthy rich old white men to office, all the better to harm the American electorate. He who insulted a Gold Star family calls someone else on something he does not do and so the families of the soldiers killed in Niger - and what the hell are we doing there! - do not get acknowledged even in a tweet!! So much for patriotism from the man who disregards tradition  when The Retreat is played, who never served because he had "flat feet" that have miraculously become unflat. But he does manage to criticize all who take a knee during the anthem, protesting for social justice and the NFL now backs a bill on reforming the justice system. Oh, and guess who opposes it - Sessions, yes, that bigot we now have as Attorney General of the country!! Politics?
     Yes, it is all politics today in our crazy country with its demented president, the one lacking in ethics, in humanity, in proper thinking, in service to his country, in telling the simple and unvarnished truth about anything! It is the fault of the Democrats, the Republicans the people in Puerto Rico, the mayor of San Juan, North Korea who now says that  it "has reached the touch-and-go point and a nuclear war may break out any moment." Just great! And obviously women are to blame for tempting their molesters. Just ask Trump et al. How people can work with this ethically challenged man is beyond me. But there are better words to explain the situation. These words are from Gregg Popovich, the head coach of Team USA, a former soldier disgusted by the remarks of Trump.
     "This man in the Oval Office is a soulless coward who thinks that he can only become large by belittling others. This has of course been a common practice of his, but to do it in this manner—and to lie about how previous Presidents responded to the deaths of soldiers—is as low as it gets. We have a pathological liar in the White House: unfit intellectually, emotionally, and psychologically to hold this office and the whole world knows it, especially those around him every day. The people who work with this President should be ashamed because they know it better than anyone just how unfit he is, and yet they choose to do nothing about it. This is their shame most of all."
     'Nuff said!

Please note that the meeting will be same place, same time - Party Room in the Clubhouse, 7-9 PM but will be called Storyville. Come join with your tale that you have to tell.

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

     The dark and the silence. The only sound that of an air filter and extra fan. The click of the AC. And the loneliness of one struggling to sleep, losing that battle and then staring at the screen, reading the stories and the news of a country gone off its tracks, of a world whirling in its dizziness and of leaders who seem to have no concept of leadership other than greed and power.
     People are openly arguing now about harassment of women by men in the world of business and theater. Who is to blame? The victim or the attacker? Women should dress modestly? Does that include the youngster who does not understand  how there are men out there who see her only as an object for their desire? But should not the molester take responsibility for his own actions, never mind the dress of the woman - or even of the other man or boy being attacked? And why has it taken so long to acknowledge openly what has been known and tacitly allowed for decades? And how do we combat this when the president himself is a confessed molester of women, a man with a dangerous attitude towards women, seeing them only as objects to be commented upon, gone after, touched inappropriately and there is no limit to this as he even commented re the sexuality and sexual appearance of his own daughter.
     I read of supposed diplomats who think they are encouraging when they say seriously that no, it is not really war with North Korea until the first bomb falls! Really? Is that where we are in the process? That only scares the living daylights out of me even more. Are we truly at that point? And how much of that situation is to blame on the man in the Oval Office who cannot shut his stupid mouth nor stop his damned tweeting?
     I read of the fact that this same North Korea has a huge army of successful hackers, who have hacked us before, are still doing it and plan on doing more in the future. So, what? Now we have to watch out for their hacking along with the Russians? Will it be their candidate opposed to that of the Russians and the hell with the wishes of the American people?
     Our rights as people, as citizens of America, are under attack, again, by the very same filthy mouth president, a man who has people so afraid of him that they will do anything he says, never mind the legal and moral implications. Yes, our civil servants, the members of the government "for the people" are simply not there any longer.
     The president attacks people expressing their protests in a manner he does not like, even though I feel he truly could care less other than the fact that this opens a hole for him to crawl through and then crucify opponents on this new cross. His behavior at a military facility when the Taps or The Retreat was being played was contemptible as are much of his behavior and comments. The media is attacked at every angle and on every statement, every word. Fake news, alternate reality, post truth - what is all that anyway? Why have these terms, so nonsensical and dangerous at the same time, been allowed to become part of a new lexicon? Why have we gone back to 1984 rather than forward to a new millennium seeking the promise of the future rather than its demise?
     And none of this helps me in my quest for sleep. It just makes me feel a bit better when I look at my audience stats and see how many people here in the USA and around the world are reading my words. How they found me is beyond me. Not a clue, but I welcome them all and appreciate their loyalty and interest. But will I sleep again tonite? Only another attempt will let me know, but first, a date with the latest Clive Cussler book in the hope that it will induce my sleep to come back. Lonely in the nite, lonely in the light of the screen. Hope you all had a good night. And welcome to the new day - I hope.

WAR?

     Before I begin, there is a hitch for Thursday night so stay tuned for further updates. Hopefully, we will be able to hold the meeting, a rally for truth, honesty, and justice, and against hatred, prejudice, and extremism. Will pass on the information as I receive it.
     So the topic is WAR. There was a song, back in the day, which roared the question, "War - what is it good for?" and answered it with a roared, "Absolutely nothing!" and yet here we are, engaged in a war for survival and awaiting a war of destruction and extermination.
     So we were reminded over the weekend, in case we forgot, in case it was lost in the horrific scandal of Weinstein and others who indulged in the droit de seigneur - the right of the lord - to engage in forced sexual relations with a bride or indeed any woman below him in status. So were we forgetting that the highest seigneur of the land, the President, has done that, has admitted to sexual molestation, to contempt for half the electorate, and has used disgusting language to describe his behavior towards and opinion of women. We elected this man, allowed him into office and we are reaping what we have sowed - WAR.
     Yes, Trump has declared war on the electorate, on the population of the country. He has approached this goal of wiping out those he does not like in various ways. So let's see how.
     First we have his race hatred, his despising of all those who are not lily white, who do not profess his hatred of others. So brown people, black people, Mexicans in particular - all "bad hombres" and from there he goes after their destruction.
     Yes, destruction or how else to explain his disastrous approach or lack of one to the calamity of Puerto Rico. How does one explain his poking fun of a proper pronunciation of the name and his throwing towels at them in order to show his concern!! How else to explain the lack of response, the delayed response, the ignoring of the fact that people are starving there, dying for lack of clean water, lack of shelter, lack of power and medical help. How, other than the fact that Trump has declared war on them.
     DACA or a war against approximately 800,000 young men and women who have committed the crime of coming with their parents to a land of hope, when they were children, and going to school, getting jobs, living as citizens of the country, planning for a future, but they are brown!! Hence - get the hell out!! We have lost any aspect of humanity, have found dregs of humanity who are willing to go and drag these people out, go after their parents, grab them in courts, in hospitals, at work, at play, out of their homes - all in the name of "following orders". Now where have we heard that before? And remember, hatred does not end and when one target is eliminated, well, hatred always finds another. Be aware and beware.
     FREEDOM OF THE PRESS - Since the trial of Peter Zenger, the freedom of the press, the right to write what it wishes, to expose corruption and pass on news has been very clear here in America. Yet this week, the President of the United States, he who is supposed to defend our rights, our Constitution, states that "it is disgusting that the press can write what it wants and somebody should look into that." That is sacrilegious and this man needs to stop his warring on the very foundation of our country.
      Trumpcare or more truthfully, deathcare. Frustrated by the lack of a reasonable and righteous repeal and replacement of ACA, Trump has decided to undercut the health of all Americans - erase that - of middle and lower class Americans - by writing yet another of his Executive Orders, the only way he finds he can function. Destroy the financial underpinning of ACA, do so at the very time of renewal and signing up and what do we have but WAR against the very base he thinks he has. So will the poor of Appalachia, the workers of the farms and small towns of America, the underemployed of the rust belt cities, the very people who need subsidized medical care - will they survive or will they die out and oops, there goes his deluded base, his brainwashed base. Deathcare on the rise!
     NAFTA AND TRADE PACTS - The man pulls out of every deal we have made, and yes, there are some issues with them as in every deal, but on the whole, trade has increased, the economy has absorbed it and evolved with it but Trump throws it all out, water, tub and baby. Businesses are pleading not to pull out, businesses are showing how manufacturing is now a multi national process and he will kill it all - but nope, Trump's war goes on against the world and against this electorate.
     KOREA AND IRAN - The man here retreats back into his infancy and toddlerhood, using name calling as a method of statesmanship - an oxymoron if ever there were one!! He behaves as a demented man even as he talks at the loosely wired heads of state of North Korea and Iran. North Korea has finally come up with a good name for Trump -  a "strangler of peace" and how true that is, not that they are innocent, but we are supposed to be the sane ones, the ones who keep deals, who know that diplomacy is a line of tact, of talk, of proper force and not insane threats and a disaster in the offing - the destruction of the world in nuclear war. And all he can tweet about is the fact that his plan to increase our nuclear holdings was discovered and exposed. Why do we need more - to destroy ourselves four time over? The man is mad, a warmonger of the worst degree. Yes, it is war time.
     SECRECY - Trump has a loose and big mouth, a profane one, and he shoots it off in his tweets without thinking about consequences, like a child. Only he is 71!! And then he wants to erase these tweets and statements as for example, his going to court now to keep the Comey files secret. They have back classified them, kind of calling a game after it is over and all to keep this out of the eye of the public. Well, too late, as all the barn doors have been opened already!! But he continues to govern in secret, appointing lobbyists to positions of power in direct opposition to the jobs they are supposed to do - protect the American public and the American dream.
      DESTROYED THE TRUST IN OUR DEMOCRATIC RITES - By introducing Russian interference with the campaign, indeed, by allegedly inviting them into the process, Trump et al have destroyed our trust in the very process which makes our democracy strong - the free election of officials of government. So now, before the next large election, states are running to protect the processes, protect the electorate, stop the attempts to cut out voters, the illegal and immoral process of gerrymandering, of any and all hacking in the vote. And yet, the trust or rather mistrust will linger, like a dirty haze over it all and that is thanks to Trump.
     TAX REFORM - What a joke. It is welfare for the wealthy and even they have admitted that. I need not say more.
     INADEQUACY - The man is simply unable to prepare for all events and possibilities. Our state of California is burning, people are running for their lives and the remains of it are ashes. People are dying even as Trump et al roll back the protections that would fight against such catastrophes. Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the states inundated by storms - the man is bewildered and can only throw paper towels and praise himself as he lies and lies and lies about his 'achievements'! And the man and his sycophants continue to destroy any and all protection of the electorate so in a modern day version of Marie Antoinette - let them breathe dirty air, let the chemicals roll on, let the water be contaminated, let the food rot for lack of workers, let us destroy our lands with mining, let us destroy all that makes America -America, a former leader of the world, a former country of morals and ethics, of care for humanity.
    War? War indeed. He has declared war upon us all, especially if you are outside the lines he draws - so women, LGBTQ, brown and black, poor, middle class - beware. You are being warred upon by the very person supposed to have your back. Watch out for the knife in the back instead.
     

FYI

In the spirit of this posting and this blog site, please join with many at the Clubhouse in the party room on October 19, 7-9 where a vigil for peace will be held, for anti hate, against the words of Richard Spencer who will be speaking at the University in Gainsville. It matters not your affiliation or views on a politician. All that counts is that you oppose hatred and words of hate. Come, let us join together and use our words to bring about a better world.

  Due to a religious holiday I will not be posting a new one till Sunday morning. In the meanwhile, please read and think about those I have posted on the blog and let us hope that you know who does not get too nutsy over the weekend!

WORDS. A REFLECTION

     Words. A compilation of letters, in turn another compilation, this time of shapes and implied sounds. They can be as small as one letter to those of massive length. They can open the world or shut it down, create a future or take it away.
     Five small words, four small words can change an outlook. It can take away a planned future which seemingly has no expiration date, to one where there was one, unknown but definitely implied. On the other hand it can open a new panorama for a future.. Will you marry me? You have ..... The power of words and the images they create are unstoppable.
     I have always wondered if we were assigned a specific number of words at birth and what would happen if we reached our limit. A good story line for some sci-fi show, but we really do need to watch our words and encourage a much better system and use of them.
     Today the world of words is a world of war, waged with cruel syllables, nasty ones of bullying, harsh and insulting ones and rarely does one hear words of reconciliation, of peace, of sympathy. Despair replaces hope and the lexicon changes but we gain nothing and lose so much. 
     The Beatles sang some songs of peace, but it never came. Yoko Ono places a full page ad in the NY Times on the anniversary of the shooting of John Lennon, asking for us to "give peace a chance" but we simply ignore it. Just as the world ignores the huge store of Israeli songs asking, begging for peace, of the songs for peace coming from its liturgy. Instead it uses lying words to accuse Israel of warmongering, the words of the twisting of truth. The war of words with North Korea can explode in a war from which there is no return.
     Words can lie. They can cut. They can break a person as cruelly as one who breaks bones and the effect can be longer lasting and more deeply felt. They can be as incisive and cutting as a blow to the heart with a physical weapon.Why is that? Why are we so insistent on using our words to hurt and dominate?
     What is among the worst misuse of words today is that of Trump. He cannot recognize a word of truth. He chooses not to. He conducts his business with words of insult and cruelty. He uses his words to harm rather than benefit. He most assuredly uses words so badly, so negatively, that we have no recourse but to think him as mentally ill or worse, purposely harmful and then we wonder what his goals truly are.
     Worse than that is the model he plays for those who also wish to lie and cheat. We have Nunes, Sessions, the alt right who are now empowered by Trump, people refusing to testify as to their part in collusion with Russia and then their master screeches of patriotism? For which country, even as he praise the Penguins as patriots - the team with more than a dozen aliens, you know, those creatures that Trump usually disparages. Hypocrisy reigns.
     So Trump roars and tweets in a blatant display of boorish behavior, of lying behavior, of behavior that should not be tolerated, certainly not in a supposed adult and the words of those who should deplore this are sadly missing.
     I have had it with words this week, be they of private content or those of a world figure. I want to hear the words that elicit the perfume of flowers, the kindness and empathy of one for another, the words of love that can light up the world, the words of kindness and kinship, the words that would never allow man to attack woman and justify it. Where are those words?
     Words and their usage began this world. Words have brought it to its figurative knees many time. And words have now brought us on the map to the point where the earth falls away and the map is outlined with the words "Here Be Monsters". But actually, the monsters are already here; we do not need to go sailing off to find them. We can join these monsters or we can defy them. The choice is through our words.
     I write from the heart here. I write in the hope that perhaps we can find better use for our words, make better choices and defeat those monsters.
     Word.

In the spirit of this posting and this blog site, please join with many at the Clubhouse in the party room on October 19, 7-9 where a vigil for peace will be held, for anti hate, against the words of Richard Spencer who will be speaking at the University in Gainsville. It matters not your affiliation or views on a politician. All that counts is that you oppose hatred and words of hate. Come, let us join together and use our words to bring about a better world.
     

CAN WE TALK?

     So would ask the late Joan Rivers and off she would go, making people laugh even as sharp barbs of truth came through. We need to talk, desperately so, right now. But we need to talk with each other rather than at each other. The need is desperate and the time for reckoning approaching at a gallop.
     Dishonorable. Inability. Mentally deranged. Explosive. Limited. All these and worse are used to describe the President of the United States. While shocking and extreme, it is okay, for that is the freedom of the country and the world to judge a public figure. What is shocking is that the criticism is so horribly, fantastically true. Bigly so. Very sad but true.
    Never before have we had a President who lied so much, who does so as a matter of everyday behavior, a man who shows no self control as he tweets the day away, behaving like a Alpha girl taking off after her most recent target. Even were he to tell the truth at some critical moment the effort to believe him and act on that belief would be sorely challenged, for the truth appears to be a no go for this man. Ever.
     Corker did not plead. Pence went on OUR dime to set up a fund raising divisive moment. The players are trying to make a point in a non violent manner, not showing disrespect for the flag but for those who claim the flag allows discrimination, racial injustice, hatred, prejudice. No, women do not like to be molested and sexually attacked. Bannon is an outright hate monger and the President backs him, encourages him and Bannon has come out now in full roar to defend Trump. A man wounded, beaten horrifically at Charlottesville now has a warrant out for him on "unlawful wounding" - possibly the result of a flashlight swing he did to protect a man being speared by a flagpole!!
     A city official takes back his resignation due to two racial slurs  he made about ADAs. Russia takes advantage of the anger, the rage, the disappointment of the American people and stokes it even more via Facebook, You tube and ads all over the place. They talk frequently with the Trump campaign. 
     There is no controlling this man and his "base" appear to be now mainly the dregs, those who carry the tiki lamps and red flags at rallies, those who scream with glee when a threat comes out of his mouth, when yet another black man is beaten down, when yet another synagogue is defiled with a swastika. The rest, I have no clue as to why they are still there in his camp other than the refusal to admit, to realize how wrong they were and how dangerous this man is.
     Women stand to lose all they have gained over the past century from respect to control over their own bodies, from the right to work to the right of equality in all spheres, including payment for a job or position. And it should make no difference how a woman is dressed or if she sashays down the street. Her right to do so, whether one likes it or not, is her right and she should not be attacked nor held responsible for an attack any more than a man in overly tight pants ,all the better to show off his junk should be liable to attack by other men or women disturbed by his manner of dress or walk.
      We casually toss around threats of nuclear war, of nuclear bombs, forgetting that we all share a planet and there is no hiding from the fallout. Or are we planning to return to the films of the fifties where people hid underground for millennia and then emerged only to meet the monsters and mutations of the surface!!! Face reality, folks.
     The White House has lost control over its main resident. Melania has finally woken up when Ivana said that SHE was the First Lady. Not sure what difference that claim makes! Senators are talking in private over the walking disaster of Trump but are afraid to speak out. Where is their courage? Would they have allowed slavery to continue were it brought up in their term of service if the President of the times had defended it? Moral outrage and the courage to act on it are desperately needed these days. So desperately.
     Millions upon millions of years ago there was a beautiful orb spinning in space with pristine waters, lands of grass and beauty, with all that one could need to live a beautiful life. The animals roamed in grace and freedom, only having to deal with natural enemies, a balance kept on this orb.
     Then Danger!! A new creature, a furless, two legged, ostensibly weaker creature came to this orb and the world was changed for all time. Sent to live a good life, a life of honor, of devotion, of kindness and righteousness, man instead turned to violence and greed and the Creator looked down upon His Creation and despaired. Are we at that time again when G-d will look down upon us and wonder where He went wrong and what to do? And if one does not believe in a G-d, in a Power, then one can believe in the natural morality of life, the path we should be following and the point of near destruction that we have ourselves created upon this Earth.
     I have never before been so frightened in my life for my life, for the lives of my children and grandchildren, for the lives of my people and for the lives of us all. We exist in hate and anger. We know what is wrong yet persist in doing it. We know the consequences but ignore them in a selfishness to amass more money, more power. The time for reckoning draws ever nigh. I, for one, would rather put that off for a while! We are at one minute to midnight and the clock is ticking.
     TICK. TOCK. TICK. TOCK.