I Remember Nixon

Richard Nixon. I remember Nixon and Watergate very clearly. His actions were criminal, dangerous, and in the end, unhinged. He should and would have gone to prison, but he was pardoned by his Republican crony, Gerald Ford under the guise of "sparing the country". 

Back then, there were Republicans in Congress who were patriotic enough to put the needs of the country ahead of the needs of their political party. And that's part of the reason why his actions were discovered and punished. 

But Nixon's actions were nothing compared to what we are witnessing now. 

Trump has openly and unabashedly broken the law and obstructed justice, this in plain sight and without remorse. This is no political "witch hunt" as he likes to claim. This is not a case of political opponents trying to bring down a rival. No, these are extremely dangerous and incredibly un-American and yes, evil actions that put everything we stand for in extreme jeopardy. If you don't see that, I suggest you do a little research, do a little thinking, and oh, remove your head from your ass. You are missing history unfolding right before your eyes. You should be afraid when a former close associate of Agent Orange states that he believes Trump will not hand over power if he loses the 2020 election. 

You should be VERY afraid. This is not America. This is not the American way. You have been played.

Trump a Conservative? Nah.

Although I generally disagree with the philosophy of conservativism, I have no issue with conservatives and have great respect for them. It's a respectable philosophy, after all. 

However, Trump is not a conservative in any way, is a horrible human being, would sell his own family down the river without losing a moment of sleep (and tried to do just that before his own mother stopped him), would not condemn the KKK and white supremacy, has 20+ women accusing him of sexual assault, is an incompetent businessperson as evidenced by multiple bankruptcies, has cheated hundreds of contractors out of millions of dollars over the years, is a fake patriot and fake Christian, and is a chronic, proven liar. I have no respect for him nor anyone who supports his bullshit. 

Really, how could any person of good character support this? You are certainly free to disagree, and if you do, by all means unfriend or block me now. It will save us both grief.

On Organized Religion

On the subject of religion, the right to practice whatever religion you choose is a basic tenant of life in the United States. I would gladly defend this right to the death were it threatened from within or without. That said, there are stipulations to this in my mind, as follows:

1. If you preach hatred of any individual or group because of your religion, fuck you.
2. If you try to impose your beliefs on others no matter what those beliefs might be, fuck you.
3. If your religious leaders involve themselves in politics for any reason, fuck them.
4. If your religious leaders live in million-dollar homes and fly private jets thanks to money brought to them from their "flock," fuck them again.
5. If your religious leaders have used monies brought to them by the faithful in order to cover up crimes against children committed by members of the clergy (talking to YOU Catholic Church), fuck them.

That all said, I still believe that every religion on the planet is fake, false, and just plain DUMB. And given that belief, I also wholeheartedly believe that any tax exemptions should immediately be lifted for every religion, bar none. 

Finally, I believe that for most part, religions are dangerous and potentially harmful to the human race. They all demand a halt to critical thought and they all demand you place your fake life in the fake hereafter ahead of the only life you will ever really have, i.e., this one. 

Most religious people NEVER use the same cognitive powers of reasoning that they use to decide what brand of milk to buy when evaluating the religion to which they supposedly dedicate their lives. If they did, there would BE no religion simply because not a one of them can stand up to such scrutiny.

Agreement

Democrats and Republicans are always gonna disagree about how to do things. This will never change, nor should it. However, the Trumpublican is a completely different animal. This breed actually objects to objection (something no liberal in the history of the world would find acceptable), and this is what makes them so dangerous. 

Democrats in Congress are NOT playing political games. No, they are doing EXACTLY what the Constitution compels them to, which is oversight of the Executive Branch. Any attempt to prevent such oversight, whether you like it or don't, is a move toward totalitarianism. If you don't recognize that term, know that it is the underlying principle that allowed Nazism to rise to power in Germany in 1930-35. The danger of such thought cannot be overstated. 

Trump is on a mission to destroy the behaviors that make this Democracy work. Believe it. And if you don't, maybe you will when a Liberal Democrat is elected and tries to shove his/her beliefs down your collective throats. Time to smarten up, people. Dissent is the very fabric of the Republic. Let. It. Grow.

Lies, Lies, Lies

I'm still trying to understand how some people, yeah a LOT of some people, think it's okay for this president to lie not just once, but literally and amazingly THOUSANDS of times, all absolutely documented and proven beyond a shadow of a doubt. 

Obama said ONE thing they thought was a lie (you can keep your health insurance, which I believe was more of a misstatement, but still I get it) and he was crucified by those same people relentlessly. This guy? Lies every damned day, usually multiple times, and these people either won't believe it or simply accept it either because (I think) they hate the same people he does, they erroneously think the ENTIRE media, literally thousands of them, are ALL conspiring against Trump (ridiculous and dumb), or perhaps they simply love their money and don't give a flying fuck about anything or anyone else (hint: he is not the reason your stocks are up).

Or maybe his "us against them" bullshit makes them feel like they are part of something (which is basically a white supremist cult, unfortunately). I just don't get it. The lack of comprehension is astounding. Just astounding. 

Really and truly, if you support this ass, unfriend or block me now. Because our values are simply out of sync.

"I was out, but they pulled me back in!" —Michael Corleone

It might not seem like it at times, but I try to look at these things like a detective, not a partisan. And I keep coming back one question: why would Dr. Ford reveal this (and remember, she did so BEFORE he was nominated to the position)? She put her family and herself in harm's way, and I can find no reasonable motive for her to do this other than her believing it was the right thing to do. 

The Democrats might have a motive, but even that is thin because we all KNOW they are going to place a Conservative in that seat whether it's this guy or someone else. And of course, Goursuch recently went through this exact same process with no such allegations. That in itself tends to rule out a political motive, does it not? Meanwhile, Merrick Garland, a good candidate for the court with no such baggage, was flat-out refused a hearing for strictly political reasons, which is an outrage. 

Maybe she is after a book deal or publicity, but that also doesn't feel right because of her obvious reluctance to be in the spotlight. 

Maybe they paid her? But no one has said anything of the sort and it doesn't appear she is in any financial distress. 

Did she invent the whole thing in some paranoid delusion? I suppose it's possible, but she did not seem at all delusional. 

All of Kavanaugh's behaviors, on the other hand, are easily explainable. Anger at the accusations, be they true or false, would be natural. As would tears. Women who have suffered abuses have said that their abusers have cried after the act, saying "why did you make me hurt you?" So that is also consistent. And he clearly lied right to all your faces regarding "boofing" and "the devil's triangle," two terms you can easily Google. 

This alone (the blatant lies) disqualifies him for the highest court in the land, in my opinion. As for the hearing itself, it was ridiculous. Everything should have been handled by an authority like the FBI in the background like a, you know, REAL investigation. The Republicans and the nominee (several times for you all to see right there on TV) refused to do this, not the Democrats, which is how this became a TV side show. So blaming the Dems for this is disingenuous and inaccurate. Perhaps we are all more comfortable if things like this remain unseen and unheard? 

Finally, it should be noted that the number of women who are assaulted and do not report it is supposedly enormous, while the number of women who report false accusation to the authorities is miniscule. That alone makes her lying a long shot. I ask you to remove your emotions from this equation like Columbo and consider the facts. If you can find me a motive for her actions, I am listening. If you are  disrespectful or blatantly ignorant in your response, fuck off. 

Meanwhile, here is another opinion. https://deepstateradionetwork.com/flashback-yesterday-we-again-witnessed-an-attempted-rape/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

On Immigration

 A few words on immigration. My ancestors came to this country in the early part of the last century during a mass migration of Italians and Sicilians. They were simple peasants seeking out better opportunities in the new world. They had no skills, just a desire to improve their lives and to work hard every day to support themselves and their families. The VAST majority of Italians and Sicilians were much the same.

However, there also some bad people who came with them. They came here already jaded criminals with nefarious plans, and they started their own type of business, organized crime. They were vile, evil people who snuck through the cracks and wreaked havoc.

My ancestors were scorned here. They were called WOPs and DAGOs and worse. They were not wanted. They were cursed. But they powered through the scorn for decades until they became what we are today: accepted as Americans.

I believe today's immigrants are no different than my ancestors were lo those 100 years ago. They seek a better life for themselves and their families. They will work hard to do it. And they hope to eventually be accepted as Americans -- whether they came here illegally or not.

If you seek to condemn all these people today, think about my Italian ancestors cowering in the bowels of those dirty ships heading to New York City with no money, no prospects and no skills, with only a dream of a better life in America. Think of them before you condemn today's seekers.