tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6526501795510763112024-02-19T06:51:51.953-05:00The WorksA blog about charities, politics, and other events that occur. Feel free to share anything stated on this blog. Who knows where the journey will lead us.John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.comBlogger376125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-58804679492259036222021-06-14T23:26:00.003-04:002021-06-14T23:26:46.955-04:003 years later...<p> Yay, I quit smoking. I moved around a bit. I saw Covid19 and survived. I even got vaccinated for it, and outside of some really weird dreams, no adverse side effects. It's been three years... Wait, 3 years? Somehow that doesn't feel right after the decade of 2020, yet I can check the time stamps and year, its been a little over three years since I last spewed whatever was on my mind.</p><span><a name='more'></a></span><p>I can't speak for everyone, but the last year and a half has really sucked. I wish I could say it was because I quit smoking, and I rarely drink, but the past year and a half has sucked for everyone. Some of us for other reasons than others. If your year sucked because you had to wear a mask to go get your chicken wings, go stand in the corner. It wasn't really bad for me until February of last year, since then I've lost count of the friends I lost to Covid19. And conservatives like to complain about depression, I was depressed before half of my friends died. Holing up only allowed me to not deal with people, it gave me a reason to become a hermit, I wasn't rude, I was doing a civic duty by not leaving my house or interacting with people. You know, that whole "Introverts unite! At home, in your room with the lights off!" thing. </p><p>So, we went through another election, and the "good guys" won, yay! I don't see a lot changing of course, but the blue team won. We don't have many Twitter rage outs. Of course, here we are going 8 months afterwards and we are still recounting the votes, because or Asian Bamboo Paper Ballots mailed from Russia, I think? I don't know, these conspiracy theories are getting a little wild for my taste. Just give me alien abduction or demonic possession conspiracies any day of the week. Oh wait, the Department of Defense is releasing videos of UFOs? </p><p> I have come to the conclusion that Bill Maher is the Tucker Carlson of the left, and we would be better off if both would retire, or take their leave like Rush Limbaugh. Well, now that I'm back, I guess I will find something to rant about at least once a day. What's the worst that can happen? <br /></p><p><br /></p>John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-57073188675673633412018-05-31T00:51:00.002-04:002018-05-31T00:51:36.860-04:00Its been a long while...
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
Everyone,
stop, take a deep breath, and put on your adult pants, because we
have some serious problems, and I don't have any answers. Be the
change you want to be is a joke, and let me tell you why, that is
before I start talking about some problems we have. It is a joke,
because a third of the country is completely and utterly apathetic to
what is going wrong, the other two thirds care, at least I hope they
care, about what is happening, but are so caught up on being right
that they won't listen to each other. Rather than speak, listen,
hear and maybe learn, we set our sole focus on destruction, and if
the opposing side cannot be destroyed, make it look worse than your
own. Hey, I can admit that I have moments where I am also caught up
on being right. As for what follows, make up your own mind.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Around the end of last year, I decided
that I needed a break. I needed a break because I am getting roasted
in person by African Americans, Caucasians, just about every race of
people you could conceive of. I have been called privileged because
I am fair complected and straight. I have been told I am privileged
because I was born with two balls and a dick. My response has been,
and always will be that the only privilege in this world is money, if
you have money you can pretty much say and do as you want. Just look
at what our President has said in the past, and look at what Roseanne
Barr said and those results. Now, I am not a fan of hers,
she has been offensive and crude for as long as I can remember, and I
remember her National Anthem rendition from the late 80s. One
advocated for sexual assault, and he became president, the other said
something extremely stupid and racist on Twitter, and oh boy the war
is on. Look, I am not going to justify the actions of either, I am pretty
sure that gender plays a roll in this somehow, somewhere. Both are
offensive, and should be condemned. But this is where everything
starts coming apart at the seems.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The two thirds of people I hope care,
are divided on everything that went down. Nearly a third of those
brush off both sets of comments, while the other third is completely
enraged, as they should be... That last third, they are off
somewhere doing god knows what. There is a lack of respect in our
nation. We don't respect ourselves, we don't respect our elders, we
don't respect others. Less respect is shown to those whom we
disagree with. We hurl mud at people we see as our lessors, we
insult them, we degrade them, and then we cannot seem to understand
why we can't come to an understanding with them. We can't understand
why boys go into schools and kill everyone, and worse yet we cannot
seem to find ourselves addressing why these events happen. In some
ways it seems that many do not even respect life, and when one cannot
respect life, what is left?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Along with a lack of respect, there
also seems to be a lack of sympathy and empathy. Oh sure, you might
assume they are the same thing, and while they are similar, they are
different. Recently a friend told me that she had been living out of
a tent last winter. I felt badly for her, that is sympathy, then I
remembered what it was like to be living in a tent, something I have
done. I could also see myself living in a tent again, and how I
would feel to be in that situation again. That is empathy. We as a
nation seem to be lacking in both. When a specific third of our
nation see a person in line using a EBT card, they lack sympathy and
empathy, unable to visualize themselves in that situation, or even
remotely feel badly for the person on welfare. No, they become
enraged when they see them buying food. If they buy cheap crappy
food people are enraged that they are buying “junk food,” which
is drastically cheaper, but if they buy good food, its even worse.
And God forbid they borrowed a car to get to the store, and its a
nice car. Seriously, before I became homeless, my Dad and I were
making payments on a newer Ford pickup. Something I used to make
extra money to try and escape living in a tent with him and my Mom.
I cannot count the number of times I had it thrown in my face that I
was homeless but had a “new truck,” and I was homeless because I
had the wrong priorities. I was irresponsible. Sad thing is, people
who are on welfare get that as well, except they get it far worse
than I ever did. One third of the nation barely even notices the
embarrassed look of the person in front of them in line, when they
drag out the welfare card, or when the cashier tells them that they
don't have enough funds on the card, or that there are two totals,
one for what welfare covers, the other for the rest. And a whole lot
more people don't realize that they are only a few short steps away
from being in that customer's shoes. Honestly, unless you are
sitting on a few hundred grand, you are a few short steps, a fall, a
car accident, house fire, or layoff away from being that person, the
one who can never buy the right kind of food for others, while using
a welfare card.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Hey, before I forget, I want to know
how many of you voted for Clinton for no other reason than to stop
the walking talking dumpster fire? So, in order to stop one bad
candidate, you were willing to go with a candidate that basically
said we couldn't do anything remotely liberal, who painted a center
left candidate as a pie in the sky super hardcore commisocialist
type... Then nominated a Senator from the Commonwealth of Virginia
that is more Republican than Ronald Reagan was at his most senile.
Seriously, the Democratic Vice Presidential Nominee just voted to
deregulate further the pricks that nuked our economy a decade ago.
But she would have been better than the trash fire inhabiting the
Peoples House? Look, look, I know Donald Trump is a giant stemming
pie of feces of a so-called man who should have long ago been locked
under a prison somewhere and left to rot. And between him and
Clinton, Clinton would have likely been marginally better. We would
still have scandals of the week, we would still be involved in
several military actions across the globe. North Korea would still
be doing whatever it is they are doing, just like Iran, and Israel.
North Korea is in over its head, and their leader knows it, he'd be
at the table regardless of who was president. The key word here is
marginally. We'd still be deregulating everything under the sun,
wages would continue to stagnate. But we would still be paying an
outrageous price for health insurance, and that wouldn't have been
fixed anytime soon, because it was a mythical debate. I disliked
Jill Stein, she is really not that great of a candidate, she is more
concerned with running, not winning or governing, but even with that,
she gave a better appearance of wanting to help people. I will also
give that paltry 1% of people who voted for her some credit, at least
they weren't bullied into voting for a bad candidate. But one
doesn't really know, do we?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Speaking of which, we have a severe
problem with bullying in the US. I watched it in high school, hell,
I lived it every day I walked into whatever school I was attending.
So, I get online and guess what I see? A bunch of ignorant bullies,
and I'm not talking about conservatives alone. Everyday I see people
telling others that they have blood on their hands, they relish the
deaths of children, that they are horrible people. Those are the
tame statements, it gets far more descriptive, and I'm not up for
repeating everything I have seen online these last few months. But
this bullying started well before this last spat of shootings. This
started before the last Presidential Election, back when Clinton was
first getting into the race, before she had any competition. No,
that isn't right. This started well before that, this started back
even before Obama. I started noticing this stuff back in AOL
chatrooms back in 2001, where conservatives would bully for a few
hours, then liberals would come en masse and push back. I will say
it is truly amusing to watch to ignorant people arguing about who is
racist based solely on political ideology, when it is debatable if
either has a grasp on history or what a racist really looks like or
even sounds like. Its like watching two monkeys throw poop at each
other. Hey, if you don't like Trump, you are a special snowflake, if
you like Trump you are a racist, and if you dislike Clinton you are a
sexist pig. Imagine where we would be if someone suddenly said, “If
you don't like Sanders (or Stein) you are an anti-semite.” I
honestly think heads would have imploded. Seriously, it is
impossible to have a rational debate when you are being insulted,
spoken down to, and otherwise bullied or trolled. Liberals, want to
know why gun owners are basically ignoring you, and talking down to
you, or as I have heard it said, “gunsplainnig?” Its because
they are instantly wrong, they are compensating for the size of their
penis, or they are otherwise too stupid, cruel, cowardly, or are too
evil to understand that people are dieing. Maybe set aside how you
feel, and really talk to the person carrying a gun around. Sure,
they might be a complete idiot, but if you treat someone like they
are stupid, they are going to just ignore you or become hostile. You
might come to understand their view a little better, they might to
come to understand your view better. But dialogue is happening,
genuine dialogue. If some of the Clinton supporters had really
listened, rather than chastising everyone who questioned voting for
her, maybe things could have been ironed out.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
There is also a case of arrogance and
ignorance. It seems like everyone is an expert on everything. These
two traits do not go well together. We see it everyday. There is no
shame in not knowing something, but a little humility can go a long
way in this world. Ignorance is not a crime, being ignorant can be
fixed. Being arrogant can as well, both take time, and a genuine
desire to learn and change. But what I see happening now are people
becoming more arrogant, their way is the only way, even if they are
mostly ignorant on the subject. Those two attributes alone are
enough to kill off any discussion.<br /><br />Now however, I am going to
talk about something far worse than judging, bullying, the lack of
respect I see, and even the apathy of our people. It is the looming
collapse. You can say I am being overly pessimistic, you can say
that I am bringing on the drama, but lets be realistic about our
prospects here. Over the last several decades wages have stagnated,
the cost of goods and services have increased. As an example I will
point to the price of gas, well its cycle anyway. Every year the
price of gas goes up, then comes down, and barring any insanity out
of the Middle East, this cycle rarely hits any snags. But have you
noticed that the price rarely drops back to where it was? Not even
two years ago gas was well below two dollars a gallon where I live,
and as of yesterday, the last time I checked, it was around two
dollars and sixty cents a gallon. I have heard that there are places
in California that are north of four dollars a gallon, and the price
is inching higher. I watched the price of gas jump twenty cents in a
twenty four hour period. Once this cycle hits a certain level, we
will again watch the car market crumble, we will watch as food prices
increase drastically, we will really watch everything become
affected. Gas and fuel prices will be passed onto the consumer, who
will not pay for the niceties of life, and that will start the
collapse. We still have a severe underemployment and unemployment
number, as I have said in the past, the unemployment number only
includes those people who are currently receiving benefits, so when
your benefits expire you are no longer counted. These numbers do not
include those who are working part time, but are seeking full time
employment, or those who are earning poverty wages. For the record,
those are wages that are under twenty thousand dollars a year,
regardless of how one comes to earn or receive them. So, that would
include Mom and Dad who are getting less than twenty thousand dollars
a year from Social Security, and the lady across the street who is
disabled and getting welfare and/or disability.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We still have people under crippling
amounts of medical debt, I recently heard of a man who settled a
lawsuit, in which the insurance company and hospital were colluding
on the bill. Now, you might think he would fight this, but he would
have lost on a technicality, so he took the least painful approach,
settle for on paying a portion of the bill, because the system is
rigged. I was recently subpoenaed to appear before the court in a
case where a young man was owed money by a family member, said family
member had been incarcerated in the interim, and was unable to
appear. Our system requires one has representation is they are
unable to appear, and that is a good thing, but his case was
non-suited (granting him a do-over), because he was not aware that he
was obligated to acquire the defendant an attorney, something he was
later told the court was obligated to do. Everyday, we have unarmed
people gunned down in the streets by those who are paid to protect
and serve, and often there is no justice to be had. It is usually
justified, as it was back in the Old West, and there are people who
say “Well don't break the law.” I'm sorry, but stealing a candy
bar shouldn't be a death warrant. There is a reason we have the rule
of law, that we have a right to be brought before a judge or jury,
not shot dead. Even a minor offense, is met with force, sometimes
deadly, other times excessive, rarely neither. Just because the
officer thinks... There was a time when you could go to the police,
explain the situation, and they could make the call on it, was it
illegal, was it civil, did it warrant investigation or not. Now, you
can go to report a potential crime, and the cop will then explain it
to his supervisor, who will then likely call the first available
prosecutor, and they will then tell the cop if they think it is a
prosecutable offense. Rarely is justice truly served, what matters
is who tells the best story, and if you can afford a good lawyer.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Meanwhile, as wages stagnate and jobs
evaporate, we have the looming threat of automation. We have more
low wage jobs coming in and many of those jobs are becoming
automated. I heard some say nothing, cheerfully chirping away about
this or that, others screaming it is because of the minimum wage, and
the threats to raise it. Millionaires, Billionaires, and
corporations are being given every lower tax rates, while we are told
that they are going to bring in more higher paying jobs... Only to
have them close down said jobs and move them off shore.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We still have millions of people who
are uninsured or underinsured, paying every increasing deductables,
copays, coinsurance while getting less treatment. Costs are
spiraling out of control, as they were back when the PPACA was
implemented, yet people want to hold onto the belief that the PPACA
was some mythical dragon slayer, that because of that program we slew
the insurance companies and brought them to heel, but it was nothing
more than corporate welfare for the insurance companies. There were
over three hundred million hostages for them to rip off, and when
their profit margins were not great enough, they withdrew their
coverage. And when I say great enough, their profits were not what
they wanted them to be. Like oil, health insurance is a trillion
dollar industry.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I mentioned student loan debt briefly,
did you know that it is currently over a trillion dollars in the US?
Over 1,000,000,000,000$. I think the last figure I saw several
months ago was roughly $1.3 Trillion. Car loans are approaching the
trillion mark, and I don't even want to know what the mortgage loan
total is at, I am sure I would probably require an expensive hospital
stay if I did. These things are money sinks, the money goes in, but
does not really benefit the economy, given how many of those phone
calling jobs have gone off shore. I had to call my cell phone
provider a few weeks back over a problem I was having with my worn
out phone, and got a nice gentleman somewhere on another continent.
He was not able to solve my problem, because lets face it, Apple
basically nukes their phones after a year and a half to two years.
It isn't just Apple, the average life expectancy of a cell phone
these days is roughly a year to a year and a half. That cell phone
you spend so much time staring at, tweeting on, posting kitty videos
on, or watching porn on... Yeah, they are designed to fail within a
year and a half so to keep a phone, you have to replace it with
another new more expensive one. Even the old “dumb phones” like
we had back in the early 2000s are designed in that way. Our cars
are designed to fall apart every few years, so as newer models are
released into the market, and the parts supplies start drying up, as
malfunctions happen, you are forced to upgrade, even if it is
something you cannot really afford. Its planned obsolescence. Get
people to buy a product that will fail in after a few years of
service, they will then buy another one, because they need it. It
wouldn't surprise me if the cryptoware problem people were having
several years ago wasn't the brain child of computer makers.
Computers and laptops had become too efficient, too many people knew
how to fix minor and even some major problems, so they unleashed this
new type of virus, that is not easily fixable, to force them into
buying a new computer.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="https://draft.blogger.com/null" name="cch_f26a4e81e7dedc2"></a>But
hey, it can't get worse, can it? Oh yeah, as I type this I am
listening to the soothing sounds of a freight train rumbling through
my neighborhood. No, it isn't a real freight train, its not a
tornado, its the sounds of a monsoon, dropping gallons of water a
minute, flooding out everything in sight. At the end of May. This
is the fifth consecutive day of rain here. It's almost like April
has arrived. Now, if you couldn't tell this is about the looking
climate apocalypse that so many are ignoring. Look, so many people
get hung up on phrasing, “Global Warming? Then why is it snowing?
If the planet is getting hotter, it wouldn't be snowing.” Idiots,
I tell you, idiots. I have heard Global Climate Change, and that is
an apt description of whats happening now. I have come to prefer
Global Climate Disruption. Some places the winters are colder with
more snow, some places are hotter in the summer with less rain, and
the opposite is true in other areas. I've seen severe thunderstorms
on Christmas Day. Seriously, many moons ago(2010), I started cooking
on Christmas Day in a thunderstorm with massive hail and high winds,
only to pull a turkey out of a deep fryer in a raging blizzard. We
are talking less than 90 minutes from 80 degree weather to minutes
away from severe frostbite in less time than it takes to deep fry a
turkey. All over the world weather events are becoming more severe.
Just last year we had five consecutive category four (or higher)
hurricanes make landfall. We were literally watching something that
had never been recorded in human history. And it is only going to
get worse, yet two thirds of the population in this country believe
God will fix it (or rapture them), its a scam, someone will figure it
out someday, or oh look its a squirrel.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, back to economic issues. I
previously brought up looming automation, and if we have the right
systems in place, this is something that should not be feared. It
should be welcomed, but first some things I have heard about
automation... First and foremost is that children born in the last
five or ten years will not drive a car in the way we do now. Tesla's
autopilot cars are growing, they are becoming more feasible, the
programming is becoming better, the hardware more efficient. It is
believed that within the next decade, autopilot in cars will become a
standard feature on all trim packages. Kids today will not know what
it is like to get in a car, and have to actually drive. Within the
next twenty to thirty years many industrial jobs will become
automated, requiring a small fraction of the workforce currently
employed. As of today, many stores and fast food restaurants are
moving to automated ordering stations and checkouts, requiring fewer
employees. Furthering this trend are automated cooks, which are
currently in the testing processes. Kids today, will find it
increasingly difficult to find employment, but they will have it
easier than older people. Now, I know that people will say, but when
the ~insert invention~ was invented lots of people lost their jobs,
and were able to transfer into other fields. Yes, in that time and
era technology was severely lacking, today new technology is being
created, tested and released to the public at lightning speed. Fifty
years ago the crew of the starship Enterprise had nifty little
communicators, in which they could contact their ship while on the
surface of a planet, thirty years later we had a phone in a bag, ten
years after that we had large but smaller phones called “the
brick,” then cellular phones that looked just like the
communicators from Star Trek. After the decades that saw man first
step foot on the Moon, we know have cell phones that are considered
more powerful than the computers that took us there. That said, we
have computers fast enough, intelligent enough, and small enough to
pilot a vessel, and this will bleed over into the job market. These
devices will eventually become more reliable, as computers and
cellphones have, and require less maintenance. Even the cheapest
printer can maintain itself, it can troubleshoot its own failures and
tell you the owner how to make repairs if it cannot repair itself.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
While this is happening, we are seeing
growing income inequality. We are currently on par with some third
world nations, some very corrupt third world nations. And yet we
have people on both sides of the isle voting to continue to
exaggerate this trend, willfully ignoring that when private debt is
lower, and people are earning more, everyone benefits. Eventually
the system will no longer be able to support itself, despite whatever
delusion you have convinced yourself of. Top down economics cannot
sustain itself, and we have passed the tipping point, and now it is a
matter of time.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
All of these things are continuing on,
while we are distracted by what Roseanne Barr said, Trump's tweets,
and all other scandals that happen on a daily basis. Oh hey, lets be
angry that the NFL has a new penalty for kneeling during the National
Anthem, or that NFL players are kneeling during the anthem, but lets
ignore police becoming more militant in their treatment of people.
Oh Roseanne Barr said something ignorant and racist, while we ignore
deregulation of the same group of people who nuked our economy. The
same people Clinton told to “Cut it out.” while Trump has been in
bed with for decades. Cities are literally making it illegal to help
feed the homeless, building structures to make it impossible for the
homeless to sleep under bridges, or on benches. For a while I saw
videos of homeless camps being destroyed in places like Hawaii and
California, but they came and went with the latest of insanity our
president. I mean really people, the DNC basically said in court
that they does not have to have open or fair primaries as a private
organization, and that goes largely ignored because Russia. Would it
be better with Clinton in charge, maybe marginally better. Would it
have been better if any number of potential candidates won the
election, maybe. We can assume.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But here is where we stand today. We
have a country further divided than just about any time in our
history, save the events leading up to the Civil War. Our economy is
in a state of severe flux, and with the way the government is acting,
we might come to think of the Clinton, Bush, Obama, and Trump terms
as the Roaring 20's. We have a government that is paralyzed with
petty bickering and people who have likely been bought and paid for
through political donations. We have nearly two thirds of our
country who have gone utterly insane, a third that doesn't seem to
care either way. We have a large majority of people who believe
everything they are told by the media, reject everything that doesn't
agree with their current world view, and a small handful of people
who constantly get shouted down for trying to walk everyone back from
the ledge. And if that doesn't scare you, this might... There is an
even smaller, silent group who can't wait to watch it all crumble
away, knowing exactly what will happen when it does. Of course, I
can tell you what scares those people. It isn't a race war or a
civil war. It is not the complete collapse of the economy. I would
say that they aren't even scared of death itself. What scares them
is that with everything that has happened in the past, everything
that is happening right now, that nothing will be gleaned from
everything that has gone horribly wrong, and that there is little
chance of actually rebuilding anything that the Founding Fathers
envisioned for us all.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
On a side note, before you start saying
it was this group or that group, it is the fault of those who voted
for Trump, or didn't vote for Clinton are to blame for this... They
aren't to blame, everyone is to blame for this. We have allowed our
ignorance and arrogance to cause all that has happened, and all that
will happen.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-5163962017302078112018-02-21T19:30:00.000-05:002018-02-21T21:27:28.356-05:00Here we go again... again...
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I am crawling out from under my rock,
and having to discuss an emotionally charged incident. So here we
are again, another entry about gun control, and once again my stance
is unchanged. But we need to have this conversation, and some things
will be said that some will not like.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
First, I am still all for the Second
Amendment, that has not changed, that will not change. I still own
several firearms, mostly bolt action guns that are nearly twice my
age. Unlike what I and other gun owners have been accused of, we are
not paranoid, we do not have blood on our hands, and we do not
fantasize about killing people. I am sure, with over three hundred
million people living here, there are some who are paranoid and do
fantasize about killing people. Those are the people who we need to
worry about, not someone like me, who collects old rifles for the
history or looks. Not the person who goes to the range to shoot at
paper targets.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Since the events of the Parkland
shooting, I have seen more and more radicalized ideals coming from my
liberal peers, and honestly I don't blame them. We have a serious
violence problem here in the good ole US of A. We have a hate
problem in the US. We have a respect problem in the US. We have a
poverty problem in the US. And banning, confiscation, or making it
nearly impossible to acquire firearms is the easiest solution, and
that it would probably solve the spree shootings we see, it will lead
to far worse things. Intent and ability will always exist, and if
the intent is strong enough, ability will present itself.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But the problems extend past spree
shooters, and that is an inability to speak logically about the
problem. The most enjoyable debate on the subject I had was with a
friend I do not speak to nearly enough. She reposted a Tweet about
what people on the gun control side of the debate wanted, that did
not include an outright ban. A ban on bump stocks and trigger
cranks, background checks, closing off the “gun show loophole,”
raising the age for purchase of “assault rifles,” no private
sales or requiring that they have a transfer of title, and various
other reasonable sounding laws. The only objection I had, and
explained that it was a case of enforcement is the private sale
requirements. I agree bump stocks and trigger cranks aren't
something that someone needs. I can agree that purchase of firearms
of any stripe should be restricted to 21 or older. We have
background checks, but they can be better, and attention needs to be
paid in reporting prohibited people. The Texas church shooter was
prohibited, but the military failed to report he was prohibited. The
Parkland shooter was reported to have had domestic violence
complaints, and while I do not know if he had been picked up for
them, it should have sent up red flags when he went to purchase a
firearm. The system can be improved, and anyone who denies that fact
should really look hard at the situations at hand. These two things
alone might well slow some of this down. A waiting period isn't as
horrible as some of my Pro-Second Amendment peers claim it is.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But, we need to have these
conversations in a civil way. I don't care which side of the debate
you are on, a civil conversation is required to achieve anything. I
was once called paranoid by someone who lives in a nice gated
community, who identifies as white and straight, whose neighbors in
her estimation agree with her political ideology, and who find racism
detestable to their very core. We are all not so lucky. I live in a
place where white supremacy reigns supreme. Where the majority of
pawn shops and firearms dealers openly support white power militias.
Where they openly recruit for these groups. I live in a place that
is proud of its oppression of minorities, that has one of the highest
crime rates in the state. I live in a neighborhood where neo-nazis
roam the streets giving the hail hitler salute as they drive by,
where houses have bullet holes in the front facades. Where if you
call the police after dusk, they won't respond. To add to this, I am
Jewish. My father was beaten nearly to death in the hospital,
because of his suspected Jewishness, this beating led directly to his
death. I am not paranoid, I am living in a potential racial war
zone, with few allies. And this war is brewing, every week the
“heritage not hate” groups hold various rallies, at this point
they are selling items to acquire firearms. And if a ban were to be
enacted, one that required people to forfeit their firearms, I doubt
those arms would be acquired by relevant parties, and I doubt those
parties would really even try. And this place is not unique, and no
amount of saying the police will act can dissuade my view. If we
cannot trust the police to not shoot or abuse someone who is armed or
unarmed, how can we trust them to actually ensure that all known
parties are unarmed?
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I have been accused of having blood on
my hands, and yes I do. I have put animals down using firearms. I
have shot coyotes menacing my livestock. I have on occasion shot
deer for food. I once shot a bear in self defense (using a beanbag
round). I collect rifles that have likely killed more than one person
in their lifespan. I am not alone in these things, people hunt for
food, some hunt for sport, some of us collect rifles because of their
history, and some of us just enjoy going to the range, just to
practice a skill set. Others yet live in areas where personal
protection is needed. I happen to live in an area where hunting is
big, and self protection is required. Personal protection from
criminals, personal protection from those who would burn my home down
with me in it, if given the chance. That is not paranoia, that is
just a fact of life for many people these days.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Remember, when trying to find a
solution, you have to take into the opinions of others, and insulting
does nothing. I don't like trump, I think the man is pretty dumb,
and many of his supporters aren't much better. They refuse to look
at things objectively, they see anything they don't like and label it
as “fake news.” It's all propaganda to taint a “great”
president. But, to label a whole group of people based on their
views, to deride them or shame them only closes off the ability to
have meaningful dialogue to create solutions. It is easy to insult,
it is easy to attempt to shame, or otherwise deride gun owners. But
I hear that moderates on the matter, like myself should speak up, be
the voice of reason, but how can we? We get shouted down by the
ardent conservatives and libertarians who want zero restrictions, and
we get shouted down by the ardent gun control/gun ban crowd who feel
that firearms should be legislated into oblivion, regardless of why
someone has them. Because nobody is willing to listen to the
moderate views, the moderates in this mess either withdraw from the
debate, or they get pushed into one side of the debate. And I can
tell you, it's not easy maintaining a reasonable view of this. You
might think that is a good thing, but it isn't. Of all the people I
have encountered in this debate, only a small handful have fallen
into the extremely strict gun control side of things. I have only
seen a small handful of people who willingly destroyed or turned over
their firearms.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I know many gun control advocates list
statistics, and that is a good way to go about things. They talk
about how the NRA has donated to most of our federal government. Our
elected officials have been given money by the NRA. They aren't
wrong to list the members of our Congress have gotten money from the
NRA, they are not wrong to give the amount of money the NRA has
deposited into war chests for reelection. I have no use for the NRA,
they do not represent me, for that matter, there is a large group of
people the NRA does not represent, and they are gun owners. I know
of several thousand gun owners of various stripes of liberal. Some
are proudly self claimed communists, some are socialists, some are
merely liberal, and many call themselves centrists (most are moderate
or just left of center). There is even a gun club for liberals (The
Liberal Gun Club), there are Facebook groups for liberal gun owners
(Liberal Gun Owners and LGO Polstat). We aren't all racist redneck
swine. We aren't all for government based religious abuse. Some
voted for Clinton or Stein, others wanted Sanders, most voted for
Obama.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Some claim that it is easier to buy an
AR15 than it is to vote. That is a scary thought, really it is, and
I am not being sarcastic, that scares me, it should scare you. But
what isn't stated is that those are private sales. I can go to the
local trading magazine and go to the firearms section, pick one of
them, call the person, show up with cash in hand and buy the firearm,
if I want to. But I don't really want to. I'd rather just go to one
of the two shops I normally deal with, go through the paperwork, and
not have to worry about having a red sheet gun (a gun that has been
reported stolen or was used in a crime). But some people don't think
like I do. I will also point out some other things about this. If
you have never attempted to purchase a firearm, its not easy, but it
isn't hard. Difficulty if you can read and write is easy, dealing
with an employee or owner is not that hard if you know to keep your
mouth shut. At any point from the time you enter the store until the
sale is finalized the process can be stopped dead. One comment that
they person you are dealing with doesn't like can be the end of the
deal. Recently in Chesterfield and store owner refused to sell a
firearm to customer because he felt the customer was a straw buyer.
Now, many of us believe that the owner only refused to sell to the
customer based on race. But he swears that he believes the customer
was a straw buyer, and even though many people pushed for this owner
to be investigated for his potential discrimination, nothing has come
of it, because he has the right to refuse service. I have seen
lawyers in good standing with their respective state bar have to wait
days for approval to purchase firearms. The first time I bought a
firearm, nearly a decade ago, I was held up for a week waiting for a
background check. The truth of the matter is, I was probably cleared
within a few minutes, but the owner of the store decided that I
should wait. Now, I don't have a complaint with it, its just the way
things are, he was doing his job, making sure that I had a cooling
off period, even if I didn't believe I needed one. He didn't know,
and made a judgment call on the side of caution.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
People on the gun control side of the
debate like to point out that if you own a firearm, you are more
likely to be the victim of a crime, or use it to commit suicide.
Personally, if you live in an area with a high crime rate, you are
more likely to own a firearm, and do we really have to go through the
correlation is not causation debate? They point out that Australia
has had no mass shootings since their buy back. And they aren't
wrong, but Australia now has more firearms than they did before the
buy back. People like to point out that mental illness doesn't shoot
up schools or offices in Canada, Australia, of the United Kingdom,
but they also have good to excellent mental health treatment.
Something lacking in the US. They also enforce their laws better
than we do. We have people proudly claiming that arming teachers,
sending former military, or more police into a school is the
solution, and I disagree. Police have proven that they aren't to be
trusted, and many former military personal become police officers,
its almost an instant hire. Teachers are underpaid as it is, and now
we want to arm people who have a hard enough time controlling a
classroom when they are unarmed. What could possibly go wrong? In
the direct aftermath of this last shooting, I literally saw people
online and on CNN claiming that the militarized police is in response
to people having access to semi-automatic weapons. Things that have
been around for several decades before police started acquiring
armored personal carriers.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I see many students rallying to get
assault weapons banned. I am glad that they are becoming politically
aware, I am glad they are finally waking up and voicing their
opinions. They certainly have that right, and they should use it.
They are not crises actors, they are not idiots, and they shouldn't
be attacked based on those assumptions. They are expressing
something that many people feel, that we have a problem. And we do
have a problem. We have a people problem, we have a violence
problem, we have a mental health problem, we have a bully problem, we
have a hate problem, and we have a respect problem, a healthcare
problem, a poverty problem and a drug problem. We hate those who
don't agree with us entirely or are born different, so many do not
respect life or others. We have children bullying other children,
and when these children defend themselves they are the bad guy.
Their message isn't all that cohesive. Some want a ban on “assault
rifles,” actually from what I am hearing a ban on all
semi-automatic guns, some want better mental health treatment, others
want the age to purchase raised.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Well, Trump finally is acting, and I am
not entirely opposed to it. One executive order he signed banned
anything that could take a semi-automatic firearm and make it fully
automatic. He wants to expand background checks, and he is talking
about increasing the legal age to purchase firearms. Good steps, now
lets see if he follows through with them. But in the meantime, now
is the time for discussion, now is the time to have realistic
discussions on how to stop these massacres. And now is the time to
fully get to the root of the problem.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I have heard multiple tales about this
Parkland shooter. DV complaints, white supremacist, anti-semetic
(something that is not discussed nearly enough), severely depressed,
behavioral problems, violent outbursts in school, threats,
stalking.... He should have been red flagged when he purchased that
rifle, and it should have never happened. That can be improved.
But there are the other things, was he bullied, that needs to stop,
bullies should be punished. His violent outbursts, threats against
other students, stalking an ex-girlfriend and other behavioral
problems should have warranted more than than the response it was
given. The fact that there were multiple domestic violence calls to
his home about his actions should have gotten a reaction. Worse yet,
the FBI was repeatedly notified about his online threats and
activities, and no action was taken. Any number of things could have
prevented this shooting, and they all went ignored. In this instance
the laws didn't fail, those who could have triggered enforcement of
the laws failed, and that makes it all the worse.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But as it is right now, we are going to
throw ourselves headlong into the “easy solution,” and then fail
to understand why things are worse. And we have to address the root causes of violence, because if we don't it will only get worse.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-40351995188655649632018-01-27T23:44:00.003-05:002018-01-27T23:44:38.601-05:00Is being too PC a bad thing?
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
Lets talk
Politically Correct, being PC is apparently a new bane of existence
for some people. I never realized just how much being PC annoyed
some people, but what is politically correct exactly?It is the
process of intentionally attempting to use language, or actions that
can be considered offensive to members of particular groups.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Wow, I thought that was just being a
normal human being, you know, one who was raised to treat others with
as much dignity and respect as warranted or possible given some
situations. It is a case of treating others as you wish to be
treated. But in America today, being politically correct means
something else, it seems. Today, many conservatives and libertarians
see it as an obstacle, something to be done away with, well, unless
you say something that hurts them in the feels.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
In their mind, it is perfectly
acceptable to call someone something derogatory, to insult them, to
treat them like garbage... But when the favor is returned, oh boy do
they get all up in the air over it. Hey neo-nazis and klansmen have
the right to parade around in the streets with AR15s strapped to
their backs, or wearing their Mommy's bed sheets, but don't boo Mike
Pence. Some groups can fly the confederate flag, but don't criticize
the president (see: The Dixie Chicks).
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Political Correctness seems to only
matter to conservatives and libertarians when they themselves are
offended. Nudity isn't art, its offensive, therefore it should be
banned. That is a PC view of things, it certainly is a form of
language, and nudity can be offensive to some people. That is
PC-Authoritarianism, in which support of censorship, more severe
punishment for illegal activity, and the attribution of differences
to biology. Also, those individuals tend to be more supportive of
autocratic forms of governance, you know Dictators (hitler, stalin,
hussien, etc). Basically, they don't really want freedom, just the
illusion of freedom, but only for their kind.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Alright, I've gotten off message here.
So, being Politically Correct, as I said, I have always seen it as
being respectful of others. The thing is, I do have some fairly
offensive views of the world, and yet I can say them without causing
distress to others when I am of the mind to say them. But there is
the thing about treating others as I wish to be treated. We have
lost that somewhere.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
As I had this entry on the back burner
a few other things occurred to me, as they often do. I previously
mentioned about how some who complain about being too politically
correct, adhere to their own version of political correctness. This
extends into safe spaces, trigger warnings, and the like. Remember
when people booed Mike Pence at the Hamilton play? Yeah, Trump came
out and said something along the lines of, “that isn't the place
for politics,” I forget the exact quote, and I am not currently
inclined to hit up Google for the exact quote. He wanted to create a
safe space, because Pence got triggered. Oh, the irony of a group of
people, who like to refer to others as “snowflakes” because they
are all unique and special, demanding the very thing they claim
others want because their feels got hurt. I actually have to laugh
over this, and surely you can see the twisted humor of it? That
ladies and gentlemen of the jury is a classic case of what head
shrinks call “Transference.” Because they cannot deal with
people who do not think or act as they do, because they know it is in
error on some level, the only way to accept their own behavior is to
say others are doing it. Its like the husband who is having an
affair while constantly accusing his significant other of having an
affair.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
They are so hung up on political
correctness, safe spaces, and trigger warnings that they are all
demanding them. They aren't just coming out to say it, well outside
of Trump anyway. Take a libertarian professor that was recently on a
news network. He railed against safe spaces and other issues, and
found himself into it with the higher-ups at his university. So he
is on the news talking about how craptastic his job has become
because “he spoke his mind.” Isn't that code for, “I want to
say what I want to say, and I don't want anyone to call me on it.”?
Isn't that code for “I want a special safe zone so I can be an
a$$hole and not get called out for it”?
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Also, while I was double checking some
terminology, I came across something else of note, this in regards to
trigger warnings. It would seem that safe spaces and trigger
warnings have been with us for a long time. You see, trigger
warnings and safe spaces are something slightly different from the
current meaning. Initially a trigger warning was given to warn
people who suffered from PTSD, or other forms of anxiety based mental
health issues that their illness might be triggered by the content
being presented. If you are a combat veteran, you might see or hear
images that trigger your PTSD. Now, this was for a few purposes,
first to make the sufferer aware that there could be discomforting
information so they could prepare themselves for the possible
effects, secondly to avoid it if their reactions are generally
severe, and lastly, if they feel they would not be able to cope with
such information as presented, to find an alternative way to acquire
the information (in the context of college, an alternative way to
learn the material). Safe spaces on the other hand, were just places
for people who face discrimination, to gather to discuss their
feelings. Its like an AA or NA meeting, where all the alcoholics and
addicts go to meet, discuss their addictions without judgment or
harassment from outsiders. Another bit of irony. Twisting the
meanings of words, while using the original meaning for one's
benefit.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, they want safe spaces and trigger
warnings, and have created them. Their trigger warning is “fake
news,” and their safe spaces are places where they can say and do
as they want in view of everyone, regardless of how others view it,
and by god you can't say a word to them about it, cause “Free
Speech” for the dumb.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-17916037067606459612018-01-25T13:00:00.000-05:002018-01-27T23:48:29.955-05:00A Cynical View of Rights...
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
once
commented on rights/privileges that we Americans have or otherwise do
not have. It is hard to believe in this day and age we still have
people who feel that some rights are merely services and if you can't
play, you don't get to play. Seriously.... So here is a list of
things that aren't rights, but if you think about it, they probably
should be.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<ol>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Decent clothing is a privilege.
No, I dont mean Armani suits, or however the companies name is
spelt. I mean like adequate clothing so you don't look like a hobo.
Seriously, even a cheap pair of jeans aren't very cheap these days,
and when you're bringing home a little over $200 a week in pay,
those cheap pants are really not that cheap. Its like, pick between
food, shelter, and a cheap pair of pants to cover your backside. I
mean FFS, a pack of underwear isn't anything to sneeze at in terms
of cost these days.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Decent shelter is a privilege.
Wait, what? I once saw that as of right now, this instant, there
are only a handful of places, actually less than that, where a
person can afford the rent working forty hours a week at a job
paying around minimum wage. Yeah, some are saying “But minimum
wage employees are unskilled, undisciplined, uneducated, or
otherwise lack experience. Hate to break it to you, but there are a
lot of employers who pay exactly that, they pay that to the new guy,
they pay it to the guy whose worked for the company for a decade.
That is their pay, regardless of any qualification. Certainly,
these people might find better paying jobs, depending on location,
but that isn't a given, and employers know it, they use it.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Food. Food is not a right, the
ability to eat is not a right, its apparently a privilege in the
good ole US of A. One that if you cannot afford, and do not qualify
for aid to do, you're going to be forced into some rather nasty
alternatives. Alternative one, steal that which you eat. Two, hunt
your own food. Three, do without. Now, I can't speak for everyone,
but I am sure most people are addicted to eating food. You know,
you don't eat, you'll die. Now, I've heard people can go weeks
without eating, as long as they have water to drink....</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Water, water everywhere, but none
that I can drink. Yeah, clean drinking water is not a right in the
good ole US of A. If you live in town or a city, you get to pay a
bill for water that is allegedly drinkable. Of course, if you don't
mind a ton of toxic chemicals (like lead, or arsenic) you're
perfectly safe to drink the water. Hopefully your state hasn't put
a meter on your well, cause if they have, you're going to pay taxes
to have your own water source. Oh, and forget about collecting rain
water, thats illegal in some areas. So, drinking water, not a
right.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Breathing. Hey, we should have
the right to breath clean air, but nope. Companies find regulations
to be too expensive, so their right to do business supersedes our
right to actually breath. Sure, breathing chemical laden air might
cause cancer, at least thats why we have healthcare....</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Oh... So, healthcare is a service
that is provided for the benefit of making a profit. If you cannot
afford health insurance, you run the risk of paying huge bills for
healthcare. You see, you do not have an intrinsic right to the
labor or services of someone else... Unless you are a job creator.
Well then, you are perfectly free to use the right you have to the
services provided by your employees.
</div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But you want to know what rights we
Americans do have?
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<ol>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Right to exist until such time
as we are unable to work or function properly in this current notion
of civilization.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The right to work a job, or
however many jobs it requires to have shelter, food, pay bills, and
have medical insurance. Forget being able to necessarily afford a
life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, you're going to be too
exhausted to actually have higher brain functions.
</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
In some states, like the
Commonwealth of Virginia, you have the right to work said jobs, and
be terminated from employment for any reason at any time with no
recourse. IE: If one employer learns that you are working two
part-time jobs, and aren't at their beck and call, you can be fired.
</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
You have the right to a slow,
painful death from whatever medical conditions you might suffer,
because profits. You have the right to bust your hump right into an
early grave.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
You have the right to drink
polluted water, breath polluted air.
</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The American Dream is now an early
grave, if you are lucky enough. Truth is most of what will likely
kill you are heart disease, a form of cancer, ulcers, lack of sleep,
or high blood pressure. Lucky is quick. And hey, if you work hard
enough, long enough, and get lucky enough, a crap retirement plan
that will inevitably lead to you dying with your boots on. And if
you aren't familiar with that phrase, it means dying on the job
somewhere, hopefully on your break so the only people who get to
deal with that are your co-workers, not costumers or the general
public.
</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
You have the right to suffer your
misery in silence. God forbid some bleeding heart “snowflake”
starts talking about how crappy existence really is.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Bootstraps are no longer optional,
but a requirement. Even if it is only to hang yourself.
</div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
You are not entitled to an education,
affordable healthcare or good health, food, shelter, entertainment,
you are not entitled to actual living, a lower stress environment, to
say anything about how crappy things really are, or that you honestly
believe the jokers in your state house or in DC really don't care
what happens to you, except when they are up for reelection and need
your vote to keep their job. Nope, you are entitled to fight over a
job, that may or may not pay a decent enough wage to even survive,
that you might absolutely hate... Cause, before you can say or do
anything, you got to have a job, experience, education, and then
accept whatever you can get, however you can get it. Next up, “The
Purge.”</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-88313246946989859002018-01-23T19:00:00.000-05:002018-01-27T23:47:14.508-05:00The looming Government Shutdown...
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
So, I am
currently waiting on the news to come back from its commercial
breaks, and waiting to hear if the government shutdown has been
avoided until next month, but the last I had seen the House had voted
on a stop gap solution... In other words another shutdown showdown
is in the works for next month, maybe. As of this moment, as far as
I know, tonight, this night, the government will close up shop.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Democrats are blaming Republicans, who
are blaming the Democrats. They are fighting over funding the wall,
CHIP, Dreamers, and otherwise having the Republicans pay for the
previous eight years of obstruction and do nothingisms. So, as it
stands this moment, now that the news is back on, in a little over
fourteen and a half hours the government will shut down... And for
what exactly?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Honestly, I find it depressingly
amusing, that CHIP is being used as a hostage. Its not amusing as in
funny, its like a classical comedy, one that is very tragic.
Children loosing their benefits is no laughing matter, just as adults
loosing their benefits is no laughing matter. All this over a wall
and Dreamers. But mostly a wall, the wall, and I'm not talking about
the classic album The Wall. Now, I hear constantly about the wall,
and its funny to me. Like a wall is really going to stop people from
coming across the border illegally. Its like people have never heard
of ladders or tunnels.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The way it is being spun, the CHIP deal
isn't up to snuff. Democrats apparently want it funded for ten
years, the GOP for six. The Democrats want more funds devoted to it,
the GOP less. As Pelosi stammered out, this current GOP deal on it
is “like dog poo in a bowl with a cherry on top being called a
chocolate sundae.” Well, I'll be the first to admit, I first
thought she was having a seizure of some sort, but when she managed
to stutter it out, the visual was amusing, and an apt description of
most of the compromises either party is willing to make to get a deal
done.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Don't get me wrong, I'd rather no deal
over a bad deal. And thus far, what I have seen of this budget, its
a pretty bad deal. More spending on a bloated military. Attempts to
build a wall. Under-funding CHIP and other social safety nets.
Something that is half-assed, as is the case with most of the dredge
coming out of Washington DC these days. Now, I am sure that at the
end of the day, this stop gap measure will probably pass, some
Democrats will eventually relent because they lack the stomach to own
a government shutdown, or the resulting credit reduction.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, so upon hearing more, because I'm
really trying to keep stress levels down... Trump apparently
promised some kind of deal on the Dreamers. The GOP allowed CHIP
funding to expire in the fall of last year and are now according to
some, being used to blackmail votes to keep funding the government.
And there is a whole lot of blame being shipped around the hill. All
this, and the GOP controls everything in DC. Why is this even
happening?
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Say what you will, the Democrats are
now playing the GOP games. They are being the obstructionists, and
the funny thing is, they will likely benefit from this. The GOP was
rewarded by their base for playing this brinkmanship game, fighting
every little thing like it was the fight to the final breath. And
their base, their voters rewarded them for their misdeeds.
Democrats, having seen this are going to play the same game, and it
will likely pan out the same way, providing people remember how this
went down.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Why are we rewarding people for doing
this? I am no fan of conservative policies, I am no fan of the GOP
in general, truthfully, I am no fan of anybody up there in DC or
politicians in general. They all suck. This whole thing just goes
to show it. Allow things to expire, then use them as a bargaining
chip, and when that doesn't work point fingers and blame to the
opposing side.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Ah well, if the government shuts down,
it shuts down. As far as I can tell, Social Security won't be put on
hold. But the threats are there. Military personal will still get
paid. Benefits will continue on for a while. I just find it
appalling that so many things are being held over our heads, just as
I found it appalling the last several times this shutdown threat has
been played. I am disheartened that our system has devolved into
threats against the people, and blame. I also find it disheartening
that this type of behavior is actually rewarded. When the GOP
started playing this game, they shouldn't have been rewarded for
their behavior. I can understand why the Democratic Party is
behaving in the way they are, but just the same, its a mess, and I am
not entirely on board with it. Something has to give, and sad to
say, its going to be us in the 99%, its going to be Dreamers, it
certainly won't be anyone in DC.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Ah, poor, poor, little twitler won't be
going to Florida for a golfing trip if no deal is struck. My heart
doesn't weep for him. Seriously, these jackasses get paid how much a
year for this nonsense? Screw it, I'm going back to bed.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Update: So after a few days the government was reopened for business, until next month. When it will shut down again, because the circle jerk up in DC didn't get enough lube. </div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-43340133309719108082018-01-15T18:00:00.000-05:002018-01-27T23:43:40.955-05:00Attack of the Russian Bots?
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
So, as I
have been doing many things, first and foremost of the New Year, New
Me things, I get a random message from a guy on Facebook that I have
known for several years, even if we aren't always in contact with
each other. Honestly, part of the New Year, New Me thing(s) I am
trying... Quit smoking, lower stress and aggravation levels, speak
my mind more openly even if those things on my mind are potentially
offensive or otherwise call people out, get into a shape that isn't
round(ish), and avoid the news and Facebook in general.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, here we are a few weeks into the
New Year, the no smoking thing died on a slow trip in snow to
Virginia Beach. Seriously, there is no need to go twenty miles per
hour in the snow with your caution lights blinking. If you are that
nervous about driving in “God's Dandruff” don't go out, or get
off the road, better yet, just don't go out if its going to snow.
Anyway, I get a message from a gentleman I haven't spoken to in some
time, our last conversation was a while ago, talking about a man who
believes Tupac is still alive somewhere. We had a divergence of
opinions about this last Clinton run, and he is an ardent support of
Clinton, while I was firmly a “Nope, never gonna happen” camp.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, his message to me was about a
mutual friend, one he claimed to be a Russian Bot. Now, at some
point, I won't argue or deny that there are Russian Bots on Facebook.
Actually, I am pretty sure that there are more than anyone can
count. But it just so happens I know this person, I know this person
in person, not as a bunch of pixels on Facebook, I talk to this
person daily. Hell, we share the same house, and I am related.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, here is crux of this, and it goes
for everyone. Some people are wrong on the facts, some people are in
error, some people believe some crazy things which they repeat. Not
everyone gets the same sources of information, or chooses to listen
to the same sources. Sure, they might be wrong, they might even
sound crazy, but thats the world we live in. A world where news
isn't so much reported as the opinions about the news are. Hey, its
like watching sports, if you want to watch the game without
everyone's opinion, best to do it on mute and while being alone.
Everyone has an opinion, right or wrong, and as of today, they can
express it.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
That being said... Just because you
don't like an opinion, or how someone expresses it doesn't always
make them a troll, or a Russian Bot. Certainly they can be a Fox
News Mouthpiece. They might even be a teaparty whackjob. They could
also be an equally frustrated person who is expressing themselves in
a manner that they are able (poor grammar and all). One thing is
certain, nothing is going to get solved the way things are being
done. There is a complete lack of listening, or even discussion.
Here is a personal example... I have made no bones about my support
of gun ownership, as long as the parties involved can legally own
firearms. I have repeatedly stated that the laws we currently have
are good, but can be improved, mostly in the enforcement areas.
Certainly more recent events have shown that people can abuse the
current system, but any system can and will be abused by people with
plans. That doesn't make me a blow hard conservative, it just means
that on some issues I am not entirely liberal, because the truth is,
people are shades of political ideology.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Things have gotten bad people, really
bad. But the truth is, they have been on this path for a long time,
and fixing it isn't going to be a short term proposition, its going
to take a while. I am no fan of giving certain individuals air time,
some ideals should be locked away so deeply they never see the light
of day. Give a racist a platform and they will take full advantage
to recruit for their race war. But not everyone who believes racists
should be given a platform so they can be talked to is also a racist.
Its just their mindset that these people can be shown that racism
isn't acceptable, and that minorities aren't what they believe them
to be. Just because someone says give Trump a chance, doesn't mean
they are fully on board with his plans. Personally, I believe Trump
to be totally incompetent, a hack best suited to telling people
“You're Fired” on a craptastic reality television show. I won't
comment on his business skills, or knowledge of real estate. I will
say he is a branding genius, he created a brand for himself while
running, and I will give him credit, he is sticking with it.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
As for his plans, most of us know how
they will pan out in the end. If you aren't aware, I'd like to take
the time to introduce you to Lead Balloon, careful now, it has a
tendency to roll around on the ground, and if thrown falls down
rather quickly. Back on point here, I cannot say it enough, listen
to people, if their grammar isn't good, but you can understand their
point, don't rail against them or their opinion because of how they
said what they said. Until people start really talking and
listening, things are just going to get worse, and finger pointing
will continue. Trump's failures as president will become apparent
before the end of his term, and the more I think about it, the more
painful it will be... But only as long as we don't resort to
nitpicking. When his policy tanks the economy, we shouldn't be the
ones saying “I told you so,” but being the ones who say “Alright,
this is what we do.” While doing that, we also need to be the
people not labeling others. Overall this isn't an “Us versus
Them,” deal, this is we are all going to suffer, and we need to
have the dialogue with opposing views for multiple reasons.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We need this dialogue to sharpen our
message, one of a better future for all. A future where all people
have medical insurance, where all people have enough to pay the bills
and eat at a table under a solid roof, regardless of what they do for
a living. A place where all people are welcomed, regardless of skin
color, religion, or gender, without fear of being shot in the back by
police. We need this dialogue so that people can feel that their
concerns are being addressed. Eh, what am I talking about, we are
all hung up over this candidate or that, and they were all shades of
lousy. We are more concerned about animals freezing in the streets,
or a starving kid in a third world nation, while our own is circling
the drain. Some can claim it is because of Trump, but they don't
want to take a dose of truth, these thing has been circling the drain
longer than I've been breathing.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We failed people, and epic fail doesn't
do this justice. For too long we've allowed ourselves to sit in echo
chambers, isolating ourselves from dissenting views, and allowing
ourselves to be divided on issues that don't even matter anymore, or
even worse, matters in which we agree but lack the will to push for
more. Top of the list, the PPACA, if we had pushed for more, a
single payer option (or system), then do you think Trump and the GOP
Congress would have been able to repeal that? I can tell you, they
wouldn't have. They could defund it, and would have had hell to pay,
likely even lost their jobs. But no, we went with a half measure,
because it was politically acceptable at the moment, and look where
we are, a bunch of idiots in office because people were forced into
an unacceptable plan. But if we'd have had this dialogue back before
this went down, if people would have said perfect isn't the enemy of
good, we'd be looking at an entirely different situation. But no,
we'd rather take what we can get right away, knowing that short term
investments aren't nearly as good as long term.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We are in this mess because of a lack
of dialogue, and an inability to work together for the greater good.
Everyone has ideas, everyone wants their plan in place, but they
never take the case to those who oppose it. And when they do, it is
in a condescending manner, one in which alienates those who you need
to work with you to get things moving along. Seriously, I once
talked a hardcore conservative into supporting universal income. But
I was only able to do so because I actually spoke to the man, and
made sure I made my point clear to him. That is how you resolve
racism for many, that is how you get police held accountable for
shooting unarmed people, that is how you put an end to Trump's
insanity.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
You won't get there pushing to continue
down the same path as you have been on, people are tired of it, and
this is where the Russian Bot nonsense comes into play. My Mom, the
Russian Bot in question, has disliked Clinton since the 90s. She
didn't like Clinton in 2008, and nothing had changed in 2016. I
personally disliked Clinton's ideals in 2008 and 2016, and like so
many other people, I wanted this nation to go in a different
direction, and that didn't make me a Berniebro or a Russian Bot. I
am just a mostly liberal guy who sees a lot of peoples and felt that
Clinton is ill prepared to do the things that need to be done, just
as most members of the Democratic Party are ill prepared to do (see
the PPACA as proof). But the blame doesn't stop there, the GOP is as
ill prepared to do the things that need to be done, rather than
actually sit down and have dialogue with opposing views, they'd
rather tell you this is the way it has to be. Both parties are
equally as guilty in this regard, neither side listens, and this is a
reflection of how we as normal everyday people act.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The fight is ultimately going to be 99%
versus 1%, and until we hash things out down here in the 99%, the 1%
will win, but we have to stop the nonsense of labeling people that we
don't agree with. Okay, the exception being the hardcore racists,
those people are a$$holes. A side note, just because someone says
racist crap doesn't mean they are actual racists, insensitive yes,
pricks certainly, ill informed, or frustrated by the current
situation, yeah. I know someone who sounds racist, but if you listen
to them, the frustration of being passed over for promotion because
of laws is evident. They are appalled by African Americans being
shot by police, but always point out that it isn't just one group,
its a lot of people being abused and murdered by police. They aren't
racist because they point it out, they do however get labeled as
racist because of the way they point it out. Not everyone who is
against Israel is an anti-semite, they simply are against the use of
violence against Palestinians. All in all, when you encounter these
people, it will become very evident who is the real
racist/antisemite/Russian Bots and who is frustrated with a
dysfunctional system, when you really take the time to talk to them.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-88128104655313062662018-01-10T23:41:00.000-05:002018-01-27T23:42:33.736-05:00A day in the life...
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I haven't been writing very much. You
know how it goes sometimes, busy doing this or that. Here in the
last few days, I have been clearing out a storage unit I acquired,
didn't make a ton of money on it, but I did decently enough and still
have some stuff in it that can be sold. But along the way, I
apparently offended someone, and they have taken to putting screws in
my tires.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, I can be fairly rednecked, as any
southern lived person can be, there are certain rules of engagement,
or at least there were among the old guard. Simple rules really, you
don't talk about a person's Mother or spouse. You don't mess with
the elderly or the young. Basically if you have a problem you take
it up with the person in question, not their family. And you never,
and I mean never, mess with a person's ride. There are reasons for
all these things, but the gist is as follows, what happens between
two people should be settled between them, with as little drama as
possible. As for the messing with someone's ride, that is generally
tied to their income. Don't key it, don't put nails (or screws) in
the tires, don't key it, or any other little horrors you can think
of.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Yet here I sit, tires that are more
plug than tires. Yeah, back several years ago, it wasn't much of a
problem. Call a local tire dealer, see what they had, and go get
tires replaced. Yeah, screwing with someone's tires is a real dick
move. I have called every tire place in town, and have learned a few
valuable lessons.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
It doesn't matter the brand, or style
of tire, they all take between two and ten days to arrive because
nobody carries the tire size my ride rides on. Not even the Ford
dealerships. Yeah, you can buy the truck there, but the jokes on
you, they have to order the tires. Hey, I foolishly thought that
since Goodyear Tires are made right here in town that they'd have
them at the local Goodyear Tire Dealer, hey another joke on me.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
You know, its a pretty sad state of
affairs here, and yeah its my problem, but it could be any number of
problems. Think about it this way, imagine I was actually traveling
over the road. Think of the Griswald Family Vacations. Riding down
the road, and you get an irreparable flat, thus one or maybe two
tires require replacement. You are told after limping to the tire
shop that it will be 2-10 days to get a tire that fits your car. So
much for that vacation.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Guess its getting about time to buy a
second set of rims and tires, fill them with nitrogen and then store
them in a cool semi-dry environment just in case something happens
like this again. In the meantime, to catch my wood-be saboteur, I
have set out a hunting camera, just so I have some photographic
evidence to turn over to the magistrate when I try and recover my
money back for a set of tires.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-70602275184758870372017-12-18T13:30:00.000-05:002017-12-18T13:30:06.782-05:00Story Time
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
In the last
post, I talked about having to get treated for Rabies, and how
horrible it was. I mentioned that at some point I would tell the
tale of how that came to happen. Yeah, I didn't get bit by something
that had rabies, well not the typical animal that has rabies. It's a
long story, but I'm just going to make it very short, as short as
possible.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
When you farm livestock, there are
times and places in which you end up getting calves. There are
various ways this happens, but it generally starts out with a bull
and a heifer. Now, things happen, and at times you end up with just
a calf. Now, depending on what is going on, most farmers don't have
time to raise calves, so they'll load up once a week, go to a sale,
sell the calves they don't want, and go home. Well, we had a bunch
of calves dumped on us, and Mom got the brilliant idea to just give
them away. So, we took the five calves we had, fed them so they were
nice and full, padded up the trailer so they would be nice and warm,
went to the sale. None of the calves present sold, so we loaded them
back up, hung a sign on the trailer that read “Free calves.”
went back inside to see if there were any sickly, half starved cows
we could pick up and rehabilitate. When we came back out after
finding nothing, we had thirty calves.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Yeah, I told Mom we should have been a
little more explicit on the sign. So we pile in the truck, and head
back to the house with thirty calves. So, we get home, I run off to
the Co-Op to get powdered milk for these babies to drink, and a ton
of bottles, because thirty freakin baby cows want their meal, “Now
Mr. Mom”. Well, here is the thing about feeding massive crowds of
calves, they suck on everything. Pants leg, wet, hands and fingers,
cut and drooled in, hair, chewed on. Brain, concussed from a gentle
but authoritative headbutt. Other calves, sucked on. So, all the
calves are fed, nobody has Scours, everyone is fat and sassy. Things
are going well, until I go outside and half the calves are very sick,
and three are dead.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Call the vet, tell him, he says he'll
come out and look. In the meantime, he suggests that we take the
dead to the state lab to have a necropsy done, an animal autopsy,
just to assist in treatment, you know get a heads up as to what we
are dealing with here. We load up the dead, go to the lab, drop them
off. Vet comes out, checks everyone, just some kind of weird cow bug
going around nothing to worry about. The next day, a few more dead
calves, another trip to the lab, perplexed state veterinarian is
scratching his head because outside of being dead, the calves were in
good condition. So, while we were gone out veterinarian at the time
is once again checking everyone out. I get back to the farm, in time
to see him release a calf he had just checked, only for it to fall
over dead. A calf he had said was fine, now dead. Now, as upset as
I was, this guy was hitting the panic button. This is like a doctor
pronouncing that your loved one is in perfect health, only to drop
dead of a heart attack while paying the bill, which if you think
about it is entirely possible given the state of co-pays here in the
US.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, we load up that calf and take it to
the lab, while the good animal doctor calls ahead to see if anything
is showing up in the results, and to tell the state doctor the events
of this particular calf's demise. When we get to the lab, the state
doctor pulls us into the lab, to give us the great news. He went
back and checked the calves brains. He did so, because he had a very
bad feeling. That feeling was dumb rabies.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, when someone says rabies, we all
think of Cujo. We think drooling, vicious animal, who relentlessly
attacks everything. Yeah, that is active rabies, which many animals
get, they actively pass on the infection, and its pretty obvious as
to what is happening. Dumb rabies on the other hand, yeah that is
some messed up stuff right there. It doesn't present, it only gives
a few subtle clues. Hey, hungry calves drool, a lot. In dumb
rabies, the afflicted don't attack, they don't show an aversion to
water or light. They act normally until they die. And that my
friends is what the state veterinarian suspected was what was
affecting our calves.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Well then, if its suspected, you get
treated, because outside of a single reported case, there is no cure
once you start showing the symptoms. Off to the human doctors we all
go, everyone who had contact with the affected calves, for a lot of
very painful shots in the gut, just to be safe. The vet started
treatment on the remaining calves, and we still lost about half of
that group, but the infection was already active in them. And I have
a very strong dislike of needles.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Yeah, that story wasn't very amusing,
its actually very sad. Remember people, get your pets their shots,
it can save their lives, and save you a bunch of physical and
emotional pain. As for how the calves got rabies? We never did
figure that out. We know that initially only one or two calves had
it, and that it was transferred via typical calf behavior. Because
of the way we raised our calves, in lots transmission was simple (we
still didn't isolate the calves afterwards, as everyone agreed that
it would have happened regardless). All the vets in the area were
put on notice about the outbreak, but nobody came clean as to where
those calves came from. We didn't know ourselves, as many didn't
have auction numbers. All parties involved assume that one farm had
a calf that was bitten by something that had rabies, or it was passed
on through other means that nobody was aware of (IE a family pet
dying or an encounter with infected wildlife). Just the same, it
sucked. Killed the profit margin, left all involved with some
serious horror stories, but the best part of it was, our poor
veterinarian saw something he had never encountered before. Yeah,
when he became a teacher, that was a story he told all his students,
which made them better veterinarians.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-43840140043903647242017-12-16T13:00:00.000-05:002017-12-16T13:00:02.870-05:00Rebuttal To the NYT OP-ED Repeal the Second
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I am a gun owner, and I am liberal. I
am not going to drop a ton of facts about this or that, but I am
going to discuss my views here about Mr. Stephens' (no relation)
OP-ED in the NYT from October of this year.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
He starts his opinion piece by talking
about never understanding the conservative fetish for the Second
Amendment. To be honest, I don't really understand this Red Dawn
mentality that many people have. Its like some fever pitch dream in
which some foreign government invades the US, by force, and a ragtag
group of people flee off into the woods and take the fight to them
with whatever arms they can muster. Yeah, outside of a movie plot,
that isn't really going to work out so well. As for why I own guns,
I like shooting. No, I don't go to the range to have my moment of
being Dirty Harry, seriously, the amount of paperwork for his antics
would kill a man. I go to the range to practice a skill set, just
like some go to golf ranges/batting cage to hit a little ball with a
club/bat. I enjoy it, its a time where I can be by myself, I can
focus on one aspect of life, me, a paper target, and a tool. I enjoy
the history of many firearms, I enjoy learning about them, their
history, the history of their nation of origin, and the battles they
fought and the people who fought them (in case of Mil-Surp rifles).
In many cases I enjoy the aesthetics of these same handguns, as
previously mentioned the weight of their history, the scars on them,
the story they tell, and the weight of that story. There is, in my
mind, nothing like looking at an old K98, that has the original
German markings struck through by Israeli markings, with a .308
stamped into the stock. Nazi guns sent to Israel as part of a
reparations package because of the Holocaust. Or the Swiss K31's
with the previous owners name and address written neatly on a piece
of paper behind the butt plate. Or those old Husquvarna Mausers,
that show scarring from the wood bullets used for training Swedish
troops. Those things are all unique, and I find them interesting.
They all tell a story, like the Mosin with several notches taken out
of the stock (along with two fill spots in the chamber indicating it
had a scope at one time), originally built before the second battle
of Stalingrad. I can imagine some poor Russian soldier sitting in a
burnt out building with that rifle, trying to protect what remained
of his home, his country from invaders. I am not alone in viewing
firearms in this manner, many people see them as something more than
a tool for killing. I also hunt, poorly I will add. Sometimes the
urge to be out in nature is strong in this farm boy. 99% of the
time, I just go set up shop in the middle of nowhere, and relax. Its
not about bagging an animal, its not the act, its just being outside
in the crisp air, being one with nature, fresh air and nothing but
me, nature, and a rifle. Some say, I can do that without the gun,
and I could, but there again is an inherent weight, more than just
the physical weight of carry a rifle.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Stephens, in his OP-ED states that
states with higher rates of gun ownership have more murders. But
look at Wyoming, as of 2007 (which was the newest information I
found), has a nearly 60% ownership rate. Now, I chose Wyoming
because it is an strange case. The firearm homicide rate is zero,
but it has one of the highest firearm death rates, according to the
CDC and Factcheck.org. Now, it was surmised that there are many
factors playing into this odd statistic. Higher poverty rates,
longer travel times to hospitals, lower educational standards... The
thing I stress is that correlation is not causation. We cannot say
that more laws prevent more deaths, just look at California. But we
cannot say the opposite either. When Harvard University conducts a
study and claims that it cannot establish a cause and effect
relationship between two things, I cannot argue. Now, they noted
that it appeared to be the case, but there are also outside factors
that played a roll in the study. You know those things that the NRA
(~gag~) has taken to constantly pointing out. Poverty, education,
mental health, and other factors play a roll in violence, and gun
deaths.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
He also makes a point to use actual
discharge of a gun in defensive situations. As a human being, one of
sound mind, in my view that is the worst possible outcome in a
defensive firearm use. Have I ever needed to shoot at someone, no,
and I am glad for it. Have I ever had to pull a gun in a defensive
manner, no. But, I have had to visibly use a firearm as a defensive
means. It is all a matter of perspective, I see a defensive gun use
as three separate stages. Three instances where cooler heads can
prevail, two of which do not include someone being shot, but require
intent. I have only had to have the firearm seen on my person.
Rationality struck, and things calmed down. That for me is the ideal
defensive firearm use, one in which it is only seen, not heard, and
not felt.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
He refers to the Whiskey Rebellion, the
New York Draft Riots of 1863 and the Coal Miner's Rebellion of 1921,
and how they are not great moments in history. Hey history, and I
love me some history. So, as we all know, the Whiskey Rebellion was
in response to federal taxes on, of all things, whiskey. Yeah, that
wasn't exactly a bright spot on our history, I mean we had just
finished a war in which people were tired of being taxed without
representation, and those who took up arms, many previously US
soldiers, felt that the government had become the very thing they had
fought against in the Revolution. Of course, the whole rebellion
only had eighteen deaths total (four combatants killed, twelve died
of illness/accident and two civilians), over four years. Now 170
people were arrested, for tax evasion. Thats more of a libertarian
thing, but again, not a high point. The New York Draft Riots, were a
response to people getting drafted into a war, the Civil War. Now,
this is a low point, these people were drafted into war, and many
were royally upset that for a sum of $300 one could hire a substitute
to take their place. Imagine if you will, the government reinstates
the draft, and for the paltry sum of $10,000 you could pay for some
other person to take your place? Well, thats actually a good deal,
but only for the people who could afford the sum of money. Of course
there was racism involved, a lot of people were concerned about wages
and jobs when those slaves were freed. Then you have the Miner's
Rebellion. On this, Stephens appears to have zero understanding of
the underlying causes. These men and women did not revolt because
they thought it would be fun, it wasn't about funding the government,
and it wasn't about being drafted into a war because they couldn't
afford to pay for someone else to take their place. It was because
the coal companies were using and abusing people, they were keeping
them in a perpetual state of debt, and could take everything they
owned away from them for no reason. They wanted rights, they wanted
fair treatment. They wanted fair pay for their labor, safer
conditions while working, and to not have to worry about owing their
soul to the company store, or becoming homeless because of rumors
they were part of a Union. They fought for the right for all people
to unionize, without reprisal from the company. They fought to
avenge the people of Matewan, specifically the assassination of Sid
Hatfield, who prevented miners from being evicted because of union
ties. A low point in history considering that the state and federal
government sided with the coal companies. But in all three
instances, the people were not listened to, they went ignored, and
fought back in the means they felt appropriate. Truthfully, these
people all felt they were right, and the end results brought growth
and change. They might not be the greatest of moments, but what
followed the low points, the acts, led to some greatness, well in at
least one of these events. And it had little to do with the Second
Amendment, I'll give him that, but these moments wouldn't have
happened without it.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Stephens then moves onto the active
shooter era. He points out that the Vegas shooter wouldn't have
raised eyebrows with mental health experts. And based on all we
haven't learned from the Vegas shooting, we'll never really know. We
don't know why he did it, we only know he did. They say we will
never know why, and we really need to know the truth of it. How can
we prevent something if we do not know or understand the why?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now we move into some things, that I do
kind of agree with. There is no gun-show loophole, its a private
sale loophole. The AR15 is not a true assault rifle, and its ban, or
banning rifles of a similar nature won't have any effect on the
overall murder rate. Would it slow some mass shooters down,
possibly. And the vast majority of firearms purchases have a
background check, a system that could be improved, vastly improved,
but mostly works. Now, he talks about how the NRA has only donated
slightly more than three and a half million dollars to members of
congress over the last twenty years. Yeah, I really need to fact
check that one myself.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Stephens talks about potential
solutions. A buy back program, which he says have shown poor
results. He talks about due process for the mentally ill, and if you
have bought a firearm in any shop, or attempted to, you will notice
that the forms include a question about being judged mentally
defective by a court of law, or having been involuntarily committed
to an institution. Funny thing is, that actually has due process
attached. When one is involuntarily committed, they go before a
judge or magistrate for a hearing, at which time the person is judged
mentally deficient, or they are not. If they are, then they are
prohibited from owning a firearm. He talks about private sales
background checks, and I don't honestly know how law enforcement
would go about enforcing that law. But he then points out that, and
this is a real kick, that most guns used in a crime are rarely used
by the owner.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
His solution, repeal the second
amendment. Okay, now, forget the fact that two thirds of the states
would need to sign off on this, and remember this isn't the same as
same-sex marriage. But how would this work exactly? We go from
shall issue to may issue permits to own firearms? Certainly, it
would complicate the whole process, which isn't exactly easy or hard.
I mean lets talk shop about actually buying a gun here, and if you
haven't, you really should. I am not saying go buy a gun, but go to
multiple shops and look around and ask about the process. Now, I
window shop a lot, it comes with being poor, sometimes I find
something I like, most of the time, I don't. On rare occasions I
find something that I like, and happen to have a few dollars, so I do
the sensible thing, I put it on lay-o-way. Like I did with an
Enfield rifle I saw a month ago. I looked at the rifle, I talked to
the person helping me, asked about the price, and how much I would
need to put a hold on the rifle. Great! That is the fun easy part
of the deal. Next I get handed two forms that I need to fill out,
and produce my ID. Easier yet. I fill out the paperwork, while they
are notifying the State Police where I live, and BAFTA for the
background check. All the while I am being watched by the clerk or
manager of the store. Everything I say, everything I do is watched
and listened to. Background check comes back clean, in my case a few
minutes, and I put my deposit up, and come back within thirty days to
make another payment. When I pick up the rifle, I go through the
background check process again. At any time in the process, the
clerk can elect to refuse to sell me the rifle. The people in the
store can do that, at any time. They can refuse to sell to me based
on my appearance, the things I say, how I act, how I don't act, or
any other number of criteria they choose. I was once refused a
single shot shotgun because I looked disheveled. Recently, a store
owner in Virginia refused sale because he believed that the purchaser
was buying the gun for someone else, a straw purchase. Now, knowing
how some in Virginia are, it was equally likely that the man didn't
want to sell a gun to an African American, but without knowing the
parties involved, I am forced to take the words given on the video,
“You look like a straw purchaser, and I'm not going to sell you
anything.”</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Finally he invoked Madison, and
believes that he would side with taking guns away from people, upon
learning that more people perished in a single year than the entire
Revolutionary War. Madison felt that the government should trust its
people with firearms, that America was supposed to be different and
better than its European counterparts. Well, given all I have to
know Madison from are his written words, I cannot say which side of
the argument he would come down on. What I can say, is that at one
time he felt it was required, and if presented with the knowledge of
this day, we don't know how he would feel. Given the tendencies of
our government, I might be inclined to think his notions about gun
rights wouldn't be his top priority. I think that might well be true
of all the founding fathers, who weren't exactly saints to begin
with.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-69052446631039547292017-12-15T18:30:00.000-05:002017-12-15T18:30:02.879-05:00Net Neutrality<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
So, Net
Neutrality is dead, so saith the FCC and Republicans. Somewhere in a
cigar smoke filled room, the people who own internet service
providers are clapping each other on the back, while drinking the
finest of liquors. The internet is now the Wild Wild West, and we
inhabitants of it have been disarmed, have no Marshall at our back to
protect us. Now I have heard several things in regards to this that
have left me scratching my head.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
As of today, providers are now free to
limit speeds to specific content, or outright block it. As Liberal
Larry said on FaceBook, get your porn while you can. They can now
tier service, want faster internet pay more, what to read CNN or Fox
News, but you are a customer of Comcast (who owns MSNBC) yeah you
might have to pay extra. Pai said that it would create incentive to
build new networks in new areas, and that it will promote
competition. Yeah, I can see this now, AT&T will move in and try
and poach Comcast customers. Hey, did you know I have the choice
between Comcast and a provider called Gamewood. I would prefer
Gamewood, as it offers fiberoptic based internet and television, but
it takes almost two months to get service installed because...
Comcast.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, I have said previously the ways
that this new way of running the internet can be abused. Groups like
Comcast restricting or banning the use of online services like
NetFlix, unless NetFlix decides to pay up to Comcast or we decide to
up our service (with an obligatory two year service contract), to be
allowed to use it. Its kinda like FaceBook's pay to spread entries.
Pay to play, coming to an internet provider near you.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, for their part, the providers have
said that you aren't going to have any experience changes. In my
cynical mind, it should read, “We aren't going to mess with your
internet at this time.” Now, back in the day, when Apple first
released Facetime, which I have never used, AT&T blocked it, as
it tends to be a data hog. Yeah, I can see that, but not really. If
you are using the cell phones internet, yeah that could cause some
issues, but if you are going through your home internet provider, it
shouldn't be a problem... Unless you are using a cable based
internet provider like... Comcast, or Suddenlink, in which internet
speeds will decline with the more people using it. They say that
isn't so, but I've used Comcast, and yeah, its true. We knew when
school was out, because the internet would slow down to worse than
dial-up speed.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But hey, I am all for more competition,
that drives everything. It lowers costs, it produces better service
(as long as you don't have to wait two years), O'Reilly, not of Fox
News fame, said that he wants a federal law that protects the ability
for companies to charge extra for faster connections, you know paid
prioritization. Yeah, we already have lackluster internet connection
speeds in the US, so people should pay more for faster lackluster
internet connection speeds.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I'm sorry, but as a guy who has the
need for speed, the only limits placed on internet speed should be
based on the highest possible reliable speed a provider can offer.
But that requires providers to fork out some money to seriously
upgrade their capabilities. Something they have proven unwilling to
do. Well there are two pieces of good news currently here. First,
they won't do anything immediately, so there is a bit of time to plan
ahead. Second, this can be undone, just as soon as Net Neutrality is
made into law, rather than a regulatory agreement. Honestly, I have
long felt that utilities, including internet are a human right,
necessary to live (given how the internet is the basis for finding
and getting hired for so many jobs today).
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-90323861871573007312017-12-15T14:00:00.000-05:002017-12-15T14:00:24.615-05:00Bad Science, Bad Information, and its constant spread.
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
From time to time I feel the urge to
rant about specific things I have seen on Facebook, and sometimes it
is warranted, other times it is just an opinion I have that runs
contrary to the norm. You know, I am a gun owner, no I am not trying
to compensate for something that's lacking. I just enjoy shooting, I
enjoy the aesthetics of some rifles and handguns, I love the history
of some of them, the weight they carry is something more than a
physical heaviness. This is one of those times that I feel its
warranted, and its directed at some members of the Green Party, Dr.
Stein, and antivaxxers in general.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, science is not static, it is
always changing, we learn new things everyday, but we also see
trends. Numbers are our friends, they are our enemies, depending on
what we are trying to prove, disprove or understand. We can tell
from the numbers that our Earth, our home world is not flat, we have
photographic evidence of such. We know that in the last hundred
years that instances of disease are decreasing in most areas. Today,
we don't have nearly the number of fatalities from the Flu. We can
trace that back to vaccination. We don't see the number of cases for
Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Polio and a host of other nearly fatal or
life altering diseases. Even down to our pets, we are seeing massive
decreases in Rabies cases, and that translates to human cases. But
even so, if in doubt, we vaccinate potential victims for it. It
sucks, trust me, I've had to get the shots, and it was like some
wrath of God in the bible stuff. At one point, I seriously thought
it was the end of days, and that I had been marked by Abaddon, that
even death would flee from me. I can laugh about it twenty years
later, but at the time it sucked, and eventually I will tell that
story, because it is fairly amusing but really its pretty depressing.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, so, science changes as we learn
new things. At times, things change so rapidly that even the
brightest minds have a difficult time keeping up. New discoveries
are just a new observation away, new gadgets are just an experiment
away... Well more than one experiment, we are now transporting data
across rooms, and if memory serves across towns. That is some Star
Trek level science now. Yeah, that thing is years away from being
able to move you or I to some other part of the world, but its fun to
imagine right? I am going to reprise the role of McCoy when it
becomes viable for human use, because of my own fear of it, something
about how it currently works just unnerves me, for now anyway,
because I do not understand fully how it works. Alright, so we know
that science is rapidly advancing, it is changing, it is bringing us
new ways of doing things, it is altering the way we see our world and
how we understand it. Fun times for us Trekies, and sci-fi junkies.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But there is a problem, and its bad
people. For as much good science as we have, for all the advances we
have seen and will see, there is a problem. Its very difficult to
explain to people how we are transporting data across the room,
wirelessly. This data is not a copy, but the original data. For
most people, they instantly make the connection to something like
Star Trek, “Beam me up Scott!” is one typical reply, and laughs
are had, before the conversation becomes serious again. Where is the
problem, when people jump up and say that they are being animals or
people. As far as has been reported, they are nowhere near that
level of technology or ability. That is bad, as it misrepresents
what has actually happened. But even worse is when people start
playing games with it. Yeah, they can transport an animal, but that
animal comes out crossed with a fly. Well given nobody has ever
transported an animal, how do we know that is the outcome, we don't.
But here it stands, this myth takes flight.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The same thing has happened when it
comes to vaccination. Yes, vaccinations back in the day weren't
entirely safe, but they are a lot safer today. Back in the day a now
discredited doctor linked vaccinations to Autism, I don't know why he
did it, but at this point, it doesn't really matter. That myth has
taken flight, and no amount of good science can kill it. We live in
an era of instant news transmission, what I say could very well go
viral at any time, and a new legend will be born, well for at least a
day. Anecdotal evidence, for many, has taken the place of cold hard
facts. People who hold no background in science, are making
proclamations about it, even when they don't fully grasp the events.
I'll talk science all day, I'll give my views of it, but I generally
wait until I have read multiple views of it before my views are
given.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
There is also a strong sense of
distrust. People do not trust the government, they do not trust
“big-pharma”, but they will trust a stately looking doctor. When
Dr. Stein, Dr. Carson, or some other doctor says that this is a bad
idea, people tend to listen, because they are a doctor. They are
supposed to be educated enough, knowledgeable enough that when they
speak we should listen. But then we realize that outside of the
human brain, Dr. Carson is an idiot.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, the thing here is, we have enough
problems discussing legitimate issues within science and technology,
some of these things are mind blowers. But the larger problem in the
room is misconceptions, paranoia, and people drumming up fear. Right
now, there are people who are doctors talking about the dangers of
vaccinations, with people giving anecdotal evidence in support. They
point at the changes in vaccination schedules, how we now give more
vaccinations than ever, and the list is ever growing as cases of this
or that are also growing. They like to point out that we have all
these health issues, yet other groups who don't vaccinate don't.
Their favorite target is the Amish.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
They tell half truths, then sell it as
if it is entirely true. Yes, the Amish don't vaccinate, that is
true. They also have lower reported cases of Autism, heart disease,
diabetes, cancer, and a host of other illnesses that we outsiders
have. But there is a rub in this truth, they rarely seek medical
attention. Certainly, if they break their arm, they'll go see a
doctor. The Amish will only go to a doctor in an emergency, so yes,
they have lower reported cases of most things, not because they don't
have said issues, but because it is under reported. When they pass
away, the community refuses an autopsy, so if their death was the
result of cancer, we aren't going to be aware of it. If an Amish
child is Autistic, we aren't going to know it, because its not likely
going to be discovered on their annual physical, because they don't
get yearly physicals. But that doesn't stop people from saying its
because vaccines.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We have people who constantly drag out
discredited studies, and then point to a massive conspiracy. Follow
the money they say, but they follow the money back to “big-phrama.”
Right now there is an antivaxxer doctor who is pushing the
narrative, and when you go to his site to read his work, you find
that he is pushing his own products. Products guaranteed to provide
you with a long healthy cancer free life. Follow the money. He is
the modern equivalent of a snake oil salesman. Following the money
works both ways. This now retired doctor sells snake oil, on the
promise that, if you use his products, and go on his diet, that you
too will live a long healthy life, free of cancer and Autism. He has
even gone so far as to say that his special diet and supplements will
cure children of Autism. A modern day snake oil salesman. The
internet is his wagon of oils and elixirs. Even when studies show
that his products do nothing. And when the products don't work as
intended, he always has the option to put the blame back on the user.
You didn't follow the diet and treatment program to the “T”, you
did something you weren't supposed to. Kinda like religion, if
things are going bad in your life, well then my friend, you didn't
pray hard enough, you didn't give enough, or there is some underlying
moral failing.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, I am sure that “big-pharma”
certainly isn't the good guy here, they are made up of businesses
intent on making a profit on the products they serve. They'll jack
up prices on medications, they certainly put out medications that
have side effects far worse than the problem itself, and they
certainly do have some very questionable advertising. We can all
agree that smoking is bad for you, but they have a pill for that now,
just one pill a day for a month, and you'll kick smoking like the bad
habit it is... But there are some minor side effects. You know the
typical inability to sleep, mood changes, potential psychotic breaks
from reality, suicidal thoughts or tendencies. But hey, they beat
the alternative of radiation treatments for lung cancer, or COPD.
Side note, if you smoke like I do, we really should quit, we aren't
doing ourselves any favors, and if we can, we shouldn't use that
medication, the horror stories I have heard about pretty bad. On the
plus side, if you do use that medication to stop, and you only have
minor problems, great.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, so here is the gist of this.
Science is hard, explaining it is harder, and explaining it
accurately when people are getting false or incorrect information is
almost impossible. You don't like vaccinations, good for you. You
don't want your kids vaccinated, we have a problem, a major problem.
Just because you are paranoid about a conspiracy, doesn't mean one
exists. Me and Mine shouldn't have to suffer the consequences
because you want to believe a celebrity or a snake oil salesman. But
that is what really happens. Your kid may or may not be autistic,
but mine should have to risk becoming sterile, or dying because of
your fears about something that has no basis in reality. I know, I
know, science is ever changing, but it also follows a logical track.
It doesn't suddenly reverse course, even in the early days, it didn't
reverse course. Back in the day, the church said everything orbited
the Earth, even when all the evidence said otherwise. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, do some research, and if someone is telling a half truth, its not true at all, its just preying on fear, and spreading ignorance and misinformation. This is something that we have to be doubly careful of now, with so many people looking to confirm their own biases. </div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-9472823107239860962017-12-09T19:29:00.001-05:002017-12-09T19:29:03.446-05:00Trickle Down: Or Some rich guy gives you a golden shower, whilst telling you it is raining.
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Back in the early 1980's we were all
introduced to a “new” economic policy called Trickle Down
Economics. It has since been referred to as Reaganomics, Trickle
Down, Voodoo Economics, and in some very limited circles... “Oh
great, the wealthy people are getting another round of tax cuts.”
But like so many things, many people don't really understand the full
scope of it. Just as Clinton and Obama grew one aspect of the
economy, they fail to realize that policies that create jobs is only
a portion of the economy.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, our economy has been sick for a
very long time. Home ownership is down, prices are way up, income is
stagnating, and I honestly haven't looked at car ownership, but drug
and alcohol abuse is up, while smoking is down. Alright, I am
digressing here. How many people can honestly say that they are
better off today, than they were a decade ago, and if so do you
believe that this is the case for all? I can say I'm better off
today. In 2007, I had a business, in 2007 I was sitting on enough of
a nest egg to buy a new truck, I was living in my own mobile home on
the back forty of the farm. I had my own ATV, and could, if so
inclined, afford to eat out every night, go to the movies, or any
number of things. Today, just to have a meal a day is a stretch. I
don't own that truck anymore, sold the ATV, ended up moving back home
into a guest room with my parents. Forget about going to the movies,
eating out, yeah, that happens once in a blue blood moon during a
solar eclipse at midnight. I can't find a steady job that is more
than twenty hours a week making the minimum wage that isn't seasonal.
The economy has improved so vastly in many areas, that the one job I
did land has steadily declined to the point that I get called in once
every few weeks for five hours total, and yeah, they can't even keep
the lights on at the place.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
First lets talk about Reaganomics,
because people have forgotten, or willfully ignore what the policies
are all about. When Reagan first introduced his horror show, he had
four pillars, these four things would be a boon for all. It would
lower costs for business, and these costs savings would “trickle
down” to employees, who would have more to spend, and they in turn
would pass those extra earnings onto people like me, who resells used
items to those who need something, but cannot afford to go somewhere
nice to get it. Yes, I am a used furniture salesmen. You need a
bed, we've got beds. You need a casket, we have that too, and no, I
didn't steal it out of a grave, its actually new. Alright, so these
four pillars... Pillar one: Lower taxes for corporations and the
wealthy. See in Reagan's mind, if they had lower taxes, they would
spend more. Honestly, that is a sound theory, but only when applied
to the working class and poor. The wealthy already have what they
need or want, well, outside of more cars and houses. Honestly, you
can never have enough cars. Corporations, could then do whatever
they wanted with these savings, which was add to their profit lines,
driving up their value. Opposed to spending on better wages,
benefits, and improvements to their business. Eh, now its
automation, you know, those pesky machines work for pennies on the
dollar, don't make as many mistakes, and do have to take breaks for
stupid stuff like, sleeping and family emergencies. Here is where
most people stop with the trickle down train, the rich get richer
through tax cuts, but there is more to the story.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Pillar two: Deregulation. Stop me if
you have heard this story before... A company lobbies congress and
says, “Hey, these environmental regulations are costing us a ton,
because we have to pay a special company to come in and remove our
toxic waste.” Congress says, “Oh no! This will not do...” A
bill comes along, after some wheels are greased, and by wheels I mean
palms, and suddenly, the regulations are relaxed or removed. Now,
the company can save tons of money, by dumping toxic waste into an
onsite storage facility, which eventually leaks into the ground,
contaminating the environment. But wait, there is always more. You
can deregulate anything and everything, remember a time when you
could turn on the news and actually get news? We get a minute of
news, and twenty minutes of opinions about the news. Yes, Donald
Trump Jr., did go have a closed door hearing before congress, that is
news. Everything that followed that startling revelation was opinion
based. Fox said something along the lines of “It's a witch-hunt!”,
and I don't know what MSNBC or CNN had to say about the whole affair,
but I can guess that it was because the Jr. Trump did something
wholly evil, I really don't know... But at this moment, anything is
possible. As memory serves, ten entities own the the vast majority
of news media. Outside of blogs like this one, some reputable others
more biased than Fox News, we are fed a steady stream of biased
propaganda. Trump is evil, he is going to destroy America... Trump
is the emissary of God himself... Trump is actually somewhere in the
middle of that, being politically incompetent, but talking a big
game. Trump isn't evil, he is just a carnival barker, a wrestling
heel (a bad guy who says and does things to anger the audience).
Being a bully is part of that.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Pillar three: Reduce government
spending. This means reducing spending for all the programs you
don't really like. Welfare and HUD, gut it. Social Security, gut
it, then privatize it. Medicare and Medicaid, reduce its funding.
Meals on Wheels and reduced price lunches, yeah can't do that.
Military spending, well that should get cut too, but never does
because we are a country all about war. Funny thing here, people
like to talk about how Clinton and Obama both had balanced budgets
when they left office. Yeah, about that, look at what got cut to
achieve those balanced budgets, and I can tell you, the military
still got their new tanks, hummers, planes, and ships. The troops
still get paid crap, their medical treatment after they get home is
about the same as those of us who still can't afford insurance.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The last pillar: Tighten the money (and
credit) supply to reduce inflation. The less money (or credit)
flowing, the lower inflation, or so my understand of the one of the
theories goes. So, in the mind of the people who created this plan,
the less money flowing around for things, the more stable everything
would be. This in my mind is a dangerous mix of two economic
policies, the “Gold Standard,” in which the value of the dollar
is tied to the price of gold, which in and of itself is not static in
value, and our current fiat currency, which is based on the
government's ability to pay its liabilities (its debt).
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, I said previously that Obama grew
one aspect of the economy, jobs. They weren't decent paying jobs,
they were service industry jobs. Low paying, dead end type jobs.
Nothing that could actually support a family on, nothing that people
could do more than survive on. Clinton had a little more to work
with, but he also had the Dotcom era going for him. Lots of jobs
would spring up overnight, and if you were a computer wiz, you could
make a lot of hay, very quickly. But that is just a part of the
economy, the rest comes from spending. Buying that new to you car,
buying that house on the corner, getting a newer game console for
yourself or you family members, going to the movies, eating out,
going on vacations, or maybe even going to the home teams football
game (or your local short track or minor league baseball team's home
game). All those things are other portions of the economy. Jobs, do
drive the economy, I won't deny that jobs are the very life blood of
everything. Achieving full employment is the ultimate goal of
everything economic. The more people working, the more money being
passed around, the better off everyone is...</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Except... Under Obama, and even
Clinton, wages didn't grow. Certainly, more people were buying under
Clinton, but that's because while the dead presidents club of America
wasn't flowing, the credit certainly was. With Obama, nothing was
flowing with ease. But there is a startling truth to be seen, one
that most people will never want to see. Every since this insanity
of trickle down Reaganomics began some thirty six years ago, every
president we have had, every congress we have elected, has elected to
continue the trend in some form or fashion. Wait, I hear some
saying, Clinton nor Obama lowered taxes, and that is true, but
trickle down is more than just lowering taxes for the wealthy. It is
a set of policies directed to benefit the wealthy and corporations.
It is the systemic deregulation of industry (even Net Neutrality), it
is reducing government spending through reallocation of funds,
defunding or privatization social safety nets or other programs (like
the CDC, infrastructure, public education, etc.) and trust me, that
is what the sequester did, it is removing protections from employees
to unionize (and I am not a huge fan of unions). It is the
restriction of cash and credit. Remember, the wealthy don't need
credit, its just a tool they use, and one they can well afford to
use. Under the guise of been a boon for all, we have watched income
stagnate, real economic growth grind along slowly, and a host of
other economic indicators lag behind. All the while, people who can
acquire real property, earn more unearned income. Seriously, if you
could come up with the money to buy three houses, and rent them,
you'd have additional money in your pocket, just because rent.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Just think about this one. Under
Obama, in the worst of situations, he managed to create jobs, the
lifeblood of an economy. Every month, people watched the job's
report roll in, and the numbers remained the same. Yes, jobs were
being created, low wage, low hour jobs, requiring people to work more
jobs. Eventually, the unemployment numbers went down, which meant
that more people were finding work in more areas. But look at the
quality of the work, it wasn't and still isn't that good, wages
haven't grown, everything is slowly improving in most areas. But I
have gotten away from my main point here. The truth of it all is,
trickle down economics has never worked. It is not because the cuts
in taxes aren't step enough, it isn't that too many regulations are
in place, that there is too much money and credit flowing to the
hands of the lower and middle class. It isn't because government
spending is too high. Its because our elected officials are
attempting to build a roof in mid-air with little to no foundation.
If we are going to be honest, everything that is done in trickle
down, be it the full platter, or just the sample sizes, serves to
benefit the wealthy and the businesses they own, with the hope that
these benefits will find their way down to us. They have yet to do
so, and to ignore Clinton and Obama's complacency in this mess would
be a disservice. Certainly, they tried to do good while in office,
and they had little to work with, so they did what they could. The
problem is, until we realize that these benefits will never come to
us, and we demand that our elected officials end the failed
experiment of Reaganomics, this trickle down theory of economics,
things won't get better. Certainly when we call it off, things will
go from bad to worse. I imagine many wealthy people will be very
unhappy, they might even shutter the doors of their companies, or
move them off shore to another country willing to play the game. But
here is the American vision, the truth behind all the petty ugliness
and lies. For every company that decides to take their ball and go
home, there will be some enterprising fellow standing in line saying,
I can do this. There are people out there who with a little time and
help that would be willing to play ball, the problem is, the cost to
sit at the table is beyond their means at this time. We just have to
stop and understand, jobs aren't the sole indicator of an economies
health, its the little things that most of us never think about, like
dinner and a movie.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-16179258493700102652017-10-31T12:55:00.002-04:002017-10-31T12:55:32.499-04:00What Happened? The Review
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Alright, so finally after a while, my
reserved copy of Hillary Clinton's book came in, and I started
reading it. This doesn't happen often, and might be a result of
blood pressure medication, but I am trying to sort out my thoughts
about what I have read thus far, and I am not having much luck with
it. Maybe the outrage about every little thing that happened in the
primaries is too fresh, maybe the anxiety of how big of a mess we are
actually in is clouding how I feel. Maybe its just that I can't get
over the commentary of the Clinton supports, that continues to this
very day, hasn't come to a head, and its not truly ready to be
excised from my mind. One thing I know for certain, the wounds that
were inflicted in the primaries, and the aftermath of this freak show
aren't healing, and that will take time. Time we simply do not have.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Where do I begin? First, I am down on
Clinton, I don't like her policies, I don't like her hawkishness, I
don't like her ties to things I feel are wrong with our country. I'm
just a simple guy at heart, I want a nice ride, a nice home, to eat
out without fear of breaking my bank account. I don't want a job, I
want a career, someplace I can hang my hat for twenty or thirty
years, walk out on my own terms, to live comfortably with a wife and
kids. And at the heart of my disdain for Secretary Clinton is the
notion that I wouldn't have any of those things. Its the same reason
I hold disdain for President Trump. Nothing changes for the better,
everything just continues its slow decent until it doesn't, it just
falls off the cliff into an abyss of misery and suffering that most
people in the United States simply cannot understand.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
A quick rehash before I start, because
this needs to have a some levity to it. In the last decade, I have
watched my family business fail. I have been homeless. I watched my
father die after being assaulted in a hospital. I have faced racism.
I have faced classism. I have faced poverty. Long term
unemployment. Heath crises. I have stood against political
corruption for almost two decades, I have gone to places in the US
that most wouldn't believe existed. Not just me, my entire family,
and countless other families. I should probably say we, but I use I,
because I am writing out of personal experiences, family lore, and
what I have personally seen others encounter and face. It is true, a
Liberal sees things and says this should never happen to anyone. For
me, it is a case of nobody should be forced, or have to walk down the
same path I do. For it is dark and lonely and cold, and every step
you take, you loose something else of yourself, and should you
finally emerge from the cold and lonely darkness, you are never
really the same.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, where to begin here? Well, when I
first picked up the book, I noticed that the story is her story, and
that is perfectly fine. I've nothing against writing from
perspective, I do it all the time. We all do, and I know some people
will see this as more of the “It's all about me!” deal that
Clinton is notorious for, its an acceptable thing. She is after all
writing her thoughts and views. The book is short, around 470 pages
not including the authors note and index. Yeah, this book comes with
an index so you can read her views on specific things, like you have
in a school book. The picture on the inside cover is her accepting
the nomination, and guess what, the protesters are shown sitting in
darkness. She explains the purpose of the book quickly, and without
fanfare. But quoting the movie A League of Their Own, and Nietzsche,
when Jerry McGuire (“Show me the Money!”) would likely be more
fitting for the Democratic Party today. Nietzsche, a nihilist, was
interesting to quote, even if it is one of his most famous quotes.
At this point, I need to say that it is not true, “What does not
kill us, makes us stronger.” is patently false. What does not kill
us, takes years off of our lives, and incurs massive medical bills,
which creates stress, and will ultimately lead to coronary failure or
stroke.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I should mention that this review is
going to be slightly disjointed, as things tend to pop into my mind
randomly. So, I might have read something earlier in the book, and
yeah, I just thought it was relevant. Anyway, she spends most of the
first chapter, if you can call this a chapter in a traditional sense,
talking about persevering in the face of adversity. Hey, that is
legitimately heart warming, we come into this world kicking and
screaming, we go through life settling, and at the end we mostly
peaceably leave this life. Me, I came in kicking and screaming, I'm
still kicking and screaming, and when I die, I'll be kicking and
screaming. Okay so what was this first chapter discussing, the loss.
How she felt in the immediate aftermath of loosing to Trump. She
grieved over loosing, took it hard, decided that it was best after a
contentious election to stay away from the protests that happened
afterwards. She spoke of going to Trump's wedding, even though they
weren't friends, and I'm sorry, but even if asked, I don't go to
weddings of people who are passing acquaintances. Yeah, I am not
famous, but thats just weird, even if it was just for “star power.”
We move onto the Inauguration, in which Clinton says that “Dubya”
Bush said that Trumps Inaugural speech was “That was some weird
s—t.” We move onto gratitude for the loss, and really jump in
both feet.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So we next return to the fall of 2014,
when Clinton first started kicking around a run for President.
Obama, according to her, persuaded her to run, to continue his
legacy. She wasn't reluctant to run, by no means, she was motivated
by helping. But she also says that in retrospect, her speeches to
Wall Street, while perfectly normal and acceptable (which they are),
were not the best choice given the economic blowup of 2008-2009.
Yeah, let us forget that Clinton, Bill for that matter, made no
effort to fight deregulation that helped the 2008 Economic blowup,
and that Hillary deferred to Schumer, a neutral person. Let us also
acknowledge the fact that this happened on the GOP's watch, while she
held a seat in the Senate, and was hands off on Wall Street
regulation. In her mind, because she took a hands off approach she
is clear of any blow back from the 2008 issues. Furthering this, she
had no problem giving private speeches to the very entities who
practically destroyed our economy. She recounts telling the story of
Bin Laden being killed multiple times, and while its great fodder, I
have a feeling that there was always more to these speeches. It is
her contention that she should have realized that giving those
speeches could potentially be problematic in the future, given the
resentment against Wall Street. You think? They nearly destroyed
the economy, people lost everything they owned, they lost their
savings, their retirements, and all I got was a $200 check, that I
had to pay taxes on the following year. Hey, I admit it, I'm still
bitter about that whole f—k up. Hey, things were looking bad on
the farm in the lead up to the collapse, but we had survived worse
than a market downturn. What we couldn't survive, was a market
downturn and a full down economic collapse in which loans evaporated.
So, yeah, I think the agitation about Wall Street is well founded,
given how much people lost, how much Wall Street got in bailouts, and
we the people got a few dollars.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
All right, all right, I am still touchy
about that, and I do believe that had our Senators and Congress
people had actually been, I don't know, doing their job, half of that
nonsense wouldn't have happened. In my mind it was the greatest
single theft in the history of the world. And here she is saying,
“Yeah, giving speeches to the very people who nearly destroyed
everything was likely a bad idea.” No shyte. Well at least she
says she told them to “cut it out.” before they tanked the
economy ruining countless numbers of people. According to one
executive, “She wasn't engaging on those issues. She just didn't
have a lot of interest.” ~sighs~
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So she claims that she ran for
president to help people, because as a Senator, a Representative, or
Secretary of State you can't help all that many people, but as
president you can save the world. Well, at least the world that
matters, Americans, while we continuing to carpet bomb the crap out
of everything else. I'm sorry, but as a Senator or a member of the
House of Representatives, you have more power than the President.
Hey, I've got a new drinking game all planned out. While reading
this book about life, the universe and how Hillary Clinton couldn't
beat the single worst presidential candidate in my recollection of
human history, every time she brings up the Clinton Foundation you
take a shot of liquor. Every time she talks about all the good it
has done, drink a few more shots. If she talks about daughters life
experiences drink several more. When she talks about her
grandchildren, don't drink, do it for the kids. Thus far, almost a
quarter of this book is about her foundation, and her plans, but she
doesn't flesh out her plans, just that she had them.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So at this point, we are on the Kessel
Run... I mean on a secret trip to Iowa, and she isn't even committed
to running for president in 2016. They've loaded up Scoobie (a black
van) and have set off on a secret trip, only to be foiled by
Chipolte, and grainy security camera footage. As we move along we
get into the Primary and Caucus seasons, and irony of irony, she
talks about how Sanders got more delegates because he won a caucus in
Washington State. I seem to recall that even when they were close to
tie, the media (which she said was on a witch hunt), she would have
several more delegates than Sanders. That whole, Super Delegates
being tallied along with regular delegates. She now she is hitting
the revisionist button. She did have a large lead in the delegate
count, when you take into account the Super Delegates. Really? Tim
Kaine her VP pick was a Super Delegate, and if you say that you or he
could be impartial about a vote, considering you are voting
for/against the person offering you a job... I'll call you a liar,
each and every time. You are going to vote for the person offering
the job. She rejects the notion that her campaign was flawed,
considering all the events that happened during the cycle. But the
truth is, even should she wish to ignore it, this was an
anti-establishment cycle, people who were seen as insiders were
viewed with cynicism, and she was the inside candidate. Certainly
the FBI letter didn't help her cause, but being honest, she messed
up.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I don't think I have been very fair
here. I came in really not liking Secretary Clinton, and while I
have been decent, I haven't been overly nice. I am trying to stay
neutral, hard as it can be. But she is right about something here,
Democrats need better data, and they need to adapt better than they
have in the past. The problem is, even my own representatives, they
tend to live in a bubble. Listening isn't a strong point, of anyone
in office these days, they listen to money. Follow the money, and
you'll find the voice on the other end of the tin can.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, so, I have to say something,
because honestly I am offended here. Yeah I know, its easy to offend
me at times, it is just a matter of the subject. If you tell your
daughter that she could become the President of the United States,
great. Honestly, I believe that there is a young woman somewhere in
this land that has that dream, and rightfully so. We do not need
anyone to say they are going to be the first to confirm that dream.
That dream is valid all on its own, as is the dream of some youth who
believes he has the skills required to play professional ball, or to
be the CEO of a major corporation. All we need do is plant the seeds
in our daughters, and to instill that the will to achieve must be
strong as steel, but flexible as a twig in the wind. We must teach
out daughters to be strong and resilient, to deal with the stupidity
of others, while being confident in their ideology and themselves.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
You know, I thought this might be a
little fun, I figured I could read her book, and get to see things
from her point of view. But the thing is, this book, all four
hundred some odd pages are really just a rehash of the election.
Yeah, Trump went to the low hanging hate fruit. But thats been their
thing since 2001. Hatred of Muslims, fear of terrorist attacks, fear
of gun grabbing, hatred for the poor, etc... Hate and fear are what
drives the GOP, and I don't need to hear it from Clinton, I see
enough of its poison on a daily basis. And yeah, she talked a big
game about unity, while her online surrogates played the same game
the GOP does, and they know the game, so they won it. To some
extent, now they are playing the “I told you so.” card, and yeah,
thats going to work out really well here. The fact of it is, for all
the good she says she wanted to do, it doesn't matter now. Stronger
Together, Love Trumps Hate, or whatever catchy slogan you want to
pontify, or if you insist on asking all those who voted for neither
Trump or Clinton and Trump's supporters “If they are happy now?”
I can tell you, they weren't happy at the start of the election cycle
of 2016, they are equally as unhappy today. To me, all this book is,
is just a means of keeping the hornets wet and angry. I wish I could
say this book was insightful, well the half I read of it, but its
just rehashing the same tired song and dance, red meat for her base
who feels screwed, cringe worthy for those who aren't her base. I
don't know, maybe you'll take something else away from it. I won't
tell anyone to buy it, just go check it out at the library, or wait a
while, I'm sure it'll find its way to the bargain bin shortly.
Basically the first half of the book is mostly about her foundation,
the next portion talks about her policy ideas, without even
discussing them, just I had ideas. Followed by Sanders hanging
around too long, and GOP fear and hate. Honestly, I doubt anything
will be gleaned from finishing this book. Now, if you will excuse
me, I need to come up with some money so I can cover yet another set
of unexpected bills that I acquired for myself. I would say thank
Obama, or Thank Trump, but at this point, I am going to thank my
crappy genetics and a hard life made so much better by Trickle Down
Economics, something Democrats and Republicans agree with.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-57870649915936529462017-10-12T23:11:00.000-04:002017-10-12T23:11:04.732-04:00State of Affairs October 2017
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay home from the hospital, well I've
been home since Sunday. The better parts of stress and anxiety
finally got the better half of me. My blood pressure was
extraordinarily high, and I am lucky enough to have escaped without
permanent damage, well I think so anyway. So, after Los Vegas,
hurricanes of epic proportions, and what appears to be a country
flying apart at the seems, nothing is getting done, we are more
worried about NFL players taking a knee (oh the humanity), we are
worried about people calling the president a moron, one who should be
impeached, and my god, where to start?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Of all the problems, of all the crap
hitting the fan, and I am being literal here, our priorities are so
messed up its not even funny. So where do we go from here? We step
back a moment, take stock of the problems, all the problems, we
assess the situation at hand, and then we step back into the fray to
pick up the pieces and put them back together. Until we step back,
we are going to continue to fight the wrong battles, in the wrong
wars, and continue the status quo, which is the problem, regardless
of your political ideology.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Problem:</b> <i>Potential nuclear
war</i>. This one right here is scary as hell, I don't care who you
are. In only two times during humanities limited history have we
witnessed the destruction of atomic weapons on civilian populations.
Twice in human history have we used them in battle, and the results
are far beyond devastating. Here we are all these decades later, and
the effects are still being felt by those subjected to it. Nuclear
weapons were meant to be a deterrent, the ultimate don't mess with us
weapon. The option of last resort, so to speak. Yet here we are,
almost seventy years later, and we have a president who wants to
bolster our nuclear arsenal, and who is apparently unconcerned about
using them. Neglecting the fact that, that when you drop the bomb,
that fall out is going to eventually reach our shores in some
capacity (and I'm not talking about a retaliatory strike). That type
of warfare is indiscriminate, it takes out everyone and everything.
While I agree that North Korea doesn't need nuclear weapons, I will
also say that I don't believe anyone needs nuclear weapons. North
Korea, the United States, Great Britain, Israel, China, Russia, South
Korea, Japan, or anyone else for that matter needs access to those
types of weapons, and as it stands the US only has enough nuclear
weapons to destroy the planet nearly twenty times, by ourselves. You
throw in all the other known and unknown nuclear powers, and its a
recipe for irradiating this planet for the next million years. This
is a problem, and its one I don't have the solution for. Its a shame
we don't have a remote viewing time machine, where we can pile in all
the world's leaders, send them back to Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the
moments before the bombs fell, so they can get a first hand view of
the destruction and the aftermath. Maybe that would wake them up to
the effects, the fear and pain, the utter destruction brought by a
single weapon.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Problem</b><span style="font-style: normal;"><b>:</b></span><i>
The rent's too damned high, along with health care, food, vehicles,
utility bills, and everything else</i>. The truth of it is, the cost
of everything is too damned high. Want a place, yeah, better pony up
some money son. Even in the bad side of town, rents are insane, for
even the smallest of rat holes. There are places where you are
paying hundreds if not thousands of dollars for a small, five hundred
square foot apartment, just because you are in a specific city. I
pay $650 for a little eight hundred square foot place, that is
falling apart around me, on the wrong side of the tracks. This is
actually one of the cheaper places I can live. If I cook in the
summer and freeze in the winter, never watch TV, use the computer, or
turn on the lights, I can keep the bills down to around $200 a month.
If I use the AC, which I've had to since my hospitalization, I'm
looking at $300-400 a month, or more depending on how hot it is.
I've literally encountered a $900 power bill for using the AC in the
dead heat and humidity of the summer months. The power company says
its my air conditioning running up the bill, so I call my landlord
and his general impression is, its my problem. So, call up a service
company, they come out, check the AC (which isn't cheap), they say
the AC is fine, they haven't a clue as to why my power bill is
outrageously high. Go to the power company, request they check the
meter, $60 later, they say that the meter is fine, its never the
meter (did I mention the city owns the power company?). Well, at
least I can drive in my car, since the public transportation system
runs from 7am to 10pm, and it costs $15 a week to use, right?
Cheapest cars around here are several thousand dollars, and the
interest on the loans is enough to choke a maggot. So, I can go in
on a used car, and pay as much in interest as the initial asking
price. Now, I did get a decent enough deal from my cousin who owns a
used car lot (Its not what you know, but who you know), the car needs
a lot of work (seriously just watch the original Ghostbusters for the
joke here), but hey, he isn't killing me with interest and has
offered to get some of the more pressing parts, if I'm willing to do
the work myself (which thank god, I can). Lets not talk about
healthcare, poor enough to not be able to afford it, wealthy enough
to not qualify for the government programs. I dread seeing the
incoming bills from my stay in the ER. The prescriptions weren't
horribly priced, $36 in total for three of them, with a prescription
discount card. Though I am sure my blood pressure problems wouldn't
be as severe if I was eating more than one meal a day, that meal
consisting of Raman Noodles. Speaking of the costs being too damned
high, pay attention to your grocery bill the next time you go to the
store. Have you noticed that in the last several years, you spend as
much at the store, but walk out with less and less food? I know I
have. I knew I was in trouble when I walked out after paying $40,
and only having enough bags that I didn't need a cart to ferry the
food to my new junk car. I remember my parents bitching about
spending $40 for groceries, and walking out of the store with two
carts worth of goods (1986). Kind of like my Dad bitching that his
truck (a Chevy K3500 dually) taking $50 to top off (1996). But hey,
it could be worse, right?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Problem:</b><span style="font-weight: normal;">
</span><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">I need a job!? </span></i><span style="font-weight: normal;">I</span>
keep hearing some refer to a Federal Jobs Guarantee, and thats great.
Really it is, but every time I get into this conversation, I keep
hearing supporters say that this jobs program should be administered
at a state or local level. I always have to be the guy who points
out that states and localities aren't always the most upstanding of
organizations. Each state and locality has differences, they tend to
do what works best for them, and in some instances, corruption rots
the government. In places I have resided, and even reside today, you
are more likely to get a job based on who you know, not your skill
set, not your education level, or even your race. If you know the
manager or owner, you are more likely to get a job. If you know
someone who is good friends with the owner or manager, you're more
likely to get the job. FFS, I applied for the same position as my
sister, and she got the job over me, because she personally knew the
manager. Those advocating for a jobs guarantee rarely take this into
account, maybe its because they figure that there will be so many
jobs, that won't happen. Sadly, no matter how many jobs you have out
there, this will happen, but in a different way. The premium jobs,
the jobs that pay the best will go to those who know someone, while
the rest of us will be left with the lower end jobs.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Problem:</b><span style="font-weight: normal;">
</span><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">Healthcare please!?</span></i><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
Yeah, I am walking around with high levels of stress and anxiety.
Unable to find stable work, dealing with keeping the lights on, food
on the table, and now at the time when I shouldn't have to worry
about medical bills, I have this added stress sitting on my table.
Now I can ignore the bills, which is where I am heading, and the
negative impact on credit that comes with ignoring the bills, or I
can try and struggle through paying them (a painful but better
alternative). Seriously its 2017 people, healthcare should rank as a
“everything's great problem.” Basically, healthcare shouldn't be
a problem for anyone in the US, yet we are having this god awful
debate about repeal and replace the current “Gold Standard” of
healthcare. Both of these options are horrible, the PPACA has some
points, but it sucks. Yeah, it insured millions of people who were
previously uninsured, and for many people that makes it a success,
but its not. The replace portion of the debate is even worse,
because as best as I know, there is nothing replacing it. The PPACA
did nothing to control costs, which have been increasing at a
horrible rate. What good is health insurance if you can't afford to
use it? Well, certainly having a $1500 bill is a lot better than a
$15,000 dollar bill (for a doctor drawing some blood, giving me
medication for high blood pressure, and something for indigestion).
But that's $1500 on top of the $1000 a month I would have had to pay.
Guess I don't need to eat, so I can have health insurance. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="font-style: normal;">Solutions:</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
Yeah, I got nothing solid here people. Lots of ideas, lots of
potential solutions, but not enough ears willing to listen, pick up
the phone (if they have one) and make a few phone calls. A </span></span><b><span style="font-style: normal;">Federal
Jobs Guarantee</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
would help those who are unemployed and unable to land anything, but
I am concerned about letting states and localities run the show.
Sorry, but local and state governments have proven time and time
again that they cannot be trusted to keep the best interests of their
citizens at heart. A </span></span><b><span style="font-style: normal;">Universal
Basic Income</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
would help, I am not saying give everyone $20,000 a month for the
next hundred years, but say, $2000 a month for households earning
under $150,000 a year. At the very least, it would put everyone who
is working close to lower middle class, if they cant find work like
me, that puts 99% of the people close to lower middle class (which
would help with private sector jobs). Combine the two programs,
you've essentially lifted anyone who wants out of poverty, out of
poverty. It won't make life simple, given the amount of debt most
people hold, but it makes getting caught up marginally easier. That
in and of itself is a good reason to use both programs in
conjunction. The way many think, we wouldn't be able to cut taxes,
but we wouldn't need to raise them unless demand exceeded demand, and
inflation started growing. </span></span><b><span style="font-style: normal;">Increase
the Minimum Wage</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">,
the tried and true method of boosting the economy, raise the minimum
wage, and people have more income, everyone spends it, but how people
spend it is different. While you might take that extra $10-20
dollars a week and eat out once, I am more inclined (when working) to
spend that money on paying bills. Hey, an extra $10 a week helps get
those pesky bills paid off a little faster. The problem with the way
I doing things, the way many of us do things, is that that money is a
sink. It disappears, it doesn't benefit anyone outside of the
company you are paying. Sure, they employ people, but paying bills
only pads their profit margins. Want to help make money go a little
further, go to a </span></span><b><span style="font-style: normal;">Single
Payer System</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">.
Say what you will about paying for other peoples healthcare (if I
can't pay my medical bills, your taxes will cover that while I repay
it), or more accurately health insurance, but its cheaper to have
insurance for everyone than this current hit and miss system we have
now. Besides, with health insurance, people will be healthier,
therefore less money will be spent on treatment. Who knows, if I
would have had usable health insurance, I would have been getting
yearly physicals, and I might not have ended up in the hospital.
Chain of events ladies and gentlemen. </span></span><b><span style="font-style: normal;">Cost
Controls</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">,
in order to ensure that massive amounts of funds aren't going out in
the expense of survival. Look, I understand that profit is good, but
at some point we have to ask ourselves how much profit is too much
profit. Right now profit is coming from lower wages and higher
prices. I have long believed that profits can be achieved by better
pay and lower prices (hint: you'll sell more if your employees can
afford the products/services you sell). The problem is, companies
don't want to take a loss while everyone is catching up. I know, not
making as much profit for a year or two is horrible, and the truth
is, for some companies, the difference could come down to even
turning a profit. Some companies, the Ma and Pa types of small
business are often barely holding on, and while they often charge
more, the truth is the service is often better. </span></span><b><span style="font-style: normal;">Break
up Big Business</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">,
yeah, the tried and true break up the monopolies. Break up Wal-Mart,
which is one of the largest employers in the US, a chain that has
stores in just about every city, town, and state. Wal-Mart has no
real competitors, they are the top of the food chain, if they move
into a new area (which is hard for them anymore), they have so much
working capital that they can price check competitors into oblivion.
Seriously, go look at the prices at your local Wal-Mart, then go look
at prices for the same product at your local grocery store. If you
have one of those Wal-Mart Market places, check the prices there
also. The Wal-Mart market is cheaper than the Wal-Mart Supercenter,
which is still cheaper than your local grocery store chain. Now,
some places like Kroger and Food City offset these higher prices by
offering savings on gas, but they are also large chains, but not
nearly as large as Wal-Mart. Break up companies like Wal-Mart, and
you take away their capital advantages, you allow smaller chains to
compete as they are all on an equal footing. How many of you have
seen Driving Miss Daisy? The chain store shown is Piggly Wiggly,
which eventually become Kroger, Safeway, National Tea, with a handful
of Piggly Wiggly stores in various states. It introduced competition
for Piggly Wiggly, and while it is still around and doing well for
itself, it no longer has a market cornered. Imagine what it would do
if Wal-Mart was broken up and left to be regionalized. </span></span><b><span style="font-style: normal;">National
Weed Legalization</span></b><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
for funding if you are concerned about how you're going to pay for
any of this. Legalize weed, legalize all the drugs if you want, set
up dens where people can go and use these drugs, tax the use, higher
security and doctors for these dens, and go from there. Of course,
you might be saying, “Oh hell no!”, and hey I don't blame you for
it, so we have a few choices, we could always cut military spending,
what's it up to these days? $600 billion a year, $700 billion? We
could do a lot with $300-350 billion a year. But it would mean that
things would have to change in how our military burns through money,
we might even have to consider not being the US Military World
Police. But lets be real about cutting military spending, that's
never going to happen, because “terrorists”. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">There
are other things that people can think of to fix things. We could
finally call Trickle Down Economics the failure that it is, and
reverse the trends. Well, at this point not really, free trade has
given most of the deck to businesses, and even now as their tax rates
plummet, and profits soar higher and higher, they say “But our
taxes are too high sir, please cut them?” and we are more than
happy to oblige them. Yeah, I know, raise their taxes, they'll just
off shore more jobs, driving wages lower, laughing all the way as
their profits grow larger and larger. Things need to change, we
can't put the genie back into the bottle, so we have to work with
what we have, which isn't much. Free trade, as much as many dislike
it, isn't going away. I seriously doubt that there will be
renegotiation to make these treaties more “equitable” or fair to
us. We will have to work around it. Offshoring of jobs isn't going
to suddenly stop because taxes are being cut, if that was the case,
the jobs would have been trickling back. What we have to do is
realize that Trickle Down doesn't work as intended, and the damage is
done. So, lets find a situation that actually does something while
working around the problem. Take anything I listed in bold earlier,
take a combination of plans, all of them if need be, because we got
into this mess with a handful of putrid ideals left to rot the core
of this nation, while oppressing a large chunk of the population,
financial oppressing the majority, and the reason was those who could
have stopped it drank the koolaide. They believed Trickle Down
worked. So now we are left having to throw multiple potential
solutions at the wall, and hope that it injects enough capital into
the hands of the people that we can start eliminating the problems we
face. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I
just read an article which stated that nearly a third of people are
not comfortable with their financial situation. A comment on the
article surmised the actual number was around fifty percent of the
people are not financially secure, in the wealthiest nation in the
world. Think about that, fifty percent of those who took a survey.
That would be adults people, adults are concerned about not being
able to save enough money for an emergency expense, concerned about
not having enough money to pay the bills. And if you think its
irresponsible spending habits, then you need to step back and really
look at the whole situation, not just your view of it. There are
serious problems here, and not all of it can be blamed on poor
spending habits. It is not a case of living within your means,
because lets be honest, right now, a lot of people are living beyond
their means by trying to keep food on the table. </span></span>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Nineteen
days to go, till November 1, nineteen days till this household has
any kind of money, and I was supposed to schedule a followup
appointment for next week, just to make sure that my blood pressure
isn't continuing to go crazy. So, no on renewing the gym membership,
no traveling even to the store, and going to have to hope groceries
last that long. And certainly no follow up appointment to ensure
that my blood pressure doesn't get out of control again, causing
other more serious health concerns. Look, none of those solutions
are easy, most aren't even realistic in this current climate. All I
can do is write them out to a blog, share the resulting link, and
call those who are supposed to represent people like me in DC, tell
you and them what I think, remind them that they work for us, not for
anyone else. </span></span>
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-19238944079428873892017-09-28T13:46:00.000-04:002017-10-03T13:46:33.370-04:00Tax Reform and You, Circa 2017.
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The grand experiment of trickle down
economics continues unabated, so what does this mean for you, more of
the same....</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Yeah, that about sums up how I see this
playing out, tax cuts, continued pushes to privatize social security,
social safety net cuts, military spending increases, no increased
spending on infrastructure, basically, as I said, more of the same.
Hey, don't get me wrong, I love tax cuts as much as the next guy, I
mean really when I have a steady paycheck, the more money it has, the
more money I can spend on the things I want.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
No, not really, not going to be able to
buy that new used car, or buy a house, or pay the bills. The joke of
this is that people are still buying this notion that when
corporations pay lower taxes this money comes into the hands of
employees. So, the way this is sounding is... The taxes still come
out every week, and then by April there will be a check for you, with
all that money coming back in a lump sum. Now, as I have said
before, whenever I earned enough to actually file taxes, and I did,
the refund never went to doing things like... I don't know, buying a
new television to replace the one I have, or putting a deposit down
on that new used car the local lot has, I'm using it to cover bills
that my meager wages don't typically cover. But hey, my cell phone
bill will be current for the first time in six months. I am not
alone in this bad deal, how many of you can honestly say that you
take that tax refund and hide it away for a rainy day, or do things
with it, outside of paying bills? Yeah, I thought so.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
As someone who supports the Modern
Monetary Theory, I don't see debt as being a deal breaker on anything
we want to do. All taxes are meant to do is control spending,
sluggish economy, reduce taxes to allow more money to be spent.
Economy getting to hot, raise taxes to pull money out of the system
to slow it down. Running an economy on the government scale is a lot
different than running it at a household scale. Seriously, a
thousand dollars a month extra income in my household would allow for
a new used car, and the other expenses that it would entail. Two
thousand dollars a month, would afford the new car, insurance,
healthcare insurance, and probably enough to move out of this
cesspool into a better neighborhood.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But the truth is, an extra fifteen to
twenty dollars a week, isn't going to do much, the problem has grown
to large to fix the problems so many people have. Its not going to,
as Mr. Cohn says, allow people to improve their lives. They won't be
able to go on vacations, remodel their houses, or buy a new car (oh
I'd love to get a car, a new one that gets thirty miles to the
gallon). Fifteen to twenty dollars a week can at least buy a two
pairs of cheap pants, new underwear/shirts, a cheap pair of shoes,
and something off the dollar menu at a fast food place. Well, at
least in a month I can get something out of pawn (my Parents wedding
rings). Great that will save me all of two dollars a month. I could
buy a few new used video games every month, or buy a DVD a week.
That would be three packs of cigarettes, or a bottle of liquor a
week.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
They are really breaking the bank here,
because they are expecting that money to trickle down to us in the
form of better benefits, more jobs, and higher incomes. By and
large, that isn't going to happen, that money will go to profits,
experimentation in automation, or some other use that won't be
beneficial to us. But hey, at least we will have a few more pennies
to rub together for warmth as bills continually increase. So much
for getting a new cell phone, one where my calls don't break up,
unless I am standing outside with it raised above my head, screaming
at it on speaker phone. Ah well, don't need to talk on the phone
anyway.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-91889674758553041882017-09-26T19:00:00.000-04:002017-10-03T13:48:46.519-04:00Poor Behavior
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, as the NFL Player Protest Backlash
continues, Dale Earnhardt Jr speaks contrary to Richard Childress and
Richard Petty, and fans in various places are posting videos of them
burning their team's (driver's) swag, while whining on Facebook about
how they are “no longer fans”. Yeah, I guess I get it, you don't want politics infringing on your sports, forget that 70% of people ignore politics (until the elections and things aren't going right).</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Personally, I can find a better waste
of money, sports goods aren't cheap, last time I looked at a hat, it
was nearly $30, for just a basic hat with a team logo on it. I guess
it was made by Rebok, I don't know, I didn't like the look of the
hat, or the price tag associated with it, so I used my discretion and
left it at the store, I have bills to pay, and limited money, a new
hat could wait. But that the thing, people do have the extra money
to spend on gear from their favorite teams and drivers, so they do.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But now, they are mad because... So,
they run out to their grill, grab a lighter at the store, or maybe
break out the blow torch, and let it burn. Yeah that really proves
something, it proves that you are perfectly okay with wasting your
hard earned money. Well, it is your money, you can burn it if you
want to, but think about this for a moment: There are people who
have nearly lost everything in several catastrophic natural
disasters.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
There are people who are worse off than
I, who have favorite teams, and those hats/jerseys/etc would be a
great help. So, rather than burn it, donate it. Give it to any
organization that is in need of cloths. Nah, what do I know, its
better to just burn it, so nobody can use it, because its far better
to act like a child, and squander money than it is to actually make
something good happen, because... You're angry.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Speaking of which, while you jump on
your teams fan page to whine about the actions of team members (or a
drivers page) on Facebook, be aware that these pages are often not
affiliated with said team/driver. It is a fan page, created by fans.
Sometimes the team has control of the page, but lets be honest, they
don't read every comment, but you know who does read the comments,
other fans. Sometimes we'll comment, I know I have from time to
time, but most of the time people just scroll through. Think about
it, for every thousand reactions, comments, and thousands of
sub-comments, there are thousands more who look and wonder “WTF is
wrong with these people.” Personally, when people who aren't
familiar with a sport look at a fan page, we are the representatives
of our team. My rant, if people saw or read it, reflects on the
Steelers organization, when I comment on Facecbook, with my profile
pic wearing a Steelers hat, everything I post that is sports related
reflects on them, just as when my profile pic was of Dale Earnhardt
Jr.'s car, it would reflect on him for those who don't know who he
is.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, here I see many people who aren't
familiar with sports, but with politics, seeing a whole bunch of
people going utterly insane, over using their free speech. Hey, I
like playing the roll of fanatical fan, when the playoffs come and
the Steelers are coursing a way to the Superbowl, I am practically
rabid (the same when the Pens go to the Stanley Cup, Jr. made the
chase, or when whatever Ferrari driver wins the F1 championship or
race). For a while there, I think I knew the Italian National
Anthem, as well as the German one (from Schumacher winning all the
time in his F1 Ferrari).
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, so while I have been ranting at
the stupid wastefulness of some of the American People, CNN has been
running coverage of Maria, the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico.
As of this instant, there are over ten thousand (10,000) shipping
containers worth of goods that the residents need. Cruise ships are
sitting in port, loading up those with severe medical conditions, and
cries (from FEMA) of not having enough truck drivers to move the
goods. Yet we are complaining about NFL players taking a knee,
sitting in the tunnel, or in the locker room before a game.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Seriously, a man who had major heart
surgery, and should be on a boat off that island in a “really
really big ocean”, should be where he is ensured proper medical
treatment. Yeah, years after that kind of open heart surgery, you're
going to need major medical care. But since he didn't register for
evacuation, he is stuck, I guess thats fair. Please insert eye roll
here. Registered or not, people like him should get on a boat before
the people in my position, no known medical conditions (outside of
crippling anxiety). People had to string a steel cable to ford a
river, just so they could get a person with renal failure (or at
least renal problems requiring dialysis), and get supplies. Look,
there is a gentleman on the news right now saying they need hands,
and at this point, in normal circumstances, I would say if you have a
CDL strike out to this island, but I fear it might make things worse
(still if you have a CDL, try and find out if you can help by going).
These are, after all, our fellow countrymen and women. They are our
fellow citizens (they just aren't considered a state).
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
FEMA is ill prepared for what happened
with Harvey, Irma, Jose, and Maria. Certainly they have handled
Harvey fairly well, from what I haven't heard. Literally, I have
heard little to nothing about the damage done to Harvey (Insert
Kevin's GoFundMe). Outside of a good friend who last I heard was
expecting his house to be flooded for several weeks after the initial
flooding. Irma, I have heard from people who live in Key West, who
are having major problems getting onto the FEMA site for the benefits
offered to them, while they try and rebuild. Personally, I wouldn't
live in Key West or Florida in general, its too expensive, you're
constantly dealing with tourists, and there are a handful of stores
(requiring some major purchases being bought on the mainland). But,
they love where they live, and they want to stay there. Then we have
several islands (of which Puerto Rico is the one being talked about
the most), which are in utter ruins, people are trying to get off of
them, while our government appears to be twiddling its thumbs.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, I know our government is at least
putting forth a halfhearted effort on this, but like Katrina, it
shows that our systems are ill prepared for major disasters. And the
truth, like it or not, is that these disasters are going to become
far, far worse, and far more frequent. Yet here we sit, arguing
about Climate Change, if it is real or a hoax, how large a role we
play in it, and what we can do about it. We can do a lot, but it is
going to require change, something that people in the US and the
world seem to be highly resistant too.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Our infrastructure is severely lacking,
our damns and levees are ill prepared for storms the scale we have
seen this year alone. Our roadways cannot handle the massive amounts
of traffic from people fleeing these storms, or get supplies to
affected areas before or after the storms. Buildings aren't
constructed to withstand the wind-speeds associated with these
storms. Speaking of wind-speeds, little can fully withstand
wind-speeds of a Category 5 hurricane. But that doesn't mean we
can't try and figure it out, and try to retrofit or build new
structures that can withstand these types of wind. We need to ensure
that the damage can be limited, as much as possible. And as Lt. Gen.
Horone just said, we need to break the rules on this (in reference to
getting help to those on Puerto Rico). It is going to mean doing
these retrofits on the government dime, without repayment in many
instances.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But here is the warning, as these
storms get larger, and more powerful, it is only a matter of time
before one of these super hurricanes makes landfall in a heavily
populated area. Harvey was not an isolated incident, and the damage
could have been a lot worse than fifty some odd inches of rainfall,
severe flooding, and wind damage. Imagine if Harvey or Irma would
have made landfall on major parts of the mainland, and they had been
more powerful than they were. Imagine Katrina hitting New Orleans as
a Category 4 or 5 hurricane. That could very well happen by the end
of this hurricane season, it could happen during the next, or in the
seasons that follow. This is not a hoax, this is not being an
alarmist, and this is certainly not a conspiracy, this is a very real
thing, and it can affect swaths of the population, not just in the
US, but in the Pacific Ocean as well.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-52818442914722996802017-09-24T19:39:00.001-04:002017-09-24T19:39:00.034-04:00The NFL, Politics and You
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
So, I am
sitting here, after watching my vaunted Steelers choke in the
overtime period of their game against the Bears, of which I have
several thoughts. First, and most important in my mind is to say a
hearty “Well played, and congratulations on the win.” to the
Bears players (as if they would ever read this), and too their fans,
“Your team showed up to play, and got the job done.” I like to
get that out of the way, because good sportsmanship comes with being
a gracious winner, and while I personally don't like seeing my teams
loose, it comes with being a big enough person to congratulate the
winners, even if we don't like it. Now, I am about to do something I
really don't like doing, the game is over, we fought the good fight
and we lost, but the season is still young, and I observed something
that has really bothered me.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, I can be the type that likes to
pile on, when I see something wrong, I will comment about it, and if
more people are talking, hey, I'll be there adding my two cents,
wanted or not. But what was it that has bothered me? When the
pregame started I saw players kneeling with each other, I saw players
linking elbows, I saw one player standing at the entrance of the
tunnel in my teams colors. Standing as a sentry to the tunnel,
paying his respect to a flag. That actually doesn't bug me, he is
voicing his thoughts with his action, and I am proud to see him
standing there, using his speech in a peaceful way. But I am also
proud of the men who decided to remain in the locker room, also using
their speech in a peaceful way. I think Mr. Rooney is in whatever
afterlife there is, looking at his team, smiling, proud that the men
that he brought together for our benefit are trying to become more,
that they are a symbol of something bigger.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, that doesn't bother me, I do not
know the politics of the locker rooms in the NFL, I know I have heard
some refer to it as a brotherhood, a family of sorts. And if more
players had wanted to follow Mr. Villanueva (a former US Ranger),
they should have, maybe more didn't, and I seriously doubt peer
pressure played into this. Again, we don't know the full details of
what happened in the locker room, and it is not our place to
question. So, what has me bothered by this? Its the reaction from
fans, from my own little community of “die-hard” Steelers fans.
The people who we celebrate with after a win, those we mourn with
after a loss. This is directed to some of my fellow fans, and this
is where we are going to have issues moving forward.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
And let me say, these issues are pretty
major. We have a problem in our nation, a severe problem with police
militarization and brutality. We have police killing people in the
streets, abusing privileges that they should have never been given.
We have an environment on the war path, income inequality that is second only to the worst of third world nations, the worlds most expensive healthcare while ranking pretty poorly. We had one man, who used a platform he was given to start making a
clear point, we have a problem with police brutality. That one man turned into many.
While people did not agree or like his actions, they saw the
problems, and said there has to be a better way. But what set this
off, really had nothing to do with the initial actions of a handful
of people, it was the response they received. The response, has been
heart wrenching, people want to ignore the issues that started this,
they are ignoring why players, coaches, staff, and owners decided it
prudent to go further. Many fans, my peers in particular.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, you can say you are a lifelong
fan of a team, and that means enduring many different things. Hey, I
wasn't around for the bad times, the first run in the golden age, or
the slum of the 80's and early 90's. I came around in the mid-90's,
when I found that I actually enjoyed football. I endured the Slash
years, and the Maddox era, then back to the promised land, and the
following Roethlisberger incidents (motorcycle accident, rape
accusations, injuries, and everything else), but like so many of my
peers, we stood in there, in good and bad. Now, to see fellow fans
coming down on the team for actions by players is heartbreaking.
Look, these men, like it or not are expressing themselves, they are
pointing a finger at a problem, and a President who is only concerned
about being a bully, and its not just my team, its multiple teams,
most of the players, coaches, staff and owners who are pointing out
that free speech is under fire. I see fans screaming with rabid
hatred towards players being on a “political soap box,” and some
of these same people are perfectly content to sit on the sidelines
allowing the insanity to continue. FFS, not two days ago I saw a
snuff video of a 16 year old kid getting shot multiple times by a
cop, less than a week ago, I heard about a deaf man being shot
because he couldn't hear police orders. And all I am hearing about
is disrespect for the flag and a song, meant to bring about feelings
of patriotism. In our own way, we have forgotten true patriotism, in
its place a sense of nationalistic pride. I'm sorry, well no not
really, being a real patriot is not unquestioning observance,
unquestioning acceptance of those things that are wrong in our fair
land. Real patriotism is questioning the status quo, to seek real
improvement for all, to point out that which is wrong and fight to
change it for the better. People playing a game have every right to
do so, yes, they are there to be paid to play a game, but beyond
that, they are using a platform that they have earned through talent
and force of will, to point out a problem, and show support to those
who also see the problem. I am ashamed to be a Steelers fan today,
not because of what the men I root for did, or did not do. I am
ashamed because of my peers, you want to get rid of your Steelers
swag because of it, I'll take it. You want to never step foot into
Hines Field again, mail me your ticket, I'll gladly show my support
for my team, the only team I ever pulled for. I take solace in
knowing that there are many of us who feel this way. I will also say
that if your fandom for a team is diminished because of those showing
support against a ill tempered orange bully, then maybe you weren't
that big of a fan to begin with.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
At this time, I want to apologize to
Mr. Art Rooney II, because honestly, I feel that his message is true,
and this rant is not helping what he had hoped his statement would
do. This isn't unification of a community, this is me being fairly
divisive, and against the grain of his ultimate desire. He is right,
we are facing some uncertain and very divisive times ahead. It is my
hope that fans of every team, take a step back and realize what they
are doing. In the very way they claim that most of the Steelers
staying in the locker room before the start of the game is
disrespectful to the flag, and the nation, what they are doing is
equally disrespectful to the nation, the flag, and the men who give
themselves to us every season, putting their bodies and lives on the
line to entertain us. Like it or not, they have the right to do what
they are doing, to protest what Trump said, and what our nation has
become.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, I want to thank my fellow Steelers
fans who are walking away because of the players actions, and to
congratulate them on willfully allowing fascism to take control of
our nation.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-62274400777608556512017-09-18T17:30:00.000-04:002017-09-22T16:49:31.803-04:00Its the End of the World. Again
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, I missed the notice about the end
of the world again. So, tomorrow is Destruction Day. Seriously
people, you need to give me a months notice about the end of the
world, so I can enact a solid business plan because once all the good
goyim are gone, there's going to be a whole lotta work opened up.
So, in my mind lets list the top ways to go... In terms of how I
want it to play out, or how funny it would be.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, somewhere on the planet its night
time and some people, being how we are, are staring at the Moon, and
then... The Moon moves out from behind the moon, but that's no
naturally occurring celestial body, its a moon sized battle station,
and its aim. If you've seen what happens to Alderaan, and various
Imperial Bases and Cities (Rogue One), then you know how this plays
out. Billions of voices cried out, and were suddenly extinguished
says a Jedi Master to his padawan in some other part of the galaxy.
Okay, so that's well over the top, mostly because I would think that
our scientists would see a moon sized object slowly saddling up
behind our Moon, well before it actually got to our Moon. I hope
they would anyway. Its one of those plot holes in the Star War's
movies... How could nobody realize that something as massive as a
moon entered their planets orbit. Okay, I am digressing here.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Vorgons, just as unlikely, and
truthfully more ironic than a Death Star. Think about it, in our
greed driven, take no prisoners Capitalist system, one in which many
of the common folk get jobbed over for the sake of profits, having
our little world erased from existence, VIA galactic eminent domain,
would probably take the cake. For a few minutes it might make some
of us really question how we are running the show. All those people
would really have to think twice about their hard core
responsibility, as we are told that we had the option to appeal the
decision, and that plans had been on display in some other part of
the galaxy for hundreds, if not thousands of years. But, we can at
least take solace in the fact that if life hadn't been so good to us
before that moment, it really wouldn't matter much in a few moments.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Black Hole Sun, won't you come, and
wash away the rain... This is another one of this, it could happen,
but we are going to see it coming... Well not directly at least. If
a black hole were to be on its way, and supposing that it would be
coming with a release date of tomorrow, we would have seen
disturbances with the other planets in our solar system. By
disturbances, we might not be seeing them anymore, as they got sucked
up, or had their orbits moved severely, we would even likely hear it.
Well, depending on how it came in, we probably wouldn't have to
worry about suffering much. Most of us would be nuked to death
within minutes, and if we were irradiated to death, well, there are
massive impacts, and the possibility of turning into pasta. The plus
is, we would become Schrodinger's Cat, alive and dead at the same
time.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Phase shift, or at least, that's what I
think it is called. With this little world ender, we wouldn't have
to panic, we wouldn't even know what happened, or from what I recall,
what theoretical physicists believe. Basically, everything in the
Universe is destroyed because matter changes. Actually the way they
described it, it sounds more like matter becomes corrupted, this
corruption spreads out destroying everything in its path...
Instantly. The fact is, we wouldn't even know what happened, there
would be no rapture, there would be no fear, there would just be
nothing. Well nothing for us anyway, we would instantly cease to
exist, along with everything that we know or knew. Hey there are
worse ways to go I suppose.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay one more, this one is not
entertaining, this one could actually happen, and this one is going
to royally suck, because we would be in it for the absolute long haul
of misery, suffering, and yeah, its just going to suck balls.
Fundamentalist Christian Terrorist Attack. Okay, this one is
actually the sanest of everything I said here. While two are
completely outlandish, two are theoretically possible, this one...
We have seen what fundamentalists can do, given some time and money.
Imagine if you will, the crazy religious folk decide that they are
the hand of God. Imagine if you will that these people listen to the
voice in their head, you know the one proclaiming to be God, and that
this voice says you are the instrument of my wrath. Now, any fundie
will recall that God would no flood the world again, but would send
fire, and what brings on the fire? Nuclear holocaust. For decades
people lived in fear of nuclear attacks from the USSR, now we are in
fear of attacks from North Korea. Well since 2001, many have been
fearful of a dirty bomb terrorist attack, and for good reason.
Currently, in the US arsenal alone, there are enough nuclear weapons
to kill the world multiple times over, and unless you were in the
direct path of one, or even if you are, it would be bad. Our country
is already strained with Harvey and Irma, political tensions are
high, societal tensions are higher. Imagine a group of them, say
like The Branch Davidians, all armed with home brewed dirty bombs, or
clearance enough to launch a strike against another nuclear power,
and a president who appears to be slightly off. Now, The Don, is
probably a good talker, he had to be, in order to get some of the
deals he has gotten in the past, to save his backside. But I don't
see him being able to sweet talk his way out of this type of mess.
And before you say, oh that could never happen, it can. We have
terrorists here in the US, they are white, straight, and christian.
They have kept it mostly in line, with a few of the more radicalized
of their ilk slipping through. But people like me have realized that
they are more of a threat to us, than the ones in other countries
(who also have these same christian terrorists). They are feeling
oppressed, they are feeling angry, and if a few of them decide they
are now the hand of God, we are in for a world of pain and suffering
the likes we have only seen twice, and for good reason.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Of course, many of these things are
improbable, if not outright impossible. I mean, we could literally
see a physical manifestation of religion tomorrow, but that ranks
lower than a black hole eating up the solar system, or even for that
matter Darth Vader ordering the planets destruction via a moon sized
battle station called the Death Star. Honestly, I fully expect that
tomorrow will come and go, and the only thing that happens is Trump
tweets some insanity, Congress continues to go about not doing its
job while regular people continue to do theirs. Life on our little
rock continues as normal, without so much as a blimp on the radar.
In a few months, or maybe even sometime next year, another crank will
come out of the woodwork and cry out, “The world's gonna end!”
and for a few days, weeks, or even a month, he or she will be in the
limelight, until the day passes without so much as an earthquake.
Until it doesn't. And when I say that, its not because of anything
other than... You never know what someone crazy will do, until they
do it. We should be leery of the extremists within our boarders,
because they are already here, they have been here, and we don't know
what they are planning, or when they are planning to do it.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-9475271163209078292017-09-14T16:37:00.000-04:002017-09-22T16:38:38.336-04:00Contracted
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
So, movie
review time. I had been doing this on Facebook, and I might well
post a version of this there, because I am a member of an awesome
horror movie group, its not as active as it once was, but when the
place is active it is second to none. So, for your consideration, a
movie called “<i>Contracted</i>”.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now when I was looking through the
channel listings I saw this movie pop up, read the description and
figured it was a clone of <i>It Follows</i><span style="font-style: normal;">
which I didn't care for. Hey, It Follows is AIDS people, its AIDS.
Seriously, its like the worlds worst PSA against having sex, of any
kind. So I see the description of the movie, and given how little
else was grabbing my attention, I changed the channel and get met
with a gratuitous belly button shot, and hair falling out... Well,
its evident that I missed something, because a large wad of this
young ladies hair fell out, and she has what appears to be the
absolute worst case scenario of terminal Pink Eye I have ever seen in
anything alive. The blue veins popping out everywhere is just... So,
here we are kids, don't have sex, ever, and I mean that. Its
apparent from these two movies that sex is bad, reproduction is evil.
</span>
</div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, as we progress
this one has a brain, she's going to the doctor... No she isn't, her
boss called and is demanding she come to work, which she does.
Hilarity ensues as, “Oh waiter, there is a fingernail in my salad.”
Yeah, I don't have to spell this out, really I don't, its painfully
obvious here. So, eventually we find ourselves at the doctor, and he
is apparently tripping balls, because whatever she has, he doesn't
know, and he advises her to stay away from people, which she does, at
a bar. Mom is a bible thumper, and calls the priest to talk to her,
wow, her teeth, and poor poor liver. Well I can say that this movie
isn't playing around, its moving right along. This is escalating
PDQ, I mean she has one eye yellowed over, bruises everywhere, and
appears to have lost several other fingernails. Oh man, her face is
rotting off. At this point, I think we all know what infamously
popular television show this movie could serve as a prequel to.
Alright, my general train of thoughts are as follows.</div>
<div style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Surprisingly I am not a huge zombie movie fan. The genre that
started out pretty well only has so many ways of telling the same
story. Survivors roaming the countryside (or a mall) trying to find
sanctuary from ravenous monsters that seek to eat them. Some shows
and movies (even some video games), tend to do well with it. The
Walking Dead did well, Night of the Living Dead (and its sequel), The
Last of Us did well for themselves, despite many of the limitations
with the Zombie Horror genre, but that is because they all choose a
specific aspect. The Walking Dead and The Last of Us deal with the
remnants of humanity, just struggling to survive against the zombie
hordes and humans with ill intent. Night of the Living Dead and its
sequel tend to play everything off for laughs, focusing not on horror
as much as its absurd comedy. Contracted is a weird one, we don't
see hordes of zombies roaming the countryside, we only see one, and
the movie tells her story. Now, rather than rewrite this review, I
waited and watched the movie a second time from the beginning. She
was raped, and yeah, the guy drugged her to do it, and she has
subsequently passed it along to another guy, while the prick who has
it is apparently alive and well (established by the sequel). Now, I
did halfway enjoy the movie the first go around. It's different, we
don't often see the very beginning of the zombie apocalypse. By
beginning, I mean patient zero. It was a decent enough flick that
I'll hunt around and see if I can find the sequel, and if that is
fairly entertaining I will watch the third which is due out at the
end of October. The thing is, this movie is more of the gross out
variety, not so much guts, but gore and some fairly uncomfortable
viewing.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-81385792563411395782017-09-11T12:30:00.000-04:002017-09-22T16:37:38.243-04:00Where are they?
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I constantly here
that “Progressives” only come out of the woodwork during the
presidential elections. That isn't true, we just don't get the air
time that mainstream politicians get. We spend our non-presidential
years slugging away in the local and state races, swaying the minds
of the voters to see our causes, and to support those same causes.
Then every presidential election cycle we become more vocal at the
national level, because we understand that the president or nominee
of the party is the voice of the party, they lead the party.
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I hear about how
progressives are destroying among many, many other things while
surfing social media. Honestly, it is a sad state of affairs right
now. We have antisemites, homophobes, white supremacists, and a host
of other things roaming the streets at night, and in the day,
unafraid, unabashed, uncaring. We are seeing levels of income
inequality that rival third world nations. We are currently in the
throws of a healthcare debate in which three clear sides are in
movement towards their endgames. We have conservatives who want to
pull the plug on the PPACA, repeal without replacing, or repeal and
replacing with what we had. We have some who want to continue a
failing program, because while it addressed one problem, it ignored a
host of others. Finally we have a group that wants a single payer
system. All the while, I am seeing the Democratic Party fragment,
unable to cohesively fight against the encroaching insanity of super
conservative politics.
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I see finger
wagging, without thought. I remember back before the primaries being
told people of my ilk were not needed, not wanted. Now, I see those
same people blaming others for taking the approach some of us did, we
walked away. We weren't needed, until we were, and we weren't there.
Now, we are supposed to drop everything and run back, all forgiven,
all forgotten, all together, and are admonished for saying, “I'll
think about it.”
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
You know, I
personally see the threat, I see it every time I leave my house. I
see it every Saturday at the growing “Heritage not hate” rallies
held in town. I see it on social media with hashtags I refuse to
repeat. I see it in news articles talking about how Jewish people
are amping up security for our houses of worship, I mean seriously,
armed security in Charlottesville after protesters, some armed, while
carrying torches, and chanting slogans from nazi Germany, in 2017...
Synagogues issuing guest passes to people who would like to observe
our traditions. A place that was thought of as free from
persecution.</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
I am sighing now
as I write this, because its utterly shameful. At some point, the
Clinton wing and Sanders wing will likely reconcile their
differences, but not for now. And certainly not until the parties
involved in mud throwing change their tone. As of right now, we see
their side of it, stop Trump, but they cannot see our side of it,
they do not want to. Its beyond their grasp that our view of
Clinton, and her peers are part of the problem. That we cannot allow
the constant droning of the corporate powers that be to continue,
that what is best for business is not what is best for the
environment or the people. They want to go back into the magical
bubble in which politics as usual should be just enough to keep the
majority of people* complacent and happy, because that is when they
were likely happy. The illusion everything is great, everything is
fine. I have said before that the 90's were great on the surface,
but under it things were going horribly wrong. The booming economy
masked the looming doom. It hid the racism, homophobia,
antisemitism, and other things that we are seeing today.</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
*Well the majority
of people, and screw those on the fringe, because those people are
likely horrible, small minded, hateful ignorant people. No, I really
mean that. But on the flip side to that, those people, those are the
ones who are so insecure about their own kind, that they are
compelled to inflict misery upon others.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-73384700001576872692017-09-05T16:41:00.000-04:002017-09-22T16:44:31.258-04:00You know..
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
There was a time when I would actually
partially agree that some ideas should be given time, to be shown the
light of day. At the time I felt, in some instances that healthy
discussion about concepts were a great idea. Now, now I am not such
a fan of giving some ideals time to see the light of day.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Yeah, when I was younger, I thought it
was amusing when people wanted to discuss concepts like evolution. I
still do find it amusing, because when people who are more
knowledgeable about a subject start talking and discussing things, I
can learn things that I am unaware of, or the latest information.
When I was younger I would engage in conversations about the flat
earth model, climate change, and a host of issues that we were
learning about. Most of it was curiosity on my behalf, to learn new
things, to try and understand why people would try and dismiss over a
millennia worth of knowledge, and study for a hair brain idea. At
one time, I would actually attempt to have a serious dialogue with
those who believed these things, not because I enjoyed the prospect
of discussing things with someone who used circular logic, or just
didn't care enough to listen, but because we should all realize these
things have been studied, our knowledge has grown, things have
changed, and people can grow. As one participant I grew, I learned
their beliefs, why they believed the things they did, and I hoped
that they would see my prospective, that in some small way I could
help them grow, as they had helped me grow.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
There are many things in this world we
don't understand, things that we, at current time cannot fully grasp
or understand, and unlike some of my peers, I don't say “therefore
God,” in these matters, I simply feel that we have reached a level
of understanding that is insufficient to explain such events. The
way I see it, we have held onto this “therefore God,” notion, but
some of us have reworked it, therefore “evil scientists,” or
therefore this... We are still trying to understand the origins of
the Universe (or multi-verse), we are trying to understand the origin
of life, the inner workings of the planets of our solar system, while
we are looking for other planets that could harbor life as we
understand it today. Knowledge is a never ending quest, and the more
we think we learn and know, the more we should realize that we don't
really know much of anything.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But something has changed. While I
will still look at the things people say, and while I will look into
these things, tired debunked arguments fly about, and people really
don't grasp science, nor do they want to. 9-11 might have been an
inside job, but the towers were not imploded, at least not as far as
I can tell from multiple sources. Evolution isn't a lie, we've seen
its evidence for hundreds of years now. The Earth is not flat, and
space while vacuum like is not devoid of everything. The Big Bang
Theory is a misnomer, it was really akin to a massive rapid
expansion, as everything that exists, has existed and will ever exist
expanded from a singularity, a single dense spot in the universe. We
can debate how that single dense spot came to be, because as of this
moment, I do not think it is known or widely accepted how this
current turn of events came to be. If you are curious read, read
peer reviewed material from actual scientists on the matter, kick it
around in your own mind, maybe friends who are curious and enjoy
discussing such topics. But I have observed a disturbing trend,
paranoia.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
In this age of the internet, I have
seen beliefs come to light, gain traction, and come to have strong
support. Insane theories that move past normal conspiracy theories.
Certainly the internet has played a role in these events, it is the
downside of the internet. For all the freedoms it should have, that
it currently has, its the people who are the weak link, that are its
ultimate weakness. When encountering something I am not familiar
with, I research, many people research, we dig and poke, we prod
around to get all the information we can, from sources that are
reputable. But I see more people who do not do that. Yeah, I come
here, I spout my views, I drop my opinions, and speak my peace, and I
rarely show my own research. It is a lazy way of doing things, but
it also serves a purpose. I want you, the reader, to do your own
research, to take the time to come to your own conclusions, to think
about what I say, and come up with your own thoughts, and if they are
incompatible with my own, I want you to call me out, with sound
reason.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Take this for instance, in the wake of
devastating flooding in Texas and other parts of the world, raging
wild fires in other parts of the US and Canada, I recently saw
someone talking about how Harvey was a created storm. The words of
Al Gore have been twisted to fit a narrative, “Humans create
weather,” to paraphrase. To the best of my knowledge, we cannot
create weather, the planet does that all on its own. We can
certainly influence it in some small part. If you start a wild fire,
and you have it burning hot enough, for a long enough period, it will
eventually result in a “firestorm.” A massive rain storm, it is
part of the planet's counterbalance, a wildfire can burn immense
chunks of land quickly, and the result is that moisture is placed in
the atmosphere, and it eventually cools, condenses and falls back to
the ground, extinguishing the fire or preventing it from spreading
further. Why not let them burn themselves out, as they are a natural
part of the way our planet works? Because of the human toll they
take. Flooding is natural, but again, just look at the human toll of
it. We are balancing whats best for the environment with what is
best for us. That said, and back to the point, I saw that there are
people who believe that Harvey was an augmented human controlled
hurricane. Some mysterious organization, or even the government
itself has figured out how to create, grow, and let loose massive
storms that cost human lives, and create economic destruction, like
some villain from a James Bond movie. Hey Sy-Fy Channel, here is
your plot for Sharknado 6... Sharknado's are a corporate conspiracy
developed by a shadowy Home Construction Union and insurance
companies. Get on that, and make sure to mail me a check.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, the gist of this goes something
like this. For the last few decades, since the late 1990s, someone
has figured out how to create and control weather events, blizzards,
hurricanes, tornadoes, and the like. These events are then let loose
on the people of various countries in order to create fear of death
from severe storm systems, and to create economic environments
beneficial to whoever they are. They will often point to several
severe storms making landfall on the same day, every so many years
apart. I guess this is because every so many years people start
getting agitated with the way things are going, and a huge tragedy is
just enough to divert peoples attention. I have noticed that in one
of the more popular sites to promote this, that they use the phrase
“climate change alarmists,” as if to say that these storms are
being created to force alterations to our lifestyles to limit the
damage of Global Climate Change, which I believe they feel to be a
hoax. The problem is I see people who often discuss science, who
know a great deal on the subject falling in line with this belief.
Only they see it as a means to dismiss climate change, which seems
contradictory to me.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, if you want to believe that the
government or some secret cabal of people are creating super-storms
to reek havoc on the world, thats your deal. But do yourself a
favor, research things first, before you propagate the latest
greatest rumor of the month. The fact is, 95%+ of the scientists in
the world are not perpetrating a hoax on us, Climate Change is
happening, in some form or fashion you can debate how much we are
responsible for it. We also need to get some other facets of our
world out of the way. Climate is not weather, but weather is a part
of climate. Look at it this way, we cannot forecast the weather
accurately a week and a half out. If the weatherman tells me its
going to be 105 degrees with 100% humidity the 13<sup>th</sup>, I can
probably laugh and know that he is likely going to get it wrong. But
if a scientist comes along and says, this winter is going to be
slightly warmer and dryer than normal in your area, you can hold off
on the Arctic-wear, until the Polar Vortexes start. It doesn't mean
not to get those cloths out, cleaned up and ready to wear, it just
means that you likely won't need them. If a scientists comes along
and says based on the current information we have, it appears that
the next decade will see warmer winters with more snow, and hotter
summers, they are probably going to be right. Weather is
unpredictable in the short term, the climate on the other hand, that
is fairly stable and is the overall picture of everything weather
related over the course of a long period of time. So, hurricane
Harvey, being a weather event is part of the climate, augmented by
warmer waters that are a result of measurable Climate Change. As
Irma goes through its dance of rapidly intensifying, loosing
strength, and rebuilding in a normal hurricane's life cycle, and
while it is potentially taking aim at the East Coast of the US, keep
in mind that things are going to get worse, not because of some
villainous plot to gain profits, but because we haven't been good
shepherds to our home. Not everything is a conspiracy, and not
sometimes, the simplest explanation is also the correct one. Harvey
was a horrible storm, Irma might become one, its nature being nature,
only we've been giving nature steroids.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-33856243014389942792017-09-05T16:36:00.000-04:002017-09-22T16:36:18.738-04:00What Happened?<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; page-break-before: always;">
So, Hillary
Clinton is releasing her new book, and I have all the intentions of
writing a long winded commentary of it chapter by chapter over the
course of the next month, while giving my personal views of it, and
as already known about my current view (which will be restated here),
and how it changes after attempting to see her point of view of this
debacle. But in the meantime, since I have yet to read it, you get
suck listening to me talk about a press release made today, and some
other things.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The first thing I am going to talk
about is Ms. Sanders talking point about Trump being the leader of
the GOP, and how this is true of any political party. You see the
PotUS, while being pretty impotent in terms of political power, is
the defacto leader of his or her party. The same is true of any
Presidential nominee. Dr. Stein is the leader of the Green Party,
Clinton the leader of the Democratic Party, Gary Johnson is the
leader of the Libertarian Party. They set the tone for the policy
each party wants to implement. Dr. Stein would want to investigate
the effects of vaccines, cell phones and Wi-Fi, while pushing those
in Congress to alter various aspects of vaccinations, and
investigating further the effects of cell phone and Wi-Fi use on the
human mind. Clinton implementing her third-way triangulating
neo-liberal policies, and Trump... Yeah Trump is just going to do
what the GOP generally does, lower taxes for the wealthy, deregulate
everything (the same thing Clinton would do), and otherwise push back
against pro-choice policies (among other things). You can scream
that this years Democratic Party Platform was the most liberal ever
created (at least in the modern era of politics), but ultimately, it
was nonbinding, and she would have had the final say in the matter.
As it stands, the Democratic Party is heavily stocked with
conservative Democrats. At any point I expect to hear the Honorable
Senator from West Virginia, Mr. Manchin, switches parties and goes
full on GOP, because if you are honest and really look at the man,
outside of a few ideological talking points, the man is a Republican.
The thing is, he is not alone, we watched as Jim Justice defected to
the GOP (which he has always been a big business Republican), and
there are countless others who could very well switch sides, even
someone like Tim Kaine, former Democratic Vice Presidential nominee.
You see, he is a fairly conservative Democratic Senator hailing from
a fairly conservative state.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Up next, is the Clinton saga, this is
really as bad as a daily soap opera you see on TV. She accepted her
part of the blame in her election loss, but turns around and
continues to point fingers in other directions. Yeah, going to
rehash this again, for the millionth freaking time, again, because it
just seems to constantly come back around. Hey there are six (6)
dead elders in a nursing home in Florida after Irma, more are
expected to die, from a storm that was made much much worse because
of Global Climate Change/Disruption, but hey, we have to rehash this
Clinton loss for the billionth time, because... So, when this spot
came up on CNN, I just shook my head. Look, Clinton has the right to
write anything she wants, its still a mostly free country anyway,
people are mostly free to write books if they want to, for now
anyway, and good for her. I don't want to see her “dead broke
again.” But at this point, she is “taking her part in the
blame,” but also pointing out the extenuating circumstances, and
her cult of personality is eating it up like the Cookie Monster and,
well, cookies. At this point, the list of who is to blame for this
past presidential election rivals a Stephen King tome. Yeah,
generally when I accept the blame for something, I don't deflect. I
take the brunt of it. Basically, I don't say, “Yeah I messed up,
but so and so was doing this which caused me to do that.” Own it,
don't deflect. It is one thing to say that you messed up, you are at
fault, and that you would have done things differently given the
situation, as you saw it. It is another when you say, “I am to
blame because I didn't do things right, but if this had not have
happened, I would have been perfectly fine.” That is what is
currently happening. Hey, if Russian hadn't hacked the DNC email,
then Wikileaks wouldn't have released the emails, we would have won.
Eh, at this time, I stand by what I said then. Its not the problem
that the emails were leaked, its not that I read through some, but
largely ignored it, its that these emails even existed in the first
place. Its the fact that our elected officials, and those who head
up our parties are so completely stupid, that their emails were
hacked. That is my problems with them. It is the fact that they
even exist, its the fact that they were accessible, and its the
belief that it doesn't even matter. Rather than focusing on the fact
that they were hacked, solely that they were hacked, we should be
focusing on why they even exist, and how this happened. Priorities
people, first we need to find out why they even exist, then how they
were hacked. Then we put a stop to both people. FFS its not rocket
science. Oh, but it is, because a handful of people don't understand
the basics of email. Sorry, I've had an email for nearly twenty (20)
years here, and never once has it been hacked. Its been cloned a few
times, but that was back in the day when I had the letters I and L in
the email, and usually it was when I had angered someone I had
encountered online and they wanted to play rough (Thank you AOL RP).
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Next I have the, “Why did I bother
coming back to FB?” question. Anymore, I find FB largely trivial,
full of angst, and well, repetitive, just the same as the news. It
is, after all, an extension of the whole “Whose to Blame?” thing
that Clinton is continuing to perpetrate, and her followers continue
to feed upon. First off, let me say, as so many have, <b>we get it</b><span style="font-weight: normal;">.
Alright? I think by and large every person who voted against Trump
and Clinton, all what, 3% of us understand the “damage” we did
(those who voted for anyone but Clinton and Trump), at this point I
would hope that the 40% some odd people who said “Screw this!”
and didn't even go to the polls understand what they did, or maybe
they don't care. Too busy with other things they consider more
important, or couldn't go vote for whatever reason. Doesn't really
matter now, does it? Clinton won the popular, but lost because
people were disinclined to vote for her in some key states. That is
on her campaign, it didn't do its job, she failed as a candidate that
was flawed like every other candidate. Now, before someone jumps up
and says “Are you implying Bernie was perfect?” Far from it, the
man is not perfect, it just happens that I politically agree with him
more than anyone else who was running, and as such, that was where my
vote would naturally go. I don't agree with him on everything, and I
know my ideals are flawed, so it should go without saying that if my
ideas are flawed, and I agree with his ideals at times, it would mean
that some of those ideals we share are flawed. So, that whole,
“Don't let perfect be the enemy of serviceable” thing a moot
point in my book. Bernie was not the perfect candidate, he has
issues, just like the twenty (20) GOP candidates, Stein, Johnson,
Supreme, and everyone else who ran. Bernie was never a God, he was a
guy running for a political office, just like everyone else. It just
so happened that those things that many of us disagreed with him on,
probably could have been reconciled, or overlooked. I'm not entirely
behind a Single Payer System, I would prefer a Single Payer Option,
but would accept either option if presented, more so if they could
reign in hospital charges, and stop this process of corporations
taking over every hospital in the US. In my mind, both of those
options are preferable to what we have now. But even if what we have
currently could limit the costs at the insurance level, and at the
hospital levels, I wouldn't be totally against it as a starting
point. Some of the PPACA is awesome, but much of it is lacking
(basically dump the ACA because its not all that affordable now, and
keep the PP and medicare/medicaid expansion, just take it out of the
states hands and fund it via the Federal government). </span>
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-weight: normal;">Then
we have this double speak coming out of many of the Clinton Wing
members. They call for unification against Trump, while continuing
to take shots against those who didn't side with Clinton. Well,
where I reside, Clinton won. She won the state (which is very
conservative), and the City (which is super-conservative tea party
country). My vote (and the 20 or so of us who voted for neither
candidate) did not in any way influence the general flow of the
election, all we did was not pad the General Election numbers, and if
the Clinton Wing wants to be honest or even attempt real research,
they would find that what I am saying was the case in most areas.
There are, what, two or three states in which that might not be the
case? And if we really look back at the election, and are honest
about how we really saw this playing out, the contradictions are to
blame here. Clinton said things that did not play well to those in
specific areas, her campaign failed to see the warning signs, and
people tend to get angry when they feel like they are being played,
and they felt like they were getting played. But here we stand,
being told we must unify against the GOP and against Trump, while on
the other hand we are being told that its all our fault for the GOP
and Trump winning. We are told that we are far too rigid, and yes we
are often too rigid in some of our beliefs. I admit it comes to my
core issues, those things I hold most dear, I am rigid, unwavering
about how I would proceed. Once again, if one is honest, they would
admit that they are also rigid in those beliefs. The thing is, where
people are rigid, is different. I am fair less rigid in my ideals
about healthcare than I am about eliminating the endless sums of
money in our politics. I know how I am personally, I know that if
given a large sum of money, I am going to pay more attention to the
desires of the person giving me that money. I might not agree with
them, I might feel that their desires are wrong and go against the
grain, but I will still listen. The problem is, not all people think
like that, and it is good and bad. Certainly, to make the best
choice, one should listen to a variety of sources, but some people
are only concerned about what benefits them. Certainly I am not on
board with a Single Payer System, preferring an Option System, and
its not about tax increases (which saps money out of income). In my
mind it is a question of the potential privatization phase that will
follow, and the damage it will eventually do, because we as Americans
cannot seem to keep a coherent line of progression going. We'll get
it, then in four, eight or twelve years, we'll inevitably decide to
reverse political course and then it'll get privatized for the sake
of debt reduction, and we'll have a system similar to what the UK
currently has, and while its certainly better than our own current
programs, it falls short in terms of actual care. Those things that
are not at the core of my political ideology, I can work with, if I
trust the candidate I am about to vote for is serious about
discussing those things. I support the second amendment for most
people, ideally people would be able to be trusted with firearms,
that people who are violent criminals would never have access to
them, but it has been shown that, we simply cannot trust all people
with them. Some safeguards are required to ensure the safety of all.
That means that I, as a participant in politics, will have to find
common ground with those who want strong regulations of the sale and
possession of firearms. It requires give and take, and certainly
there are all stripes of politically active persons who cannot give
anything. Its not limited to progressives. </span>
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Remember back to
Iowa? Yeah, since we are dragging up the past, might as well go full
throttle. Clinton said Single Payer would never happen, at one point
anyway. It was a theoretical discussion while people are suffering.
Well, people are suffering, because of a flawed bill, because lets be
honest here, whats the point of having medical insurance if you can't
afford to use it? So, her solution, keep the PPACA as is, I guess, I
mean I never heard what her plan was to fix it. Just the
alternative, going back to how it was before, which is a bad thing.
No doubt, that is a bad thing, just as bad as what we are seeing now.
Fewer choices in coverage, higher costs for said coverage, and
hospitals making a killing in profits. So, the alternatives for
compromise were, continued useless insurance coverage or not having
insurance at all. Pretty lousy choices, if you ask me, that equate
to the same thing. No healthcare coverage at all, unless something
catastrophic happens. In this case, the compromise was not all that
appealing, and that is the problem. Compromise for the sake of
compromise isn't a compromise at all. Its a bad deal, going in the
wrong direction, but dictated as what has to be done. Its not good,
because we all loose, and the people who win are the ones who have
started rigging the game.</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-weight: normal;">The
fact of it all boils down to this. We won't drain the swamp in DC
until we drain the swamp in the Democratic Party, in our local and
state offices. I cannot stress that enough. Until we start purging
the conservative members of the Democratic Party, we cannot drain the
swamp. Just because someone is pro-choice, but conservative on
nearly everything else, we cannot really call them liberal. Now, I
realize that people are never fully liberal or conservative, we are
all degrees of moderate, the problem is that people tend to label
people based on one or two policy positions as a liberal or
conservative. The GOP is certainly more conservative than the
Democratic Party, but what do you do when the goal of the Democratic
Party is to snag up all those more moderate conservatives? The more
moderate Republicans are still very conservative when it comes to
finances, even if they are slightly more liberal when it comes to
social matters. By liberal on social matters, they might not be all
that concerned about abortion, or welfare. They are still concerned
about budget costs, having a strong interventionist military policy,
and deregulating everything, while breaking unions (which I have no
love for). </span>
</div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
As it stands we
are watching the fragmentation of the two big parties, and we are
well within the throws of it. Eventually it will settle out, it
always does, and usually one party dies as a result. As it stands,
it will probably be the Democratic Party this time, and from its
ashes a new more liberal party will come along. But don't count out
the GOP going away either. As it becomes more entrenched and
radicalized, it will continue to shed members, and the Democratic
Party will continue to court these voters, and as a result it will
also loose members. As it stands today, nearly half of voters
consider themselves to be independent, and the first party that comes
along and actively seeks those people out, will be the real winner of
this political realignment.</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-26258226062110239952017-08-25T21:00:00.000-04:002017-09-01T16:29:39.911-04:00This is becoming normal
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
To be the bearer of bad news, ladies
and gentlemen, we have some major issues going on, more so than nazis
dancing in the streets, and running people down with cars. And while
many are all about punching nazis in the face, and impeaching Trump,
we have lost focus. We cannot seem to see the forest for the trees,
and it will be our undoing, if it hasn't already undone us already.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Did you know, that in some states
(~cough~Virginia~cough~), anything that happens to you in a doctors
office, clinic, hospital, or any place involving medical care is
considered malpractice? Just think about that for a moment...
Several years ago, a woman was raped by a doctor while he was
performing an examination, court ruled that it was malpractice.
Virginia is not alone in that belief, and personally as someone who
lost a family member because of assault in a hospital, it is beyond
disturbing. Its not the fact that my Dad died as a result of an
assault which broke a vertebrae in his back (the T-6 vertebrae) and
damaged a rib (the tenth medical rib) which caused not only severe
pain, but an inability to cough, its the truth that he will never see
justice. You see, the statute of limitation ran on his case, two
years on malpractice, according to the court system. Yeah, the court
acknowledges that he was egregiously harmed, that as a result of what
happened to him we had greatly suffered, but there is a prescribed
time to get justice, and that time had ended. The court also seemed
to feel that, and this is a real kick in the gonads for everyone in
the community, that he was likely not the only person to suffer
egregiously, or that we were the only family that would not see
justice for their loved one. But thats okay, we have statues to
remove.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
There are power companies ripping
people off, literally raping customers bank accounts every month.
Charging huge fees just to keep the lights on. Back in the day, we
had constant rolling brownouts, you know where the lights grow dim,
but the power doesn't go out. It plays hell on anything you have
turned on, or even plugged in because it starves those items of
electricity. God knows the times I've had to replace a computer,
monitor, appliances, televisions, or food (as a result of frying a
refrigerator) out of pocket because the power company proclaimed “Act
of God.” Also you should check out your local laws, because I am
pretty sure most places have laws regarding inhabiting a structure
without electricity, water or sewage. IE: If you don't have all
three you cannot reside in them, or if you cannot secure all three,
the property will be condemned and/or seized. We have slumlords
charging more rent than many people would have for a mortgage
payment. Seriously, there are people paying several hundred dollars
a month for a place smaller than Harry Potter's under the stairs hole
in the wall. I myself pay almost $700 a month for a little 800
square foot house that was built in 1942 and had Ivy growing through
the walls. I shit you not, the walls in my bedroom are secured by
duct tape. Move you say, but all the better houses cost way more
money than that. Costs to eat are continuously rising, while wages
remain the same, and we have more jobs, but they are part time jobs,
at the lowest minimum wage. But hey, we have nazis to punch, right?
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Hey, if we impeach Trump, we can do
something. No, not really. You see, Trump is a political idiot. He
doesn't really understand the ins and outs of things in DC. For him
“Quid Pro Quo” is more along the lines of “I give you money,
you do me favors,” not the “I am going to do something I don't
really like for you, because in the future you are going to do
something you don't like for me.” For Trump, he wants it his way,
all day, on every issue, and once Trump is gone we will have Pence.
Trump might know how to play the game, but is unwilling to do so at
this time. Pence, definitely knows how to pay the game, and is
willing to play it, the worst of both worlds. A guy who is
politically dangerous, and knows how to, and is willing to play.
Trump talks, Pence quietly acts. And while we are at it, I will also
say that Pence staying close to Trump, not rocking the boat should
scream at you all. Pence is not so willing to cast Trump away,
because Pence realizes that he needs all those Trump supporters for
his run for the White House. He knows that he will need Trump's
blessing, and the best way to have Trump's heart, be his BFF, to not
anger him in any way.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
As with all things, there is more. Our
legal system has been perverted, not that this is a new development.
Our system has been perverted for decades, people use and abuse it
everyday, and the truth of the matter is, our elected officials have
contributed to it. As we continue to move forward into the newly
minted election cycle, go online, find your states legal code (they
are all online now), find a law that makes little sense to you that
was recently written, research deeper, find where the laws actually
contradict themselves (they often do because of exclusions and
exemptions) and then go to a forum where you can ask questions of
those running, have them explain it to you, then point out those
contradictions in the laws, where they say contradictory things. In
some laws it is a blatant contradiction, as I pointed out previously,
rape is rape, unless it happens in a hospital, then it magically
becomes malpractice. I personally love this one, in every state you
can sell your own home, but in many states you cannot represent or
act as a real estate agent. Speaking of which, if you sell your own
home, you have to follow the same guidelines as a real estate agent,
which means in various states you have to give a full disclosure of
any potential faults with the home unless you file a specific type of
deed of ownership. I say this again, our legal system has become
overly complex, to the degree that even a clear cut malpractice case
requires legal counsel.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
As we stand here today, we see that
income inequality in the US has reached that of some third world
nations. We have corporations sucking the life out of people, as
costs for even the most basic of things spiral upward into obscurity.
We have a militarized police departments running amok in our streets
harassing, assaulting and murdering people in the streets. We have
people working two or more jobs just trying to survive. and I stand
here in shock that our priorities are once again out of kilt. It is
sad that at this moment our highest priority is removing statues, and
punching nazis. Fine, I agree, the statues need to go, they serve no
real purpose in the world today, not that they ever really did. The
nazi problem, well, that is more difficult to solve, only because of
our skewed priorities. You want to get rid of the nazis, punching
them won't solve the problem. Fix the other problems in our nation,
ensure that people have a job they can live well on, that they aren't
being financially raped by corporations, that our legal system is
repaired and that it isn't contradictory, that it is understandable
to the majority of people. Stop worrying about Trump, yes, the man
can do a lot of damage, but only because we have given him the tools
to do so. If we take the state and local offices back for ourselves,
we can limit some of his damage, if we can wrangle the federal
offices back we can further limit the damage.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Eh, what am I saying? We have nazis to
punch, statues to remove, and a president to impeach. Those are the
three things that will fix everything... Then we can go back to the
good ole days, right? Where these people fester underground, rarely
seen and rarely heard from. But that is the problem, just because
you don't see or hear them, that doesn't mean they are gone, it just
means they are being quiet, it just means that the problems aren't
actually going away. It just means they are being ignored. This
nazi problem we have right now, its been festering and ignored for
decades. Yeah, the white nationalists and supremacists were here
even back in the 90's, but when people pointed them out, they were
ignored, because they were a fringe group. In the Obama years,
people said their movement had died, and when people pointed them
out, we were once again told that they had no power, or we were
panicking about something that no longer really existed outside of
very isolated pockets.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
On a side note, while I have no use for
nazis, as they are currently being called, I have some real issues
with punching them in the face. I am not saying that we should go
back to ignoring them, that we should not stand against them at every
possible chance, I just feel that they should be labeled for what
they are, a hodgepodge of terrorist organizations. That is what they
really are, terrorist organizations. They should be shouted down at
every avenue, they should be counter protested, and protested at
every exchange. They should be investigated, rounded up,
incarcerated or fined for their actions of verbal or physical
intimidation, assault, and any other crime they commit. Their speech
in regards to race, gender, religious orientation, sexual preferences
should be limited when it potentially incites violence, are otherwise
meets the criteria of hate speech. But punching them, not so much.
What those who advocate punching a nazi fail to realize is that many
of these people have been taught from a young age to deflect or
obscure their actions, and to spin the consequences. Rather than be
the perpetrator who got what they had coming, they obscure or deflect
their actions by saying “Mah free speech,” while spinning the
consequences. Think about it, they say something hideous, someone
takes exception and punches them. They say “But the First
Amendment allows me to say it,” which it probably doesn't, you have
their ilk nodding in agreement, and ignorant apologists also
agreeing. You then have them come along and say, “I used my first
amendment rights and got punched for it, see, I'm the victim here.
They want to do away with the first amendment.” The media steps
in, and they have a panel debate the merits of the whole affair, with
one or more people saying its a clear cut case of the first amendment
being stripped away. Then you have people who aren't familiar with
the entirety of what happened making a snap judgment about this mess,
and suddenly you have more people siding with the nazis. Everyone
loves to point out that few people actually worried about the nazis
in Germany back in the day, but what they don't realize is that the
nazis played the system, the same thing they are doing here. But
hey, you can punch them to your hearts content, if that is how you
want to play it, be my guest, you are the one that will pay the
consequences for that, well, at the start anyway. The way I see it,
by punching them, by resorting to their tactics, you are helping to
create a bigger meaner monster. If you want to kill it, start fixing
the problems, start taking away their weapons. You will have hold
outs, but in time, they will be the outcasts. Don't throw gas on the
fire, don't continue to fuel it. There are many ways to call out bad
behavior, if you wouldn't strike a child because its wrong, then you
shouldn't strike an adult for their behavior. Reason with the ones
that can be reasoned with, there are some out there, call out and
embarrass those who cannot. All that aside, resist, fight back,
shout down, make them look like fools, or pricks, or whatever else,
but do not sink to their level. Once again, I am reminded of about
debating an idiot, they drag you down to their level and beat you
with experience. But once again I am sitting here thinking about
being rational, in a world where irrationality seems to be king.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-652650179551076311.post-27153171778065738482017-07-31T09:00:00.000-04:002017-09-01T16:25:28.562-04:00Update<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Update: Not watching the news, been
very reflective since I last came here and wrote. I am still seeing
heated debates between progressives about “Whose a real
Progressive, and who isn't.” Of which I am not a real progressive
anymore apparently. I am seeing people screaming the world's on
fire, and yes, yes it is. I see the more “moderate” wing of the
Democratic Party pointing fingers at progressives, blaming people who
didn't vote for Clinton for Trump, I see Congress still cannot get
anything passed, even with a GOP controlled House and Senate. I see
constant Tweets from our so-called president, that are insane
(seriously, someone needs to take his internet access away), and I
hear the rumors.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Honestly, I feel like I am listening to
Time on a constant loop, its a great song and if you've never heard
it, you should find it on YouTube and listen to it. Ultimately,
we've nothing but time, until we run out of it, and that is our
current situation. A Conservative controlled government isn't the
end for the majority of us, all we have to do is wait it out, the
damage that is done was in the processes of being done well before
this moment, and all its doing now is prolonging the inevitable.
Eventually we're going to figure it out, but learning never comes
without a few lumps.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We are getting those lumps now, and
while many do not realize it, some of us have been waiting for the
blows to come, and waiting for others to get on the same page. The
truth is, there are no “Real Progressives,” just as there are no
“Real Liberals,” or “Real Conservatives.” There are real
people, with real problems, and ideals as to what will set things
right in the world. The problem is the “reals” seem to have come
to the conclusion that their ideals are the only way to do things,
they isolate themselves from other ideals that conflict with their
own thoughts, and we are all guilty.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The PPACA is a problem, well parts of
it are. It was an imperfect solution to a major problem, the real
solution was, and still is, a Single Payer Option (or a full blown
Single Payer System). Well, its the solution in my mind. It works
until we start to privatize it, don't take my word for it, look at
all the countries that have it, and what happens when they start
selling it off to the highest bidder. But as I was saying, the PPACA
has a lot of problems, it fails to address many problems that are
causing our healthcare issues at the moment.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Take this as an example, there is a
company that owns over seventy (70) hospitals in twenty-two (22)
states, their sole goal is to make as much profit as possible, even
if it means double dipping? Yeah, a local doctor at the hospital
just plead guilty for double billing Medicare, Medicaid and private
insurance companies (who are no angels). Now, you might be thinking
that this was a single instance, and it might well be, the single
instance that someone got caught doing it. But ~name redacted~, also
has a habit of taking students and using them as doctors, and billing
as if they were actually doctors. I have heard the rumors and seen
it first hand on multiple occasions. There were no controls to stop
hospitals from overcharging, or even keep costs in control. When
these things happen, the insurance companies don't make profit, so
they in turn raise rates or remove their services. The PPACA does
nothing to stop these practices.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Remember, insurance companies are in it
for the profit, because lets be honest, life is precious on that
nearly every political ideology can agree, and most of us will do
anything we can to preserve our own life. But what else does the
PPACA not do? It doesn't really give us a choice in the matter.
Sure we can pick from several different plans, but we have to find a
way to get health insurance, or face severe penalties. Certainly we
can choose to get the cheapest plan we can afford, but then we get
saddled with high co-pays, which some cannot afford. There is
nothing like having insurance, and no ability to actually use it.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So what is the answer, repeal and
replace or at least repeal? That is hardly an answer to the problems
with the PPACA, as we've yet to see a fully fleshed out replacement
for the current plan. I could see repealing portions of it, say the
mandate, but not because people shouldn't have insurance, but because
it actually harms people. Because they don't want to face stiff
penalties, they are going to get whatever they can, and do without.
Of course, some have decided to take the penalties, but they might
well suffer more because they are dependent on getting a tax return.
But a complete repeal would cost a lot of people what they've managed
to get, not all states are backwards like where I am. They were able
to get on government healthcare. A lot of people who couldn't afford
healthcare currently can, but many of us are getting eaten alive by
costs.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Look, like it or not a Single Payer
style system is our best bet on ensuring everyone has access to
healthcare. I've seen the arguments made that one does not have a
right to service, and that is not really an answer as to why we
shouldn't have access to healthcare. In a single payer system,
doctors and their facilities are still paid for their services, but
its not coming from a for profit company. What it can do is curb
companies like ~name redacted~ from making an insane profit from
providing care. The government can put stringent standards on the
staff of these hospitals, and ultimately hold them accountable. Oh,
and there are some things you are going to need to hear, and you
aren't going to like it.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Anything that happens to you in a
hospital, or doctors office is considered good practice, or
malpractice in the eyes of the law. In a recent court case,
involving a decedent who was physically assaulted in a hospital
(among other things), a defense attorney used the rape of a patient
by a doctor as a defense to dismiss a case on the Statutes of
Limitation. Basically Defense stated that a woman who was raped by a
doctor was unable to sue because the “statutes of limitation had
run” because the rape was ultimately malpractice. And as of today,
I have not heard the courts ruling on the matter, but chances are the
ruling will come down for the defense. That is right ladies and
gentlemen, good folk of the United States, the moment you step foot
into your doctors office or a hospital, anything that happens to you
can be considered malpractice, which means, in some states, you'd
have to acquire a “Certificate of Merit,” just to have the right
for justice, and be warned, you only have a short period to enter a
lawsuit.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, why did I bring this up? There
are more issues surrounding the healthcare debate than just
affordability of medical insurance, or an inability to get medical
care. We have hospitals abusing the system as much as we have
insurance companies doing the same. Until we are able to put both in
check these problems will persist, and how do we stop it? A single
payer system would help, at least insuring that people are getting
necessary medical treatment and are taking prescribed medications.
But we are going to need to take another step, and its one that some
are not going to like, and that is to make medical care
not-for-profit. I can hear it now, doctors will be living in their
parents basements.... No, they won't. Not-for-profit doesn't mean
that medical care is free, and doctors are slaves. It means that
hospitals can only charge for their costs. Basically, they charge
enough to cover their expenses (equipment, utilities, medications,
and payroll for staff), and at the end of the year, they've made no
profit. The sum of their intake has been used to pay for their
expenses and upgrades. Now, there are creative accounting methods
that can be employed to show no profit, but when its found, those
responsible should be punished severely.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But lets be honest here, moving back to
a not-for-profit system won't happen. Moving to a place where a
person being raped by a doctor is malpractice, won't happen. A
single payer system won't happen. And why won't it happen? Because
our government has been bought by companies which are concerned about
whats best for business, and what is best for business? Profit. It
is profitable to label everything that happens in a hospital as
potential malpractice, its easier to fight that case than it is to
fight a rape or murder charge. It is more profitable to label
everything as malpractice. It is easier to say that expenses are
high, that is why a bag of IV Fluid costs $800, and extremely
profitable (given it only costs a few dollars to make). And the
single payer system won't happen because of the large amounts of
money standing against it, you have a multi-billion dollar industry
preying on the rightful belief that life is sacred and precious and
should be protected at all costs. Where it fails is that so many
people have their fingers in the pie, so much in our world is about
money.
</div>
John Stephenshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18429419004098516256noreply@blogger.com0