Month: September 2021

The federal government should make it clear to all states that threaten to or actually withhold any federal funding for public schools for any reason that they will be prosecuted for doing so. Playing politics with the education of the country’s children and state and/or local governments making idiotic political positions and policies on a public health issue like Covid 19 that are dangerous, reckless, and irresponsible and using federal money to do it are not cool and should not be condoned or allowed.

Dark money is the libertarian root of the evil that is trying to destroy our democracy. Ask the Kochs, Mercers, DeVos Family and others. Ask Trump and Bannon. And thank the Supreme Court for making it so easy.

“Right to work” is really “Right to impoverish.”

We need a precise definition of the composition of the American right that is at the heart of promoting and inciting the “unthinkable” dark ideas that used to be hidden under the surface but have probably always been there. Who, exactly, are the big major players? The ones with the money? The ones either directly or covertly setting the course? I think that if such an investigation were ever really carried out we’d probably see a small core group of rich libertarians, billionaires who have legions of lobbyists, media and corporate backers and promoters, lackeys, surrogates, and paid government employees and congressional members. But I do believe that as a group it would probably be not as numerous as the broad general term of “the American Right” suggests that it is.

The last time I flew to Europe was in 2009 and we flew over Greenland. Even then I remember seeing lots of large rivers of ice melt all across the island. Seems like Greenland is going to end up being iceless barren rock soon. And, the Gulf Stream, apparently, is possibly/probably very much in danger of collapsing sometime soon. The problem with the Gulf Stream is a problem that has been well known for at least a couple of decades but seems to have been mostly ignored and not reported much until very recently.

Using scripture to justify discrimination based on sex, gender, orientation, reproductive decision making and a woman’s right to control her own body, physical and mental disabilities, economic status. Using the Bible as a weapon to attack “others” and promote hate, violence, war, death, and hostility towards others. Jesus didn’t ever teach or support or speak of any of these atrocious human behaviors. He taught exactly the opposite values: love, compassion, understanding, tolerance, and care taking.

Back before the caravans. Back before people started calling it “the crisis at the southern border” we really should have known more, anything really, about Pompeo’s trip to see the mostly fascist, death squad killer strong men who control the countries in Central America that Pompeo went to visit right after Trump made him Sect. of State. But Pompeo and Trump made sure to keep those visits completely hidden and secret. What were those secret talks about? What was the content of those talks. What positions and offers did Pompeo make to those warlords to bolster our “national security and interests”? How did the policy and actions of those warlords change to meet any offers and proposals that Pompeo could have made to them in those meetings? I’d like to know. But I doubt that Congress will ever really take a look at it or investigate it. Congress already has so much on its plate.

Early indicators are that the conservative media are already advancing the notion of a red swing in the midterm elections even despite the reality of the way Republicans are grossly and morbidly (mis)handling Covid, creating and coordinating voter suppression and a collapse of free and fair elections, and are pushing so desperately to whitewash the treasonous bloody insurrection of January 6th when the Trump mob tried to take down our democracy by calling it “a normal tourist” day at the capitol. The Republicans want to forget about it and move on. They don’t want for us all to know who, what, when, why, and how the insurrection happened and who planned and funded it. So, now, for the midterm elections, some of the conservative media, apparently, because of historical inevitability I guess, are proclaiming a possible red resurgence. That’s often what the media does. And it only ends up compounding and exacerbating our problems.

Since I wrote this I can now add that Republicans in Texas, with the assistance of the corrupt conservative majority of Supreme Court, have targeted abortion and turned citizens into vigilantes. They have established the state of Texas as a surveillance state. Texas, assisted by the Supreme Court, has destroyed privacy, self-determination, and a constitutionally protected right of reproductive choice that has been in place for the last fifty years.

The midterm election in 2022, next year, yes, it’s coming up fast, is crucially important. All eligible voters need to show up and vote, even if voting has been made harder to do in your state by republicans who want for you to not vote. Please make sure and vote. Find out what you need to do to be able to vote and to have your vote counted in your state. And make sure to vote before any deadline to make sure your vote is received. This election may be even more important than the vote in 2020 even though in that vote we removed Trump from office and gave the Senate the slimmest of majorities possible. This time we need to VOTE BLUE like our lives depend on it and elect Democrats to the house and Senate. The more the better. If we have a good solid democratic majority in both houses, just imagine what we can do to bring our democracy back to “the people” where it was always meant to be.

Please, EVERYONE WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO VOTE. VOTE BLUE in the midterm election in 2022. Vote democrats into office at all levels of government from your city, to your state and federally. It’s more important now than it ever has been.

The 2022 midterm elections are crucially important. It’s important for everyone who can vote to vote. And to Vote Blue. Let’s retire republicans from Congress and elect a democratic Congress that will get work done for all of us. Let’s get rid of the republicans who don’t do anything but prevent work from getting done. They are dead weight. Let’s get rid of them. Vote Blue in 2022.