Colin Powell Talks Republican Racism...Again

Former Sec. of State Colin Powell accused the Republicans in Jan. 2013, of having "... a dark vein of intolerance in some parts of the party." It was former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin who used the term to say that the president is "shuckin" and "jivin," referring to Barack Obama. I grew up in the South and that's about as racist as it gets. But coming from a double-digit IQ like Sarah Palin, well, what do you expect? Powell doesn't mention it by name but during that period of time the far right conservatives responsible for racial attacks were the Tea Party.

Move ahead to March of 2015 and Colin Powell again speaks out against the GOP and its continuing racist views. It was in a "This Week" interview when he said “I still see it. I still see it in the Republican Party and I still see it in other parts of our country. You don’t have to be a Republican to be touched by this dark vein. America is still going through this transformation from where we were just 50 or 60 years ago.” I lived in the South in the 50s and 60s when the phrase "shuckin" and "jivin" was only one of the offenders to black folks. They had to live with the "N" word every day, and not just behind their backs, but face to face in a confrontation they knew they could not win.

Racist have cleaned up their act slightly, mostly due to a somewhat less tolerant public, but the seething hatred is still there with little hope it will go away.

More Tea Party Lunacy

We know those in the Tea Party live in their own fantasyland of an ideology that if satisfied would close down America. Thank God they have been herded into their own corral and as long as we keep them there, all should be fine. What we can't prevent is their incessant blather carping about everything from Barack Obama to gun rights. Here are some examples:

• In a recent post from their site, former Congressman Frank Wolf implies that Christians could be going to prison in the future for their beliefs. 
• Next, the end of this month the TP newsletter exclaimed that the government was preparing to seize 401 (k) pensions setting the stage for “economic totalitarianism.” 
• TP newsletter headline: "What Obama Hates About Jesus." 
• The chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, Roy Moore, said he believes that if the U.S. Supreme Court rules in June that homosexual marriage is a Constitutional right, it “will destroy our country,” and added that “there are people who would like to see this country destroyed.”
• And finally, back to 2014, fired former Gilberton, PA, police chief Mark Kessler said, that he is a DHS/FBI plant. He was deemed psychotic for his 2nd Amendment lunacy.

The tea Party never lets up but it does provide us with a wealth of laughter in an otherwise sometimes dismal world.

The NRA Doesn't Want Public to Know Where Gun Violence Weapons Come From

The National Rifle Assn. (NRA) has pushed the limits of the Second Amendment to the extent that there is daily gun violence all over America, unabated because a gutless Congress won't enact laws to control guns in this country. The 2nd Amendment is an antique that should either be drastically modified or repealed. There is no hope for reasonable gun control until the NRA, along with its leader, Wayne LaPierre, are backed into a corner and told to shut up. 

Just yesterday I posted on my blog about the death of an innocent 19-year-old girl and asked the question I have been asking for a couple of years: Where did he get the gun? There is no answer to that because the NRA has refused to allow a gun registry that would assist law enforcement in tracing back every gun used in violent shootings. One of the reasons the gun lobby doesn't want that registry is that then many of the weapons used in gun violence might be connected to NRA members. 

Overturning Citizens Unlimited Must Come From Grass Roots Level

If there is one thing this country can do to balance the political scales in favor of the people it is to overturn the Citizens United ruling made by SCOTUS in 2010. John Roberts and his activist conservative renegades literally put the wealthy and corporations in charge of elections. The flow of dark money has been unlimited and forced some to rethink their candidacy. New Mexico Democrat Tom Udall proposed a Constitutional Amendment in 2014 that was backed by 54 Senators but was stymied by a Republican filibuster that stopped any action.

Enter Bernie Sanders, who had been an advocate for repeal since it was passed into law, who said, “I am extremely disappointed that not one Republican voted today to stop billionaires from buying elections and undermining American democracy." So now it goes back to the grass roots level to gain momentum for the proposed 28th Constitutional Amendment. John Bonifaz, president of Free Speech for People said, “We have amended the US Constitution before in our nation’s history. Twenty-seven times before. Seven of those times to overturn egregious Supreme Court rulings. For the promise of American democracy, we can and we will do it again.”

Argument Over Beer Ping Pong-Where Did he Get the Gun?

There was a party for Texas A&M graduate Landon Duke in College Station, and now 19-year-old Lacie LaRose is dead, killed by 39-year-old party-crasher Ronald McNeil. The whole problem erupted over a disagreement about the rules of Beer Ping Pong. McNeil said it was an accident but he fired off 14 shots to get the job done which might indicate a fit of rage since he had been thrown out of the party. McNeil lived across the street from Duke and was a convicted felon. I know we're talking about Texas but where did he get the .40-caliber Glock gun? 

Ronald McNeil is currently being held in Brazos County Jail on charges of murder, deadly conduct for discharge of a firearm and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. A 19-year-old young lady's life was snuffed out just like that, once again using a gun. One of 300 million in the U.S. With many states that have extremely loose gun laws. Texas being one of them. From now on I would like to see the media leave these stories of gun violence open until it has been proved where the gun came from. Maybe then the public will understand just how stupid is the National Rifle Association's call for more guns on the street.

"Dirty Harry" Hasn't Learned to Keep His Mouth Shut

Clint Eastwood, the “Dirty Harry” star, pretended to hold a conversation with a seated, imaginary President Obama, at the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida. It bombed just like his recent attempt at humor at Spike TV’s Guys Choice Awards:

"Eastwood was introducing 'San Andreas' star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and referenced athletes who had transitioned into acting, and then he listed “Jim Brown and Caitlyn Somebody…”

Adam Howard on MSNBC reported, "...the 'joke' drew groans instead of laughs from the audience." And Spike TV let it be known they didn't like Eastwood's comment and said the remark would be cut from the show. You have to appreciate the talent of this man based on his huge collection of work, but there comes a time when Hollywood just needs to shut up with the political remarks.
This is definitely one of them. 

But it isn't the first time. Those who have already taken a shot at Jenner are Rapper Snoop Dog, Cavaliers star J.R. Smith and R&B singer Chris Brown, among others. Jenner shouldn't be concerned; she will receive the ESPYs annual Arthur Ashe Courage Award next month.

Has Charlie Manson's Helter Skelter Finally Arrived?

Charlie Manson talked to his many followers about the racial wars that would come, naming them Helter Skelter.  It was at a New Year's Eve gathering of the Family in 1968 that he coined the term. He said blacks without an outlet for their frustrations would lash out in violent crimes against whites resulting in a murderous rampage against blacks by frightened whites, as recorded in Wikipedia. Although Charlie's goal was a Shangri-la for his family and an outlet for his music, what he described as the events leading up to it, Helter Skelter, were very similar to what is going on today between blacks and law enforcement.

Two anonymous Baltimore police officers said, simply, they are "feeling scared." Baltimore PD leaders have put them in a mode of just reacting instead of being proactive, which has allowed the city's streets to run wild, resulting in 42 killings just in May. But in Helter Skelter Charles Manson was considered by his followers as their savior, Jesus Christ, a leader who interpreted for them Chap. 9 from Revelations, which describes, as one biblical professor put it, when "All Hell Breaks Loose." If there is a leader in today's violence it has to be the gun lobby led by the National Rifle Assn. because of their persistence to put more guns on the street, thus, more murders. Racial tension has always been there but the gun rights bunch gave blacks the means to follow through on Helter Skelter.

Bernie Sanders is Packing All His Rallys

It all started out small but with big expectations that have proved to be correct and, perhaps, surprising to everyone but Bernie Sanders himself. He drew five thousand in his Vermont kick-off rally. Three thousand in Minnesota. Largest crowd of any candidate this year in Iowa. It was standing room only in New Hampshire. But Wisconsin proved to be the best news where he came in a close second to Hillary Clinton in the state straw poll. It was 49% to 41%, leaving Martin O'Malley at only 3%. Although straw polls are not rocket science, it is a measure of the support for the Senator.

As Alex SeitzWald said on MSNBC, "...it shows a desire for an alternative to Clinton and an interest in Sanders among the party’s most committed members, at least in Wisconsin." It would be nice to see the results of a straw poll pitting Bernie Sanders against Wis. Gov. Scott Walker, another presidential contender. At the end of May CNN had him at 15% support from Democratic voters nationwide which triples where he was a month prior. I'd like to see Nate Silver's predictions for Sanders with these early results.

Sam Brownback Wants to Abolish State Court System

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has now decided to do away with the state court system...if they don't do his bidding. It has something to do with state courts taking away some of the powers of the Kansas Supreme court in connection with 2014 rulings on education. It ruled the state of Kansas failed to provide equity in public education as required by the state constitution. This was a part of Brownback's typical Republicanized budget which has put the state in dire financial straits. If Kansas courts agree with the Gov. they can go on their merry way. If not, their funding is cut.

This guy is almost as crazy as former Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, who passed the loose gun laws in her state that Brownback copied recently, posted by me in April.

But Brownback wasn't finished. Just recently the Republican governor indicated he was planning to expand Secretary of State Kris Kobach’s (R) authority “to prosecute voter fraud cases.” Even those state prosecutors have decided not to take to court. Voter fraud is a big GOP issue, which has been proved to be a huge exaggeration by the right, and is actually a cover up for forcing a certain Democratic block from the polls. Kobach's new powers are designed to do just that.

Sam Brownback has shown once again just how pig headed Republicans can be and just how steeped in their stupid ideology they are.

Hispanics Would be Out of Their Minds to Vote Republican

President Obama does the right thing but the courts and Congress kick him in the teeth. He issued two Executive Orders to protect the parents of American citizens and so-called “DREAMers” brought to the U.S. as young children. Their names are Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) and an expansion to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). They were enacted to protect some 4 to 5 million undocumented immigrants that the President has been trying to coax out of the shadows. Their obvious concern is deportation.

What still amazes me is why this country doesn't understand that if these people were to be deported, restaurants would be unmanned nationwide, there would be no one to work the farmers' fields, the landscaping business would be down the tube, and there would be no one to clean the homes of the rich. And if they are not going to be deported, why not take the step to legalize their residency and provide a path to citizenship. The gutless Republican Congress won't do it but Barack Obama had the balls to take these Executive Actions that the conservative courts are now shoving down his throat. Amanda Sakuma on MSNBC said these folks will probably have to wait until the summer of 2016 before the courts decide their fate.

Jordan Fabian of The Hill reports there will be no emergency request from the Justice Dept. to lift the order blocking the Executive Action. Instead, it will concentrate on an appeal to the 5th Circuit Court in July. Every Latino in this country should take note who is behind the drive to push these people back in the shadows...the GOP.

DNA Has Completely Changed the Death Penalty

Henry Lee McCollum, a black man age 50, had been on death row for 30 years for the 1983 rape and killing of an eleven-year-old girl. He didn't do it. DNA evidence finally "implicated another man, a known sex offender the police had not investigated, despite the fact that he lived next to the crime scene," according to Slate. McCollum, who was 19 at the time, confessed after police pressure along with his half-brother, Leon Brown, who was 15 then. Both recanted several times but Brown ended up serving a life sentence, McCollum went on death row. They were both freed from prison back in 2014.

Conservative Supreme court Judge Antonin Scalia used this very case to dismiss Justice Harry Blackmun’s concerns about the death penalty some 20 years ago. He pointed to convicted killer Henry Lee McCollum as an obvious example of a man who deserved to be put to death. Scalia used McCollum as the perfect illustration of a heinous crime that "stood as a testament to the merit of capital punishment itself." Well, on June 4, 2015, the two men were pardoned by No. Carolina's Gov. Pat McCrory.

Each man now qualifies for $50,000 for each year they were imprisoned, up to a maximum of $750,000. They needed a gubernatorial pardon in order to collect the compensation.

Steve Benen, who wrote the MSNBC article commented, "As best as I can tell, Scalia has not yet commented."

Bernie Sanders Must Come Out NOW for Minority Vote for Credibility

The Bernie Sanders team should look at this graph and decide today to point their candidate in the direction of the minority vote. I mean African American and Hispanic specifically. A better place does not exist to prove his point of economic and income inequality than these two voting blocks. I did a post back in May that outlines his positions and voting records on race and immigration. They are favorable on both but Sen. Sanders is not making this clear to the public. If they don't know you want their vote, they won't vote for you Bernie.

Jason Johnson of NBC News did a piece asking the candidate questions for African Americans on whether they should vote for Bernie Sanders. First of all there is the implication that Sanders has slim or no chance for winning. This group did not even support Obama until he won in Iowa, but in Sen. Sanders last trip to Iowa, he did great with large crowds at his events. And Johnson wants to know if the candidate understands African Americans when they make up only 1% of Vermont's state population. He pursues this question with another, "how he plans on galvanizing this crucial demographic in order to win a national election?"

This could be the big year of the Hispanic vote since people who harass the Mexican community like Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio have been put in their place, thus, many who were in the past, won't be afraid to come out and vote. This could change, though, if voter ID laws persist and there are 32 states that enforce this that you can see here. Hispanics voted for Mr. Obama en masse in 2008 and especially in 2012, and recently Bernie Sanders said, “We have 11 million people in this country living in the shadows, living in fear. That’s got to end. We need a path toward citizenship for all of those people.”

Bernie Sanders must make racial and immigration reform an integral part of his campaign and do it soon. Without it he cannot win.

Hillary Clinton Scores With Voting Rights Announcement

Hillary Clinton has come up with the concept that Bernie Sanders will wish he had originated and one Republicans will fight to the death. Guaranteed voting for everyone over the age of 18. She was at Texas Southern University in Houston calling for every American to be automatically registered to vote when they turn 18 unless they choose not to be. In 2013 SCOTUS weakened the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by allowing new restrictions on those wanting to vote. Hillary's proposed law would re enable millions who have suffered limits to their voting rights.

Is it possible Clinton's voting rights legislation will not only help a Democrat win the presidency in 2016, but, if used in those congressional districts up for election, help win back the House and Senate for the Dems? Hell yes I say! 

Zachary Roth of MSNBC says, "it could put the GOP on notice that further efforts to make voting harder may backfire by giving Democrats a tool to motivate their supporters." Clinton chastised her Republican opponents not to continue “fearmongering about a phantom epidemic of voter fraud.” And here are a couple of facts from Roth to support the candidate's proposal: 1) Between one quarter and one third of all Americans aren’t registered to vote. 2) Around 50 million eligible voters aren’t registered, according to a recent study by the Center for Popular Democracy, based on Census Bureau data.
But if history repeats itself, the GOP will leave no rock unturned that could prevent Democrats from voting.

Duggar Statements You Just Won't Believe

Jim Bob Duggar and his wife Michelle will say and do just about anything to keep from admitting their son Josh is a pervert. Here are some statements that evolved from their interview on Fox News that were compiled by SheKnows.com:

• Michelle Duggar insists that Josh's fondling of his sisters were over the clothes like, somehow, this doesn't count?
• When Jim Bob shared the molestations with church members he says the same thing was happening in other families with the implication it is widespread. Therefore his conclusion that what Josh did is no big deal.
• Jim Bob could not accept the fact that a 15-year-old should know better than to do what Josh did, exclaiming, "He was a juvenile. Not an adult."
• Claiming they were devastated to make it look like they were the victims and then trying to make a case that they had done all they could as parents. But critics responded, "Talking to your friends is not everything you can do."
• And one of the dumbest comments I have ever heard coming from an adult's mouth, "As parents, we're not mandatory reporters." As if that completely relieved them from disclosing this to the authorities.
• Michelle Duggar still thinks her son Josh is the victim in all this saying, "He knew it was wrong... they didn't even realize it was improper touch." That's about as dumb as the former father's comment.
• Jim Bob did go to the police, who indicated later that he only told the cop about one molestation, something the father explained by accusing the police officer of saying that because he had not reported the assault afterward.
• And finally when asked if they worried about the safety of their daughter when their brother returned home from supposed but failed counseling, "They were adamant that while safeguards stayed in place, they no longer worried about their daughters."

This whole scenario reads like a Keystone Cops movie but there is no humor in the fact that the Duggars took advantage of their religious and political positions to cover up a degenerate son's sexual deviation.

Mitch McConnell the Perpetual Asshole

Don't tell me U.S. Senators deserve respect when they are the low life of Congress. If there was a barrel, the downside would have to be bottomless to accommodate Mitch McConnell. He doesn't represent the state of Kentucky--actually they should be ashamed of him--he represents the legions of hate. This misanthropy started the day after Barack Obama was elected President as McConnell said, “When I first came into office my number one priority is making sure president Obama’s a one-term president." How can you hate someone like this so quick, and after he had just won a landslide election against Republican favorite John McCain?

I have heard similar responses from other conservatives across the country who have commented on my posts. I've said it before and I'll say it again...it sounds downright racist. Obama put forth an agenda that, although not as ambitious, was not too dissimilar to that of Bill Clinton but the latter wasn't vilified by the conservative right nor by Congress, at least in the manner McConnell has Obama.

"Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said last Thursday that he doesn’t expect to confirm any of Obama’s circuit court nominees for the remainder of his time in office." Why? Is it because the Dems did the same thing to Geo. W. Bush at the end of his second term? Hell no! Here is the contrast as reported by Steve Benen of MSNBC:

At this point in 2007, in the seventh year of the Bush/Cheney presidency, soon after Democrats took the Senate majority for the first time in several years, the Democratic majority had already confirmed 18 of Bush’s court nominees. Senate Democrats confirmed 68 of Bush’s judicial nominees in the final two years of the Republican administration.

I would be happy to revise this post if Mitch McConnell would go public and explain his hatred for Obama.

Arizona Stupid Laws Just Get Stupider-Doctors Have to Sue

The Arizona legislature is capable of passing the most brainless laws of any state in the country, evidenced by the loose gun laws this state has. All it takes is a warm body to buy a handgun and then walk right in a bar and buy a drink. But Cathi Herrod, pictured, is responsible for some of the worst on the books, like the latest, a law that requires abortion providers to tell patients that it is possible to reverse a medication abortion. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, argue there is no "credible, medically accepted evidence" that a medication abortion can be reversed. But this dumb bunch of wingnuts in the Arizona legislature let this radical fruitcake, Herrod, convince them to pass the bill.

Scottsdale physician Julie Kwatra, the legislative chairwoman for the Arizona section of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said the law violates doctors' ethics and is harmful to the doctor-patient relationship. Arizona Republic Opinions states: 

"The law at question requires doctors to tell patients they can reverse a medical abortion by quickly taking high doses of progesterone. There are no studies supporting this view, just anecdotes and the belief of anti-abortion advocates. Other doctors say they've seen the abortion pill fail when a woman doesn't take the second dose."

And...

"This is a case where the state's response should be:Yeah, you're right, the Legislature was wrong. It won't be, of course, because lawyers are paid to make the best argument possible, even when they have nothing."

When will the people of Arizona who vote for these blockheads wake up and realize they are ruining our state?

Republican Voters Want to Keep Grabbing the Wealth

Economic inequality, which includes income inequality, has been growing at a rapid pace in the last few years making the middle class and the poor the losers. The only ones to reap rewards are the wealthy...that despised 1%. But a new Pew Research study says the Republicans/conservatives like that just fine and want to leave it that way. In the latest Washington Post/ABC News poll this question was asked:

“Do you think the federal government should or should not pursue policies that try to reduce the gap between wealthy and less well-off Americans?”

The results shouldn't surprise Progressives but it should shame conservatives. Republicans don't want to do anything about it and white evangelical Protestants are evenly split on the issue. In reverse, Democrats and Independents support efforts to address the wealth gap and 62% of all American adults believe the government should try to reduce the huge chasm. With only 31% believing otherwise, that’s a 2-to-1 advantage.

Add to this the fact that a majority of Americans regardless of race support actions to reduce the wealth gap, as well as by age, gender, level of education, household income and geographic region. What we have is a broad consensus that this is an issue worthy of national action.

This 62% figure, which includes Progressives and Independents, leads me to the conclusion that a recent post of mine, "Hail-Hail...Conservatism is Declining," predicts the future of American politics.

Fox News is Light on Substance but Heavy on Legs

Female news anchors from the "real" network stations like ABC, CBS and NBC are usually positioned conventionally behind a desk, not to necessarily hide their legs but to prevent anything like a potential crotch shot. That's what we called it when I worked in TV in the 50s and 60s. As I told someone recently, there were no female news people in those days and once when I tried to audition a gal at the station where I worked in Memphis they almost rode me out of the studio on the rails. But that has all changed as you can see in the featured picture. Fox News has taken the art of dress and leg manipulation to a new high.  Brian Kilmeade of the Faux News network said:

"To be a female anchor on Fox News, the only qualifications is to look like you’re coming from the Victoria’s Secret catalog, and be able to speak."

This coming from an insider who said "be able to speak," but did not add 'be able to think.' It's bad enough that the network's news is mostly inaccurate but when they lower themselves to relying on legs and boobs to get the viewer's attention, it just shows what a pathetic organization they are.

And then we have Katie Couric, Diane Sawyer, Ann Curry, Jane Pauley, Joan Lunden, Erin Burnett, Connie Chung and Jessica Savitch, just to show there are legitimate female anchors out there.

I can truthfully say that I have never watched a Fox News presentation and after writing this piece I never will.

Money Should be Drummed Out of Politics

"We have all seen how the influx of big money distorts our agenda, limits competition, and undermines democracy. With Fair Elections, the power rests with voters, not special interests.” This was said by former New Jersey Senator Bill Bradley who now chairs Americans for Campaign Reform. One only needs to mention the Koch Bros. to confirm how money is buying GOP elections today. Their budget for 2016 is $889 million. But Democrats are doing the same thing and in a Politico piece they were accusing Republicans in 2014 when in fact they actually finished ahead among the biggest donors. George Soros is a billionaire liberal but OpenSecrets.org says:

"When it comes to the combination of institutional lobbying, 527 group donations and PAC expenditures, Koch Industries far out-spends Soros’ hedge fund and think tank, $57.4 million to $12.8 million. Most of this money is attributable to lobbying expenditures."

Enter Bernie Sanders who calls big money a wholesale purchase of political power. In May he called for “a political revolution” against “the billionaire class.” He has vowed never to accept PAC money and The Guardian reports:

“For the last 30 years I’ve been standing up for the working families of this country,” he said, “and I think I’m the only candidate who’s prepared to take on the billionaire class which now controls our economy and increasingly controls the political life of this country."

MSNBC says the, "2016 presidential election will be defined by big money more than any other in recent history." Won't it be dramatic when this little-known candidate who has these radical views on giving the country back to the people, snubbing his nose all along at the mega bucks is elected? Everyone will know who Bernie Sanders is then.

Did the Duggars Play the Statute of Limitations Game?

Did the statute of limitations in Arkansas naturally expire on Josh Duggar's molestations or were they negligently misinterpreted for the sake of the Duggar family? It's bad enough this guy molested four of his sisters, one age 5, and a friend, but it is something else if the Duggar family intentionally delayed reporting the acts and law enforcement incompetence created further delays. One attorney, Marci A. Hamilton, a professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law says, she interprets Arkansas law as being seven years from time of the incident when the molestation affects a minor, rather than the normal three. She continued, that was even allowed to expire by the Duggars and Arkansas law enforcement, meaning “it’s over.” No one can explain why charges were not pursued following the forwarding of the police report to the juvenile prosecutor.

The Duggars are very politically connected, as I pointed out in an earlier post. Politico reported on this at about the same time the end of May. GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee leads the pack in supporting the Duggars with his wife, Janet, very close behind, as do many other Republicans in the running. Arkansas police destroyed the records of Josh Duggar's nearly decade-old molestation case on the order of Judge Stacey Zimmerman; the judge refused to comment on these actions. Media outlets that knew about this at the time included the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and the then on the air, "Oprah Winfrey Show." Still, nothing was done.

The family, law enforcement and the media remained silent while these children were being traumatized by a depraved Josh Duggar.

Here Are the Facts on Pot-You Decide

CNN asks whether marijuana is as safe or safer than alcohol. One of the headlines surrounding this headline is "High Profits" an indication of the exceptional revenue for states that have legalized it, particularly for recreational use. But this article is all about the medical benefits or disadvantages and there are a lot. As an opening, Pres. Obama said, "I don't think it is more dangerous than alcohol." That might do it for the Progressives but not for the conservative right. Anyway, here are the facts:

• Alcohol is the most commonly used addictive substance in the United States.
• Pot use is limited due to its designation as a Schedule 1 substance, the same category as heroin, LSD and Ecstasy, and also due to its illegal nature in most states.
• The addiction of alcohol is proven with approximately 17.6 million people, or one in every 12 adults suffering from abuse.
• Marijuana's addictive qualities are not yet fully understood, but estimates say 9% of people who use marijuana will become addicted to it.
• Drunk drivers kill one person and injure 20 every hour.
• The pot smoker effects while driving results--a slight impact on the psychomotor skills--are still questionable since most of the studies are lab tests. 

There's more in this comprehensive article, such as how alcohol and marijuana affect your appetite and weight gain, how it can help or hinder the sexual drive and lower your inhibitions to the point you neglect safe sex, and what the long-term health risks are for each. The absolute downside is some 88,000 Americans die each year because of excessive alcohol use. Again the marijuana facts are limited on deaths but one study found pot users have a 4.8-fold increase in risk of a heart attack during the first hour after smoking because of the drug's effect on your heart rate.

But what do you want to bet it eventually comes down to the increased state income on the sale of pot. Legal marijuana state revenue (medicinal/recreational) in Colorado generated $63 million in 2014 tax revenue, with an additional $13 million collected in licenses and fees on $700 million in sales. Sales are expected to be $1 billion by 2016.

Fox News Decides to Help Duggar Family Sugar Coat Son's Molestation

I watched part of the Fox News interview on CNN with Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. It was hard for Anderson Cooper and his two guests to keep from hurling all over the set. The headline on PoliticusUSA last Saturday was, "Fox Hits A Deplorable Low By Giving The Duggars A Platform To Explain Away Child Molestation." When you combine this degenerate family with Fox News, you know you won't get the true story but you don't expect to get the unbridled presentation of an obviously guilty family trying to say they aren't. Michelle Duggar said they were worried they had failed as parents with a straight face. Continuing:

"Here we've tried to raise our kids to do what's right, to know what's right, and yet one of our children made some really bad choices and I think, as a parent, we were just, we were devastated," she told Megyn Kelly.

This woman is living in a delusional, fanatical, religious dream world if she thinks Josh Duggar just made "bad choices." Even "really" bad choices. A bad choice is when you put spiders in your sister's bed, not get in that bed with her and fondle her breasts and vagina. He even did this to his five-year-old sister. There is also some alignment of this family with Republicans running for President between both Jim Bob and Josh.

It is known that Josh was doing this for years, which included a family friend as well as his four sisters, reported it to his father at least three times, with the results that no action was taken and the statute of limitations was allowed to run out. An attorney on CNN indicated there might be some later episodes that still could be charged against Josh, perhaps including the father and mother.

The Duggar's TLC hit show "19 Kids and Counting" has been pulled from the air until further notice. There should be some way to get these culprits out of the normal population.

Later news.

Where will Elizabeth Warren's Support Go?

The groups behind the six months effort to draft Elizabeth Warren for President have folded their tent. The “Run Warren Run” campaign backed by Democracy for America (DFA) and MoveOn.org have decided to suspend efforts. The question arises, since Warren is definitely a Progressive, will these two organizations shift their support to Bernie Sanders? DFA endorsed him for the Senate in Vermont in 2006. MoveOn.org is being urged to back him after exiting Warren. However, DFA Executive Director Charles Chamberlain said, “We still think there’s plenty of time for Sen. Warren to change her mind,” and indicated they would stick with Warren for now. MoveOn has been looking at petitions to back Sen. Sanders for some time.  Here's a map reflecting primary schedules for 2016, with seven months to go in 2015. It would seem that if Warren secretly harbors any plans to run, she would want to make that decision by the end of the month but stranger things have happened in politics. DFA and MoveOn may be reluctant to back a dark horse like Bernie Sanders but before they decide not they should look at some of the crowds he is attracting at speaking engagements around the country.

Latest Update from Bernie Sanders: Iowa

Bernie Sanders is in Iowa and, although he hasn't gotten the national coverage he should, his team passes on road successes with his followers. Here they are:

Kensett, IA: "A mere 240 people live in the rural northeast Iowa town of Kensett, so when more than 300 crowded into the community center on Saturday night to hear Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, many driving 50 miles, the cellphones of Democratic leaders statewide began to buzz."

Ames, IA: "Mr. Sanders's stop at a brewery in Ames on Saturday was so mobbed that more than 100 people who could not fit inside peered through the [brewery] windows."

Muscatine, IA: "The next day, in Muscatine, Iowa, after a rally at a community college drew twice the expected audience of 50…"

Standing before a huge crowd in an unidentified location, the candidate said, “Be amazed at what you saw here. I want to win this.”

NRA Says National Gun Violence Day "Pointless"

Today is National Gun Violence Awareness Day, sponsored by Everyone for Gun Safety Action Fund. Celebrities like Julianne Moore helped make this first event successful in spite of being panned by the National Rifle Assn. (NRA). The NRA "attacked the campaign as 'pointless' and said 'participating is an easy way of scoring points for being 'socially conscious.'" I have heard this organization lower itself in similar statements before so nothing is surprising anymore. What is surprising is that the NRA is still around to do this kind of damage after the thousands of gun deaths it is responsible for. The cry of "Wear Orange" is a symbol for the value of human life everywhere and honors the January 29, 2013 shooting death of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton who was killed by gangs on Chicago's south side. People are wearing orange all across the country today in an effort that is quickly burgeoning into a full blown movement to get guns off the streets.