“Live, from the cloakroom of the U.S. House of Representatives, one of the worst, lowest-quality speeches I have ever had the absolute atrocious lack of privilege to witness.” She noted that every Republican flanking McCarthy was a white man, telling viewers: “Look at those different color ties and
haircuts! I’ve never seen a more diverse Republican Party.” Then, sitting down with Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), AOC noted McCarthy’s poor vocabulary, saying: “If you’re going to be evil, you might as well be an evil genius, not an evil...” Raskin interjected: “Imbecile!” AOC agreed: “Imbecile.
"it is a matter of time before a less responsible follower of Donald Trump, or a less responsible Republican is going to pick up a weapon and kill someone."
What Rep. Hines is presuming is that someone, likely a politician, and one on the left, could be assassinated. It is surprising to me it hasn't happened already, and not just a Democrat but Republicans as well. Donald Trump threw open the door to violence repeatedly during his administration, but when he lost, and the Jan. 6, U.S. Capitol insurrection was forming, he had this to say...
“Republicans are constantly fighting like a boxer with his hands tied behind his back. It’s like a boxer. And we want to be so nice. We want to be so respectful of everybody, including bad people. And we’re going to have to fight much harder. …
“We’re going to walk down to the Capitol, and we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women, and we’re probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them, because you’ll never take back our country with weakness. You have to show strength, and you have to be strong.”
Top 10 Political Assassinations of the 20th Century...
As far as controlling his crowd of thugs he said...
“I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.”
Himes, in his interview with MSNBC host, Nicolle Wallace, cited the pushback on the Infrastructure Bill as an example of the language, and death threats by Republicans toward their own party members for voting for the bill, calling them traitors. Himes closes with a warning based on his earlier comments...
"And I never imagined that I would be concerned about that. But here we are. I think that's a very real threat. And if the Republicans can't tamper back their, dial back their rhetoric, that's where this is going to end."
And this is the precipice to which Donald Trump has led his followers and this country with no concern for the violence he has caused and what all this might lead to. In this article, Himes gives us an idea where that might be.
The agony of this issue is the fact that something could be done about gun violence, but the first question is, do we need more guns on the street than there are American residents? NO! But there are 393 million guns, only 326 million people. The first move should be to get as many of these guns off streets as possible, and, again, yes, there are some people out there that don't need a gun. And there are some who don't need an arsenal; in 2020 the average gun owner had 8 guns.
As of November 16, 2021, according to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been 39,275 deaths due to gun violence; 18,155 homicides, murder, etc. and 21,120 suicides. Add to that 35,963 injuries due to guns and you have a situation that is completely out of control. Yet, gun nuts, which include not only some gun owners, but also politicians, who have conceded to the gun lobby for years, taking their money in return for legislation protecting these same gun nuts.
Listen to Arizona absurb gun law, typical throughout U.S...
As an example, in Arizona, the state where I live, all that is necessary to own a gun is a warm body. They can take their firearms pretty much anywhere they want to, and now Congress is considering legislation so owners can carry their guns across state lines all around the country. I am 89 and not once has there been the case where I have needed to carry a gun. Agreed, there are limited cases where this might be required; single females living alone as an example.
"He’s also an emergency room physician whose obsession with firearms violence grew from his constant treatment of gunshot wounds."
Wintrmute questions...
“How could we have prevented this from happening? I’ve tried to
understand some of the social determinants in a gun purchase.”
Wintemute contacted politicians...
“The risk of major political violence is higher now than at any other time in my lifetime,” said Bob Shrum, a former Democratic consultant who is director of the Center for the Political Future at USC.
Schnur cited the violence at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 insurrection, where 5 people died from gun violence, adding...
“As long as we convince each other that people who disagree with us are evil, the likelihood for violence will keep growing. The answer isn’t more gun control or more gun ownership…. The core issue is tolerance.”
And if all this isn't enough, we now have ghost guns, and I don't mean the creepy crawly kind. This new quirk for gun nuts is a make-at-home kit for a real gun that is available through gun dealers and online. There is some work necessary to complete the firearm and, when complete, the piece is not subject to regular gun regulations, thus, no serial number. Just another way for an anonymous homicide with, essentially, a throwaway killing machine. What's next?
Back to my initial statement, 'something could be done about gun violence,' there is a need for some new gun control laws, and revision of some already on the books. A priority is to revise the open/concealed law to include only those absolutely in need. Another, create a national registry, eliminate the gun show loophole, cancel straw purchases and get rid of the NRA, the main source of gun violence with its philosophy of 'more guns on the street.' Unfortunately, there's more.
The University of Michigan just diagnosed 528 cases of the
flu at the school. A whopping 77% of those students infected did not get the
flu vaccine. The outbreak was so sudden the CDC had to be called in...
"A team of investigators from the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention will be on campus this week, trying to learn more
about the spread of the virus and the effectiveness of this year's flu
vaccine."
"The work will be led by the local health department, and will include the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the university and a team from the CDC.
"When a public health authority requests assistance from the CDC for an urgent public health problem, such as disease outbreaks, unexplained illnesses and natural or human-caused disasters, an Epi-Aid team is tapped to provide short-term assistance."
In this video, what you need to know about the 2021 flu season...
What is baffling is the fact that Juan Luis Marquez, medical director at the Washtenaw County Health Department, where the university is located, only "strongly recommends" the balance of students get the flu shot. It doesn't take a rocket scientist here to see this is grounds for a mandate, since the country has been repeatedly warned by the CDC this could be a high-case flu season. And here lies the AGONY OF STUPIDITY...
No matter whether you have a pet, or are living where there are farm animals, I hope you don't condone animal cruelty. But like most of us, you love and take care of your furry friends like your own children. You believe they deserve the best and do your darndest to see that they get it. You are what is called an animal lover, and although there are others not quite as devoted, they do believe animals should live the best life they can in forever homes.
But there are those who think just the opposite, and these people are cruel to animals, the scourge of the earth. Their attitude is, it's just an animal. They would be wrong and that's what this post is all about. The Humane Society says...
"The shocking number of animal cruelty cases reported every day is just the tip of the iceberg—most cases are never reported. Unlike violent crimes against people, cases of animal abuse are not compiled by state or federal agencies, making it difficult to calculate just how common they are. However, we can use the information that is available to try to understand and prevent cases of abuse."
reasoning since there was an acceptable solution to the problem. This comes from rural northern North Carolina where things aren't so good, and families have a hard time caring for themselves, sometimes neglecting their animals. Here's the scenario...
"No person lives in this house...Let’s call it No-No Land. The house has been abandoned since January, when the owner, an elderly man, died of covid-19. We are here in late July...You hear the three dogs baying before you see them, and then you see them and recoil. Each is tethered to a metal cable, which is tethered to its own primitive wooden doghouse. Each animal has only a few dozen square feet within which to move."
The story goes on to say the three females have been here six months, unable to socialize together, with no neighbors bothering to come by. Today it is 85 in the shade. They're in a prison, says the Washington Post, with the daughter who inherited the property in another state, a relative supposed to care for the dogs but
doesn't. WP again in exasperation...
"For reasons that defy common sense and decency, the daughter has chosen this heartless system rather than adopt the dogs herself or surrender them to someone who will care for them."
This is the epitome of animal cruelty and I urge you to read this story because it will either reinforce your present work for animal rights or prompt you to donate some time and money to animal causes. In another situation a Valley, Alabama man faces 12 counts of Animal Cruelty after police discovered a dozen malnourished Pitbulls living in deplorable conditions. What little water they had was green and filled with insects.
I hate to tell you, folks, but this kind of treatment of innocent animals is going on throughout the country and as the Humane Society reports, these are only the reported cases with thousands of others unreported. And not to lessen the urgency of animal cruelty, here's more bad news from the Animal Legal Defense Fund...
"People who hurt animals don’t stop with animals. There is an established link between cruelty to animals and violence toward humans — regularly referred to as 'The Link.'”
Watch this video of South Florida man sentenced to 10 years in prison for animal cruelty (Disturbing scenes)...
This is why law enforcement is strongly urged to thoroughly investigate those involved in animal cruelty cases, because of this "link," and because the aftermath, not necessarily in the present sense, but a violent outburst that could occur in the future. Facts from the ALDF...
"A landmark 1997 study by the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Northeastern University found that animal abusers are in fact five times as likely to also harm other humans.
"Another study, published in 2013, found that 43% of those who commit school massacres also committed acts of cruelty to animals — generally against cats and dogs."
Finally, to end on a high note, there is a new organization, Flight To Freedom, that through donations saves animals from euthanasia by picking them up from one location and transporting them to another location where they can find a forever home. I hope you will check this out and support them.
There is the stupidity of coronavirus disbelievers, and there is the stupidity of politics and politicians. It is hard to say which is the stupidest, but a recent event clearly throws it in the court of the politicians. Democrats, no less, and now you are thinking I am a traitor. Not so, because I am talking about the progressive "Squad," who do come off as traitors for voting against Pres. Biden's $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill. The move was unconscionable but predictable.
The progressives wanted more, they always do, and there never seems any room for negotiations. I used to be a progressive and left due entirely to the latter. They also wanted it attached to another similar bill but acted in a way that could have tanked Joe Biden's agenda. It didn't, thanks to 13 Republicans, which, hopefully could signal a softening of the right to this administration. Considering the number of lunatics in the Republican Party, the Dems have to use any strategy available.
The other bill the Squad wanted included in the vote was the Build Back Better
"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California unfastened the bipartisan bill from the Build Back Better Act, which led to the former bill's successful package, with several key moderates signing on to an agreement paving the way for their backing of the reconciliation bill once its fiscal impact has been released."
I said it in my blog post above on whether progressives are necessary, it would appear at times progressives are going for broke because they sense the upcoming two elections won't be so favorable for Democrats. That's another story we will talk about later.
The New York Times reports, "On Podcasts and Radio, Misleading Covid-19 Talk Goes Unchecked." We have heard promises from Facebook and Twitter for months, yet this Nov. 12 headline from the New York Times. Freedom of speech guaranteed by the 1st Amendment does not include purposely killing people with misinformation and for profit. Here's a recent example...
On a recent episode of his podcast, Rick Wiles, a pastor and self-described “citizen reporter,” endorsed a conspiracy theory: that Covid-19 vaccines were the product of a “global coup d’état by the most evil cabal of people in the history of mankind.”
“It’s an egg that hatches into a synthetic parasite and grows inside your body,” Mr. Wiles said on his Oct. 13 episode. “This is like a sci-fi nightmare, and it’s happening in front of us.”
Does it get any stupider than this? Obviously we aren't talking the typical social media like Facebook and Twitter, but podcasts are a form of socializing, and, it is free of government regulation for the time being. Wiles is dead from Covid-19 but we wonder how many innocent victims he took with him??? Tsk Tsk
