And it has never been the same. It brought on Fact Checks by several media publications and the well-known Pinocchios from the Washington Post. Fact checking had to work overtime during Donald Trump's time in the White House, but even clearly defeated by Joe Biden, this lunatic continues to rack up the lies. Well over 30,000 to date with some classics by POLITIFACT. It is unreal, as you scroll through these lies that they are attributed to an ex-U.S. President.
"A few weeks ago, Representative Dan Crenshaw, a Texas Republican, falsely claimed that the centerpiece of President Biden’s domestic agenda, a $1.75 trillion bill to battle climate change and extend the nation’s social safety net, would include Medicare for all."
It does not and never has, but the pathetic Republican supporters either don't have the brains to check things like this out or they just don't care. And by the way, Crenshaw used this outright lie to raise money for his candidacy. Emails, that's how he spread his message of deceit, the manner in which many politicians communicate these days. I was working in the junk mail industry when emails were first initiated but this political crap far outdoes the junk emails.
In a New York Times project info on how "to track how widely false and misleading statements were being used to help fill political coffers." Republicans and Democrats are guilty"...
"One Republican, for instance, declared that Democrats wanted to establish a “one-party socialist state,” while a Democrat suggested that the party’s Jan. 6 inquiry was at imminent risk because the G.O.P. 'could force the whole investigation to end early.'”
There was a huge percentage difference between Republican and Democrat misinformation. The former 15%, the latter 2%. Like I said earlier, The GOP invented misinformation. Here's an interesting fact...
"In addition, multiple Republicans often spread the same unfounded claims, whereas Democrats rarely repeated one another’s."
I watched the debate without any distractions and felt most of the contenders did a good job. No one was great. No one was lousy. When it was over, I frankly could not pick a winner or loser, unless you consider Joe Biden a winner and Julian Castro a loser for Castro's criticism of Biden's memory. The audience didn't like it and the pundits didn't like it. But to me it was meaningless, and, anyway, I questioned whether it was some kind of movement to bring Biden down.
Cody Fenwick in RawStory says the debates began "unfortunately" on the health care question and "failed to focus much on foreign policy." It is true that health care has been labored over repeatedly in past debates, but it is clear that, along with climate change, they could be leading issues in 2020 for both sides. Donald Trump has no foreign policy [only bizarre antics], so anything the Democrats do will be an improvement.
Debates were heavy on health care...
Since Fenwick's winners/losers did not even include a Bernie Sanders mention, I looked further and found that the Washington Post agrees with me, "The winner of the debate? Nobody." Molly Roberts mentioned Beto O'Rourke's mandatory buyback on assault rifles adding, "it’s too late for him." Then, Kamala Harris came on too strong too soon, as has been her approach in earlier debates. Roberts commented...
"Of course, candidates are going to take shots at one another, sometimes tinged with substance and sometimes all sound bite. Of course they’re going to “go on … twice over!” as Joe Biden complained. How else are they supposed to get noticed?
Julian Castro got noticed in his attack on Joe Biden's memory suggesting he might be a little old for 2020. Roberts thinks his intentions are for a vice president slot, of course, with another candidate. In a continued analysis...
"Did anything stick? We’ll see soon enough. Mostly, though, the evening seemed winnerless. Slightly longer answers offered slightly more substance; distinctions on policy points became more distinct still, especially when it came to health care. The debate wasn’t useless for America, but it might have been relatively useless in changing anything meaningful about the race. So congratulations to Biden, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders."
Want to watch full debate?...
Look at the RealClear Politics polls and notice the drop offs that occur after Biden-Sanders-Warren. Kamala Harris dives a full ten points from Warren, Buttigieg 12 points, Yang almost 14, O'Rourke and Booker almost over 14, then it's 1.3 for Gabbard down to 0.7 for Bennet. In between are Klobuchar, Castro and Steyer; Tom Steyer has just qualified for the debates and think he should be heard. Otherwise, it is time to cull the candidate to focus on strength.
Right now the strength is definitely Joe Biden [26.8 on RCP], Bernie Sanders [17.3] and Elizabeth Warren [16.8]. But keep in mind Joe Biden was 41.4 back in May. Since hitting 26 territory the beginning of July, he has been pretty consistent with some up and down fluctuations. Kamala Harris, perhaps Pete Buttigieg might be able to make substantial gains, but that will have to be done fast, certainly before debate #4, Tuesday, October 15, and may extend to Wednesday, October 16.
As they say, it is time to fish or cut bait, the reckoning of who you want to be the next president. International Business Times says, "Biden Weathers Democratic Debate But Uncertainty Persists."...
"In extended exchanges that highlighted the party's ideological schism over health care and the cost of shifting to a government-run universal coverage system, Biden was often in the limelight, occasionally going on the offensive against rivals."
But is that good enough to beat Donald Trump?
Wednesday, February 5, 2020
According to Bernie Sanders' campaign, Michael Bloomberg is an "oligarch"
Nina Turner - Bernie Sanders
The mud slinging between Bernie Sanders' campaign and Michael Bloomberg had to start sometime with the former New York Mayor crashing the Primary with everything he can muster. Bloomberg's focus has been on Donald Trump with a minimum of attention directed against Democratic opponents. But Sanders' co-chair, Nina Turner, decided to start the action going by labeling Bloomberg an oligarch.
Her concern was about, "'the oligarchs' being able to buy their way into elections." Bernie, of course, believe there is a huge inequity between the rich, like Michael Bloomberg, and the poor and middle class, and he would be right. But you have to consider what Bloomberg has done with his billions, from fighting gun violence to attacking the climate change issue. Besides, Turner's real problem is letting the billionaire into future debates. Here's the scenario...
"The Democratic National Committee is drastically revising its criteria to participate in primary debates after New Hampshire, doubling the polling threshold and eliminating the individual donor requirement, which could pave the way for former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg to make the stage beginning in mid-February."
Here are the new qualifications...
"Candidates will need to earn at least 10 percent in four polls released from Jan. 15 to Feb. 18, or 12 percent in two polls conducted in Nevada or South Carolina, in order to participate in the Feb. 19 debate in Las Vegas. Any candidate who earns at least one delegate to the national convention in either the Iowa caucuses or New Hampshire primary will also qualify for the Nevada debate."
Those who haven't yet hit the polling threshold are: Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Andrew Yang and Tom Steyer. Those who are over are: Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. The new criteria eliminate the individual-donor threshold, allowing Bloomberg to participate after New Hampshire. It also makes the way for his participation with his philosophy of not accepting any donations, using his own money, to prevent any problems with donor influence.
This might very well be the new starting point for the Democratic Primary with replenished hope for a successful outcome that will beat Donald Trump. READ MORE...
OK, let's accept the fact that no matter what President Biden does, the GOP erects an immediate wall to oppose it. Whatever - you name it. Minority Senate leader and power grabbing Moscow Mitch McConnell is the head wall builder, followed by Kevin McCarthy, House minority leader mixed with a plethora of Republican misfits. It is clear that the above has replaced an agenda for the right as they roll on with their plans to eliminate American democracy.
Overshadowed within all this is the agenda of Joe Biden which he describes as the perfect storm, consisting of four crises that must be addressed. They are, "fighting the coronavirus, restoring the economy, combating climate change and making the country more equal." Here's the scenario from The Washington Post...
Those four issues remain central to Biden’s presidency. “I think if you take a look at what we’ve been able to do, you’d have to acknowledge we made enormous progress,” President Biden said Wednesday [Jan. 20] of his first year in office.
From WaPo's Post Pundit Power Rankers in the beginning of the Prez's administration he was given a B+ on his first 100 days in office. Fast-forward through the crises to today and...
"Now, we’re back to assess a full year’s worth of White House decision-making. Like last time, our rankers have assigned Biden a grade A+ to F, taking into account such issues as the pandemic, the economy, foreign policy, voting and human rights, and presidential leadership. Also as last time, our readers — more than 4,400 of you! — got in on the grading. Your scores factor into the final average just like our pundits’."
Biden highlights wins, struggles and top priorities after 1 year in office...
In the final score Biden had an average pundit grade of C+, average reader grade B, overall grade B-. There is a raft of scores on specific issues in this article like the economy, voting and human rights, foreign policy, etc. I urge you to read them all.
With Florida's demented governor, Ron DeSantis, spewing bullshit over his new budget and his recent "successes," California governor Gavin Newsom stepped up to the plate and ripped him to pieces...
"They're [DeSantis, Abbott, etc.] performance artists, some of these people,” the governor snapped. “All you have to do is watch Fox and then just decide to plug in. I mean, it's about the easiest thing I've seen in politics. It's just, ‘What's the ticker on Fox primetime?’”
“I do not look for inspiration to that particular governor … to not only the pandemic, but to other policy, including the absurdity that was his ‘woke’ initiative and the laughability around stopping something that doesn't exist, around critical race theory — just playing in and placating the right-wing punditry. It’s the CPAC primary. It’s rather absurd. And that's why I respectfully submit that so much of this is pure performance.
What is most frightening is the fact that this moron, and I am talking about
DeSantis, wants to run for president. We've just had one Republican imbecile in the White House, and this country cannot stand another one. 'But wait,' as the TV commercial says, there's more. Nikki Fried, who has served as the 12th Florida commissioner of agriculture since 2019, a Democrat, has repeatedly criticized Ron DeSantis comparing him to Adolph Hitler on several occasions.
"Fried thinks the booster shot back-and-forth is only the beginning of issues between the Governor and his erstwhile political patron. In Jacksonville Thursday for gubernatorial campaign events, Fried predicted the former President would complicate DeSantis’ re-election prospects, potentially trying to “destroy” the Governor."
DeSantis' term as Florida's governor ends this year, meaning, if he at least wants to hang on to the top spot in the sunshine state, he has to run in November. But if he is serious about the presidency, he has to throw his hat in the ring now. Fried says...
“What I think is going to happen is we all know President Trump wants to run for President again, and so does Gov. DeSantis. And so you’re going to have two individuals that are going to hit heads.”
There's more...
“And Trump is not somebody who’s going to sit back. He created DeSantis. And he fundamentally believes that he can destroy DeSantis.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom Compares CA & FL COVID Response...
But it is entirely possible that someone like Gavin Newsom will do the job before Trump has the chance. While DeSantis talks of putting a band aid on Florida's problems (Florida has had a total of 5,039,887 Covid-19 cases, 63,084 deaths), both 3rd highest in U.S., Newsom shows how it's done in California...
"Making use of a massive budget surplus, Newsom also proposed spending another $2 billion to address his state’s homelessness crisis (on top of the $12 billion in last year’s budget); investing $22.5 billion over the next five years to fight climate change; paying health care expenses for every low-income adult in the state regardless of their immigration status; and devoting $102 billion to help schools deal with the ongoing pandemic and expand early childhood education and child care programs."
With plans like this, people have a tendency to listen to the positive and to success. But California does have its coronavirus problems with 6,635,535 cases of the virus and 77,928 deaths. The huge difference is that Gavin Newsom is using
proven scientific protocol to fight Covid-19, not the fake science used by Ron DeSantis. Florida Politics reports...
Trump has predicted that if he runs for President again, DeSantis will not run. But DeSantis has not promised he will not run for President, apparently irking Trump. Instead, DeSantis has tended to deflect the question.
So when will the showdown occur, and most of all, who will come out on top and who will end up all bloodied?
Thursday, February 20, 2020
Michael Bloomberg debate debut at best a disaster...
Elizabeth Warren lit into Michael Bloomberg on the debate stage like a firestorm and wouldn't let go. My wife observed that he looked like a deer in the headlights and didn't recover until well into the evening. Bloomberg never answered Warren's question of whether he would release his female employees from their non-disclosure agreements, rather, he went on to justify their legality. And then this shows up in the media this morning...
"Billionaire Mike Bloomberg‘s performance at Wednesday night’s Democratic debate was by most accounts at best terrible, but that didn’t stop the campaign from pushing out a fake, doctored, and highly-edited clip suggesting the other candidates on stage were silenced by a claim he made."
Mike Bloomberg has done too many good things like fighting gun violence and climate change to be crucified and hung out to dry. Questions: 1) Will he get a sympathy vote over his treatment? and; 2) Will Bloomberg's demeanor appeal to Trump supporters who are disenchanted with his actions? There are still eight months left.
Republicans say the priority of Congress is national security and terrorism. The Dems say it's jobs creation and economic growth. As far as I know we are doing everything possible to prevent a terrorist threat, as evidenced by some recent captures of bad guys before they had the chance to act. We can't possibly know everything that's going on but Homeland Security seems to be doing its job. What we do know is that the GOP throws out the terrorism threat for basically two reasons. One, keep their electorate scared so they can drum up the issue during elections for votes. Two, if they can keep the American public anxious, they can pass more defense spending that goes right in the pockets of their supporters. For Republicans, terrorism was followed by the deficit and government spending, job creation and economic growth and religious and moral values. For the Dems, second was health care, climate change and then national security and terrorism. Take your pick but I would much rather live in a country of full employment, with the sick and needy taken care of and breathe air that won't asphyxiate me. Any of the three would probably kill me before any terrorist threat.
It's arcane, outdated, the antique of American democracy. But, it elected Donald Trump in 2016, and threatens to do an encore in 2020.
T-rump lost the 2016 popular vote in a landslide for Hillary Clinton, 3-million more, but she lost the election. Common sense would tell us, if three-million more Americans wanted Clinton for president than wanted Trump, she should be sitting in the Oval Office now. I preferred Bernie Sanders but sure as hell didn't want Donald Trump. The year started off right for Trump but his gross incompetence in handling COVID-19 has opened the eyes of many,
"two of the most prominent non-partisan political analysts in the country have released new projections that show presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden with a clear edge over President Donald Trump in the Electoral College map."
Now, what is the Electoral College?...
The count today is 232 electoral votes for Joe Biden, 204 for Donald Trump. States not included here because they are toss-ups today include: Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Nebraska's 2nd district. Those six represent 102 votes, which could be a big turning point for either candidate. The flip side is Biden appears to be getting stronger with the issues like health care, climate change, guns and economic fairness.
The other flip side is the new support of college-educated whites -- especially white women with college degrees, an area where Trump did well in 2016. And no one wants to have the devastation of American citizens account for election results, but it looks like Trump's incompetence in the handling of the coronavirus pandemic will cost him votes in the industrial belt in states like Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.
Gerrymandering and the Electoral College...
Here's an excuse for the Electoral Electors that almost makes sense. The framers were concerned that the public would not have adequate knowledge to intelligently vote for a candidate, thus, the electors who are supposed to intelligently cast the votes. Although the latter is questionable, it still does not consider the fact that the Electoral College has become completely partisan with the Republican gerrymandering in the last few years. That is the problem.
As the Recent Supreme Court sessions have revealed, constitutional text, history and structure do support that "electors were meant to vote freely." This, of course, could go either way in November, but, again, the direction seems likely to be GOP-sided considering the current structure of state voting districts, which are in favor of Republicans. But with the positive news, above, from two known political handicappers, lookin' good on the left.
I just received a letter from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, accompanied by a survey of issues that I think are priority for Democrats. Not one mention of gun control. Of course they asked for a contribution, which they won't get from this family until they address that issue aggressively. Now, I do also believe in the other issues like Medicare/Social Security, healthcare, climate change and the minimum wage, to name a few, but completely ignoring gun control?
You need to watch for my blog post on Monday about the demise of the National Rifle Assn. and its head gun nut Wayne LaPierre, and president, Oliver North. The title is "NRA going down in flames," and reports on how the organization is imploding right in the middle of its annual convention in Indianapolis. It couldn't happen to a better bunch of freaks, and gun control advocates look forward to the day this group of gun violence perpetrators is out of business.
But the above is no thanks to the Democrats' efforts to control gun violence. The NRA's downfall stems primarily from infighting between Wayne LaPierre and Oliver North, plus its huge contributions to Congress and presidents when its non-profit status basically says no. On another note, a Bernie Sanders volunteer called me recently asking for a contribution and, having been a strong supporter in 2016, I told him not until his man got more aggressive on gun control.
There were well over 300 mass shootings in 2018, with that year the worst on record for gun violence in schools. You would think these statistics would give a clue to even the most dullard of Congress. Yet Democrats proudly announced in February that they were no longer afraid of the gun control issue. This is only April and we've yet to hear anything about this controversy being included in the 2020 platform. I can only hope there are more like me out there that will remain reluctant until gun control is aggressively addressed.
I grew up thinking atheists were the scourge of the earth. How could you possibly not believe in the God? Then I thought I was called to the ministry and quickly learned that beliefs were relevant to whose side you were on. I was a Methodist then, just one bloc of what would turn out to be a worldwide mixture of, again, beliefs. But there was a discipline attached to these convictions that, in those days, you didn't dare deviate from without a reprisal from the church.
It happened to me early on and it was at that point I discovered just how much I disliked disciplinarians. In high school you took it with a grain of salt if you wanted an education; so why did I then upon graduation join the Navy? Don't know where this is all going except to say that today the religious business has become more open-minded, yet there are still many who will tell you their God is the only God. And then...Atheists will tell you there is no God.
Did you know there are Atheists who believe in God? They are called Agnostics
and I am one of them. I tried being an Atheist because of the hypocrisy in Christianity, the organized church, and something that happened in my life. But I just cannot visualize the existence of the earth as we know it without there being some supreme being that started it all. Just think, if the amoeba did walk out of the sea, who created the amoeba and who created the sea?
Christians, Buddhists, Muslims, and other faiths should read Charles Darwin's "The Origin of Species." I read it years ago and am reading it again now to determine if the years in between have added anything to the mystique of Darwin's theory. Greg Epstein is the author of Good Without God. He is the new chief chaplain of Harvard and apparently "His personal beliefs or disbelief don't seem to be an issue." So go figure, Christians.
And here is a headline from Salon, "Staunch atheists show higher morals than the proudly pious, from the pandemic to climate change," that launches an article exploring religion in many aspects of the calamities we are dealing with today. It would seem here and in other articles I have read recently that a position that has been around for several years is valid. A person does not need a church, or a specific God to be religious. And that is the new strength of religion.
Immanuel Kant feels that people can be judged by the way they treat animals. I worked for a guy once who was a complete jerk, but one day I learned how much he loved his cat, often discussing with me his care of the animal because he knew we had cats. After this I realized I couldn't fault the man altogether and our relationship improved measurably. But treatment of animals by some results in abuse, even cruelty, an area requiring new laws.
But have you ever taken the time to see that lovin' look in your pet's eyes that says they adore you. And, of course, you adore them too. The connection to our animals has grown over the years to where they are now one of the family. And that's the way it should be as most of us consider them our children, most especially when you don't have human kids. These households treasure their pets and some families spend large sums on their animal for toys and miscellaneous things.
The main thing is you must keep them healthy making regular trips to the vet. Find a caring doctor for your species, dog, cat, horse, etc. Depending where you live, housing is important. As an example, you should never leave a cat outside for the simple reason they are easy prey for predators. Dogs are better able to defend themselves but should be in a fenced yard high enough to keep out all other animals. Climate change has made some desperate and they are on the prowl.
Animal lover and vet, James Herriot, draws a comparison between animals and
humans, contrasting the souls of each, and animals come out on top. The traits Herriot emphasizes are love, loyalty and gratitude, three qualities that many humans are sorely missing. There is a saying that I use regularly in my blog: "All I Want is to Live." Animals don't ask for much but the least we can give them is a loving family and a forever home.
Just think about these stats from the ASPCA...
Approximately 6.3 million companion animals enter U.S. animal shelters nationwide every year. Of those, approximately 3.1 million are dogs and 3.2 million are cats.
Each year, approximately 920,000 shelter animals are euthanized (390,000 dogs and 530,000 cats).
Approximately 4.1 million shelter animals are adopted each year (2 million dogs and 2.1 million cats).
Why not go to your local animal rescue, shelter or humane society today and take one, or more of those statistics with you to your forever home.
I am an ardent fan of George Orwell's work including, Animal Farm and 1984. Animal Farm is political satire at its best, depicting the unrest of the animals at the Manor farm because they are treated poorly. Mr. Jones, the farmer, wasa mean and drunken man who exploited them, leading to a rebellion by the animals that eventually gets out of hand. It's a short read that will illustrate the kind of uprising that is imminent when people, or animals, are unhappy with their situation. Or their government. It's an issue I'll cover later using the book to draw similarities with the U.S.
But 1984 offers a multitude of possibilities for comparison with the new Donald Trump admin., even as it completes just over a month of tenure. The timing only emphasizes the number of conspiracy theories Donald John has been able to concoct in such a short amount of time. They are numerous and at times so bizarre that they defy the reality that the man that has just been elected to the presidency of the United States is the one who spawned them. It is more likely that we would expect such disjointed discourse from Jack Nicholson in One flew Over the cuckoo's Nest. Examples...
Trump's phones in Trump Tower were tapped
Said there was Rampant voter fraud in 2016
Anti-Trump protesters are paid
Obama is coordinating the [Trump] protests
There were 1.5 million people who attended his inauguration
In none of these cases has Donald John come up with any corroboration for the statements he made, with the most blatant number five. This was where Trump cried to the heavens how much larger his inauguration crowd was than Barack Obama's in 2008, when independent photos proved him wrong. But the freakish behavior of Donald Trump isn't the basis for this post, rather just some background and sidebars to explain the aberrant nature of the man who has risen from mediocrity to the President of the most powerful nation n the world. And how Orwell's 1984 has its parallels.
This isn't the first post or article on this issue, there have been several, but, notably, believe mine is the first to use the Orwell Today site in drawing these comparisons and cross-referencing with Jackie Jura's excellent notes and correlations with the future. On March 5, CNN's headline blazed, "The President of the United States traffics in conspiracy theories," then goes on to document Donald Trump's ongoing perpetuation of lies and misinformation. Jackie Jura n Orwell Today has a section on "Conspiracy Goes Mainstream," which chronicles history's most unique conspiracies.
But time now to look at George Orwell and then Donald trump through the eyes of "Orwell Today." And the only way to begin is to start with Orwell's most imposing creation, Big Brother. It was the Proles who marched through the streets with placards celebrating Big Brother’s ability to 'Make Oceania Great Again.' Fast forward to the 2016 campaign when Trump followers with red hats were marching everywhere with signs that said, 'Make America Great Again.' Now Donald Trump is not Orwell's Big Brother, but he is the epitome of his oligarchs.
1984's Winston character tries to recall the past when everything had been better but today's world was the remnants of a society that was free and uncomplicated, unlike 1984, and the new world order where the world was broken into three super-states. Steve Bannon has three tenets on which he plans to build the new "Trumpism" and, although they aren't geographical like Orwell's three nations, they do represent the kind of one-nation ideology of a country that is at the current time highly divisive. They are Capitalism, nationalism, and “Judeo-Christian values.”
It was the plan of the 1984 autocrats to "Keep the Masses Down" in order to maintain a hierarchical society that could only be possible through the proletariat's poverty and ignorance. Although not directly related to Donald Trump, it is the policy of the Republican Party to amass the wealth in only a few (1% of the population) and keep the rest in the dark over what the Party is really doing, in order to maintain the blind votes of their followers. Like Orwell's world, Donald John and the GOP feel their complete survival depend on collectivism.
1984's"Ministry of Truth" must have been the prototype for Donald Trump's communications dept. with Sean Spicer playing the part of the book's character, Winston, whose job it was at the Ministry to take news items he received and turn them around to mean what the higher-ups in the Party wanted said. To be certain, the Ministry of Truth was only the front for a persisting procession of lies to the citizens of Oceania, tied in a neat bundle that, when exxhibited, was meant to be bona fide. Well, in 2017, as in 1984, there is nothing truthful about Donald John's Ministry of Truth.
Orwell's "Falsification of the Past" follows closely to the Ministry of Truth in the fabrication of any information that is granted to the public. If Trump doesn't like what has already been said, he will change it to fit what he wants. Like right after the inauguration when he removed the term "climate change" from the official White House website. In Oceania there was Oldspeak and "Newspeak," when translated corresponds to the civil tone coming from the White House during Barack Obama and earlier presidents, compared to Donald John's crude and sometimes lewd rhetoric.
PoliticoMagazine talks of the multitude of contradictions of Donald Trump: "Has anyone ever disagreed with Donald Trump more than Donald Trump?" The Inner Party in 1984 was governed by adherence to a common doctrine of "Doublethink," which means "the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them." Here are Politico's examples...
“I have no intention of running for president.” (Time,
September 14, 1987)
“I am officially running for president.” (New York, June 16,
2015)
“I don’t want it for myself. I don’t need it for myself.”
(ABC News, November 20, 2015)
“I wanted to do this for myself. … I had to do it for
myself.” (Time, August 18, 2015)
“Politicians are all talk and no action.” (Twitter, May 27, 2015)
“I’m not a politician.” (CNN, August 11, 2015)
“I’m no different than a politician running for office.” (New York Times, July 28, 2015)
Orwell's "Ministry of Love" is like other of his poetic symbols that mean the opposite of what they
say. This one is actually a torture chamber for people who have been picked up by the Thought Police for thinking bad things against Big Brother. Now Donald John has no thought police per se, except for his minions who try to unsuccessfully control the media, but he does have a lot of love he spews on a regular basis, like how much he loves women. How much he loves immigrants. How much he loves blacks. And then he degrades each with a vehemence not found when expressing the love.
I could go on for some time but it will be much more interesting for you to browse Jackie Jura's Orwell Today site and come up with your own conclusions of how George Orwell's book, 1984, corresponds with the idiocy of the Donald Trump administration. Check the 45 topics she has documented on the left-hand side of the site. and when you go to something like "Big Brother" be sure and take advantage of the notes and analogies she has referenced as they will often point directly to current events. Good Reading!
Barack Obama did a great job in the White House, considering he had the entire Republican Congress against him led by the scourge of the Senate, Moscow Mitch McConnell. Among his major accomplishments: The Affordable Care Act; doubled Pell grants; signed the Paris climate accords; negotiated a decent nuclear deal with Iran. On the other hand, Democrats have regularly maintained...
"right-wing policies with a friendlier face were the only way Democrats could win or maintain power, and prevent another Reagan-like figure from seizing control of the country."
"Over the past few weeks, the Republican Party has proven itself hostile to freedom and democracy; its merciful incompetence the only thing saving whatever remains of our republic from the fascist insurrection of a con man. The absurdity of the cast members — from Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell to their incoherent Michigan "witness" and of course Donald Trump himself — have made the entire fiasco seem more like a satirical film than political reality."
Now that's what we should have been fighting during the Donald Trump nightmare, not creating animosity among ourselves, denying a large faction of liberals an equal input, which could have well won bigger numbers last November. With Progressives branded as Socialists, and many Americans afraid of this political philosophy, the leftist movement has not had its chance. But it will, and it very well could be during Joe Biden's administration.
"Too many congressional Democrats are making a potentially fatal political miscalculation about the reason the party lost several seats in this year’s elections. And those incorrect interpretations of why Democrats lost at least 12 seats could lead to grievous missteps that will imperil their majority in 2022."
According to Data for Progress, although the overall positive attitude toward Socialism is less than half that of negative approval, those neutral are almost equal to the negative. There are several more interesting data in this article that seem to illustrate that the U.S. public is warming up to Socialism. And I want to emphasize that this is Democratic Socialism that supports change through legislation, not Socialist change through revolution which advocates violence.
Some defeated centrists claim that their association with Progressives, or any of their causes like Black Lives Matter, "damaged their contests this year." Not so says The Nation...
"The truth behind the unexpected losses, however, is exactly the opposite of what those members believe."
And the real reason is that...
"It was their failure to inspire progressive and Democratic voters to the same extent that Donald Trump galvanized his supporters to turn out in extraordinarily large numbers to defend him and his race-baiting presidency."
Progressives will not give up and the sooner Democrats learn this, the better off the Party will be.
Joe Biden may have nodded off in the past and been criticized for his lack of attention, but it's pretty clear today that he is wide awake and in full control of his agenda. Jeff Stein in the Washington Post writes that the President "is finally gaining momentum." He may not yet have put the Machins and Sinemas completely behind him, but it is certain he has aroused the bipartisanship needed when 13 Republicans stepped across the aisle voting for his Infrastructure Bill.
"Long stymied by seemingly intractable divisions, Biden in the same week signed into law a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill while also pushing through the House of Representatives a separate, $2 trillion social and climate policy measure that has become the centerpiece of the president’s vision to change the American economy."
Next up, Biden must decide whether to keep Jerome Powell as the chair of the
Federal Reserve, something that will have a large effect on the economy. Nominated by Trump, questions have arisen of late with rising inflation. Added to this thrust in the President's plan is the success in slowing down the Covid-19 pandemic with more people vaccinated and now booster shots and vaccine for children aged 5 to 11.
Stein cites the fact that people are buying goods and there is a positive outlook for Christmas. Unemployment is looking good and the jobs market is improving, two factors that are sure to move the market forward. Biden is working behind the scenes to control inflation, encouraging corporations to hold the line on consumer price increases. And, the President and China's Xi have gotten together to encourage the release of oil reserves around the world to stabilize gas prices.
The fact of the matter is Sleepy Joe may have nodded off at one time, but it is definitely clear today he is in full control and this country is moving ahead.
