Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is a hoax...timeline numbers prove it

 

Ron DeSantis has been flaunting his success with the Covid-19 pandemic for months, noting how his methods defy the science of the virus, telling Floridians how lucky they are to be free of the federal regulations. Well, all you pathetic sunshine souls, it isn't working and it never has. I have been posting on this overrated lunatic for some time and can thank this moron for an increased readership due entirely to the fact they portray DeSantis as the imbecile he is.

As an example, here's a post from Aug. 16, 2021, he shares with another idiot, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, that garnered 486 readers, "Republican killing machines: Gov. Ron DeSantis/Gov. Greg Abbott."

Here's an excerpt...

Who should know more about addressing the coronavirus than the scientific community, which all Republicans seem to disregard with disdain: "More than 800 Florida physicians implore Gov. DeSantis to allow local school mask mandates."

 And during the same month, "Ron DeSantis: Almost successful destroying Florida," brought in 516 readers, both of these numbers significant due to the concentrated focus on just one person. Maybe it was this paragraph that did it...

Here's a quote from DeSantis that now reverberates "loudly" for him in the state of Florida: "My actions will speak louder than words." Actions, let's see, his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic: 3,039,988 total coronavirus cases, 41,937 deaths. His latest daily case count, 15,402. If your state is #3 in the U.S. for total cases, #4, total deaths, looks like Ron DeSantis' actions are either piss-poor or virtually non-existent.

A year ago, Ron DeSantis booed for lying...

Moving into September of 2021, "Watch Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis caught in a lie," saw 539 readers, obviously interested in the fact that DeSantis has a knack for lying like his buddy, Donald Trump. Watch the video for the lie. And here is the one that tells it all, in November of 2021, "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis a "Fraud" and a "Phony," produced a whopping 837 readers, which accounts for the fact that there is high interest in the corruption of Ron DeSantis. Here's an excerpt...

This, (referring to the headline) according to the Orlando Sentinel while the Miami Herald reports this loser is descending into 'anti-vax Crazyville.' Any way you want to look at it, the state of Florida under Gov. Ron DeSantis has had 3,695,945 COVID-19 cases resulting in 59,497 deaths. Here's what the Orlando Sentinel's editorial board had to say...

There's more...

"Between the start of July and the end of October, about 21,000 people died of COVID in Florida, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Those four deadly, tragic months accounted for one in every three of the total COVID deaths—nearly 60,000 victims — since the pandemic began 20 months ago," the board wrote.

Throughout all my posts, and the extensive national press coverage of what was going on in Florida, DeSantis maintained his superiority in controlling coronavirus. And the people of his state, and many other dull-witted Republicans across the country, believed it. But then recently, Omicron cases rose 948% in Florida in just two weeks, and during the surge, DeSantis was nowhere to be heard from or seen as his state literally went down the pandemic tube.

I should mention here that Florida newspapers have chastised the governor regularly like The Florida Times-Union, "Omicron surge: Florida moves up on Top 10 list of states where COVID-19 is spreading the fastest." There are more. But I think you get the idea. Here is a national laughingstock who says he "might" run for president in 2024, and who mirrors the lunacy of Donald Trump right down to the lying. And it is that double-digit Republican base that worries me.

READ MORE...

"Florida mayor: DeSantis has been MIA during omicron surge"

"'Where is Ron DeSantis now?' Florida mayor slams governor amid new surge'

CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS? "DeSantis Blames Feds, Slams ‘Hysteria’ as Florida Shatters COVID Records"

HERE'S EVEN MORE, OBVIOUSLY DICTATED BY DESANTIS: "Florida surgeon general's call for people to stop relying on testing is a 'me first, forget everybody else' approach, health expert says"

Omicron surges in U.S. While So. Africa Passes Peak

 

So. Africa was the first to discover the Omicron variant, then it rapidly traversed the world. It was first found in this country in California, in Dec. of 2021, and from there has spread across the nation. We are luckier (over Delta) with this new mutation which has milder effects. But it spreads like wildfire, with a new U.S. daily record set recently of over 580,000 cases in one day with at least 551,000 Omicron. At the end of Dec. 2021, there were 79,161 U.S. hospitalizations, 17,282 in ICU.

Compared to Delta peaking last July/August, with 7,000 hospitalizations then, and patients aged 50 and older who died or were admitted to intensive care “ it generally trended upward in the Delta period," according to the New York Times. Deseret News reports, "The death rate dropped from 29.1% with delta to 2.7% with omicron." I'm perfectly willing to go with the good news, but do you wonder after Delta's ugly impact, is there something we still don't know about Omicron?

Fareed Abdullah of the South African Medical Research Council told the New York Times...

“The speed with which the Omicron-driven fourth wave rose, peaked and then declined has been staggering. Peak in four weeks and precipitous decline in another two. This Omicron wave is over in the city of Tshwane. It was a flash flood more than a wave."

President Biden on the Omicron Variant: Vaccination and Boosters Offer High Level of Protection...

 

Even Abdullah doesn't sound completely sure about the So. African stats, and the virus' "precipitous" decline does sound unreasonable to me, a layperson. But it happened and the studying will go on just like it has since the 1918 flu pandemic, which has produced a vaccine that protects us today. So far the experts still insist a peak to Omicron will occur by January 15, of this year, but Dr. Fauci and other well-known virologists are telling us to continue to maintain Covid protocols.

It has been suggested that statistical data during the holidays could be distorted due to reduced testing so the next two weeks will be crucial in determining the immediate future of the coronavirus. Especially Omicron. Which means there is hope just over the horizon.

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2022

 

Call me naive, but I'm hoping and wishing for a 2022 that will surpass all other new years in history for understanding, concilliation and respect between the people in the United States, and the world. You've all heard my dooms day posts, and most have their purpose. But after over two years of a pandemic that almost shut down the world plus political chaos in the American government that has no precedent in history, liberty and democracy need a break.

Democrats and Republicans want different things, and both sides have done their share to literally beat the other side up. The time has come for both the left and the right to step into the center of the ring, shake hands, and come out swinging for their cause. However, the swings do not have to include the weapons and armor used in the past several years. If those who run this country cannot find middle ground, then the politicians have failed with voters responsible in the end.

POLITICAL FRAGMENTATION: Here's What It's all about

 

The United States is already suffering the attempted destruction of our democracy by the Republicans, and now we learn it is already in pieces and needs to be reassembled. Richard Pildes, of the New York Times calls it Political Fragmentation...

"the dispersion of political power into so many different hands and centers of power that it becomes difficult for democratic governments to function effectively."

That is certainly a switch from the autocratic style of government we were experiencing under Donald Trump, but is it something that can be fixed in this country? Or, does it need to be fixed? Pildes says Joe Biden has identified the "challenge" a “battle between the utility of democracies in the 21st century and autocracies.” But at the same time with Democrats controlling Congress and the White House, Biden couldn't pass the Build Back Better Bill.

The author believes this sets up authoritarianism because the public thinks this

form of governing can bypass all the political furor. This is, in itself, enlightening with the realization that this kind of attitude could, in part, account for the support for the Republican Party. in spite of its discord the likes of Donald Trump, and congressional lunatics like Marjorie Taylor Greene. There's more from the Times...

"The struggle of the Biden administration to deliver on its policy agenda offers a good example of the political fragmentation of politics taking place throughout Western democracies. It takes different forms in the multiparty systems of Europe and the two-party system of the United States."

The question is, just how long will the U.S. have a two-party system, or have any party system at all? We are dangerously close to losing our democracy, and it is the Republican Party we can thank for its demise. Now, what does the American public plan to do?

I urge uou to read Richard Pildes' article in the NYT.

EMERGENCY! U.S. Animal Shelters Need Your Help NOW!

 

In the Phoenix area, where I live, animal shelters are loaded following financial hardships stemming from the pandemic, according to the Arizona Humane Society. There are also the cases where Christmas presents didn't work out and are returned. To begin with, giving animals as gifts is not a good idea since they are looking for a forever home and most people aren't qualified to judge their recipient. Stick to the typical holiday fare and let the professionals place the pets. 

Here's the scenario, from Kelsey Dickerson, spokesperson for the Arizona Humane Society...

Dickerson said shelters have reported negative room numbers every morning for the past weeks and have had to find ways to accommodate the increasing number of injured and abused pets that come in every day.

"In the summer months, the Arizona Humane Society especially is used to the overcapacity that we're seeing," she said. "But this is something we've had to get really creative with the fall and winter months because it is usually not as huge of a problem."

This is a problem that exists throughout the U.S., one that will only worsen as the

Covid-19 pandemic continues. The first thing to go, unfortunately, is the animal when times get tough. A quick trip to the shelter and that ends the dilemma. I have a post I publish regularly about thoughtless people who say to themselves, it's just an animal. Well, it isn't. A pet is a sensitive being that has feelings and expresses love for its owner. It should be treated like one of the family. Yes, just like your kids.

Dickerson says, "People are losing their homes, they're losing their jobs, they are having medical emergencies pop up," and most recently evictions. There are currently 85 million pet owning households in the U.S. according to the American Pet Products Association's National Pet Owners 2019-2020 Survey. There is no way of knowing how many of those households would take in an extra pet, but if only a portion kicked in the 6.3 million annual shelter intake could be reduced significantly

Here's the shelters' appeal..."We just need help in every possible way," according to the folks at the Arizona Humane Society. This plea no doubt applies to most every animal shelter across the U.S. PLEASE help the animals this holiday.

READ MORE...

Would You Leave Your Child on the Side of the Road Like This Dog?

Abolish Puppy Mills NOW!!!

Animals to Humans: All we want is to live

UPDATE...The Agony of Misinformation...Anti-Vaxxers Continue to Spread Propaganda as Scientists Labor,

 

UPDATE: CNN Medical Analyst...

“I’d say that he’s [Sen. Ron Johnson] so misguided that it makes me wonder whether this is all just an act. And if it is an act, what does that say about what he thinks his constituents want to hear?”

“And if this is not an act, then he is just the most ignorant man in the United States Senate. And that says a lot.”

The noxious Republican Senator from Wisconsin is still at it with a new hit for the Covid stage. Ron Johnson says if you gargle with mouthwash every morning, you're safe from the coronavirus. Johnson is a long-term spreader of coronavirus misinformation...

"YouTube this year suspended his account for violating the company’s medical misinformation policies. He has also expressed skepticism about the efficacy of coronavirus vaccine mandates and doses, which have undergone vigorous health testing."

While this wingnut spouted his crap, other anti-vaxxers challenged the credibility of the newly announced Omicron variant back in November of 2021, first noticed in the U.K. They questioned the virus' validity by releasing a bogus schedule of new variant disclosure dates exclaiming the whole pandemic was orchestrated...

"Other false claims about the new variant have leaped across the Internet in the two weeks since it was first identified. One post in a group with more than a million members on the Telegram messaging app claimed the vaccines had caused the omicron variant, according to First Draft, a nonprofit that investigates misinformation. Another conspiracy theory posits that the variant is being pushed by governments and pharmaceutical companies to undermine ivermectin, an anti-parasite drug that vaccine skeptics have said treats covid-19, the disease caused by the virus. (There is no scientific evidence supporting that claim.)

A Kaiser Family Foundation Study says most parents still are skeptical of the

vaccine for their children with one in ten saying. "they will "definitely not" vaccinate their children against Covid-19. This, no doubt accounts for the surge in children's cases across the U.S. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reports 226,000 child COVID-19 cases from Sep 9 to 16. They represent 25.7% of weekly reported cases.

Here's more from the KFF study...

"Vaccine uptake has slowed among adolescents ages 12 to 17 in recent months. Only about half of parents say that their child in this age group has received at least one dose of vaccine, a share that has changed little since the fall, KFF found.

"And among parents of younger children ages 5 to 11, about 29% say that their child has already been vaccinated or will be "right away." But another third of parents of children in this age group say that they want to "wait and see" before vaccinating their child against Covid-19."

Finally, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr... how could he have gone so wrong? Along with other politicians and celebrities, this medical lowlife is the worst. Not even going to get into his father, who must be throwing up in his grave. Here's an example of what this moron spews, in this case a far right conference, branded as standing for “health and freedom,” at a Southern California church...

“It is criminal medical malpractice to give a child one of these vaccines,” Kennedy contended, according to a video of the event, one of his many assertions that ignored or went against legal, scientific and public health consensus.

More...

Then, Kennedy hawked his book. If just 300 attendees preordered it on Amazon that night, he told the crowd, it would land on the bestseller list and they could “stick it to Amazon and Jeff Bezos.”

READ MORE... 

The Agony of Stupidity...39 Million Unvaccinated Idiots on the Street Worse Than 390 million Guns

Misinformation was Conceived and Launched by Republicans

Anti-Vaxxers a Steel-Trap of Misinformation

The Agony of Stupidity..."Misinformation is Literally Killing People" says Utah GOP Gov.

Utah's head of state, Spencer Cox. is a Republican and a Mormon, who has served his time in the missionary trenches of his church. His inauguration, a year ago, just days before the Jan. 6, U.S. Capitol insurrection, was the beginning of a year of massive misinformation on Covid-19, involving mask and vaccine protocols. The results, distrust between Democrats-Republicans as bad as Israelis and Palestinians. But something else was going on that day unnoticed by most...

"It was a Sunday night. A small crowd that included Cox and his wife sat silently in the pews of the St. George Tabernacle. The governor’s voice and the voice of a former federal judge sounded from the speakers, which broadcast a prerecorded conversation between the two men.

"Former federal Judge Thomas Griffith made a chilling assertion: the U.S. Constitution is in grave danger amid the U.S.’s polarized political environment.

“The Constitution is built for vigorous disagreement,” he said. “But it cannot withstand contempt. ... And that’s the problem that has seeped into our system right now. The contempt.”

The key here is judge Griffith's statement, "The Constitution is built for 

vigorous disagreement. But it cannot withstand contempt." Here are two definitions of the word, contempt, from Thesaurus.com...

• the feeling with which a person regards anything considered mean, vile, or worthless; disdain; scorn.
• the state of being despised; dishonor; disgrace.

So, in Griffith's view, that's the way the insurrectionist mob felt about American Democracy on that fateful day, bordering on treason at a time when the United States is as fragile as it has been since, perhaps, the Revolution. Taking this another step, this riot group represents the heart of the Republican Party with the ex-president, Donald Trump, orchestrating the whole affair. After January 6, the GOP can no longer deny its leadership in the destruction of U.S. democracy.

And here's the shocker in my opening statement...

Griffith pointed to surveys that have shown “Republicans and Democrats think so ill of each other that they don’t trust each other at all, and the level of distrust is at the same level that Israelis have for Palestinians.”

“The Constitution won’t survive with this level of contempt,” he said. “It has to be addressed and has to be rooted out.”

 I guess the next move is, where will the Gaza Strip be drawn, and how long will it take the GOP to start launching rockets?

The Agony of Stupidity...39 Million Unvaccinated Idiots on the Street Worse Than 390 million Guns

 

There are almost 400 million guns on the streets of America which are responsible for over 40,000 gun violence deaths each year and increasing every year. But that can't even compare with the over 800 thousand deaths annually from Covid-19, now spreading more quickly with the Omicron variant. It isn't known for sure how many of these deaths are caused by anti-vaxxer misinformation, but considering the amount of this propaganda out there on social media, it is probably high. 

And now Republican lawmakers are pitying these freaks by passing legislation that prevents the health care industry to do its job. Protect the American public from coronavirus. Here is a headline from the Washington Post that should infuriate anyone who believes in science over the disinformation being disseminated: "Anger over mask mandates, other covid rules, spurs states to curb power of public health officials," Can you believe it...curbing the power of truth over death?

WaPo uses an illustration from Columbus, Ohio, and one of its suburbs, where a mixture of mask requirements exist...

"Under a new law in Ohio — one of at least 19 states this year that have restricted state or local authorities from safeguarding public health amid the coronavirus pandemic — Franklin County’s health commissioner Joe Mazzola can no longer intervene. The county health department was stripped of its power to compel people to wear masks even as the omicron variant fuels a fifth coronavirus surge in the United States."

In effect, this law tells Franklin County’s health commissioner Joe Mazzola that he cannot save lives. This is unconscionable, but a regular move by Republicans across the country. The great GOP killing machine in motion. And here's another headline from the New York Times: "Another Christmas of Death and Distress in America’s I.C.U.s." Healthcare workers are putting their lives on the line this holiday season, while at the same time these imbecilic anti-vaxxers spread more propaganda.

How Republicans protect anti-vaxxers...

Here's an example of what's going on from Ronda Stevenson, intensive care unit nurse at Eskenazi Health in Indianapolis for the past seven years...

"Instead of taking holiday vacations this weekend, workers at strained hospitals across the nation are working 16-hour shifts. Some have been on the job every day for weeks. Festive meals have been replaced with protein bars and sports drinks."

It's frightening, since Ohio is only an example of what is going on all around the country with over sixteen states adopting similar laws, and more on the books for 2022. Here is the tragedy of the situation by Amy Goldstein of the WP...

"These laws — the work of Republican legislators — inhibit health officers’ ability to require masks, promote vaccinations or take other steps, such as closing or limiting the number of patrons in restaurants, bars and other indoor public settings. Often, the measures shift those decisions from health experts to elected officials at a time when such coronavirus-fighting strategies have become politically radioactive."

The piece's author makes it clear that the GOP is responsible for what is going on

with this blog's assumption their goal is to kill off the U.S. population. The Times reports vaccinations have hit a "plateau" with the Omicron variant in full swing during the holidays...

"Around 20 percent of children 5 to 11 years old have gotten a dose of vaccine. And only around one in three fully vaccinated Americans has gotten a booster."

And finally, Sarah Bahr and Mike Baker of the New York Times wrap up the status of the current situation...

"Nearly two years into a pandemic that shows no sign of abating, doctors, nurses and other frontline workers have already faced the emotional toll of mass death in their hospitals. They have endured the frustration of pleading with the public to take precautions only to watch outbreaks unfold as people ignored the call for help. They have suffered the moral distress of not being able to give patients the ideal level of care." 

The question is, what will 2022 bring? With 53,121,847 cases and 837,804 deaths already in the U.S., we can only hope it gets better. We also should ask the question, did the anti-vaxxing community completely ignore science courses in high school?

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR

 

Is it possible we could start a new year with peace in the world, and that also includes the U.S. political arena? This applies to both sides of the aisle.

Misinformation was Conceived and Launched by Republicans

 

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.

The New York Times starts their article with'''

"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."

There is so much more to discover in the NYT article that I urge you to read the entire piece. 

UPDATE: Joe Manchin: LIAR...HYPOCRITE...DESERTER...CORRUPTER

 

LATEST: Manchin received 36 donations from corporations in the last two months after announcing he would not support Build Back Better, and raised close to $260,000 in that time period.

Joe Manchin, the Senator from West Virginia is all of those and more, looking more like Donald Trump every day. Taking them one by one, LIAR: He told Pres. Biden he would back the Build Back Better bill, then backed out. On Fox News. HYPOCRITE: Acting like a Democrat, voting like a Republican. DESERTER; from the Democratic Party, most of all his constituents at home. CORRUPTER: Shares this with daughter, Heather Bresch. 

On Sunday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki issued a statement re. Manchin's bail out on the bill designed to benefit Americans in a number of ways, one of the most important decreasing the cost of your medical prescriptions. Of course Manchin would oppose this because of the fiasco with his daughter's pharmaceutical company, Mylan, Inc. which donated at least $200,000 to her father's campaign during five election cycles. Here's the scenario...

"Manchin’s daughter, Heather Bresch, was the president and chief executive officer of Mylan Inc., a pharmaceutical company that specialized in generic drugs. The company raised the price of a two-pack of EpiPen from around $124 dollars in 2009 to $609 in 2016. Bresch left the company in 2020 after Mylan merged with Upjohn, Pfizer’s generic division, in November 2020, to form Viatris Inc. Bresch began working at the company in 1992, and became CEO in 2012."

I did a post back in June asking the question, "Is Joe Manchin a Senate plant

serving Chas. Koch's conservative group?" The answer, an unequivocal YES! The White House is bending over backwards to work with Manchin, a Democrat that should understand the value of Build Back Better to the American public, particularly West Virginia needy. Apparently he doesn't, prompting this from Jen Psaki...

"In the meantime, Senator Manchin will have to explain to those families paying $1,000 a month for insulin why they need to keep paying that, instead of $35 for that vital medicine. He will have to explain to the nearly two million women who would get the affordable day care they need to return to work why he opposes a plan to get them the help they need. Maybe Senator Manchin can explain to the millions of children who have been lifted out of poverty, in part due to the Child Tax Credit, why he wants to end a program that is helping achieve this milestone—we cannot."

The fact is, he doesn't care about his constituents, or he would be supporting BBB. West Virginians are desperately in need of what this bill offers. Let's take a look: $400B Pre-school for all 3 and 4-year olds; $200B Child tax credits; $200B 4 weeks of paid family and medical leave; $165 billion on healthcare spending;  $150 billion to expand affordable home care; $150 billion for affordable housing; $555 billion to fight climate change.

Yes, a lot of money, but is there anything you see in the above that is not justified by the needs in this country? And how is it paid for...

"Democrats say the spending package will be paid for by tax increases on high earners and corporations, but the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office found on Thursday that this will only raise around $1.5 trillion over 10 years—just short of the $1.75 trillion in 10-year spending.

"The CBO findings are at odds with the White House’s pledge to fully pay for the Build Back Better bill, which is now expected to increase the federal budget deficit by $160 billion over the next 10 years."

 A pathetic Joe Manchin Says He Won’t Vote For Biden’s Build Back Better Bill...

Like White House Press Sec. Jen Psaki asks in her statement, how will Joe Manchin explain to his West Virginia constituents that he voted down these benefits: child welfare, medical leave and healthcare spending, affordable home care and housing, and a fight against climate change that could save even more lives. The answer, another resounding YES, Democrats are spending but on the right things that will help homelessness, those in poverty and a general shot to the economy.

Contrary to what Manchin says, some aspects of BBB could counter current inflation as reported by NBC...

"The White House and Democratic leaders have rebranded the legislation as an antidote to widespread price hikes, arguing that it would lower the cost of prescription drugs, childcare and overall expenses related to raising families."

 Republicans are harping on increased inflation and consumer prices did jump 6.2% last month. Biden and Chair of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, as well as Treasury Sec. Janet Yellen, are working on the problem. But thanks to the fact that Joe Manchin blew off the Build Back Better bill, Goldman Sachs has issued a gloomy prediction for the economy. Surprise. It always seems to be traced back to the blockhead senator from West Virginia.

And, because of the latter, Manchin has the country on edge, allowing Republicans to plunder our democracy. It is so fragile that this kind of chaos, added to the Covid-19 pandemic, could soon bring on a GOP autocracy, all thanks to Joe Manchin and cohort Krysten Sinema.

More Joe Manchin below...

WATCH Bernie Sanders put Manchin in his place.

WaPo's Jennifer Rubin's take on Joe Manchin.

Manchin bottom feeder ‘refused’ a call from W.H. before killing BBB

Coal miners want Joe Manchin to reverse opposition to Build Back Better

The Agony of Stupidity...2 States...2 Governors...1 Idiot

 

And the winner is the dufus, Doug Ducey, not only one of the worst governors in the U.S., but one of the largest covid-19 killing machines. As an example, here's a comparison done by Phoenix newspaper columnist, E. J. Montini. Here's his headline...

"Washington is a state like Arizona – only with 13,000 fewer COVID-19 deaths"

And here is the scenario as the columnist pulls no punches on Arizona's head of state...

"For much of the pandemic that number has not seemed to matter much, if at all, to Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey. Spouting platitudes about the economy has mattered. Acquiescing to the conspiracy theorists and the anti-vaccine kooks in the Republican party has mattered. 

"But talking about COVID-19 and the terrible toll it has taken on Arizona, and actually doing something to stop it … those things have not mattered."

Donald Trump was still in office as the pandemic began its drive across the U.S. Trump initially called it a hoax, perpetuated by Democrats to do harm to his administration. Ducey echoed the then, White House maniac, leading Arizonans to believe there was nothing to worry about. I did a post on April 3, 2020, " Some COVID-19 deaths Republican governors' responsibility," on how Republican governors were reacting to covid-19 as if it were "just a virus," featuring Ducey...

"On March 23, Ducey issued an executive order prohibiting any county, city or town from issuing any order or regulation “restricting persons from leaving their home due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.” Ducey’s order prevented local municipalities from issuing shelter-in-place regulations."

Dufus Ducey does it again...banning lifesaving vaccine mandates...

 Now that you have the background, let's do the numbers. Montini concludes the states of Washington and Arizona are similar in many ways relating to the coronavirus pandemic. Population is an example...

"Recent counts show Washington at about 7.8 million people and Arizona at about 7.5 million." 

A huge difference is the fact that Washington's Gov. Jay Inslee, was considerably

more aggressive in protecting the citizens of his state than Ducey was with the Arizona population. Inslee is a Democrat. Ducey is a Republican. Inslee took heat from his constituents while the dufus did his thing...

"Arizona, which long ago abandoned its citizens to their own devices, Washington still has a number of restrictions aimed at mitigating the spread of COVID-19. Mask requirements. Proof of vaccination or negative COVID-19 test requirements. It’s a fairly long list and not everyone is happy about it."

And finally, the numbers that count...

Washington state has had a little over 800,000 cases of COVID-19 and fewer than 10,000 deaths.

Arizona has had 1.3 million cases and 23,000 deaths.

Montini asks his readers, citizens of Arizona, to think about that. I ask my readers the same because it is an excellent representation of how Republicans could care less about this country and its people with their only purpose to wreck our democracy. 

 

Jim Jordan: Next Biggest Threat to America's Democracy

 

The first point I want to make here is, Democrats cannot afford to lose the House for several reasons, the primary one most obvious. But there is one other lurking in the background that poses a catastrophic possibility. Ohio Republican representative Jim Jordan could be the new Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. If the GOP wins the House. Here's an idea of those duties...

In addition to its critical role in providing oversight of the Department of Justice and the agencies under the Department's jurisdiction, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Homeland Security, the Judiciary Committee plays an important role in the consideration of nominations and pending legislation.

Do we want this wingnut Jim Jordan in a position to command this kind of authority as one of the most powerful members of Congress? Hell no! And here is why. Jordan had a major role in organizing and perpetuating the Jan. 6, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. And according to CNN...

"We now know that Jordan forwarded to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows a message (sent from a former Department of Defense inspector general) that laid out the supposed Constitutional backing for then-Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election the following 

day."

Jim Jordan was and is a strong supporter of the ex-president Donald Trump and "helped push former President Donald Trump's false narrative that the 2020 election was somehow stolen." Here's what the Ohio Republican actually said...

"I don't know how you can ever convince me that President Trump didn't actually win this thing based on all the things you see." Obviously, this idiot has problems with his vision, or is it his brain? Or both?

He also helped promote the 2020 ballot audit in Arizona which turned out to be a monumental disaster confirming that Arizona Senate President Karen Fann is a certifiable imbecile. She has resigned. Next, CNN is reporting that Jordan's text message to Mark Meadows, Trump former Chief of Staff said...

"that Jordan was actively presenting ways to circumvent the Electoral College process on the eve of Pence formally recognizing that Biden had indeed won."

The piece added this...

"is a very different thing from just throwing out some rhetoric on cable TV suggesting -- without any evidence -- that Trump had in fact won. It's taking concrete steps to obstruct the democratic process by which we transfer power in this country."

Rep. Jim Jordan revealed as sender of text to Mark Meadows...

The Republican Party has repeatedly been accused of trying to dismantle our American democracy, and are coming close to succeeding. It's not just at the national level, congressional Republicans, the like, but also in the states with examples like Florida's governor, Ron DeSantis and Texas' Greg Abbott. Here's a recent post: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis...a Totalitarian, Fascist Dictator?" Believe the answer here is an unequivocal YES!

But Greg Abbott has done a great job of mucking up the state of Texas with his voting and abortion laws. This lunatic has flown in the face of federal law and the Constitution by barring abortion in his state. Even Chief Justice John Roberts chastised Abbott over legislating against a federal law, Roe v. Wade. There are other GOP governors like Kristi Noem, South Dakota's governor who throws open the doors of her state to Covid-19 super-spreader events.

And the fact that Jim Jordan had an active part of plotting the Jan. 6, insurrection of the U.S. Capitol won't even dampen his chances of becoming the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Rather, it enhances them in the eyes of another Republican maniac who expects to be the Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy. If for no other reason for saving the House to the left, does this country want McCarthy two heartbeats away from the White House? This is a truly horrible thought.

Study: Gun Nuts have AK-47 Penis envy

 

I cannot fathom an idiot laced family that would use religion and its scriptures to support the lunacy of a gang of gun nuts who represent the primary reason for the 42,781 gun violence deaths in 2021. What the hell is "Muscular Christianity" and where in the Bible does it say to, favor ‘stand your ground’ over ‘turn the other cheek?’ In Peter Manseau's perspective in the Washington Post, he offers this headline...

"Why so many guns on Christmas cards? Because Jesus was ‘manly and virile.’"

It would seem that we have a very large population of impotent males in this country since they require some 390 million guns to show their virility. The American Journal of Men's Health says...

Although there has been no direct empirical evidence linking sexual dysfunction (SD) with gun ownership, speculation has been widespread and persistent for decades.

What this Christmas card says about congressional dysfunction...

There's more science from the Journal...

"Our primary hypothesis, derived from the psychosexual theory of gun ownership, asserts that men experiencing SD are more likely to personally own guns than other men. To test this hypothesis, we used recently collected data from the 2021 Crime, Health, and Politics Survey (CHAPS), a national probability sample of 780 men, and binary logistic regression to model gun ownership as a function of SD. Our key finding is that men experiencing SD are no more likely to own guns than men without SD."

The Journal says findings are important for sexual dysfunction because, "they contribute to our understanding of factors associated with gun ownership by challenging the belief that phallic symbolism and masculinity somehow drive men with SD to purchase guns." I live in Arizona, where all that is necessary to own a gun, and carry it anywhere you want, is a warm body. But no matter what open gun law state you live in, you can now marvel over inadequate gun guts carrying.

Here's more research from the Journal...

"The psychosexual theory of gun ownership has three primary propositions. The first proposition is that guns are phallic symbols. In his Introductory Lectures on Psycho-Analysis, [Freud] argued that “the penis is symbolized primarily by objects which resemble it in form, being long and upstanding, such as sticks, umbrellas, poles, trees, and the like; also by objects which, like the thing symbolized, have the property of penetrating, and consequently of injuring, the body,—that is to say, pointed weapons of all sorts: knives, daggers, lances, sabres; fire-arms are similarly used: guns, pistols and revolvers, these last being a very appropriate symbol on account of their shape.”

"The second proposition is that guns are symbols of masculinity. In U.S. culture, guns are associated with masculinity because they are primarily used by men.

"The final proposition is that some men acquire guns as a means of compensation when they perceive losses in virility and masculinity."

This study from The American Journal of Men's Health should be of top interest to gun control advocates explaining in so many ways why gun nuts do what they do. As far as spreading cheer with your AK-47, the recipients of these cards, assuming you are not a gun rights advocate, will be able to snicker at friends and relatives who may have a bedroom problem. MERRY CHRISTMAS!

 

Just How Unamerican is the Republican Party?

 

Juan Williams, who is an opinion contributor to The Hill believes it is pretty extensive. I did a post recently, "Are You Ready for America's Civil War II," which depicts a country in conflict, clearly defined by the fact that the radical right mounted an attack on the U.S. Capitol this last Jan. 6, in an act of insurrection. I think it is safe to say that this combination of sedition and treason was initiated and then choreographed by Donald Trump.

Williams is a fair-minded person, a Democrat, with two Republican sons, but still unable to "stomach" what has happened to the GOP. There are many out there with that opinion, but, unfortunately, many do not speak up like Williams. Here's a couple of his grievances...

"How can anyone dismiss a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol as just 'one day in January,' to quote former Vice President Mike Pence.

"Doesn’t it infuriate you to see so many Republicans make lying about the winner of the 2020 election a test of party loyalty?"

Well, the right certainly has its mentor to try and prove the 2020 Presidential election was a fraud. As of the first of this year there were well over 30,000 lies attributed to Donald Trump, leading his movement of misinformation. The poor souls who follow him have a cookie cutter image of how to spread his deception, and they have been very effective. But there is evidence Trump's popularity is waning with the failure of his History Tour to draw crowds.

Here's a take on Republicans from a Texas Democrat...

"another strong conservative member of the GOP, Rep. Dan Crenshaw (Texas), offers a similar assessment. Crenshaw, speaking at a public event this month, described unnamed far-right GOP members of Congress as “grifters” and 'performance artists.'”

My gut tells me he is talking about the five simpletons: Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Madison Cawthorne and Paul Gosar. Combined, their IQs would be in the double digits. But what is most compelling about this gang is the morons who elected them in the states of California, Georgia, Colorado, No. Carolina and right here in Arizona. Lord knows, the people have the right to vote but do they have the right to deliver the country certifiable idiots.

It's hard to say when the GOP last made an attempt at governing. Mostly it's vision is to block anything the Democrats want to do, with some help from lowlife Dems like Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema. Williams mentions a host of books written about Donald Trump and I have read most of them. One of them by a close family member, his niece Mary Trump. Most of the others are written by acclaimed journalists like Bob Woodward. The books basically describe a monster.

 Mary Trump: Donald Trump Had The Power To Stop Jan. 6 Riot...

And here is a statement that should be chilling to all Americans who value our democracy...

In the last year, every congressional Republican voted against a bill to help the country recover from the economic damage caused by COVID-19.

In closing, there is still Covid-19 raging across the United States, in large part due to Donald Trump and his Republican cronies. As of this writing, there have been 51,075,976 coronavirus cases in the U.S. and 820,194 deaths. Think about that folks, over 800,000 people, many of which could still be alive...if not for Republicans, led by Donald Trump.

Are You Ready for America's Civil War II

 

Once again Charles M Blow is on top of the latest in the war on democracy. We could have a civil war, he says, which looks like it already started on January 6, at the U.S. Capitol insurrection. He references Texas' violation of the Constitution and federal laws by passing legislation forbidding abortions. 

Then, SCOTUS let the law stand, but with a slight compromise, allowing abortion providers to sue. Here's the scenario...

Anyone who assists in providing an illegal abortion — from the provider down to the person who gives a woman a ride to the clinic — can still be sued. Roe v. Wade has essentially been overturned in the state, and soon that astonishing reality may not only become permanent there but may also spread to other states.

Ridiculous, but that is what we have come to expect from Texas' moron governor, Greg Abbott. Justice Sonia Sotomayor was furious in her dissent...

“This is a brazen challenge to our federal structure. It echoes the philosophy of John C. Calhoun, a virulent defender of the slaveholding South who insisted that States had the right to ‘veto’ or ‘nullif[y]’ any federal law with which they disagreed.”

And who is John C. Calhoun? The answer from Blow...

"I found the invocation of South Carolina’s Calhoun striking. Yes, he was a strong believer in nullification, the idea that states could nullify federal laws, but he was also a raging racist who went further than the slave owners who saw slavery as a 'necessary evil,' seeing it instead as a positive good."

THIS IS SCARY: Kim Iversen: Is CIVIL WAR Looming? Americans SUPPORT Red States, Blue States Seceding From US...

Having grown up in the South, and in the 40s and 50s when the Ku Klux Klan was running rampant, as a very young boy I once witnessed the lynching of a Black man. The experience was ghastly and tortuous as I knew the man had done nothing to deserve this. And I had no prejudice against Blacks since it just didn't make sense to me that I should hate somebody just because of their color. There were many incidents over the years where I disagreed with friends, even family.

That was then, but racism has once again reared its ugly head, somewhat due to Donald Trump's openness for white supremacy, strongly supported by advisers like Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller. This has not gone unnoticed by Charles Blow...

"I see too many uneasy parallels between what was happening nearly 200 years ago and what is happening now. I see this country on the verge of another civil war, as the Calhounian impulse is reborn."

As Blow surmises we won't see the number of deaths experienced in the Civil War starting in 1861, lasting to 1865, even though there has already been violence and some lives lost in the current turmoil. Contrary...

"this new war will be fought in courts, statehouses and ballot boxes, rather than in the fields."

And with this less people will die, but more of democracy will be lost...perhaps all of it forever. 

 

 

 

Anti-vaxxers will not be "coddled"

 

Charles M. Blow is a well-known columnist with the New York Times and he has finally had enough. With anti-vaxxers. Like many of us in the U.S., Blow says, "I am furious at the unvaccinated." The understatement of the year. A personal incident fueled his reaction against a friend who, unvaccinated, could have endangered himself and others around him...like his buddy, Charles Blow. What happened next was typical of a group well defined as anti-science...

"I recently found out that a friend of mine — a smart guy — was not vaccinated, and I confronted him about it.

"How could he have not gotten his vaccination? And how had he not seen fit to tell me and our other mutual friends? Wasn’t he worried about the risk he was posing not just to himself, but to the rest of us?

"He tried to laugh it off, offering up a bunch of concerns rooted in conspiracy theories. But I told him that he had to get vaccinated, period."

Blow also commented, "I will not coddle willful ignorance of the unvaccinated anymore." Well said! Don't you love the word, "coddle?" It means, "to treat tenderly; nurse or tend indulgently; pamper." Not that I think we have had an overabundance of coddling of the anti-science bunch, but there has been more than enough of mutual concession and compromise between those of us who believe that the scientific community knows what it is doing and "those" who don't.

The Story Behind The Anti-Vaxx Movement In America | Rise And Fall...

Charles Blow has more...

"The next time I saw him, he was worried about the omicron variant and asked if I would go with him to get the jab. I texted him a site where he could register and told him to let me know once he had. That was Saturday. He still hasn’t signed up.

"I am disappointed, and I am angry, not just with my friend but with all the people who are choosing not to get vaccinated."

And yes, most of us have tried our best to be "tolerant" with those who sometime challenge the IQ system to its limits. I remember when I was in school, all the way through college, not only in science classes, but any curriculum where you can arrive at a solution by establishing facts that substantiate your problem. The teacher decided we had solved the issue, and we accepted this, not just because the teacher said so, but because we had scientifically determined our results.

I don't like concluding a post by calling names, unfortunately anti-vaxxers have forced this ploy repeatedly in the last two-plus years, and once again I must say it with enthusiasm... the anti-science bunch are IDIOTS.

 

Is John Roberts a Quasi Liberal?

 

While Nancy Gertner and Laurence H. Tribe advocate expanding the Supreme Court, Chief Justice, John Roberts, definitely a conservative, believes the court made the wrong decision in supporting the Texas abortion law. Here's what he said...

"John Roberts, warned Friday that the Supreme Court risks losing its own authority if it allows states to circumvent the courts as Texas did with its near-total abortion ban."

SCOTUS' three liberal justices, of course, agreed. More from the Chief Justice...

"Roberts wrote that the 'clear purpose and actual effect' of the Texas law was 'to nullify this Court’s rulings.' That, he said, undermines the Constitution and the fundamental role of the Supreme Court and the court system as a whole."

It just shows the chasm between a justice who had been shown to be objective in the past, compared to the other conservative justices who can't see beyond radical Republican guidelines. NBC reports it...

"was a remarkable plea by the chief justice to his colleagues on the court to resist the efforts by right-wing lawmakers to get around court decisions they dislike, in this case Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that made abortion legal in the United States, within limits."

 Debate: We Should Expand the Supreme Court | Intelligence Squared U.S...

At the same time, Nancy Gertner and Laurence H. Tribe are strongly recommending an increase in the court's size to prevent future decisions like the one for Texas abortion rights. They said...

"We now believe that Congress must expand the size of the Supreme Court and do so as soon as possible. We did not come to this conclusion lightly."

If you want credibility for their determination...

"One of us is a constitutional law scholar and frequent advocate before the Supreme Court, the other a federal judge for 17 years. After serving on the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court over eight months, hearing multiple witnesses, reading draft upon draft of the final report issued this week, our views have evolved. We started out leaning toward term limits for Supreme Court justices but against court expansion and ended up doubtful about term limits but in favor of expanding the size of the court."

In other words, they know what they are talking about and collectively have been persuaded that President Biden should add more members to SCOTUS. Yes, there are opponents, many Republicans, and Biden's Supreme Court committee decision is on the fence. However, when you look at the antics of the GOP, particularly in gerrymandering, you have to realize it won't be a level playing field for many years. This makes it advisable that Joe Biden makes the move.

Covid-19 Surges in Michigan - Rest of U.S Next

 

The worst we have seen so far, says Nurse Katie Sefton at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, Michigan. The state's hospitalizations jumped 88% in the past month, according to the Michigan Health & Hospital Association. Here's the scenario...

"We have more patients than we've ever had at any point, and we're seeing more people die at a rate we've never seen die before," said Jim Dover, president and CEO of Sparrow Health System.

 More from Dover...

"Since January, we've had about 289 deaths; 75% are unvaccinated people," Dover said. "And the very few (vaccinated people) who passed away all were more than 6 months out from their shot. So we've not had a single person who has had a booster shot die from Covid."

 Michigan hospitals sounding the alarm as COVID-19 surges...

Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said...

Case spikes have hit the Northeast -- where governors are calling in the National Guard to help -- and surges in the Upper Midwest have been "dire," he said.

But here is even worse from Osterholm...

"We expect to see other areas of the country also light up in the next several weeks."

The majority are not vaccinated, according to nurse Danielle Williams, who said the patients commented they "had no idea they could get pummeled so hard by the virus." Where the hell have these idiots been, living under a rock? One health care worker said recently, they were sick and tired of taking care of people who apparently have no regard for themselves or others. It's time for the gulag, where these dumbos can do their thing and kill each other.