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Category Archives: My Opinion

The Lies We Are Told!


The past 10 years in politics have shown the dirtiest side of politics since McCarthyism.
The lies we are told about candidates, proposed laws and laws that are passed have been so outrageous at times that it is small wonder that a Trump presidency came about. Politics appears to be more about lies innuendo and insults than facts. There have been stories about candidates that prove to be true and just as many not. Without going into the many lies and insults, lets just go to what we know is true:

Donald Trump is a consummate liar.

Our Congress members are not to be trusted.

Donald Trump appealed to the anger of many of us who have gone unheard by their Congress.

The small group of Racists in our midst have latched on to Trump as a champion because he doesn’t know any better and loves to be adored at any cost.

Donald Trump is so insecure that his method of dealing with problems (and non problems) is an insult and or a lie.

The Spokes people for Totus seem to be uninformed and will do what ever he says out of fear.

The over coverage of the signing of Executive orders is more a photo op than anything serious as those orders will be at some point repealed or if not cause great harm to us.

Our Congress is using Totus as cover for their own nefarious actions.

Our Congress’ healthcare is not affected by the ACA or the new Health care act.

There are so many more items that can be added that I would spend the next several days listing them. It is the duty of each reader to pay attention to the real news (not Fox) to determine what our Congress is doing to us as they are surely not doing anything for us.

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Too Hard Not To SpeakUp


Edited today: Congress is covered under the ACA so it is odd that they have made changes that affect their Health, see yellow highlight MA.

Currently our government is in chaos and lead by a non functioning Congress who are at this time no more than opportunists who are playing on the whims of a inept leader. The leadership of our country is based on a person who garnered the office by “straight talk” that has no basis in the real world and cannot operate in a governing position. Tweets and executive orders are  not governing. The Congress is in the background attempting to dismantle the Affordable Healthcare Act maliciously  dubbed “Obamacare”. This healthcare change has the potential to devastate many households and even States. Keep in mind that the folks deciding on these changes will not affected by these changes!  These same elected officials have stated time and again what the “American People” want and they apparently have no idea what the “American People”  want since they never asked! What has happened is the Politicians have taken the tactic of telling the same story as if it were true to convince many that it is true . This method of speaking is similar if not the same method a European strongman used to convince the populace that the Jews were the reason that the Country was in such dire straits (not the previous failed war). If we are not careful here in America we could be going down the same path led by an inept Leader and a more duplicitous Congress. This type of political activity is evident even down to the State and local levels.

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The American People?


Who are the American people that the politicians and their spokespeople (cohorts) are always speaking about and for? We have had the politicians who are running or backing someone who is running asserting what the “American people” want or do however how do they come by what “the American people” want. I believe this phrase is just another method of garnering attention for or against some issue while putting an idea out there as truth without any backup. It is easy to issue statements that appear to be correct, true or plausible on  the surface but in the light of day they seem to crumble. We have many well known, high profile pundits and on air celebrities who associate with one party or another along with the various sub sects of those parties, yet none can or do speak for the “American People”. It is difficult to speak for people you don’t really know beyond some scientific (sometimes pseudo) information which can be suspect as the sampling for the gathering of this information can be skewed by factors that are as diverse as the “American People”. The idea that a political aspirant can speak for all or most is inherently flawed since these runners selectively meet and greet with their existing or potential constituents. It is unfortunate that the electorate has become so tired of the all of the promises that they will and tend to believe the freshest information that aligns with their current feelings about the government as it relates to their current situation. The real facts as I see them are: We (voters) have to be better informed and not be guided by talking heads whose sole job is to present information as fact according to who they work for. The more controversial the better and the truth is immaterial, voters have to do their own detection of the truth and then vote as they see fit. We have an obligation to ourselves to oust (by vote) any and all representatives who do not truly represent us. Read the Constitution (it is only a few pages) and understand that it is not absolute and therefore can be interpreted according to our times and laws not any individual or organization. The Constitution as with any written or spoken words can be skewed to suit an agenda but personally reading it should give you a better idea of what is about and how it relates. It is unfortunate that we have reached a state that we keep the most divisive people in office  then elect someone who is so unqualified as to be considered inept just because we want change. It is “woke” time

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First Strike


The  strike on the Syrian airfield was effective for a few hours, with no follow up the Syrian air force went to the air again and bombed the same village they attacked before once again. There was no apparent discussions on how to proceed from there. It has been disclosed that the Obama administration was stopped from making a strike by the CONGRESS and now TOTUS authorized the strike with no approval from the same Congress and not a word has been said other than glowing approval from the media and some Congressional members. The issue now is what is to be done now. Given the paucity of truth coming from the Legislators and the Whitehouse, what is the electorate supposed to think? Are we heading for an armed conflict with Russia, North Korea? The titular head of the country seems to be getting his information from the news (FOX?) rather than his self appointed advisors. Where indeed are we headed? It looks as if the spinning fan is nearing its inevitable pile of dung! Taking the continual outpouring of semi and full lies from 1600 and the Dome, we (voters) need to pay attention to everything that is said by the people we elected since many of these small things will resonate for years to come. The town halls that have been occurring in various parts of the US have shown that many formerly pro Trumpists are not happy and have voiced their opinions loud enough to cancel town halls. To add to the mix we have the military leaders working in a vacuum. The first 100 days have become a focal point in the news as to what is being accomplished by the White House. This is no measure of real accomplishment it is merely an arbitrary timeline to compare one administration to another. The campaign side of the race is over and the real work needs to start in a serious manner. Our big issue is how effective will the President be and to what end? It has been said many times and  in as many days- “talk is Cheap!”. Healthcare and job growth will be the big domestic issues, to accomplish either or both will require some critical thinking and looking at them with eyes of the people who are and will be affected their changes. There are jobs in healthcare which will be affected by any changes, there are opportunities to grow jobs if the “wall” resources are put into infrastructure, keeping In mind that coal jobs are not coming back so those folks can be moved into the infrastructure jobs. The soon to be or possible soon to be eliminated environmental jobs will have to go somewhere , how about infrastructure? If the current Congress is for the people then these are just some areas where they can do some good for a change.

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The Sleep walker


As I was at the keyboard searching the news, it occurred to me that we have less than we need in the Whitehouse. Looking over some of the many tweets and outbursts, I have decided that we may have a sleep walker who while awake has no idea what is happening around him. While asleep , he tweets based on small mental hic cups that he believes are revelations and insights. Now in a wake state he has attacked Syria via its airbases. This is not a bad move considering Syria’s deadly gas attack on civilians . The only issue is that the Congress should have been notified of his intentions before he notified Russia. Again we have a wild card issue that could create more issues in an area that already is on shaky ground no matter what support we receive from our “partners” . We now have a broader issue with Russia and Iran, both of whom have interest in keeping the area destabilized  (much like our Congress). Russia is in it for the oil reserves and the naval and air bases. Iran is considered a major supporter of terrorism and will continue to be no matter what sanctions are imposed on them. The downside in all of this is the citizenry who continue to suffer under the Syrian and Iranian regimes. Any of our actions against either regimes ultimately affects the innocents which creates an additional rift between the west and their country. With the issue of a ” Muslim ban”, the innocents who have been vetted for years have little hope of survival unless joining with the Radical elements (ISIS and others). The area is still in flux and will continue to be until each affected Nation’s legitimate Government forces can successfully defeat ISIS and other radical elements who currently hold a disruptive position in their respective countries. Presently we have a crew of “diplomats” who have a treasure trove of inexperience and are making pronouncements that will surely cause us more grief as the Trump administration continues to “Tweet” along. At the same time our “Congress?” continues on the whiny path of doing their worst to the “American People” they have so often cited as the reasons for their actions. The picture for me is as clear as glass, we have to make the leap from victim to citizen and in a hurry. Pay attention to everything this administration does and do not be swept up in the hysteria promoted by rhetoricals issued by the Administration and some of the news media. We as citizens have become too caught up in what is said in the media and living in the mindset of “reality” shows. We are doomed to poor government as long as we want to be entertained rather that served by the people we elect.

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Emboldened or Woke??


How many times daily, weekly or monthly do you wish we had better government? In my writings I have mentioned the power of the voters. I should add that the voters who are informed or “woke” as the younger people say will be the winners. We have for the past 10 to 20 years been suffering under poor legislators who expect us to just vote for them because we recognize their names. To be fair some legislators are doing good and sometimes better work . It appears that we (voters) need to pay less attention to the hype and look at the results or we will end up with another much less than we deserve State Administrator or CIC. To anyone who reads this I want to make a few points ,a
1.forget whatever party you have voted for all of these years.
2. do not get caught up in labels they mean nothing and only cripple your ability to make rational choices.
3. As voters the advertising world has become our information source in the form of political campaign information – Tums anyone?
4. When you ask for tissues is it “Kleenex” or something else?

My point is simple: any politician who cannot answer a question straight out is not to be trusted, we already have more than enough side talkers and barkers serving in the electorate as it is. This covers all elected officials from  city to Federal so do not get hung up on Carp and nonsense. It does not matter to me if you agree or disagree as facts are facts. Fiery rhetoric serves only to fire up the crowd and ignore the issues. The truth is that which hits you in the face unwaveringly with no change. The truth can be altered but only by more truth while lies can be altered constantly to suit the occasion. The question now becomes: Are you emboldened or woke?

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Anyone??


Is there anyone in the Trump Administration who knows what they are talking about or can tell the truth? His surrogates shoot from the lip pretty much like their boss and continue to lie as if it’s the truth. This is exactly what Pre world war II Hitler did to convince ordinary Germans that he was doing good things for them-until the bombs rained down on them and they were shown the concentration camps. Unfortunately too many Trump supporters are too angry to see the truth and will be shocked when the wall goes up and the jobs still do not come back. Then there’s health care and taxes, once these are addressed (or not) and more people do not have or can’t afford healthcare, the administration will blame someone else. As much as I would like to talk about something positive coming out of the Whitehouse, there is not much there. Jeff “the knife” Sessions is moving ahead like the racist he is, Steve “the hammer” Bannon is pulling the strings behind the scenes and Reince “figurehead” Priebus appears to be missing. The cost to secure this President rises daily with his children being everywhere, his trips to Mar A Lago along with the cost to scramble the Air force if a private aircraft appears in the no fly zone near the President(resident?). The Governing of the United States is not supposed to play out in the media yet this appears to be the situation the country is in. Many of the people who voted for Trump now have reservations but we are in this until at least 2018 unless the President does something worse than he is doing now. The Congress seems to be rudderless after all of the negative rhetoric about the previous administration and with a blank check attitude have confirmed unsuitable people for the cabinet. The President makes a big show of signing executive orders yet seems to have no idea what these executive orders will affect. I am of the opinion that our TOTUS is not well versed in the details (the real details) of his executive order rollback. It appears that he gets snapshots and acts on those. This is not governing, this is playing in the sand box without paying attention to the lumps. It is my opinion that we as voters should prepare for the worst as it is still coming and we will receive no help from our neer do well Congress.

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Are You Concerned?


Does it bother anyone that we are in the grip of government (our) employees who don’t give a damn about us? All of the high tone and blustery rhetoric is just that. The ongoing attempt to deregulate, deconstruct and repeal are the talking points from people whose sole mission is to take care of them selves while shoveling out homilies, half truths and outright lies. These outpourings do not take into account the long range effects of their actions. The lies put out have served to divide us racially, morally and ethnically. At this point I feel that we can expect nothing good from this administration. This one lie is particularly bad: The lie about EPA regulations causing job loss in the coal industry while the real truth is automation and the increased availability of cheap natural gas were and are still  a factor. Getting the public fired up with this type of misinformation is irresponsible and dangerous. What we have is a classic divide and conquer tactic that does nothing to fix our issues. The selections  made to aid the President were suspect initially but now are extremely troubling as the lie factory is running at full speed. It is apparent to me that the next several years will bring a substantial backwards leap for all of us while providing boosts for the worst of us.

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The Art Of The Spiel


The current White House resident and associates have mastered the art of the spiel. The press crops (hand-picked) has had to endure a continual stream of non facts and “alternative” information. There appears to be no shame in producing a stream of outright lies with a straight face. Now with the recent visit from Germany Leader Angela Merkel we have seen that we no longer have a Presidency. What we now have is an entertainer  in the form of  a Government head. Unfortunately or predictably the Dupublican majority has done nothing to assist or curtail the descent of the Presidency into a Reality show. The only good thing is that the American people (and the rest of the world) see that the government is not as stable as they (Congress) would have us believe. The seemingly unending  stream of lies and “alternative” facts coming from the Whitehouse is distracting and acting as a cover for the misdeeds being perpetrated on the citizens. This type of activity is not new but now more open due to the ascent of an adoration seeker as President. The President’s primary focus is completing his campaign promise agenda at whatever cost it requires. This push for completion comes with no backup information that would lead one to believe these ideas were well thought out considering the pros and cons as well as the long range effect. Now the “repeal and replace” has  failed and the Teflon Don takes no responsibility thereby hanging the failure on everyone else including Scamocrats who had no power to stop it had the entire Dupublican Congress agreed. This is not a new idea from the Don since he will walk away from situations  no matter what the cost if he is not happy with the deal. What we can expect in the time he has in office is more of the same as he is a professional knee jerker who cannot apparently read anything longer than a paragraph. We need to pay attention to what our Congress does as they seem to have no problem with hurting us and attempting to make us like it.

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Labels and Their Faults


The discussion of politics always involves labels of some sort. Each major party has subsets. These subsets can be called anyone of many names i.e. Conservative , moderate, liberal. These are just attributes of the group and the individuals within that group and have nothing to do with Governing. The key to governing is first getting elected. The after of gaining the office is doing what you said if you said something that is possible. To determine what is possible is to research what your goals and the potential outcome will be. It is unfortunate that too many of us are so disenfranchised with the Government for a variety of reasons that we miss the real issues. The real issues are the people we have kept in office too long and thought they had our backs. The reality is that they are ON our backs and will continue that ride until we say stop. If you need a label to cover your belief then I submit that you are depriving yourself of the ability to make rational judgments in elections. Think about the people we elect to Congress: their medical plan is better than most and the ACA has no effect on them (they made sure of that), the economy has no effect on their salary (they made that a law) and they do not have pay for transportation, office help, decorating or supplies. With this in mind-what does a label mean? Its definition in this case is: a short word or phrase descriptive of a person, group, intellectual movement, etc. If you define your beliefs by a label then its possible that you do not really know or understand what you believe. The way I see beliefs as applied to politics is  to disengage from the labels associated with political parties and use your common sense with a healthy dose of skepticism. The skepticism will allow you to stay out the surge of “crowd” thinking and hopefully see the chinks in the armor of   politispeak and rhetoric that sounds good but has no basis in fact. With all of the available information outlets we have access to why would you depend on one or two when you have access to many and thereby have access to a broader view of  the situation. Think of it as watching a football game, the 50 yard line is great but the view is close up so much of the action is unseen. If you are higher up you can see the whole field and get a view of all of the action. The same applies to information you receive.

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