A New World Order!

The current darkness brought on by the regime of Sweet Potato Hitler and his cronies marks a grim time indeed for the experiment known as the United States of the America. But out of his darkness perhaps we can achieve some clarity of purposes and for the first time in decades unite the power of the people to unseat the all-too-comfortable rich who seem to imagine they are better than their peers. It happened in the 30's when the Great Depression demanded changes to the fundamental structures of our society. We are reaching that moment in time again when profound change is required. 

The UNFTR Podcast has outlined four pillars for Progressives going forward as we reconstruct our society to make it better for our children and those generations beyond that. These are aspirational but not unobtainable ideas from which a revived Progressive movement will not be shaken. These are the four "Non-Negotiables" for us to insist upon. 

1. Ending Homelessness. 

2. Building a Civilian Labor Corps. 

3. Medicare for All.

4. Election Integrity -- Getting Money Out of Politics. 

To read thoughtful extensive essays laying out these concepts and goals in detail just click on the links for each pillar or non-negotiable. But let me add a few words of my own. 

In a society which has built in so many structural limits to achieving even a modicum of success for most people, having a home to return to after a long day is a minimal expectation. No one should be forced live in cars or on the streets. And homelessness must never ever be considered a crime. The homeless we have in our country point to the failure of policies both conservative and liberal. The status quo is unacceptable and must be changed. 

Having a job in the coming years is going to be harder and harder for many as robots slowly but steadily take over jobs which in times past were sufficient to maintain a home. The vast wealth which has accumulated at the top of our society has been built on the backs of laborers who have gotten a decreasing share of that wealth. Idealistically a job should not in most cases give meaning to a life, but still a people need to be engaged with the society they are part of. 

Healthcare is a right and not a privilege. Changing the healthcare system in this country is the easiest pillar to achieve. Single payer healthcare solves nearly all the problems which afflict the delivery of health care in this country. It improves the quality and streamlines the delivery in such a way as to maximize the effort of those doctors and nurses and others who work diligently to keep up safe from our habits and the rigors of time. God knows there's more than enough money flowing through the system to keep everyone happy. 

Standing in the way of achieving all of these non-negotiables is the fourth one -- election integrity. I have watched for forty years now as the American political system has become increasingly corrupt. The rich want to own the rest of us and to that end they have purchased politicians and jurists, often in plain sight. Conservative politicians have hidden behind a veil of false comity to obscure the fact that what they want for their paymasters are de facto slaves. By buying media, the rich have successfully gulled too many into believing that their vote doesn't matter. They have rigged systems in state after state to make voting difficult. In a word, they cheat. We need to knock over the board and begin the game again. 

But that's enough for now. This is a long game. It almost certainly will not be won completely in my lifetime, but that's not a reason to fight the fight. We can surely deliver some immediate victories if we remain firm, focused and united. The war is just beginning, actually I now see it has never ended. 

Rip Off 

Against All Enemies

While there have been any number of infuriating things which have happened over the course of the last few months, for me seeing members of Congress and the Senate roll over so supinely has been at the top of the list. These guys and girls swear an oath. Here it is. 

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God. 

(Howard Chandler Christy 1944)

That there has not until now any move in Congress to impeach the President is a violation of this oath. That the Senate needs another chance to convict him for his obvious crimes and breaches of trust is damning. These words are hopefully not words they speak with little regard for what they require, but the evidence suggests otherwise. Democrats save in certain instances are not quite as guilty because they lack power and haven't voted for most of this stuff, even when Sweet Potato Hitler lets them try. I'd love for them to yell a lot more and help focus an opposition. 

But Republicans have violated this oath time and time again. Their leadership is already complicit and also needs removal. If this Congress as a whole never moves for impeachment, then the majority is ultimately complicit as well. Because of the obvious illegal depredations committed by Elon Musk and his boy squad, the President, the Vice-President, and the Speaker of the House are all immediately subject to impeachment and subsequent removal. 

Our leaders get their authority from a document not a man. Their authority is derived from law not monarchal edict. If they violate their oaths, then we as a people owe them no deference as leaders. They hold office only because they haven't had that office stripped from them. They have a very little time to perform their duties. 

One Congressman who rose to the task was Al Green from Texas. His rejection of the President's remarks about Medicaid in the long and winding State of the Union speech stole the show. He was censured by his colleagues, all Republicans and stunningly ten Democrats. The image of this black man shaking his cane at the racist President is history for us all to grok. More, and more, and more officials must follow the example of the Honorable Al Green. 

Rip Off

Join The Rebellion!

I'm not quite sure when this realization hit me, but I have joined the rebellion. The United States of America has well and truly become the "Evil Empire" if that empire were led by a numbskull and his soft-handed billionaire cronies. But nonetheless I find myself in opposition to my national government, which has taken ridiculous and dangerous national and international positions. The U.S. as imagined by its felonious "leader" is a satellite of Russia. It's been all too clear to those who wish to see that our Idiot-in-Chief is beholden to the Russian leader Putin. Whether he was collected as an asset in the late 1980's or merely is a "useful idiot" of more recent vintage, the result is largely the same. 

Like Luke's Uncle Owen in that galaxy far, far away I mostly just wish to be left alone. But the Empire won't leave me alone. Clearly, they seem to want to weaken the United States, the very nation they have sworn an oath to serve. But they forget a few things. The U.S. is not like other countries for the most part. We are actually fifty states, all with a level of independence guaranteed them by the Constitution. If you scrape the federal system clean of its workforce, it will only fall to the states to pick up that slack. The confederation of states will weaken, and the power that results from such a confederation will vanish. The powers which have captured our capitol might well find themselves confronting fifty "Ukraines", each determined to restore civil order.

At some point it feels pretty clear to me that the Empire will attempt to impose some measure of martial law and deploy troops into the very territories of the United States itself. That is if the morons don't get too fascinated with an invasion of the Panama Canal or some such misadventure. If and when that occurs it will mark the end of any shred of any validity the Empire might claim and will shatter the loyalty which gives them their power to begin with. Like Luke and eventually even Han more and more will join the rebellion. These are dark times, but the victorious outcome is inevitable. The nation will stand again. 

With luck today I and my partner will be able to participate in a protest march at Frankfort, the state capitol of Kentucky. It is one march of fifty simultaneous marches across the country arranged by the 50501 outfit, to show widespread solidarity in objecting to the unseemly behaviors and unconstitutional actions of the current administration. I've got an arthritic knee doctors keep wanting to take out and neuropathy that makes walking a chore and the weather might not cooperate, but nonetheless I feel the need and the desire to participate in this small expression of my displeasure.

If you'd like to join the rebellion, if only for a day here's a link that will help you find a protest. 

Rip Off

Impeach Him Today!

It was a singularly disgusting display put on by the Felon-in-Chief and his Helper Monkey yesterday as they attacked the leader of Ukraine, up until then a reliable U.S. ally. In what was clearly a staged event, the two cowards, two cretinous yellow dogs took the noble leader of Ukraine by surprise, attacking him in English in public so as to put him in a particularly weak position. 

These two ignorant trolls, like those that support them can only punch down and they waited for their prey, lured him into position and fired volley after volley of ignorant garbage at a man who fights for his life and the life of his country and peace in Europe besides, a hero who has staunchly led the defense of his invaded land against the primary enemy of peace in the world. I knew that when Potato-Head Hitler was elected it meant the U.S had become an ally of Russia, but I was aghast that he'd showcase the alliance so proudly, like one of those idiotic Presidential edicts he's constantly churning out and displaying like a clown-headed seven-year-old brat. I've now learned that the fucking Russian media was even invited into the Oval Office to watch.   

I am not ashamed for what happened because I had no hand in it. But I am embarrassed for the country which as selected such a leader, a man willing to scold an ally like a child because he thinks it will make good television. I fired off some e-mails to my Representative and my two Senators with one message:

Impeach him today. 

Rip Off

The Most Terrifying Battle Ever Waged!

Today I reopen this blog as a meager but clear sign that the resistance to the regime of Donald Trump, Elon Musk and their cronies is well underway. This is once again a place for political speech, especially that which reveals the depredations of the current administration of the United States. The United States of America is not its elected officials but rather its people. After the tragic election of the current Felon-in-Chief, people were stunned, but that has worn off. The administration has moved with lightning speed to initiate its breakdown of the federal government, thinking that it robs the people of their access to any way to retaliate, but it has instead only spurred that same retaliation. 

A tiny thing is to show the economic might of the people. Today is the first of many days in which we refuse to buy. The people of the United States fuel the most powerful consumer engine on the planet and today we agree to turn that engine off for a spell. 

More to come. 

Rip Off 

In Memory Of President Jimmy Carter!

I was going to write a brief essay explaining how I feel about the late Jimmy Carter and how I think the fact we were cheated out of a second term led by this great and exceptionally good man, when I ran across this TikTok video essay which said all I wanted to say and said it better. 

With Respect. 

And with this post I'm closing up shop here for now. I might feel compelled to composes future responses to events, but frankly I'm tired of waiting for the shoes to drop, and I don't want the daily stress of following the ups and downs to drag down my health which is showing its age. And even more frankly, I don't want to listen to the squabbling. It's not the most responsible thing I can do, but for now I'm going to seal myself away from news for the most part, and I wait for baseball season. They can't stop that can they? Can they?

Thanks to all those who have held the flame and responded to my rants. It's much appreciated. Business will continue as usual at the Dojo, so I hope to see everyone there. 

Rip Off

The Atomic War!

I spent much of my youth and early adult life seriously worried that nuclear war about to break out. Then the Berlin Wall fell and things seemed to settle down a bit, though the fundamentals which might lead to war were largely unchanged. The U.S. and the former Soviet Union had more than enough firepower to wipe us off the globe. 

During my "worry years" I subscribed to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists to keep up with the developments across the globe as regards nuclear weapons. I thought about it that much. I subscribed to a host of political magazines, both those with which agreed and those with which dissented. (It was what we did in those pre-internet days.) It was a great weight on my shoulders, one I was unable to shake. Then fortunately I either matured or things got measurably better. Now the Bulletin says we are ninety seconds from doomsday. 

Now I worry about nuclear war again. Not so much an attack on the U.S. from Russia since our incoming President is a vassal of Putin, but I dread a small-scale weapon might be used in Ukraine. What holds things up is that Putin wants Ukraine for its wealth and an atomic attack would wipe much of that away. Other nations, once confident that the U.S. would protect them are now seeking nuclear weapons, and I can't blame them. The U.S. under Trump is no real ally to anyone. We've reached a tragic point in human history where greed and self-interest, among our worst traits are what arguably protects us from nuclear warfare, while at the same time making it more likely. 

Rip Off

Seasons Greetings - Of A Sort!

There's no denying it. I am a "Scrooge". That doesn't mean I'm intemperate with those who seek charity for the needy (I like to give to food charities). That doesn't mean I imagine children should be sent to workhouse if their parents cannot meet the rent. (As long as they stay quiet I'm okay with kids...most of the time.)  None of those extreme over-the-top vile things, but what I am is tired of the spectacle of Christmas which stifles the senses and overruns all media and such, spilling into the streets and filling up the even the stillness with typically mewling Christmas songs.

I'm just tired of it before it gets started. If Christmas lasted a week, maybe even two I'd be all in. A two- week spree of holiday cheer and merchandising I could support as a bally end-of-the-year celebration. We all made it again you see; and here's something to show our appreciation all around. That would be dandy. But the damned holiday starts in September now and drags on for week after stultifying week and by the time the actual holiday itself actually arrives it's all weary anti-climax.

Now none of this has to do with the religious as side of Christmas. Ignored by the merchandising crowd for the most part, the birth of Jesus is something which perhaps ought to be marked and celebrated. The soul-sucking religion his birth spawned perhaps not so much, but the man of peace for certain. I'm down with that, unless you're not and I'm down with that too. To each his own I always say.

But the other, the dreary life-draining amble to acquire presents to make the significant others in our lives "happy" is really become a chore. I resist putting up the Christmas tree (a little thing really) as it means caving in sooner than I want to the holiday which like the Blob in both versions of that sci-fi movie seeks to absorb all around it. I want to hold it off as long as I can, to cherish the moments of the holiday with family and friends, compress them and make them potent and memorable.

So in the end I'm not so much against Christmas, but rather against it as currently practiced in a culture which has well and truly lost its way. I choose differently as much as I can, and that my friends makes me a "Scrooge".

Rip Off

Public Enemies!

The recent killing of the CEO of United Healthcare has created quite a stir in the country. One wonders why, since with thanks to Republicans and the NRA there are at least as many guns as people in the United States. In point of fact the statistic is one and a half guns per individual. With that kind of armament available why is anyone surprised when anyone is killed. Well, it's because folks like Brian Thompson are supposed to be above the fray, well hidden behind stacks of cash which allow them to live apart from the rabble which make their lifestyles possible. 

But what is even more amazing is the reaction across the country to his murder. This man was shot down in cold blood on a city street and most Americans find it funny. That's profoundly sad on one hand, but strangely revealing about the state of the nation on the other. There was another time when Americans in masse rooted for villains. It was during the great Depression when villains like Bonny and Clyde, Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson and John Dillinger were marauding across the heartland of these United States robbing banks and sometime killing cops and the occasional civilian. 

Banks and bankers were seen the real villains, as farms were foreclosed in many areas and in general life was rough and tough. These gangsters were thrilling for a typical citizen whose life was drudgery, with little sign of immediate improvement. The gangsters were seen as people who took action in the face of despair, who took control of their lives, though admittedly those lives were short. I think we are seeing the same thing play out here. 

People don't care why some young man killed the head of a giant health insurance company which is infamous for jerking its clients around and forbidding necessary care, they just are pleased that finally someone, somewhere is taking action. There is a tipping point in any culture when people will rise up and take action. As wrong-headed as the January 6th, 2021 Insurrection was, it pointed to this same unease. When these folks get a pardon from the new President of the United States (himself a convicted criminal) early next year, the message will be heard that taking personal even criminal action is effective at least in part. Laws are for suckers and losers. Leaders who fail to heed these messages better keep their heads down. People will only eat "cake" for so long. 

Rip Off

Is That A Leopard On Your Face?

"The Leopards Eating People's Faces Party" has been growing exponentially in the United States by all reports. As dimwits who lazily voted for Trump and against their own best interests begin to realize how his potential policies might impact their lives, they begin to regret their vote and wish to take it back. Alas, it doesn't work that way. That national poll we held in November will have lasting negative consequences for countless people in the future. Workers are already seeing a diminishment in their take home pay just in anticipation of his enacting the hurtful economic policies. 

 

It has become something of an entertainment to watch people feel the penny dropping, and to hear their caterwauling about it. I don't find it all that much fun, since the suffering they just realized might happen to them will likely happen to me and mine as well. I just have the small pleasure of knowing I didn't choose it for myself. Watching these early days of the new administration showcases two things. They have a dark plan for America and the world, in which many of the things people have come to rely upon will be stripped away. But they appear to be bumblers on a gigantic scale. The egos of the top people are so outsized that there seems not to be room enough for all them. The infighting and incompetence shows us that those things we fear won't come because they cannot figure out how to implement them and still avoid the blame for the hurt. 

That has always been the Republican approach since the loathsome days of the terrifically overrated Ronald Reagan. Republicans have learned how to run against government, but they demonstrate little or no interest in actually running it, save in those aspects which reap financial benefits for their slave masters. Democrats know how to govern on the national level, but Republicans don't. They are well-trained in jeering and bad-mouthing those who can do governance, but they lack the skills to actually replace those they mock. The truth is they might want government to succeed when they gain power, but they don't know how to make it do that. It's a sad fate we face when our primary hope is that the firing squad doesn't know how to shoot straight. 

Rip Off