Coup?

 One issue we have today that I don't believe we ever had before, even during the depression is whether we remain a democracy. 

The fact that this is under attack is maybe the scariest things about this Halloween.

It is under attack by the Republican party which wants to install the president they choose rather than the one elected.

They will, like all dictatorial regimes pretend he was actually elected but the votes have been counted and that is not the case.

Even as we watch we see a plan pay out which seems to be the continuation of the reaction to Obama.

Certain people n this country took advantage of the ACA to take over many state Governments in 2010 and have established built in majorities for state houses which get to redistrict.

This allowed the presidency to be stolen in 2016 via misinformation, the Electoral college and media attacks.

It demonstrates how single determined parties can undermine a system of democracy stealthily.

The idea that is being sold is that this country belongs to "the right people" meaning white people of European descent.

That not democracy and we really can't let it happen.

If we actually believe in America.

Government

 Everyone likes to complian about Government, its easy to do and big enough that something is going to be messed up.

Years ago I took a management course that made a point about how Government treats people, it treats everyone the same.  That seems fair but they want to be treated individually.

Oddly our system is designed to root out the corruption common in many Governments and maybe in some levels of ours where special treatment comes with a price tag.  Even here that's sort of true.  I remember a friend of mine who worked for the State Department passport division and he was one of the people who dealt with celebrities who need "Special Treatment".  Yes many times they did need expedited service to meet obligations but he liked his job because it allowed him to meet or at least interact with them.

Their fame got them expedited service while generally the rest of us had to deal with the normal delays (they do try to accommodate urgent needs).

When he would tell his stories no one generally asked him why a Government agency was so solicitous of celebrities?  It just seemed normal.

Often the complaints are based on our own failure to understand the process, which is of course to be expected since we might deal with it infrequently.  I went to get an updated more secure license from my DMV a while back and had gathered up all the documents only to be rejected because one of my proofs was printed out and not the original.  Since I got this document electronically from my employer it never occurred to me that would be a problem.  I did feel that the person I was dealing with knew, based on my passport and other documentation, that I was who I said I was but I had to settle for a lesser license.

When I looked at the website it did stress original documents only but as I said I got this form electronically so in effect it was the original.  

I felt a bit misused, but in fairness how far should we allow a DMV clerk to bend the rules?  

I don't know but common sense should somehow enter into it.

It would help Government and us. 

GMO

 Since pre-history people have been modifying the food we eat via cultivation.  At some point we realized that we could stay in one place if we planted seeds that could feed us.  Maybe it was just coincidence or maybe more deliberate but we learned it and it enabled us to have an established place.

The crops we planted were likely the ancestors of the ones we still plant but they wouldn't have looked much like their modern counterparts, at least in many cases.  We started to modify them at some point by planting the best seeds we could.  

This led to more bountiful harvests.  Now we learned many things over the years, but it has been going on for a very long time.  This was a long process with minor successes along the way until we got to modern times and we learned how to genetically modify our foods.

The difference is we didn't do it by "natural" ways we did it via gene manipulation.  Is it significantly different than the manipulation we have been doing via cultivation?  To some extent.  We can manipulate genes for attributes that would take generations to cultivate into a crop, if we even could.  However, it is in essence another way for humans to increase and improve crops.

Is it safe?  That seems to be the issue raised by many.  The science says it is but some are skeptical of the science since much of it was paid for by the companies selling the seeds.  Still it is published and unless I missed it, much of the criticism relates to what is unknown, potentially.

If you don't want to eat GMO, that's your business but the evidence against it is primarily flawed and mostly anecdotal.  The food we eat has already been modified via thousands of years of human cultivation.. 

Its hard to see much difference. 

Spreading Lies

 I was reading a story today about how the European Central Bank is holding the line on interest rates because it thinks inflation is transitory (yes I read boring stuff) when the writter said not everyone agrees and quoted an economist who had a distinguished title who said inflation might become ingrained.

Now well and good, but what I don't know is how many feel one way or the other.  In the press' desire to be fair they often present opinions that are neither popular nor logical.  For example, sometimes in the persuit of fairness, opposing positions are reported that are not credible.

For example in some stories about the "Flat Earth Theory" the flat earthers get to expound a lot.  I guess because the idea is so absurd it needs more room to try to justify itself.  Really?  The planets are not flat and we can observe that from Earth using a telescope, our system of satellites for communications would not be possible and you couldn't get to Europe by flying over the pole.  

Its not a theory, its a joke.  Similarly other fallacies are presented even when they are clearly absurd.

Presenting fallacies are real is not reporting, it is storytelling.  We already have enough people spreading misinformation in this country.  Lets not act like fairness requires presenting lies as possible.

They are lies, and should be identified as such.

Profit over Morality

 Suppose you were faced with the following dilemma, sell a product you knew to be harmful and make a tremendous amount of money or reveal the dangers of that product and get a clean conscience but no money?

Its a decision many people face, in some part every day.  Even within legal rules people sell dangerous products that everyone knows can do damage, such as tobacco, alcohol, lottery tickets, to assure a source of income.

Others sell illegal products and of course take high risk.

Some of the richest among us mad money selling things like Opioids or Media lies.

At times the person selling the product might not be aware of how dangerous it is, but most of those doing the selling do know, or at least should know.

If you own a bodega or a deli and have cigarettes, beer and lottery tickets for your customers, you may feel like you have to since they can simply go to the next store instead of yours.  They are opting for survival instead of morality and I think everyone can understand that.

What about media or social media sites that cater to audiences by peddling lies?

Censorship is not desirable but rampant misinformation is dangerous.

Saving Humanity

Most of the so called issues facing the country today are pretty superficial. The one exception is Climate Change and we have had that problem for years.  It isn't just our problem but the fact that the rest of the world also has to act shouldn't prevent us from taking the actions we can. It is probably a good thing if the price of carbon goes up, although an inconvenience for some.  Switching light bulbs or adding insulation may not seem like the solution, but its going in the right direction and actions like that add up.

Most decisions in the world are still made based on economics, and it isn't going to be good if all our products become "green" but can't compete with the ones using carbon.

Maybe putting tariffs on goods from polluting countries can help?  Yes that might lead to some increased prices but it allows clean companies to compete and reduce their prices as technology improves.

It would be a minor sacrifice.  I know many people struggle daily to make ends meet so it would be more than minor for them.  We should address that but the bigger issue is the destruction of this world.  

That's really not accurate, it is the destruction of humanity that is the issues, the world has had lots of different atmospheres in the past and was just fine.  If we destroy it we will be the ones to suffer.

 

Inflation Thoughts

 Do we really have inflation or do we have temporary price increases caused by a shortage in supply and increasing demand.

What's the difference?  Well if its just a transitory supply or demand imbalance it will correct itself.  There are some traditional examples of these imbalances where a spike in demand leads increase prices leading to increased production and a price collapse.

We know that when the price of petroleum dropped a lot of marginal production shut down sine it was unprofitable.  With the rise in prices it is inevitable that these will come back on-line, as long as they can get workers and equipment.

If they can't we might have a long term imbalance which will mean more permanent price increases and real inflation.

If price increases are related to a permanent change in the economy, they will persist.  Sometimes short term increases persist because if they don't reduce demand the producers keep them.

We have seen demand increase and a worker shortage so that is an inflationary scenario.  Worker shortages, especially if systemic will lead to increase in the cost of production and an increase in prices.

We have a very complex economy and what happens in energy impacts much of it.

Throw in worker shortages, supply chain issues and loss of overseas manufacturing capacity, we have our current inflation.  

All three of those factors like the oil production will generally correct themselves.

Except maybe the worker shortage.

Making Progress

While negotiations continue within their party it looks like the current administration is going to produce a another significant piece of legislation under reconciliation that does about half of what they tried for.

Some are acting like this is a defeat.

Well getting so much of what the progressives, Democrats and the American People wanted is hardly a defeat.

Also, the things they didn't get can be passed if they can get enough seats in the next election.

I see a lot of op-eds talking about how the Democrats control all three parts and should be able to deliver on their promises. 

Well they really don't, as long as we have a filibuster that allows the minority party to hold up most legislation.

These articles, possibly as part of a strategy, act like the majority is enough.

It isn't.

Still with a recalcitrant Republican party and a few nervous Democrats, things are getting done.

Its progress.

Government as Enemy?

 I was watching a new show about people who end up in 10,000 BC (that might give it away) and at one point a person sent to save them was asked what was the world's reaction and he said the Government was waiting to figure out what happened.  The person exclaimed, "another typical Government cover up!".

It made me think that if that reaction is making it into popular network TV shows, it has fully permeated our society.  I know going back to some very old shows we had conspiracy theorists but they tended to be peripheral characters, who no one took seriously on the show.

Now it seems like a remark like this is just accepted by the characters.  The problem was that on the show no one knows what caused the event, at least not that we would know, and the people involved are apparently randomly selected.  So what exactly is the cover up?

I'm pretty sure that will be revealed as we go along, but this random destructive act, which clearly defies the laws of time and space, is probably going to be part of a massive Government experiment or ???

Well it is entertainment and fantasy but I was thinking about how the Government has been portrayed in shows and movies I have seen and it is never very good   We have a strong anti-Government culture built into our society.  It is as old as the country since even in the early days, people moved to the frontier to avoid Government regulation.  We had the whisky rebellion during our first President's term and ongoing anti-Government sentiment ever since.

What is troubling about it is that many of the people who are anti-Government seems to want an authoritarian type of Government.

Maybe that's what they think they have now?

Emotion Wins

 People have many aspects and some people have some aspects that are nearly the total opposite of others.

Take the election of 2016.  We had a candidate who essentially symbolized everything we like about this country except for the only attribute that really counted, likability.

I've met Hillary at a number of events, not that we spent any real time together, she was a speaker but she shook hands with everyone at the end.  I got in line and shook her hand and my memory of that is nothing more.  She wasn't unfriendly but she lacked, let's call it charisma. My opinion of her didn't change at all which I guess is the point.

I've never met Trump and don't particularly want to, but from seeing him on various shows over the year, he actually seems to have a real personality, not necessarily a good one, but one that leaves an impression on you.  He almost certainly doesn't care about anyone but himself but I gather he also will immediately treat you like someone he's known for ever.   This will leave an impression, one way or another.

Over the years I've been on many trips and traveled with many different people.  A few, and it was a very few, don't follow normal etiquette in things like car services or elevators.  They start to engage with the driver or the fellow riders even if the time in negligible.  Generally if I'm taking a car service to the airport I want to be left in peace.  I have had conversations with the drivers but they initiated them in just about every case.  

Having and showing that interest in an individual is something that forms a bond of sorts.  Hillary seemed to care a lot about certain issues, but not sure how she felt about any individual.  

Emotional ties are the ones that tend to govern our actions, intellectual ones are secondary.  You may or may not jump into a river to save a stranger but if its your child you most likely will.

What Can't We Get?

 I was watching a commentator on TV talk about the supply chain issues and saying that the President needed to fix it.  He went on to say that he never supports using the military or national guard to do things like this.

The problem, if it really is a problem, is that many container ships can not be processed because of a lack of facilities and workers.  There is no magical way to increase these capacities so the question has to be can some shipments be diverted to other ports?

It doesn't seem like we have extra capacity anywhere at this time and working through the backlog is going to take some time.  Once the containers are removed from the ships they still have to be transported to their ultimate destinations for processing.

Not sure we have the capacity to do this quickly either.

The question I have is what is our current processing rate?  If it is still inadequate we will increase the shortage and not work down the backlog.  If it is sufficient it will help reduce the shortage.  

What exactly is the shortage anyways?  

I know we see some inflationary pressures related to this impact, I'm just not sure where.  Mostly you see pictures of empty supermarket shelves on the news, but my experience is that the supermarkets seem about the same as ever.  How many food items are wasting away on container ships?

People are not going to invest a ton of money to build short term capacity so we will have to be patient.

Federal vs State

 One of the conflicts we have in this country is the dispute over States vs the Federal Government authority.

When the constitution was adopted, it was somewhat clear that the States started with all the power and spelt out what powers they wanted the new Federal Government to have.  Its pretty clear that any power not granted to the Feds stayed with the States or with the Citizens.

The Constitution cannot be amended without the consent of the States but Federal powers have grown over time, in some cases ratified by an amendment.

Between various laws and court opinions, we do see some interpretation creep in.

The general principle concerning the distribution of powers had to do with scope.  If the item had multi-state implications, like interstate commerce, it became a federal responsibility.  If it only had intrastate issues, it stayed with the states.

It would probably be a good idea to better define this rule.  It has been interpreted multiple times.  We also have added clauses to the constitution that impact individuals no matter what State they live in.

Our law is determined as much be precedent as it is by fiat.  Maybe we need to codify all the precedent's and clarify the will of the people?

Crime and Punishment

 There is an election for District Attorney that seems hotly contested in the county next to mine so I get to see the ads for the two candidates.  The Democrat is the incumbent and his ads respond to attacks by his opponent and talk about his record.  His Republican opponent spends his time talking about how his opponent is letting criminals out and fails to prosecute dangerous individuals.  His examples are sort of convoluted, following a particular criminals history until he ended up murdering someone.

The initial crimes were obviously not as serious and I'm not sure of the exact circumstances, but this seems an attempt to use the Willie Horton strategy.  Find a murderer who was arrested previously and show how he wouldn't have murdered if he was kept locked up.  The logic is correct but we don't decide whether to incarcerate people based on what they might do.

I don't get to vote in that election but if I did I would probably shun the Republican candidate.  He is running on the principle that the more people we lock up, the safer we will be.  That could be true if we were locking up the right people.  However with all the incarceration we have, not sure it did much except line the pockets of people who run for profit prisons and increase our taxes.

Its very hard to identify who will commit a violent crime.  We had a likeable young lady who was killed while traveling with her fiancé.  There was no indication that I am aware of that he was going to go violent and he has avoided apprehension so far, if he is still alive.

These type of violent crimes are unpredictable.

More crime is related to income inequality.  People growing up in our society who see others with a lot more get tempted to take some.  Throw in the somewhat arbitrary war on drugs and we end up with what we have.

We haven't descended into Robo Cop crime levels yet although some parts of our cities are clearly dangerous.  That's not new and goes back to the 1800s when some of our first gangs formed.  It actually goes back to antiquity since all the ancient laws refer to punishing crime.

We keep doing the same things that haven't worked hoping they will this time.

That's just crazy.

The Right To Vote

 While it seems almost certain that the Voting Rights bill will be blocked by a Republican filibuster, it deserves to be looked at.

Elections are governed by each state and the question has to be why?

Citizens of the United States are guaranteed equal protection under the law.  The right and ability to vote should be the same anywhere you live.  In the past we saw States try to deny the vote to minorities to perpetuate the power structure.  In response the Federal Government did enact a voting rights act identifying suspect states, but that was gutted by the Supreme Court who decided Federal Review of those States were no longer needed.

They were wrong if you look at their activities since that ruling.  What states try to do is discriminate in a way that stays within the lines, if just barely.

It is going to be quite a while before some states actually treat all their citizens equally. Its been over 150 years since the end of the Civil War and we still have discrimination.  Discrimination is not restricted to one part of the country, but attempts to control the vote might be more established in some states.

One thing the Republicans recognize is that if we had free and full elections where everyone voted, they would win a lot less. 

It might force them to adopt policies that were good for everybody rather than a small elite.

Should the Federal Government force this?  I think who can vote and how they vote should be uniform so yes.  

It will be blocked however.

Politics, Politics, Politics

 There is a lot of speculation about how much of the Democratic agenda will be enacted.  They already passed the Covid relief bill which has helped millions but the next bills relate to infrastructure updates.  

These are in two bills, one of which is mostly concerned with physical, traditional infrastructure.  That has already passed with bi-partisan support.  It is however waiting on the second bill which deals with societal infrastructure and includes many progressive ideas.

This bill has no bipartisan support so it is being done under reconciliation.  It needs 100% of the Democratic senators to vote for it and for that reason is being held up.

The Senator from West Virginia objected to some of the provisions related to clean energy. The odds are that these provisions can be adjusted and the bill will pass.  Progressives will still want to address clean energy but it might need to be in separate bills. 

None of this is particularly different from how politics work.  The idea that anyone can get 100% of what they want is simply not realistic.  Does this show that the Biden administration is failing?

Obviously not and despite media exaggeration, it has taken steps to improve the country.

While the end was not favorable television or media coverage, it has extracted us from Afghanistan and we will no longer lose soldiers or money in that sinkhole.  Despite attempts to spin this as a failure, it has been the goal for at least 12 years but it is now done.  

There are other inherited problems and a few potential new ones.  The economy seems to be on track but we have energy price increases and other inflationary factors.  Some shortages persist from the pandemic.  Most economists feel these are short term issues but the opposition is making the most of it.

Issues do not tend to resolve themselves quickly.  There is a bit of a time limit because of the mid-terms which while a year away are already being contested in many cases.

How those go will have a big impact on direction of the country.  

Being Fair?

 Ultimately we have only ourselves to answer to.

How we treat others or maybe who we ignore is our call.

As rich as our country is many people do not share in its bounty. 

To what extent does society owe those people help?  Is it optional?  Should it vary because of your race, religion or location?

In this country we take a somewhat minimalist approach to this question.   We distrust those who ask for help and make it difficult to avoid the scammers.  

Un in other countries certain needs are recognized as universal and good for the society.  In essence living in a society is to some extent the basis of socialism.

You might argue that Americans idealize individualism and not collaboration.

Individualism leads to winners and losers and the winners are OK, but what about the losers?

Should they be brushed aside because they failed?  Was it a level playing field?  

Do we aim for fairness or just raw competition?

Most of us at the end of the day want to be fair.  

The Deep State

 The problem with drawing your conclusion without evidence is that you are forced to try and find the evidence.

The silly premise of the big lie is that after the in person voting showed partial results, the mail in votes changed it around.  Now if the conclusion you draw from that is that this was exactly what was expected based on who was voting in person vs by mail, you are satisfied.  If on the other hand you jump to the conclusion that mail in ballots were tampered with, you go on a search for evidence.

When you find none, you make up a thing called forensic audits which are going to go behind the process and root out the shenanigans.  Of course that effectively accepts that the ballots are coted correctly but many of those ballots were not real or altered.

Still no evidence but the persist in calling for them since it is the last straw, maybe.

Not sure where they would go after the forensic silliness, but they seem to be creative in their current desperation.

What I wonder about is does anyone believe any of this?

Our election systems have been used since we were formed and while they have been modernized to some extent over the years, they have worked.

It requires belief in an invisible but very powerful cabal that works behind the scenes to rig elections.

I guess this is the deep state.  

Deep state of confusion and denial.

Real America is Complicated

 There is an old joke about ten blind people examining an elephant.  Each dealt with a particular part and described the elephant based on his own interaction.  So from the snake like animal described by the person touching the tail to the horned behemoth described by the tusk toucher, each had their own description.

These were actual empirical interactions and therefore accurate but wrong.  I tend to forget what the moral of that story was, maybe get the whole picture before making a conclusion, but that is a good start.

Remember they were dealing with a real animal, not a fictional one made up by liars.

In today's America we have far too many "blind" people drawing conclusions from a small part of the American experience and some drawing them from fictional accounts.

So is America racist?  Some part of it is.  Is America privileged?  Some part of it is.  Having conflicting views is the result of how we interact with it and who we listen to.

Jumping to conclusions is part of the problem.  Has inflation increased?  Yes but how much of a problem is it?  Some act like any inflation is a horrible thing.  Of course deflation is also terrible.  The fact that it was predictable and expected as we increased economic activity while also increasing minimum wage is ignored by many.  

It also doesn't matter to the person who sees that the cost of filling up their truck has increased.  One of the things that is going on although the data is still early, is that many women who were working and paying for day care, have decided to permanently leave their low paying jobs.  

Those jobs don't pay for the day care, clothes and clothes needed to work.  Is this a long term trend reversing the back to work trend of the past?  

Too early to tell, but there are ways to make money in our gig economy that don't require full time jobs which can fit into a persons lifestyle.  

I think the trend recognizes that and will probably continue.  I think its a good thing for Americans if perplexing to economists.

Equal Protection?

 The fourteenth amendment to our constitution was passed to assure the newly freed slaves were treated fairly.  The equal protection clause of that amendment requires states to treat all its citizens equally.

The reason it was needed was because States tried to control the newly freed blacks with specific constraints.  After the Amendment was passed they still tried but at times they were rebuffed.  Unfortunately the passage of a law, even a constitutional amendment, doesn't remove the politics of the Justices.

At his very moment we see certain states attempting to deny some of its citizens equal protection.  They do have to do it cleverly so the tactic is to identify areas that the undesirable population shares and make that a negative criteria.  For instance, for various reasons in their history, less Black Americans apply for state credentials.  This lack allows them to be identified "equally" as being unable to vote.

It is a not so subtle method of discrimination and Americans should be horrified at it.  Unfortunately many are not and because theoretically they could all "apply" for these credentials it might satisfy the law to our biased Supreme Court Justices.

Are they biased?  Does the sun rise in the East?

The biases are deeply held and we have both liberal and conservative ones.

Ideally they would provide that equal protection under the law required by the fourteenth Amendment.

They are far from ideal.

Look at how sacred they hold gun ownership.   Too bad voting isn't in the same category.

Achieve Your Potential

 There are two things that sports teaches you.

One the feeling you get from winning or achieving your goal is one of the best feelings you will ever have.

The work you need to put in is painful, boring and often unrewarding.

Generally there is only one winner or maybe its a team.  Everyone competing though puts in a certain amount of work.  The work is essential but the results are dependent on that but also natural talent.

We don't all start out equal.  

I don't care how much someone without the physical attributes works, he probably can't overcome certain natural abilities.

You will never outrebound a 7 foot player if you are only 6 foot on a regular basis. I used to play basketball with a guy who was a few inches shorter than me and he sometimes outhustled me for rebounds.  Of course once I figured out his game I was able to box him out the vast majority of the time.  He needed the element of surprise to be successful while I could rely on being taller.

You can certainly achieve a lot via hard work but that can only help you achieve your potential.

Some simply have more potential than you do.

Still hard work can let you achieve 100% of your potential which might be enough if they only achieve 50% of theirs.

Heroes Have Flaws

 Columbus was a man trying to get rich who led an expedition to help do that.  He was a leader and somewhat daring but also ruthless and avaricious.  His expedition led to the discovery of the Americas and the destruction to a large extent of the native population.

He was both a brutal man and a God fearing one, a product of his times.  We celebrated him with a holiday since his trip led to our existence, indirectly since he never came to North America.  The holiday treated him as an explorer, which he sort of was but he was much more of an entrepreneur trying to get rich.

Many of the people who helped create this country are going to have flaws.  Greed, ownership of slaves, brutality and cruelty to name a few.  Does it diminish their accomplishments?  Not really but it may diminish their hero status.

What they were was people.  People are imperfect but despite that they can accomplish great things.  Consider U.S.Grant.  He was ruthless and determined and while he did help us win the Civil War and reunite the nation, he did it with some disregard for the deaths involved.  The winning of the war has long overshadowed the deaths but there is no real doubt that his tactics led to deaths.  

Celebrate the accomplishment but realize we are humans, men and women who have faults.

Democracy Is A Struggle

Assuming and that a big assume that the people we see interviewed on various news channels and shows are representative of the public at large, it is clear that Americans have a poor understanding of how our Republic works.

For example I was watching a show the other night where a black person, acting as a spokesman maybe, said that if Biden didn't deliver on his promises they wouldn't vote for Democrats next time.

OK but he seemed intelligent enough to realize that the people holding up those accomplishments or promises were in fact the other party.  So vote for the people who won't deliver what you want and don't even want to deliver it?

I hear a lot of other commentators talk about how since the Democrats control all three branches, the pressure is on for them to deliver.  That control is a bit misleading since much of the agenda requires at least some participation from the other party and 100% of Democratic support.  

Yes if someone doesn't keep their promises they should pay the consequences if of course they had the power to do so.

Of course when the alternative is to vote for people who will end up oppressing you, support disastrous climate policies and only keep promises made to rich supporters, well the choice should be clear.

Still, since we seem to have failed most civic classes, we can continue to vote for people who are ok with gunning people down in the street.

Or vote for the better future.

The Data is Available

 Why are so many of us cynical about the Government?  The Government isn't prefect and it does make mistakes but its not malevolent.  Some people in the Government do lie but they do that for individual reasons like covering up corruption or incompetency but they don't represent the Government, at least not really.

It seems like many people have made up their minds about what the truth is and if the Government doesn't say what you want to hear, they must be lying.  Even worse, some people don't believe established things like the moon landing, or who won the last election.

It seems like, and very well may be, a disinformation campaign by our enemies trying to bring us down from the inside.  Do I know that to be the case?  No, but it does present a logical answer to all the lies and disinformation we see out there.

Hell, some people even argue that the Earth is flat.  I saw a person on you tube arguing this in the most ridiculous manner, claiming it looks flat so it must be.  There are some very simple experiments if he wants to really know but clearly he doesn't.

People have become convinced by what is broadcast and posted that they need and/or are entitled to individual proof of things.  You are entitled to do your own research but if you don't understand the evidence provided that is on you.  

The arguments you hear are simply ignorant, if for example prior period data is slightly adjusted, then none of the data can be trusted.  Absurd.

Why you would believe some hater on the internet instead of your elected officials or public servants is a mystery.  One has an agenda and the others have responsible jobs.

You are buying a pig in a poke and it might not even be a pig.

Fix the Home Front

 I was watching a show about a family concerned about someone trying to get our of Afghanistan and when the TV announces breaking news, which turned out to be about a Football Team and not Afghanistan, one of the members gets upset that we are more concerned about sports than peoples lives.

Well certainly about people we don't know at least.  

We still live in a rich and prosperous country that has via our Government and large businesses exploited much of the world to help us be rich and prosperous.  Certainly we weren't the first or even the worst but exploit we did.  In pursuit of this we have involvement in most of the world taking positions that mean little to most Americans.

Tragically, like every other world empire we sustain this via the sacrifice of young men and women often fighting people they know almost nothing about for interests that don't concern them.

Meanwhile we concern ourselves with everyday things like say sports.

We need to fix our own issues and stay out of other people's affairs unless they actually impact us.

Policies or just Opposition?

 Wven when most Americans agree with a policy,, it is very hard to pass it.  Take the tax code.  Most of us would like to see cuts for the middle class and working class extended and increase taxes on the wealthy.  You would think that would be an easy one but it isn't.

At least one of the parties has taken as their strategy defeating anything the other one proposes, no matter the merits.  This creates a clear division in our country, not based on actual policy differences but the desire to be in charge, control judicial appointments and protect the status quo.

The majority of Americans would like to see progress on things like infrastructure, health care, climate change and wealth inequality.  Certainly creating workplace rules concerning parental leave would be popular.

Not one will come out and oppose most of these things specifically, just nonsense about socialism and communism for things that are standard in most Democracies.

Opposing every initiative can lead to odd issues.  What exactly is the Republican position on gun safety?  Let everyone who wants a gun have one and hope for the best?  You can avoid addressing it by arguing constitutional rights but of course that could be amended if needed.  

Don't Americans have the right to safety as opposed to being subjected to random acts of mass violence.  They complain about the rise in homicides ignoring the rise in weapons.  

Moving the Needle

 If you are from the east coast or west coast it might be wotwhile to spend some time in a red state before the next election.  I was in a red state a few months before the last presidential election and watching he political ads was interesting.

At that time, in the shadow of Trump, it was obvious that many candidates were running as "Principled Conservatives".  I can't be sure but that term was used so much I think it might have been sent out be the election committee.  Of course the radical left was often mentioned and in a State where they weren't on the ticket we saw a lot of comparisons to AOC and Omar, the crew.  I imagine there was a Democrat running but for all I know he/she was one of those principled Conservatives since I didn't notice any liberals running.

Of course there was very little substance in the ads, just shots of sunny days, happy families and some guns thrown in just in case.  It basically said that if you want to live the good life vote for us or your world will turn upside down, your children will have to use coed bathrooms and you'll be taxed to pay undeserving people for doing nothing.

Not all of this was said but somehow the message was pretty clear.  I will have to say that they have the public relations thng down pat and without much from the opposition it seems like its real.

How do we turn those States?  It actually doesn't seem like we are trying very hard.  

Clearly we need to push moderation, its how Biden won.  If you are faced with moving a giant boulder, getting it started is the hard part.  One it starts rolling it can be hard to stop.

Voting is the Answer

 Its goig to be interesting to see what kind of shenanigans emerge during the next election.  Whether these somewhat desperate efforts to suppress some voters works an if not what new claims might be made.

In addition to the voter suppression efforts we see an attempt to paint the current administration as week and unable to control its own party which is run by rabid multi-millionaire socialists who also happen to be pedophiles.

Mid year elections are generally low turnout ones but I suspect the next one may have higher turnout than you would expect.  High turnout favors Democrats but there is some enthusiasm among the far right components of the country although that  might not last.  Its hard to be enthusiastic about a system that is rigged against you.  We will have to wait and see.

I for one believe the country's faith in Democracy will prevail.  History doesn't actually support that.  Democracy is not as determined or united as those who would overthrow it.  

Time will tell.

Fake? Media of Dramatic?

 I was watching a TV interview of a Democratic Senator and the interviewer asked if the Senator was worried that the party was in trouble because of the media highlighted divisions.  The answer was simply we will get things done and I think that is true.

However, to read the papers we have serious issues with their agenda and the ranks are filled with dissension.  I can't blame journalists for being dramatic, it sells their product but it certainly is quite detailed.  

The lack of any bipartisanship on the spending issues elevates the internal disagreements even more.  Further, being politicians, members of the party like press time and release statements for their constituents which generally point out how they will achieve their promises.

None of this constitutes any sort of true crisis in the ranks simply a bit of negotiation.

In the old days this sort of thing was done a bit less publicly but it always happened.

In the end it won't mean much at all but it will get a lot of coverage before, during and after.

Its just the media.

Politician's For Sale!

 As Americans we all want to be treated with some respect and to trust that our elected officials have our best interests at heart.  You are entitled to this no matter your background, wealth, gender or sexual preference.

Understandably we will have policy differences.  The best way to provide people with health care is worth a discussion, not providing health care is not an option, or it shouldn't be.  

Gaining power as a Party so you can enjoy the spoils is not an option.  Those spoils come from us.  

I was watching a TV show where in order to open a business requiring a liquor license they had to pay a $500 bribe.  The problem with this is that it didn't seem particularly unusual.

I was reading how two well known politicians use Pacs to support their lifestyle.  I guess its a loophole of some kind.

Since the Supreme Court OK the buying of offices money has flowed freely.  

Money comes with strings so what was presented as a Freedom of Speech issue became an open political auction.