Blogger Hits Pause Button

I know. 

I just came back from a blog break and now I'm taking another one.

Some readers may be saying, "Hey Dave! What's with all the blog breaks?"

My answer is simple. Because I feel like it. This blog is my pastime not my job. I'm retired. I do however warn my readers when I'm going to skip school and when I'll be back. 

I'll be back on Monday March 1st, 2024.

Meanwhile, here's a few thoughts...

If you thought that Congress has become a big hot mess you haven't seen anything yet!

With Republican Mitch McConnell stepping down from his leadership in the Senate and opening a door for a new crazier successor, both houses will be on fire daily.

What semblance of sanity that was traditionally in the senate will disappear like smoke in a windstorm when the MAGA morons compete for McConnell's position.

On Our Justice System

The way Trump abuses our laws and continues to get away with high crimes is not only a crime within itself but a condemnation of our whole judicial system.

Footnotes:

See past posts on the right side of this page.

Take the last train to crazy town at The Creative Chronicles of Dave Stancliff – Prose and Poetry (asitstandsblog.com)

When As it Stands ran as a column in The Time-Standard daily newspaper - 5 years Dave Stancliff – Times-Standard

Here's a link to a novelette I wrote titled, RAFTER's REDEMPTION.

As it Stands, have a great weekend and I'll be back Monday.

Two Alien Anthropologists Were Talking One Day....

 

Excerpts from audio files recently discovered by the United States Space Force.

Start

"So, you see Xan humans aren't as advanced as one would expect after thousands of years of inhabiting Earth." 

There's a shrill sound of levels being pulled by one of the alien anthropologists as he puts their spaceship on cruise control.

"Do you know what fascinates me," Zur asked?" 

"What?" 

"How stupid humans are. I've been studying them for eons and every time they start making advances in their civilizations, they blow them up and have to start all over again."

"Speaking of stupid when was the last time you interviewed a human politician?"

"A few years ago, in the United States after their 2020 presidential election. I found this 77-year-old rotund human with tiny hands and hair that resembled a rooster in distress who was very talkative.

"Okay. After your interview what did you think?"

"The planet is in peril. He's leading a cult that may upset the longest democracy in the world which would cause a catastrophic ripple effect across the rest of the nations on Earth."

"How much time do you think we have left to study the Earth's inhabitants before they blow the entire planet up?"

"It's hard to say. I remember when Alpha Centaur was vaporized by its clueless inhabitants after 120,000 years on that planet."

"I've nearly completed my studies here. What about you?"

"The same here, but I'm curious to see if that cognitively challenged zealot is the spark that ignites a nuclear holocaust that destroys humanity."

"I guess we could hang around a little longer and see how stupid these earthlings really are."

Audio Ends  

"Did you hear that General?"

"I did Lieutenant. Get me the President immediately!"

As it stands, if there are extraterrestrial beings observing us, they're going to have one hell of a story to tell other civilizations in the universe about Earth's demise.

Telltale Signs That Someone is a Modern Republican

 
By now it's obvious that the modern Republican party has nothing to do with conservatism and traditional values that they once touted.

All pretenses of normalcy have been stripped away in the last eight years and we're left with a cult that wants Trump as their dictator for life.

Here's some signs to tell if a person is a modern-day Republican:

- If they can't tell reality from fiction... they're GOP material.

- If they believe Trump is the Second Coming... they're MAGA Republicans blinded by Christian Nationalists who worship false prophets.

- If they still insist the 2020 election was stolen - the central focus of the Big Lie - they are true Trump loyalists.

- If they try to tell you that Putin is a good guy, and we shouldn't help Ukraine... they are probably a Republican politician trying to protect Trump.

- If someone thinks the earth is flat there's a good chance, they're a modern Republican.

- If someone thinks the Constitution needs some changes... it's fair to say they're a Trump toady Republican.

- If someone likes to cosplay with MAGA shirts and hats and fly American flags disgraced with Trump's face on them... they are truly representative of today's sad version of the Republican party.

- If someone tells you they'd rather die than see Trump lose the 2024 election... back away slowly because you've found the heart of his base!

- If you meet someone who brags about what a genius Trump is and how he keeps passing basic cognitive tests... back away because not only have you found a certifiable idiot, but you've also found a modern Republican.

- If someone tells you women shouldn't have autonomy of their own anatomy... they're a modern Republican.

- If someone admits they're still going to vote for Trump even if he goes to jail for numerous high crimes... you've met a modern Republican who swills orange Kool aid with every meal.

As it Stands, we have met the enemy, and they are modern Republicans. 

On Naps and Blog Breaks

I've always thought taking a nap during the day was the way to go even though Americans are not known for the habit.

Taking daytime naps is common in Mediterranean and Asian populations. In countries like Spain, Greece, Italy, Vietnam, and China, cultural traditions of long lunch breaks often include naps.

Perhaps the most famous of all midday rests is the siesta. Derived from Latin meaning "sixth hour," the siesta is a time for people to rest and recharge in the middle of the day. Though the time varies based on location, siesta usually occurs between 2pm and 5pm, about six hours after starting the day.

Experts have concluded that napping improves alertness, cognition, short-term memory, and mood all increase with a short rest at midday.

Taking a Blog Break

I'm stepping away from my blog for a week (back on Monday Feb. 26) to take an extended - if you will - nap break from the computer.

During this time, I plan to recharge my brain batteries and to chill out when it comes to public comments and opinions.

You're invited to read my past posts on the right side of the page.

Like poetry or short stories? Buckle up and go to The Creative Chronicles of Dave Stancliff – Prose and Poetry (asitstandsblog.com)

Here's links to a column - As It Stands - that I wrote for five years for the daily newspaper The Times-Standard. Dave Stancliff – Page 7 – Times-Standard

Some topics just never go old. For example - check out Controversial Conversations About U.S. Politics while you are there.

And just for laughs go here to view the great Gary Larson's FAR SIDE comics.

As it Stands, I'll be back in a week. Peace be upon you fellow traveler.

MAGA News: The Grift Goes On! Trump's Golden Sneakers

Donald J. Trump is a born grifter. 

It's in his DNA and he looks at every day as an opportunity to take suckers money away.

Here's one of his latest grifts...

Selling sneakers. A day after Trump was ordered to pay nearly $355 million in his New York civil trial he launched a sneaker line.

Don the Con announced he was selling gold sneakers for $399. The "Never Surrender High- Top Sneaker" is the top of the line that also features two versions that have "T' and "45" on the sides for $199. 

He's also selling cologne and perfume at $99 each. I can only imagine what he named this line with names like Grift de Toilette and "Putin Love De Parfum Spray."

Moving on, Trump showed up at Sneaker Con in Philadelphia hawking a pair of gold sneakers on the podium. I loved the reception he got as the audience booed and mocked him mercilessly.

Despite selling all 1000 "available" pairs I'm willing to bet this line of sneakers is not going to threaten Air Jordans or make $355 million. 

Or, as President Biden said, "Trump showing up to hawk bootleg Off-Whites is the closest he'll get to any Air Force Ones ever again for the rest of his life" referring to the popular sneaker brands Off-White and Nike. 

How did Trump pull off this grift despite his current financial situation?

He can't do any business in New York and the court appointed a monitor to watch the Trump Organizations finances after the court's decision.

So sneaky Don came up with an alternative. The products are "trademarks" of CIC Ventures LLC. Trump sneakers are not designed, manufactured, distributed or sold by Donald J. Trump according to the company's website.

Like a good serial grifter Trump continues to merchandize products from bottled water to Bobble Head Trump figurines. His face appears on American flags and mugs sold by entrepreneurs at all of his rallies. 

With an estimated half of a billion in fines thus far that Trump has to pay in court rulings it's going to take a lot of sneakers and mugs to meet his obligations.

As it stands, the real scary part is Trump's cult, who are willing to pay a supposed billionaire's (convicted of fraud) bills regardless of the laws he breaks.

Oh, the Guilty Pleasures People Have

Guilty pleasures are something one enjoys despite the notion that it's not held in high regard, or is viewed as unusual, socially unacceptable, or just plain weird.

One of my guilty pleasures is hurkle-durkling.

For the record, Hurkel-Durkle is a Scottish term for lounging in bed long after its time to get up. Have you ever done this?

Keeping track of spending makes some people happy. I know that sounds crazy but it's true.

Counting patterns pleases some people who could tell you how many tiles there are in their bathroom.

Some people eat colored cereals according to their shade: first green, then yellow, and finally orange.

Eating a piece of bread in circles can be a guilty pleasure.

Fundamentally, guilty pleasures are still pleasures. And there's nothing wrong with that.

Here's eight no-guilt guilty pleasures that we all love...

1. Social media stalking

2. Ordering takeout when you run out of groceries.

3.Playing app games before bed.

4. Knowing the ins and outs of celebrity gossip

5. Putting things in your online cart and never buying them.

6. Binging on reality shows.

7. Wearing pajamas all day.

8. Giving your pet a pep talk.

Why Guilty Pleasures?

Because the activities or habits that bring us joy can also makes us feel slight shame. Maybe you don't want people to know you hold long conversations with your pets.

The truth is these types of indulgences make life more fun and bearable when your bogged down by the chaos in our society.

As it stands, I would caution people with guilty pleasures to not let them get out of hand - like hoarding for example.

Trump Barred from Doing Business in New York for 3 Years and has to Pay $354 Million

The myth of Trump being a great businessman has taken a further beating today when Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron fined him $354 million and barred Trump from being an officer or director of any New York corporation or other legal entity in New York for three years, and also barred his sons for two years apiece.

In addition, the court will continue with an independent monitor who will continue to oversee the Trump Organization's compliance with the rulings. It could have been worse had the judge chosen to completely dissolve the organization.

This ruling is a turning point for Trump's future.

To begin with where is Trump going to get the money to post the bail for this massive fine?

I ask that for a reason. Let's change trials for a moment to a recent one Trump already lost.

A jury awarded $83.3 million to columnist E. Jean Carroll for ongoing defamations following a prior trial after Trump was convicted of rape.

Thus far it's not clear if Trump has the money to pay the bond to stay out of jail, or even appeal the decision. And if he can't do that it should help people understand that is money is all smoke and mirrors.

Which brings us back to today's ruling.

It was a financially crippling blow to a man who claims to be a billionaire. Experts for years haven't believed his audacious claims of being one of the richest people in the world.

We'll find out about that when he looks around for bail bond companies for both trials. Trump's own lawyers don't even believe he has the liquid cash to post bail in either case.

Trump is appealing the decision(s) of course. Those two appeals will cost a lot of money so it's not entirely clear if he'll be able to pony up that cash yet.

As it stands, I fully expect Trump to grift his clueless cult for his legal expenses. Just like he's been doing throughout his numerous trials for years.

Now That's Entertainment! AG Fani Willis Calls Out MAGA Liars

Step aside judge Joe Brown and judge Judy... because there's a new judge on TV captivating American viewers...

meet Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee.

So, here's what transpired today:

Judge McAfee allowed Trump's lawyers to argue a frivolous challenge against Fulton County DA Fani Willis claiming she got money from her illegal relationship with Lead Prosecutor Nathan Wade in the Trump RICO trial.

The so-called evidentiary hearing to disqualify Willis from the Trump RICO case was full of lies and innuendos, but no real evidence.

McAfee went out of his way to put up with Ultra Trumper Ashleigh Merchant's repetitious accusations but as the hours crawled by his impatience was painted on his boyish face.

Hands down, Fani Willis was the star today. Wow! She roasted some ass right out of the gate. "So, let's be clear because you've lied in this," Willis snarled, pointing to copies she held of the filings and adding, "Right here, I think you lied right here."

After engaging in a tense back and forth with Ashleigh Merchant, the attorney for defendant Mike Roman, Willis had the best line of the day, "You think I'm on trial. These people are on trial for trying to steal an election in 2020," she charged, pointing towards the table of attorneys representing defendants in the criminal case.

"I'm not on trial, no matter how hard you try to put me on trial," she told the MAGA loyalists poising as real lawyers.

Ashleigh Merchant, who is leading the removal effort to get Willis off the case, said she had two witnesses to call Friday in what should be the last day of the hearing.

Judge McAfee said in closing today's hearing, "I'm not ruling on any of this tomorrow.  This is something that's going to be taken under advisement on all aspects."

The goal according to McAfee is that the evidence phase will end tomorrow, and to take it from there. He also raised the prospect of scheduling final arguments from the parties at a later date.

Meanwhile, if you're interested in a REAL reality trial (with some drama) don't forget to tune in on Friday.

As it stands, I have a feeling court room dramas are going to be on everyone's must see trial TV for the rest of the year to find out if our judicial system can hold Trump accountable for his numerous crimes against our republic.

Trying to Rewrite Reality ... a Day at a Time

In Trump's never-ending quest to defy what's really happening in the world he keeps adjusting his cons, so he can use new ways of spreading misinformation.

Recently the orange buffoon rolled out his latest strategy to create fake news by scrubbing portions of articles he doesn't like. This blatant form of media manipulation is what we've come to expect from the twice-impeached former president.

It's nothing new that Trump loves to post right-wing propaganda articles about himself, but this new spin in his never-ending siege against our freedoms, is disgusting.

Now Trump is taking mainstream articles that have a more balanced approach onto his timeline: screenshot them and remove unfavorable content.

For example, a recent Newsweek article - "Donald Trump Poised to Be First Republican to Win Popular vote in 20 Years" - was reposted on Truth Social and lines of texts (even paragraphs) were removed from the original article.

One of the missing paragraphs contained comments by University of Surrey professor Dr. Mark Shanahan who said Trump's goal to win the "popular vote" is a "pipe dream." 

He went on to say it is "unlikely" for Trump to create "an alliance of young voters, women and minorities" in order to secure a popular vote win."

I'm no lawyer but it seems like Newsweek could go after Trump for willfully changing and removing content. It does have a copywrite. 

However, it might not be worth spending millions to call Trump to account. He just keeps getting away with things that no one else in this country could do without consequences.

As a matter of fact, Trump has based his entire life and career on lies, with very few repercussions. 

That might change this year with four criminal trials adding up to 91 felony charges. But these are strange and dangerous days for our democracy where a cult has co-opted the Republican party.

As it stands, I don't think there's any hope that Trump minions will ever leave their alternate universe, so that leaves it up to the rest of us to protect our freedoms from the far-right propaganda machine.  

We Need to Develop a Vaccine to Protect Us from the Trump Cult

Racism and stupidity are infectious if allowed to spread, like in a cult.

Sadly, there's no vaccine to prevent them.

Why?

We only survived the COVID-19 pandemic because scientists developed a vaccine that worked. Those nasty germs wouldn't have gone away if we just tried to ignore them.

The same is true for Trump's cult.

How to Inoculate Trumpies

The vaccine is going to have to be disguised as something MAGA morons would drink like orange Kool Aid.

Then there needs to be a national effort to put up free Orange Kool Aid Stations - particularly in rural areas. 

Advertising efforts should be directed to how viral men and women feel when they slurp Trump's Own (@copyright 2024) Orange Kool Aid.

The vaccine doesn't cure people right away. It's a slow process for the person to be able to clearly recognize reality. They will go through a stage of recovery where they'll be forced to see the emperor has no clothes. 

There are no guarantees the vaccine will be 100% effective. Some Trumpies have their heads so far up his corpulent ass they won't be able to drink the orange Kool Aid.

It's imperative we reclaim our country from this corrupt cult and restore sanity to the national dialogue. The malicious members of MAGA don't want our republic to be a Constitutional Democracy.

It's going to take time to restore order because Trump supporters have infected our state and federal offices, the judicial system, the electoral system, and even our families.

So scientific community when are you going to save this great nation with a freedom vaccine?

As it stands, I really wish there was a cure for the hate, stupidity, and racism that's so prominent in today's society. 

Clueless Quotes That Show America's Challenges

When GOP Sen. John Cornyn told the press he doesn't take Trump "literally" I instantly could tell he was clueless.

After nearly eight years of Trump being in the national limelight political analysts have concluded that when Trump says something out loud, he means it.

Here's a classic clueless rant from former GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann:

"What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing (health care)...We are looking at reaching down the throat and ripping the guts out of freedom. And we may never be able to restore it if we don't man up."

Color that not only cluses but also psychotic.

But wait! There's more...

"I'm sick and tired of stupid people in Washington" Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green told reporters recently.

You see what I mean when I say clueless?

"My opinion of a white nationalist, if someone wants to call them white a nationalist, to me is an American." GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville opined recently. 

To be clear, white nationalists are not your average Americans - they're domestic terrorists who are on the DOJ's list of hate groups. 

Looking at Tuberville's career, I'm reminded of Groucho Marx's classic quip in Duck Soup (1933) that brother Chico "may look like an idiot and talk like an idiot but don't let that fool you. He really is an idiot."

Here's what North Carolina's Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson recently said at a campaign rally about arresting transgender individuals using women's restrooms,

"We're going to defend women in this state. That means if you're a man on Friday night, and all of a sudden on Saturday, you feel like a woman, and you want to go to the women's bathroom in the mall, you will be arrested - or whatever we got to do to you."

He further emphasized, "If you are a man, you better go to the men's bathroom. If you are confused find a corner outside."

Besides being clueless about the LGBTQ community, Robinson's apparent anger towards people he doesn't understand only promotes hate.

High on the list of conservative idiots, Megyn Kelly, showed why she's clueless when she tweeted on X yesterday,

"The so-called Black National Anthem does not belong at the Super Bowl. We already have a National Anthem, and it includes EVERYONE," she ranted on social media."

To be clear, "Lift Every Voice and Sing" did not replace the National Anthem. It was part of a tribute that included the National Anthem and America the Beautiful.

Of course, when you're clueless those kinds of facts never sink in.

As it stands, this country faces numerous challenges and clueless, bigoted hatemongers are top among them.