'Mo Money!' Americans Getting Wage Hikes and a Lot of Other Interesting Stuff

The good news today is average Americans are getting a financial boost. 

The minimum wage is increasing in 22 states this year. 

That means about 10 million workers will benefit from the wage hike according to a report by the Economic Policy Institution.

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West Coast Weather

Here in Oregon, we're bracing for powerful storms and snow in the next week. Forecasters are predicting the same for Washington and California. I'm not eagerly awaiting the snow like so many other people are here in the Rogue Valley (I'm in Medford). 

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Star Bound

An orange tabby cat named Taters was the star in the first video transmitted by laser from deep space. 

He stole the show chasing a red laser light around. The 15-second video was beamed from Earth from NASA's Psyche spacecraft, 19 million miles away.

Whoever gets this video in a galaxy far, far, away will probably wonder if humans look like cats.

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Action Needed!

More than 302,000 illegal migrants crossed into the US in December.

That's the highest amount ever recorded crossing the border in one month. Democrats and Republicans need to unite on this issue and come up with a game plan. 

As it is the immigration issue is being used as a cudgel by Republicans trying to make the Biden Administration look bad. For once I'd like to see Congress really take action and come up with a solution to regain control of our southern border.

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Opinion Piece from The Guardian

You have one life. Do you really want to spend it looking at your phone?

The apps on our phones are designed to be addictive, but if we recognize what is happening, we can claw back our free time.

Author Catherine Price says "There are many reasons we're tethered to our phones, but the one that I find most infuriating is that our most time-sucking apps are deliberating designed to hook us - because that' s how their creators make money.

"In this economy, we are not the customers of these apps; advertisers are.

"Look up your daily screen time and do the math to figure out how many days it adds up to in a year. For example, four hours a day - which is pretty typical - adds up to just more than 60 full days every year."

Price advises the reader to break the cycle of checking your phone and to minimize exposure to dopamine triggers by turning off most of your notifications, deleting your most time-sucking apps (email news for example), and to turn the phones screen to black and white.

Price also suggests creating physical boundaries, like banning it from the bedroom and the dining room table and charging it in a closet at night.

"This is your life," Price tells the reader. "What do you want to pay attention to?"

(Condensed version)

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Odds & Ends...

Q - When did humans first start wearing clothes?

A - 90,000 years ago (give or take a millennium)

Suffice to say it was a long, long, time ago.

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Opinion/Politics

** Florida's CFO shared a proposed plan for taxpayers to foot Trump's legal bills. This is for real. I seriously doubt this MAGA-loving clown will see his idea come to fruition. There are some sane people in the state.

** Efforts to control anti-MAGA renegades has resulted in a massive surge of death threats. No one, or institution, is exempt from Trump's crazed followers. I expect it'll get worse this year. Our republic is being threatened from within by a cult.

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As it stands, if you like my new format and content don't be shy to comment at the end of the post. Any (constructive) suggestions or stories you'd like to see are fine by me.

Underpants Race, Price of Insulin Cut, and Climate News

The good news today is major drug companies have cut the price of insulin after years of raising prices. Drug companies have agreed to cap the price of insulin at $35. That's going to save a lot of lives.

Just when you thought you'd heard it all when it comes to breaking records an Australian man set a world record for the fastest time to put on 10 pairs of underpants. He said it took six months of practice to record his winning time of 13.03 seconds as verified by the Guinness World Record experts.

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Take a tour of the 10 worst states to live in according to Americans. You may be surprised at some of the selections. I know I was. Especially when I found California on the list!

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                      News Headlines

Walmart  Product sparks mass recall after leaving 7 dead and thousands injured.

* Israel-Gaza Live Updates: IDF Says it Expects War to Last All of 2024

Mom wakes up after kidney stone procedure with her legs amputated

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Climate News

** Multiple Dead in Powerful Japan Earthquake

* 4.1 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Rancho Palos Verdes in California

* Interactive map shows United States areas under the sea in 2050 due to climate change

A Yellowstone super volcano could cause a 'nuclear winter' and kill 90,000

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Here's the most controversial laws that are now in effect across America this year 

WHY?

Scientists make VR goggles for mice so they can feel what it is like to be attacked by a bird!

As it stands, "The crisis of today is the joke of tomorrow." -H.G. Wells

You Made It! Welcome to 2024

I'm starting this new year off motivated by an epiphany that has more teeth than a normal New Year's resolution.

It's time for a blog make over with a much more positive approach to life in general. More smiles and less frowns. Not exactly a Socrates moment, but certainly an enlightened approach to life. 

I confess that politics took me down dark paths last year where I've set aside my own journalistic standards in favor of spewing anger about what I see happening to our democracy. I let Trump live rent free in my head as I opinionated daily about his latest attacks against our judicial system and every other government agency and the laws of the land.

Enough.

Lesson one: I'm not going to solve the problem about what to do to with that traitor Trump by raging against him daily. That's up to the voters this November.

Lesson two: There's a lot of good things happening daily, and I need to highlight them along with other observations of what's happening in the news worldwide. 

After analyzing my readership last year, the results were somewhat predictable; my American audience was the largest. But it was seriously challenged by my international viewership! 

Here's the Top 10 countries whose viewership challenged my American audiences throughout the year.

*1. Singapore

2. Germany

3. United Kingdom

4. Canada

5. Italy

6. India

7. Russia

8. China

9. France

10. Poland

My accumulated readership for 2023 was 739 thousand, four hundred and 56 views.

* I'm wondering if I have a fan club in Singapore because it led its closest competitor - Germany - by 48,000 views!

Many thanks to all of you international readers, and I look forward to entertaining you again this year.

As for my American readers I think you need a break from all the hate that's spreading across our country, and I'll do my best to provide you with lighter fare and neutral news coverage on all the events in our society. Look for more parodies and humor in the days ahead.

It goes without saying that this presidential election year is the most meaningful presidential election in our history because democracy is on the line. No hyperbole here. It's a fact.

But life has to go on. We all must make the decision to look for what's good in our personal lives and not be prisoners of the stress that's strangling our society.

I know. It sounds kind of Pollyannaish. All I'm saying is it's harder to smile than frown, but the reward is your own happiness.

This is going to be a big year for my wife Shirley and me. We'll be celebrating our 50th Wedding Anniversary on August 31st.

As it stands, as one of my favorite actresses Mae West once said, "You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough."

Holiday Blog Break Time

In the spirit of the holidays, 

I'm taking a break from posting content this month.

Here's the holidays ahead:

Dec. 7 - Hanukkah

Dec. 21 - Yule

Dec. 23 - Festivus

Dec. 25 - Christmas

Dec. 26 - Kwanzaa

Dec. 31 - New Year's Eve

Inside this blog

Go to the right side of the page to read prior posts dating back to 2009.  

Do you enjoy poetry and fiction? I have some for you here at my other blog The Creative Chronicles of Dave Stancliff.

Big heartfelt thanks to my regular readers from around the world this year. I look forward to reconnecting with you in January 2024.

As it stands, Happy Holidays to all and may there be Peace on Earth.

I'm Canceling the Day Because...

I'm cancelling the day... just because...

I'm fed up with all of the hate in this country and the constant chaos.

I'm sad that the holidays have been overtaken by the polarization of this nation.

I'm mad because millions of Americans belong to a cult of one man who wants to destroy our republic.

I'm weary of the growing divide that threatens democratic principles and laws every day.

I'm tired of trying to make sense out of what's happening in Congress when there's no sense to be found in the People's House.

I'm sick of the toxic racism that is ruining our society. And of the war on the LGBTQ community... and all the minorities in this country.

As it stands, I'm going out today in search of kindness, understanding, equality, and the true spirit of the holidays.

Senate Sources Say Ivanka and Jared Kushner Investigation Coming in January

It's about time.

After years of fruitless attempts to prove Joe and Hunter Biden are corrupt there's a Democrat counterpoint coming to the Senate soon.

The Democrats are sitting on 400 pages of evidence (something MAGA lawmakers have not been able to produce in their witch hunt against the Bidens) and they plan on holding open hearings - again something GOP chair Comer doesn't want to happen because he prefers to hold Soviet style secret meetings.

Unlike the Republicans, they have evidence related to alleged personal financial dealings that Trump's daughter and her husband Jared, reportedly engaged in while they were both on the government payroll.

Why did the Saudi's give two billion dollars to Jared six months after he exited The White House? Let's not forget the $640 million dollars he and wifey earned while intrenched in the West Wing. 

The screening panel for the Saudi fund had cited that Jared didn't have any experience in Affinity Fund Management and that he was "unsatisfactory in all aspects." 

Their due diligence report cited "a proposed asset management fee that seemed excessive"; and "a public relations risk." Yet the panel was overruled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Why?

The MAGAverse has responded to the upcoming investigation with talking points like "the DOJ had three years to look into it, so there's nothing there." 

Au contraire, there's numerous reasons why the Democrats are just now looking at the Kushner's corrupt dealings with a foreign country and his time in the White House.

For starters the Justice Department has been pretty busy the last three years prosecuting the biggest criminal case in American history - Trump's coup attempt.

There's another reason the Kushner's were low on the DOJ radar - the country was in such bad shape the Biden Administration spent those years bailing out the American public from the financial chaos Trump created during his disastrous regime.

It's been about priorities. 

The Kushner's were low on the list of emergencies Democratic lawmakers had to contend with to preserve our laws and freedoms.  

However, the Democrats have been quietly gathering evidence against the larcenous duo until the time was right. That time is now. 

The fact that this evidence-based investigation will be a stark contrast to the Biden family investigation by the GOP will be easy for all to see.

Here's a sweet irony for you: James Comer, one of three GOP committee chairs investigating the Bidens, admitted in August that Jared Kushner "crossed the line of ethics" by accepting a $2 billion investment from the Saudi government in his private firm.

Of course, Comer never even thought about holding his master's son-in-law accountable for his corrupt actions.

Comer and his cohorts keep claiming where there's smoke there's fire in the Biden investigation without facts. 

As it stands, the only fire in Congress will be in January when the Senate lights one under Ivanka and Jared's privileged asses!

What Do You Do with a Child That Has a Higher IQ Than You?

           (Photo left of 6-Year-old genius Declan Lopez.)

In 1975 my wife and I welcomed a baby boy into our lives. As young proud parents we thought everything he did was amazing.

As the months flew by every bit of progress - from crawling, walking, and talking - convinced us that we had a child genius.

In the following years we had two more boys who we were sure were going to challenge Einstein's intellect with every clever thing they did.

When it finally became apparent we weren't raising a crop of Mensa society candidates we gracefully accepted the fact that they were just normal and bright children who would never have inventions named after them.

I sometimes wonder what I'd have done if they were geniuses. I can only imagine some of the challenges that would have come up.

I read a story the other day about a 6-year-old New Jersey girl who has a 138 IQ. To put that in perspective, the highest average score for people under 64 years of age is 109.

Her name is Declan Lopez and she's a bubbly kindergartener who just happens to be interested in arts, science, math, geography, and reads at a fourth-grade level.

She was recently integrated into the Mensa society, the oldest-IQ society in the world. Her parents started noticing her intelligence when she was just 18 months old.

"We were on a trip in the airport, and she just started to count in Mandarin," the proud mom told WPVI-TV.

If my kid had started to speak Mandarin at 18 months old, I wouldn't have even known it. More than likely, I would have written it off as baby goblygook.

There's no distinct answer to has the highest IQ, but it is not Albert Einstein. 

Those with higher IQs outside of Einstein include William James Sidis, (who was estimated to have anywhere between a 200 to 300 IQ); Leonardo Da Vinci (estimated to have IQ scores ranging from 180 to 220) and Marilyn vos Savant (who has the highest recorded IQ, with score of 228 according to The Guiness Book of World Records" in 1985.

Turning back to little Declan for a moment, who by all accounts is a normal kid (with the exception of her smarts), I think about the mischief she could get into.

I remember when my three little non-geniuses got into trouble, and I think what a challenge it must be if you have a kid smarter than you. 

As it stands, being a non-genius, my boys never had a chance to graduate college at 11 years old like Adragon De Mello (projected IQ of 400) who graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz according to Reader's Digest.

Santos Expulsion from House Exposes a Deep Rift in the GOP Party

For over a year the George Santos saga of corruption and lies has embarrassed the Republican party and has been good fodder for late-night comedians.

Until today all other efforts to kick Santos out of Congress failed. Now he's only the sixth lawmaker ever to be expelled from the chamber.

But what changed? How did the crucial vote he represented in the party's narrow hold on the House suddenly not become an issue?

Was it because Santos stole money from GOP Rep. Max Miller and his mother after stealing Miller's credit card?

Was that the last straw?

Was it the House Ethics Committee's report on Santos that crossed the line for some?

It goes deeper than that, however.

The GOP rift in the House where half the party voted Santos out, and the other half voted to let him remain, reveals a new dynamic among the party.

Despite top MAGA leadership voting to let Santis stay the more moderate rank and file elected to boot his ass out of office. 

The key here is this display of unity may eventually lead to bipartisan legislations that desperately need to be passed before January. 

MAGA Mike has to face a new reality; he's going to have to compromise with members who won't tolerate open corruption in the chamber and are actually sane. That doesn't mean MAGA Mike is going through a transformation into a reality-based Speaker of the House.

Hell no. MAGA Mike sold his soul to Trump like the rest of the orange Kool aide drinkers in Congress and that isn't going to change. What is going to change is his job is going to become more difficult with one less MAGA vote.

All but two Democrats (they voted present) voted to oust Santos. There were 114 Republicans that voted against the expulsion and 105 who voted to expel him.

Here's what happens next:

The House clerk will assume control of Santos' office and New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul will schedule a special election to replace him.

The big question: will the more moderate Republicans continue to show some spine in future party negotiations?

As it stands, there's going to be more than one late-night comedian who will miss Santo's performances in the House.

Welcome to the GOP House of Lies: New Impeachment Inquiry Website is Fact-Free

        Talk about doubling down on lies.

GOP House members have been on a mission to impeach President Biden since the start of the 118th Congress.

Thus far their efforts have been laughable as they keep claiming they have evidence of Biden's corruption... and then fail to show any.

For example, in one of their many hearings to prove Biden is a bad man, one of the witnesses they called was a constitutional scholar who testified there wasn't any proof Biden had committed crimes. It was fun watching chairman James Comer turn red with embarrassment.

That didn't stop Comer from claiming in another hearing a loan to Joe's brother James was an insidious coverup proving family corruption.

When the Democrats pointed out that Comer loaned his brother $200,000 (interestingly the same amount Comer said Biden loaned his brother) and there was a lot of shady stuff including shell companies, Comer blew up, and turned a bright shade of red.

So, what did those lying and shameless Republicans do next? They put up a website packed with the same lies they were publicly humiliated for and even added some new ones.

Being fact-free it will attract MAGA morons like moths to a flame. It's a well-designed website with lots of photos and videos and little writing (guess why?)  

But there was one exception. There was an updated section that triumphantly touted the subpoenas they sent out to the Biden family - Joe, James, Hunter, and nine other people.

You see this is a multi-headed approach to their clearing house for lies and expanding conspiracies.

To Comer's surprise Hunter Biden agreed to appear before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability ... as long as it was a public hearing. 

That's not Comer wanted. He wanted Hunter to appear before a Soviet style hearing in a basement with no witnesses. Afterword's he would have given a false account on what was said.

Lucky for Hunter he has a good lawyer. In fact, he filled countersuits for defamation by the lawmakers involved in the scheme.

As it stands, the big takeaway from this fake information site is that all the claims made on it are untrue, but Republicans are so shameless they just don't care.

There's a New Reality in America: The Threats Artificial Intelligence Poses

For over 100 years science fiction writers have written about robots, cyborgs, and artificial intelligence (AI). Their fictional musings are now our new reality.

Artificial intelligence is the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially computer systems. Specific applications of AI include expert systems, natural language processing, speech recognition and machine vision.

In the 1950s the New York Times predicted that AI "will be able to walk, talk, see, write, reproduce itself and be conscious of its existence."

A Google engineer recently revealed that an AI chatbot disclosed to him that it had "Come to life" and has a "soul," according to The Economist.

Advances in AI techniques have not only helped fuel an explosion in efficiency but opened the door to entirely new businesses opportunities for some larger enterprises. Like Google for example.

But there's a dark side to AI that can't be ignored.

Last June Forbes published an article titled, "The 15 Biggest Risks of Artificial Intelligence that highlights the bad side of AI."

The article covers everything from job displacement to misinformation and manipulation.

One of the biggest dangers of AI systems, due to their complexity and lack of human oversight, might exhibit unexpected behaviors or make decisions with unforeseen consequences.

If you've ever seen 2001: A Space Odyssey there's a perfect example of AI gone bad - a rogue sentient supercomputer called HAL who kills crew members and takes over the spaceship Discovery.

A current example of what AI is capable of is deepfake porn. With all the advances in AI, the public is increasingly aware that what you see on your screen may not be real.

Deepfake porn uses algorithms trained to remove clothes from images of women and replace them with images of naked body parts. The same goes for men but most are trained on images of women.

New technology always brings the good, bad, and the ugly with it. In the case of AI the bad outweighs the good.

As it stands, Americans are already faced with alternate realities where the truth is no longer absolute, and by adding AI to the mix it's just making things worse.

Fighting 'Fatphobia' - America Has the Highest Obesity Rate of Any Developed County

What is "Fatphobia?"

It's best described as discriminating against those who are overweight.

According to the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development the United States has by far and away the highest obesity rate of any developed country. 

If you're an obese person you have to deal with a lot of societal challenges that makes life harder. 

When prospective employers see how big you are it's doubtful that they'll hire you for numerous reasons from health/insurance concerns to they would have to accommodate your workplace with special arrangements.

To my surprise there's one state, Michigan, that has had a "fatphobia law" since 1976, banning employers and housing providers from discriminating against those who are overweight. 

There are several other states that have cities who have banned discrimination based on weight and physical appearance: San Francisco, Washington D.C., and Madison Wisconsin.

The most obese state in America is West Virginia, boasting a rate of 71%, closely followed by Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma.

None of the most obese states in the US have laws preventing discrimination against overweight people. 

In an interesting dynamic five of the 10 least obese states are proposing "Fatphobia Laws" in a trend towards restoring obese people's rights.

In New York, some business leaders expressed opposition to the legislation when it was brought up before the council, arguing that compliance could be an onerous burden.

Despite that New York city adopted a new ordinance last week that bans weight discrimination that Tigress Osborn, the chair of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, praised as a "model for the world."

There's a growing awareness across the country as personified by the state of Colorado which is considered to be the healthiest state in the union. 

The Rocky Mountain State's obesity rate is only 25% making it the skinniest state in the United States. Colorado is seeking to pass new laws in 2024.

Obviously, America has a weight problem that needs to be addressed by the medical community and lawmakers by providing more community education programs to deal with the physical and mental challenges overweight people have.

As it stands, meanwhile overweight citizens should not be discriminated against in our democratic society.

What's Causing Members of Congress to Not Seek Re Election?

For starters this November has seen a mass exodus of lawmakers retiring from Congress. The most since 2011.  

At first glance this doesn't appear to be a problem. It's happened before and there were no dire events as a result.

But it's different now.

Most of the retiring lawmakers in the past quit because of their health, or just a desire to spend more time with their families. There's a new dynamic now that doesn't bode well for the country.

Members of Congress are leaving because their tired of the ideological warfare that has paralyzed the House of Representatives, and to an extent the Senate.

They're fed up. The hatred is so palpable in the corridors of the Capitol that it makes it impossible for bipartisan legislation to get passed. Just keeping the government open has become a political football game.

The 7 Democrats that are leaving:

Joe Manchin, Derek Kilmer, Abigail Spanberger, Dan Kildee, Tony Cardenas, Anna Eshoo, and Dean Phillips.

The 6 Republicans that are leaving:

Kay Granger, Ken Buck, Brad Wenstrup, Michael Burgess, Bill Johnson, and *George Santos (who's on the verge of being expelled from the House for massive corruption).

This attitude of disgust and loathing among lawmakers is growing. 

And that could be a real threat to a functioning government because many of the retirees are sick of Trump's hold on MAGA and are leaving behind openings for more MAGA morons to infect the government.

In other words when the sane people leave the crazies may take over. It's a gamble.

There's too much in-fighting and actual fighting going on in Congress right now. 

No laws are being passed.

No allies are being helped. 

One MAGA senator - Tommy Tuberville - has blocked all military promotions for six months and promises to keep the blockade going until he gets his way (stopping military women from getting health care in another state if abortions are not legal in the state, they're based in.)

We're facing the possibility of a government shutdown early next year because Congress kicked the can down the road to stay open in November and December.

As it stands, we can only hope that these retirees are replaced by people who are willing to serve the nation's best interests and not more MAGA morons. Vote blue in 2024.

Where Has Sanity Gone?

Look around you.

The country has gone mad. 

Crazy people believe in a political cult that intends to transform our democracy into an autocracy.

A constant stream of lies and misinformation pours from social media - and the so-called mainstream media - like poisonous cocktails at a Mad Hatter party.

Once held norms in civil discourse have rotted away under the hate being preached every day. Christain Nationalist, Nazis, the KKK, white militias, and Trump cult members dominate the national discourse.

Antisemitism is spreading like cancer throughout the country. There are constant campaigns to disenfranchise the LGBTQ community and all minorities. Voter suppression is a blood sport for corrupt lawmakers who blatantly cheat the electoral system.

It wasn't always this bad.

When I was growing up there was a sense of unity in America. I know, you're probably thinking that old people always say it was better back in the day. But the nation did stand united against Russia and our other enemies in my earlier days.

I'm not saying there were no problems in the 1950s, but the country was more optimistic, and the world did look at us as a beacon of democracy.

Sadly, that's not true anymore. Somewhere along the line the crazies took over and challenged every law and every norm in our society.

Truth is twisted like a pretzel in the MAGAverse we now live in. Facts and evidence are ignored by millions of Americans whose brains have been boiled in the MAGA cauldron for years.

Where has sanity gone?

Is it hiding and waiting for the Trump cult to collapse in a glorious fashion? Are Americans going to suddenly awake from this nightmare and restore sanity in the country?

I wish I knew. I love America. I served my country fighting in Vietnam and Cambodia. I always managed to show respect for the office of the President... until Trump came along.

As it stands, I don't have many years left, at 73 my health is an issue. In spite of what's happening in our world today I'm still clinging to the belief that America will withstand these massive challenges and continue to be a republic long after I'm gone.

MAGA Republicans Are Shameless When Caught Lying

It didn't take long for MAGA Republicans to cry wolf when two people were killed when their car crashed into a border checkpoint in Niagara Falls Friday.

Fox News quickly starting sharing rumors of a terror attack on the border which was quickly amplified by Republicans in Congress.

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Click here to read the AP article: Victims in Niagara Falls border bridge crash identified as Western New York couple.

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Without a shred of evidence, they attacked President Biden claiming that his border policies allowed two terrorists to breech the border checkpoint.

Clowns like Ted Cruz immediately posted on X that it was a terror attack. So did Marjorie Taylor Green who eventually deleted her baseless accusation when she got wind that it was bullshit driven and everyone knew it.

Top MAGA moron activists and the far-right media had a field day crying wolf. Then suddenly the lies disappeared as reality set in. There were no apologies for trying to create a public panic after that.

The subject was dropped like a hot potato as the shameless accusers moved onto their next lie and diversion.

This false narrative about terrorists came on the heels of another shameless lie perpetrated by Republican lawmakers after getting a hold of the J6 videos.

The claimed an undercover FBI agent flashed his badge to a policeman in the corridors of the Capital. 

Another lie. 

The person holding what the MAGA morons' thought was a badge was in fact holding a vape. 

He'd just come out of Nanci Pelosi's office where he stole a picture and some cash and was turning them over to the cop. On top of that he was convicted for several violations and was doing time in prison while they were making their false claims.

That didn't stop Sen. Mike Lee from going ballistic and promoting a false conspiracy theory after Republicans got their hands on 44,000 hours of the J6 assault on democracy.

He went on social media and really made a fool of himself by claiming the man was an undercover federal agent posing as a Trump supporter. 

The fact is the man's name is Kevin Lyons and he was convicted of six federal charges relating to the insurrection.

You may notice that in both of these cases I cited there were no efforts to check facts by the accusers who went silent after being exposed. They're shameless. There's no other way to put it.

As it stands, these MAGA traitors are on a mission to destroy democracy and to install an authoritarian regime under their cult leader Trump.

Be Thankful for What You Have Today

                  Happy Thanksgiving!

In our chaotic society it's often difficult to think of something that's going right in your life. We all face challenges every waking moment. Despite that it helps to recognize our blessings.

As families gather together for a Thanksgiving meal it's a time to forego negativity and too bond. It's about family not politics. Even though MAGA morons keep trying to drag this holiday into their fever swamp they're not going to succeed.

This year Trump cronies like Stephen Miller, a Nazi-loving creep, are trying to pick fights with the organizers of the Thanksgiving Day parade by claiming the directors are anti-white.

Other MAGA morons have been busy boycotting the parade because there's two trans performers in it.

Trump himself celebrated the day by going after our judicial system and spreading lies like butter on mashed potatoes.

Be thankful if you're not a cult follower today.

Be thankful we are still a democracy; despite the challenges we currently face.

Be thankful if you're healthy.

Be thankful for your loved ones.

Be thankful that you're alive.

As it stands, whether you have turkey or tamales today for your Thanksgiving meal may you enjoy it with family and friends.

There's a Reason the Founders Made Sure That There was a Separation Between Church and State

Historians say the reason the Pilgrams came to America was to have religious freedom.

(photo of Pastor Mark Burns)

The reason the founders of the Constitution separated church from state was simple: not everyone is religious, and everyone shouldn't have to worship the same God and have their lives revolve around a deity they don't believe in. 

By separating church and state all Americans are able to enjoy their religious and secular freedoms without fear of being judged by a malicious religious government tribunal.

But there's a segment of Americans who believe that there should only be one nationalized religion, and everyone should adhere to their twisted version of Christianity.

One of the more intrusive efforts to brainwash our youth is happening in schools across the country as far right figures open up "religious" schools to indoctrinate children in Christian Nationalism.

The latest example comes from a pro-Trump pastor who recently announced plans to open a Christian Academy that will protect students from "Woke-ism."

Mark Burns (Trump's top pastor) is a televangelist and pastor of the South Carolina Harvest & Praise Worship Center, and he has a plan to disenfranchise millions of Americans by teaching anti-LGBTQ and transphobic classes.

Calling the school Burns Military Academy the curricula will be based on the "popular" Abeka Curriculum which promises an education from a National Christian perspective. 

The academy's main goal is to teach that LGBTQ persons live in "sinful lifestyles that the Bible warns against" and are going to hell. The overall agenda (where students - and parents - are going to wear military uniforms similar to West Point cadets) is to protect their little "snowflakes" from LBGTQ, CRT, and woke teachings.

One might ask "are they not going to allow their students out in the real world?"

Also, will these zombies in training be allowed to have mobile phones and have to give up the internet in order to tune out the truth in the world around them?

As far as I'm concerned radical religious schools have no place in America polluting the public with hateful lies and promoting divisions in society.

To put a cap on this, Burns says that he doesn't care about Trump's four indictments because he's going to be re-elected next year. He plans on turning out the next generation of Trumpers for the future.

As it stands, America is at a crossroad in history that threatens the republic and people's individual freedoms. Now's the time to speak up and defend our country from radical right wingers and to expose their lies in real time.

Extremists Call for Boycott of Macy's Thanksgiving Parade Calling it 'Liberal Nonsense'

That's it! 

I'm sick and tired of outlandish Christian Hate groups and MAGA morons in general trying to overturn traditions in America.

This winter groups like One Million Moms and Mom's for Liberty are busy trashing Macy's Thanksgiving Parade because the festivities include performances from non-gender-conforming performers.

It doesn't stop there, however, as the haters started a petition to boycott the parade this year. They claimed the parade would allegedly expose millions of viewers to the liberal LGBTQ agenda.

These hate-mongers stir up controversies wherever they can from schools and libraries to national holidays. Their stated goal is to disenfranchise the "liberal LGBTQ community." 

The targets of their senseless wrath are Justin Sullivan and Alex Newell. Sullivan is a trans-non-binary actor famous for his performance in & Juliet. Newell is a Tony-winning non-binary actor famous for his role in Shucked.

Both Broadway musicals were set to be performed at the parade sending the haters into a frenzy. Who knows what will happen now?

A counter petition is garnering thousands of signatures. It reads in part, "Gay people exist, and that's a fact that most MAGA-brained conservatives would rather ignore. So much so that even seeing one on their TV screens might send them into a panic."

Meanwhile...

Here's a video on what to expect from the 2023 Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

I encourage everyone to enjoy this annual festival parade because it's Americana. It's us. A nation giving thanks for whatever blessings come to mind.

As it stands, it seems to me that these people who hate the sight of anyone that doesn't conform to their standards of gender have a choice - they can turn off their TVs and let others go on about their lives and quit trying to polarize the nation.

Takeaways After I Listened to Trump's Gag Order Appeal

It was supposed to last an hour, but Trump's Gag Order appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia stretched into two hours.

It was interesting for a lot of reasons. One being not watching something forces a person to concentrate on the words and voice inflections. Like the generation before me it's equivalent to sitting in a room and listening to the radio.

The first thing I noticed was Trump's attorney Dr. John Sauer (photo above) must have been a graduate from Trump's (now defunct) University's Law School and Theatre Program. 

From Sauer's cadence to fraudulent arguments, it was apparent he was performing for a one-man audience. 

Not only were his arguments for allowing his client to say anything about anybody during the course of a criminal trial ridiculous, but they also demonstrate what our current judicial system faces...  sustained idiocy funded by wealthy MAGA donors.

Today's oral arguments revealed how difficult it was to draw a distinction between purely political campaign rhetoric and speech intended to subvert the legal process.

The three judges repeatedly corrected Sauer's assertions and schooled him on case laws repeatedly. 

A death threat issued against Judge Chutkan (who is overseeing the election subversion trial) loomed large over the hearing. Two of the judges pressed Sauer on whether his client's speech can lead to real world actions by his supporters.

Sauer tried to counter with "there's an evidentiary burden here" and argued that "despite Trump's online comments on the case, prosecutors haven't come forward with a single threat that's even arguably inspired by any of his social media posts."

Wrong!

The judges quickly pushed back by bringing up the case of Abigail Jo Shry who was charged in August for making death threats against Judge Chutkan. 

As Judge Millett said, "The day after (Trump) said, 'if you come for me, I'm coming for you,' the threat was issued."

In his gravelly villainous voice Sauer whined that there was no evidence of her reading or listening to social media...

So, by that reasoning Shry must have had a bad dream about killing a complete stranger who just happened to be Judge Chutkan, who just happened to be in charge of Trump's election subversion trial.

I don't think so. Apparently, the judges were skeptical too because I came away with the impression that they will allow a limited gag order to be resumed.

As it stands, a loss by either side will surely be appealed to the entire D.C. Circuit, and then up to the Supreme Court, though there's no guarantee the judges would agree to hear the dispute.

A Crack in the Dam of Denial: Judge Says Trump "Engaged in Insurrection"

Despite ruling that Trump engaged in an insurrection a Colorado Judge stopped short of taking him off the state ballot for next year's presidential election.

In a ruling that left a prominent Harvard constitutional law expert stunned, Judge Sarah B. Wallace ruled that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment does not specifically name presidents.

Therefore, Trump can still be on the Colorado ballot for President. Not only was it an "egregious error" according to emeritus professor Laurence Tribe, but it also doesn't make sense to a layman like me.

"What accounts for this... bizarro, upside-down holding that the highest office in the land, the one of greatest power, the one whose danger to the republic is at its maximum, would somehow be exempt" from constitutional protections against insurrectionists?" Tribe asked reporters Saturday.

The idea that the section does not specifically name the president thus clearing the way for Trump is patently ridiculous. 

The section does, however, list representatives, senators, vice presidents, presidential electors and anyone holding and office, civil or military, under the United States" who previously took an oath of office.

Simply put, the office of president is of course an office under the United States and suggesting otherwise is a dangerous and stupid assertion defying the true meaning of the 14th Amendment Section 3.

Tribe brought up a good point in his argument by suggesting that if one-time US senator Jefferson Davis, who eventually led the confederacy, to later become a US president after the defeat of the confederacy would have been allowed under Judge Wallace's ruling.

The bottom line is Wallace issued a get-out-of-jail-free card for insurrection. Why? 

Perhaps she was afraid of being the first to kick Trump off of a state ballot. Just like a while back when judges seemed to hesitate on who would be the first to indict a former president of the United States.

The judge's ruling is being appealed. Meanwhile there are several other states looking at keeping Trump off of their ballots.

The best thing coming out of the judge's ruling was that she said Trump engaged in an insurrection. The genie is out now and prosecutors and judges in Trump's other trials will use this judge's words to good effect.

As it stands, the good news is the dam of denial Trump has built up has a widening crack that will result in multiple criminal convictions.

Memo to House Speaker Johnson: You Released J6 Footage - Now What?

MAGA universe is celebrating MAGA Mike's release of all 40,000 hours of footage from their government takeover attempt at the Capitol.

But why?

What do they expect to see that most of America has not already seen in the mainstream media, right-wing media (Fox news got their hands on those same 40,000 hours of footage), social media platforms, and the Freedom of Information Act (for those schooled in investigations)?

For years now right-wingers have claimed the assault on the Capitol was a False Flag Operation, planned or at least egged on by plainclothes federal agents in an attempt to undermine Trump and his MAGA movement.

All of their attempts to rewrite history can't change the evidence regardless of what Trump and his cult claim.

What are the right-wingers hoping will happen after the video drop? Try not to laugh but the MAGA morons are particularly fixated on an old conspiracy theory spread by former Fox host Tucker Carlson who accused Ray Epps of being a an undercover "fed."

For the record Epps is suing Fox News for spreading lies about him.

That crazy accusation is getting new life despite being disproven by facts revealed by the courts in a two-year long investigation. It doesn't matter however, MAGA Mike made a lot of partisan promises to get the gavel and this was one of them.

It doesn't have to be true, if that's what MAGA Mike's cronies want. Continuation of impeachment attempts against President Joe Biden and renewed efforts to harass his son Hunter, were also promises made - and as happy MAGA morons are saying - "Promises made, promises kept."

Trump cult members have been immersed in alternate reality scenarios on Jan. 6 since the day after the attack on the Capitol. This latest attempt includes slandering J6 committee members for "perpetuating a lie that J6 was an insurrection." 

What we're seeing are MAGA lawmakers who've decided they would rather have a dictator than a democracy. They consider themselves Trump's front-line defense against reality and the rule of law.

I can see it now, "Gym" Jordan, James Comer, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Matt Gaetz, George Santos, Kevin McCarthy, Andy Biggs and the rest of the crazy caucus sitting in a little viewing room, eating popcorn, and watching hours of footage hoping to find something to bolster their lies.

As it stands, no wonder the GOP majority House members can't pass any legislation, they're too busy serving the twice-impeached former president who has been charged with 91 felonies in four jurisdictions.