Don't 'Bring On The Clowns' This Halloween If You Don't Want To Be Arrested

"Don't you love farce?
My fault, I fear.
I thought that you'd want what I want...
Sorry, my dear!
And where are the clowns
Send in the clowns
Don't bother, they're here."
- Send In The Clowns

Good Day World!

It's not a real good idea to bring on the clowns this year.

With Halloween looming around the corner there's creepy clowns in the news for stalking people from coast-to-coast.

There's even a Definitive Map of America's Creepy Clown Epidemic. 

The new menace is called clowning.

Clowning has put real, make-em-laugh clowns and their defenders in a very bad place.

Here's some examples of clowns recently arrested or accused of having made threats:

• Indian Trail, N.C., where Union County sheriff's deputies said Monday that they'd arrested a man in clown makeup who was trespassing on a store's property while carrying a hatchet.
• Crookston, Minn., where police said Monday that a 15-year-old boy dressed up as a clown was arrested over the weekend, allegedly while carrying a large butcher knife.
• Spartanburg, S.C., where Spartanburg County sheriff's deputies said they're investigating a (poorly spelled) threat posted Monday on social media that aclown will attack two high schools on "holloween."
• Albuquerque, N.M., where police said Monday that three juveniles wearing clown masks were issued a citation Sunday for brandishing an air gun near a Babies "R" Us store.
•  (Source for above summaries)

You know what else is weird about this menacing clown phenomenon? It's even going on in the UK. Check this out.

The creepy clown movement didn't just spring up overnight however. According to a Rasmussen poll in 2014, 43 percent of American's "don't like" clowns. 

More recently, the annual Chapman University Survey of American Fears found that clowns were a cause of significant anxiety for 6.8 percent of Americans in 2015.

My advise to parents is simple, don't dress your kid up as a clown. To teenagers and older Halloween revelers, I especially want to warn you not to go anywhere as a clown this year.

It's not even safe for Ronald McDonald right now! 

You could get arrested, or even worse...someone might think you're Donald Trump!

Time for me to walk on down the road...

What Happens To The Trump Party Faithful After He Loses The Election?

Good Day World!

By now, Americans realize that there is a Republican party and a Trump party.

Trump minions have had to register as Republicans to vote, but that short marriage will end after Hillary Clinton takes office in a lopsided win.

Trumpies have no intention of letting their idol wander off into the dark night alone however. And, Trump won't let them forget that he alone can save everything they hold dear.

Look for Trump TV coming your way. Really.

With his built-in audience, many of them being alt-right trash, he can build a media empire with the help of his Breitbart buddy Steve Bannon, and disgraced sexual predator Roger Aisles (Faux News boss).

Meanwhile, as Election Day draws near it's dawning on some Trumpies that he may lose the race.

Example: Watch: Armed Trump Supporter Menaces Virginia Democratic Campaign Office for 12 hours 

The two loons shown in the video sense Trump's losing. They believe the election is rigged because Trump said there's a global conspiracy to defeat him.

How many more disgruntled Trumpies will decide to "take an armed stand" while protesting? It's hard to say. I'm no fortune teller.

I can tell you those two deeply troubled young men are looking for a confrontation through intimidation. No one goes to a peaceful protest packing a pistol.

As election day approaches Trump is whipping up his core base with conspiracy theories and outright lies. Watch his rallies in the days ahead, as he fans the flames of hate and fear among his flock.

The really sad thing about this election is that it's produced a celebrity spokesman for the alt-right. Trump was born for the part of hosting a hate network. 

Mark my words. Trump TV is going to make Fox, and all the rest of the biased networks, tremble!

Just so you know....it's going to be YUUUUUchhhhh!

Time for me to walk on down the road...

New Book Tells Us Why We Ignore Facts

                                         Good Day World!

I'm plugging a new book today because I think it's very important, and very timely.

Denying to the Grave: Why We Ignore the Facts That Will Save Us

The authors, Sara E. Gorman, a public-health expert, and her father, Jack M. Gorman, a psychiatrist and CEO of Franklin Behavioral Health Consultants, examine how fear, uncertainty, and group psychology lead people to believe leaders who say false things.

The book is timely because it describes how Donald Trump manages to use his biggest rhetorical weapon... fear, to gathering followers.  

Fear is one of the most primitive, most basic parts of the brain. It takes a lot of energy to engage the prefrontal cortex, and Trump has tapped that part of the brain of his followers.

If the first thing you hear about a topic is something that's associated with fear, that will often suppress the rational part of the brain, according to the authors.

It's no easy task to dislodge that fear once it has settled into your thinking process. Charismatic leaders like Trump know this, and instinctively guide their flock towards an object of fear.

Fear of Muslims. Fear of Mexicans. Fear of Blacks.

Jack Gorman explained that, "...it requires a lot more effort to use the reasoning part of the brain." This is a key observation.

If someone is stressed out, and someone starts hitting you with a lot of facts, it may be too much information and the listener goes into a default mode.

I hope you get the opportunity to read Denying to the Grave: Why We Ignore the Facts That Will Save Us.

It may help you understand how Trump has gotten as far as he has in this election.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

If Trump Is Elected, How Many People Will Heed Obama's Call To Live On Mars?

Good Day World!

For months now, I've heard people make comments like, "If Trump is elected I'm moving to Canada."

That could be because Canada is on our border, and it's easier to stay in contact with family and friends from there.

But consider this; it means you'll be closer to a Trump regime that may invade Canada over angry twitter remarks with Canadian politicans!

There will be no safe havens on earth under a Trump presidency. The tweet and nuke buttons will be side-by-side
in the Oval office.

There is one alternative however. Yes, it's a long shot.

I warn you it'll take time, and you'll have to be careful what you say in public meanwhile about Trump or his "Trumper Undercover Squad" will take you down like a fat chick in a beauty contest.

Sign up to go to Mars.

For years, Obama has been saying the U.S. must send humans to Mars. Permanently. (Prophetic?)

There's several commerical spaceflight companies that have announced plans to aim for Mars.

Boeing's CEO is convinced his company will be the first to reach Mars. Blue Origin, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezoz, has declared a Mars venture, and the space contractor Orbital ATK have plans to send humans to Mars.

The one you should check into would be the Dutch venture called Mars One, which is shooting for a 2025 launch date to the Red Planet.

Don't worry. They've been taking applications for years, and still are.

I expect if Trump gets in office the only way he'll leave is if there's a civil war. So, that 2025 launch date might be perfect timing.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Blog Mystery: Where Have All The Russians Gone?

Good Day World!

I've been blogging for a decade, and during that time I've always had a fair Russian readership base.

My average was about 500 Russian viewers per day, until two weeks ago. Then something weird happened. 

While checking my blog statistics (a once a month practise), I drilled down to daily/weekly readership and to my surprise there was a substantial drop in viewers.

To be exact, viewers from Russia. I went to the countries list and discovered Russia was no longer on my radar. I've been mulling this information over and am frankly baffled.

I sure wish I knew someone that was an expect on stuff like this. If you happen to know what could have gone down with my blog please don't hesitate to share your theory with me.

I feel like a conspiracy nut. But I'm not. I don't believe Elvis is living in Peru, or that global warming is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese.

One of the things I did was look back at what I posted recently that had to to with Russia.

I found posts on Trump and Putin's bromance, and other articles calling out Russian hackers and the government for interfering with our presidential elections going back for months.

Again, I'm not sure what's going on. I'm only reporting the facts. It's hard for me to believe that the Russians (or Trump's cronies) had anything to do with this.

My blog is hardly in competition with any big web sites. To think someone would bother with censoring my little blog is inconceivable.

I hesitated even writing about this.

It's really too scary to think about...but I am..and I wonder what happened?

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Note To My FaceBook Followers: I'm Sorry For Bringing Politics into A Room That Use To Be Fun

"There's a time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest." 
- Ecclesiastes 3:2


Good Day World!

There's a time and place for everything.

In the last year, I've watched FaceBook degenerate into a partisan political place where friends and family turn upon one another like crazed badgers.

It's this damn election!

I have to admit that I've been just as guilty as others who post nasty memes and try to demean those who don't agree with me.

I apologize.

There's nothing wrong with writing about politics, but there is a time and place for everything. FaceBook was not meant to be a political room where people can romp around and spout hateful partisan slogans.

FaceBook was meant to be a way to positively connect with people. Family and friends. I've discovered, and re-connected, with a lot of people since I joined.

It still brings me pleasure to see what my friends and family are doing. But it is time for me to take stand: 

I will no longer post partisan crap on FaceBook.

I'll keep my political dialogue in my blog where it belongs. It's a great outlet for taking on politics in general.

I hope that others who see themselves going down that same political path I was on in FaceBook will pause, and reconsider. There's enough polarity in our society today. 

Let's make FaceBook a safe - and fun - place to be again.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Presidential Debate Part II: Fear and Loathing at Washington University in Missouri

                                        Good Day World!

If you have children I hope you didn't let them watch the second presidential debate.

It was unreal.

If Hunter S. Thompson were alive today and covering this campaign, this election would have exclipsed his manifesto, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas!

Debate Part II: Wallowing in Mud and Lies

It's pretty sad that the main topic of the debate centered around illicit sex, cheaters, and disrespecting women. If you thought Debate I was bad, then you must of been reeling after last night's verbal firefight.

I've seen mud-slinging in presidential elections since I started voting in 1972, but nothing comes close to the full-on mud bath I've witnessed thus far in this election.

I certainly hope the third debate will be rated TV Mature Audiences only.

I'm embarrassed for America today. The world is watching the decline of Democracy and the Republic with disdain, amusement, and concern.

Instead of putting up our best and brightest to lead this great country, we have brought forth two of the worst major party candidates in modern history.

It looks like America is going to pay a steep price for the next four years. Let's hope we all survive it.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

White Evangelicals Tout Trump, a Non-Christian, Because They Believe His Lies

Good Day World!

My question today is, do White Evangelicals really believe Donald Trump cares about them or their beliefs?

What in Trump's history indicates he's religious? Trick question. Nothing.

The world has watched his hedonistic antics since the late 70's and there's no evidence of God being in his life. 

I've watched Evangelical leaders like Jerry Falwell Jr., Paula White, and James Dobson disregard Trump's historical lack of interest in religious issues, his anti-women and racist rants, the Muslim ban, his anti-immigrant bashing and his constant lying.

What's going on? Any one of these leaders can rattle off the 10 Commandments but none of them seem to think they apply to Trump. 

Why else would they support him? Well...there is that matter of Hillary Clinton (a Methodist all of her life) who is a Democrat. The White Evangelical brand is very strict about not voting for Democrats.

I suppose they think it's a bigger sin than electing the anti-Christ Donald Trump. In order to vote for Trump evangelicals have to ignore most of the tenants of their religion.

Can you say hypocrisy?

Televangelist Frank Amedia, who recently served in a volunteer capacity as a Trump "liaison" between the campaign and evangelicals, told his listeners to prepare for The Second Coming.

"If we could see into the havenlies right now," Amedia said in a recent interview, "We would see a skirmish going on that I believe is the beginnings of the preparation of the way of the coming of the Lord."

He may be right if Trump, aka the anti-Christ, is elected president. Which leaves me wondering why evangelicals would even think about voting for Trump if they believed that?

It appears Trump can walk down a street, shoot someone (his own words) and make promises to evangelicals he'll never keep...and some people will still vote for him.

Now,that's scary.

Related: The Trump Tape That Exposes His True Opinion of Women

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Why Corporations Get Away With Hiding Cash in Bermuda and The Cayman Islands

Good Day World!

Donald Trump thinks he's a genius because he gamed the tax system and is not paying taxes. 

He's not alone however.

American corporations routinely stash cash overseas in two islands so they don't have to pay taxes. Like Trump, these corporations are gaming the federal tax system which needs to be changed.

Hiding money in a office box in Bermuda is a good way to avoid paying taxes if your a corporation, or even a rich individual. 

You may be wondering why Bermuda and the Caymans are so attractive to big corporations. For starters, according to a recent study  they have little in the way of a tax system.

The Securities and Exchange Commission requires publicly held corporations, to disclose how they interact with the federal tax system — how much they pay in U.S. taxes, how much they pay abroad, how much cash they hold abroad for tax purposes. 

But guess what? No one is enforcing these requirements or the corporations wouldn't do it. It's going to take a re-write of the Federal Tax Laws - and enforcement - to stop corporations from hiding money abroad to avoid paying taxes.

Right now, it's easier to stash corporate funds in these two islands than it is to get a library card, according to Matt Gardner, executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.

Meanwhile, the rest of America is paying taxes. That, my friend, is not right!

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Could Hurricane Matthew Be The October Surprise Trump Needs?

                                                Good Day World!

Millions of Americans are on edge as Hurricane Matthew slams into Florida today. 

Lives, and votes are on the line.

I can't emphasis enough how important it is for the Obama administration to respond quickly to the state's expected needs. 

If there's any controversary about how relief efforts are handled, the Republican nominee for President, Donald Trump, will seize upon the chance to convince voters he could have done better.

With the election mere weeks away, Trump could use an October surprise as he's been sinking in the polls again since losing his first debate with Hillary Clinton.

Dire predictions spurred a mass exodus in Florida Wednesday as Gov. Rick Scott warned people not to stay there and try to ride the storm out. 

About 1.5 million Floridians all up and down the coast have been evacuated and 3,500 members of the National Guard have been activated.

Related:

How Hurricanes Have Disrupted and Defined Past Elections

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Need a Good Laugh, Or Two? Read On...

Good Day World!

Need a good laugh?

Read on...

A couple was going on vacation but his wife was on a business trip so he went to the destination first and his wife would meet him the next day.

When he got to the hotel he decided to send his wife a quick email.

Unfortunately, when typing her address, he mistyped a letter and his email was directed to an elderly preacher's wife whose husband had passed away the day before.

When the grieving widow checked her email, she took one look at the monitor, let out a piercing scream, and fell to the floor in a dead faint.

At the sound, her family rushed into the room and saw this note on the screen:

"Dearest Wife, 
Just got checked in. Everything prepared for your arrival tomorrow.

P.S. Sure is hot down here.

(via http://academictips.org/blogs/funny-short-stories/)
------------------------------------

OLD SCHOOL BASKETBALL

I don't know if you noticed last season, but five NBA players were fined for having shorts that were too long..they went below their knees.

Does anyone remember the NBA in the 70's and 80's?

Basketball players used to play in Speedos and halter tops!
------------------------------------

ALONZO BODDEN ON POLITICALLY CORRECT COMEDY

"A joke is either funny or it's not funny. If I hear a funny joke, you know what I do? I laugh, that's what I do. I don't start a focus group to see who got hurt by the joke."

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Divided We Fall: Will America Survive This Election?

Good Day World!

America had a pretty good run for 240 years, but the noble experiment is exploding as we watch in horror.

The wealthy are moving to consolidate their power as a billionaire runs for the presidency. Visions of no taxes for the 'job-makers" are dancing in their greedy little heads.

Partisan politics have not only polarized our government into bowing before brands - no matter how corrupt and loathsome - but they have lost any veneer of civility in the election process.

The bar has been set so low by followers of both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, that it's no longer safe to let your children follow the toxic campaign.

And it couldn't come in a worst time in our history.

Racial unrest has become a front-and-center topic. Immigration is a subject bitterly fought over. More have-nots are giving up hope for a better life.

Slithering to the top of the toxic brew in this election is the alt-right support for Donald Trump. Neo Nazi's and klansmen are crawling out from beneath their rocks and basking in the air of legitimacy Trump is giving them.

Read The Alt-Right Will Rise And Fall With Donald Trump

Will America survive this election? 

Time for me to walk on down the road...

It's Never Too Late To Start All Over Again

"It's never too late to start all over again
To love the people you caused pain
And help them learn your name
Oh no, not too late
It's never too late to start all over again."
-Steppenwolf

Good Day World!

Tuesday testimonial time.

I've had to start all over again a couple of times in my life. The first time was the transition from civilian (19 years-old/photo) to soldier. 

Coming back from Vietnam in 1970 was a jarring transition. From playing pickup basketball in gyms to humping through jungles full of enemies, my world spun like a top.

When I got back in "the world" I had to suddenly adjust from combat to being a civilian again. Hard times. I drifted for several years, roaming from job-to-job, from state-to-state, and from my nightly nightmares.

Long story short. I fell in love and got married. That was the start of a journey that took me back from the edge of sanity to college and a career as a journalist.

The story doesn't end there however.

After 20 years of working in newspapers and magazines, PTSD got the better of me. I could no longer work and descended back to the dark places in my brain that pulled me - screaming - back into the jungle.

It took over two decades to get to the place that I can now say is a good one. I can honestly say I've learned how to live with my PTSD. It'll never go away, but there are many things I can do to save my day.

That's it folks. I sincerely mean it when I say, It's never too late to start all over again.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Alarming Buzz On Bees: 7 Types Now On Endangered Species List

Good Day World!

Albert Einstein once prophetically remarked, "Mankind will not survive the honeybees' disappearance for more than four years."

Today, humans worldwide are facing the loss of the global honeybee population.

U.S. Adds 7 Types of Bees To The Endangered Species List For The First Time

The consequence of a dying bee population impacts us all at the highest levels on the food chain, posing an enormously grave threat to human survival.

Death and Extinction of the Bees

Think about it. There is no other single animal species that plays a more significant role in producing the fruits and vegetables that we all take for granted.

Here's Why All The Bees Are Dying

You don't see the subject of the rapidly declining worldwide bee population on the mainstream media very often. Perhaps some people don't want us to be concerned. I'm not sure.

It seems to me however, that the disappearing bee community should be a concern that we're ALL TALKING About.

What can you do to help?

Why We Need To Save The Bees + 10 Things You Can Do To Help

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Who Knew Frankentrump Would Turn On His Creators? A Film Buff?

                                        Good Day World!

It took decades for the Republican party to piece together their creation, Frankentrump.

Last year the GOP happily declared "It's alive! It's alive!" when Frankentrump walked over his competition in the primaries.

In an interesting case of life reflecting art, we see the Frankenstein monster and Donald Trump merge - created by conflicting forces - and become the embodiment of the grand spectacle the GOP hoped to stage in order to gain back the presidency.

Sociologists say many Americans are feeling they have little control over their lives.

Republicans have taken this sense of helplessness, and anger, and have used it for the last thirty years to tell their supporters that they should be angry about blacks, immigrants, big government, Muslims, terrorists, and a host of other issues that have nothing to do with the problems they face daily.

Frankentrump emerged fullblown from this steady indoctrination, becoming their leader. But the established Republicans that created him found that they couldn't control him.

The GOP found out, too late, that Frankentrump was never really their monster.

He was influenced by them, but belonged to the legions of angry under-educated white men waiting to create chaos.   

He knew interesting is preferable to informed or reasonable or lucid. That's why he goes off-script so often and riffs on stage like a stand-up comedian.

That approach didn't work out well however. That was evident during the First Presidential Debate with Hillary Clinton (9/26):

Analysis: Hillary Clinton's Studies for Debate With Donald Trump Pay Off

Donald Trump and the Perils of Little Preparation

A Fool's Folly: Donny T's Big Bad Night

Meanwhile establishment Republicans are hunkered down in their offices waiting. In shock. Waiting, and hoping that Frankentrump doesn't complete his mission of destruction if elected.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Everybody Quit One Day - Just Like That

Good Day World!

A movie came out in 2004 that you may not have heard of because it wasn't a box office hit.

I thought it was quite unique however.

It was called - A Day Without A Mexican.

The film was a satirical look at the consequences of all the Mexicans in the state of California suddenly disappearing.

Imagine the possibilities for humor and pathos?

I thought it would be interesting to look at a situation where everyone in America quit one day. 

Office workers, police, and restaurant workers all quitting.

Store managers walking out of Walmarts across the land. Pilots, traxi-drivers, bus drivers, and roller coaster operators all quitting.

The President and Congress all quitting. Aimless politicians talking to themselves on street corners because people have quit listening to them. 

Overnight. Just like that.

Bank guards and gang bangers quitting. Plumbers and electricians quitting. Park Rangers roaming listlessly after quitting.

Doctors and scientists quitting. Tree surgeons, professional football players, clowns, and actors quitting. Pastors and poets quitting.

For one day. 

Can you imagine the chaos? The deadly silence? The roar of no-accountability? 

Time for me to walk on down the road...

A Survival Guide To Living in an Age of Rage

"It looked as if a night of dark intent was coming, and not only a night, an age. Someone had better be prepared for rage..."
-Robert Frost

Good Day World!

We live in an age of rage.

Our anger is reflected in everything we do. 

Even the most common things, like driving a car, have been twisted into vehicles of road rage that kills hundreds of Americans every year.

For example: Take Florida native Gary Lynne Durham who served a decade behind bars for killing a man during a 2001 road rage incident. 

Ironically, Durham was recently killed in another traffic related dispute when he confronted another driver with a gun.

The rage keeps growing.

Rage incidents on airplanes have become a new problem for travelers in America and worldwide. The once friendly skies are not so friendly now.

So the question is, why are we seeing so many frequent outbursts ranging from an impolite gesture from another motorist to road rage that can lead, quite literally to death?

One explanation is given in this informative article:
Psychiatrists: Rage Comes From Accumulation

Anger can be caused by both external and internal events. I've watched, with dismay, our presidential election process become a conduit for hate and rage.

Raging rhetoric has stirred the flames of anger into something so ugly any sense of humanity has been squeezed out of most Americans by now.

In the end however, it's up to us to not let rage rob our senses, and make us do something we'll regret. We can't do anything about the next person, but we do have the option of keeping our own cool.

Related:

Age of Rage Survival Guide
Controlling Anger Before It Controls You

Time for me to walk on down the road...