Month: October 2017
From JFK Cuban Missiles to Trump’s North Korea – What Works? – Headlined on OpEdNews.com
No parent should have to bury their children, not the Kennedys, not General John Kelly; not citizens dying of Leptospirosis nor their 3.4 million fellow Americans still waiting for Mana from a demagogue — and not the families of four uniformed Americans who died in the service of our nation, arguably, because their Commander-in-Chief, tossed Chad into latest racial and religious travel ban.
Despite the rising tide of decent thinking Americans, it’s not easy to remove even the worst of presidents from office. However, for one who personifies the answer to, where is the bottom – he is simultaneously media bait and switch master, inept POTUS and unempathetic human being — but other deplorable people wielding power indiscriminately may focus America, if not, The House.
Exposing and repelling Karl Rove, if not Clarence Thomas; Anthony Weiner & Harvey Weinstein, if not Bill Cosby & Woody Allen; Bernie Madoff & Martin Shkreli, if not Steve Bannon & Jeff Sessions; Katherine Harris & OJ Simpson, if not Pam Bondi & Rex Tillerson – we prove our values’ system still works.
When towers walling The Street house 21st century money changers denying us reliable representation from state and federal legislatures, then what works is our judgement to, trust but verify, Jurists and Generals – making a gauntlet to General John Kelly’s false characterization of Representative Frederica Wilson, and the, all hat and no cattle, snark from an ever, and wholly unjustifiable, condescending Sarah Huckabee Sanders, our patriotic duty.
Let’s not wait for a near death experience, a slap to our Consoler-in-Chief past, or another massive intelligence failure in current White House, to save affordable healthcare, Public Education, the Veterans Administration and our military from being sacrificed for those who never considered serving in uniform.
What works is insisting: rapists, liars, bigots, religious hypocrites, fake patriots, gropers, Conservatives propelling us backwards, imposters projecting their Koch head sins on our political process, Citizens United, voters choosing the greater of two evils, domestic terrorists, non-voters and deserters of civil listening to differing points of view — this far and no farther will you come!
What works: living with hearts and minds founded in democratic purpose, believing there is harmony to be made between barroom brawlers at raucous political rallies and church & state — if we respect the independence of each from the other, and garner a healthy inter-dependence with unity.
What doesn’t work is falling victim to a rerun of, might makes right, believing power equates privileges with the privileged — no longer shocked by bullies, but awed by vulgarity posing as though posturing is the new leadership normal, rather than an insulting facade.
What will keep America working is a people’s transformation: thinking leaders full of curiosity and wonder, whose deeds endorse the value of quality education for everyone without financially profiting the soulless. We need more female Millennials in Congress and State houses, respecting the experience of Baby Boomers, but learning from their mistakes.
We need the strength of character to accept personal accountability and whole-heartedly embrace reinvigorating change – realizing inclusive communion requires more than texting, Instagram and un-presidential tweets.
Connection is created by face-to-face conversations – for if we can’t meet across the table, the wisdom to elect government that reaches across the aisle, will forever elude us.
There’s only one limitation to America’s greatness: those who deny that our moral character was compromised the very moment we replaced the art of compromise with 1960’s assassinations, 1970’s J. Edgar Hoover Hypocrisy, 1980’s redundant gossip as news and the Age of Aquarius with rudderless politics reducing patriotism to flag waving, hate speech and fear mongering isolationism.
How does Mitch McConnell’s the goal here is to win elections in November… and, keep us in the majority – work for you?
As Trump works to prove, government is the problem, his Niger, I Was Told, may be his Watergate.
America can never be first when great generals dishonor truth, and greatness can never be achieved by an imploding misogynist.
One woman spoke up, and a Hollywood titan fell. What ill-equipped, ill-mannered president could withstand the deserved reproach of all women, and decent men?
What works: Impeachment.
Trump Nuclear Bluster a Lose-Lose – Headlined on OpEdNews.com
Colluding with the 16th anniversary of America’s turn at Afghanistan, we are engaged in a great civil war to endure as a nation, through racial prejudice, sexual bigotry and Domestic Terrorism – gun violence targeting women and children now intensified by military-styled automatic weapons raining down wholesale massacre and serial mass murder on a Homefront with short-term memory.
Regardless of race, creed, heritage, age, sexual preference or political persuasion, more Americans were shot to death, in Las Vegas Sunday October 1, 2017 than have been killed in America, by radical Islamic terrorists in the last ten years.
Growing up, holidays were loud: packing uncles and aunts, drinking, smoking, shouting rifle and shotgun owners – all skilled, if not avid, hunters – insuring I mastered both M-14 & 16 in Basic Training. Uncle Gino, however, had already taught me to respect guns, because once weapon and shooter were united, each were equally responsible for the union’s conclusion.
Since 1967, more Americans have been killed by guns, than in all the wars in which America was involved since our Revolutionary War, and still…
- Conservatives: Now is not the time to discuss it
- NRA: more good men with guns
- Responsible gun owners: some background checks
- Schools: Armed police handcuffing & arresting children
- Fed-up Americans: Repeal the Second Amendment
- Media & Pollsters: Is America headed in the right direction
Arguably, beyond the illusion of handgun induced home security and the adrenaline rush accompanying killing a defenseless animal — stonewalling and ignoring the body-count in American killing fields: concerts, nightclubs, movie theaters, parking lots, churches, schools – petitions us to be The People’s Storm, beckoning the wise to expose GOP/NRA as accessories after the fact.
While Trump and guns are inexorable parts of America’s global definition, they are not the measure of heroism or liberty, but rather enablers of violent death – yet, direction of any nation is determined by the moral fiber of its citizens.
Yes, America is moving in The Right Direction:
- Uniformed shooting of unarmed men of color
- Institutionalized bigotry of DOJ against LGBTQ Americans
- Domestic and Foreign Gerrymandering of our Electoral System
The issue of controlling gun violence, is more about the 2008 Supreme Court misinterpretation of the Second Amendment and less about honoring our Bill of Rights; Less about individual liberty and more about the exhilaration some feel when armed for intimidation.
In 1775, Lexington and Concord fired up a new nation, but by 2016, far too many had forgotten the end goal of Valley Forge was, a United States of America – sans standing army.
Now, We the People need stop wringing our hands, acting like we don’t know the difference between principal and Pence patriotic pretense, and declare ourselves the calm eye centering the Storm — firing 18th century caste system thinking, because we are more than the symbols, we are constitutionally guaranteed the right, to venerate or not.
Because in desperate times, desperation cajoles common sense into nonsensical choices regarding who gets to possess, America’s Nuclear Football, we fool-hearted expected solutions from rhetorical barker, and endangered ourselves, lying to ourselves, about lairs.
Guns are not an extension of freedom, honor, nor human hands. They’re just the end of life waiting to happen.
The fault lies not in our NFL stars, but in constituents who traded Lincoln for Nixon, McConnell, Paul Ryan and government is the problem – allowing fake patriots to transform, America the Beautiful into the land of the trumped.
According to Bob Hope, NYC Mayor Jimmy Walker famously said, the voters always get what they deserve. I wasn’t the only chump in this city. It took a lot of you to elect me.
We honor, Ol’ Glory, by preserving reason, protecting human life and defending ourselves against Koch heads Red Mapping our voting machines.
Confederate Statues, Breitbart, Representative Tim Murphy, AG Jeff Sessions, Harvey Weinstein and Donald Trump are our reality check: controlling gun violence is not just about sales, recreation or politics.
Like Opioid addiction, gender equality and Trump Puerto Rico and North Korea responses – gun violence is an American value that has become a moral blood stain. The thing about guns and people is, people discriminate, but guns will kill anybody.
Now, Rise.
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