Climate Changing

With this last storm that battered the NC mountains, especially Asheville, I now think maybe we have passed a point of no return on Cataclysmic Climate Change. So maybe we are all looking at the end of our earthly existence. Humankind could be at its end, mainly because 50+ years ago, we ignored the signs of global climate change. And having ignored those warning signs, as Humans are wont to do, we now may be out of options to fix anything. 

I know, I know, this Administration and others past and present continue to pretend that we can still act so as to preserve the Earth. But I wonder if that moment is past.  I am not sure how close to that precipice we are, or whether we are, in fact, already over the cliff and now sailing towards our last crash. I also have no information on what steps other Nations are taking to work on this issue. This is not, after all, an American problem. It is a Global Earthly problem, and every human on the planet is or will be affected. Therefore, all Humans are involved in any solutions, to the extent any remain.

Perhaps we now need an examination of our Global status, and the probability of any solutions fixing the problem. Are we in fact, beyond solving the problem? If so, what should we be doing to ease the coming increased deaths from Climate Catastrophes?

I think maybe this topic should be Number One in any political discussion, and Number One on any upcoming United Nations summit discussions.  If this world is heading into cataclysm, then this goes well beyond America, Canada and the European advanced nations.  We need all nations participating, because all nations are affected.

And maybe this climate mess in which we find ourselves might lead the Humans of this World to at least stop killing one another in Wars of one kind or another. Thinking back to my earliest memories, when I was maybe 5 or 6, War and humans killing humans for whatever reasons seems to dominate my memories.  Maybe we should stop killing one another in order to gain some territory. Instead, we need to put our guns aside and begin thinking about our Global welfare. How can we best keep one another alive, regardless of what language we speak, or what color is our skin?  We are all Earthlings, under attack from within our own planet, but not by other Humans. We --ALL HUMANS--need to make peace with one another, and begin working seriously on solving, to the extent we can, this Global catastrophe. 

Please folks. Stop shooting one another. We need to get together and begin working in common to resolve this issue, before IT resolves us.

We are almost out of time.

Living in America

 

I am approaching 90 this December. So I may be approaching my last national election. I continue to struggle with this notion of becoming 90. Part of my problem is simply aging. But part is this truly weird election, in which we have somehow normalized Donald Trump and JD Vance, two of the slipperiest characters in America.  Trump is a convicted felon, a multi-business failure, a liar who seems not even to understand the concept of Facts or truth or honesty. He simply talks and leaves it to you to determine which part of his talking is Bullshit and which is factual.  Trump also seems not to understand normal human relationships, which explains his multiple marital failures, including his present one which seems to have failed, although no one will discuss that.

In short, we have a man running for President who seems not to understand fact and fiction, or perhaps, Truth and Lying.

Then we have his partner, JD Vance. Vance lies, but he knows he is lying. He lies simply to advance his point of view. When he chatted with us about Haitians eating peoples’ pets in Ohio, he knew he was lying, but it did not matter. He was trying to degrade some other group of people, to advance his own position.

And then, we watched Stephen Colbert last night and he had on Rachel Maddow. They talked about the recent rash of election deniers, who now work in some capacity in or around the local election stations around America. They are talking about how they plan to refuse to certify the election should Trump lose (an increasingly likely Outcome). Yeah, here is a group of American republicans who somehow know in advance that their man will lose, so they are preparing America for both inaction and potential violence after that happens.

So, what does any of that have to do with me turning 90? Well, somehow, I feel less capable of doing anything about all this mess? In days of old, when I was younger, I might have joined one of the many political entities and set about trying to ensure he loses. But now, I have begun wondering whether it matters if he loses. He has already suggested that he or his crazed friends will begin to act after the election to refuse to certify any outcome in which he is the loser.  And Me? Well, I no longer am physically fit enough to go out into our community and challenge his actions. He seems to be outright asserting that violence will occur should he lose.

And I can’t even Up and Move to New Zealand. See, now, that’s a joke, but only because I am almost 90.  I never had thoughts before about moving to New Zealand.  And, to be fair, I don’t now, but only because I am almost 90. Were I 40, or maybe even 50, I think I might well be initiating action to begin a Citizenship run to New Zealand. Now, even though I cannot run off to Aukland, I can still encourage other youngsters to do so.  Because I am now of a mindset that America might well be OVER. So, were I talking to a friend who was say 40, my advice might well be to begin initiating steps to move, should America decide that our Nation is OVER.  See that’s the key. If, in this next election, Kamala and Walz succeed, and America says, collectively, “OK, so we have a new President. Let’s celebrate and then move on”, then we will be OK. But should Kamala win, and our Nation explodes (think January 6^th ) then my advice to that youngster would be to begin taking action to migrate out of America. I keep mentioning New Zealand, but Canada is a lovely nation with smart, civilized citizens. But, seriously, should that awful even begin unfolding, then AI think it is time to leave. Because, for some reason, America seems not to want to continue to exist as a civilized Nation.

BUT, we still do not know that. I am simply baffled quite fully about why anything more than 10-20% of Americans could possibly be seriously thinking of voting or supporting this IDIOT-MALENFANT.  How this race is even slightly close is what troubles me.  See, it’s not really Trump that is the core of my troubled thinking about America. It is the American people who support him that troubles me so greatly. I feel as though I went to sleep and then awakened in Nazi Germany 1936.  And were that accurate, I would definitely be attempting to move permanently.

So pay attention America. You may be approaching the END. Now, to help forestall that, everyone eligible needs to go out and VOTE on Election Day or earlier if you can. None of this crap about how you will skip this election. He needs to be destroyed by the power of this VOTE.

So, VOTE folks. Please VOTE!!!

Finally

 

And so the Dems concluded their convention with their nomination of Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, as their President and Vice President hopefuls. There wasn’t much of a competition, since Biden basically nominated her when he stepped aside.  And she is the sitting VP, so her nomination makes eminent good sense.  Kamala has adequate experience, with her four years as VP, plus her other government experience:

·         Vice President for 3+ years

·         US Senator from California

·         California Attorney General

·         District Attorney

So, with that experience base, what will be her competition?

Donald Trump:

·         President of the United States

·         TV Actor

·         Unsuccessful Businessman

·         Unsuccessful Marital Partner

·         Demented Public Speaker

So, one assumes there will be an election leading to a solid supermajority of voting Americans who wish to elect Mrs. Harris. I mean, all one needs to do is listen once to a Trump public appearance, hear him ramble incoherently, and lie incessantly, before concluding that he is obviously unfit to hold any public office, no less the US Presidency.

And yet, and yet . . .

I have been aware of American presidents since FDR. I still remember listening to FDR on the radio during WW II.  And I have participated, VOTED, in every election since 1952.  I voted for Eisenhower over the intellectual, Adlai Stevenson.  Because, how could you not vote for the WW II Hero, Ike?

And we have had our share of losers as President.  I mean, Shrub??? Nixon, Reagan   . . . god think of that, we actually elected Ronald Reagan, a failed movie star to be President. But we have some good ones too—Harry Truman, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama . . . and now Joe Biden. Joe is showing some signs of aging, so it is perhaps the right thing for him to step aside, but he still joins the ranks of our Good Presidents.

So, now, perhaps, it is our opportunity to see what a bright, ethical woman can do. I assume Kamala will win, because . . . how can she not? I mean. She is running against the very worst presidential candidate our Nation has ever seen.  I mean . . . Donald Trump??? Not a serious candidate.  And Yet . . . And Yet . . .

Kamala should be leading by 70% to 30%. But is she? Nope.

So, that fact alone tells you more than you ever wanted to know about America. 

I can only hope the polls are wrong and that the American people will come to their senses and reject this amazingly inadequate pseudohuman being, Donald Trump. He has failed at virtually everything in which he has participated.   He keeps trying, I guess because his ego won’t let him bow out.

This will be an interesting, perhaps even terrifying several months facing us.  My last best hope is that Americans will get out and vote as they have never done in our past.  People who sigh and shrug and walk away, will now perhaps look at the future and say, I cannot allow that creature to succeed. He must fail; at this, as he fails at everything else. Send him back to his BFFs in Russia. Perhaps Vlad the Impaler will allow him to live out his fading days in Moscow.

So, Americans . . . PLEASE VOTE!

AND VOTE FOR KAMALA HARRIS AND TIM WALZ.

PLEASE!

Are We Happy?

 

So, “Are We Happy Yet?: to quote today’s NY Times. Well, today, the sun is out . . . for the time being. We seem to be moving into an era in which, like some others, perhaps we no longer need our Weathermen. We now seem to have a standard weather forecast:

“Partly cloudy, with the possibility of afternoon thundershowers, some could be severe. A tornado is possible. Avoid areas near rivers, since areal flooding is likely.”

There, that’s your standard daily forecast. So, does that make you happy? No? Well, how about this?

“Donald Trump will be giving a press conference in your neighborhood this afternoon, and he plans to inform you why a vote for his opponent is a vote to destroy America.”

There, now you feel great, right?

Yeah, so between the Climate Change daily forecast and our pseudopolitical climate, life has become Yuck. Or maybe AAARRRGGGHHH! Remember those political battles in the 70s, 80s and 90s? They were tough, huh? It was always tough listening to Nixon, or Shrub, or, for God’s sake, Reagan.  But today, listening to Trump, or the Trump MAGACultists? We are now in a different universe altogether. Having grown up listening to FDR, during and just after WW II, I grew used to having sanity on the air. 

Are you aware that, during the 1950s, the tax rates on high incomes reached over 90%? Yeah, and they complained. But can you imagine Elon Musk paying a 95% tax rate on his top income? He would be exploding.  I mean, Musk is donating $45 million/month to Trump’s campaign, because he knows, if Trump is elected, that his tax rates will go down even more than they are now.  I believe Musk now pays somewhere in the vicinity of 53%, so some 40% less than in days of old.

But even beyond taxes, our political system has, on one side, the Democrats who are trying to pass legislation to help combat the Climate Catastrophe in which we reside, to better regulate our border immigration policies, to help moderate  the Israeli-Hamas mess, to bring greater pressure on Russia to back off in Ukraine, and to induce more growth in industry, so as to create more jobs.

On the other hand, the Trump MAGACult wants to cut taxes on the wealthy, reduce Social Security payments, reduce Medicare/Medicaid expenses, prevent any abortions in the country, regardless of the health of the mother, or in cases of rape or incest, and rein in or perhaps even eliminate regulatory programs such as EPA, or FDA.  Any Federal agencies that regulate the private sector are suspect and could be eliminated under Trump. He also, per the Project 2025 agenda, would get rid of many current Federal civil service employees, and replace them with staff answerable only to the President.

So, America under Trump would move to something closer to a monarchy, or maybe just a dictatorship, as we can observe in today’s Russia under Trump’s BFF, Vlad the Impaler Putin.

Yeah, why do we need this Democracy anywise? With Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, and JD, and Johnson, we would have a perfect combination of skills and attitude.

So, see what we have to look forward to, if we can only elect The Donald? Now, to be fair, The Donald is getting a bit creaky, and his brain seems a little less than perfect.  But he’s never been classed as brainy anyways, right? And, were he younger and brainier, he might not listen to Musk and his rich friends. Right? So, this is probably better for America. You can’t have a Dictatorship and still have a brainy, ethical president, right?

Hey Neil deGrasse Tyson, what do you think? Does all this presidential messiness make you think more about running? No? OK, then I guess we will just have to stick with Kamala and her BFF Tim Walz.

Oh well, maybe my approaching 90 this December is making me a little fussy. Crap weather, and crap Presidential messiness (think MAGACult) is depressing me perhaps more than it should, or would, were I younger. So, the 50s, 60s and 70s really were just more fun? Huh!

Ah well, life goes on .

Are We Alone?

Are we alone, a seemingly profound question concerning the potential for life elsewhere in the universe. Gives rise to that other question. Where/when/why did life, or our universe begin, and why? And, of course, that almost always gives way to that other question, Who created God?

See, if God exists, someone created her, right? Or did she simply pop into existence, poof! And then, what existed prior to God?  I mean, did something, a God, or the Universe itself simply begin out of nothing? And if so, why, how?  See, telling us that God created the universe doesn’t really solve or even answer anything. Because it produces the inevitable question about who created God.  And even Neil DeGrasse Tyson doesn’t seem to have any answer to the origin question.

See, all of my questions relate to the simplest one of all – Why?

OK, so why was the universe created the way it was? I mean, if there is a God, she could have created a finished product, right? I mean, why would she create this vast entity still in the beginning stages of its development? And, why a universe that held such enormous potential for damage to its creatures? Why not create a universe that satisfied the needs of its inhabitants, whether those inhabitants were emerging stars, or living creatures?  Also, there seems no serious order to the universe. The creativity seems entirely random.  Is that just for fun?

See, saying there is a God really solves nothing. I begin to wonder about the basic intelligence of the current inhabitants of this Earth.  I mean, they created the concept of God. Now, to be fair, there are really two main purposes to there being a God. First, apparently any serious brain will eventually give rise to the question of Why/How did this universe come into being. I mean, you can’t look around the Earth without at some point, asking yourself, Why? Why does this exist, and why does this exist in its current form?  I mean, even a relatively young child might well look at its parents, or maybe at the dude who owns the apartment house the kid lives in and, say, now they could not possibly have created all this. So, Who did? And then, the inevitable God thing pops into the head.

But, then, after the God thing pops into the head, some creature will inevitably begin thinking . . . hmmm, what if I tell folks that I have met God, and I have developed this special relationship. And I am going to tell folks what God wants them to do.  And then, if they do what God wants them to do, then, after they pass on, they will have a wonderful afterlife with God. Oh, you didn’t know about the afterlife thing? Well, let me tell you.  See, The God wants us to behave in reasonable ways—I know, I know, there are many definitions to “reasonable”.  At any rate, she has informed me that, to encourage reasonable behavior, she created two afterlife entities—Heaven and Hell. If you have behaved, then, when you pass on, you will rise into the heavens, and you will again get to mingle with your past BFFs. Yeah, you can chat with them if you wish. Also, you will be able to peer down onto Earth and see what your family is up to. So, when they talk to you, you will know what they are saying, and you can respond, sort of.

But, then, for those folks who chose to behave badly while here on Earth, she created this kind of nasty afterlife place, where you will live on in pain from the fires down there. Yeah, and you will not be able to chat with anyone. Yeah, boring, huh? Well, to be fair, that is the point.  But see, that’s why she began chatting with me. She wants folks to understand that behaving well while here results in a good deal afterwards.  And she has left me with an understanding of what is or is not good behavior.

But now, back to this beginning thingie. She has not yet told me much about the origins, or why she invented things as she did.  Nope, she says, somedays she may chat it up with me and then, I can pass it on. But for the moment, we have to accept the fact that she exists, she created everything, and that’s all we need to know.

See, so that’s good, huh?  We don’t really need to know how or why this Universe thingie was created, or who created it. Well, technically, she says that she created it. But she will not talk about who created her, or even why she invented everything to begin with. Maybe she was bored?

And so, I am awaiting that chat session when her Almightiness begins to chat with me about origins. Now that should be interesting, huh?  I plan to ask her:

1.       1. Is this Universe the only one that exists, or is there another one(s) out there about which we are unaware?

2.          2. Why did she create the universe to begin with? Was she really just bored, or was there some purpose? And if there was a purpose, what was that purpose?

3.          3. Does she have a mum and/or dad? I mean, how/why does she exist? Does she exist in order to have someone to blame for us?  I mean, we’re a pretty bad lot. Were we just her mistake . . . like she was just fooling around, and she created us without meaning to? And now she’s stuck with us?

4.          4. Did she also create something in this universe that will eventually cause us to disappear?  I mean, that would have been the responsible thing to do, right?

5.          5. Is she answerable to another superbeing? That would also seem reasonable huh?

6.      Since I’m the only one with whom she has spoken, could she tell me how to get rid of those creatures who now pretend to know her? I mean, they are really getting out of hand.

7.      And, lastly, when will she tell me what the hell is going on?  I am getting really tired of holding all this stuff inside and may soon explode. Oh, and how long is she going to keep me stuck in this blind wilderness? I mean, I have been here for a really long time. So, what another 100 years or so?

So, OK, I’ll get back to you later, as soon as she decides to have that chat with me. But for now, behave yourselves. That really is better than the alternative. Trust me.

American Politics

I must confess to being shaken after reading the summary of Project 2025.  While I knew the GOP had fallen really low since Trump took over the reins, I guess I did not really understand just how low. And also, that Project 2025 speaks to maybe something different.  I mean, when we say that the GOP has fallen to a new low under Trump, a) we are blaming it on Trump, and b) we are saying that we are seeing more of the standard Trump crap—illogical, corrupt, amoral, unethical.

But maybe we are looking at something different altogether.  As I was reading an analysis of the SCOTUS Trump v. America decision regarding January 6^th, I began thinking that maybe something else was going on.  SCOTUS basically laid the groundwork for an entity formerly known as “kings”, or a President who could basically do no wrong.  Now that would make Donald Trump very happy. But it might also make a lot of his immensely rich supporters even happier.  See, they could keep Trump in power in order to get the kind of “hands-off” Executive Branch they want and claim they need. They want no controls over their activities, ergo, Project 2025. 2025 is basically a design for an absolute monarchy, one controlled by the uber-rich. It might return America to those good-old-days of maybe the 16^th century when the uber-rich controlled everything, including your life and mine.

And then, last night, at a Trump rally, someone supposedly took a shot at Trump. Now, we are told that someone wielding a rifle, fired from a rooftop outside his immediate rally area. Trump wound up with some slight bleeding, although from what we do not know. A close bullet?? Some sharp object near him?? We have no solid or reliable answer. They did take Trump away and he was bleeding ever so slightly.

Now, was this a bullet aimed at Trump, just missing his forehead? Maybe  . . . The shooter was shot and killed by Security officials, and one bystander was killed and two others wounded. And now the games begin. Who was this shooter and what was he about?  We are told he was a republican, but also that he had donated to Democrats.  Questions, questions.

Given the extreme nature of the language spewing forth among and between the parties in this bizarre presidential race, perhaps an assassination attempt might not be surprising. I know, I know, everyone on both sides has properly decried this shooting. But, given the escalating rhetoric, maybe such a violent event was predictable.

And now Trump has begun drawing some pity cards. And his stature has enlarged a bit, with a sympathy vote. Now, to be fair, that last debate performance produced a hard knock into Biden’s reputation. Even more than the usual serious “old-people” discussions are being heard.

I assume an assassination attempt would be highly likely to produce serious sympathy for the intended “Victim”, i.e., Trump.

And, then, maybe because I am really wearing out from the force of right-wing rhetoric, and the absurdity of Trump himself, I began wondering . . . could this be a fake assassination, staged by the rich powers behind the GOP (you know, the ones who now seem to own this monarchist political entity)?? I know, I know . . . how absurd, right?? But that is how affected I have become by the absurdity of this whole political entity, that such a fake attempt no longer seems absurd.  Note, please, I have been paying attention to political affairs at least since the days of FDR. I have voted in every election since 1952. I long for the days when republicans were people like Dwight Eisenhower. Now??? Donald Trump??? Surely you jest.

Now to be fair, a fake assassination is pretty far out. But then, I thought, Project 2025. That is so absurd that anything now seems at least plausible.  Now what makes it a bit less plausible is that security officials shot and killed the bad guy. If it was a planned fake assassination, wouldn’t he have planned it with his own escape? Yeah, probably, but does that make it totally implausible?  Well no.

And so I am left to wonder about the state of American politics today. The uber-rich seem to have no ethics at all, and therefore republicans no longer have any ethics. How low have the mighty fallen America? And what does this say about the outcome of the next election? Can you imagine what we might see should the American people decide to vote for the Democrat (Biden??)? The 2025 Gang have already decided on a post-election conflict (Civil War II?) stage. Won’t that be fun?

Oh and you thinking folks . . . you might want to speed up the process of getting your passports and visas ready (Canada??? New Zealand???) Welcome to the brand new, exciting world of uber-rich corruption.

Hello Again

Somehow, my days continue to look like repeats. Yeah, Joe Biden says something to some crowd, and folks wonder about whether he was stumbling and aging as he spoke. Well, No, he was just talking like any mortal being. So, Joe is 81, and folks are demanding that he step back and let ? ? ? take over. Who again? Oh, you mean Kamala??? Well, she’s probably ready. Oh you don’t mean Kamala. And why is that? Oh, Kamala is a Black Woman. I get it. You need a white male between the ages of 35 and 65. Oh, and he needs to be straight. Sorry Pete. Yeah, I know, you might be great, but, well you know . . .

On the Joe Ancient thing, I’m pushing on this December into that 90 thingie.  Yeah, I know, Joe occasionally stumbles. But so far he’s been doing a pretty good job, by all accounts.

But then, also on a daily basis, The Donald does or says something terminally stupid.  And do we report that The Donald seems to be in the middle stage of dementia?  Well no. Why? Because The Donald always says something terminally stupid. It’s just him.  See, he really seems stupid, so when he opens his mouth in some unprogrammed way, what results is gibberish.  So, because he always performs that way, that is his Normal. And because Joe actually is of normal intelligence, when he speaks to/with us, we expect a normal speech patter—you know, words roughly in order as English is spoken, and of seeming normal intellectual content.  Now, should he slip, or stumble, the Press is aghast and the Fox Fake-Newsies begin yelling about Joe turning senile.

Now, to be fair, we have never before had a pair like these two. Joe actually is 81. And The Donald seems 110 . .  or maybe 2? Remember when he told us to drink bleach to avoid getting COVID?  Now is that a result of his dementia, or maybe he’s just stupid.  Would a two-year old tell you to do that?  But think hard. Would a Joe Biden EVER suggest anything that terminally stupid???

Let’s see, oh yeah there’s that SCOTUS thingie. Yeah, they now tell us that Presidents cannot be held accountable for their actions taken while they are carrying out their duties of office.  So, arguably, if they take an action that results in harm to another human, while carrying out their duties as President, they are not legally accountable.  Now, I/they assume that ruling is aimed at something The Donald does or did while President—like stirring the mess that turned into the January 6^th Insurrection.  So, folks were killed during that Insurrection? Yep, but President Donald cannot be held to account.  Interesting ruling.

Now how about if Joe Biden takes an action to in some way disable/destroy a threat to our democracy (The Donald??) then he cannot be held accountable?? Be careful what you wish for, huh?

I keep thinking about our upcoming election, taking place in the middle of a truly weird election process.  Why weird? Well, I realize that many America presidential elections are a bit weird. I mean, Ronald Reagan, pseudo-movestar running for President? Now that is weird.  FDR running for President in the middle of WW II. Tell me that isn’t weird.

But somehow, the GOP has allowed itself to be totally corrupted, and largely no longer exists as a viable political entity. Now, the GOP seems a vacuum that sucks in weird, almost Nazi ideas. I mean, Project 2025 seems to go even beyond Nazi thinking. They now seem intent on recreating an American Monarchy. Shades of 1725. If Trump were elected and began following Project 2025, we would have something close to an absolute monarchy.  Is that what you really want MAGAHeads???  Well, I guess the answer to that question might well be, “YES, That Is What We Want”.

I can only suggest once again, especially you young folks. Get registered, and then VOTE your conscience. We –This Nation—really need all of you to get out and VOTE. Hopefully, someday, after enough time has elapsed and the Donald is in prison, America will begin to return to its old stable democracy self. Please America. Behave.