Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Krysten Sinema (D-AZ)
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has continued to work hard in derailing any attempts by Democrats to get bills passed in the U.S. Senate. When he was majority leader he could just simply refuse to allow bills to be brought before the Senate and with a solid majority prevent passage of those that did make it to the floor for a vote.
But, now McConnell has to use other means to stop Democrats and he has the perfect secret weapons to do it.
Senators Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema are two undercover Republicans in the Democratic Party. Described as Democratic centrists, these two politicians are thwarting efforts by Democrats.
Joe Manchin is the most public about his support of the Republicans in the Senate. He opposes doing away with the filibuster, which pleases McConnell, as well as standing in opposition to Senate Bill S.1, the For the People Act, that would set federal law protecting the rights of voters in America.
It seems that Manchin had an epiphany after the January 6th insurrection. In his “come to Jesus” moment he contends that he believed in bipartisanship to advance legislation in the Senate. He came to think that blocking out Republicans input on bills was not the way to bring healing to American politics. So, now he pushes for Democrats to include those poor Republicans and find value in what they espouse.
Never mind that those very same Republicans Manchin suddenly loves never cared about bipartisanship when they controlled the Senate and Trump was president. Never mind that Manchin sat in the Senate and watched Mitch McConnell rule over the chamber like he was some kind of god and treated the opposition like they were cockroaches infecting the Senate. Never mind that they backed every bit of Trump’s authoritarian rule and supported (and still support) Trump’s lies about the 2020 election.
Nope, Manchin doesn’t see any problem with overlooking the transgressions of the Republicans. He doesn’t need to since he sits in McConnell’s back pocket, bought and paid for. I can easily imagine McConnell dancing in his office at the good fortune of the Republicans to have Manchin as one of the roadblocks in the Senate.
The other roadblock, Krysten Sinema is just as bad, though she seems to keep a lower profile in her opposition to her own party. She, like Manchin, opposes doing away with the Senate filibuster rule. Again, like Manchin, the answer to the Senate’s problems is bipartisanship. Apparently she believes that’s what the country wants (Huffpo article).
Has Sinema paid any attention to what’s going on outside the ivory tower of the Senate? Has she not seen the white supremacist groups like the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers and such raising hell? Has she not seen right wingers blasting America about the southern border being overrun by those pesky “illegal” immigrants? Has she not seen the huge number of bills in Republican controlled states that are instituting laws to suppress voting in their states to insure Republicans maintain control of government. Has she not seen how the Republicans in her own state are carrying out an insane ballot audit to “prove” that the election was stolen from Trump?
She must spend her time watching reruns of Sesame Street while wearing rose colored glasses.
It’s clear that these two are Republicans in sheep’s clothing. Neither one of them has the courage to just come out and officially join the Republican Party. It’s clear to anyone with a brain that these two are more interested in obstructionism that bipartisanship. They’re as out of touch as the Republicans are in America.
There won’t be any healing currently or in the foreseeable future. Not as long as we have uncontrolled racism, cops murdering minorities, politicians suppressing minorities, hate towards any immigrants, propaganda masquerading as news, etc., there will be no healed America.
Republicans are so far off the rails that the rest of us should consider banning them from political involvement due to their incapacity to use their brains for something other that soaking up conspiracy theories and outright lies. I will credit Donald Trump, he sure used his talent to spew propaganda to good effect. Joseph Goebbels would be so proud of him.
Republicans have become out of touch with reality. So many of them, both citizens and elected officials, have given up on using common sense, reasoning, and critical thinking. Instead they prefer to follow each other off the cliffs of sanity like good little lemmings. Since most Republicans would say I’m lying, I’ll prove my case.
First up we have Anthony Antonio, who according to a CNN article of his appearance on Chris Cuomo’s “Prime Time,” got caught up in the lies spewed on Fox News about the election being stolen from Donald Trump. “Foxitis” his attorney called it in court. He admits his participation in the January 6th insurrection/riot and takes full responsibility for it. His mea culpa sounds like German citizens after the end of World War Two saying they didn’t know of the evils of the Nazi regime.
His “excuse” for his behavior doesn’t hold water. He’s an adult and supposedly capable of thinking for himself, but he didn’t. Instead he argues he was led by the nose into the depths of the lies. While he now accepts responsibility for his actions, it should not sway the judge in his case to go easy on him. He tried, with a great many others, to take down the government.
Next is an article in Huffpost about the Republican Arizona state senator, Paul Boyer, who now regrets supporting the recount of the November 2020 election in Maricopa County. Apparently he now believes that the recount “makes us look like idiots.” Gee, why would anyone think that an “audit” of those ballots by Cyber Ninjas seem ridiculous? The audit is only being led by the Trump partisan CEO of the company, a company which has NO experience in ballot audits. An audit that hunted for watermarks on ballots that supposedly were printed up by Trump to show fraud in the voting. Also, hunting for ballots with bamboo in the paper to prove they were inserted into the election by the Chinese.
State Senator Boyer needs to explain to the voters in Maricopa County why he believed the lies that Donald Trump had votes stolen from him and given to Joe Biden. There were recounts and audits done by election officials that verified the findings that Joe Biden won the election. This sham audit that he supported seems to be saying that all the election officials, to include the Arizona Secretary of State and the Arizona Governor, were crooked operators in the first place.
Yes, I certainly agree with Senator Boyer, they look like idiots.
We all know, or should know, who House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is in America. If not, he’s a California Republican who is the House version of Mitch McConnell. Of late he and the other Republicans in the House have ginned up a vote to remove Representative Liz Cheney from her position in the Republican leadership (note: I don’t like Cheney either).
So, he sent a letter to all the House Republicans and something he said in that letter is eye-catching. In an MSNBC article report, “We are a big tent party,” McCarthy wrote. “We represent Americans of all backgrounds…. And unlike the left, we embrace free thought and debate.“
“Free thought and debate.” If that were the truth Kevin, then why are you removing a member of the Republican House leadership for having “free thought” when she publicly called out Trump’s election lies and said Biden was the winner of the election and the rightful president? Umm, seems to me that there was no common sense or critical thinking on the hypocrisy of that statement in McCarthy’s letter. Idiots abound Kevin. Put on your dunce hat and go sit in the corner.
Then we have the certain Republican loving media personalities (who shall remain nameless) who are just as much fools as any I’ve already spoken about above. It just so happens that these particular idiots work at the Trump-loving Fox News. I’m speaking of the multiple personalities at Fox News who paraded out the story of the great American hamburger theft they spouted off about in April. They told the American public, mostly Republican dupes for Trump, that President Biden’s climate plan will force the reduction of the consumption of beef by Americans is coming to a McDonald’s near you.
Who failed to do some due diligence on this story? We know Fox News hates anything Biden’s doing as president, but to honestly believe, and report to America, that you’ll be limited to one hamburger a month to help save the climate is so stupid that the Fox personalities are in the same boat as the Republicans in the Arizona Senate. They clearly look like idiots.
Good work people. Fox News ended up having to make an on air retraction of this ridiculously asinine story. You can read all about it in this Media Matters article.
Need I give any more examples of the lunacy of Republicans? I mean, I could go on and talk about the nonsense that comes out of the mouths of QAnon nuts, Representatives Lauren Boebert and Marjorie Taylor Greene, Senator Ted Cruz, etc, etc, etc. But, why huh? If you haven’t gotten the idea by now of the crazy Republicans, you never will.
This is what you get with them. Do you really think they should have any positions “leading” this country?
I begin this roundup with my thoughts on comments from conservatives about restricting voting for those who are uninformed or ignorant of civics and issues.
An article in the Washington Post reported on comments made by an Arizona Republican member of their state legislature. State Representative John Kavanagh (R) stated, on CNN, that, “Not everybody wants to vote, and if somebody is uninterested in voting, that probably means that they’re totally uninformed on the issues. Quantity is important, but we have to look at the quality of votes, as well.” Of course, he later tried to walk back his words, but that’s to be expected from those who make ignorant statements showing the truth of their beliefs.
An article in USA Today, used in the Washington Post article, on remarks made about voting, gave some more examples. From the article, “For example, Andrew McCarthy stated in National Review: “It would be far better if the franchise were not exercised by ignorant, civics-illiterate people.” Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson, a Republican, warned of the dangers of voting by the “uninformed.” Kevin Williamson, also at National Review, asked whether America “would be better served by having fewer — but better — voters.”
Who are these ignorant and civics-illiterate voters? It’s minorities and the poor who these conservatives are crying about. You know, the people who came out and voted for Joe Biden. Those votes have scared Republicans so badly that they have come out openly for voter suppression by writing and enacting laws to the advantage of Republicans in future elections.
If we use their thinking we must then examine a group overlooked by these “patriots.” That group would be the white supremacist racists, QAnon believing, Trump-loving, LGBTQ hating, REPUBLICANS! These Republicans consider themselves true patriots, defenders of the Constitution, moral and ethical Christians, and the only segment of society capable of determining the direction of American life.
They’re not educated, civics-aware voters. They can’t be. For instance, followers of QAnon are people mentally incapable of using critical reasoning skills (including Republican luminaries Representatives Lauren Boebert and Marjorie Taylor Greene). This is clearly demonstrated by their idiotic beliefs of the conspiracy theories espoused by QAnon. What critically thinking person could believe that Democrats are/were running a child sex ring out of the basement of a pizza restaurant in Washington, D.C.? How can “good” Christians categorize those people who deserve the love of Jesus Christ and the rest, like the LGBTQ+ community, who will burn in hell, be educated voters? How can white supremacist racists who want all minorities dead or removed, just as Hitler wanted all Jews exterminated, be educated voters (consider too the number of white people they’d kill for siding with minorities over their white America dreams)?
Certainly these Republicans should be allowed to vote. Of course, they are excused by the commenters I wrote of above. I’m sure that Republicans can’t see any problems with those voters and the democracy they’d have in power. Wait, make that dictatorship, since they want Trump and a family dynasty he’d institute.
That makes John Kavanagh, Andrew McCarthy, Michael Watson, Kevin Williamson, and others of their ilk, to be nothing short of bigoted hypocrites. Apparently they believe the U.S. Constitution doesn’t extend to all the people. Now, that’s ignorant! They and those like them should be the ones denied the right to vote if anyone should be.
Now we move on to an article on heavy.com about a Tennessee man, Sam Johnson. Johnson is the CEO of a company called VisuWell, a telemedicine platform company. It seems Johnson decided to harass an LGBTQ teen boy who chose to wear a dress to his prom. Johnson took offense at the teen’s appearance, telling the teen that he shouldn’t be wearing a dress. The teen’s boyfriend, who was recording the interaction on his phone, related that Johnson made comments, “You look disgusting, you look ridiculous, you look like an idiot…” In the end Johnson was thrown out of the hotel this occurred at, as well as being told by others to leave the teen alone.
What a bigoted sob! Where the hell do people get the idea that they have the right to harass anyone, for any reason. Obviously, they were not taught to mind their own business when they were growing up. That or they decided they could make anything their business, as Johnson clearly did in this case.
Now, Johnson told Newsweek that the was no truth the accusations. He said he was just handling “obnoxious, loud behavior by this group of teens.” Funny, that’s not what we see in the video – which Johnson says (without proof) was edited. I’m willing to bet that if you asked Johnson, he’d tell you he is a “good” Christian too. In reality, he’s a sick, twisted, coward for his inability to allow people to express themselves. To me, his petty behavior is why we have hate crime laws in America.
I wonder if he would be considered to be a person who would make an educated and responsible voter the Republicans want?
Just these two articles alone show the problem with so many people (all Republicans maybe?) in our country. Their ignorance and hatred for all they disagree with leads them to condemn others and decry the inability of those they oppose to be less human and capable than they are. Are Democrats and the left perfect? Nope, not by a long shot. But, they shine compared to the morons I’ve written about in this article. If they are so determined to force people to follow their beliefs only, then maybe they should all relocate and create their own country of bigoted, racist white people. I suggest Antarctica.
Conservative lies about the “right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”
I am an owner of firearms, as allowed by law. But, I do not believe the Second Amendment provides the right to unrestricted firearm ownership.
The latest tragedy of a mass shooting, resulting in ten deaths, in Boulder, Colorado, is just another reason of why the lies of the Second Amendment arguments by conservatives need to be put in it’s grave once and for all. Americans are fed untruths by gun proponents and gun “rights” organizations, much as the priests tell parishioners what the Bible says and what they are to believe.
There is nothing in the Second Amendment stating that ANY law pertaining to gun restrictions infringes ownership and is unconstitutional. It is the blindness of regular citizens and the lack of their use of common sense that continues to breath life into this belief. Constitutional “rights” are infringed every day. Freedom of speech in the First Amendment does not give a person the right to scream fire in a darkened theater, the freedom of peaceful assembly does not give the right to block roadways, sidewalks, building entrances, or carrying out the lawful (and constitutional) exercise of government, for example.
Plus, the Second Amendment allows for “infringements” on the right to keep and bear arms. No citizen is allowed any weapon they wish to own. Ergo, owning a bazooka, or a machine gun, or a fully automatic assault rifle without a federal firearms license, or a sawed off shotgun (meaning a barrel length under 18 inches long), or a grenade, are all unlawful. It’s common sense. An individual has no reasonable use for any of these weapons and it is the proper behavior of the state and federal governments to enact laws preventing or restricting their ownership. Conservatives and gun rights groups don’t want you to know this, they want you to listen to their preaching only.
It is reasonable to restrict firearms and their ownership. Even conservatives believe this when it aligns with their political beliefs. I don’t see conservatives fighting to allow gun ownership by people with felony criminal convictions or allowing minors to own firearms. It’s their dual standards that allow firearms to be possessed and used that led to the murder ten innocent people in Boulder and eight innocent people in the Atlanta area, and on and on. Why do any of us need weapons that hold 20 or 30 rounds of ammunition in a rifle magazine, or more than 10 rounds in a pistol magazine? How is restricting magazine capacity an infringement of one’s Second Amendment rights? In fact, if laws prevented the ownership of semi-automatic pistols, that law wouldn’t infringe on your right to own a firearm. Revolvers holding six rounds in the cylinder would be legal to possess to protect yourself or your family. If it takes more than six rounds to stop a threat of death or serious bodily injury then I suggest the user is a bad shot and needs time on the range.
Further, the conservative gun rights folks continuously fight to extend the meaning of Second Amendment rights into other areas, such as the right to carry a handgun concealed without a permit and to carry it anywhere, such as the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives (yes lady, I’m talking about you). Yet, concealed carry laws do exist and haven’t been overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. Laws are meant to protect the people in a society, not to allow crimes to be committed. Would any law have prevented the mass shootings in Boulder or Atlanta? The answer is no. But, had only a revolver been used, the shooter would need to reload after six shots. This would have given people a chance to flee or even stop the shooters. Reloading a revolver isn’t as fast as changing a pistol or rifle magazine. Oh sure, if the shooter has a revolver quick loader and plenty of practice in reloading a revolver with it then it might not change the outcome. However, the huge majority of people do not have this type of training in sufficient amounts to make them experienced experts. I know this is true since I’ve owned quick loaders for revolvers and did regularly practiced with them.
Yet, the conservative lies on the Second Amendment continue and allow such tragedies to happen. Is it altruism on their part to protect the rights in the U.S. Constitution, or is it money and political power that drives their motivations? Personally, I believe it to be the latter. Politicians want the backing of groups like the NRA and the Gun Owners of America to bring them funding for their campaigns and votes to continue their hold on power. I’ve never liked, nor been a member of, the NRA or any gun rights group. They exist only to attack any attempt at reasonable gun control. If these groups didn’t exist, would the majority of the American people demand more laws restricting gun ownership? I’m betting they would. Every mass shooting says yes, we need laws restricting gun ownership, just as much as we need some laws protecting the right to own a firearm.
Conservatives, especially Republican members of the U.S.Congress and State legislatures, are wrong and are supporting evil by fighting against any gun laws in America. Their actions are self-serving. They care not about the people they serve, just the money and power they can get.
All we can do as reasonable, common sense, people is to give the survivors and families of the mass shootings our condolences for their loss and promise them all that we will fight for reasonable laws, like assault rifle and high capacity magazines bans, universal background checks, and waiting periods to receive purchased firearms to help protect America. It is time conservatives grow up.
We’ve all been there, stray thoughts that tend to clutter up our mind. They must, sooner or later, be exorcised from our brain to make room to start gathering more stray thoughts. Well, “sooner or later” has arrived for me. Hopefully, some of these thoughts will be interesting to you.
Breonna Taylor: As we know, Breonna Taylor was, as far as many of us in America are concerned, was murdered in her sleep in her home on March 13, 2020. Yesterday the Kentucky Attorney General reported the decision of the Grand Jury reviewing the case. Of the three officers involved in shooting Breonna Taylor, only one was indicted. The indictment wasn’t for murdering her, it was for firing into the adjoining residence! The shooting of Ms Taylor was completely ignored. Once again, White America has justified murder by police officers.
As a result of this idiotic thinking by the Grand Jury, protests broke out in cities across America. Demands by peaceful protestors for justice for Breonna Taylor was thrown in the faces of Americans, as it should be every day. If Americans must be shown the shame they allow to be perpetrated, SO BE IT! America should not be allowed to continue the systemic racism that does exist, regardless of the opinions of Donald Trump and the Republicans in the country.
I fervently hope the protests never stop until America in remade into a nation where true equality and justice for all is the truth, not the convenient mirage Americans hide behind. I urge everyone to support Mutual Aid groups around the country helping those in need and protestors with supplies to sustain them during protests. These are volunteer groups of activists, not any government agency. They depend on the generosity of donors to their vital work.
Louisville Protest: Last night, as a reaction to the grand jury result, a protest went on in the city by protestors enraged by the decision. During the protest two Louisville PD officers were shot. A suspect was arrested by police and was “charged with wanton endangerment and assaulting a police officer,” according to an online BBC article. The alleged shooter was identified as Larynzo Johnson, a 26 year-old Black man.
We know damn well that Mr Johnson won’t be excused by an grand jury for his alleged actions. We know that when he is convicted he will suffer the full weight of the law at sentencing because he is a Black man. The racist White America will demand it. The system will use him as an example to others considering violent acts during protests. After all, they will say, the officers were just doing their job protecting the public. To me, they were doing their unstated jobs of suppressing lawful protest, using violence, and intimidating people they are also allegedly suppose to protect. The police must ensure the nation’s elite maintain the stranglehold over us.
This is how justice is meted out in America. Cops slide for their unlawful acts, while Black Americans suffer the heavy hand of the police, up to and including being murdered. Whether you want to accept it or not, systemic racism is a foundational base instituted by whites, for whites against all non-white people.
Donald Trump: How would any day be complete without thinking of Donald Trump? I’m being truthful and sarcastic at the same time. As usual Trump has continued his harangue on mail-in voting being rife with fraud (a lie). During his afternoon press conference he was asked if he would guarantee a peaceful transition of power after the election. As reported by CNN, Trump refused to guarantee the peaceful transition. Trump stated, “Well, we’re going to have to see what happens.”
Folks, Donald Trump has decided and is prepared to create a constitutional crisis after the election. He’ll begin by fighting the results in court and when he loses he’ll get his Republican Supreme Court to rule he is the lawful winner of the election. The Supreme Court will deny the will of the people, destroying any faith the people have in the “democratic” election process.We already know the national election process for selecting a president isn’t democratic because of the Electoral College. His grip on America after that will be stronger and America will really suffer. He’ll tighten his fascist regime’s control over every aspect of American society. You have now been warned, again. At least some Republicans are pushing back against his lunacy. I want to be wrong about this, but I fear I’m not.
Yesterday, Dr Stephen Hahn, FDA Commissioner, stated that vaccine approvals will be based on the science, not politics. Donald Trump responded to this statement, at his afternoon press conference, “We’re looking at that. That has to be approved by the White House, we may or may not approve it. That sounds like a political move,” according to a CBS News station. FDA rules must be approved by the White House, so Trump could have them changed.
Many, many Americans will decline to take the vaccine, as will I. No one should be put at risk for political purposes. Trump doesn’t give a tinkers damn who gets ill or dies from the side effects of or failures of a vaccine. He’s incapable of empathy and sympathy, like all sociopaths. He only cares about himself.
This is a pure political move so he can get a vaccine approved before November 3rd. He wants to be able to claim all the credit for the vaccine. He wants to use this, like everything, in his campaign. Why that matters, I know not. The election, in Trump’s mind, is going to be false and he’ll try to hold power regardless. However, it will be America who suffers if science isn’t used to determine a vaccine authorization from the FDA. How many will become ill? How many will die? How many children, for which there haven’t been any trials of a vaccine on children, will suffer? How many more families will mourn?
Speaking of Trump some more, he showed up this morning at the Supreme Court to pay his respects to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. As he stood looking towards the cabinet, he was wearing a face mask. So was Melania Trump. So, why now? I know there have been a few, very few, occasions he’s worn a mask, but it is still out of character for him. I believe he and Melania wore masks because he is not able to arrange the area to be “safe” for him. He feared the coronavirus. We’ve all seen at his rallies how he doesn’t wear a mask, as almost all of the crowd doesn’t. But, he is positioned well away from anyone while speaking at his rallies. He feels confident since he had control over the environment. So, obviously, as he also said to Bob Woodward, the coronavirus is dangerous and deadly in his mind.
One more thing on Trump and masks. Trump has said that his rallies should be called protests. That way they can legally, he believes, ignore masks and social distancing requirements, just like the protestors do. However, look at footage of several, or more, of the protests that have been happening since the George Floyd murder. In the footage, the wearing of masks or face covers are the general rule protestors follow. While, they aren’t staying safely distanced, they have masks on. Why has no reporter asked Trump about this being different, on mask wearing, at his rallies? He’d make up some lie probably, so why bother asking him.
Whew, that’s enough on Trump for today.
The US Supreme Court: Love them or hate them, they are a branch of the US Government. For now we have no choice about it. Anyway, we all know of the push by Trump and Senate Republicans to fill the chair of Justice Ginsburg. They have the votes to turn the court into 6 – 3 majority for Republicans. Yes, the Democrats in the Senate can slow down how fast it happens, but it will happen.
This spells ill for the country. A 6 – 3 majority will be able to attack and reverse many of the rights the Court placed into the legal fabric of America, like Roe v Wade for example. This concept of Mitch McConnell ramming through a new, Republican, justice to the Court has angered Democrats. Democrats are now saying that they will pack the Court in 2021, should they hold the House and flip the Senate.
Lets say Democrats try this. There are some things they must insure to get this to happen. If Trump holds the presidency, a Democratic Congress will have to have the votes to override a sure veto from Trump. The Democrats must have 2/3rd’s of the votes in each chamber of Congress to override any veto. That means some of the Republicans in each chamber would have to vote to override a veto. They wouldn’t. If Joe Biden is elected, then the Congressional Democrats have to insure the legislation would be signed by Biden. If he vetoes, back to trying to override the veto.
If the Democrats do get to pack the Court, their “victory” would be fleeting. You have to believe the Republicans will do the same when they regain power. Hell, if they all keep it up, in time the whole Country will sit on the Supreme Court (lmao). While having five ideological conservatives on the Court will be ugly, a Court packing war would ultimately be worse. The Democrats need to drop this stupid idea, like yesterday.
OK, we need a laugh. Check out this photo:
Chihuahua and a Rhino
That’s what our Chihuahua would be nutty enough to do. That poor Rhino is thinking while he runs, “What the hell is that little thing?” It just keeps making me laugh.
OK, my mind has been sufficiently uncluttered for now. We’ll do this again in the future.
Everyone feels glum, distressed, or perturbed as a result of life's experiences; but if these feelings last for a long time, they disrupt your life. Learning to notice and identify these feelings and mastering the habits of a healthy lifestyle takes practice. I will be sharing my personal stories and stories of individuals (on emotional issues) whose names won't be mentioned. Most of these stories will be written in the first person narrative. Promising you a noteworthy read! Cheers!
American Dystopia 