Every day in my email I get an posting from a Jewish funeral home in the Detroit area of funerals that day. One caught my eye this morning, a neighbor from Fairfield Avenue in Detroit. The Rosins. Mrs. Rosin passed, the last of the original people on that block. They had a beautiful home about three houses from the corner. We were several houses to the north. Mrs. Rosin was 99. And so it goes. Shiva will be at the house on Fairfield, which means either the daughter is still in the house, Ilene that is, or she is getting ready to close the house up as I did my grandmother's in 2004. Just seeing that obit made me sad. We had a great neighborhood. beautiful homes, the University District, the University of Detroit being my alma mater was a mere mile from the house. I walked there, weather permitting. Our home at 18975 Fairfield was a Tudor style home with a great back yard and we had a swimming pool in the backyard for a number of years (above ground). We had "maid quarters" on the third floor, bedroom and full bath. We actually had a live in maid, Myrtle. My grandmother, sainted woman that she was, paid her social security so that when Myrtle could retire she had a stream of income. Dorothy, my grandmother, was like that. She did so much for her younger brothers and sisters. Friday nights, the sabbath, was a feast and festival of aunts and uncles for me. The bad mommy was in bed and the family had a great meal and I was the recipient of a great deal of attention. I loved Fridays.
So Mrs. Rosin's passing made me sad in a number of ways. Like the final chapter in a long mortality (mortality) play. I remember summer afternoons, hiking to the end the block where Mischa Mischakoff gave violin lessons in his home and the music coming from his home was intoxicating.
I almost found it odd that Mrs. Rosin still lived on the block. When the riot hit in 1967 we had major white flight the following year. My memory of the first year of high school was a racially mixed class that by the time I graduated was predominately African American. Still we stayed in that house, as Mrs. Rosin did in hers. The last of the last. I thought my dad might have been the last original soul on Fairfield but, no, Mrs. Rosin was.
I don't know where I am going with this. Somewhere down memory lane. Just seeing her address in the email made me nostalgic for the Fridays, the High Holy Days, the family always gathering at our house, until the riots, that is. Then the Aunties didn't like to stay past dark and instead of coming for dinner they dined at a quaint "tea room" Ann Sayles, on 7 Mile Road. Then to our house for a rousing game of Canasta. Soon my grandmother, unable to live in her own home with my demented mother signed the house over to her only daughter and my grandmother moved to be closer to her sisters. My mother was proud of her new house but could only entice the Aunts to come during hte day for a ladies' luncheon and more Canasta. Home before dark. Mother wanted to show off her house, the new touches she and my father added but folks didn't want to come to Detroit. When my dad passed in 2004 the remaining Aunties came and sat Shiva with me one night, delivered by their driver as neither aunt could see well enough to drive. After the funeral we went to their building and had a post game meal in the dining room. Which I ended up paying for and for which my rat bastard cousin Don told me not to tip so much but I just didn't care, and what care he as it wasn't his money and he got a decent meal out of it. So there was some of the Epstein grandstanding, as usual, to contend with.
And so down the rabbit hole of memory I go.
As an aside, the library's west wing, where my office ism is currently sans water due to a water main break yesterday. Only four toilets for each gender in the building. Lots of good fun and lots of foresight needed to plan a bathroom run. My secret: Go to the one on the forth floor. No lines.
Here is something I can write without getting my panties in a bunch over politics. I hope you have enjoyed.
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
6 of June
What I have in my inbox from three and a half years ago: Aunt Martha's obit from Kaufman's. Today would have been her birthday. My birthday, this year, is Fathers' Day. The family, as it were, had lots of June and July birthdays. Mine sometimes falls on Fathers' Day. It happens. Aunt Martha's was D-Day before it was D-Day, and, as I was in the shower this morning pondering the guts and glory that was the Normandy Invasion, I thought, fondly, of gentle Aunt, really a great aunt, Martha. The last of the nine children to pass. The passing of a generation for me. I just ponder it for all I am worth. Now families are split and aside from my dad's brother and sister-in-law and their kids, I really am alone in this world. No siblings, no parents, no grands of any sort. One aunt and one uncle, some cousins.
Sometimes it gets lonely and I pick up the phone and think I could call the Aunties or dad, but, no, that's not going to happen. I still remember the old phone number, the old exchange of University (UN-26725 before it was 862-6725). I have fewer and fewer people to call and chat.
And it doesn't seem like almost four years since the Toxic Avenger split from Sophie and me, over what I still am unsure. And she truly was toxic: a racist hypocrite and wouldn't say shit if she had a mouthful. Ah, Sophie, we knew her, and knew her not. For all our foibles, dear reader, at least we, or at least I, are genuine. Honest, sincere, you name it. I am still waiting for Jack, I think it was Jack, to rear his or her ugly head and call me names again. Mayhap it was Cousin Lena, an ass who fancies herself a politician now after serving as co-chair of the president's campaign committee in Michigan. Ah, the cult of the amateur.
And speaking of which...I am truly afraid to watch the news now that we have the American Idiot in charge...afraid of his not understanding that he is supposed to be a responsible adult no longer a CEO but the biggest CEO of them all and that words matter. My heart sank listening to MSNBC last night as Michael Beschloss, the presidential historian, said he was afraid. The jerk in charge is quick to point fingers, but he is the one who hasn't filled over 79% of the appointments he has to make. It has nothing to do with the Dems being obstructionists. No, that is on him. And his "managerial" style of pitting one against another doesn't work well when trying to run a country. Yes, he is an ass. And so is Lena, the amateur. Running business is nothing like running a country. You can't tweet out of your asshole and not expect it to land you in a stinking pile of shit.
Alright, let's enjoy the beautiful day and not think about our country going down the crapper.
Sometimes it gets lonely and I pick up the phone and think I could call the Aunties or dad, but, no, that's not going to happen. I still remember the old phone number, the old exchange of University (UN-26725 before it was 862-6725). I have fewer and fewer people to call and chat.
And it doesn't seem like almost four years since the Toxic Avenger split from Sophie and me, over what I still am unsure. And she truly was toxic: a racist hypocrite and wouldn't say shit if she had a mouthful. Ah, Sophie, we knew her, and knew her not. For all our foibles, dear reader, at least we, or at least I, are genuine. Honest, sincere, you name it. I am still waiting for Jack, I think it was Jack, to rear his or her ugly head and call me names again. Mayhap it was Cousin Lena, an ass who fancies herself a politician now after serving as co-chair of the president's campaign committee in Michigan. Ah, the cult of the amateur.
And speaking of which...I am truly afraid to watch the news now that we have the American Idiot in charge...afraid of his not understanding that he is supposed to be a responsible adult no longer a CEO but the biggest CEO of them all and that words matter. My heart sank listening to MSNBC last night as Michael Beschloss, the presidential historian, said he was afraid. The jerk in charge is quick to point fingers, but he is the one who hasn't filled over 79% of the appointments he has to make. It has nothing to do with the Dems being obstructionists. No, that is on him. And his "managerial" style of pitting one against another doesn't work well when trying to run a country. Yes, he is an ass. And so is Lena, the amateur. Running business is nothing like running a country. You can't tweet out of your asshole and not expect it to land you in a stinking pile of shit.
Alright, let's enjoy the beautiful day and not think about our country going down the crapper.
Thursday, June 1, 2017
I am back
And I an still embarrassed. But life goes on, hopefully it does. The house is beautiful and I am basically happy save for our current pretender in chief. My garden is lovely, my credit score is soaring and my Luminosity scores are also on the rise. Capitol City Informatics has a permanent gig at the Williamston Area Senior Center and I must prepare a PowerPoint presentation for the 29th of the month, which is now June. If April is the cruelest month then June is busting out all over. Another thing I am embarrassed by is that the American Idiot's b-day is also flag day which makes him a schizophrenic Gemini (but I don't believe in horoscopes...that another Gemini trait).
I keep going back to he who shall not be named. He stole an election with the aid of an enemy state and no one seems truly upset with this treasonous behavior, least of all the Republicans, who place winning ahead of country. They are so drunk with power that they can't see the world is laughing at us and are a little more fearful of us now that a madman is at the helm of state. There used to be more good Republicans other than McCain and Graham. Bill Milliken of Michigan and George Romney, both good men. I can add Susan Collins of Maine to the list of good Republicans but they have and must start opposing more vociferously the madman in chief. This is just all crazy.
The deal with Kathy Griffin and the head of state should outrage you, but outrage you as much as you should have been when there were Obama effigies being hanged in the street. If you weren't outraged then, you don't get to be outraged now.
So, where does this leave me? Outraged and tired. Watch too much MSNBC yet every time I turn it one, between innings as it were, there are more and deeper scandals. And what the hell is a covfefe?
And on it goes. I keep waiting for the merry-go-round to stop but it keeps spinning out of control. Where will it end. 132 days in and I am still waiting for the other shoe to fall. And wait I will
Okay, onward. Tonight the Old Duffer is coming over, along with the very pregnant cantor, to rehearse for Friday services this week. Since I joined KI, my synagogue, I find myself playing guitar once a month at Friday services. Dinner is included. And the food is usually terrible. Tonight, however, I will make a Greek pasta salad for tomorrow night and that I know will be edible. Seems the people that cook have never heard of seasonings like, oh, I don't know, SALT and PEPPER. I will use a light hand but the salad will be good. Manicotti will be served so it will be a basta-pasta festival. My garden had produced an abundant crop of lettuce so the pregnant cantor will take some of it home to make a salad that I hope her partner will not overseason with fresh garlic and yes there is such a thing as too much garlic. Also, my herbs are herbacious. I can add Greek oregano to my salad as I have multiple kinds of oregano, basil and chives. Fresh, fresh, fresh. Lots to pick from. In spite of not a great weather in May the garden is thriving and my roses are in bloom a full two weeks ahead of schedule, like they pay attention to that sort of thing. My hand is finally doing better since I took the header on Grand River and Coolidge on May 6th. Still swollen and bent but I can play the guitar well enough for services and to teach.
The front porch has been upgraded and I sit out there while Simcha Cat complains that I told the boys that they could sit on the porch with me when we moved to Sans Souci. Simcha sits in the window overlooking the porch and yells at me. But I don't give in. I don't want them flying out the door when I leave the house in the morning just because it suits them. I thought about getting harnesses for them but again I don't want them flying out of the house without protection. And then there is Bernice, a lovely neighborhood kitty that likes to hide in my low bushes and watch the birds. She is very friendly. I see her across the street with Mrs, Shankland helping her plant flowers. A very helpful cat.
I am doing a great deal these days and still have two full years before retiring. Dan is taking me to lunch today, I hope because I am already looking forward to it, and we will get around to paying off the last of the credit cards. Then shred, shred, shred. I went to a BNI as Dan's guest and I have new contacts for my business, which is doing nicely thank you.
As for Sophie she is well. And Ethel is too, Phyllis, their mother, just returned home from a stint in rehab and is doing fine.
Alright, enough with this nonsense. Time for more outrage.
I keep going back to he who shall not be named. He stole an election with the aid of an enemy state and no one seems truly upset with this treasonous behavior, least of all the Republicans, who place winning ahead of country. They are so drunk with power that they can't see the world is laughing at us and are a little more fearful of us now that a madman is at the helm of state. There used to be more good Republicans other than McCain and Graham. Bill Milliken of Michigan and George Romney, both good men. I can add Susan Collins of Maine to the list of good Republicans but they have and must start opposing more vociferously the madman in chief. This is just all crazy.
The deal with Kathy Griffin and the head of state should outrage you, but outrage you as much as you should have been when there were Obama effigies being hanged in the street. If you weren't outraged then, you don't get to be outraged now.
So, where does this leave me? Outraged and tired. Watch too much MSNBC yet every time I turn it one, between innings as it were, there are more and deeper scandals. And what the hell is a covfefe?
And on it goes. I keep waiting for the merry-go-round to stop but it keeps spinning out of control. Where will it end. 132 days in and I am still waiting for the other shoe to fall. And wait I will
Okay, onward. Tonight the Old Duffer is coming over, along with the very pregnant cantor, to rehearse for Friday services this week. Since I joined KI, my synagogue, I find myself playing guitar once a month at Friday services. Dinner is included. And the food is usually terrible. Tonight, however, I will make a Greek pasta salad for tomorrow night and that I know will be edible. Seems the people that cook have never heard of seasonings like, oh, I don't know, SALT and PEPPER. I will use a light hand but the salad will be good. Manicotti will be served so it will be a basta-pasta festival. My garden had produced an abundant crop of lettuce so the pregnant cantor will take some of it home to make a salad that I hope her partner will not overseason with fresh garlic and yes there is such a thing as too much garlic. Also, my herbs are herbacious. I can add Greek oregano to my salad as I have multiple kinds of oregano, basil and chives. Fresh, fresh, fresh. Lots to pick from. In spite of not a great weather in May the garden is thriving and my roses are in bloom a full two weeks ahead of schedule, like they pay attention to that sort of thing. My hand is finally doing better since I took the header on Grand River and Coolidge on May 6th. Still swollen and bent but I can play the guitar well enough for services and to teach.
The front porch has been upgraded and I sit out there while Simcha Cat complains that I told the boys that they could sit on the porch with me when we moved to Sans Souci. Simcha sits in the window overlooking the porch and yells at me. But I don't give in. I don't want them flying out the door when I leave the house in the morning just because it suits them. I thought about getting harnesses for them but again I don't want them flying out of the house without protection. And then there is Bernice, a lovely neighborhood kitty that likes to hide in my low bushes and watch the birds. She is very friendly. I see her across the street with Mrs, Shankland helping her plant flowers. A very helpful cat.
I am doing a great deal these days and still have two full years before retiring. Dan is taking me to lunch today, I hope because I am already looking forward to it, and we will get around to paying off the last of the credit cards. Then shred, shred, shred. I went to a BNI as Dan's guest and I have new contacts for my business, which is doing nicely thank you.
As for Sophie she is well. And Ethel is too, Phyllis, their mother, just returned home from a stint in rehab and is doing fine.
Alright, enough with this nonsense. Time for more outrage.
Wednesday, May 31, 2017
I am so embarrassed
And so I am. I am embarrassed by what this country is turning into: a stupid, hate mongering, isolationist turd ball. I am further embarrassed by the so-called president and the Republicans that are putting party ahead of country and its people. I see hate everywhere I go. I am embarrassed by the number of Jews involved in the growing Russia scandal, dare I say treason? A shanda, pure and simple.
I can't really put into words the shame I am feeling. Our lame president rode in a golf cart yards behind the walking leaders of the free world. What a massage that sends. Our poor, dilapidated old man, wife, slapping away his hand, American idiot. I am embarrassed. Every time he opens his mouth I am embarrassed. Every day brings new revelations. I thought I couldn't get more embarrassed by a president than George W. Bush. I was wrong, wrong, I tell you.
I am watching with horror that we are not making America great again, but hate again. It is like the Republicans and their ilk are trying to blot out the history that was Obama. Civil rights, reproductive rights, equal opportunities, safety from police violence, all being rolled back, blotting out the last eight years. No, it wasn't enough for him to question his birth, we now have to undo all he did. And I am embarrassed.
My congressman, Mike Bishop, stands by this ass. And dare I say he doesn't stand a ghost of a chance of re-election. What an ass. He has disabled his website so you can't send him emails anymore. Classy. Fake news? Double Speak, 1984...all being realized in a third world country that we have become. I can't stand this.
Every day I turn to MSNBC hoping that this American Idiot (thanks Green Day) will see the light and step down. It really is too much for him. Every day another scandal, deeper intrigue, more subpoenas. Every day...and I grow weary. #Resist
People who voted for this idiot, having been sold a bill of goods by him, stand by their man. He is gutting the social safety net. Dr. Carson says Poverty is a state of mind. Wonderful. A brain surgeon came up with this. I am outraged. We are becoming not the best and brightest, but the worse and dumbest. A shanda.
And everyday I am made angrier. There is hate in the street. The white middle class may feel newly invigorated and less marginalized but hens will come home to roost. And when there is no longer a middle class, much less a white middle class, will blood run in the streets?
Wake up. You've been conned by the King of Cons. His behavior towards Russia is treasonous. Can no one see this. If the Democrats had pulled half of this bullshit would they still have a place to hang their hats? The party in power has grown so intoxicated by the power that they can't stand themselves. When the Republicans, the good ones, put country ahead of party we might see some light at the end of this tunnel.
I'll tell ya...an ass of a cousin, Lena Epstein, is planning to run against Debbie Stabenow for senate. She, Lena, has no political experience, but, like her mentor, she doesn't see this as hindering her chances. I will do everything in my power to see that Lena is defeated. Her father is a bad man, grown senile from what I have heard. They have money up the butt, then denied an inheritance to another cousin and they took that money, money, money and ran. These are the people we now choose for public service? Greedy robber barons.
And so I go on everyday with a faint hope that this 132 day nightmare will end soon. And not with a bang but with a whimper.
I can't really put into words the shame I am feeling. Our lame president rode in a golf cart yards behind the walking leaders of the free world. What a massage that sends. Our poor, dilapidated old man, wife, slapping away his hand, American idiot. I am embarrassed. Every time he opens his mouth I am embarrassed. Every day brings new revelations. I thought I couldn't get more embarrassed by a president than George W. Bush. I was wrong, wrong, I tell you.
I am watching with horror that we are not making America great again, but hate again. It is like the Republicans and their ilk are trying to blot out the history that was Obama. Civil rights, reproductive rights, equal opportunities, safety from police violence, all being rolled back, blotting out the last eight years. No, it wasn't enough for him to question his birth, we now have to undo all he did. And I am embarrassed.
My congressman, Mike Bishop, stands by this ass. And dare I say he doesn't stand a ghost of a chance of re-election. What an ass. He has disabled his website so you can't send him emails anymore. Classy. Fake news? Double Speak, 1984...all being realized in a third world country that we have become. I can't stand this.
Every day I turn to MSNBC hoping that this American Idiot (thanks Green Day) will see the light and step down. It really is too much for him. Every day another scandal, deeper intrigue, more subpoenas. Every day...and I grow weary. #Resist
People who voted for this idiot, having been sold a bill of goods by him, stand by their man. He is gutting the social safety net. Dr. Carson says Poverty is a state of mind. Wonderful. A brain surgeon came up with this. I am outraged. We are becoming not the best and brightest, but the worse and dumbest. A shanda.
And everyday I am made angrier. There is hate in the street. The white middle class may feel newly invigorated and less marginalized but hens will come home to roost. And when there is no longer a middle class, much less a white middle class, will blood run in the streets?
Wake up. You've been conned by the King of Cons. His behavior towards Russia is treasonous. Can no one see this. If the Democrats had pulled half of this bullshit would they still have a place to hang their hats? The party in power has grown so intoxicated by the power that they can't stand themselves. When the Republicans, the good ones, put country ahead of party we might see some light at the end of this tunnel.
I'll tell ya...an ass of a cousin, Lena Epstein, is planning to run against Debbie Stabenow for senate. She, Lena, has no political experience, but, like her mentor, she doesn't see this as hindering her chances. I will do everything in my power to see that Lena is defeated. Her father is a bad man, grown senile from what I have heard. They have money up the butt, then denied an inheritance to another cousin and they took that money, money, money and ran. These are the people we now choose for public service? Greedy robber barons.
And so I go on everyday with a faint hope that this 132 day nightmare will end soon. And not with a bang but with a whimper.
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
It's been a while, dear friends
Since last I posted. Much has transpired since of a more personal nature than waiting for the inevitable collapse of our civilization. Passover transpired, which, as matzo is want to do, ripped my guts to shreds and has necessitated a colonoscopy on the 2nd of May. So until then Prednisone is my friend and companion and I hope this does not offset the effects of the Forteo injections I have been taking since October to strengthen my weak old bones. So, of course, I immediately imagine my ankle is in the process of breaking bad.
On a more positive note Capitol City Informatics is doing splendidly. I am giving computer literacy courses out at the Williamston Area Senior Center (WASC) (and getting paid). This has necessitated hiring Sophie as my chauffeur. She is now on my payroll. Basically she gets a per diem for the ride to and from the WASC and mileage. I opened a business account with the bank but right now my cash outlay is greater than my income. But I am just getting started. Teaching computer literacy to seniors is enjoyable and a market that I think is very vibrant. I go to my office in my home (which also doubles as the cats' room and music studio...go figure that the cats would have a band) and work out PowerPoint presentations, which I have uploaded to my website. So if you want to learn computer basics or how to do research in the internet these presentations are on the website. Among other things I am learning by doing and then teaching others. I am getting input from the seniors on what they want to learn and and working out classes for them. I hope to have a drop in session where folks can bring their laptops, tablets and smartphones in and we can work with them on a one to one basis. The WASC also has five desktop computers and they are already being used regularly. I teach safe computing as well.
So, whilst all of this is ongoing spring has sprung in a spectacular fashion. The campus, which was submerged under water just three weeks ago, making a lake out of the baseball field, is now alive with flowering trees, flowering flowers and the crack of the bat hitting the ball. My front yard looks spectacular with all the daffs and miniature tulips blooming that my Aunt Marilyn had sent me since I have moved to Sans Souci in 2015. The back yard needs some work yet but the patio furniture is out, the garage is relatively clean and, touch wood, the basement hasn't seen fit to flood this year. Aside from the revenge of the Seder ulcerative colitis (UC) attack things are pretty good. I may need to change my UC meds to a biologic (Humira) which is an injection as well but as long as I am poking myself nightly for the Forteo, what's another poke? Speaking of pokes, I lost four rose bushes over the winter as I couldn't take care of the yard last autumn due to the fractures of the femurs, so, but of course, I am getting two more bushes and two climbing roses to replace them. And then there is the contract to redo the front porch. The windstorm we had in March blew my screens out and the door is no more. Brad to the rescue, sooner rather than later to effect the repairs.
So, no politics today. I am tired and depressed by the worldly goings on. But spring is springing and mayhaps the UC will resolve itself without going on a biologic. I was doing pretty good on one medication but the insurer wouldn't cover it any more so I am on something apparently not as good as the Asacol was so I suffered with the UC and all its unattractive feces, er, features. And on that note...
On a more positive note Capitol City Informatics is doing splendidly. I am giving computer literacy courses out at the Williamston Area Senior Center (WASC) (and getting paid). This has necessitated hiring Sophie as my chauffeur. She is now on my payroll. Basically she gets a per diem for the ride to and from the WASC and mileage. I opened a business account with the bank but right now my cash outlay is greater than my income. But I am just getting started. Teaching computer literacy to seniors is enjoyable and a market that I think is very vibrant. I go to my office in my home (which also doubles as the cats' room and music studio...go figure that the cats would have a band) and work out PowerPoint presentations, which I have uploaded to my website. So if you want to learn computer basics or how to do research in the internet these presentations are on the website. Among other things I am learning by doing and then teaching others. I am getting input from the seniors on what they want to learn and and working out classes for them. I hope to have a drop in session where folks can bring their laptops, tablets and smartphones in and we can work with them on a one to one basis. The WASC also has five desktop computers and they are already being used regularly. I teach safe computing as well.
So, whilst all of this is ongoing spring has sprung in a spectacular fashion. The campus, which was submerged under water just three weeks ago, making a lake out of the baseball field, is now alive with flowering trees, flowering flowers and the crack of the bat hitting the ball. My front yard looks spectacular with all the daffs and miniature tulips blooming that my Aunt Marilyn had sent me since I have moved to Sans Souci in 2015. The back yard needs some work yet but the patio furniture is out, the garage is relatively clean and, touch wood, the basement hasn't seen fit to flood this year. Aside from the revenge of the Seder ulcerative colitis (UC) attack things are pretty good. I may need to change my UC meds to a biologic (Humira) which is an injection as well but as long as I am poking myself nightly for the Forteo, what's another poke? Speaking of pokes, I lost four rose bushes over the winter as I couldn't take care of the yard last autumn due to the fractures of the femurs, so, but of course, I am getting two more bushes and two climbing roses to replace them. And then there is the contract to redo the front porch. The windstorm we had in March blew my screens out and the door is no more. Brad to the rescue, sooner rather than later to effect the repairs.
So, no politics today. I am tired and depressed by the worldly goings on. But spring is springing and mayhaps the UC will resolve itself without going on a biologic. I was doing pretty good on one medication but the insurer wouldn't cover it any more so I am on something apparently not as good as the Asacol was so I suffered with the UC and all its unattractive feces, er, features. And on that note...
Monday, March 27, 2017
The mystery that is history
George Santayana once said that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. This is basically a plug for knowing history. And as I watch the whole world unravel, due to some Bannonian edict to deconstruct the administrative state, watch the dismantling of the social safety net put in place by those progressive dreamers following the "Great Depression", I am reminded of Santayana's words. I is a history major as an undergraduate (minors in religious studies and English) and in my distant past done work towards a doctorate which I managed to destroy with a little too much graduate school libations. Not that I have any special insight to the debacle we are witnessing but maybe I do. Who know? But then I am the Authority Czarina and maybe I can be of assistance. I cite Percy Bysshe Shelley's Ozymandias
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shatter'd visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamp'd on these lifeless things,
The hand that mock'd them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains: round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
Yes, we are in the desert of Trumplandia. And when our history is writ large we shall see what we allowed to be created and how it tumbled and decayed.
If we have learned nothing from the last week is that the party in dominance is feckless. Eight years they had to repeal and replace (or just repeal) the ACA and the came up empty. Seems given time to acclimate to the concept of health care as a "entitlement" most people seem to have cozied up to the notion. Now try to take it away and the hue and cry has gone up. Sure the ACA could be better, like a single payer option, but most people, many of the Trumpets, have warmed to the idea. Now don't you dare take their Kodachrome away.
And that the Republicans who salivated like a junk yard dog over a contested bone tried to eviscerate the ACA the people fought back. Still the fact that they really had no plan at all and that it was rushed through the process without a hearing, well, I am sure that had something to do with it as well.
So Ryan looks like a loser, and Trump, ever the narcissist, tries to blame the Dems for the failure and refuses to take any personal responsibility The fact is this country cannot be run on a business model and the president's lack of political acumen and his thin skinned self demonstrates this all too well. He has not drained the swamp, only made it swampier. He is a puppet of the Republicans who thought he was malleable and could bend to their will.
And speaking of puppets, the Russian connection through this whole ugly ordeal...why are we all not shouting TREASON. The Republicans wanted power so much they compromised the democracy to attain it. TREASON. Call it what is it. . The whole rat pack of them GUILTY. They are traitors to this country and owe allegiance only to power and whomever can put them there.
This is the history we are living.
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shatter'd visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamp'd on these lifeless things,
The hand that mock'd them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains: round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
Yes, we are in the desert of Trumplandia. And when our history is writ large we shall see what we allowed to be created and how it tumbled and decayed.
If we have learned nothing from the last week is that the party in dominance is feckless. Eight years they had to repeal and replace (or just repeal) the ACA and the came up empty. Seems given time to acclimate to the concept of health care as a "entitlement" most people seem to have cozied up to the notion. Now try to take it away and the hue and cry has gone up. Sure the ACA could be better, like a single payer option, but most people, many of the Trumpets, have warmed to the idea. Now don't you dare take their Kodachrome away.
And that the Republicans who salivated like a junk yard dog over a contested bone tried to eviscerate the ACA the people fought back. Still the fact that they really had no plan at all and that it was rushed through the process without a hearing, well, I am sure that had something to do with it as well.
So Ryan looks like a loser, and Trump, ever the narcissist, tries to blame the Dems for the failure and refuses to take any personal responsibility The fact is this country cannot be run on a business model and the president's lack of political acumen and his thin skinned self demonstrates this all too well. He has not drained the swamp, only made it swampier. He is a puppet of the Republicans who thought he was malleable and could bend to their will.
And speaking of puppets, the Russian connection through this whole ugly ordeal...why are we all not shouting TREASON. The Republicans wanted power so much they compromised the democracy to attain it. TREASON. Call it what is it. . The whole rat pack of them GUILTY. They are traitors to this country and owe allegiance only to power and whomever can put them there.
This is the history we are living.
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Have we have lost the ability to be outraged?
I am shocked, well, not too shocked, at the latest revelations about the president's administration and its ties to Russia. Why aren't more people not outraged that a foreign entity interrupted our democratic processes and handed the president a victory lap around the country. The fact that the AG is now splitting hairs as to what role he was in when he spoke to the Russian ambassador during the campaign speaks volumes about the lack of integrity of this White House. And the Trumpets are not in the least concerned that their hero is riding on Putin's back in the bromance of the century.
People: Russia interfered with our electoral process. That is real. Be outraged. People: the president has tremendous ties to the Russian oligarchs and that is the reason he won't release his tax returns. The enemy of the people is not the free press it is this rogue presidency. And no one seems truly upset. PEOPLE: WE WERE HACKED BY RUSSIA, OUR COLD WAR NEMESIS. Be outraged. If the shoe had been on the other foot and the hack had favored the Democrats, the Right would be all over it like flies in shit. But, no, with his MAGA campaign his supporters don't seem to care. Where is the moral outrage?
Yes, right now it looks like partisan politics. The intelligence community, which is historically to the right of center, says the hack is real. We should sit up and pay attention. Seventeen national intelligence agencies have said the hack is real. I no longer say the outcome doesn't matter. It does. While there may be no "do over" we do need to have an investigation into this Russian cyber-attack. We do need to investigate why the administration is playing bait and switch and bright shiny objects to distract from the noise this cyber-attack should be creating. The enemy of the people isn't the free press, which is pushing the investigation envelope and leading the charge, it is the current administration.
The Administration needs to realize that America isn't a business you can walk away from in a bankruptcy court. No, it follows you around like a puppy wanting to be loved and cared for. It is not something that can be bought and sold to the highest bidder. If it is we better cash in our chips right now and move to Canada, if they will have us. America is not something that should operate on a business model. Yes, let's be efficient, but let us be compassionate as well. The people who felt left behind by the Democrats, the people that still cling to MAGA, these people should be throwing in the towel right about now. Yes, the economy is robust, but how much of that had to do with the previous administration? Coal jobs aren't coming back. Coal is a lost industry. Move on. Automation has taken away more jobs that immigrants. Move on. The xenophobia is unreal, the anti-Semitic rhetoric and bomb threats to JCCs are unreal, the four mosques that have been torched in the last seven weeks, this is unreal. Look about you people...all hell is breaking loose and you are telling me this is making America great again (MAGA)? It is if you are talking about the reemergence of a robust free press, the robust attendance at town halls across this country, the hue and cry being raised about the ACA. Some people have said that this movement isn't as organic as the Tea Party. Looks pretty organic to me. Not paid protesters. I have yet to receive my check from attending the women's march in Lansing on the 21st of January. Dang, that was organic!
The enemy of the people are the people who have been elected that try to hold a bright, shiny object in our face and tell us the press is the problem. If the press would just let things settle, let the Trumpets be Trumpets, then all would be right and the head Trumpets would act more presidential. The bright, shiny object that is blaming the left for perpetuating attacks on JCCs and mosques, that the Democrats are doing this just to undermine the administration...this nonsense has to stop right now.
I am sure Mike Bishop (810-227-8600), my illustrious congressman, is sick of hearing from me at least once a week. I don't care.
My point is we need to be, if not outraged, then upset that a foreign entity hacked our democratic processes. We need a thorough investigation like the 9/11 commission. Jeff Sessions should stop splitting hairs and recuse himself from this investigation, if not resign. The swamp has not been drained but flooded as if spring showers have overwhelmed the levees. I am scared for this democracy. And don't get me started on Steve Bannon and his "deconstruction of the administrative state". This isn't about rolling back regulations, it is about ending the state as we know it. Be scared. Be very scared.
People: Russia interfered with our electoral process. That is real. Be outraged. People: the president has tremendous ties to the Russian oligarchs and that is the reason he won't release his tax returns. The enemy of the people is not the free press it is this rogue presidency. And no one seems truly upset. PEOPLE: WE WERE HACKED BY RUSSIA, OUR COLD WAR NEMESIS. Be outraged. If the shoe had been on the other foot and the hack had favored the Democrats, the Right would be all over it like flies in shit. But, no, with his MAGA campaign his supporters don't seem to care. Where is the moral outrage?
Yes, right now it looks like partisan politics. The intelligence community, which is historically to the right of center, says the hack is real. We should sit up and pay attention. Seventeen national intelligence agencies have said the hack is real. I no longer say the outcome doesn't matter. It does. While there may be no "do over" we do need to have an investigation into this Russian cyber-attack. We do need to investigate why the administration is playing bait and switch and bright shiny objects to distract from the noise this cyber-attack should be creating. The enemy of the people isn't the free press, which is pushing the investigation envelope and leading the charge, it is the current administration.
The Administration needs to realize that America isn't a business you can walk away from in a bankruptcy court. No, it follows you around like a puppy wanting to be loved and cared for. It is not something that can be bought and sold to the highest bidder. If it is we better cash in our chips right now and move to Canada, if they will have us. America is not something that should operate on a business model. Yes, let's be efficient, but let us be compassionate as well. The people who felt left behind by the Democrats, the people that still cling to MAGA, these people should be throwing in the towel right about now. Yes, the economy is robust, but how much of that had to do with the previous administration? Coal jobs aren't coming back. Coal is a lost industry. Move on. Automation has taken away more jobs that immigrants. Move on. The xenophobia is unreal, the anti-Semitic rhetoric and bomb threats to JCCs are unreal, the four mosques that have been torched in the last seven weeks, this is unreal. Look about you people...all hell is breaking loose and you are telling me this is making America great again (MAGA)? It is if you are talking about the reemergence of a robust free press, the robust attendance at town halls across this country, the hue and cry being raised about the ACA. Some people have said that this movement isn't as organic as the Tea Party. Looks pretty organic to me. Not paid protesters. I have yet to receive my check from attending the women's march in Lansing on the 21st of January. Dang, that was organic!
The enemy of the people are the people who have been elected that try to hold a bright, shiny object in our face and tell us the press is the problem. If the press would just let things settle, let the Trumpets be Trumpets, then all would be right and the head Trumpets would act more presidential. The bright, shiny object that is blaming the left for perpetuating attacks on JCCs and mosques, that the Democrats are doing this just to undermine the administration...this nonsense has to stop right now.
I am sure Mike Bishop (810-227-8600), my illustrious congressman, is sick of hearing from me at least once a week. I don't care.
My point is we need to be, if not outraged, then upset that a foreign entity hacked our democratic processes. We need a thorough investigation like the 9/11 commission. Jeff Sessions should stop splitting hairs and recuse himself from this investigation, if not resign. The swamp has not been drained but flooded as if spring showers have overwhelmed the levees. I am scared for this democracy. And don't get me started on Steve Bannon and his "deconstruction of the administrative state". This isn't about rolling back regulations, it is about ending the state as we know it. Be scared. Be very scared.
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