End of year pseudo victory

If you read this blog regularly, you know I rant and rave about how large corporations do not treat us, their customers, well.

I spent over a hour and half getting a problem fixed and being persistent and finally got my rates lowered from a large corporation today. Yes, one and a half hours plus just to get them to treat me like a customer, but they finally did. I do not know if this is good or bad anymore, yet I managed to get something accomplished. I am not saying the name of the corporation because I am still mad at them and they do not pay me to advertise for them. Small cheap victories to end the year. I guess I will happily take it. I will be saving money compared to what I have been spending. Still too much in my eyes, but better.

And the Cowboys made the playoffs so does anyone know what goes well with crow. I am happy for them, yet I picked them to go 8-8 and not make the playoffs.  I will take this and I hope they end the season on a high note and beat the Giants. Win or lose though the offense needs to get in a rhythm pronto if they want to have a chance in the playoffs.

And the Mavs ended their skid, but go right back on the road and play the team they just beat. And after that they have a back to back home/road series with another team. The NBA loves to have fun with their schedules. 

And how does both the President and the Democrats manage to play chicken with 800,000 jobs going into the new year. I know it is the President’s shutdown and on him, but the Democrats need to come up with a rational alternative or soon they won’t be smelling like roses either. And the irony is based on the last poll I saw the Republicans in Congress are getting the least blame. It was their acquiescence of Trump in the first place that help put us here.

We need new major parties. We just do. At least one that puts the middle class first, doing that will create rational public policy for the whole of the country.

Cheers

Merry Christmas

Peace on Earth

And goodwill to all

A border wall idea

Our MAGA government is partially shut down and no one seems to know what to do as of the last article I read this morning. And as another article states Trump’s mind is being run by talk show hosts, okay maybe not exactly but you get the point.

What to do, what to do, well someone needs to hack into the FOX NEWS feed and play the movie “A Day Without A Mexican”. (And yes I know it is not up for best picture anywhere on planet Earth now or back when it was made). The plan here is to hack into the timeframes that Trump’s favorite hosts are on and maybe he will think it is a FOX News documentary and rethink what is going on inside his head. (If there is anything going on in his head besides being told what to do). And since FOX News is not really a news station registered with the FCC what can they say, a movie is entertainment and FOX is registered as an entertainment broadcaster with the FCC so we haven’t changed formatting with showing the movie. At some point something must change. It is a desperate idea, but enough is enough with this administration.

And speaking of being told what to do, why is it foreign dictators have more sway over Trump’s opinion than our own generals and national security personnel? He just handed over half the middle east to Putin by withdrawing troops from Syria. I know the troops do need to come home, but Assad will regain control of Syria, Erdogan will unabashedly attack the Kurds, and Putin will continue to expand his web of influence.  Is there anyone in this country with a clue on how to run Middle East policy? Throw in Saudi Arabia is just a bunch of murdering pricks and ISIS has become like cockroaches buried into the walls still eating away the region and seriously Trump is the last person that needs to manage US Middle East policy, much less anything else. And the rational non-corrupt people in Israel must be pulling their hair out.

I do not know how the Republican Party can continue to allow the destruction of our country day after day. Even if the Democrats could really wrestle back some type of control, they wouldn’t know what to do either. We need to slow down and really examine what we do going forward.

It may be it is Saturday morning, it may be the cinnamon vanilla coffee one of my daughters served me (what is with this flavored coffee phase people are going through?), just give me coffee or covfefe, if I want flavor I will add flavored cream otherwise, black coffee please, or it may be another one of those minor transitions in life I am going through today, but something just ain’t right with the world.

Cheers

Trump legal thoughts, minor warning, and a compliment

Two issues in the news both involving a legal question for Trump. Well… there are probably hundreds of legal issues facing Trump, I just have a comment on two.

People are talking about the President cannot be indicted while President, so does that mean any statutes of limitations be postponed till after his Presidency. I do not know, his possible crimes may have no statute of limitations, but if any do I think there needs to be a postponement till he is out of office then the clock starts.

And I think I have commented something similar before, but can we implement a Temporary Restraining Order on the Wall if Trump forces it through with a government shutdown.  It would be a legal precedent, but why not try.

I love eggnog.

Or let’s build the damn thing and build it well so we have a thousand year monument of bad public policy, wasted tax dollars, government largess, con job, ignorance, etc so hopefully future generations are smarter than us.

If you come to Texas avoid I-35 at all costs if possible. The portion of highway from San Antonio to Denton is one large traffic jam 24/7/365. And it is always under construction somewhere along this route. I know you do not have a choice, but if there was one or can do something else, do it. Especially if it doesn’t involve excessive tolls.

We need high speed trains.

And you know I rant and rave about the need to get off combustion engines, but I do have to admit, there was a time where you could fix them yourself. Too many things can break down in a car nowadays and unfortunately the computer and electrical systems are major headaches. It is the one problem I see in electric cars. Hopefully they can figure this out and make them home repairable. Life could be great.

And I am always complaining about drivers who make mistakes and then do something to correct the mistake which almost gets people killed. Sometimes real horrendous accidents occur. And if they would only just go to next exit or the next light where they could correct their mistake rationally and not endanger others, that is the way it should work out. Yet time after time you see people put themselves above others and do something totally insane at highway speeds. Well the other day I witnessed a car do the right thing. You could see disaster coming and I was already getting mad when lo and behold, he made the right decision, drove on, made the u-turn and got back on track. I was shocked. So the person in the Kia coming off Woodall Rogers the other day, good job and thank you.

Quick Dallas Sports update

First of all, there is this crow starting to appear on my balcony. It wasn’t around at the first of the fall, nothing, yet over time it has appeared. Still somewhat in the distance most of the time, it is inching closer and closer not quite demanding I eat it, but the problem is I may have to.

Yes folks, I put in print the Cowboys would go 8-8 for the year and that 8-8 was the optimistic preseason projection were my thoughts. Well lo and behold, the defensive backs are playing better than I expected, the linebackers and front line are even better than I predicted, and they went out and got a number one receiver. Dak is holding is on so that lets Zeke be Zeke. There are still a few games left but eating crow on that prediction is becoming more of a reality every week. Well good them and good for me as a fan. Better to eat crow on a downside prediction than an optimistic prediction.

It is winter, and the Rangers haven’t made a headline trade yet so who knows for them. Pitchers and Catchers report in just under three months. Maybe by then we will know more by then.

I still haven’t figured out the Stars. Better than average, but definitely not title contender????????

FC Dallas made the playoffs then fizzled. Maybe on an upswing for next year. Need to pay more attention.

And the Mavs are also playing better than advertised, not for me, but for the general public. I felt that the sum was better than the pieces and all the team is playing well. If they can get their act together on the road they might go far. And what is worse they lost two excruciatingly close road games back to back earlier which helped put them in the hole they were in. Now they must step up on the road. They have had a good run at home, but more road games are coming up. And the one tonight on a back to back in the Big Easy is a real test. I am not saying it is a must game, but it is a statement game that will put them in a position to have real games in March and April. They cannot be a split personality team with good play at home and not enough on the road. They need consistency now, so they have momentum later.

My thoughts on the state of Dallas Sports on this chilly late fall day.

Cheers

Looking beyond the now

For those of you tired of politics:

I’m tired of the madness they shout

I’m mired in confusion and doubt

Okay that bit of a phrase came into my head the other day. Not sure why, so I “internet” searched it thinking I must have heard it before. I didn’t dig deep but couldn’t find anything even close. Not even a 60’s song or a rap song popped up. Still think someone must have written this down somewhere, seems to obvious. All sorts of crazy stuff did pop up from the search, but not this specific phrase. Probably need to dig deeper.

Anyway if no one has said it before, I am claiming it and even the T-shirt and button rights. My copyrighted two-line lyrics for the day.

So, as you know I am not a fan of Trump, Putin, Democrats and Republicans, yet they are tied together in the American political scene and dominating the news. Lately I have decided to separate Putin from making general comments about Russia. Sooner or later there will be no more Putin, he projects himself as healthy, so it may be awhile, but there will be a post Putin Russia. Eventually we will be able to have a relationship with Russia that is much better than his election meddling and other assorted anti-American behavior. There was an article recently maybe Bloomberg, maybe Forbes that talked about some Russian people trying to find a non-Putin Russia. I glanced quickly through it. Hopefully they can get better traction and create a true democracy or more representative government.

On a side note the Democrats continually prove they are clueless by nominating Nancy Pelosi to be Speaker of the House. Just more proof the Parties at the National level are self-serving, and many other adjectives not fit for family discussion.

And everyone is getting all hot and bothered by the latest revelation by Cohen that there was Russia Trump Tower discussion up until early summer 2016. Whoop dee doo! The real collusion of Trump began a decade or so ago. It may be difficult to impossible to prove, but somewhere many years ago, Putin started working on destroying our country from within. He planned for a long time. Slowly it must have dawned on him to create a politician favorable to him. He may not have had Trump in mind originally, but he was planning.

And he chose to infiltrate the Republican party. Why you ask, well I have absolutely no proof, but crazy ideas. The Democrats are clueless, and the Republicans are greedy, and both fail this country.  So, if you had a long-term plan where do you start. It may seem that choosing someone that is clueless would be a great place to start. And the Republicans historically project the anticommunist pro America patriotic rhetoric regularly. So, you might think Putin would infiltrate the Democrats, the liberal bastion of lets all get along people who might be susceptible to overt friendly gestures and be ready to get along. No folks, Putin is smart. Putin chose the Republican party because a clueless person as the sayings go; can buy a clue or get a clue or whatever. Greedy people tend to stay greedy. And Putin recognized how depraved our materialism, how greedy our donor class had become. He recognized it before the left-wing fake news media did. He knew it before Fox. In fact, he probably watched good ole Rupert build up the Fox network with a gleam in his eye. The donor class could control the masses they wanted to, and Putin knew to use this weapon to his advantage.

Most Americans do not understand the rest of the world thinks long term. Leaders from Asia and Europe know their history. They know the need for Machiavellian plots if they want to survive and thrive. Putin was relatively young when he gained power, so he knew he had time. He hates the United States. And he wants Russia to be a world leader. He felt comfortable waiting his plans out.  Go listen to his speeches on how he feels about American exceptionalism and other American thoughts. He wants to see us fail and Russian rise.

And we make it easy for Putin. Our faults are horrendous and obvious. It was no coincidence that Putin was infiltrating the NRA as he was supporting Trump. Putin looked for people’s weakness driven by greed. Greed is his friend. And Trump was a greedy man with no plan ten years ago. Again, Trump may not have been his first choice, but Trump fit his need. A person who is vain, greedy, incompetent, easily manipulated, desperate need for attention, and in trouble financially. Trump could not get loans. Trump wanted everyone to think he was the greatest businessman alive. He wanted to be the most popular guy in the billionaire’s club. And Trump had a rudimentary understanding of the same weaknesses Putin saw in us. Trump was groomed.

And then Trump was given a platform via Fox. What a blessing starting in 2011 or so Trump became popular on Fox. His opinions were sought out by hosts of certain shows. The birther movement gave Trump his first taste of national political power. Another chance coincidence, but one Putin could use to develop a candidate he needed. Trump was already under Putin’s influence. Moving him forward was just the next step.

So, for all you who think the Trump Tower in Russia or the meeting in Trump Tower about “adoptions” proves there was collusion or a conspiracy. Oh no. You are far behind the times on the real collusion. No one has an army of social media trolls they can pull out of a hat. They were recruited and trained long before 2015. They were put to work in 2015 and 2016. The hi-jacking of American Social Media was long planned, it just needed the catalyst, the candidate, and since Fox had fostered hate in the heartland, Putin had two avenues to drive home his boy. And again, Putin was smart. Do you think Trump figured out the electoral college numbers on his own? No, he was sent to the Midwest to fight and gather every vote he could to bring those states home to him. And clueless Clinton, let him.

The Democrats are clueless still, but maybe one day they will find the quarter on the ground and buy a clue. For now, the Republican/donor class greed has blinded them to how depraved they are and how desperate they want Trump to be successful, so they can take even more from this country. As the man himself says “sad”.

And as always, I scream in the forest with no one around, we need new parties to represent the people of this country, even the Trump fans who have lost touch with the truth but are the hard-working Americans that are losing everything and do not know why which generates their anger.

Our country is great when we implement our values, work hard, respect each other, and grow ourselves, and yes even our economy. Real capitalism should be about making a good product at a good price and treating your workers and customers with respect. Corporate American by and large is not business or capitalistically inclined. They are greedy. They are not doing anyone any good. They are making money through their manipulations, but true product production, innovating, growing their business, developing their workforce, etc is not corporate America now.

Putin saw the above plus, our deteriorating public education, our growing wealth gap and what he sees now is good, for him.

So, all you people waiting for Mr. Mueller to pull a rabbit out of his hat and indict Trump on some wonderfully conceived collusion. Sorry, but Mr. Mueller needs to go back some time and prove Trump needed Putin before even Trump thought about running for President. And that my friends may not be provable. Putin is smart enough not to have left a paper trail. There is a connection but connecting the dots may be too large of a project. We need to move forward and find new leaders to pick up the pieces post Trump and re emerge as the country we truly can be.

Cheers

They say nothing good happens after midnight.

So, when does the good start back up? When the milkman delivers milk? The paper boy newspapers? Sunrise?

Who knows, it seems bad happens 24/7. Good, well that is debatable.

And I am fighting the urge to discuss the bad. Okay, not really bad in the biblical sense, but bad from the Bible or some people’s interpretations.

I do not believe in the rapture. I do believe in God, essentially the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I do not like the impression I get that the evangelical Christians want to create the end times, so they can all be part of the Rapture. It lets them not be accountable for their lack of action or following the true teachings of Christ. Sure, they do Christian activities, but really diving down and following Christ, not so sure on that one. And I know they feel I am evil for not believing in the end times like they do. We all have our opinion.

I struggle though with a group of people so obsessed with a theory about Armageddon that is not two hundred years old, but they treat it like it came directly from the Book of Revelation. It didn’t. It is a creation of the fore runners to the modern evangelicals. Yet they have become a large enough group and with their obsession helped elect the one person that comes close in personality to the entity we are all to despise and avoid. This entity would bring about the end times and help all good people be part of the Rapture. First of all, the Bible very distinctly says, man will not know the hour, but they sure want to make the hour happen. And second, they do not feel the person they elected is this entity I am referencing. They support him because he appears to support Israel, but in a way that would lead to Armageddon. Which is something they want. Again, we all have our opinion. I do not think they are right, and their efforts to become correct actually go against the one person they believe in as the ultimate authority on mankind and everything else. Man will not know the hour.

Do I believe our President is the Anti-Christ? No, but I believe he is the living embodiment of everything anti-Christian. Everything he does almost always goes against Jesus’ teaching. And these people who swear by Jesus seem to miss the boat on this one. Irony is either not a strong enough word or the correct word for what applies in this situation.

Well I started writing this after midnight, so you can blame all this on nothing good is happening right now. Or you can deal with the truth, which most people including myself struggle with on a daily basis. And since it is after midnight there is an element of being tired as crap as I write this, which doesn’t help the flow. Yet, if I do not do it now I may never write this.

I saw a comment on a post where the person states Jesus was a liberal. Always amazes me when people try to direct Jesus into their world. Jesus is neither conservative nor liberal. He is simply the truth. We ignore the truth and his teachings, but he and his teachings still exist. Everyone wants to put God in a box to fit their reality. And so, you can expect that when I say mankind barely knows 2-3% of the truth, people do not want to hear it. Anyway, it is late, I have been holding back on writing this idea for days now and it has gone through various iterations in my head. This is the mildest version. Still worried our wonderful government may take anything you say the wrong way. Apparently, they showed up at Tom Arnold’s house recently, but he probably did say something that caught someone’s ear. I haven’t heard what and I am not internet searching for the answer right now.

The bug was in my head and I had to let it out. I am still amazed that evangelical Christians spend more time telling us what we do wrong but hold in the highest esteem a man who contradicts everything the man they say is their savior and path to salvation taught. Labels are so misleading. Calling Trump, a conservative, and calling evangelicals Christians are two labels that seem to go hand in hand, but Trump and the evangelicals are neither no matter what myths they create for themselves.

Cheers all