Today 1/6/22

 

In these perilous times, we are compelled to a reckoning with the Truth.

The Primary Truth of our time, this day, is that Donald J. Trump Lost the 2020 Free, Fair, Most Secure Presidential Election. The Truth of our time is that the present-day GOP is operating from the base of a Lie.

We are as President Joe Biden says, on the very verge of an Autocracy in these beloved United States. Today’s Republican Party, with shamefully few exceptions, has brought us to this point, and hopes to keep us here.

Yesterday’s NY Times Editorial, ‘January 6^th Everyday’, directs us to ‘Look forward and backward at the same time’. So be it. Here, some ideas about looking ‘forward and backward at the same time’: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/01/opinion/january-6-attack-committee.html

Frank Figliuzzi was FBI Assistant Director for Counterintelligence. He served 25 years as a Special Agent and directed all espionage investigations across the government. He is an MSNBC columnist and a national security contributor for NBC News and MSNBC.

 Former FBI AD Figliuzzi explains forward/backward looking: ‘Trump won’t be on any ballot in the midterms, but his strategy to sow confusion and stoke anger over election results could again serve as a kind of template for terror’.https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/jan-6-security-lapses-enabled-2021-s-capitol-attack-they-n1287030

 Trump, Director-In Chief of the Big Lie and Insurrection, not a midterm candidate, (so far), not on the Ballot. Trumpism, our latest form of Domestic Terrorism, meanwhile, very much alive & kicking. 

Neal K. Katyal is the former Acting Solicitor General of the United States and a professor of law at Georgetown University. He too is an NBC Legal Advisor.

https://www.law.georgetown.edu/faculty/neal-k-katyal/

The former Acting Solicitor General of the United States, who has successfully argued many cases before the U.S. Supreme Court writes today, ‘The DOJ must examine the roles of government officials, including former President Donald Trump, in the Capitol insurrection. To look away is fantastically dangerous.‘…  

He also advises: ‘people, including high-ranking government officials, need to be interviewed and documents examined to determine whether probable cause exists’. ‘Probable cause’ here, means Cause to bring Criminal Charges.

This is ‘Looking back’ at what happened, to ‘Look forward’ to what we need to do to prevent this appalling treason from happening again.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/01/justice-department-garland-january-six/621167/

Good ideas are nice; decisive Action is necessary: We must insist on Truth and Justice. Advocate, Vocalize. Contact Elected Officials and insist upon Legal/Legislative Action. Volunteer, Organize, and Vote.  

3/25/21 And The South Shall Rise Again(?)

 

And it is as Deplorable, Despicable and Dastardly as ever.

The Ole South rises again. And it begins, not too surprisingly, in Georgia. We see now, the old Racist Confederacy reasserted. We see once again, the perversion of the concept of ‘States Rights’. This is the same Cover Dixie used during the Civil War, (which, Lest We Forget, They Lost), to defend Slavery. More on that in a bit…

 In 1980 and on, The U.S. Supreme Court granted absurd leeway to States to design and enforce their own election laws. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/446/55/    https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/446/55/case.html#68

 The leeway granted was absurd in that it clearly ran contrary to the intent of U.S. Constitution to vigorously defend U.S. Citizens of the Right to Vote, regardless in which Colony they lived.

Implied in the SCOTUS decision was the notion that if State Residents did not choose to live under a States’ Law they could either change the Law, or change their State of Residence. Neither choice necessary or easy. Not necessary, because we understood The U.S. Constitution to defend the Voting Rights of U.S. Citizens. Not easy or convenient for all the obvious reasons.

Speaking of obvious reasons – The Civil War. One of The Confederacy’s fundamental failures was lack of Economic Power. This brings us of course to Coca-Cola https://www.coca-colacompany.com/home  Delta Airlines https://www.delta.com/  The Atlanta Hawks https://www.nba.com/hawks/# 

The Atlanta Braves https://www.mlb.com/braves  Tyler Perry Studios https://www.facebook.com/tylerperrystudios/  

AT&T https://about.att.com/pages/racial_equality WellsFargohttps://www.wellsfargo.com/about/  Georgia Chamber of Commerce https://www.gachamber.com/

 If these companies continue to support racist Georgia’s Economy, Then, in good conscience, the rest of us can only hold these corporations in well-deserved contempt. This of course will be labeled ‘Cancel Culture’. O.K., Whatever. The rest of us call it Social Consciousness.

If Good Ole Dixie can be once again be defeated by Economic Might; so be it.

Trump's American Disgrace

Our 'Long National Nightmare' over ? Well, not quite. This particular Nightmare gets worse before ending. "My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over". https://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/speeches/740001.asp

Outgoing President (?) Trump's Obstruction of Transition is an outright appalling disgrace. Trump once said "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't lose any voters, OK?" Trump remarked at a campaign stop at Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa. "It's, like, incredible."

1/23/16 https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/01/23/464129029/donald-trump-i-could-shoot-somebody-and-i-wouldnt-lose-any-voters

Trump made this deplorable comment at, of all places a 'Christian College' in Sioux Center, Iowa. WWJD? 

As distressing as the comment is, it might actually be true. At least Trump's Co-conspirators so argued in court. " Attorneys for Trump made the claim while arguing before a federal appeals court in their suit against Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, who has subpoenaed Trump’s tax returns."

Judge Denny Chin pressed him on how the crime would be handled while Trump remained in office. “Nothing could be done, that’s your position?” he said.

“That is correct,” Consovoy replied. https://www.politico.com/news/2019/10/23/trump-lawyer-prosecuted-shooting-someone-055648

Now, we see such horrid observations come true.

Nearly 480,000 Americans have Died and continue to Die at alarming rates and Trump's response is to stonewall efforts for the incoming Presidential Administration to be completely current on the latest Governmental Information on the deadly pandemic. This negligent Mass-Murder is totally appalling on its own, but even more distressing in that Nothing is being done about it.

I understand that just about everyone is exhausted with efforts to hold Trump accountable for his Crimes, but this is completely more urgent than our 'feelings'.

What if anyone else other than Trump participated in such Criminally Negligent Manslaughter? How much would we put up with? We as a Nation and a People would not just shrug it off and say 'Well, we can't do anything about it'. Whatever might be even possible to pursue in demanding accountability and responsibility must be pursued no matter how 'Tired' we may be. More and more people are dying of COVID everyday. Every possible remedy must be initiated.

The 'MAGA-lytes', including those in the U.S. Senate, claim themselves Patriots. Please. 

Hillary Clinton more accurately described them as 'Deplorable'. 

 

HELLO !

Welcome ! Relax, Enjoy !
Upcoming Topics to include, but by No Means Restricted to : Current Events (My Take & Of Course, Yours...), Emergency Services (Fire / EMS, Police...), Recovery ( whatever that may mean to you and Certainly - What it means to Me), Hope, and hopefuly some Humor, and perhaps, [Dare I Mention This Evil ?], Politics...[!].

 Today, i sent a piece to my friend Tom at firefighterfightscancer.blogspot
Tom's a 'Former' Firefighter, ( if there is such a thing... ), and Cancer Survivor. Having 'Survived' a few things myself, and being Tom's Friend, ( 2 Entirely Different Topics, Really, i Promise...), Tom asked me to submit something for his blog. So I did, i Hope' you enjoy :


Tommy is a friend of mine. I’ve only actually known him about a year or so, but we’ve been Brothers for a Long Time. Tommy’s work has been to break down doors & crawl around in ‘the muck’ to find people, I’ve been the guy Outside who gets the hand-off. (Although, I’ve done a little ‘ Inside Work’ as well.)
I don’t have, nor have I had Cancer. I have another potentially fatal illness that requires some, but not too much daily attention. I also have chronic pain and fatigue from Degenerative Disc Disease, but that’s another story. The Point is this - I have had, at various times, to re-examine, and restructure My Life, to adjust to Conditions as they present themselves. As Firefighters & EMT’s, we become so accustomed to doing this On-The-Job that it becomes our Second Nature.
But it seems that when we are called to make drastic changes to the way we Live, and the way we View our Own Lives, this change comes slowly and with great difficulty. At least it did in My Case. Personally, I’m quite stubborn in my ways, and only make drastic change as the result of great external pressure for that change.
But after I make the needed Changes, just as in Firefighting, the result is Progress!
I read about Hope here. I read about and Practice Hope elsewhere in my life as well.
My commitment to Hope is that I make the needed Changes in My Life and stick to them, best as I can One Day at a Time, in order to acquire the Hoped for result. If I do that, the Quality of My Life improves along the way. So far, So good. Now Tom is among The Many who can tell you I’m not nearly perfect at this stuff. ( I still smoke cigarettes for example, and Tommy gives me da’ bizness for that, & then let’s it go...But, I think he works too dam much, So There !).
My Experience has been, that My Life as I lived it No Longer ‘Worked’ for me. My Strength has been, that when I’ve been able to make the needed Change, My Life improves. My Hope is that I’ll be able to maintain the needed Change, and perhaps, like my Good Friend Tommy, Help Others along the way...jw