Conditions Where I'd Vote for Trump

I'd vote for Trump if the Democratic nominee came out against the Trade War and against tariffs or against Trump's immigration reforms.

Trump did a lot of housecleaning that was overdue. When he came into office, immigration policy was foolish and just basically sat back and waved people in all day long. There were a lot of ne'er-do-wells and opportunists from all kinds of countries flooding in, taking the jobs and driving wages lower. The reason wages are going higher is that that floodgate has been partially closed. There is no other reason of any importance. The mainstream media won't say so because the mainstream media has an agenda set by corporate America. Common sense dictates that an illegal from Guatemala is going to work a lot cheaper than an American born and raised here. Anyone who denies this or minimizes the importance obviously does not care about lower wage workers and prefers their elite friends and elite mindset. I really have a hard time wrapping my head around putting a bunch of Syrians, Iraqis, or whoever on a plane, and flying them all the way across half the world to the U.S., then granting them asylum based on, well, things are tough where you live. Why can't they go next door? Why is it they have to come to the U.S.? Because we are considered a rich country, that is why, and economic opportunism is the motive.

As for the trade war, China is getting too powerful, and that's not a negative in itself until you consider it is not a republic, not interested in peace and coexistence, but an authoritarian dictatorship and not all that much better than other authoritarian dictatorships in history. A world dominated by China will be very different and a lot closer to George Orwell's 1984 dystopian vision. Chinese leaders have no ethics, they are ruled completely by fear and greed and nothing else. For that matter, Russia is no better, and rather worse.

In the first place, Americans have been relying on cheap Chinese goods, often slave-made, for decades, and it's time to stop. Americans lost good factory jobs, and now we have the opioid criss and meth crisis. Opioids were never such a problem until Americans began having hopeless lives with low-wage jobs and no benefits, then you might as well get strung out on something because there is no hope and no future. Pop a pill, get a thrill, why not? Because there's nothing to look forward to. We need tariffs on a permanent basis, and 100% tariffs sounds like a great idea, until American companies get a clue about the cost of betraying the homeland. Companies like Apple should be taxed punitively, assets seized to compensate the homeland for all the jobs they stole from the American working class in order to reward China's dictators for slavery. All these American companies profit off slave labor in China, they try to hide it but the truth gets out.

Biden to me seems like a fool, I would definitely support Trump over Biden.

Warren, I would give a second thought to. I'd like to hear what she has to say about the trade war and immigration. If she is against all Trump's policies, then I go for Trump. I am afraid Warren, like any Democratic nominee, will be compelled to tow the line and support all the stupid and thoughtless policies that have deprived the U.S. of jobs, driven down wages, and let in just whoever, whenever. I don't see how she can buck the Democratic party and still make it as a candidate. Only someone like Trump can buck his own party. All the Democrats have to do what they are told to do by their corporate sponsors, or else the Democratic Party disposes of them, just like it disposed of Bernie Sanders back in 2016.

One thing I never liked about Obama is every foreign policy seemed to the detriment of the U.S., and it seemed like our country had to pay financially for everything. And for what? Gratitude? From whom?

Trump is right to point out to the European countries that they need to cough up more for defense. The only reason Europe has the big social safety net is that America pays for their defense. You know who ultimately pays? The American worker, that's who, the American worker that has no health insurance or crappy and confusing health insurance. It is time we withdrew all our troops from Europe and let them face Russia on their own. I bet the merest hint of that, and suddenly the European governments would be eliminating all the tariffs against American products, and subsidizing American products. They would pay 25% for their people to buy American. They would pay the U.S. hundreds of billions of dollars every year. Better than Russian troops invading, eh? At any rate, there is no reason or need for the U.S. to foot the bill for Europe's security or for that matter, security anywhere else. There needs to be more focus on the homeland and on providing health care to the U.S. voter, who is going to consistently vote for the person who has his interests in mind.

All too often, the Democrats just play the race card, but there is no racial law remaining on the books. America is pretty fair to people of color, about as fair as it can possibly be. You can point to unpleasant incidents that happen every day, but they will always happen in a country of three hundred million people due to human nature. You can't legislate every remaining trace of racial preference away without coming across as oppressive and ridiculous and spawning a whole new generation of political opposition. The only thing that is real is classism, the way that the poor are treated. Life is hard for the poor. The most ethical way to achieve less poverty is provide lots of good-paying jobs with benefits such as vacation and sick leave.

Donations to NORML

I donate to NORML indirectly, or rather I influence others to donate, namely AMAZON. I received this note this morning:

This is your quarterly AmazonSmile donation notification. Your charity, The NORML Foundation, recently received a quarterly donation of $2,535.56 thanks to customers shopping at smile.amazon.com. To date, AmazonSmile has donated a total of: $43,812.06 to The NORML Foundation $134,890,393.33 to all charities Thank you for supporting The NORML Foundation by shopping at smile.amazon.com.

Perhaps it is ironic that I do not now use marijuana and tend to associate with those that do not use it either. Indeed, I have grown to like and respect several narcotics officers on the local police force. But in my view, and this is an important distinction to make, the narcotics officer is just doing his job. He is told what to do by the boss, that is, our elected representatives. It is not as though he has a choice--he does not. If he does not enforce the law, there will be somebody else who will. And the truth is, there may be some good that derives from Prohibition, even of marijuana, if it takes hardened criminals or hopeless addicts off the street, if it manages somehow to also bite into crime, although that is all debatable I suppose. There are many fools that drive around while smoking weed--they need to be put in prison. Driving while stoned is rather more common than I ever expected. Those who do so, need to go to jail before they kill someone.

Yet, if our elected officials were to legalize marijuana, then I feel that would make the narcotics officer's job easier in many ways, by narrowing the scope of what they do, and removing much of the general public from suspicion. You see, marijuana is and always will be popular, whereas the other, harder drugs--people will cooperate and collaborate to see such things as meth and heroin eradicated. Marijuana gains the sympathy of the reasonable person, but addictive hard drugs, in general, do not.

In my view, marijuana should never have been made illegal in the first place, by virtue of the fact it is less harmful than alcohol by any measure one might care to apply. NORML seeks to amend that historical injustice, and I will always support NORML for doing so. People should have a right to grow their own, smoke their own in the privacy of their own homes, and generally live their lives the way they want to. They should not be fired or lose custody of their children by mere association with marijuana.

I am not at all fond of the surging commercial interests in marijuana. I think it is loathsome and base, all of these merchants rushing late to the scene to profiteer by inflating the price of an easily grown weed. Sadly, our elected officials that have chosen to legalize marijuana were motivated less by the civil justice aspect and more by the prospect for profit and taxation, because human beings are ruled by fear and greed, and have precious little in the way of virtue in them.

Now we see the ugly aspects of commercialization of marijuana, the over-pricing, the crime, the taxation, the regulation, the competition pushing smaller business owners out, and so on. It is because people always want things easy. They do not want to grow their own, but instead buy a finished product in a nice shiny wrapper. Everything is a shiny product these days. That, to me, makes marijuana less appealing, not more. I liked pot when it had outlaw status. Now that is it becoming an item found in a store--bleh.

The Difference Between Democrat and Republican

The biggest difference distinguishing the Democrats is they believe in democracy. One person, one vote. The Republicans believe in kleptocracy, stealing elections any which way you can, and then stealing from the public trust, once they are in office. Idealized by the Republican Party are Russia, North Korea, and China, "heaven on earth" as far as they are concerned, because the elections there are done the so-called "right" way, the Republican way.

Racism Turns on Its Own Race

WW2 killed off more white people than the Crusades. White racism just never made any sense at all. White racism is just about hating other white people that don't believe the exact same thing.

If You Gave These Guys a Million Dollars

It is demoralizing to read about these pointless mass shootings in what is otherwise a wealthy, strong and wonderful country. Our people do not deserve to be exposed to such horror. If these amok angry white male shooters were given a million dollars and left on a deserted island with all the supplies and equipment they might ever want, they could never in all their lifetime put together anything approaching the killing power of a modern handgun. They are cavemen, stupid and desolate evil-doers that always gravitate to the tools of destruction and chaos, demonic spirits predestined to cause pain and suffering wherever they go. The best solution really would be to round them up and place a bullet through their head before they do the same to others. The trick lies in identifying them, like a needle in a haystack. For that reason, once a shooter goes amok, their parents should be seized and DNA forcibly extracted from their blood to determine genetic markers that might identify worthless murdering scum in the future. Also, it would be as well to sterilize their natural parents, and possibly extended family as well to the fifth generation, to prevent further calamities down through the generations. The human race has a problem of hygiene, in that anyone with functioning genitals procreates and then lets society nurture their offspring. Society did nurture the worthless shooters everywhere and paid the price. What needs to be done is get wise about human procreation and stop the shooters before they are even conceived. Stop them being born. Quality control. Just as we want quality control in manufacturing, so too is there desperate need for quality control in human procreation. Worthless scum cause 99% of the problems in the world.

America's Voting Quagmire

The U.S. learned nothing from Florida's voting fiasco in 2000. Our voting process is still antiquated, inaccurate, prone to lengthy delays not just for voters but for counters, and prone to corruption. Apparently, the corrupt politicians in Washington, D.C., don't care because they profit from the corruption. I don't see much momentum from either party to fix voting, and it has been broken for decades, probably forever. The U.S. could do a lot better where voting is concerned. Every time there is an election, it seems to devolve into a finger-pointing contest with lawyers, lawsuits and protests.

Stark Choice in 2018

Trump's victory in 2016 was the ringing of the bell of Hell, summoning up the infernal legions and gathering all evil unto him, awakening the criminals, murderers and all men harboring evil in their hearts, followed by the hand-wringing of angels. In 2018, the American people have been presented two stark choices for the November election:

-hatred, racism, murder, and political violence in the Republicans
-compassion, reason, ethics and moderation in the Democrats

It may well be that America choices the former, madness and violence. After all, Germany did once, and so did Russia. Is America better? That remains to be seen. Those who possess even a tiny ounce of goodness in their souls will vote Democrat. Those that have sworn in the darkness to an indifferent Master will vote Republican. Although, others may opt not to vote at all, which just means they are lazy in addition to being evil, perhaps a less virulent form of wickedness. Such people would abandon their country when their country needs them.

New problems? No, old.

With so many negative headlines about crimes, violence, corruption, cheating, lying, stealing, racism, homophobia, xenophobia, police brutality, incivility, and so on, one might be tempted to despair about the world, society, or the age we live in. Let me be clear, that is a temptation sent by none other than the Devil, if you will. Not that I really believe in a Devil, but he certainly is a convenient chap by way of conversation.

Resist the temptation! Our age is no worse than any other. Our society, rather better, I would think. Our nation, we have a right to be proud of, next to the likes of ugly China or rotting Russia. Be proud! I do not endorse the "bended knee" thing among NFL players for the reason that it just seems too trendy and not thoughtful enough.

Think back to forty years ago, to 1978, please. Back then, police did not wear body cameras, nor did their dashboards host cameras, nor did any of the rooms in the police department or even the courtroom. Judges, police and civil servants largely did as they liked, and sometimes got away with it. Criminals of all stripes got away with a great many things in 1978. Bullies could beat the crap out of weaker kids. I know, I saw it happen. Teachers could say whatever nasty thing popped into their little head and get away with it, and often they could slap, hit or fondle a student and get away with it. Folks got away with stealing, lying, cheating, even killing, and there are headlines and news articles about such things.

There is not more crime now, there is less. Crime has gotten to be far more difficult to get away with. Criminals tend to be apprehended far more often than in 1978. There is less racism, less homophobia, less xenophobia, less ignorance and stupidity in the public arena. Of course there are going to be exceptions, but one must remember, these exceptions used to be the norm.

You have to admit, things are getting better. They are getting better all the time.

Election Predictions

In the past, the formula has always held true that if the economy is good, then the ruling party remains in power. If the economy is bad, the ruling party is voted out. The American people are just like any other people in that they want to do well for themselves. If only nations could come together and realize that greater prosperity can be had through cooperation than competition--but leaders like Xi and Putin will never accept that, in a million years, because it is contrary to the place where their souls reside.

By the above formula, the Republicans should do well. They are giving themselves credit for the Obama recovery, and perhaps many people do believe that the Republicans, late on the scene, are responsible all of a-sudden for the booming economy. Certainly, tax cuts on business never hurts! Common sense tells as much. The deficit, which the Republicans worried about so much under Clinton and Obama, is abruptly a nonissue now that the Republicans are in power. Look at charts--spending always goes up under Republicans. They have not the discipline to keep their hands out of the cookie jar. One day, the bill will come due, and it may present a huge problem, and retirees are likely to bear the brunt, because in the end, retirees are expendable. The pattern for local governments has always been, screw the retirees out of their pensions.

I predict that the Democrats will do moderately well, making a strong showing, but not a landslide. Certainly, Democrats and independents have been given enough motivation and presented with a stark difference in every kind of policy under the Sun. There is no reason for voter apathy. The irony is, Trump has some good ideas along with the bad, but anytime one unscrews a huge jar of marbles and pours them on the floor, sure, somebody is bound to trip and fall into Truth, and that is what Trump did. A lot of marbles also went and tripped up the poor, the sick, transgendered, and immigrants. Trump to me represents meanness, cruelty. He has resurrected racism and given the demon a powerful new lease on life. He has also resurrected fascism around the world. He is no different than his predecessors in spending entirely too much money on the military, fooling around too much in the Middle East, and not paying enough attention to the threat posed by global warming. It is not popular nowadays to talk about global warming, but it hasn't gone away, and in the end, poses a greater threat to the United States than these sock-puppet regimes in the Middle East. Losing the cities of our coasts may secretly please cynical Republicans, who see them as liberal meccas full of minorities, but it will also waste away the bulk of the nation's wealth, for without the coastal cities, we are Canada. If the U.S. does not lead on global warming, no one will.

I don't really see a monumental regime change underway in the upcoming election, but I could well be wrong. I don't feel inspired. The economy is really the main thing for most people. It is difficult for the average person to grapple with big issues like global warming, foreign policy or even national policy. What people want is a safe job, a way to make a good living. The rest is kind of icing on the cake. Republicans opted to borrow from tomorrow in order to throw themselves a nice big party today. Perhaps that will work out for them in the short-term. Not yet have they told the old people, no Social Security for you.

We Need an American President

I am voting American in the next election. All we have now is some guy that represents his own tribe all the time. Basically gives the middle finger to the rest of us. Everything has to go his way all the time, and the only problem he ever sees is Democrats. Well, he hasn't killed us all yet, we still have plenty of fight left. I think he is not an American and hates America with every fiber of his being. What he wants is for America to be like Russia. That's his fondest hope and dream. Either Russia, North Korea, or China. Sometimes he gets a little disloyal with Russia, likes to flirt with the other two dictatorships. Too bad, in 2020, he will discover, he does not live in North Korea. He lives in a place where there is an election. He never won an election before and just got in because of the Electoral College. He wouldn't have even won that without a lot of help from the media. Time to vote American instead of party.

Thieves, crooks, and liars. That's the kind of litmus test Trump set out as requirements for all his appointees. The reason turnover has been so high in the White House is that a lot of people have morals. That's a huge problem for the servant of evil. How can he fulfill his Master's dictates, when there are people following their conscience? It's a big problem for poor old Trump. Another Stormy Daniels he has to weather.

Scanning the Headlines

On a daily basis, there is nothing to do but scan the headlines each day, just to check whether WW3 is breaking out.

There is nothing a poor, humble ordinary citizen can do until election-time rolls around. Then, I feel, it is one's duty to vote. The country does not ask terribly much in the way of duty. To vote is a small thing, denied only by the petty. I think personally it is a sin not to vote, to not have any engagement at all with representative democracy. That way opens the door to dictatorship. People do not realize, voting is new. We are one of the very few generations to have the privilege. Some people simply never paid attention in history class.

I try to avoid getting too wrapped up in the headlines, the news buzz of the day. Much gets blown all out of proportion. Every politician gets criticized more than is their due, merely for acting in ways that would ensure they get reelected. It is human nature to want to succeed at what one does, to not want to fail, so it is human nature for a politician to want to get reelected.

Really, many disagreements over policy boil down to tribe A vs. tribe B, the two tribes simply not getting along, one desiring power over the other. In the United States, the whites fear ceding power to the browns, which really goes far in explaining the difference between the Republicans and the Democrats. The differences between the parties are complicated and numerous, but the similarities are greater than the differences. In reality, the Democrats and Republicans agree on far more than they disagree upon. Republicans favor a strong class system, rewarding both birthright and merit. An aristocracy is favored. Meanwhile, the poor are kept so, by and large, kept in their place and their numbers reduced through attrition. I think it is fair to say the Republicans believe government can't solve problems, and that evolution should be allowed to take its course among the poorer classes. Those that get an unlucky roll of the dice in health or birth should endure it or die, so that the rich may enjoy a better cake, with more gold and silver ornaments. I can't think why else there would be such opposition to health care, which is extremely expensive, there is no doubt. Perhaps they may even be right, that vast numbers should sacrifice and stop reproducing. If eugenics really took hold, then perhaps the result would be a healthier population, in the end. Getting to that end, there would be unhappiness. Does the end justify the means? At any rate, the national debt increases with no end in sight, so eventually, more sacrifices will arise. More than likely, if history repeats itself, the working class will have to pay all the national debt by sacrificing its Social Security, and all the aged and infirm will be told, "Go back to work. Become a Wal-Mart greeter or work in the Amazon warehouse," even at seventy-five.

I was hoping that the Republicans could really make health care better, which is to say more efficient, but they seem to work for the health care industry. I am afraid that the Democrats do, too. Both parties are sold out, unfortunately. I wonder who is representing the poor working American? Everything these days seems to be based upon how much money can be raised. I know that health care stocks in general have been rising by double digits every year. I think that if the Federal government took a strong hand, then much fraud and waste could be eliminated. That was my half-hope when Trump took office, that he would bully the industry into making needed reforms, but instead, he just sought to eliminate the government's involvement in health care altogether. I suppose if one is sick, that is not the problem of the government, but of the individual, and there is always an option to open an artery, rejoin the Earth and be replaced, like a malfunctioning robot. One day, perhaps there will be no need for workers at all, and the whims of the rich can be served by an army of robots, who need no health care or retirement benefits, and don't vote Democrat, let alone vote or express any opinion at all. Paradise?

Trump the Grump

Trump the Grump earns a nickname, "The Father of Racism," for the ways he has divided the country between black and white. Such a base and low buffoon that tracks toilet paper into Air Force One.

As for Kavanothing (Kavanaught), who places so little value on honesty, he had better steer clear of the bottle. That was his downfall all along, and it shows how little he understands himself that he still swallows the old poison. He must really despise himself, to get up there and say what he said, just to get that office he wanted so badly. Keep on drinking, Kavanaught, you may be useful to us yet. Everything you do is now tied to the Republican Party.

Republicans just do whatever they want without any regard for ethics. Zero aspiration for the spiritual, zero value on truth, no affection for the country whatsoever. The only thing that can be said about them is they insist upon loyalty to party, which means lying and cheating all the time. Tell the truth for once, and you get kicked out.

What We Need

If Trump were sincere about making America great again, I'd vote Republican, sure as day. Sounds like he just wants to grind personal axes. Always with the partisan politics.

What we need in this country is pretty simple, nothing complicated about it, and I think this should be the Democratic Platform for 2020:

1. Better roads, highways, railroads, trains, trucks, and airports. Better transportation with fewer accidents; faster, efficient transportation.
2. Better Internet. High-speed (1G) Internet to *every* house in the U.S. of A. Yes, this should be a priority.
3. Better water. Everyone in the U.S.A. should feel confident that their tap water is safe to drink. Mothers should not have to buy bottled water to wash their babies.
4. Legal marijuana. The drug war needs to be significantly narrowed in scope. That does not mean, marijuana while driving. Only, legal marijuana, where you can buy it, in a sealed package, from a local store.
5. Continued tariffs against China, on into perpetuity. We need to shift all production away from China and to the U.S., or at least the next-best option, Mexico or Canada, our friends. China is certainly not our friend.
6. Immigrants should be allowed in a temporary visa, only on condition that they pay into Social Security and pay taxes. They should not qualify for any Social Security benefits. This would be a compromise to keep Social Security solvent for our nation's retirees. Yes, it is for them, but also for the nation's farmers. Mexican immigrants are just plain better at agriculture, period. Time to accept that. A little bit of honest work for the Mexicans would help both sides.

How to pay for all the above? Well, #4, #5, and #6 are income-producing plans, so actually we are talking about a net positive for the U.S. Treasury. More tax money being paid by immigrants, more money coming in from tariffs, and taxation on marijuana.

The Deep, Deep Desire of Republicans

The government on Republicans is like the brain on drugs. Here's a case example. There are thousands of examples like this. Government is abandoned, neutralized, as big business screws the consumer any which way to Friday. Workers have no rights, the country's infrastructure crumbles, and the educational system gets to be a joke. In Europe, meanwhile, people enjoy 1 Gigabyte internet speeds, while the people voting to "Make America Great Again," lag behind at 1.5mb -- if they're lucky.

Which brings me to my point. Republicans vote against their own self-interests. It is as if they have a strange deep, deep desire to let all the big businesses to do the nasty from behind. They want to lose money; they want to be poor, and they want their children to be poor, too. It is an odd sort of desire, but that's Republicans for you. Don't like themselves, don't like their families, want to fail, want to suffer. Slow internet? Great! Poor education? Super! Crumbling roads and traffic accidents? Heaven! Make America like 1850 again!

Capitalism is fine and dandy, but there needs to be some kind of sheriff around to make sure big business doesn't just set all the rules. Ever heard of the term, "monopoly power?" That's when a big business can just set prices and service levels any which way it chooses. That is the situation with Internet in this country, which is coming to look like a Third-World country. Trump has done zip, in fact he has made the situation far worse for people by gutting the FCC and all the other federal agencies. He is making America look like 1850, whereas the Chinese are light-years ahead of us already. The truth is that businesses will want to relocate to China to enjoy better roads, better transportation, better Internet, more advanced everything. America will resemble Africa. Thanks a lot, Trump. I guess he and his tribe plan to relocate to China after they've finished their hack job on America.

The Mighty "P"

Really we have a phallic-phobic society on our hands.

I remember back in the day all kinds of horrible traumatic things at high school, condoned and in some cases instigated by school teachers and administration. These things will never be investigated, publicized or lawsuits filed, and no one will have their career ended over them. They just happened and warped minds and altered lives. Oh, well! So, we had a sorrier generation as a result, because the elders were screwballs that did not know what time of day it was and did not really care to do their duty and do right by the young ones.

What is getting publicized, investigated, lawsuits filed and millions collected? Why, anything at all involving an active penis! Oh, my! If such an organ is involved, stop the presses! Suddenly it becomes a crucial problem of enormous significance.

Really, there is a lot of hypocrisy all around. People acting self-righteous and channeling their Puritan ancestors, as though they don't squat every day over the toilet.

Now in regards to our latest Supreme Court nominee, my own personal inclination, at first, was, what's the big deal. Teenagers do stupid stuff. And drinking? Well, girls going to an unchaperoned party where boys are drinking is not the best and the brightest idea in the world.

However, I also think someone aspiring to become a LIFELONG JUDGE on the SUPREME COURT, should be held to a higher standard than the other 99% of us. Like, I am not aspiring to such a high and mighty position. Think about it. A Supreme Court justice is probably more powerful than your average U.S. Senator. Because they never face elections and can do pretty much as they damn well please. What we need are impartial, non-partisan seekers of the objective Truth, and upright moral and ethical SAINTS, as well. A really tough bill to fill, no doubt, but the country has many to choose from and plenty of applicants.

So, that is my position in a nutshell. No, I don't think Kavanaugh should get arrested or be removed from whatever current job or position he has now. However, a lifelong appointment to the most prestigious court in the land seems wrong, when he has attacked the women-folk, according to sworn testimony, which he disputes. True, it's all in the distant past, and memories can be vague beasts, but that certainly has not helped the Roman Catholic Church one iota, now has it? My notion is that these women, and there are more than just one, don't like him on a personal level. They knew him as a young man, found him to be a bully, and remember certain words and deeds, and have trouble reconciling that with the notion of him sitting on the Supreme Court. Certainly, a bully is not someone anyone should want as a judge.

There is also the problem of Kavanaugh being just a total tool and complete lackey for the Republican party. Whatever happened to independent judiciary? This guy has been paying dues to politicians all his life. He is nominated, not due to his scholarship or eloquence, but for payback, and this is pretty clear to anyone with eyes to see. He sounds angry, not because the charges against him are without merit, but because he sees all he worked so hard for, just about to slip out of his grasp. My, how those who crave power do rage! Don't worry old salt, there's a keg o' beer waiting for ye when ye get home. Just drown out your sorrows, but don't throw any mixed-gender parties, is my advice.

Now all of this does not necessarily mean the right-wing doesn't get their Justice. Go get your justice, just nominate someone nicer. That is my advice. Due to Republicans being lazy as the day is long, they just don't want to put forth any effort into getting a new one. So, vote for Kavanaugh and reap what ye sow. He can always be impeached, when the Democrats get in. There will be something on him, or maybe the Democrats can just make something up, like Trump does all the time, on a daily basis. Apparently we are living in a post-Truth world with Trump, so my idea is that the Democrats can just impeach all the conservative justices, and be done with them. Just like Trump gets rid of FBI staff he doesn't like.

Brett Kavanaugh

Trump has done a real service to the country by nominating such a perfect representative of his own ideology and character.

Oh, those dastardly Democrats. How dare they scrutinize one of our wonderful President's sterling nominees? How dare they question such an unquestionable virtue and dignity? This upright gentleman should get a free pass straight to a lifetime appointment on the nation's highest court. What's with all the difficult questions? The questions are supposed to be easy, like "What is your favorite color," or, "What did you base your thesis on in college." Also, no digging into the past. The past is the past, right? What someone did before doesn't matter, right? We should just let all the criminals go without prosecution, because the past is the past. Open up the jails, release the prisoners right away. The past doesn't matter.

Iran

Iran is a country that could have been. Could have been awesome, with oil galore and a hungry people ready to embrace modernity. Except for the crazy buffoon Islamist reactionaries. Constant bickering and trouble with the U.S. seems to be the overriding goal of Iran from the 1970s to the present day, and Iran has nothing to show for its policy.

Due to Iran, there has to be war all around Israel all the time. The Palestinians have to be terrorists, killing random kids and women. For as long as the Palestinians embrace random killings, they do not deserve any concessions. The idea that somehow Israel is to blame for all of the trouble is pretty cute, when all the Israeli man on the street wants is peace and security. The reason for the so-called "repression" of the Palestinians is pure, raw fear of terrorism. There are many Westerners that put an eye mask on. They pretend not to see terrorism. They pretend it doesn't happen. Or, worse, they imagine killing is justified, because of X, Y, or Z. That is pretty unacceptable to those on the receiving end of terrorism. And in the end, you shack up with terrorists, and sooner or later the terrorists will turn on you, as the Europeans are discovering. The one thing a terrorist doesn't like is peace and calm.

If the terrorists win, guess what, welcome to a terrorist nation, where beheadings and torture and extremism become the norm. Iran and Syria are cases in point, where the world gets a glimpse of exactly where the Palestinians would go, if given half the chance. They would, of course, follow the model of their chief sponsors, Iran and Syria. They would not necessarily have a choice, because Iran is the main player over in their world. Torture, extremism, mass executions, repression. That is what a lot of Europeans want for themselves, which is why they invite in millions of Islamists as "refugees". It is a curious part of human nature that, given a reasonably good society, people want to introduce and embrace violence and atrocity, because at some level, they have an irrational need for suffering.

If anyone is wondering why Britain is having to deal with Brexit, the reason is simple, that the masses of the British people do not really want to embrace bombs blowing up in public and people getting beheaded on the street. The politicians show the world how "nice" Britain is to the poor, poor, suffering masses of the Middle East, who express their gratitude by opening the arteries of the random British subject. Well, now there's Brexit to deal with, due to the blind stupidity of the liberal politicians that wanted to butcher their own people in order to signal virtue on some level to other politicians in their immediate circle. Poor policies of the past are coming home to roost, and the economy suffers as a result.

I think Britain should turn to the Americas, Canada, the U.S., and all the other countries in the New World, and strike trade deals with its natural allies, rather than dicker around with the E.U. Let Europe turn eastward, as it seems to want to do anyway. In time, Europe will become like Turkey.

The U.S. should bring all of its troops home and let Germany pick up the tab for defense of Europe. Maybe Germany can reinstate the draft. The social programs, retirement and medical, can be abandoned to pay for the defense of Europe. The time when the American taxpayer paid for everything, well, that time is about up. Time to bring our troops back home and let Europe pick up the tab, for once. Seventy years is long enough, time to pick up the check, you moochers. Europe wants to slap the U.S. with tariffs, well, that is biting the hand the feeds it. Europe should enact negative tariffs on American products, that is, pay our businesses to import their products into Europe. Either that, or learn Russian.

Mexico Should be Our China

I always felt like China was a stupid idea from the get-go. If there really are segments of the production chain that just have to be handled by very low-wage workers, then Mexico fits the bill, and cuts transportation costs by more than half. The whole problem has always been the drug war and the enormous amount of crime and corruption in Mexico. Cleaning up Mexico was never a priority for Washington, D.C. We figured, it's their problem, neglecting the fact that many of our U.S. citizens have fallen in thrall to meth, heroin or cocaine, supplied by criminals south of the Border. Both sides lose, not just Mexico, when crime lords rake in billions at the expense of human suffering through addiction. More than likely, the U.S. loses more than Mexico. Meanwhile, China gets richer, while Mexico languishes and sends its workers North to find jobs. And China has made it abundantly clear that they hate the West, want to take over Taiwan, and are interested in taking over all of Asia, actually. I imagine Alaska and Hawaii too, one day.

Why didn't Mexico become our China? The main problem with Mexican society has always been crime and corruption, fueled in large part by the long-term, continuing criminal class of the drug gangs.

As for the big drug war, I would suggest legalizing pot in all fifty states. Just blanket legalization, stop the gears spinning altogether, just drop it. The people know marijuana is not so terribly horrible, and it is preferable to alcohol by about ten to one, any day of the week. Anyone who thinks pot is worse than alcohol, they do not understand the first thing about medical science.

One thing is for sure, the people can really get behind a war on drugs that targets real, hard, horrible, addictive drugs. There won't be any sympathizers of high ethics for things like meth. Everyone knows meth = death. The only good meth dealer is a dead one. That was the best part of the show, "Breaking Bad," that all the meth dealers eventually got theirs.

Probably, hallucinogens should also be legalized. Anything like LSD, peyote, or mushrooms. These things are not subject to addiction either and most people have no interest, or very limited interest, in them. They are not party drugs.

So with a much narrower scope on the drug war, the people really can get behind a much more aggressive drug war that really pulls out all the stops. What is left on the other side are just hardened criminals, instead of foolish potheads. The drug war can be recast in patriotic terms, and young people recruited as front line soldiers and informants. If the drug war really targets truly harmful substances that without any doubt ruin people's lives, there is no longer any moral ambiguity, no room for reasonable people to disagree. Meth, heroin, fetanyl, cocaine, things like that. Now, some libertarians may balk at cocaine. They point to use of the coca leaf. Well, the coca leaf is O.K., it is a mild stimulant, unlikely or impossible to lead to overdose. Cocaine is a man-made concentrate of the active principle in the coca leaf. That is the problem with cocaine, that it can become extremely addictive.

Stupid Gadgets

Too bad, all these stupid gadgets people waste their money on will soon cost more due to tariffs on their foolishness. It is about time something was done to counter-balance this huge tax break that businesses got away with. Americans waste entirely too much money on frivolous junk from China, and meanwhile, the Chinese are building roads and factories that can easily be converted to military material. Either get used to tariffs, or get used to the idea of your future generations being slaves in Chinese labor camps and you being dead. That is pretty much the stark choice before the U.S. today, and it is pretty sad that it took a fool like Trump to see what was so blindingly obvious for the past twenty years. The Democrats, in particular, have no excuse, because they were supposed to be the party of labor.

We May Need Trump

One thing Americans need to consider is that we may need Trump.

Alone among the Washington politicians, only Trump has awoken to the fact that the world is eating our lunch.

The trade deficit, the Federal debt, and the fact we provide free security for the whole world means that our people suffer and die. Say goodbye to Social Security, and health care in this country is just a bad joke, a chess game of multiple insurance policies. The people as a whole are in debt either for education, which the Europeans and the Chinese get for free, or health care, which those foreigners also get for free.

My views are reflected in this essay on CNBC. I think Obama and all the ones who came before him, Republican and Democrat alike, were asleep at the wheel. They did not realize that America's Sun was sinking. They got us involved in all these damn-fool foreign adventures, ballooning for Federal debt for no good reason and with zero return on investment. Meanwhile, other countries were not asleep at the wheel. They invested in infrastructure, medicine, and education.

What we need is fair trade with other countries. Zero involvement in the military conflicts of other countries. Let Europe pay for its own defense, for once. If they fail, too bad. Maybe they can fight in resistance underground movements against Russia for the next five hundred years and see how they like it. What is needed in this country are not just jobs, but really good jobs, and real manufacturing and production. Companies like Apple that betray the United States do not actually need to exist in the first place. They can move over to China, relocate and spend some time in Chinese prisons getting reeducated.

Trump is right to question why the U.S. foots the bill for security for the rest of the world. He is right to question why other countries get to take our jobs, our factories. These are questions other Presidents simply didn't bother to address at all in any meaningful and concrete way. It is almost worth putting up with the atrocious behavior of the Trump Administration in order to see some action on the trade front, and put these so-called "allies" on notice that their behavior is not without consequences.