Harmed

I do feel let down by the system, because so much of our peoples treasure was squandered on meaningless, pointless gonad-waving exercises overseas, from Viet Nam in the 1960s and 1970s all the way to Syria, resulting in our national debt, some twenty trillion last I heard, which will crimp U.S. prosperity in the future.

All that dough could have found a cure for Alzheimer's by now, along with cancer and other things, and maybe folks wouldn't be suffering so from horrible diseases. If only our leaders spent one minute of their time thinking about what could be truly awesome and wonderful and inspiring, instead of listening to their generals and the arrogant millionaires, who want to control everything, everywhere, even though they can't, and even though, deep down, they know they can't, and yet they still try, because they're morons with no philosophy in their vapid souls.

Scientific education, research and development is not prioritized in the United States, which is why our people will become organ bags for the Chinese, and nothing else. There won't be jobs, work, or good living going on over here, just prison-farms where people live their whole lives until their organs are needed for harvesting for a rich foreigner. That is my prediction for the U.S. and other declining countries.

I think the Mr. Robot television series is quite prophetic, and that the entire political class should be watching it on a nightly basis, before they go to bed. Indeed, China. So, tell me, how many trillions of dollars has China wasted on invading other countries? How many dams, roads, factories, and universities have they built instead?

Bad Decisons

Humans have a high error rate, when compared to machines. We see a lot of political leaders going down for what are simple errors of judgement, or "letting the little head think for the big head." But leaders make mistakes all the time, and the costs are high. There are a lot of problems in the world that could swiftly be fixed, if the leaders even cared about fixing them, but in reality, what most leaders want seems to be the satisfaction of their personal urges, petty desires and whatnot. They seem completely unconcerned about their moment in history. They don't aspire to anything greater than the slightly modified primates that they are.

Turn out we fought both sides of the Syrian conflict, supplying arms to both ISIS and their opponents, and fighting both Assad and his opponents (ISIS). War truly is a monumental waste of taxpayer money. Republicans cringe at the idea that, somewhere in the U.S., a child is getting medical care for free, yet they pour trillions into the war machine to kill babies around the world, and for what? How is the world any better or safer because we support one side or the other somewhere? I think ultimately 100% of all problems are caused by simple stupidity in our leaders. They are simply not intelligent enough to make the decisions that should be made. They fall for simple ruses and very easily deceived. Meanwhile, those that profit from war are laughing all the way to the bank.

Christmas Spirit

Where's the Christmas spirit? Looking at cold statistics, you'd think most folks would be happy. Stock market up, inflation tame, jobs increasing. However, instead, what we have is a country that doesn't seem too hopeful to me. I don't really know all of the reasons for it. I think change probably hits people too fast and too soon, amid smartphones, the internet, and artificial intelligence. The first two, we can sort of handle, but the last, artificial intelligence, is a doozy. Already, computers beat us at chess, drive cars, guess what we are about to say or type. Computers have gotten awfully good at figuring us out. The scary part is, in case you haven't gotten the memo, computers can take all our jobs, from A to Z, and that future is not too far off.

People really do not know how to deal with all of that, at all, and probably won't figure it out. The trouble is, we are organisms which evolve to adapt to our environment. Well, we have not had nearly enough time to adapt. The reality is, we are all going to be obsolete. There is a sense of dread about that. I feel smug only because I don't have kids, but I do fear for my brethren, H. Sapiens. I have always wished H. Sapiens the optimal outcome in things, and I dislike feeling as though things are hopeless for my own species.

My hope, when I try to rationalize it, centers upon science rescuing us from science. Surely, in the end, couples will listen to a scientist prior to reproducing. They will consult with a laboratory, which will determine the optimal genetic outcome for their future offspring. Reproduction will occur in a petri dish. Sorry, romantics, but that's the way it has got to be. However, birth can take place as usual. Nothing needs to change about birth, although women may have a different viewpoint. My hunch is, I don't care about refining birth, because I'm a man, but a woman would say, let's change things, and make birth take place in the lab, too. If I were a woman, would I want to give birth? No, certainly not, if it were optional, if I could reproduce by some other method, while conveying my genetic code to the next generation. Although, I'm not really sure--I might change my mind, if there were advantages to gain by birth.

Also, in the short term, I am worried about Trump. Now, I also worried about other Republicans in the past, but Trump seems to be a worse rendition of Republicanism. He is the type of guy that plays to his base all the time and never extends an olive branch to the other side, never tries to expand his base. So, I don't think that the Republicans are going to do too well next election, and whatever nasty things that Trump does now is quite likely to be reversed in time. My chief fear is that Trump will start yet another war. We have had so much of war, and it is not good for the economy. Most of our debt is tied to all of these wars, great and small, and the preparations for war. An honest Republican will look at the budget and agree--"Sure, but we spend all that dough to keep the world safe. This era is the Pax Americana!" And there is some merit to that argument, that we are able to sway global outcomes, and that could be potentially positive. However, the outcomes in Afghanistan, Syria, and Iraq were far from optimal, and I don't think anyone can say that our investments over in those blighted lands was rewarded in any way. I would rather that we invest here, in the U.S. Imagine if we did that. Better highways, railways, shipping, high-speed internet from coast to coast, medical care for everyone. These are some of the things we could have had, if we had foregone the foreign adventures so pleasing to the pride of the well-to-do, who love power and control over others, and wish to extend their power and control to foreign lands.

Perhaps the corrupt, selfish elite of China are correct, in their cold realpolitik, that democracy is doomed, that the best governance is obtained by dictatorship or oligarchy, because democracy results in Mr. Average ascending to the levers of power, and Mr. Average just isn't very good at anything, as we see with Trump. I am philosophically opposed to dictatorship, because it can also turn very bad in a very short amount of time, but China has been lucky, so far, in some ways, although their leaders are playing with a stacked deck. China had been destined to rise for centuries, and merely needed mediocre governance in order to do so.

Nationalize the Cable Companies

Cable and DSL companies should be nationalized, because internet is only second in importance to water to a community. I see the whole net neutrality argument as a symptom of a larger problem, that just a few companies monopolize internet access. There is no free market in internet providers. Instead, I have to pay one company, if I want fast internet. The internet provider stinks, by 2017 standards, and overcharges, and engages in deceptive practices. Every American should be getting 10G speed right now, even in the most rural regions, for the exorbitant prices we are paying.

But the Trump supporters are elated, and why? Because they love to suffer, and poverty for them is the only path to Grace. Every dollar they earn, they want to give to a rich man. They want the cable companies to charge them a lot for slow internet, because they feel like no one deserves fast internet, and who needs it anyway, when you have FOX news to watch 24/7.

I Wonder

I had a millenial friend that didn't bother to vote, though he supported Bernie Sanders, because he feels the system is rigged, and there's no point in participating. I wonder how he feels now, with Trump in power, and Republicans doing just whatever they please, as though they had a mandate, which they do not, but they don't care. I expect he feels raped; welcome to the world of realpolitik, wherein one either uses the system or is used by it. The system is all-powerful, greater than any of us, and can reduce us. I pitied him then, for there was much he did not yet know, but I also perceived, I was once like him, just as unaware of the light, gray and dark forces in the world, just as self-assured, just as deluded. It is truly not necessary, I concede, but it is convenient, to observe the solemn formalities, accept the petty indignities, and display the expected piety in this world. He chose not to do so, and so chose the hard road. I say that, by all the gods, our ancestors died for the privilege, and it is better to vote. Rigged or not, fair weather or not, destined for loss or not, I will vote.

In 2020, we will see, won't we? We will see whether White Nationalism is where the nation wishes to go. I only hope that the Democrats can retire the old dead wood and bring in fresh new blood. Out with Pelosi, out with Franken, out with Schumer, in with young Turks that understand the age in which we live and feel comfortable with a computer in their hands. I am sorry to disparage gray heads, but they are fossils in a rapidly changing age, and we need people that are all over data, computers, and artificial intelligence. What we need are people that read science fiction for pleasure. We have always needed that, in truth.

Men & Women

What men don't get is that women don't have the same sex drive, about ninety-nine times out of a hundred. Women don't want it. Men acting as though they do (or should) is the cause of much scandal and now, the ending of careers of the offending men. I feel sad for the men getting scourged in the media without much chance to defend themselves before a disbelieving public. In a way, it seems unfair to be called to the carpet for something that happened ten or thirty years ago. In the first place, the offense is a distant memory, if remembered at all, and the person is a much different person, having aged and grown.

Probably the optimal adaptation, for an average man of modest income and average mental and physical endowments, is the obvious and simple expedient of self-pleasure. Complete reliance upon others for fulfillment of basic needs has pitfalls in today's society, where lawsuits can be filed, charges brought, careers ended overnight.

Technology in the form of Artificial Intelligence will come to the rescue of the many lonely, homely, uncouth men--and women--who seem incapable of finding fulfillment with eager, compliant sexual partners. Robot prostitutes will sell to a vast market, and the value of said market will easily exceed that of motor vehicles. This will arise faster than anyone thinks, because there is bound to be a bright fellow somewhere among the rich who will perceive the same things and pour the necessary investment into crafting an adequate robot-whore that can be sold, rented or borrowed by techno-pimps. Anticipate the next Microsoft.

The Media's Fixation on the Death Penalty

I don't know why the media goes bonkers everytime a killer gets offed. In my opinion, this lethal injection business is ludicrous. What we need is a nationwide return to hanging as the sole method of execution. Simple, effective, humane, and low-cost. Those with some kind of rare medical condition that aren't suitable for hanging can experience the guillotine, also a humane method of execution. Playing around with injections has always seem bizarre, risky, stupid and expensive to me. Whether the death penalty is right or wrong is a separate matter, but the optimal method of execution quite obviously exploits the primary weakness on the human body, the neck.

Tax Bill Should Please Trump Supporters

There's an article on how the Republicans' tax bill will screw the poor and middle class in order to help the rich. Some in the media seem to think these facts will disenchant folks from voting Republican. Not a chance. Trump supporters love this sort of thing. Deep down inside, they don't really value themselves or their own families very much. Take away their health care, and they feel happy. They want Washington to bring down Judgement on them, because they feel like they deserve it, being worthless sinners and all of that. The folks that matter, they feel, are those blessed by God--the rich, like Trump, who ought to be idolized and worshiped, for those with big bank accounts sit at the right hand of the Father. Welcome to the Cult of the Rich, a modern heresy.

Republicans, Craft What Will Endure

A bit o' turbulence in the stock market of late, due to dawning realization that the Republicans cannot accomplish Jack, due to being incapable of compromise with their Democratic colleagues. The proper way forward is straight-forward, simple and elegant: ensure long-term success, not just now but twenty years from now, by incorporating the Democrats into any plan, any bill, because why? Because gerrymandering and voter-suppression tactics aside, the Democrats represent over half the country is why. That is enough reason. America is Democrats, period, end of discussion, we are the country. You go against the Democrat on every bill, and guess what? Whatever you do won't last. It will be reversed next election cycle. So compromise, and why not? Do something intelligent for once. Listen to wonks, listen to policy experts, listen to the voice of experience. Learn, grow, gather intel, and act based upon what is optimal, not based upon your base base. It is entirely possible to craft a Republican-slanted bill, with a good Conservative color, and get Democratic sign-on, maybe not all Democrats, but some, and the goal should be, what can endure, not what is politically expedient for the current election cycle.

Fanatical buttheads is the problem with the world today, terrorists, fanatics, people convinced that the only way is their way or the highway. Refusal to listen to the other side once in a while, or at least take other people's feelings into consideration. Any man in a marriage of more than twenty years knows that compromise is key.

Trump Has Some Good Ideas

I recall a smart writer opining that "even a stopped clock is right twice a day," and that applies to Trump. I like some of the things he says. For instance, on trade. Yes, the U.S. is getting raped by China, among other nations, and that's a big concern of mine. Yes, we need to curtail some of the immigration coming in from the Middle East, and we need to end the refugee program. The damn refugees can go live in Africa or Russia, where there is plenty of space for them. We don't need a massive influx of Muslims coming to change our ways and build mosques in every village and holler out a call to prayer five times a day where people kneel in the middle of business, pointing their turban-covered head toward Mecca. No, we don't need that.

The trouble with Trump is he grew up rich and spoiled, having had everything handed to him on a silver platter, because Daddy gave him millions. He dodged the Viet Nam war because of Daddy's money. So the man has never really worked for a living and doesn't care about people who aren't millionaires. He pretends to care and does a good job at pretending, but you know, it is not really that difficult to see through him, if you have eyes that can see. A lot of people just go through life with blinders on. They can't see past their tribal allegiance to white supremacy. The only thing Trump cares about is helping the rich get richer, and pushing the poor to the boneyard.

Whereas Obama, on the other hand, had nothing handed to him. He worked and struggled and succeeded on merit. He found a way. That is the reason to vote Democrat, because the Democrats know what it is to work for a living. They have worked a full-time job in their day and know what it is to pay bills.

My, My, Roy Moore

Next time Alabama's Roy Moore goes off about "the homosexuals," he'll invite a sharp rebuttal. Worse than Clinton, by any measure one might care to apply. So all those long tedious tirades the right launched against Bill Clinton ring false now, as they beat the drum for Chester.

Why was an Uzbeki Terrorist in the U.S.?

An Uzbeki terrorist mowing down bicylists in New York City while screaming "Allahu Akbar" is the poster child for why Muslims must not be permitted into the United States. Keep them in the Middle East, which they have ruined already. Don't let them ruin North America or Europe.

All of his family should be immediately arrested and confined in Guantanamo Bay until such time a prisoner exchange is arranged for the return of U.S. captives, now or fifty years from now. That would wipe the smirk off the scumbag's face.

A Spoonful of Tussin Shuts Up Your Fussin

Another friend of the Trumpette without health insurance, after Trump's latest moves to gut Obamacare, is Robitussin. Take 'tussin for whatever ails you. It is said to be the cure for everything. You don't need no Obamacare! Be a true Republican, and go without health insurance, as your leaders desire. A spoonful of Tussin shuts up your fussin.

Roy Moore

Alabama's Roy Moore, he's a live one, a typical specimen of hatemonger that, while professing his piety, is steeped in wickedness. To what entity, then, is his piety directed? For transitory power in this world, men estrange themselves from the other--a poor bargain, in any event.

Take Some Bufferin to Ease Your Sufferin

Those that voted for Trump now stand to lose their health insurance. Oopsy-daisy! You voted for Trump, now do what he says. Trump says you don't need health insurance, all you need is to take some Bufferin to ease your sufferin.

The Arab's Women

I read about an Arab up in New York who left his date to burn to death while he hailed a cab. With the influx of refugees in recent years, that's what we're bringing over from the Middle East, the idea that a man's minor discomfort is of greater moment than a woman's whole life. That fits in with the way the Arab culture treats women in general, beating and whipping them for minor infractions of the rigid religious laws. Women that go along with that sort of thing must have a taste for fist.

Trump is the President Some Americans Deserve

Trump is the President that a big segment of our fellow Americans richly deserve. The Vanity Fair article says it all. Trump reflects a big segment of our population, say around 46%: fat, lazy, old, and grasping for quick, simple, easy solutions to a complicated and changing world. People just don't want to be bothered to think about things. They want everything to be easy, across the board, quick and easy, most of all, first and foremost. But the world isn't easy, never has been and never will be. Thus, we have a President with a fundamental disconnect from reality, living in an alternative Universe of his follower's making, based on Fox News and Sean Hannity and little else. That everything they believe is false, is a thought that never occurs to them. Perhaps they deserve Trump. As for the rest for us, we have merely to survive and nurture hope for the future. Perhaps it is too early to advise teaching one's children Chinese.

Treatment of Animals is the Ultimate Moral Litmus Test

When one reads about the needless torture of lower life forms, such as pigs--a grave sin committed in an effort to maximize profit--and probably ineffective--and the alarming footnote, that this torture is now defended with all of the vast resources of our Federal Government, by directive of the Trump Administration, it is a shock indeed; and one wonders whether the moral divide between the U.S. and other countries, such as N. Korea, has diminished from a mighty chasm, to a hop, skip and a jump. Our enemy tortures humans for no good reason, for sport; we torture pigs for no good reason--and persecute those who would show any consideration at all to the animals. We are better, still, but there is a stain.

How can it be that the "Conservative Christians" that are all for Trump can turn a blind eye to the needless suffering of animals, committed out of pure callousness? The question must be posed: if their god would approve callous cruelty against animals, then what sort of god is it?

We may one day by judged, if not by God, than by an alien race, based upon how we treat other life forms on the planet, and if that day comes any time soon, then I certainly hope we are judged individually, rather than collectively.

Trump the Motivator

Trump is doing more for the Democratic Party than any of his predecessors ever did. I think, for all those Democrats, Independents and IDunnoKnow's, next time election-day rolls around, they are going to feel like voting. Thank you, Trump, for motivating the people to vote.

Emotional Support Pets

A Muslim woman was dragged off a plane merely because she mentioned she had an allergy to dogs. The pilot freaked out and ordered police to remove her by force. Turns out the dog on the plane was for so-called "Emotional Support," not because there was a blind person on board. And, by the way, seeing-eye dogs are exceptionally well-trained and well-behaved, and in all my days, I've never seen one act up. Seeing-eye dogs are better-behaved than a lot of human beings. Emotional support dogs get no training at all. You can have a toy poodle that barks its head off all day, and that's your emotional support dog that you can bring on to a plane.

Those morons that insist upon bringing animals into public spaces due, not to blindness, but to the supposed "emotional support" should be required to complete Army Basic Training as a condition of release from a psychiatric labor camp. If they fail to complete Basic training, they should stay in the labor camp to work out all of those emotional issues and help clean toilets, garbage cans and ditches in public spaces. I think, after either Army Basic Training or twenty years cleaning toilets, they may not have a need for an emotional support pet any longer. Of course, at either facility, pets would not be allowed.