This just in: I can only report about what I hear on Fox news because I am unable to tolerate more than just a few moments of their propaganda.

What I’m hearing is this: The January 6th commission is a partisan attack job on Trump. It is unfair because Trump is not allowed to refute the claims being made. Also, the evidence being presented is just hear-say and not real.

So, let’s go through this a bit.

First of all, this is not a partisan (one party) commission. There are two Republicans on the committee and one holds the number 2 position on the committee.

Next, Republicans were invited to have more representation on the committee but the Republican leadership in the House refused.

Next, almost without exception, those testifying on TV are Republicans.

Next, a very large portion of the hearings are video recordings taken in full context. Also, copies of existing emails, memos and transcripts are being shown. This is not hearsay but rather hard evidence.

Next, several high profile Republicans had declined invitations to appear before the committee. Some are even defying subpoenas issued by the committee. They claim the commission is a one-sided witch-hunt but then decline to publicly and under oath, to set the record straight.

Several Republicans have responded to subpoenas and actually shown up only to take the 5th which means they refuse to testify because they may incriminate themselves.

Trump has complained about not getting equal air time. The committee has said, and I have seen them do this on live TV, that Trump can appear before the committee at any time. They will give him all of the time he wants. The only catch is…he has to be under oath.

Trump declined.

In short, there is no “other side” to the story. We are being shown the facts by the commission and all we hear from the other side is denials on Fox News which is a far cry from presenting facts while under oath.

Now, I don’t expect the above to change any minds. One Republican testified, “I have a friend that is very smart and he loves Trump. He thinks the election was stolen. I went through all of the issues, one-by-one to demonstrate what he was hearing was false and that the election was fair. In the end, he said he understood everything. When I asked if he still thought the election was stolen he said, “Yes, because in spite of your evidence, I believe in my heart that Trump won.” Note: This is my best recollection of what was said.

Now for a video.

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: I have seen several online conversations about why people like and don’t like Trump. The consensus seems to be that they say, “We like his policies” without being able to name any policies. The other finding seems to be the unspoken, “I fear non-white and non-Christian people as well as people from other countries and Trump will openly fight to squash their place in society.” In other words, they are racists but don’t want to acknowledge this so they like Trump because he will openly do what they only think about but never act on. Racism by Proxy.

There is only one thing I like about Trump…he could get things done.

Now, before you go off on this statement, let me clarify. I don’t like the things he did but I do have to admit that he always seemed to find a way to get it done. Also, I don’t like the methods he used (trying to overthrow the government etc.) but he got things done.

So, me saying I like that he got things done is sort of like saying, “I like his tie.” The statement says nothing about how I feel he is the worst example of a human being I can think of and he has done more to bring down our country than any other person in the history of the world.

On the other hand, I like what Biden says. I seem to share his beliefs in many cases. I think he is a good person and really wants what is best for the country; putting country ahead of self in every instance.

Still, he doesn’t seem to be able to get things done. For example, the Supreme Court seems to be going down a list of Republican goals and ticking them off one at a time. I’m talking about abortion, gun control and the inclusion of religion into politics.

Biden can’t fix health care. He can’t get infrastructure passed. He can barely keep Europe on track when it comes to keeping Russia in check. I think he was slow to act on inflation, (not that he could have done much). I think he is checking boxes, much like the Supreme court (talk about gun control…check. Talk about abortion…check) but nothing is getting done.

Yes, he doesn’t get stuff done because of the opposition. But, the opposition does not always have to win. We are not a country that benefits when the minority rules. He has the House, the Senate and the presidency.

He needs to start getting shit done!

So, who do I like? Trump or Biden? I would take a broken toaster over Trump. If Biden is the best alternative, I take him in a heartbeat.

Now for a video…

This is one of the songs I dance to in the morning.

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: There are a lot of moving parts when it comes to the causes and cures for inflation. Some are more important than others. Some causes and cures that we want to avoid, exist only because we don’t have the political will to do the right thing.

Inflation, in its simplest form, exists because we are willing to pay more money for something that we once paid less for. We do this because we have to or we do this because we want to. It really doesn’t matter.

Why would we “have” to pay more? Usually there are two reasons for this. First, it could be that those controlling the production of some necessary good have made the decision to charge more. This occurs when a few control the production of something vital. Let’s call this Cartel. We pay more for this good in spite of the price increase. This “lack of impact” on demand by a price increase is a measure of the items “price elasticity.” Price goes up and demand remains constant means the produce has low price elasticity. Gas is a good example of this. We buy it no matter the cost. You may say, “I drive less and thus price has impacted me.” This may be true but energy costs don’t just impact individual driving. Energy costs control the costs of nearly everything you will touch today. You will still touch them, you will still buy food, you will still watch TV etc; regardless of the price.

The second reason we “have” to pay more is scarcity. As a product becomes more scarce, the price for that product will go up. Now, we can choose not to buy the product and this may lessen the meaning of “have” to pay. However, if we want an electric car and there are not enough of them to meet demand, we will “have” to pay more to move up in the waiting line for that car.

Scarcity and Cartel dictate that we will pay more. Paying more = inflation.

On the other side of the coin. Sometimes we are willing to pay more simply because the value of a given amount of money has dropped for us. When you have a little bit of money, maybe you eat a lot of Ramen Noodles. Then when you win the lottery, you eat steak and ice cream all day. The more money you have, the less each bit of that money means to you.

We are now in a long overdue phase of wage increases. Wages have been mostly stagnant for the last decade but now they are on the rise. People are making more and so, they are spending more. They are no longer holding onto their money as tightly as they once did because each dollar now has less value. This puts more and more money the economy. More money means that money is worth less…to the economy. Thus inflation.

The Federal Reserve has a tool to combat this. They raise the interest rate and thus people will borrow less money. This is very effective since we don’t only spend the money we earn. We also spend the money we borrow. Since it is now more expensive to borrow, people will borrow less and thus, the amount of money flowing through the economy is lower. This will slow inflation.

So, how would I fix this?

First of all, I’d keep making incremental increases in the interest rate. I expect the Fed to continue doing this for at least another year.

Secondly, I would open the borders. I don’t mean literally, throw open the gates. I mean make it easy for foreign workers to enter our country. Don’t make them all citizens but somehow make them tax-paying contributors to our economy. If we want to unclog the production bottlenecks that are causing the “scarcity component” of inflation, we need the labor. Let them in. Politically, neither political party is interested in solving immigration. This is too convenient an issue to blame on each other. However, we can create growth without boundless wage growth which contributes to inflation. For example, and I am only making this up on the fly: An immigrant is granted a worker visa. They can stay in the county for as long as they hold a job. They pay taxes which fund schools and medical costs and such. Their wages, as a immigrant worker, can be no more than 90% of a worker that is a citizen. They can also make up no more than 10% of any given workforce. In this way, we are not taking away jobs and we are allowing for wage growth with some dampening effect.

Lastly, hold the feet of energy companies to the fire. They have spend decades getting subsidies. Stop that cold. Put an upper limit on profits. Yes, this is putting a control on a capitalist industry but, its for the greater good. In fact, we do this sort of thing all the time.

Or, we can do nothing. Don’t raise interest rates because we don’t like that. Don’t increase the size of the national labor pool because those new people are not white. Don’t regulate an industry because you think unregulated capitalism is a good thing (spoiler: It’s not).

We can always do nothing.

“Nothing happens until something moves.” Albert Einstein

Now for a video…

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: Every state agrees that Trump lost the election. More than 60 court filings that challenged the election have been thrown out due to lack of evidence. Investigators hired by Republicans found no evidence. Trump’s inner circle, including his family members and the Attorney General all agree that Trump lost the election. About this…there can be no doubt.

So, everyone knows that Trump lost the election. Let’s take this as a fact, which is it. AND, knowing that everyone knows, what does it mean when…

Trump claims the election was stolen. He knows it wasn’t. Everyone told him so and there is no evidence. So, when he tells you this, he knows he is lying to you. Furthermore, he expects you to be outraged and in support of his complaint. The bottom line is that he is in direct violation of the Constitution.

When a congressman or senator tells you this even though they know its untrue, they have two goals: (1) They are pandering for the support of those that can’t accept that a fair and democratic election resulted in their guy losing and (2) They want to use the prospect of fraudulent elections to create laws that will restrict the opposition from voting. What they are really saying is that the Constitution only matters when they win.

When Republicans tell you they believe the election was stolen, they know they are lying. What they are really saying is, “I don’t support a democracy where my opinion isn’t the popular opinion.” While this is an anti-constitutional stance, they will be the first to demand their right to own unregulated guns no matter how many school shootings there are.

Everyone knows the election wasn’t stolen.

Everyone that tells you it was stolen is lying about it. They are lying right at you.

Note: I say “everyone knows” when there is a portion of the population that doesn’t bother to check on anything and rallies behind whatever they want to be true as if it was actually true.

Now a video…

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: Donald Trump is basically a retarded Mussolini. A fascist wanna-be with the IQ of a 1968 Chevy Nova. And yet, he is the leader of the Republican Party. Why is this?

Republicans have discovered a basic truth – A very large portion of any population will believe anything you tell them; especially if its something that they want to be true.

I watched 1 minute of Fox News this morning. The headline was “Democrats are in disarray.” This showed on the backdrop as one pundit after another blamed Biden for high gas prices.

Now, if you think Biden is to blame for high gas prices, stop reading this blog right now. There will be a lot of big words that require a vocabulary beyond Dick and Jane Go to School.

Over 50% of Republicans believe that there is a conspiracy to get rid of the white population by inbreeding whites with non-whites. It’s called the Great Replacement Theory and exists only in the minds of those willing to believe anything.

Most Republicans believe that Trump won the last election in spite of the fact that zero evidence exists. Incredibly, they even claim “voter fraud” on just the part of the ballot that voted for the other party. This is true. If there are two issues on the ballot and the Republicans won one of the issues but lost the other, they actually claim “voter fraud” on the issue they lost on while readily accepting the results on the issue they won.

Victor Orban, the Fascist running the country of Hungary, just met with our Republican Party. He told them the key to getting and keeping power is a government run press. We don’t have that yet but Fox News is certainly a one-party propaganda machine. Recall, people will believe what you tell them to believe so all you need is a medium for getting into their heads. Thus…Fox News.

Fox News is owned by Rupert Murdoch; a man that made a fortune publishing tabloids. A tabloid is that sensational headline paper you see at the supermarket checkout. The secret to moving tabloids is sensationalism. Normal is boring. The truth is boring. Two–headed babies fathered by an alien is a headline that moves papers.

Fox News follows this format. They make all kinds of claims. This morning they talked about 6 million people crossing the border at El Paso this year. 6 million!.

Here is a video…

This video summarized Fox News and what Republicans are willing to believe.

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: Every couple of years I post my current workout routine. This is more for me than anything else. This way, I can go back and see what is different.

Some stats…I’m 64 years old. I am 6 ft tall and weigh 195 pounds. I have 2 ruptured disks in my lower back. Otherwise…I’m very healthy.

Here is my exercise routine:

1. I start every day in the jacuzzi. Some time spent being quiet. Some time spend breathing. Some time spend focusing jets on various pains.
2. Every Day I spend 20 minutes doing a yoga routine that includes stretching and core strengthening. This is a must exercise if I want to stay out of the hospital due to my back.
3. At least 5 times a week I spend an hour at the Rock Wall Climbing Gym. This is something I just started in January. Good for strength. Good cardio. Does not hurt my back. There is something for every skill level. I love this!
4. I golf 9 holes once a week and 18 holes once a week. I also go to the driving range at least once a week.
5. I swim and do strength training at the gym at least 2 times a week.
6. I walk at least 4 miles a day.

And here is my latest exercise…I get up before my wife. I turn on Pandora and the station is called Zoot Suit Riot. Then…I dance like nobody is watching. I do this for about 15 minutes. I start slow and warm up. By the end, I am feeling great. My mood is high and all is well with the world.

Here is a video…

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: We like to think that elected officials, those that we choose to govern us, will base their actions on facts. We like to think that when they run for office, they will try to differentiate themselves based on values. “Here is what I believe in.”

The Republican Party has long abandoned this type of behavior. Instead, they tell you what they want you to believe about their opponent. “My opponent is a pedophile. Yes, there is zero evidence to back this up but because I said it…there is a chance that it might be true to vote for me because I said something that you want to hear.”

This brings me to the topic of Wedge Issues. To me, these are issues that are either completely false or are seen as a way to capture “single issue voters.”

Pro-LIfe: Republicans want you to believe that they are pro-life and thus, their opposition must not be. This appeals to voters that want an issue where they can take a stand to feel good about themselves while not actually doing anything. Keep in mind, these Republicans that want to control a woman’s right to control her body, are the very same people that didn’t want to wear masks to protect others during the pandemic.

Gun Control: Republicans want you to believe that Democrats want to take away your guns. Never mind that Democrats have never said this. So, people vote Republican on this issue because it makes them feel patriotic, “Republicans are standing up for my second amendment rights.”

Masking during the pandemic: Republicans made a big show of standing up for their right to not wear a mask. Never mind that wearing a mask protects others far more than it protects the mask wearer. “I am a tough person that refuses to wear a mask because I am not afraid to give you a deadly virus.”

Voter Fraud: Trump claimed voter fraud because he is delusional and can’t cope with the idea that his streak of personal failures continues to grow. Republicans seized on this idea because it allows them to keep non-Republicans from voting. “Stop the steal by keeping non-whites from the voting booth.” Notable is that the very few instances of voting fraud I had seen evidence of in the last 2 years has been by Republicans.

Critical Race Theory: This is a rarely taught, college level topic that investigates society’s role in racism. Research has been unable to find a single instance of this topic being taught below the college level, anywhere in the country. “As a Republican, I am against teaching our kids that they are racists.” This statement, of course implies that Democrats feel the opposite.

All of these are examples of Republicans, not earning your vote by accomplishing something, but rather trying to scare you into not voting for the other side.

Who falls for this stuff?

Well, I was in Kentucky a couple of weeks ago. A guy comes up to me and says, “This company is socialist because they make us have co-pays in our health insurance.” When I asked what was socialist about this practice that is ubiquitous across the country he said, “I’m in favor of the white Christians that fought for our country.” At his point, I began to wonder if this person was even capable of feeding himself.

He will vote the exact opposite of how I will vote. His vote will cancel mine.

I’m not always right but I do my best to be informed. It’s my duty to question what I hear and not to simply believe something just because I want it to be true.

Here is a music video:

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: There is so much wrong with today’s Republican Party that I just don’t know where to start. How about with Row v. Wade.

First of all, I have no skin in this game. Personally, I don’t care if abortion is a Federally protected right or not. Well…I care a little but I’m not directly impacted.

Having said that, I find the hypocrisy of conservatives rejoicing at the presumed Supreme Court action to be both astounding and predictable.

Republicans are nothing if not hypocritical.

Let’s make a list…

1. The party of “family values” loves Trump who was married 3 times and paid off a porn start to stay quiet about their fling while his current wife was pregnant.
2. The party of “small government” interferes routinely in non-governmental issues such as abortion.
3. The party of “fiscal responsibility” ran up an 8 trillion dollar debt in just 4 years with nothing to show for it.
4. The party of “the constitution” is actively working to suppress the vote and supports the violent insurrection of January 6th.
5. The party of “democracy” has several vocal members supporting Putin. This includes their party leader, Trump, who recently claimed Putin is a genius.
6. The party of “pro-life” instantly abandons its concerns for human life once birth has occurred.
7. The party of “Repeal and Replace” Obama care has yet to come up with even a 1-page outline of a plan to do so.
8. The party of “Democrats are pedophiles” recently had a multi-page list with backup documentation published on Reddit that listed hundreds of elected Republican officials that had been found guilty of child pornography. Here is a link to a sample.

I think you get the picture.

Here is the sad part: In public view, for everyone to see, the Republican Party has failed, for decades, on every aspect of governance. The “say” things and then act like they actually “did” things even though they haven’t.

Don’t say, “show me your evidence.” To do that, I would have to tape your eyelids open and then block Fox news for a few days.

Here is the bottom line: We can’t have nice things because voters keep electing incompetent people. They elect incompetent people because they are gullible.

Don’t blame the Supreme Court for overturning Roe V. Wade.

Blame the people that voted for a Republican.

Here is a music video…

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

This just in: Like everyone, I have been watching the war in Ukraine. I try to tell myself, “This is Putin, not the Russian people,” but the truth is…being intellectually lazy, avoiding any effort at critical thinking…makes you susceptible to believing the first story that sounds like something you want to believe is true.

Benjamin Franklin said, “Three may keep a secret it two are dead.”

Propaganda works best if: (1) The story you are telling is one that people want to believe and (2) There is no immediately available alternative source of contradictory information. or if you choose not to seek alternative information

Additionally, if you are going to lie, keep it simple and short. No need to provide supporting evidence because, as a lie, there none. Be sure to move on before doubts can be raised. The goal is to leave a lasting impression that what you just said was clearly the truth.

Let’s bounce back and forth between Russia and Republican propaganda.

Russia: We didn’t bomb that train station. We are trying to save lives. It was the Ukrainians that did it. They did it so they could blame us and make us look bad.

Republicans: Democrats support pedophilia.

Russia: Ukrainian Nazis are killing innocent Russians in Ukraine.

Republicans: Democrats stole the election so we must pass laws to keep black people from voting pass laws pass laws to make elections safe.

Russia: The reason we don’t have access to other media outlets is because the West doesn’t want you to know the truth.

Republicans: Any media outlet that reports something other than what Fox News says is an enemy of the people.

Russia: The West is out to wipe Russia off the face of the earth.

Republicans: Democrats want to destroy democracy.

The more I watch the actions of Putin, the more I see our Republican Party at work. They are not doing the same thing. One is killing innocent people on the other side of the world while the other is struggling to find some sense of relevancy in a country that sees them as increasing irrelevent.

However, they are both using the same playbook. They both do something they know is self-serving but will be seen as bad. Once they do that, they accuse the opposition of having done that very thing.

Call it lying. Call it hypocrasy.

It is all very transparent unless…you want to be sergeant Shultz.

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim