Soundbites for the Intellectually Lazy

Posted on September 26, 2019 by admin

This just in: “The bullshit asymmetry: the amount of energy needed to refute bullshit is an order of magnitude bigger than to produce it.” – Antonio Brandolini

I have used this quote before. It sort of goes along with the LBJ idea of “Make him deny it.” The thought is that if you are “denying, you are losing.”

Where am I going with this?

I have been watching Republicans for the last couple of years saying the most ridiculous things in support of Trump. For example: “The Mueller report completely vindicates Trump. Go ahead and read it for yourself.” They say this knowing that the Mueller report listed 10 instances of Trump obstructing justice. Not one. Not 4 or 5. 10!!

They tell you to read the report for yourself in order to increase the likelihood that you won’t. Faithful followers think, “My-oh-my… if he wasn’t telling the truth he wouldn’t say that…therefore…he is telling the truth.”

Today I watched one Republican after another say that there was nothing criminal or wrong in the whistleblower report. They even said, “Read it for yourself.”

They know two things when they say this. First, they know that someone like me will read it and then I will know that they lied. They know I have been doing this all along and therefore I know that they lie and am not likely to vote for them in the future. Secondly, they know those that are still Republicans are such because they don’t bother to check on the facts and will not do so in this instance.

The lies, in public, are just soundbites to be played on rural American’s conservative radio stations and on Fox News. These media outlets won’t play both sides, they will just play what the base wants to hear.

This makes everything fall into place. I once thought, “How can they lie like that when evidence that directly exposes them will be brought up within moments?” The answer: They don’t care. They are not lying for me. They are lying for the intellectually lazy. They are lying for people that still vote Republican.

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim

What a Fool Believes

Posted on September 24, 2019 by admin

This just in: I was watching Trump make a speech at the UN today. I commented “I’m embarrassed that this guy represents the United States.” I only got one negative comment on that. Some guy said, “If you don’t love our country then you should leave.”

I immediately filed him into a file labeled “White male, gun owner, southern states, Fox News watcher” etc. I know I shouldn’t do that but hey…I admit that from time to time…I cast a stone.

I saw an article that talked about why people believe just about anything as long as if fits with what they want to be true. I assume, of course, that the article is talking about “other” people; you know….Republicans/Evangelicals. Certainly not me!

However, I can never be sure about…me. Maybe I’m the gullible one. Maybe history will show that Trump was a triumph of benevolent and studied leadership.

I needed a test platform…and Trump gave me one.

He is saying that he was concerned about his political rival, Job Biden, did something fishy in Ukraine. He didn’t know what it was but needed investigation. Trump, being a pillar of non-corruption, asked Ukraine to look into it. He also asked his personal lawyer to look into it. He didn’t ask the FBI to look into it.

So…I looked into it.

Yes, Joe Biden’s son worked for an oil company in Ukraine. He was paid a lot of money. If you told me he got the job because of his name, I wouldn’t bat an eye…because I don’t care.

Trump’s claim is that Biden held money back from Ukraine until they fired a guy that was investigating Biden’s son.

Here are the facts:

Yes, Biden held back money until Ukraine fired a prosecutor.
This action was NOT to stop this guy from investigating Biden’s son.
This action was because the prosecutor was NOT investigating corruption.
The United States made this move with the complete backing of Europe. Biden didn’t want Ukraine to stop an investigation into corruption; he wanted them to be more aggressive in their pursuit of corruption.

These facts, are the exact opposite of what Trump and now, the Republican Party are saying.

Furthermore, these facts are not hard to uncover. That being the case, Trump and the Republican Party must know the truth.

So, when they throw that Biden’s son distraction at us, we should know that they are lying directly to our faces.

However, word on the street is that Republicans do not feel the need to be honest with the Press.

Up, up and away…

Jim

Fear of a Bridge Too Far

Posted on September 10, 2019 by admin

This just in: “If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you are right.” – Henry Ford

Did you know that the first person to fly a plane and the first person to walk on the moon lived at the same time?

We are capable of great things. I don’t say this as a way to cheer you on. I’m just making an observation. We have done great things and thus, I can reliably state that we are capable of doing great things.

Are there other great things that we can do, other than land on the moon? I’m not asking about “speculation”. I’m asking for evidence that we can do great things that need to be done.

Where am I going with this?

Of course, you already know….there is a list to be made.

We can create a system of healthcare for all. I know this because it is being done in all of the industrialized nations of the world; outside of the United States.
We can create an educational system that prepares our children (and thus our country) for the future without creating a share-cropper type of indebtedness to pay for that education. I know this because we have done it in the past and many other industrialized countries are doing so right now.
We can keep ourselves safe in a dangerous world without spending 800 billion a year on the military. I know this because we spend more than the next 10 “high spending” countries combined and yet…they are safe.
We can put an end to the 80-90 gun deaths per day. I know this because every other industrialized country has been able to do so.
We can solve Climate Change. I am only pretty sure about this. However, I do believe in science because…we put a man on the moon.

There is a reason we are not doing all of these great things that we are capable of doing – Money in Politics.

“It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!” – Upton Sinclair

Time to save the world.

Up, up and away…

Jim