I'M CONFOUNDED....11/29/23

It's no secret that I'm passionate about issues I care deeply about, sometimes to the point of being dismisive of other people's views.

I've been called on it more than once, and knowing intellectually that there are 3 sides to every story, I decided a while back to listen more attentively to opposing arguements.

I've learned a lot, and although some may not be able to tell the difference, I feel like I've become a bit more tolerant, and even accepting of "the other side" on some things.

Except one....and that is the denial of the results of the 2020 election.

Two conversations I've had recently with two different, very smart individuals have jolted me into reality. Both of them strongly believe the election was rigged and that Biden was not duly elected.

Even when confronted with evidence and logic such as the fact that all 50 Secretaries of State, including hard core conservatives, certified their elections - AND the fact that Trump lost virtually all of his court cases challenging the results, they remain steadfast in their convictions.

There are millions more just like them.

I wouldn't be too concerned if it weren't so dangerous, but it is....

A COLOSSAL BLUNDER....11/28/23

If someone were to ask me to name who I think is the number one villain with power in America today, it would be a difficult choice.

The usual scoundrels would include Donald Trump, Clarence Thomas, Rupert Murdoch, Tucker Carlson, Ted Cruz, Ron DeSantis, and others, but I think I would have to go with Mitch McConnell as my pick.

First and foremost, he denied Barack Obama the opportiunity to seat a justice on the Supreme Court after Antonin Scalia died in 2016, with the excuse that it was an election year and that he thought the new president ought to appoint the next judge, hedging his bets that Trump would beat Hillary Clinton.

THIS WAS 8 MONTHS BEFORE THE ELECTION! Well, we know how that turned out.

Then in one of the most breathtaking examples of hypocracy in political history, McConnell rammed through Trump's third nomination to the high court, Amy Coney Barrett, just ONE WEEK BEFORE THE ELECTION, cementing a conservative bench for years to come.

But these actions pale in comparison to McConnell's aquiescence to Donald Trump by not pushing for a conviction in Trump's 2nd impeachment trial.

Had he successfully done so, Trump would have been ineligible to run for office ever again.

But instead, our Democracy is now in peril....

OUR HIGHER GOOD....11/27/23

I’ve recently been watching Ken Burns’ documentary about the Holocaust, and while nothing can compare to the horrific evil that took place during the 12 years between 1933 and 1945, there are some parallels in human suffering between then and now in Gaza.

After relentless bombing, there is very little fuel, food, water, health care, or sanitation left in the country, and 2/3 of the population of 2.3 million are now homeless. Disease is rampant.

While I understand the simmering rage of the Jewish people for what happened to them during World War II, and then being attacked again on October 7, it seems to me the response could have been handled differently to avoid more civilian casualties.

I’m no expert and I don’t pretend to be. But logical thinking suggests that the more innocent people who are killed, the more terrorists there will likely to be in the future.

It’s all about retribution, which is cyclical, and often with no end in sight.

But PEACE is achievable and must always be our highest goal, no matter how elusive it may be.