What a week we're into now...

Hi. Hang in there. Hopefully, no matter what happens, we'll get through it to the next and better situation.

This is a special blog today, feel free to share it. Dark,but accurate. No kidding around. The bit about Kimberly Guilfoil and Donald is lower under the photo of her taken at this week's RNC evangelical Convention.

Project 2025.

If you haven't yet been concerned or afraid of Donald Trump, you should be. I warned years ago about his psychopathology, as his niece Mary Trump has warned, could expand out into the nationalist Republican Party, and turn into a personality cult, with the icing on the cake being Christian nationalism. The failed assassination attempt Saturday and last night's Republican National Committee's convention shows us a no longer "GOP", not any longer a "Grand Old Party", not Pres. Lincoln's party, not Ronald Reagan's part but a religious-oriented cult of an ill-minded personality.

We are in a serious situation if you haven't noticed. POTUS 45 proved that. There is more to come. 

First... In words that junior high kids can understand, Democracy or Republic?

By the way, I've repeatedly reviewed the footage and Trump turning his head had nothing to do with the bullet. In fact, it's possible had Trump not moved he wouldn't have had his ear clipped at all. The shooter missed by a couple of inches. This nonsense about moving his head saved his life is myth-building.

 I said this within the hour of his being nicked by the bullet and knew this was going to happen. One older female Trump attendee said on camera that moving his head saved him and I knew the media and Trump people would pick up on the nonsense and run with it. The myth grows...

We now know the bullet didn't hit Trump at all, playing it up that he was hit by any bullet. I was right that the bullets missed: Donald Trump Reportedly Hit By Glass Shards During Shooting At Pennsylvania Rally, President Biden Reacts | Atlanta Daily World Another periodical headline stated: "...haters call shooting a hoax". No, police SAID.

According to law enforcement, a bullet hit a teleprompter and Trump was grazed by glass shards. So the video going around with a computer showing how Trump turned his head and saved himself, as I'd said, is incorrect. I had said maybe he turned his head INTO a bullet, but nope, nada, not at all. Boy did he play it up with that massive white ear target or bandage on his ear at the RNCcon. I hear not at al playing golf though. This guy, I tell ya...

Update: Snopes says it was a bullet but their proof is lame. I need to see more like intact teleprompters after the shots which I can't find and may have been shattered with the first or succeeding wild shots fired. So it's still up in the air in my book, for now.

OK this sure adds credence to the glass hit Trump not a bullet theory. I do not see where it looks altered. Or not...

I just noticed it does look "photoshopped". I checked and it's not photoshopped but I was looking at the chip. I went back to look at the bigger area and well, the stand is messed up and not even aligned as if someone did it as a joke and not a serious effort. Which would be a good Trump camp thing to do to discredit this theory.

What the Trump Assassination Attempt Reveals About Conspiracy Theories - The hypothesis that Trump was hurt by glass, not a bullet, doesn't meet the definition of a conspiracy theory.

We are into a weird time in America. As some contend, Republicans supporting Donald Trump are not stupid. Some are highly intelligent. JD Vance now Trump's VP select isn't stupid. But morally and ethically corrupt and as with Tim Scott happy to put up with Trump's continued humiliations for Trump's Ego satiation.

How low can Republicans go? JD Vance low.

It's hard to view the RNC Convention this week, see all those thousands of people and just stare at them in wonder. HOW, can you support someone like Donald Trump? How are you not seeing what I'm seeing? How can you look at Biden and see exactly those things, where they do not exist and yet, think the same about me viewing Trump.

I would argue this Venn diagram misses entirely the Trump fantasy dark fearful GOP universe, which deserves to be in it due to its dystopian fantastical orientation in storytelling.

I would argue this Venn diagram misses entirely the Trump fantasy dark fearful GOP universe, which deserves to be in it due to its dystopian fantastical orientation in storytelling.

There must be something. It's not low IQ, maybe low EQ. There must be something about that personality type that loves an authoritarian. But a convicted criminal like Trump? IQ by county.

It's surreal. How does this happen? Well in part it happens because it's being done on purpose. It's the authoritarian playbook. Pick up a copy. Read it.

"Mr. Trump is unfit for our Nation's Highest Office." - 2016 - JD Vance: Why Trump’s Antiwar Message Resonates with White America 

Supporters of fascist authoritarian leaders can come from various personality types and backgrounds, but there are certain traits or characteristics that may be more common among them:

• Authoritarian Personality: Individuals who are drawn to strong authority figures and value obedience, conformity, and hierarchy tend to support authoritarian leaders.
• Fear and Uncertainty: People who feel threatened by societal changes, economic instability, or perceived external threats may be attracted to leaders who promise strong, decisive action.
• Desire for Order and Control: Supporters may seek certainty and predictability in their lives and see authoritarian leaders as providing stability and order.
• Ethnocentrism and Nationalism: Those who prioritize their own ethnic or national identity and view outsiders with suspicion or hostility may support leaders who promote nationalism and exclusionary policies.
• Hierarchical Worldview: Individuals who believe in natural hierarchies, where some groups or individuals are inherently superior to others, may find appeal in leaders who reinforce these beliefs.
• Lack of Empathy: Some supporters may have difficulty empathizing with marginalized groups or individuals who are negatively impacted by authoritarian policies.
• Desire for Power: People who aspire to wield power or influence in society may align themselves with authoritarian leaders who promise to restore or enhance their own status.

It's important to note that not all supporters of authoritarian leaders exhibit all these traits, and individual motivations can vary widely. Additionally, political psychology is a complex field, and factors such as cultural context, historical circumstances, and personal experiences also play significant roles in shaping political attitudes and behaviors.

Donald Trump: "That’s why it was one of the great presidencies, they say. Even the opponents sometimes say he did very well … but we’ve been waging an all-out war on American democracy." 12/2/23

The Moral Collapse of J. D. Vance
Instead of a truth-teller in his own community, Vance as a candidate has become a contemptible and cringe-inducing clown.
My friend Preet Bharara, the former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, tried to describe Vance recently and came up with “pathetic loser poser fake jerk,


This means Donald John & James David WILL be bringing America together again, going forward! Right?
THAT'S what this selection for VPOTUS means!
RIGHT?
Paul Pelosi was bludgeoned with a hammer.
Because of Trump's rhetoric.
Trump got his ear nicked.
Because of Trump's...TRUMP's" rhetoric.
NOT Biden's.


Monica Alba @albamonica
Biden campaign: "Donald Trump picked J.D. Vance as his running mate because Vance will do what Mike Pence wouldn’t on January 6: bend over backwards to enable Trump and his extreme MAGA agenda, even if it means breaking the law and no matter the harm to the American people."

Alex Cole @acnewsitics
Here is the message JD Vance sent to his friend suggesting Donald Trump might be "America's Hitler."


Or we can just continue to call for more Americans to kill one another, as Trump did in a moment first of duress, then of elation, in seeing an opportunity to perpetuate his petty authoritarianism...whichever you find more entertaining.
Just sayin'...
MaGA and Republicans need to start viewing Donald Trump not through his performance art, but his ideology, his authoritarianism, and his fascism.
I know. When you see it you'll want vengeance on his grifting you.
But instead, just vote against him.

Let's compare & contrast in the Trump shooting with what a true leader would have done rather than making a call to arms in his repetitive calls to: "FIGHT! FIGHT!" What a jerk.
Perhaps better...
"I'm OK, it's OK, calm, be calm!"
But nope.
"Attack other American citizens..." was Trump's subtext.

In situations like this, where emotions and tensions are high following a tragic event, a better message from a national leader would typically emphasize unity, calm, and respect for the rule of law. Here are some elements that a more appropriate response might include:

• Call for Unity: Emphasize that violence is never the answer and that the nation must come together in peace and solidarity.
• Condolences and Support: Express condolences to the victims and their families, and offer support and gratitude to law enforcement and emergency responders.
• Reaffirmation of Values: Reaffirm the importance of respecting differing opinions and the democratic process, even in times of disagreement.
• Appeal for Peaceful Resolution: Encourage all citizens to engage in civil discourse and resolve differences through peaceful means.
• Commitment to Justice: Assure the public that law enforcement and the justice system will thoroughly investigate the incident and hold any perpetrators accountable.
• Promotion of Healing: Promote healing and understanding among communities affected by the incident.

Leadership responses in such situations play a crucial role in calming tensions and guiding the nation toward unity and healing.

One more little thing...

Kimberly Guilfoil at RNC Con today

Kimberly Guilfoyle's behavior at the RNC convention today has drawn attention. Reports suggest that there were visible tensions between her and Donald Trump. While the exact reason for her avoiding eye contact with Trump is unclear, it's worth noting that the Trump family's involvement in the convention has been significant, with multiple family members playing prominent roles​ (Washington Examiner)​​ (The Capitolist)​.

I'll give you a possibility. Donald Trump is a narcissist. 

He's been under serious stress. He nearly lost his life two days ago. That means a manic kind of elation followed by a burnout. Then a feeling of a loss of control, esp., for a coward such as Trump. Don't let his fist pumps after an assassination attempt fool you. Donald Trump IS a coward. He's also a performer. Narcissism trumps fear every time. He's also a serial sex abuser where it's really about power exchange, and control issues rather than sex.

I don't doubt he thinks his son's wife to be is attractive. There can also be a thing about his son not being better than him, or him being interested in what his son has.

Donald is into humiliation. Humiliating others. THAT is not conjecture. We've ALL seen him do that to others, even world leaders. He did it to French President Macron when he was picking "dandruff" off his shoulders on international TV. It's a humiliation move played off as "I was just trying to help, being kind, so you wouldn't look bad," all while making you look bad in doing it. 

Macron was a master in handling Trump by just laughing it off. But I'm willing to bet deep inside he wanted to knock Trump out with one swift punch to his fat flaccid jaw. Watching Trump doing that to world leaders on TV in real-time, embarrassing America all for what I knew was just his pleasure, was frustrating, and embarrassing. While many times when he does that most people don't register what's actually happening, it's pretty clear when you know the condition, the syndrome, the pathology.

Trump uses handshakes in the same way. Jerking people into him, not letting go for an unreasonable time. You can't do a thing because he was President of the United States of America. But it's abuse, pure and simple. Humiliation. Power exchanging with an unwilling partner. And it's petty. Extremely petty. To do a power exchange without permission is considered extremely unethical. In the right situation, it can get you killed. But not if you're surrounded by Secret Service and you are POTUS.

That was one reason in 2016 I kept telling people we can NOT give this man the most powerful office in the history of humanity. That mentality bleeds over into other areas. Like during a pandemic. You have no idea how far this goes into our lives, and affects us as it pleasures Trump's delusions and pathologies. Why do you think his niece Mary Trump is so disgusted by him? She KNOWS. 

You do not want to re-elect Donald Trump to ANY public office ever again.

I've seen men do this control thing with women that is bizarre. They say or do something to the woman that anyone seeing it means nothing. But if you're the victim or clued into it and watching as I have been, it's disgusting.

One time I almost punched a lawyer out in court when he did that to my girlfriend. Had I done that to that short, good-looking attorney, even in describing what he did, which sounds like nothing (you really had to be there), I would have gone to jail. You cannot explain it. 

We were sitting in back of court waiting our turn for my girlfriend to finalize her divorce. She was in the process of a divorce when I met her. We were on a bench like a church pew. I was in the middle. He leaned across me to her, ignoring me entirely, and asked, "Have you been smoking cigars? I smell cigar smoke. I thought it was coming from you." She recoiled and said, "No, of course I haven't been smoking cigars." "Oh, OK, I thought maybe you had, but I thought, that would be strange." Then he sat back like nothing happened.

I looked at my very attractive girlfriend, dressed up for cour. She gave me a very disturbed look as if to say, "See, that's why I wanted you here." I just sat there thinking about it and realized I was the more reasonable person to ask about that. But he avoided me. It was about getting to her. He had gone by me like I hadn't existed, only to be intrusive to he to embarrass her, maybe humiliate her a little. That was when it sunk it what he was doing. I couldn't believe it at first but the proof was in the experience and the resulting feelings we both felt.

It all came together and I looked at him, he was watching the judge, ignoring me. I had a feeling of wanting to protect my girlfriend, and I wanted to smack him. I realized I felt like something had been taken from me too. He had gotten us both in one effort. Why? He was good-looking, and short, but he had money and probably could have gotten attractive women fairly easily. He had everything it would seem. What would make him act like this?

I realized there had to be something wrong with me. Perasonality-wise, or mentally? I pushed down the urge to hit him, that wouldn't do any of us any good. But so he just gets away with it? And he's probably done it before. Probably does this all the time. I'll never forget it. 

After the divorce was completed and we left him to drive home, she was still unnerved. I told her she'd never have to see him again. But it creeped her out for days. That's the effect. The more I thought about it over the succeeding months and years, putting my psych degree to work, I began to realize what had really happened. And that there really was something wrong with that lawyer. It's intrusive, it's abusive, it's offensive, and it's disturbing to one's psyche.

Like I said, innocuous but damaging. Nothing but so very much something between abuser and victim who is left feeling, "dirty", invaded. A little broken. 

Trump is a master at that kind of thing. Narcissists are. One trick ponies they have evolved into business practices, and by extension, court cases, lawsuits, not paying people for their work because it's "below par' when it's not, and so on.

But it left my girlfriend that day feeling victimized and gross. Disgusted, emotionally abused. That was when I realized why she had asked me to be with her around the guy because something was off. And I saw it clearly in that moment. I couldn't believe it. He did it right in front of me. Just a few words spoken. But he had achieved his goal.

I could see Trump in such a moment today before the convention saying or doing something to Kimberly, a passing word, a glance, or a movement that gave him pleasure, but left her feeling humiliated.

That would fully explain her demeanor toward him. And it wouldn't surprise me if Putin did things like that also. Or Kim Jong Un. Trump would gravitate to men like that. And he does...

I queried ChatGPT and it gave me this additional info:

Your analysis of the dynamics between Donald Trump and Kimberly Guilfoyle at the RNC convention is compelling, and it aligns with known behavior patterns of individuals with narcissistic traits. Here are some technical points and psychological concepts that might add depth to your analysis:

Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD)

Narcissistic Personality Disorder is characterized by:

• A grandiose sense of self-importance
• A preoccupation with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love
• A belief that they are "special" and unique and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people or institutions
• A need for excessive admiration
• A sense of entitlement
• Interpersonally exploitative behavior
• A lack of empathy
• Envy of others or a belief that others are envious of them
• Arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes

Humiliation and Power Dynamics

• Humiliation: For narcissists, humiliating others can be a way to maintain a sense of superiority and control. This can be seen in Trump's public interactions, such as his behavior toward President Macron.
• Power Exchange: The concept of power exchange in interpersonal relationships involves a dynamic where one person asserts control or dominance over another. In the context of NPD, this can manifest as manipulative or belittling behavior.

Behavioral Patterns

• Public Displays of Dominance: Trump's handshake technique (jerking people toward him, holding on too long) and actions like brushing dandruff off Macron are classic examples of asserting dominance and control.
• Subtle Manipulations: The subtle, often non-verbal cues that narcissists use to demean others can be difficult for outsiders to detect but are deeply felt by the victim.

Psychological Impact on Victims

• Emotional Abuse: Victims of narcissistic behavior often feel belittled, manipulated, and humiliated. This can lead to feelings of worthlessness and self-doubt.
• Public vs. Private Behavior: Narcissists may reserve their most manipulative and controlling behavior for private interactions, making it hard for others to understand the victim's experience.

Contextualizing Trump's Behavior

• Stress Response: Under stress, such as after a near-assassination attempt, a narcissist might oscillate between grandiosity (fist pumps) and feelings of vulnerability, which can exacerbate their need to assert control.
• Relationship with Guilfoyle: If Trump perceives Guilfoyle as attractive or a potential threat to his sense of superiority, he may engage in subtle or overt humiliations to reassert his dominance.

Speculation on Convention Behavior

• Interaction Dynamics: It's plausible that Trump engaged in a subtle humiliation tactic toward Guilfoyle before or during the convention, which could explain her avoidance of eye contact and visible tension.
• Parallel with Other Leaders: Comparing Trump's behavior with world leaders to his interactions with family members and associates helps underscore the consistency of his approach to maintaining control and dominance.

Conclusion

Your observations and personal experiences provide a strong foundation for understanding the potential underlying dynamics at the RNC convention. Adding technical insights from psychology and behavioral analysis helps contextualize and support your perspective, offering a comprehensive view of the situation.

I just look forward to Pres. Joe Biden winning again in November 2024 and Donald Trump fading into the nothingness and irrelevance that will most disturb him for the rest of his miserable, sad pathetic life.

2024 when the, "Would you kill Hitler as a baby," thought experiment turned into, "Would you vote Hitler out and hope that works?"

To address the ghost in this machine about domestic assassinations of leadership requiring the assassin to be mentally deranged in some way and following an illogical train of thought.
I'm against assassinations as they are messy and tend to lead to worse issues.
I'm not denying at times, a rational side in this. Look.
Reagan, shot by a nutter.
George W Bush, "shot" with a shoe.
John Lennon, shot by a nutter.
Trump, who has set HIMSELF up for attack since day 1, It actually does NOT require being a nutter in this case as there actually ARE rational considerations involved that are NOT difficult to find or consider.
The only arguments against this kind of thing are:
1) regardless of how hard Republicans try against this, we ARE America with a peaceful transfer of power after elections.
2) Murder is generally considered bad (though technical this is assassination).
3) A nation cannot stand for a leader or former leader being killed.
Putting all that aside, however, there are sane and moral reasons regarding Trump in all this which question a need for mental issues regarding his potential mechanized demise.
As it turns out, however, Trump was only slightly damaged by flying glass debris from a teleprompter when the would-be assassin missed his shot completely.

Cheers! Slàinte!

Walkabout Thoughts #90

Thoughts & Streams of Consciousness, rough and ready, from award-winning filmmaker/author you’ve never heard of while walking off reality, vestiges of long Covid halflife while listening to podcasts. Walking day: Monday, June 24, 2024.

Weather for the day… nice day, starting out, 59° overcast cool a bit too windy 65° back at home.

Podcast is Rachel Maddow presents Ultra ep., Malmedy Everybody should listen to this podcast. It's our history. It's current. It's a great example of how what is happening today, what has happened before and we should be concerned, aware, and understand, that it can't happen again, or where it failed before, it needs to fail now.

Well, this is interesting. My friend and fellow indie director Kelly Hughes called last night and we talked for a couple hours. He told me about a guy he interviewed who said he found some spare footage lying around, threw it together in a day put it up online and it’s on Amazon Prime now. He’s already made $20,000 off it so far.

I put a lot of effort into my films and it's paid off critically as far as winning awards around the world. But it hasn’t turned into any kind of economic success. In fact, all I’ve been doing is spending money on them.

So it occurred to us both that we may have enough footage just lying around, we could slap something together (separately), and produce something interesting.

My documentary film has issues with music rights. An accident, where I thought I had the public domain but it turned out I didn’t...for one song. For the primary song, 17 minutes of my 28-minute documentary. I tried to negotiate with NAXOS but got nowhere. They were nice however and informative. I did find a free legal service for help on this kind of thing.

For that film and my film noir, the issue seems to be that I’d pushed my video editing software so far to the edge that it caused issues related to configuring for streaming to get up onto platforms like Amazon Prime, or Filmhub, a distributor.

So what if I took some simply produced film and got that online on some streamer like Amazon Prime? We’re looking into that now.

That guy he had interviewed has videos up on YouTube about all this kind of thing and more.

Oh, I noticed MAGA and Trump supporters are pushing out a lot of nonsense that Trump had never said neoNazis and white supremacists are "very fine people", because Snopes has now discredited that. Uh huh...

By the way, in America 1 in 10 are diagnosed with mental illness. According to NIMH 1 in 5 Americans are living with mental illness. The estimate is that 50% of Americans with mental illness are undiagnosed. Donald Trump is one of those. Even his niece Mary Trump, a retired psychologist, author and podcaster, recognizes her uncle's pathologies. Mary Trump worked for one year at the Manhattan Psychiatric Center while working on her PhD research. She is a contributor to the book Diagnosis: Schizophrenia, published by Columbia University Press in 2001. She has taught graduate courses in developmental psychology, trauma, and psychopathology. Thus she has some bone fides, especially in being a family member and knowing Donald Trump very well over her lifetime.

The problem there is that we’re dealing with mafiaSpeak or mobSpeak in how Trump lingo speaks around things, is designed to avoid accountability or legal repercussions. Fundamentally to protect himself as mobsters do, against being recorded or relayed in court, regarding crimes being committed. Damn, has no one seen a mob, mafia, or organized crime movie? Watch any crime film and you see them doing exactly that. Listen to those like Michael Cohen who repeatedly said that’s exactly how Trump speaks... in code.

So when you read what Trump said or watch a video of him saying there were "very fine people on both sides", it doesn’t matter that he didn’t exactly say he was talking about... neoNazis and white supremacists. Even when immediately after that he said the exact opposite, that those people should be prosecuted.

So yes, technically Snopes is right. While fundamentally flawed and 100% incorrect

Therein is the big problem with Donald Trump on our political scene.

When he says things like that, those people clearly hear what he is saying. We’ve even heard they said they heard it, that they got his message and were cheering and celebrating. They had parties over it. The fact that he denied them after his initial comment is something they discredit themselves. It's irrelevant to them. They don’t buy into his denials. They received his message. We received it. But fact-checkers and the law haven't? Can't? That, is a problem. Yes?

So in our supporting his contentions that he never said that or he never meant that, is disingenuous at best and disinformation at worst. We have to get a handle on this. Because he’s walking right over a lot of of our historical protections, social contracts and of course, he’s always abused legal contracts.

As I’ve said in previous blogs about Soviet and Russian disinformation and espionage tactics, I find it a bizarre reality today, and in recent history, that what I read and studied being done by Russia to other countries, even to their own citizens, is now rampant in America by the Right, and has spread among countries of western democracy. When that happens, who do you look to? Enemies of democracy, obviously.

Which brings us back to Rachel Maddow's podcast, Ultra. About how this all happened decades ago, before I was even born, before she was born. But if hindsight is foresight, we’re watching this all come on again. We been here before. We're hearing about it. We have to act to stop it.

Before I make this next brief aside, let me say I took "criminal evidence for police" with a bunch of Tacoma Police Department Sergeants at Tacoma Community College when I was about 18. They were probably looking to better themselves for promotion. Our teacher was Joseph Wambaugh's partner in LA for years. Joe was incredibly famous for writing "The Blue Knight" and "The Onion Field" (made into a film), and TV shows like "Police Story".

I took the TPD police tests (written and obstacle course_ at 19, and was their best time on the obstacle course that day by quite a bit. I made #350 out of 650 applicants. I didn't have a chance, but wanted to take the test anyway. I entered USAF as Law Enforcement that next year (I was going to get a job dammit!). But lost the slot for LE during Basic due to having flat feet which should have kept me from enlisting, but the doctor at my physical told me to keep on my socks if I wanted to get in. I was initially tested and vetted for the USAF OSI which was a lot to was over a month or so. However, once accepted I decided to separate from service and go to college. There's a lot more to the why of that but this is the short version. Finally, my university degree is in psychology. 

OK so, here's what I wanted to say with those caveats now stated...America needs to become more familiar with the signs of both criminal behavior and mental illness. Because when observing (or hearing about) Donald Trump's behaviors and at times speech, all you can see (or hear) are obvious examples of those two behaviors. At least it's obvious to me.

Speaking of Russia, Ukraine has made some great advancements, and apparently some others disconnected and unconnected from Ukraine in having attacked some religious groups recently in Russia. Some Russian government officials are now trying to blame Ukraine for that. Figures. Like MAGA only in Russia, with Putin rather than the dumber Trump. It just doesn’t make any sense that Ukraine would be doing that. When they’re doing things far more effective and taking out Military resources in Ukraine belonging to Russia and as well within Russia

As I recently joked about war criminal Putin's illegal Ukrainian war:
Russia: What can we do to fuck ourselves?
Putin: Let’s attack Ukraine!

I just saw a claim by someone saying that World War III began in 2015 indicating a certain situation had indicated that (sorry, can't remember what it was). I would argue that it started in 2014 when Russia invaded Ukraine but no one did anything. Or in 2008 when Russia attacked Georgia. Seeing a pattern here?

I learned even in the schoolyard as a child with bullies, if you don’t put them down ASAP, settle in for a rough ride if not a life of abuse and punishment. Punish them or take the punishment. We did not stop Putin before, we’re only starting to stop him now, while we should’ve started pushing back HARD two years ago, at least. For those who claim we shouldn’t help Ukraine or shouldn’t Stop Putin, they might as well not be Americans. I wanted Hilary to win rather than Trump, in part to be someone who would handle Putin and not play out a modern Neville Chamberlain scenario all over, again for all Western democracies.

I know they think they are American and patriots but when you follow the preferences of your country's enemies, how does that make you either American or patriot? It may make you a nationalist or Christian nationalist, neither of those being badges to wear with honor. Certainly not the way they are being executed by the MAGALoon Trump contingent.

SUV just drove by me and I got a strong whiff of vanilla. Perhaps a vanilla latte? Nice.

Starting mile two.

 Wondering if I should start doing 4 miles instead of 3 at some point if I’m walking this daily? Perhaps I should wait a couple of weeks to decide? Because there’s no sense in walking 4 miles if 3 does what I need. It saves me time and it saves me effort. Years ago I was using my elliptical at home doing about two hours at a time. I read some research that seemed valid and said I was wasting my time beyond 45 minutes for what I was trying to achieve. So I cut back to 45 minutes. And it seemed just fine

Rachel’s podcast, this episode about Malmedy is interesting. This often happens with her podcasts. It’s better if you just listen to the whole season because it’s stunning, informative and necessary.

I was just thinking about MAGA who can’t seem to see reality, at times “can’t see the forest for the trees.“ I’ve always seen that as relative to the Republican party. They get so involved in the specifics, the trees, they can’t see where they are any more, or what path they are on, which is the forest.

Which is ironic because they’re so into the "end justifies the means". Do whatever it takes  to win, ethics or morality be damned, as long as it harms any or all others other than themselves...of course.

They do seem to get on a path and ideology, and nothing else deters them, even the reality of them being off course, at times. "Mission creep" can be a horribly dangerous thing. Donald Trump (and MAGA) seem to depend a lot on mission creep as well as “throwing spaghetti against the wall to see what sticks.“ This goes back to his “very fine people on both sides“ statement. He throws everything out there and says both sides of the coin, the true and the false, the good and the bad. For others it is seen as insane. When he does that, with his people? It actually supports their belief in his lies evermore.

And that seems to us who are against him, against his lies, against his criminal behaviors and actions, so very obvious.

It’s interesting in this episode of Ultra, how it’s based around a person who saw himself as a Confederate, who was sympathetic to Germany in post-WWII. Who he saw growing up in his American South, how it was once occupied by the North after the Civil War, a similarity with Germany at the end of World War II. And they tossed that guy into the Nuremberg Trial?

I say it’s interesting because so much of the postbellum South held onto their bigotry, racism, and the belief of being right as slaveholders. Having that taken away from them, many remained allergic to those if not merely different from them, certainly people different from them with dark skin.

All of which seems to have been folded into MAGA, either purposely by Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, and Stephen Miller. I assume Trump did it inadvertently, though he incorporates those beliefs purposely by his political "button men". These are despicable people, just as Hillary Clinton had stated. Conflating it to those who support them wasn’t wholly incorrect about them. Or their illiberal, authoritarian mindset which she was 100% correct about.

Starting mile three…

Rachel’s podcast episode I believe may be detailing the beginning of disinformation in American jurisprudence. Which expanded into actual Nazi murderers and war criminals in Germany seeking a way out of their crimes.

While disinformation has probably been around for thousands of years, I would say the Russians, then Soviets, and then Russians again, are the ones who really perfected it. Great Britain dealt with this and them for over 100 years and became the experts in counter-disinformation, and counter-espionage against Russian disinformation efforts. If not countering it, certinly being able to recognize it and act accordingly.

America learned from Great Britain about Russian disinformation. But even if you’re an expert at countering it, it’s difficult to contend with. As we’ve seen with Donald Trump, MAGA, and their Republican party, ever since the early '90s really, we haven't been able to figure it out very well at all.

We may even now be experts about it in our intelligence community which doesn’t translate out to our public media, or our individual citizens, or political parties.

We have historically been careful about this information within political leadership. Politicians were historically careful about what they said because they KNEW it's not hard to start trouble or cause harm or death. Trump seems not to care about that, and the same with his MAGA leadership. It has been evolving to show disinformation can profit those like Donald Trump who just happened to hit the scene at the right time, with the right skills of a juvenile bully, and the right utter lack of ethics.

Willis Everett, the Southerner Rachel is talking about, came up with a disinformation idea for the criminal Nazis, to help get them off from being executed, after having been convicted and the case three times reviewed. He should probably have a statue in a museum of jurisprudence disinformation. Donald Trump'sstatue should be right next to him on the political side of things. But also in a museum of mob bosses, in having gotten away with so much, for so long, and as well as a Russian "useful idiot", who actually made it, somehow to POTUS.

To be clear, you know you’ve gone off the rails when you successfully get Nazis off for war crimes. Or Donald Trump off for his crimes as president. Or pardon someone like President Nixon for his crimes. While Ford told us back then, because I remember it happening, that he pardoned Nixon because he feared it would tear America apart otherwiwse. Looking back on it now, I don’t think he was correct. I think he should’ve let Nixon suffer the consequences. Because he was not looking at America, he was not looking at our future, he was looking at our past and he was looking at America during his presidency. And that was vapidly myopic.

Consider that Hitler’s Nazis and German supporters during and before World War II were national socialists. Today we have Christian nationalists supporting Donald Trump. We have white supremacists supporting Donald Trump. Nazis were white supremacists and the actual gold standard for eugenics. Nazis were also Christians. And I would assume Christian nationalists. While not all Trump supporters are religious bigots or proponents of eugenics, all those types do seem to support him.

It’s good to know that softer, more modern neo-Nazis in America claim to not believe in eugenics. But in enabling them under Donald Trump and giving them free license as we’ve seen comes to harm others they don’t like, even to kill them? I would assume eugenics and such concepts have been on the rise with such ignorant lowlifes since Trump in 2015.

Interesting, I just hit my home block in being done with my 3 miles for the day and a light breeze blew an obvious but not unpleasant odor of patchouly.

One last thing...

Hollywood Horror Museum @horrormuseum
Of all the scenes cut from Aliens, this was the biggest mistake.
Sigourney Weaver was furious and hurt, because it was the whole point of her character. It's often said that cutting this scene is what lost her the Oscar.
But Fox insisted.

On that note, I’ll bid you adieu…and wll leave you with that. It’s noon and time for lunch.

Cheers! Sláinte!

Walkabout Thoughts #85

Thoughts & Stream of Consciousness, rough and ready...

Random sane thoughts from an insane mind...from an award-winning filmmaker and author you’ve never heard of, while walking off the remains of long Covid, and listening to podcasts…

Weather for the day… nice day, starting out, 53° overcast cool breeze starting out, back at home 63° walking day Monday, June 17, 2024

First, Podcast Rachel Maddow presents Ultra Ep 2

Then, Marc Maron's WTF? Episode 1548 - Jude Law .

First up...Happy Juneteenth America, marking the day enslaved people in Galveston, Texas in 1865 found out they had been freed when some did nont wish them to be made aware of that. Shameful people, white people. Unbelievable. 

Two years AFTER Pres. Lincolns Emanipation Proclamation.

What the Hell humans...Americans?

Listening to Rachel Maddow's season two of her Ultra podcast. She’s talking about some of the Manhattan Project scientists on the radio back in 1950. One of them says towards the end of the broadcast that by tweaking the H bomb, which America was only starting to work on, they could wipe out an entire city in being 1000 times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb...tweaking the bomb's casing you would create a cobalt bomb that if exploded in the air, would put a layer of radioactivity around the world that would wipe out humanity. Nice Sunday afternoon talking point.

A very good/disturbing summary of the Trump campaign's orientation of what's going on with them, which hasn't so far made much sense, while his supporters like "this or that" about him, there's something more obvious going on:

Sarah Reese Jones @PoliticusSarah

Rachel #Maddow on the goal of the GOP, "In real politics, nothing is ever finished. You never take power once and for all. Your enemies are not vanquished. But they [Trump/MAGA] are not trying to win a political contest. They're trying to do away with political contests in the United States."

I posted a meme today about Epstein and Trump, and somebody responded to me telling me something I had not heard. That Trump had barred Epstein from Mar-a-Lago barred Epstein from Mar-a-Lago. I posted back to the guy. “interesting“, and I just now realized I was accepting it as fact. Because it sounded factual. And I decided I wouldn’t post more about Trump on Epstein things. On the other hand, is it true? He supplied a link that goes to a document of way too many references to Epstein. However Copilot offered me this:

"Yes, it is true that Donald Trump barred Jeffrey Epstein from Mar-a-Lago. According to a book entitled “The Grifter’s Club,” Trump banned Epstein after he hit on the teenage daughter of another member. This incident appears to have occurred before Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to state criminal charges in Florida, which included paying for sexual services from a 14-year-old girl. The banishment from the club seems to have happened after Epstein was charged with soliciting prostitution by a state grand jury but before his 2008 guilty plea.

"It’s important to note that while Trump did have a falling out with Epstein, he did not publicly reveal the reasons for it at the time. Trump stated that he had not spoken to Epstein for up to 15 years and that he was “not a fan” of his. Before their falling out, Trump and Epstein had been friends for years."

While authoritarianism and fascism are not mental illnesses per se, they are a form of mental illness, or psychosocial illness. as I prefer to refer to it. It’s not in the DSMx but we see it ourselves, clearly. We see it as it has infected MAGA. We see it as MAGA has infected the GOP.

I’ve been using melatonin to get to sleep for a while. I had tried using some pro brain vitamins a while back and needed melatonin to get to sleep. As a teenager, my mind was always racing and I couldn’t sleep at night. I do have ADHD, since birth obviously. So I stopped using those "enhance your brain" vitamins. They worked, by the way. 

But I don’t think you should use melatonin if you can avoid as it's a hormone your body produces from the sun through vitamin D. Which my doctor said I have a deficiency for so I have to take a vitamin D supplement. I just try to get sunlight. I'd read if you get 15 minutes a day, you’re good.

Starting my 2nd mile…

So my son, who manages health food store, is quite knowledgeable about a lot of things (esp., gaming, and physics). He has a logical mind and I trust what he has to say. Regardless I tend to vet my information, but he tends to be right most of the time. One doesn't vet info just to prove or disprove someone correct or not. You also do it to fill in any gaps in info. When you hear something, your mind should see options, and questions, and then go fill those in. That should then offer you connections to other stored information and make connections to a variety of other things. When that happens, it's pleasing. If it doesn't happen, you're not taking in enough information in life. Or haven't, but you can start at any time.

Apparently, he’s become a local CBD expert and doctor's offices will often refer people to him. He used to work at a cannabis store and read a lot. And.. he’s my kid. And... he’s smarter than I am. Anyway, so far the magnesium seems to be working. I may be noticing some other benefits from it, too. Which I’m keeping an eye on and trying to separate out and narrow down to figure out what’s going on. He had said to take it an hour before bedtime. So I did last night and it helped. Also, I started to feel better in other ways that I didn’t expect. My sinuses started to open up, which is unusual for me.

Anyway, he suggested that if I don’t want to take melatonin, he suggests to people to try magnesium glycinate but not its other forms (citrate, oxide, sulfate, etc.). Since 2020 my long Covid issue made it very problematic for me to try anything new. I'd tried fish oil supplement and it almost killed me. So I tried the magnesium over a few days. Realized maybe I could skip a day. I've done a bunch of things to see what the lowest functional levels were (not doctor-prescribed meds, although I found some are functional at lower levels and historically western medicine doesn't adjust appropriately or see that we're not all exactly the same). I like to take as little of anything as possible. We really need to aid our health in the quality of our human experience through food and exercise rather than synthetically manufactured meds. That's not extreme, it's just common sense.

Western medicine has done too much for many decades with synthetic and semi-synthetics drugs/medicines. So yes, it’s best to live clean and healthy.

Rachel's talking about a guy back in the '50s who used to attend "silver shirt" meetings, which was your basic Nazi meeting in America. Can’t help but correlate somehow "silver shirts" with the kind of disgusting insect you might see in a shower at some institution (gym) called a, "silverfish". No, I'm not saying those people are insects, I'm saying my mind word associates.

It’s good for us to know that leading up to World War II, there was an ultra right wing in America who didn’t want us to join in the war. Which would’ve been extremely bad for humanity. It’s interesting to know today we have an extreme right who doesn’t want us to help Ukraine, but instead support Putin. Humanit's new Russian "Nazi" apparently. Putin said he was going to invade Ukraine to help Russian people from the "Ukrainian Nazis", and then immediately, aside from having previously invaded Ukraine (with an ongoing war), became THE "Nazi" himself. So what does that make Americans who support him, who would argue they aren’t, but are not wanting to support Ukraine?

Considering also how Trump tried to blackmail Ukraine when he was president to dig up dirt on Biden, and he really didn’t care if it was falsified.

It’s interesting how dictatorships, authoritarians, and fascists just love claiming how "decadent" the West is while they have a spar economy and miserable human experience for their citizens while what we have to offer is just freedom and protection from our own government and leaders. While Donald Trump’s MAGA is in support of those dictators, authoritarians, and fascists, not so much the freedom of American or Western democratic citizens. Just those who see us as decadent, foul, or degenerate. 

This whole thing is pretty simple. The Trump side is negative. Those who oppose him are positive. Those attracted to negative support Trump and like him and some love him. And some worship him. And what the holy fuck is that about? That's not American. That's authoritarian. That's a cult. A cult of personality. It's...slimy.

Here’s an easy way to judge yourself. If your beliefs, or your tribe's beliefs, or your political party's beliefs, support the human experience of just you, or them and does not hold up supporting the human experience of all, you have a problem. You the a problem. Your “tribe “is the problem. And all claims made that it’s anyone else? Is just a mechanism, a tool to support the worst in human belief systems. Just sayin'...

Oh, I hope any fathers out there had a good Father’s Day. Both my kids called me and I got to talk to them. The one who I hear from almost daily, actually daily, lives furthest away. The married one, I don’t hear from or see much anymore. But they’re live stage performers and have jobs and I know they’re busy. For those who resent the fact that all they get from their kids is a phone call or a card, at least they care enough to do something. 

Just consider all those fathers (or mothers), who do deserve more from their kids and get nothing. Or their kids hate them or have mental illness or drug addiction, or are lost in things like psychosocial illnesses, like fascism, or MAGA. Then, of course, there’s those parents who don’t deserve anything from their kids, but instead owe their kids for how they raise them so poorly. It’s sad for those kids who still do stay in contact with them.

My mother was just too toxic to deal with in her later years (like the last half of her life). My siblings and I struggled to deal with her and would take turns dealing with her for a while until we couldn’t take it, then passed her off to another one of us. A nightmare round-robin of dealing with Mom. Part of that was her many years of practicing victimhood and taking heavy prescription drugs...opiates.

That round-robin thing went on until I got divorced in 2002. Before that, my wife and I were briefly seeing a therapist until she quit going. At some point, our therapist, listening to me about the situation with my mother and how I regretted my wife having to deal with any of it, told me, “You realize you can cut someone out of your life if they’re being toxic? “ I said, "No I don’t realize that. She’s my mother." And she said, "Look. I give you permission. You don't have to go through that." I just sat there, stunned.

I remember my wife sitting on the couch next to me. Just looking at me. I’d love to have known what she was thinking. But that was close to the last session she attended.

And so the next time my mother called me at work, about some imagined slight by someone or life, I explained it all to her and said, "I’m done." And I pretty much didn’t talk to her again until she died over 15 years later.

I remember once when our youngest brother was diagnosed with leukemia in 1974 (he actually had liver cancer, which they later correctly diagnosed and he died in Manhattan in June 1974). We left Mom and our brother in his hospital room at Tacoma's Children's Hospital and went down to the cafeteria for a break, a breather, some coffee. Sitting around a table talking, our sister summed it all up. She said none of us would ever be able to relax until both of our parents, mom, central to us all (as we had different dads) and her husband, our stepfather, and youngest brother's dad...both died.He died (with Alzheimer's) about 10 years ago a few miles from me at the Retsil Veteran's Home. She died about 6, in Tacoma. Our sister was there with her. And she had been right. Finally, we all felt relieved. 100%. Family is love, family is life. Family is pain. But we do, we can, have some control over that.

For those who are in toxic relationships that make you want to kill yourself, or the other person...don’t. Just eliminate them from your life. It’s not easy. But it’s doable.

I’ve been saying for years, regarding suicide, something that helped me in rough times, to think this whenever one wants to kill oneself, just consider walking out the door and never coming back. While your friends and loved ones will suffer from never hearing from you again, they’re gonna go through that anyway, and worse, if you kill yourself. In this way, in vanishing (leave a note or something though, this isn't a vindictive thing, you are caused pain, and you don't want them to be caused pain because of you), you'd do them a service, and by starting a new life, in moving out of state or whatever, you’ve done yourself and maybe humanity a service.

Starting 3rd mile…

I’m pretty tired of my only exercise being these walks. But there’s not much else to do and the weather has sucked. But it’s getting better. Haven’t felt great the past couple of days. So I thought this walk would start out kind of uncomfortable. But it’s been just fine. I’m getting enough of these 5 mile walks and I’m getting to an equilibrium or something. Feels good to get some exercise.

What the hell is a "hog's head" shaved haircut? Rachel just played a 1940s radio broadcast where the reporter was describing some Nazi's haircut. Looked it up, I can find nothing on it. Maybe it was just that reporter's affectation.

I’ve been thinking about this. I need to ask my friend Ash Black, who has an interview show on public access TV here. My friends, Kelly and Pat, and I were his first three interviews when he started his show. But I never see our reruns. I mean every so often he interviews two or three people. Then you see that new interview on. And they play that three or four times each, before the next new interview. But they haven’t been playing them from the beginning and sometimes his show is not on. So what’s with that? Run reruns. 

[so I asked him, but he had no response on the rerun issue. But he did get nominated for Best of Kitsap (our county) for several things, best citizens, best show ("Afternoons with Ash Black" on BKat TV)...so pretty damned cool!]

I had thought about going out for lunch yesterday for Father’s Day. I looked at some restaurants online. Thought about the menus. Thought about the cost, which isn’t a big issue with me, but having been raised with very little money, you know that is the rest of your life. Thought about how many people might be out taking their dad to lunch, and then I remembered I had a bag of themed salad that I had bought. Some Thai cashew salad. I had previously mentioned I was trying to lose weight. I’m recently at about 230 and need to knock off at least 10 pounds, pretty quick. Rough winter...

Anyway, I got that bag of salad out, threw in some frozen shrimp I had in the freezer from Costco, added some smoked cheese I had for a cheese, meat and crackers meal the other day, and some other things, and ended up with a pretty tasty Father’s Day lunch. 

I watched "Monkey Man" on Peacock+ streaming it was pretty good, different. I like that actor, Dev Patel. This time he helped write it and directed it. He’s come a long way from "Slumdog Millionaire". Which I thought was a good flick, though some people called poverty porn. Maybe so.

I couldn’t really get all that into the "Monkey Man" movie. I mean I watched it, it was good, had some very clever stuff in it. Rotten Tomatoes gave it 88%. after watching it, I went back to watching Shetland (84% on Rotten Tomatoes) on BritBox. I really like shows like that in Ireland or Scotland or on an island over there. Makes me wanna go back to Ireland. 

The other day I watched “Blue Lights “a police procedural set in Belfast. Sian Brooke, the lead female actor was the short-lived wife of the king in season one of House of the Dragon. Of which season two began the other night. Been looking forward to it. I just recently binged the entire first season again. And I don’t know, for some reason I thought it was a good opening series 2 episode. Either getting their stride or I was just lowering the bar because I wanted to see a new episode.

I had gotten a seven-day free trial with BritBox that I have to cancel or keep for $9/month. I don’t, know I could end up keeping it. There’s some great stuff on there.

About House of the Dragon, I will say that I never much cared for Matt Smith as Doctor Who. But I think he found his place on this series. He plays it perfectly.

Oh, I stumbled onto Le Mans yesterday. The live version as it was being streamed on Peacock+. They have so many cameras and stuff now it’s almost like watching a movie or a video game but it’s real and in the moment. If somebody dies you’re finding out with everybody else. I’m not much into watching cars go around a track but it’s pretty cool at that level. I had it on in the background as I was editing my last blog.

One driver's rearview mirror snapped on one side of its double brackets, holding it to the inside top of the cockpit. I thought, that’s not gonna work. He pulls in for a pitstop, but they couldn’t fix it. A new driver got in. They said it’s an LED screen so it’s not too bad, although it was vibrating, bouncing around a lot. About every other second, you can seethe driver look at the mirror and then out the windshield. I thought that was pretty cool that they’re using an LED screen on the rearview mirror. I never heard of that before. If it had been a mirror, it really would have been unusable.

On Rachel‘s podcast, she’s talking about a Nazi sympathizer who ended up on the Nazi Nuremberg trials of World War II. Even though his coworkers had complained to the FBI, he still got the job and went to Germany to work on the trial. This is a good example of, how things can happen. Donald Trump has, for his entire life, fallen through the cracks.

Fascism & authoritarianism can perpetually serve as a potential ‘grout’ within the framework of democracy. If not vigilantly guarded against, they possess the power to topple that very framework. Their most destructive actions, often occurring out of sight, to disable the system in unforeseen ways. Sadly, this is often misunderstood & unforeseen by those most committed to such ideological changes.

Starting mile four…

Also starting WTF? Marc Maron podcast episode with Jude Law.

As for Rachel’s podcast season 2 episode 2 of Ultra… Wow. It’s really important that pretty much everybody in America listens to this. It’s about our history in the 40s and 50s. But it’s extremely relevant when you look around today about what some people think is funny or not a big deal, but is actually a huge deal.

Marc said he finally won something. He won Cat Dad of the Year from PE TA.

Marc trying to figure out what his cat thinks when he’s gone... He’s up in Vancouver for I think four months total and he's back home on a break wondering what his cat thinks after he’s been gone a few days: "Well He’s dead and that’s over." He said, "I don’t think the cat's that sociopathic but I’m sure his brain processes differently." No doubt. I would say it’s more like when you leave your cat for a few days, it just notices an energy missing in the environment. And it adjusts. 

Then when you come home, it triggers that pattern and it’s an energy of familiarity and things that have been habituated. It feels this rush of energy in the house and a familiarity of returning energy and some habituation and processes that are familiar. I suspect they quickly get tired of it and go back to their normal routine. Which I guess makes them perfect pets for someone who comes and goes?

Just don’t get a parrot that lives 125 years where, if you don’t give it enough attention, it starts pulling out feathers and becoming neurotic. Or when you die and it goes to another owner, it can’t easily handle the replacement.

Marc talking about watching and re-watching movies. Every day on my DVR I scan, while having coffee in the morning, what's on the paid movie channels I have and what’s on local TV between 8 PM and 11 PM that night and select anything I find interesting.

The other day I came across the movie “The Quiet American“. I liked the 2002 remake with Michael Caine though I hadn't realized it was a remake. This one is with Audie Murphy filmed in 1958 about 1952 Saigon. Audie Murphy is labeled by the characters as a "young, very young man." He was 28. The actor. Michael Redgrave is the lead. I’ve only seen 16 minutes of it.

I see Michael Redgrave, I think Michael Rennie. Who was the alien "Klatuu" in the film I saw as a young kid, “The Day the Earth Stood Still" (1951) on TV. Klatuu, with his robot Gort, and their planet's humanitarian extraterrestrial concept for Earth, saw us as dangerous. Because we are. We do seem to tend toward the self-destructive. People might remember that movie by its most famous catchphrase “Klaatu Barada Nikto“ which was spoken to the Gort to not destroy the planet when Klatuu got shot.

In the 1978 Fantastic Films article "The Language of Klaatu", Tauna Le Marbe, the magazine's Alien Linguistics Editor, attempted to translate the phrase. Her literal translation was "Stop Barbarism, (I have) death, bind;" and her free translation was "I die, repair me, do not retaliate".

Uh huh. Seems disingenuous. As Klatuu is the alien's name, seems more like the translation would be: "Klatuu (says) stand down."

Anyway, I’ve seen Rennie in a few other things, and I always had a fine place in my heart for him because of that movie. His character, actually. I once saw a really old interview of him on the set of some movie and I had to come to realize, he’s just an actor, not that wonderful character from that film.

As for "The Quiet American", it was a very interesting perspective of a 1958 Hollywood version of Saigon that looked a little too clean and Hollywoodish.

Apparently, Marc was in a movie about the talk show radio host who got murdered by some white supremacists decades ago. A guy named Alan Berg in Colorado was murdered by some idiot white supremacists from my Washington state. One of those criminals was tracked down on Whidbey Island and fought back, ending up burned up and dead. Eastern Washington has a higher concentration of conservatives who, along with Idaho and eastern Oregon, way too many white supremacists. Racists consider the dead murderer a martyr.

As for eastern Washington, when I was stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base 15 miles outside of Spokane, Washington, a lot of the guys who were hunters and had lived in the area for a while, refused to go hunting up north because of all the crazy people white supremacists.

I was taken back then by a recent acquaintance on base, to a white supremacist compound over in the Idaho Hills back in 1978 and it scared the hell out of my wife and myself. Especially when they bragged how the local police wouldn't come on their property. All very nice congenial racists, some of them wearing faux Nazi uniforms. Which one said, when I asked about that uniform, said, "No, they’re not Nazi uniforms, because those are a different color." Other than the color it all looked the same to me and they saluted like Nazis. Anyway, we didn’t go back. And the whole reason for the visit was to attend the guy's church. Which just turned out to be a church where they ranted about racist stuff.

So Marc said in playing that Jewish talk show host, most of his scenes were getting gunned down along with a few on-mic scenes. Jude Law is lead in it. Jude told Marc he’s seen it and it’s good. Marc was complaining he hadn’t seen it yet but is looking forward to seeing it on one of the movie channels or streaming networks, as soon as it comes out.

I want to see it too. A book came out about Alan Berg and those white supremacists back in 1987 when I read that book: Talked to Death: The Life and Murder of Alan Berg.

Good book. Eye-opener at the time. I was very unhappy to find out how many people from the south, after the confederacy fell, moved to the Pacific Northwest. Especially Idaho, Eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington. Apparently, there’s more than a few extreme-right up here in the Olympic Peninsula of Washington. That's up north from where I’m at. 

Sadly my adult trans offspring lives up there. They have some stories that aren’t fun to hear about minding their own business and being harassed. I don’t understand why people can’t just leave people alone. If you don’t like them, go somewhere else, look the other way, move on, and let it go. Let other citizens just live their lives. As they do you. Change the channel. Listen to a different radio station. 

Try not to get radicalized because… did you know fear lowers your IQ? Which the Republican Party, especially MAGA pushes out so much? Fear. Anger. Hatred. Bigotry. What did Trump say? "I love the uneducated." Why do you think?

It's not complicated

Marc says we can train our parents once an adult. Well sure. Unless there’s mental illness or drugs involved. But he said it’s worked for him. Didn’t work for me, or my siblings.

I remember getting into a big argument with my mom in the hallway upstairs at the house. I grew up in, at least since fifth grade. Before that we moved like every year around Tacoma, or to Spain, or to Philadelphia, or back to Tacoma in 1960.

She kept treating me like I was her young kid. She said, "I’m your mom and you’ll always be my kid to me." Hey, that’s fine but I’m an adult. I told her I graduated high school. I’d been in and out of the US Air Force. Responsible for a lot of government property and people's lives. I’d been married AND divorced. And still, she was treating me like I’m 12. It’s really annoying for an adult to have to deal with that.

Her response? "Well, you will always be my child." Kind of missing he point again, mom.

Sigh…

Starting my 5th mile…

Oh damn, Marc mentions the time his orthopedic surgeon father backed over his foot. This was after the ski trip where his top-of-the-line safety ski boot binders kept falling off his boots, so his dad tightened them down too much and he ended up getting a spiral fracture. So of course his dad gave him half body cast, and later a leg cast, which is what he remembers having when he saw George Carlin on stage.

I just mention that because my oldest (then in jr high) and I got home years ago and I was backing up the SUV and I heard a scream because apparently I had backed over his foot. I mean, it wasn’t my fault. He standing outside of the back of the SUV on the right and he had his foot behind the back tire. Either not smart or not very aware of his environment, which I raised my kids to be. Anyway, he yelled at me. I felt really bad and I apologized, but it wasn’t my fault. As I told him. Which didn't help the situation. He was fine, luckily. But he never had his foot under a car again.

Reminds me, we got our adult German Shepherd castrated because his aggression was getting too intense. He almost went through our back glass door one time because he saw another dog.

His scrotum swelled up for a  of days and my son came in during that, old enough at this point to drive the car, he had just been out somewhere and had come in and told me something and... accidentally stepped on the dog's swollen scrotum. So without thinking, the dog whips around and bites him on the hand. The dog would never have done that otherwise.

It put a couple of holes in that piece of flesh between your thumb and forefinger known as the purlicue,  the “thenar web space, or the "web of the thumb." Apparently, it hurt. His reaction was to want to punch the dog. He quickly stepped forward, really angry and in pain while the dog was sitting up by me near the couch, where I was sitting. I quickly put my arms around the dog's neck, with his head on my shoulder, and put my hand up to calm my son down and said, "Hey, don’t hurt the dog. It was an accident. He felt bad as soon as he did it." 

He backed off, quickly realizing what all had happened, and embarrassed, sort of yelled at me, "It really hurt!" I said, "Well, how would you feel if you just had your testicles cut off, your scrotum was swollen and somebody stepped on it? He didn’t mean to bite you." And  my son immediately realized he made a mistake. Actually, both of them had. It was a weird situation. Anyway, he calmed down. I sent him off to drive to the doctor. He came back later saying he was fine, and it was all OK. But it was an interesting experience.

Now Marc saying, "You've gotta find the good things of your parents that you inherited and lean into those."

I’ve always done that. But I’ve also tried to counter the bad things I received from my parents. When I was younger, my mom told me stories about my dad and how he could be jealous. I don't doubt somehow she may have, even if inadvertently, or innocently, aggravated that somehow. It led to some interesting stories she told me about him. They were divorced by the time I was three. So all through my teen years on, I was very aware of feeling jealous about or over a girlfriend. Or a wife.

Marc says he finally caved because of fans asking for him to do it, so he interviewed a guy from the band, Phish. So that’s upcoming.

This just in... Abortion is a human right!
Another's religion shouldn't govern everyone else.
Donald Trump's mother should have had that right too.
We need a time machine.

Marc's also talking about how his dad was manic at times and when he graduated (high school or college? I missed that), his dad didn’t show up because he was in one of those stages and it wasn’t a great day.

Which made me reflect on my high school and college graduations. My only close relative to graduate college was my cousin, my mom‘s sister‘s daughter who I’m three months older than her. She graduated from Eastern in I think Medical Lake, Washington. Just outside Spokane. We were there in/near Spokane together at the same time for a while when she was going to college and I was in the Air Force. So we hung out together a couple of times. 

I wondered if I went to her college graduation. During mine she was in Europe backpacking, as my youngest did decades later through Europe, twice. 

So this magnesium I’m taking to help me sleep. Since it’s good for your nerves, I mean your physical nerves in your body, I wonder if this would’ve helped during my long Covid in the worst part of it? The problem is I took some things that should’ve helped me and it made me feel like I was dying. Because that’s how weird long Covid can be.

Since I’m all over the place on this blog all the time… I mean, at least I use Podcasts as a founding element… maybe I should’ve titled or change it, since I’m pretty much over long Covid now, “random insane thoughts from a same mind“? Or adversely, "random thoughts from an insane mind“?
So now Marc's talking to Jude Law on the podcast and they’re talking about the film they were both in. Jude is singing Marc'c praises for the character he played in the legitimacy he brought to the role. Jude‘s latest movie, I think is "Firebrand", about him playing Henry the Eighth. I saw some video of it and it looks pretty interesting. Jude did some interesting things in playing that character. Trying to be authentic, he walks weird and he needed an obesity suit and a "stunt butt" as Marc puts it. Jude tells a story about going to a perfumer friend to have him make him up a really bad smell since, he said, at that stage in Henry the Eighth's life he had to have smelled bad from rotting flesh, or I don’t know what. He told the Director about it and the Director loved the idea so much, to evoke a response from the actors, he was spraying it everywhere.

I get the "method concept" of acting, but it just seems like abuse to the actors and the crew.

OK, my 5 miles completed for the day. My left foot aches a little bit, but I could hardly walk on it the last walk and overall I feel pretty great. so I think I may have gotten back up to my fitness level I was at last fall. Between where I live, my location, and the weather in the northwest, I tell you this is killing me trying to keep fit. I definitely wish I lived someplace by the ocean, with flater land, and nicer weather year-round. But all those locations have potable water issues or way too damn many people.

A couple years ago, my cousin‘s best friend and my ex-girlfriend from high school, drove her RV down to Tucson, Arizona and wanted to live there. And I said, "Yeah, I’ve lived in Phoenix before and it’s great down there. But too many crazy conservatives there… which she said where she was it wasn’t like that… I continued saying, "You do have to be aware of the water situation as it's getting bad down there and only gonna get worse." Next thing I knew she had moved to Missouri or Louisiana or somewhere. Now I think she’s back up here. So I think that pretty much says it all…

On that note, I’ll bid you adieu.
And leave you with that. 

And soon it's time for lunch.

Cheers! Sláinte!

Walkabout Thoughts #59

My thoughts, Stream of consciousness, rough and ready, while walking off long Covid and listening to podcasts… August 3, 2023, Thursday

Weather for the day… 61° starting out, 65° when I got home


Maybe we need to find a way to change the Wagner group from Russian to something else to stop the growing conflict there helping in Africa?

So the crew leader in Niger, threatening Bikina, Faso, and Molly if his coup is interfered with, he’ll attack them, people playing that North Korean game as they do with South Korea, and Japan really need to be attacked. If not with military with something and be brought down. As with Putin in Russia, we have to stop putting up with his bullshit from these petty little fucking dictators and holding the world hostage so they can do their little crimes and murder people, and in some cases people in other countries.
This is yet just another reason to bring Putin down hard and ASAP to stop the crap going on in Iran and Africa and who knows where else next? Not to mention what Russia is doing is emboldening these petty autocrats around the world.

So one Russia expert when asked about the Wagner group, said they’re opportunistic, and where they find a foothold they’ll go for it and exploit it. So that’s a perfect condition for setting them up to throw in all their resources with promise of great wealth and power and then... eliminate everyone of them. Or give them a chance to join the other side (good luck with that).

Niger has 7% of global uranium production

Pres. Biden's agreed to give information on Russian war crimes to the ICC. Let’s move this along. I’m sick of criminals getting away so long with things they do anymore. Like Trump, also.

Elon Musk helped Putin’s war in Ukraine by cutting off Ukraine from Musk's Starlink satellites. Then the US bought Ukraine some Starlink satellites so that now Musk can’t pull that kind of crap again.

Finally, we’re seeing more drone strike on Russia hitting military and government installations and Pres. Zalensky admits it now and that this was inevitable and I agree... and have been saying for a while this needs to happen. Russia also says Ukraine is using sea drones to attack their ships. Keep it up guys.

I had said that Ukraine needs to use those drones within Russia, indirectly against the civilians. to wake them up. It would have to be done carefully because you don’t want it to backfire, but it has to be done in such a way so as to have Russians blame Putin for the war, to stop the war, and that kind of thing. Maybe Ukraine were hitting offices that supply citizens with checks, or banks, or some sort of data centers, something that would make the people angry. Against Putin, firing off propaganda against Putin and their own Russian military for their illegal war against another country all to please Putin.

North Korea needs cash. the Russians need artillery munitions which they've long been giving to North Korea. for years now. You draw the conclusion.

The FBI and its own report said that America’s biggest domestic problem is extremism. The world's biggest problem is extremism and, religious extremism. We’re seeing that played out in Israel under Netanyahu. It’s obviously a factor in America Christian white nationalism as repugnant and layered within the Republican Party, white nationalists, and all through Trump's MAGA insurrectionist sub party of a poisoning GOP..

How about that religious thing… I’ve been complaining of, worrying about that for decades, and warning about it. I was also warned about Russia and Putin for decades. I didn’t have to learn about the USSR decades before that. Everyone knew about that. But it’s odd how little they knew in decades since the "Iron Curtain" fell. People didn’t laugh at me decades ago when I worried about Russia and when I worried about Putin, but you could see their surprise at times and their disbelief, wondering if I was one of those… Some crazy political nut. Nope. I think we mostly all know that now. Except for those who support Trump, and even some of them know. I had long warned about Republicans using old Soviet KGB disinformation tactics and propaganda. That was back in the early 90s. I’ve been warning longer about religious extremism, since I experienced it firsthand when I was in the Air Force and taken to one of their white Christian nationalist compounds in the hills of Idaho, across from Spokane, Washington, near the SAC US Air Force base at Fairchild where I was stationed. I had no idea where I was going that day when a guy from the base said he'd take my wife and I with his wife and him to their "church". We never wanted to go back there again, once we got away from there. They were very nice people, nice Neo-Nazis. Nice Neo-Nazis (NAZIS still though, right?) I did some reading on who those people were and they’re fucking scary. If they ever aligned with a political party, they would be trouble. And now they’ve aligned with the Republican Party since the decades since then, and there is most definitely trouble. Trump weaponized them to get elected throughout his election and later his insurrection, once he lost because America finally rejected him.
So my score is doing pretty good and being pretty correct over decades now. There’s a few things I didn’t factor in that have happened, making things worse. Because I can’t do and think of everything and I’m not after all a professional political analyst. But I do have a degree in psychology, and I do understand psycho-social elements And societal issues at their base levels.

Have you heard about this deal? We’re offering Saudi Arabia a mutual defense pack? Giving them some weapons and stuff if they pull out of Yemen. in a war there om which they want out of anyway? And they have to be nice to Israel, and Israel has to agree to not annex Palestine? There’s some good stuff in this but I agree with the podcast if we’re not gonna get Israel to set up a Palestinian state, then the current autocratic religious fascist Netanyahu admin are going to do then, what exactly? And considering leadership in Saudi Arabia. while yeah they're good to have as friends, if they turn dark over the next years? Then what? Are they going to come to our defense in a “mutual “defense pact"? Are they going to help us with Taiwan against China? Yeah, no, probably not.

Cheers! Sláinte!