Walkabout Thoughts #15

My thoughts, while walking off long Covid and listening to podcasts...a blog designed and meant to be freely associating, on the run, and not perfectly edited:

Weather for the day… 58° and overcast.

Well this is going to be an electic blog today, I can just feel it!

Podcast for the day is Pod Save America, November 3 episode, "Last Call for Democracy." Obviously about the midterm elections this Tuesday.

Second podcast today is Political Gabfest, Live From Atlanta! But I don't really mention anything from it in this blog today as I was just finishing up the walk.

Instagram post for the day is...well? I didn't shoot one today. So I'll include this one from my friends...cartoonist Pat Moriarity and his son Jack's annual SausageFest in Port Orchard, WA which began years ago as an evening of grilling sausages apparently, on this past Halloween Monday night. That's Jack talking about the late famous Patrick Haggerty (who had died the night before the party), of Lavender Country band fame. I liked Patrick. We will all miss him. Especially Jack who's known him since he was young. This post is Pat presenting his son's band's Kiss tribute (only) that night. And this short post is the band getting started. I shot some music videos with those guys in the band and my fellow directors Kelly Hughes and Tyler Darkow, a year ago that have been in some film festivals now.

It was a great night as SausageFest always is (Patrick was there last year so it was sad this year without him not to mention, he died only the night before). Here is a newspaper article about Patrick's passing and here is a post on my Instagram of Patrick at Pat Moriarity's art showing a couple of months back in nearby Poulsbo, WA.

Here's articles on Deadline, one on NPR, CNN, Seattle Times, about Patrick Haggerty. What's also sad about this is this, "WA’s pioneering gay country band Lavender Country releases first new album in 50 years"

Well... back to the walkabout thoughts... 

I didn’t walk yesterday, but I walked Thursday, the day before. Today is Saturday, and tomorrow it’s supposed to rain. It said it's supposed to rain today, but there's broken clouds, so I’m walking. Nice to see some blue sky.

I was set at home waiting for lunch time to arrive, multitasking by listening to a professor talk about the history of Winston Churchill on C-SPAN, and writing/editing my new book on my film, “Pvt. Ravel‘s Bolero“. I was just writing about how the film came to be, with a little history about me and how I got around to shooting some other films at this house and my last house and my house before that. Where we were for 16 years and where for a great part of their lives, I had raised my kids until they moved out as adults. Those are good memories. Mostly. Not so much the first year or two there as it was seeing the end of my marriage. But, moving on...

My friend and fellow local Indy director Kelly Hughes had shot some films at that house of 16 years in Suquamish, Washington. Then I sold that house and moved here to Bremerton. First we lived in a big house with my son and his girlfriend and her son. They had the whole downstairs while I had the upstairs with an incredible view. Maybe I’ll include a photo.

Included photo from my picture window at my previous house

Then after two years I moved a mile away to where I’ve now been for the past three years.

I had shot a film in college that I am detailing in my new book. I shot my first documentary in 1993 (25th Anniversary of Lost In Space) which was cablecast around the greater Seattle area on Viacom cable. Since then I have helped Kelly Hughes on some of his films. 

We moved to Bremerton and I shot a short film, “The Rapping“ (think Edgar Allen Poe, not Rap music), with my son, since we were just at the house there and could shoot whenever we were ready. 

I moved a to this new, smaller house and I shot my film “Gumdrop“, a short horror, based on one of my previously published true crime horror stories. A true story I had been told about by my university abnormal psych professor.

Which won some awards internationally at film festivals. Then while suffering from long Covid I tried getting back into filmmaking and I came up with an idea for, "Pvt. Ravel's Bolero”, a historical documentary and filmic poem. That film because it allowed me the opportunity to work as I could, when I felt up to it, and finish at my own pace. With no actors or no schedules. My first day working on it lasted only about an hour because it was all I could do for the day. Because of long Covid. I spent six months in post production on that film, after years of research I based at all on a poem I had written with the same title, back in 2014. That film is still winning awards at film festivals around the world. Each film I produced seems to win more awards that the previous film. So, maybe I’ll try to keep it up…

Wow, that got off the track of he walk today...

Anyway, one of the guys on the Pod Save America podcast just said, "I think everybody’s pretty much got to remind me to put your vote and forward this point."

 

Wait. He said that? I'm editing this later in the day now. Hmm... I would just say I pity those who are voting for MAGA Republicans. (I'm sure the podcast was talking something about THAT) I understand their mindset and how they got there, sure, though I don’t think many of them understand. Obviously Trump and Fox News, et al, have done everything they can to surreptitiously inject false information into a bubble so big people look around and believe it’s reality. The problem is and the problem always is with fascism that at first it all seems like fun games and cathartic and  reasonable… Until it’s not. And that’s where you get that quote about how first they came for this or that group when I said nothing but then they came for me and suddenly it was scary and only then I realized my mistakes too late! Obviously some fascists will always love their fascism. And those are the ones who at the end of Italy in World War II and in Germany and other countires (Japan) along with those who supported the Nazis & the Japanese Emperor, and their collaborators, or worse… Is exactly why those people were then judged and punished after the war. So, just don’t be those people.

Ballot drop boxes and polling places... Regarding these intimidating or at least they try to pretend they’re intimidating, although they look pretty silly, those MAGA “poll watchers“ and “ballot box observers“, especially the ridiculous armed ones… First off, unless they’re gonna shoot me on the spot... I’m not intimidated. I just find it very comical in a "Keystone Cops" sort of way. I would suggest, if you have to use a ballot box, take a friend and have them at least pretend they’re filming those clowns. And while those people are trying to film you, or to make you notice how they're trying to get your license plate number recorded, do the exact same back at them. It doesn't even have to be real, although I would suggest doing it for real. But when you’re being intimidated, intimidate them right back. If they escalate and it gets out of hand, call 911. For myself? I mailed my mail-in ballot in over a week ago, or whenever it was, but it was the next day after I got it. I put it in my mail box and our nice postal lady picked it up. MAGA freaks out about a secure drop box, but about mail in ballots in each voter's own mailbox? Nothing. Nada. No fear whatsoever! Whatever...it's all just stupid distractions and time wasting. And the meek shall inherit the earth and the dumb can have the Republican Party.

Podcast is now talking about President Biden's speech this week and President Obama‘s speeches. They’re talking about how people want to hear about the economy when the issue of a democracy is far more important. So here’s the thing, whether you elect Republicans this Tuesday or Democrats, the economy is going to get better. Maybe not so much if Republicans get in. Listen to what they want to do! When a Republican governor candidate says only Republicans will ever be elected again in my state if I get elected. What the hell is that? It's not democracy. Democracy is how the people have a say in things. Regardless how little you think they have now, in an autocracy you've got no say. Look at Russia's faux democracy with their petty dictator Putin doing whatever he wants. Their people don’t want war. Their people don’t want to attack their friends, relatives and loved ones in Ukraine. Russia is waking up. Slowly. When’s our MAGA gonna wake up? Every fascist state that’s been elected into office hasn’t lasted. Certainly not without a lot of abuse, restricting or ending civil rights, and harming and murdering its citizens. States should not murder their citizens. Which is why I’m against capital punishment. Except for those like Donald Trump who try to murder the State. That’s...kind of an exception.

By the way, regarding Obama's speech this week, take a look at that speech in a clip where he’s talking about Republicans who have said, openly stated, that they want to end Social Security. They've also said they want to end the VA because our promise to our veterans isn’t worth shit, apparently. And they want to end Medicare. And they don’t want healthcare for all. Anyway, look at Obama when he talks about that. He talks about how our parents and older people, like myself, as I am of that and I’m on Social Security, I’m on my retirement from my job, which isn't gonna make it for me, without my Social Security and my VA. But in that speech, Obama is not just saying it. He’s not just stating the party line as we see with MAGA Republicans running for office, those who you know most of them don’t believe in it. Except for some of the dumb ones. But Obama is genuinely pissed off and angry, very angry at that idea like the rest of us are, taking away from us the things we paid into over our lifetimes. And taking away our civil rights. All for a theocratic notion of authoritarianism and keeping one party forever in power. A vocal minority who don’t deserve power, or being an American citizen. Which frankly, they’re trying to destroy, while denigrating the quality and import of being a citizen in this country. They really don’t even deserve that which they’re trying to destroy. Like I said, fascists who embrace fascism always end up regretting it.

Now about Social Security… When I look at my statement, my history, I’ve been paying into Social Security since 1969. I was in ninth grade. Working after school. I’ve been putting my money into it and all of that was hard-earned. The first half of my life with a lot of physical labor, the second half with a lot of stress, emotional duress and intellectual exacerbation. They want to take that away from me? That’s theft, outright theft by the State. If they want to do that? What they need to do is to make a new pact with young America. Everyone who paid into Social Security should get their money back out of it, one way or another. Or it's theft. Preferably paying it out until they (we) die and then giving the overage to their descendants as is appropriate and legal. And they need to come up with a new plan, offer that to all citizens and have them not just have legislators vote on it. But they need a vast majority to agree to it and then go through their entire lives going forward, not expecting any help when they retire.

People need to be aware of a change like that over their lifetime. Not just when they are retired, when they are about to retire. So they plan to do this to people in long-term care homes who are so old they can’t get out of bed, or are ill but all of which who will die there. Who is going to pay for that if their Social Security and Medicare go away and their VA is shut off? 

If there’s one thing Republicans are expert at, it's to say things in their soundbites to get votes,  power and money, but aren’t very well thought out long term (or immediate term). And so they end up not implementing those things, which is basically lying to their voters. Or carrying them out and further wrecking our economy and our civil rights. It's getting pretty old, really.

By the way, that whole last paragraph above? That is about democracy. Protecting citizens against that kind of autocratic bullshit. They kinda see democracy at shoulder length, way off in the distance as some ideological conceptual idea of democracy. So too many don’t care about it, especially MAGA types. But that’s not what democracy is. Not functional democracy anyway. Democracy is there for not being run over by the State as they did in the USSR. It’s about Stalin not slaughtering millions of citizens because he’s paranoid. Nixon got paranoid at the end. Trump was getting paranoid at the end. Give him a second term see how paranoid he gets at the end of THAT. Especially if he were able to somehow put off his upcoming indictments for the crimes he’s committed. That’s where Putin is at now, terrified to leave office because it’ll come back on him. That’s what happened to Yeltsin when Putin took over. Yeltsin made Putin president to protect himself and his family because of his crimes. Putin‘s looking at the same situation, only worse because he’s been in power for over 20 some years. Because he slaughtered people in other countries. Because he’s had people murdered in other countries, in the most horrible ways. We’re going to see the same crap with Trump, which we were starting to see at the end of his first term. But he wasn’t desperate like he will be at the end of a second term. Or the end of his third term. We don’t need anyone as president or king for three terms... or life. I would say we don’t need anyone for longer than two terms. After that they get too cocky and careless. We probably also need some term limits in Congress. They could be long terms. With SCOTUS, too. We need to end this crap where you die in office from old age. Ruth Bader Ginsberg, loved the woman. But her dying really screwed up America since she died as a Justice on the Supreme Court. So that position ended up with not someone she would have wanted. How does that help?

If Republicans win on Tuesday, please change the name of the Republican Party to the MAGA Party. Now they may do that anyway, because they’re just coming right out and saying the stuff they couldn’t say, even 10 years ago, or five years ago. Just come out and admit who you are. If the majority of Americans see you as fascist or like the Nazi party as it ramped up to take over Germany in the 1930s, maybe that's who you are. When most of the decent world sees you that way, maybe you just are. Maybe you are. And Republicans, seeing Democrats as if they are fascistic or Hitler? They’re just making shit up like a third grader on a playground who’s being called out for being a bully (because he is a bully) but his response is what? To say, "No! You’re a bully, you’re a bully! Good grief. It’s embarrassing that grown adults in positions of power or running for positions of power, are acting like immature children. Unbelievable

Podcast just had a good point, we need to go from being "the protectors of democracy to the reformers of democracy". It’s true, because some of MAGA who are were pissed off, is about democracy needing reformation. We’ve all felt that. First off, the Money in our politics needs a vast reformation. Toxic capitalism being allowed because of lobbyists and big money being allowed in our elections. That’s got to change. We’re never going to please some of this MASGA crowd. But we can certainly make changes to lower them into a sense of "all right, I guess I can handle this, then. It seems reasonable to me anyway."

As they say on the podcast, the fact that we went back to lobbyists seven years ago and "ear marks", is bullshit. Citizens United? Gotta go. Toxic capitalists calling themselves legislators? It's got to go. They also said, if we want them to care about democracy we’ve got to make them feel like we’re willing to change our democracy. It could be they don’t really wanna get rid of it, they just don’t like how it is. None of us like how it is. Except those who are benefiting from at the most. The wealthy, the powerful, certainly too many legislators, Trump, too many mostly Republican governors.

Dammit I’m seeing tiny raindrops every so often now!

Apparently, when they polled people who said they were worried about threats to democracy, when they drilled down on that, it was mostly about corruption. Why didn’t we see this a year ago? 10 years ago? In the 1990s when Newt Gingrich started to use old Soviet KGB disinformation tactics to subvert the Republican party, evolve a "tea party" which morphed into a MAGA Party morphing into a cult of hero worshipers for a moron and failed businessman and failed reality star in Donald Trump. All we’re gonna get after Trump is somebody who’s better at being that kind of bad.

Again the podcast has a good point in why we’re drip bleeding Democrats to the Republicans. Because when you’re poor or working two jobs and bouncing from motel to motel because you can’t afford a house, no one is addressing that issue. Other than by saying "democracy is at threat". While the Republicans are lying saying they’ll take care of them. They may not know any better and shift to the Republicans. Republicans are going to fix it? They don't give a shit. They just want your vote. As with Trump who just says whatever you want to hear according to who you are in that room with him at that time. Then he has your vote and goes to say the opposite to somebody else. He (and they) dissemble and mumble and lie in such a way that when questioned, they can come back later to say they didn’t mean that, or, that’s not what I said. If you go and prove it or if a reporter goes and looks it up, those people are not gonna see that report in an hour or a day or a week. So much of this is about how, "A Lie Can Travel Halfway Around the World While the Truth Is Putting On Its Shoes."

“We have ceded the reform (of democracy) issue to a group that is full of corrupt Republicans.“

It’s ironic how the 2000 election actually was stolen and yet we backed down. Maybe shouldn’t have. But we did it because we didn’t want to cause some kind of constitutional crisis. Then in 2020 in what was the most secure election in history, without the problems of the 2000 election, we had a president who was begging for a constitutional crisis, begging for an insurrection, dying to apply martial law and somehow become King Trump. I’m sorry, but what kind of foolish ignorance is that who supports someone like that?

Remember, it wasn’t that long ago, just this year that Mitch McConnell openly admitted the big Republican problem in this election was their low quality of candidates running for office. He and Trump often say exactly what’s going on. And yet, the right people never hear the right message. While the wrong people sure hear the wrong message.

Warnock vs Wallace. You need a great football player, go with Walker. But not now! He’s beyond his prime. A prime that should never be in public office. Warnock is hands-down better candidate no matter what your belief system is. Unless you’re a Nazi of course. Or you just like stupid people. Or you’re really into automatons which actually the Nazi party built: "Follow your orders or will shoot you" And they blindly followed the orders to slaughter tens of millions of human beings, all for their ridiculous beliefs. The Christian nationalist beliefs by the way. Who the FBI tells us are our biggest domestic threat now, in our white Christian nationalist... Aericans.

The SCOTUS ruling allowing Republicans to make abortion illegal, which then happened almost overnight in some states, would’ve served America better had it happened in October. The only thing I can say pro SCOTUS about that is that we had 50 years to fix it in Congress and we failed to do it. Because we got lazy, thinking we were covered. Especially nowadays with these Republicans, don’t believe you’re covered. This was a knife fight Republicans carried guns to and are happy to shoot you in the back. I think though, Democrats have bigger guns. They just never realize it. Why do Republicans keep doing so well as a minority? It’s just like with cops and robbers. Police, or Democrats in this case, have rules to follow and decency they want to adhere to. Republicans, just think it's win at any or all costs to any or all others, as long as it's not them. They’re happy to break laws, mores, morals, rules, traditions, when they're the traditionalist conservative party. Maybe the Hypocrisy Party?

I just had a weird thought… Republicans built a wall trying to hold back democracy. But there was, of course, a leak. And Trump rushed right up and shoved his dick in it.
What squirted out of that little hole, accumulated a bunch of really disgusting people on the other side who wanted to switch to be, some Democrat to Republican, some Independent to Republican, with some Republicans who came out of their shells and entered that hole, rushing right up into... Trump's prostate. And unsurprisingly, they’ve loved being there ever since.

Podcast had another good point that if you’re denying polls and the scientific data that's the political version of denying climate change. Yes polls can be wrong, but there’s a lot of data out there and a lot of science to tell you a lot about what’s going on. Really, what their better telling us is what's trending and when it’s used to be something more specific, it starts to fall apart. You have to know what you’re doing. That being said, I studying statistics at university. I know, I know, people love to say things like there's statistics and there's damn statistics. Or you can make statistics tell any lie you like. But that's avoiding one obvious truth. Statistics can be like magic to give you accurate forecasts that are stunning in their accuracy. I've proven it myself using statistics where I gathered my own data, drew up my own formula and the results were stunningly accurate. Like magic, they foretold the future. I kid you not!

Republicans:
“Democrats rely too much on data.“ Well, do pilots rely too much on radar? 

For those in the bottom half of the economic classes, especially the lower economic class, and such, who really believes Republicans are going to save you? Republicans are famous for saying to pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Not for them, but say "others" need to do that (so as to not bother them, or cost them money, even if it saves money...yes, it's bizarre and at times, stupid). They’re very anti-Socialism. While Democrats are not pro-Socialism. Social programs are about people, society, social issues that are programs designed to help. How that's "Socialism" is beyond me (AND Republicans). Socialism is a political doctrine that has nothing to do with it. But if you think Republicans are the ones that are going to save the economy? Damn, that’s just dumb. People need to realize it's ignorant and naïve because they're believing Republican lies When if they look around at the Republican's platform over the years, what they say has nothing to do with helping those leaving the Democratic party because they think Democrats won't help. When they’re really our best shot. The good news? Just maybe all this transition period is a paradigm shift that will lead to fixing... that’s a stupid word, "revamping" )maybe?), our democracy And our country. But the best America has right now? It’s better we disband the Republican Party, throw many of them in jail who need to be. OK. It’s actually just a very few of them, but those in positions of power who also have many following them. Just take the Democratic Party, split it in half and call the conservative side, anything but a Republican Party. Because that’s dead now. They killed that a long time ago. And remember the Democratic Party of today was the Republican Party of Lincoln, because they switched back in the late 1800s. And if you don’t know about that, well, go look it up.

Damn, I’m just finishing up my 4th mile. I thought I could make five but suddenly the air turned cold and there’s a huge black cloud moving overhead from the Olympic Mountains, with all that cooler, moist air from the Pacific Ocean. And it’s supposed to rain today. Well maybe four is it today?

This photo is what I'm wearing today. It’s not raingear…but very comfortable for a walkabout today.

Democrats need to remember (while Republicans are welcome to forget this, when Republicans come back to be an American political party, then they can remember this to), no matter how bad things look leading up to the end of an election, the worse it looks, the more you need to vote, and the more you need to vote against the nonsense. At this point in time, that would be...the Republican Party.

So, that’s what it is. From the podcast...Republicans want to privatize Social Security. As they say, "cut the knot" on seniors. Good grief! Fuck those people!

Cheers! Sláinte!

Walkabout Thoughts #14

My thoughts, while walking off long Covid and listening to podcasts...a blog designed and meant to be freely associating, on the run, and not perfectly edited:

 
Weather for the day… 41° and overcast.

Podcast for the day is Rachel Maddow‘s excellent, "Ultra" podcast, episode five

Instagram post for the day

A woman on the "Ultra" podcast asked a question I've wondered about myself. What’s the difference between hatred and detesting? For myself without realizing it, I’ve seen it as hatred being an emotional, loss of control. While detesting is more cerebral. My grandmother told me when I was a child never to hate. Period. She was an amazing person, and an old country, Slovak Catholic. Such as I was raised, until about ninth grade. My point in bringing this up is, I’ve seen too many on the far right hate Nancy Pelosi. Hate Democrats. Hate "Libtards". I find the far right in their attempt to destroy our democracy and replace our country with authoritarianism to be, if not hateful, detestable. But I’m not out of control in my dislike. It’s an objective dislike of bad ideologies and attempts to inject theocracy into our democracy. So my point is… If you hate the other side, you’ve already lost, if not the war, reality. When I was in martial arts, beginning in fifth grade, I was told day after day, "There is no room for anger or hate in a fight, because then you’ve lost, even if you win. Be professional, be a martial artist. Fight tactically, objectively. Think! Because hate and anger cloud the mind." So how do I know I’ve been on the right track, politically speaking, for years now? Because years ago I started running into those on the right who, hated. It was irrational. frequently based on fantasy, conjecture, thought that should be based on fact, but was nowhere near it. Don’t hate. Act. Act based on facts and evidence. Because we are adults. I have never reacted well to authoritarianism. I’ve never reacted well to fear being pushed on me. Since childhood, I have faced my fears, because I had plenty to face. I was bullied as a kid. At a new school every year or two. Small for my age until I shot up in 10th grade to over 6'. So I don’t like bullies. Which is why I disliked Trump from his first day of campaigning to become POTUS. Anyone who tries to inject fear into you or the equation, could be your enemy. Never be fearful. Be aware and reactive. Better however, to be proactive. But that takes too much for to much of America. Trust but verify. Conquer yourself first and you’ll never need to conquer others. Then if you ever find a need to conquer others, then you know, you're “the Other“. You have become, the Enemy.

So where DOES all that hate come from on the right? It comes from popular beliefs in myths, and disinformation. It comes from Republican leadership, who saw that... just as Russia saw it...easily weaponized, easily expanded upon what already existed, in order to divide, with the eventual hope to conquer. Or very least, as Putin sees it, inject chaos. As Trump sought and still does. To inject chaos and reap the benefits as too many are distracted. So they make America chaotic, distracted, vulnerable.

How do people get into authoritarianism? How did they get into Nazism? Or neo-Nazism? Or want to be a Nazi? Or denied-Nazism, which is typically, actually Nazism? It’s because of their unrelieved anger and frustration. Anger and frustration that is given a controlled release valve. Controlled consciously and carefully, by others. First they get involved for fun, for the exhilaration, the catharsis, the release. Which is then quickly controlled by others. It is manipulated. Exploited. Subverted. At that point you have in, as in our case today in America, Trump control MAGA. Ladies and gentlemen, because these are binary people by implication in decree, through protestations (against the "Other" and ever more so for this behavior...) and for ignorant beliefs supporting authoritarian, fascism, until finally at very least "wannabe", Nazis.

About congressional “franking“ (check out either Rachel's "Ultra" podcast, you'll thank yourself... or perhaps this pdf free book published in 1944, "Black Mail"). That really needs to be monitored. Anything sent out by someone in Congress about things like Trump's stupidly ridiculous "big lie", that are anti-democracy, that are antigovernmental, while this one is difficult because some antigovernmental stuff is what Congress is there for. Self examination and correction.  Those things should be monitored and disallowed to be sent out, IF deemed incorrect and judged anti-American. The public should be notified. The free ride needs to be over. Free speech when Weaponized, not necessarily monetized, needs to be monitored. This is not to say, censorship, or to the break the Constitution‘s First Amendment. But it needs to be, if not controlled, made publicly aware with great clarity based in fact, evidence, and reality. Because if no one else is doing it, someone has to protect the US Constitution against unhealthy, ultra right (or destructive ultra left) wing types who weaponize free speech against America and against our US Constitution. At this time, considering what the ultra and even moderate (in their silence) right wing are doing, there ARE no corresponding left wing type actions.

I always wondered why one of my favorite directors names is, "George Roy Hill". Why the "Roy"? Apparently, there was someone in Congress named George Hill. One time secretary to Representative Hamilton Fish of New York. That alone might explain it. For some of this you’ll have to listen to Rachel Maddow‘s, “Ultra“, episode five. Ultra apparently stands for "ultra right wing". A term more ubiquitous in Europe. But saying today, "extremist are far right wing", is simply no longer descriptive of them. But "ultra" sure as hell is.

It’s past time right now, to review what "Frank" disseminated information is being sent out and which members of Congress, most especially the ultra right wing, Trump Republicans, MAGA congressionals, to see what they’ve been doing these past six years and correct, or at very least, blast that information out to America, and the entire planet, if it has been being abused. IF those in Congress have been abusing it to send out anti American propaganda. After the Trump administration, we have got to be careful and continue to review the abuses, until we know all of them. In order to protect ourselves. And our democratic Republic.

So, I have now finished and published my book, “Suffering Long Covid“. I’ve written my next book which I’m now editing on the history and format, to explain my filmic poem and award winning historical documentary “Pvt. Ravel‘s Bolero“. After that I need to finish the DVD that I’ve already started creating for that film. But then what? I bought equipment to digitize my family's home films from the 1950s, 60s and 70s. But I also have some of my grandfather's films from the 1940s, 50s and 60s. He used to travel the world. Much of the time, for the US Army, setting up diesel engine shops around the world, training locals, and then moving on and doing it elsewhere, and in another country. He spent time in India, I think Cambodia, definitely Vietnam and then came home in the 60s to retire. I have his passport. He also traveled Europe during a very interesting time, around World War II. So I’m thinking about doing a documentary on him. Very interesting guy, who my older brother, seven years my senior, and myself both tried, but neither of us could get much information out of our grandfather. He would just say, "You don’t wanna hear about that, it’s not that interesting." Now, I’ve been fascinated about investigative work since I was as young as I can remember. I loved those detective and espionage shows from the 1950s and 60s, and so on

My mother first introduced me to James Bond films with his first, "Doctor No", when it came out. She took me to the Community Theater on 50th St. and M St., in Tacoma, Washington. She had grown up half a block away, after being relocated from Brooklyn, New York, where she was born. When her and her older sister our mother, were transplanted by my grandfather. So I have to wonder. With my father having been a construction electrician. My mother having been a housewife, with some kind of ADHD, or something, because I grew up with it. I have to wonder if I got my interest in investigative work and espionage from my grandfather? I always assumed it was from ingesting so much of that kind of TV in my formative years. But why did I take the test for the Tacoma police department at 19? Why did I join the OSI in the USAF? Why did I enter the USAF as law enforcement? This could just be a very interesting documentary. But I have a lot of work yet to do, to get to that point.

Back to the loser seditionist Donald Trump. He needs to lose his Secret Service protection. That may be premature at this point, until it’s proven that it should be yanked from him. But what can be and should be proven about the man, needs to have nothing to do with our US government in having American citizens paying someone who so overtly tried to damage our country, and kill US citizens. The man has hundreds of thousands of American deaths on his hand from having on purpose or misused his office and purposely fumbled the COVID-19 pandemic medical ramp up.

My second podcast for the day is from a Pod Save America episode, “Between Barack and A Hard Place.”

Today’s walk it seems will be only four miles. I know I said on my last walk that it’s good to achieve your goal, which is five miles for me. But we also need to listen to our body. And my body today is telling me five miles is going to be too much and I’ll regret it. Sure I could push myself. But I’m not gonna be stupid about it. Be smart.

That's it for the day! Cheers! Sláinte!

Walkabout Thoughts #13

My thoughts, while walking off long Covid and listening to podcasts...a blog designed and meant to be freely associating, on the run, and not perfectly edited:

Weather for the day… 47° 99% humidity overcast.

Podcast for the day is Rachel Maddow‘s "Ultra" podcast episode four

Instagram post for the day and second post.

I'm a little late posting this blog as I walked a few days ago...then this happened:

I just heard that Patrick Haggerty has passed away last night. Life long friend of my friend and cartoonist, Pat Moriarity. Haggerty was a founder of Lavender Country, who put out the first known gay-themed album in country music history. His band started back when I was in high school in the early 1972. I only met him a few years ago through Pat. Tonight is Pat's and his Son Jack's annual "Sausage Fest" party (sausage referring to a BBQ event with live music). Patrick was at previous years' events. I last saw him not long too ago and he looked healthy. He was always a pleasant and happy guy. Tonight's event will be a little less, without him. 

We will all miss him. 

Pat Moriarity with the late Patrick Haggerty

Rachel Maddow’s podcast, "Ultra", points out painfully clearly, exactly what and why Donald Trump has been dividing America as he has been. It’s all about taking control, authoritarianism, money, power and glorification of one person in a populist society. And there’s nothing good about it. As in 1940s Republicans they are trying to do it all over again. They’ve now become trapped by it. Just as they were in the 1940s.

Second podcast for the day is Pod Save America: “Fetterman vs The Phony Sociopath.”

Just to reiterate what they just said at the beginning of the Pod Save America podcast about the Oz and Fetterman debate, the media did not do its job in explaining to the public about stroke recovery. The moderators explained at the beginning about Fetterman using a teleprompter to better understand questions, they should have explained more about the process of healing from a stroke. They dropped the ball. Just because he’s having some issues right now, generally speaking people heal from this and their mental processes are not impaired. I agree with the podcast that this was gross negligence on the part of the media in days after the debate, if not just the commentators at the debate.

All the doctors that were interviewed about Fetterman's stroke said that he was being very normal in stroke recovery, he didn’t peer to be impaired mentally, and actually, considering when the stroke happened, he's doing better than most people would. That’s kind of an important thing to know. When you have an issue with your neuronal brain pathways, the brain is very plastic in the ability to build new pathways, but it takes a little time. Which in this case has nothing to do again, with mental processes, just some communication issues. Which for the most part, isn't an issue. When you consider some of the Congressional Republicans who don't have issues like this having happened to THEM, but they still sound on the Senate floor like they are mentally deranged or damaged, I just don't see this as an issue of any substance. Certainly not by comparison. 

Another good point from the podcast, if you take someone who broke their leg who has to then, weeks after that, go up against a professional runner, is that gonna look like a questionable candidate at that point? Yes. But as the Bone mends will he then be able to run at the level he could before, as many people do? It’s just the process of healing and physiotherapy in the case of a broken leg. All of which Fetterman is doing toward getting back to his optimal level. I'd take him even as suboptimal in comparison to someone like Oz.

It should also be mentioned that Fetterman has some big brass balls going for that debate. Ask yourself how many Republicans would’ve backed out? Quite a few.

As for “Doctor” Oz, it’s been put in the record by other scientist at the University he was kicked out of, that he has a “disdain for science and evidence based medicine.” Oz has made millions off of other people's suffering.

They also have a good point about the Democratic strategists who gave quotes and how they’re worried about Fetterman. And their comments about this in the podcast are true. Republicans don’t do this kind of wimpy shit. Especially when they should say something, but they wont because it's party first, over America. Their career first, over American citizens. Their money and power first, over the US Constitution. And no, I don’t want Democrats doing that. But they should have some rational cohesion and perspective. It’s like Republicans don’t have the compassion. At least not in their political and career fields. While Democrats do. Which is why they tend to buckle sometimes and fear looking bad. They care. Republicans just don't. Real Republicans still do. But there's fewer of those every day as they abandon their party or retire from politics. Forced out by the Gran Stupid. Everyone should fear looking bad if you’re doing the wrong thing. But when you want to believe you’re doing the right thing in  doing the wrong thing? Fuck me, people. Good grief…

Just to mention something about the process of walking to get in and maintain physical conditioning and health... Today it’s been a week tomorrow since I’ve gone for a 5 mile walk. I really wanted to go for a walk today, weather is amenable, so I am. But when I got out here, it was really hard to get started. I did my first mile and I wanted to give up. I did my second, and I really wanted to give up. But as I’ve seen before, when this happens, if I can get that 1st mile or two, or three, down, it gets easier. But if I give up because it’s so uncomfortable, then I gave up and I don’t achieve anything. Obviously one or two, or 3 miles is better than none. But going the limit to actually achieve your goal, really is important in so many ways.

Let’s consider what Dr. Oz said about abortion and how it should include a woman, her doctor, and her... local political officials(?). What you’re describing is a Soviet Union kind of State. They had political officers who could wreck your life and career. They could end you up in a Gulag in Siberia for some really stupid shit. "Mind Police", stuff. That is what Dr. Oz and this Republican party under Trump's America are proposing we be turned into.

Speaking of hypocrisy, if abortion is murder as Dr. Oz has said, what Republicans purposely are pushing out is anger to build into violence for the Trump MAGA effort. We will honestly never know how many have already died from that because, that connection wasn’t made. Or that connection was made, even by the police, but the attacker wasn’t found. Or they were found, but it wasn’t covered in the media. When we see how unprotected our congressional Democrats are because, they’re not given protection unless their in the leadership, or under very specific threats... While this threat to many of them. If not all of them nowadays, as a general threat and one that can come to a head very quickly to end in pain or death of one of our congressional or government Democratic leaders. If not also a threat to their families, who have been consistently threatened. Who threatens a 12 year old girl, or a five year old boy? MAGA Republicans do and are. How is that being on the right side of anything? And just to mention speaker of the house Nancy Pelosi‘s husband Paul. Someone actually broke into his house and attacked him with a hammer so he had to have surgery and could’ve died, but apparently his going to do OK. But this shouldn't have happened. This should have evoked outrage from the entire Republican party. But all we heard were very few making comments. And why? Because deep down they fear it happening to them. Or if Democrats finally ever have enough of this Republican nonsense and were to turn the tides, it could be them next. This has to stop. All should speak out on this. All. Everyone. Stop tearing America apart. And, for what? Not what those who are doing this, think. It is beliefs in the Netherworld, that doesn't even exist.

It kind of boils down to this, if you want America to be a theocracy, ban abortion. That’s step one. Even in Ireland, abortion is legal. Ireland! America needs to get this shit together. We need a secular government. Because only that will allow theists to have the religion they want. But personally, NOT by government decree! Forcing us into their religious beliefs and into our government, never ends well.

Let's be clear about Trump's, Truth Social. Those aren’t “truths“ being “tweeted“ on there. Since he and the MAGA and Republican have turned reality around... to be accurate, they're “tweeting“, “UnTruths “. Or "MisTruths". Or, "DisTruths". But sure as hell not "Truths".

Back to Fetterman, there’s a lot of people who’ve loved him for a long time, who voted for him before, and will vote for him again. Whose comments on the debate were, yeah he had difficulty speaking, or answering questions. But he got out what I wanted to hear, and it’s still him and what he believes in, and what we know he’ll fight for. That is why I am still for him and would still vote for him. But, I haven't lived in Philly since I was a kid. But I still have an affinity for the state, as well as other's I've lived in like NY & NJ.

I just started my 4th mile. I’m feeling better than my second and 3rd mile starting out. I still just want to go home. As of right now, I know I’ll make my 4th mile. And then I just have to get started on the fifth. and last mile.

I just shot my Instagram post for the day. And I mentioned about my book “Suffering Long Covid“. Which just went live in the e-book in book format on Amazon yesterday. That was a lot of work. It was hard to do. When I started it there was still a lot of brain fog from long Covid. Although I’m still not over it, I am feeling better, as long as I keep exercising. Yesterday, I got my flu shot and a tetanus shot. They were out of the pneumonia shot and I’ll have to go back next week, when they get more in. Good times! Never say die, never give up!

Republicans hatred of Nancy Pelosi is bizarre. How is that right in any way shape or form? How? What if someone didn’t like your job and someone went to your house and killed your family? How does that make sense.? America, you got to get your shit together. You don’t attack people's families for what they do for a living. You don’t attack people in government for doing their job. We’ve built a country to be nonviolent. I know 20 years of war and decades of violent movies haven’t helped. But we have a choice. Resolve things through litigation and elections in politics. Or constantly be going to war against one another. And if you choose the latter, you’re really, REALLY stupid. If you take offense to be called stupid, then really look at what I just wrote above, and think about what your position is. And if you can’t see what I’m saying here, stupid may just be the definition you’ve selected to be.

We need to decide. Are we pro-truth, pro-democracy? Or are we pro-autocratic propaganda and pro-pseudo-theocracy to be wielded against us for the power of the few and the elite who many of you think you’re against in loving someone like Donald Trump and his cadre of wannabes? This bizarre MAGA logic is warped when placed up against the light of reality.

For those who buy into the MAGA bullshit. Do what I did when Trump was running for president. And I did again after he took office. Pick out your top 10 political favorite items. Then really go out and dig into if they’re true or not. Avoid your little bubbles of "I like this information" to find whatever it may actually be. And really dig into substantiated facts. Or just take five. What I found out myself was about nine out of 10 things I believed were true turned out to be true. While one wasn’t true and one was half true, or actually maybe a couple were half true. But doing that changed my mind a little bit. I saw some of the other side's point of view a little bit better. If I find something is true I don’t wanna believe in it, and the other side's right...yes, I will change my mind. The trouble is, I suspect for people who say they have done that, and  yet still believe things that aren’t true, that they’re not very good at research or vetting their information. They just think they are. I've met so many people like that. On both sides, actually. It’s either that, or they've bought into a cult-like mentality. And whenever that happens? Nothing will convince them, no matter how true or provable something is. Sadly, that’s where we are with far too many people. The only reason we had an insurrection on January 6, 2021, inspired by a pathetic, failed president who was about to leave office, but couldn't bring his ego to let go. THAT's who people want to follow? Wow, unbelievable, truly.

About the paragraph above. If you wonder why my number of 10 items I believed were true remained so high after double checking on them, that’s not proof I have a cult-like mentality, too. I’m actually just very careful about things I believe in because of my past, my history, and my education. Which was not only very good, but I worked at it harder than anyone I knew back in college at that time. And that’s the thing. If you’re careful about your initial beliefs and update them and correct them, no matter what you feel, or how bad it makes you feel if you’re wrong...do it. Then when you vet that information you’ll find that you’re right on a lot of things. And not “right“ just on things that the Right wishes to believe and in against all odds, reality, proof and evidence.

I’ve made this clear many times so I’ll do it again… For what he’s done and what it is going to do to America, I fully believe Donald Trump should be indicted, should be tried, should quite obviously be judged guilty, and should be quickly executed. I do not actually believe in capital punishment. I do not think the state should be killing its citizens. But I do think there are times where someone needs to be destroyed. But very, very few times. Someone killing one person, isn’t enough. Killing many, as a serial killer may not be enough. But it could be, it depends on the case, on the individual. But when you affect things that are on national and international levels… When you have obviously gotten citizens killed as a leader, a national leader, then you deserve our highest punishment. And when you’re someone like Donald Trump who can’t keep his mouth shut, who spawns sedition and insurrection, and doesn’t know how to say things that are truthful or good for the nation or humanity at large, well, then you destroy things like that. For the sake of the Nation and humanity.

And with that downer paragraph or two out of the way… I’m starting my fifth mile somehow. I feel good enough to do it, though I’m beat the hell and I don’t wanna do it. Although I kinda do. My left ankle which I’ve had problems with this summer is starting to ache, even with the support sleeve on it. But I think I can make this last mile so I’m going for it...

One of my kids and spouse and puppy came over last night. Did some sound engineering on my video desktop workstation and then played some Fallout New Vegas on their Xbox. As I was telling my other son yesterday, I have played games so little because a long Covid this year, that I felt like playing video games just wasn’t warranted. So I have now written and published one book on long Covid. I’m starting another book (which is already mostly written, on my documentary, “Pvt. Ravel‘s Bolero“. About its history, how it came to be and what all it means as a filmic poem. After that, I’ve got a finish creating the DVD for that movie. Which is also mostly done. And then, I might go back to finish up Fallout Four, which I’ve got some 700+ hours into, from over the past two years of healing from long Covid. Last night, watching them play Fallout New Vegas, it give me the urge to want to waste some more time playing a video game again. I take that as a good sign. Healing up from a long nightmare. I’m playing now near the end of the game and I just need to make one final decision and then go for it. And then maybe back into the beginning of Skyrim.

Right now they’re interviewing someone on the podcast about elections and election workers. And she says, people have a lot to do with our election now and are interested. And even some high school seniors and juniors are involved because they’re worried about their future. And it occurred to me that over the course of history Humankind has physically pushed adulthood into older ages and as we’ve become more intellectual and knowledgeable, kids are intellectually becoming adults sooner. But we’re still limited by factors such as when our brain physically finishes developing and how we still don’t know that much experientially speaking, until we get enough experience out in the real world and on her own. So we’ve gone from marrying kids off to making them wait until they’re 18, except in some southern states out there. But we lowered the voting age to 18 because kids could handle it. A draft is set at 18. And as this politician on the podcast just mentioned, kids in high school are much more motivated about politics now, because they’re very aware of the world anymore. Albeit I'd argue, a bit too superficially, far too much of the time. We’ve seen that before though, in the 1960s. But I suspect, this is a lot more dire situation.

Now about physical conditioning… I think what I’m experiencing is months or even weeks ago, had I missed a day, it was hard to get back to my base mileage, which was 3 miles for a while. This is taking a lot out of me today to do 5 miles, after a week off. But I think my conditioning has gotten to the point where I could possibly do this once a week. And after a little while, it won't be taking so much out of me to do that. Which is all good news overall. (Note from later...Yeah, I'm hurting, so many for a while (or forever) I'll need to exercise more frequently, unlike when I was younger...nuts)

I know we vote for whoever we want and we put them in the House or the Senate in Congress in Washington DC. But I really think we need some kind of standards. If the past few years has taught us anything, it’s that some people should never be anywhere near our government. Just like where you think it’s your second amendment right or not, some people should never have ownership of a gun and sure as hell shouldn’t be allowed to open carry it and most especially, some shouldn’t ever be able to conceal carry. Not to mention SCOTUS in 1886 made it very clear that the Second Amendment had nothing to do with private militias in that they’re unconstitutional. To wit: ""§ 5. It shall not be lawful for any body of men whatever other than the regular organized volunteer militia of this state and the troops of the United States to associate themselves together as a military company or organization, or to drill or parade with arms in any city or town of this state without the license of the Governor thereof, which license may at any time be revoked..." But that’s another mess altogether…

OK! Hey there is a fawn up ahead about half a block for my second Instagram shot of the day! Cool. Two fawns. And a deer! :) 

Cheers! Sláinte!

My New Book - "Suffering Long Covid" October 2022

I felt the brutality of COVID-19 for the first time starting February 9, 2020. It was a Sunday. I spent the week with what I thought was the flu at first, but quickly realized was something I had neve reexperienced before. By the third night of trying to sleep and being unable to because I was counting my breaths, carefully trying not to cough... I realized something was very wrong.

Suffering Long Covid

I lied in bed debating going to the emergency department at the nearby hospital, only two miles from my house. I was exhausted after several nights of no sleep. If I drive, could I pass out? If I don't, could I die? Should I call an ambulance? And then, I passed out. I woke the next day actually...feeling a little better. The worst was over. 

But long covid was about the begin. That lasted somewhere between eight and fourteen months. Due to the nature of it, it is really hard to tell. I spent most of 2020 in my recliner in my living room. Awake, then asleep, lethargic. Exhausted. Sometimes feeling ill, sometimes not. I was feeling ill for one to three plus weeks each and every month of 2020 as it essentially zipped by. 

I was unsure at times over that next year if I was having reoccurring covid (by a month or two into it, I had realized I had contracted the new novel coronavirus), or if I was catching new iterations of covid. 

Or a new variation. I'd considered in the beginning when i realized what I had contracted, and survived, that I should write a book about it. But that first year or so I was just too exhausted and without energy to even think of it. I had brain fog. Weird blood clotting issues. My VA doctor had me take many tests and all came back looking like I was healthy. Except, I wasn't. 

March 28, 2022. Again it was a Sunday night. but early the next morning I was in the Emergency Department of St. Michael's Medical Center in Silverdale, Washington, eleven miles from my home.

It was a very disturbing night that went from paramedics at my home for the first time in my life and at 2AM. That saw me with sinus tachycardia, driving myself to the hospital in Bremerton, where I live. Two miles away. At 3AM. Paramedics had given me the OK to drive myself before they left and having offered me the ambulance. But I wanted to do it myself.

I ended up driving around in the dark, unable to find a massive medical center. So I went home and tried to sleep. After a few hours I got up and called the Veterans Administration triage nurse. She told me to drive to the next down that morning to the emergency department. So I did. It turns out the hospital two miles away, which I had used for twenty years for my kids and my family, had closed down only six months previous, and I hadn't heard about it.

I got a Zio chest patch heart monitor to wear for two weeks and then I was sent home. A week later I had paramedics at my house, again on a Sunday, again at 2AM. This time for blood pressure that was far too high.

I had more tests and again, I was healthy. Except, I wasn't. As I started feeling better, well enough to think, I thought I should write that book about this experience and share what I had learned. It started slow, but I got something down on paper. 

Eventually, I finished the book. Just as I had finished an internationally award winning documentary that spring of 2021, "Pvt. Ravel's Bolero", began as just a way to try to start thinking and working on something, anything, again.

And now that book is available, too. 

"Suffering Long Covid" is now available as a book and ebook on Amazon. I have included my daily logs that I kept for my own benefit at first and then for my doctor to prove some of what I had been experiencing. I've also tried to support things I say in the book with references and links to information. 

I'm not a medical professional but I am a researcher and writer. I thought my story was interesting and if nothing else, I had learned a lot about COVID-19 and Long Covid. As science and medicine learned, I learned. I had nothing else to do by feel ill and as I had energy, research what was happening inside me. Why I was so exhausted and kept feeling ill. While all the tests at hospitals said I was fine. When I wasn't, quite obviously.

The book was difficult to write, but got easier as time passed. It was interesting to read my logs as I was already months later forgetting how bad things had been. I realized I wish I had a book like this to have read, and maybe others might find it, in some way or another, useful to them.

So here it is...if you have long covid, and I hope you don't, sometimes it helps to see what others have gone though. if nothing else, there are some very interesting pieces of information and references in the book.

I wish you all well. Be healthy my friends! 

Cheers! Sláinte !

Walkabout Thoughts #12

My thoughts, while walking off long Covid and listening to podcasts...a blog designed and meant to be freely associating, on the run, and not perfectly edited:

Weather for the day… When I started out It was sunny and 58° air quality was good.

Podcast for the day is The Lincoln Project, "Mobilizing the Election Heroes with Bob Brandon"

Second podcast is the The Mary Trump podcast with Soledad O'Brien

My Instagram post for the walk & just for the heck of it someone else's post

Started the day off not feeling so great. So I’m kind of pushing myself to do this when I would really rather just stay home. But it’s either walk today or, because of visitors coming tomorrow and weather the next days, I can't walk again till maybe Wednesday.

From the podcast. They mentioned both "Vet the Vote", a veteran's organization, and
another group called, "Power the Polls". Both interesting organizations to look up online. Being a vet myself with prior service, we need to take care of our vets more than we have been. And I do not mean me. But there’s people out there in a lot worse situation than I am. For myself, so far anyway, I’m doing pretty good. But at this point there’s no guarantees. We have Republicans saying they want to end Social Security and Medicare, and the VA. Insanity. You don’t ask for people's support, who become veterans and senior citizens, and then take away the support you had promised them, just because you don’t feel good, or something. You cashed the check, pay the bill.

So apparently, the original idea was if you work, than you deserve and can pay for health insurance. Seems like there’s a problem with that. How many millions have worked hard, but didn’t receive health insurance and couldn’t afford it? Kind of an endemic situation, certainly historically. I was just thinking about that because on the Mary Trump podcast they’re talking about Rosa Parks and how she had a lot more to do with the civil rights than people know. One year her tax return shows her and her husband only made $700 that year. She wasn’t getting compensated for all her traveling and speaking, etc. The history we don’t know and should. And that many, to be honest, simply don’t care about. Why do I care? Because if you’re an American, you’re an American. And all this bullshit about harming other Americans over disagreements and beliefs and religion and government... needs to stop!

Talking on the podcast about Rosa Parks and her statue in Washington DC. It’s of her sitting down, exemplify the misconceptions of her as passive, using her most famous political statement on a bus, once. When she’s really so much more. Got me to thinking about the documentary on Sinead O’Connor I watched yesterday, "Nothing Compares". About how the Prince estate, his sister and I think siblings, refused to let the documentary use Sinead's most famous song which she covered from the Prince song. The comment from the sister in the estate was that she didn’t think Sinead deserved to use it. And that Prince's live version with the singer Rosie Gaines, is better. Well that’s her opinion in her center building she has control for fine. But I would argue that Sinead's version of the song, at least in my mind, is much better. Type the song title into YouTube and who comes up first? Sinead. I mean Prince is a genius in music and all, but the song Sinead turned out (and I assume it must also have something to do with the engineer and producer(?), I don’t really know the story on that), but when I listen to those two songs, I definitely lean closer to the Sinead version.

I’m surprised, certainly historically speaking, how many don’t know that when a road or highway was going through a potentially optimal route, if it was going through a rich white neighborhood, suddenly it was going through a poor black neighborhood. Or a minority neighborhood. I’m pretty sure this is a class issue at its root. Where, when they realized it was going to go through a rich white neighborhood, where I think the word there is "rich", it'll get shifted to a poor neighborhood. If it was between a white or minority neighborhood, it did not go through the white neighborhood. And showing an example against that, does not mean the exception proves the rule. The reality remains the same.

From the Mary Trump podcast. This is an interesting point in lexicon, spin, and misperceptions. Mary mentions how Rosa Parks was a very strong individual and she "presented well" that orientation. Immediately she corrected herself and said, "I don’t think she presented herself in any other way than who she was. But that she had a very exceptional and effective presentation of who she was. Statements like that have a lot to do with the whole gap, or disparity, between the right and left in America today, politically speaking. Especially when someone knows exactly what was meant and intended, but disingenuously parrots it out in the worst possible light. Especially when they do it mean-spirited political reasons.

I think my life may has been better since I cut out corn syrup and years before, sugar. That made me think about pancakes. Actually, I was thinking about sweets. And when go to the store I try not to buy those. How do you replace syrup for pancakes? How do you make a syrup that isn’t just sugar free, but not so concentrated in bad things it tends to be made of? I started wondering about when I was a kid, back in the 1960s. When we ate plenty of sugar and corn syrup. I hadn't known corn syrup was what made up the syrups we ate . I didn’t know when I was a kid I was eating corn syrup on pancakes. I thought it was maple syrup, because it said it was maple syrup. Sort of. But I was a kid. What did I know in how to read a label correctly? I remember saying something at the breakfast table one day when we were eating pancakes. My mom, still making more at the stove corrected me saying, "Well, that's not real maple syrup. We can't afford that. It's really expensive." It wasn't until then that I realized we had been eating maple syrup flavored syrup. On that topic, I noticed a while back that maple syrup is now thin and cheaper, when it used to be thick and more expensive.

To be clear, all through my life I have never cared about political thinking. I voice my opinion when I feel secure in knowing what I’m talking about, based on facts. As I can and do nowadays because, well, it needs to be done. But I have concerns for what’s correct and have “voted“ against myself and my group, if it was the right thing to do. Sometimes we do have to suffer to do what’s right. As I raised my kids. You should always do what's right whenever you can. There will be times you will not be able to. There will be times where you will do the right thing and it will break the law and you will be punished for it. At that time you have to be able to see that, see what you’re doing understand it, and then make your choice. To protect yourself or do what’s right? We don’t always get rewarded for doing what’s right in life. I wasn’t taught that as a kid. Many of us weren’t. I was just taught to do what is right. Don't lie. Don't be dishonest. Being silent and allowing others to believe untruths is dishonest. Spinning something that allows others to believe untruths is dishonest. Yet today it's a mainstay not just of politics, but especially so the Republlcian Party, especially under the auspices of MAGA and Donald Trump. But that's how fascism works. Too many of us as we’ve seen of late, believe they are free and clear to do and should do, whatever is best for them and their group. No matter who it hurts or how much it punishes others. And they carry that out in a righteous manor. While it is often in reality, anything but righteous or correct and true. Righteousness is far too often for ill purposes.

All that being said… Fuck Republicans, or liberals, or Antifa, or Black Lives Matter, or any of them! Fuck Republicans, MAGA, conservatives, or liberals, or communists, or socialists… All that matters is doing what is the most correct thing to do, at that time. America's supposed to be based on a meritocracy and majority rule, with considerations for minorities. It's not meant to be minority rule. Republicans need to come to terms with that,

Where did I get my life orientation? I was raised fairly strict, old country, Slovakian Catholic. On my mother side. My dad, was Irish and I think his family was protestant. I didn't realize that until some years ago. That I wasn't an Irish catholic kid.  I take my greatest orientation from my Irish side, which I find now through DNA, I am much more on the Scottish side. Whatever, it’s Gaelic. I started Isshinryu karate 1965 in fifth grade. That’s where I started picking up my Asian influences in philosophy. Before that I’d been reading science fiction by our golden age authors of sci-fi. Junior high, I was doing civil air patrol search and rescue. I joined the Air Force as law enforcement, ended up a parachute rigger. Signed up for the OSI at the end I got accepted. Then later got out instead and ended up getting a college degree in psych & writing. It was then that I realized how much psychology parallels Buddhism. I am for decades now, a non practicing Buddhist. Which is inaccurate in using that western term. I’ve read fundamentally original Buddhist dharma. The teachings of Buddha. Written down hundred years after Buddha died, just as with Jesus Christ and Christianity. Seems obvious to me that where Jesus lived and grew up, he had learned of Buddhism and other religions from traveling caravans. And so he incorporated Buddhism into his teachings. But he was unable to do that too much because he still had to fit into a people's beliefs that were Jewish. They had to be able to accept his teachings. He had to connect, to change them. His being a Jew after all. Just as America’s founding fathers had to incorporate God into their daily life and even if they were atheist had to translate to theorist about that. The belief by some now that we’re a fundamentally Christian nation, all because it’s founded by people of that culture and religion, is confused history and lacking in an understanding of psychology, sociology, and political dynamics, along with an accurate application of social studies. It was hard not to notice in psychology, toward my university degree in that discipline, in which I focused on phenomenology, just how similar it was to many Buddhist teachings. It was also interesting when I read the book, The Dancing Wu Li Masters (1979), how they seemed to understand physics, I don’t know, a thousand years ago, or two (let's just say a while back). Buddhists don’t see me as a Buddhist and I could really care. I don’t go into the mystical, beyond the scientific, even though the scientific can go into what seems like the mystical. And the mystical can inform the scientific. But my orientation was always to do right in life. And ironically enough, with the once far right wing right now, it’s no longer anymore about doing what’s right (functionally and realistically speaking, orientation or intention now has little to do with action and function), and hasn’t been for a long time and that's gotten worse and worse.

Part of how we got here today politically is by too many treating voting like either a game or an important. They rationalize to save time and effort that voting doesn’t do anything, affect anything, or do any good at all. That whole line of thinking has gotten really old and destructive.

When you, or others you see, denigrate others, remember how many of those people's ancestors in America, and elsewhere, were denigrated, brutalized, and even murdered long ago. Some even in their home countries. Or as they migrated through other countries to America. Germans were once looked down upon in America. Obviously the Irish were, and they wised up and started joining police departments. But then sadly, many of them abused others and their own. This country was founded and based upon immigrants. The isolation and stranglehold on our immigration laws, for decades now, is embarrassing and damaging to our country. But sure, feel free to believe people saying the opposite for personal fun, partisan joy, and the destruction of any or all others, as long as it’s not you, or your group.

All my life I’ve been an independent voter. I was excited about the first time I could vote, when I turned 18. Partly because of when I grew up and it was a new thing. I’ve always voted for the best candidate, regardless of party. I probably still would or will. I just can’t vote for any MAGA candidates. And the reason for that is, it would be like having an election, say for mayor. I wouldn't  vote for someone who is running to be dogcatcher, or president (pick your damage). I’m not gonna vote for the dogcatcher candidate who is running for mayor. I’m voting for the best candidate who is actually running for that position. MAGA candidates are not running to be whatever their candidacy is stated to be for. It's for another reason than to do that job actually. It's to rot the government out from the inside. It’s for a beliefs founded in not just nothing, but the opposite of something, which oddly enough, is more damaging than if it were for nothing.

For those who put up a gallows during the January 6 insurrection? How did they not see they were a throwback to the 19th century while this is the 21st? They weren’t even doing that in the 17th century, in America. Maybe around the time of the Civil War when insurrection was in play, as it was today so recently. We're based on being "civil", not civil war. Using the US Constitution to support contentions for civil war, cuts off that foundation via that very foundation

The whole idea about America, is to be non-violent and having changing government so we avoid an autocracy. Twenty years of war in Afghanistan, warped our mentality. So much of who we are being based on action movies led us to believe in the coolness of violence. When you don’t fix social problems, you end up with violent crime. When you try to fix violent crime, you get more violent crime, far too often. We've gotta be an adult and stop putting down intelligence and knowledge and support the hard work of fixing our social issues. WE can’t just make more lies and expect it to be fixed. "Band-Aids" on a broken leg does little except bring us closer to sepsis and losing the leg or our lives (or country).

When that Republican politician stormed out of an interview and said "because of you and what you did here" [to be fair she was asking a honest questions needing answers, about what a lowlife this guy was] "I will never interview with your network again and that’s your fault." I so just wanted to hear her say back to this clown, "OK, thank you very much for showing us all here today, what... I mean, who, you are. EH, hell yeah, WHAT you are.“

A free country cannot survive without a Free Press. Unless… You convince a third of the country to disbelieve that Free Press. And more a more suitable press is Your propaganda press. It worked in Russia, it’s working there now. It's worked for Trump in America. It's working here now.

Stupidly, I grew up reading really good sci-fi books and believing in a one world government, to the orientation of one day having multiple planet governments. Idealistic? Maybe. But when they talked about globalism in the 90s, I wasn’t considering what happened. Moving our manufacturing jobs to China? OK, fine. Maybe. Regarding those people whose jobs you’re taking, you've really got to make sure you take care of them. We didn’t. But then for corporations to give up their IP to China who blackmailed them for it (give up your IP or you can go back home)? I didn’t see that coming. When I heard it was going to happen, I was pretty annoyed. When I heard corporations were actually going to do it, I was angry. Well, like someone said, it gave us things like the iPhone and so on. We made some advances we may not have been able to make, certainly not as quickly. Or as cheaply. But look what happened. Look where China is now. That’s not to say globalism is a failure. That’s just saying you have got to not be stupid. And the countries involved can’t be ripping off other countries. You have to be good neighbors. Too often that didn’t happen. Just as with quitting smoking. Takes a few times to get it right. Looking at toxic capitalism as a junkie's addiction and becoming more addicted to make more a massive profits at the abuse of citizens. Yes, it’s a concern. And then when you have a government or say a Republican Party, as a party of big business, and get into bed with that. That’s a really big problem. And to be fair, I’m sure there’s some Democrats involved in all that too. But it’s not the Democratic Party platform. It is the Republican Party platform. There it is, secreted in the back of their mind and platform. Not that they’ve had a platform for a while and not the current platform makes a lot of sense either.

OK, Mary Trump is now talking about her guest doing a news piece for a sports network on the problems in prisons. Which gets me on the whole prison problem issue. The fact that you can lose your right to vote, I find disgusting. If you go to prison for espionage, fine. Or treason, fine. But I think that’s part of the problem. We don’t value American citizenship as much as we say we do. It should be nearly impossible to lose your rights in this country. Because that’s part of what we’re based on. The fact that we had to go through all this effort and bullshit to get blacks the right to vote, even when they had that right. To have to GIVE women the right to vote, even when they should’ve always had it, in being half of this country. It’s ludicrous. The fact that we’re continually discovering laws that need to be passed to protect our citizens against ourselves? It’s nuts. And against other citizens? And not just against our government, but against entire political parties? I know we were warned about political parties as dangerous, since the founding of this nation. But then why did they go and start political parties a few years after saying not to?

Well, that's it for today. Cheers! Sláinte!

Walkabout Thoughts #11

My thoughts, while walking off long Covid and listening to podcasts...a blog designed and meant to be freely associating, on the run, and not perfectly edited:

Weather for the day… When I started out I was hoping I could get my walk in before the rain started. Air quality index was 50, rated "good". During my walk I checked it and it was 33. Last time I checked it was 30. I felt a slight drizzle begin and then immediately stop. Could be a few degrees warmer though and it’s supposed to be 53° today. It was 51 when I left home. Wearing a fleece and shell. I got my jacket shell when I purchased it on the way to the airport in 2015, headed to Ireland. I wore that walking all over Ireland, literally its four corners. It still looks brand new. That day that I left home, where I had a couple acres in the woods and had raised my kids who had  moved out by then... I walked a mile to the park-and-ride, caught the bus to the ferry, and rode the Bainbridge ferry over to Seattle. Then on the way to the underground light rail station to Seattle airport at SeaTac, I stopped at the North Face store on the corner. I looked at a lot of stuff with the salesperson and finally settled on this $99 coat shell. At the time I thought it was expensive and buying a "shell" was weird. She was looking at me like I was crazy there in the store. But I bit the bullet and I bought it. And I grew to love it all the way around Ireland. It was perfect for layering, because the weather there was so much like here in the Pacific Northwest. I was cool when it needed to be and kept me warmer than I'd expected. I felt very at home. And today, almost eight years later well, I went in August so just over seven years... it looks like it’s never been worn! Plus you can roll it up and it fits in its own pocket. I love the hood too, and the inner pockets.

Podcast for the day is from Pod Save America.

Second podcast for the day is John Heilemann's Hell and Highwater. With Michael Dowd and Jennifer Palmieri.

Instagram post for the day is getting a lot of attention...

For those complaining that the MSM lies (for rational people unaware what that indicates, "Mainstream Media", how it's three letters not two is curious), have a fundamental misunderstanding and limited comprehension of how journalism functional (outside of right wing disinfo/propaganda entities). When investigating a report and stumbling on a misperception or incorrect facts, in it getting reported, it will typically later be corrected. But with the right wing MSM )which there is)… they’re reporting lies upfront, not misperceptions, but intended, outright lies...that don’t change. Because... they’re lies. The only time those change is when they find a more effective lie, or their lies are shown to be such obvious lies that even the right questions them. At which point they shift to a better lie and encapsulate the first lie. Or rationalizing or explaining it off to their right wing believers, who will just see it as something they merely had to make more clear in what they were intending to say. Trump was an expert at that. To the point that people still think he’s a great guy and someone to vote for, rather than demand for him, justice, prison and execution.

People have got to stop knocking people who complain about the arising the cost of milk, or gas to get to work, or to transport their kids. These are real issues. While the rich and wealthy in complaining about costs, we are indeed looking at greed, for the most part. But when you can’t afford to take care of your kids, or your loved ones, that’s a whole different paradigm you’re dealing with. People need to realize that Republicans aren't going to save them and that their whole method of operation has nothing to do with helping them. Other than what they say to get votes, to get more power and money. Money by the way, that is greatly coming from those people in dire need, and the rest of us doing at least a little better. Look, I’m not rich. I’m retired and just getting by on a pension I luckily earned, and Social Security that Republicans want to take away. Which would essentially put me out on the street. So thanks for that! After spending years in the Air Force and a lifetime paying taxes and into Social Security, they want to punish me/us? WTF? And so, fuck them! Thank you, very much! Please sir, can I NOT have another?

President Biden this week gave a speech where he said, if Democrats retain and gain power in this election, he will First Thing, sign into law protections for abortion. If you’re against that, well you got to admit then you’re a misogynist and this isn't about pre-birth children at all. Because it sure as hell isn’t about protecting them once they're born, as we’ve seen time and again. The second thing he said was that he’s releasing more gas to lower the cost of gas nationwide. Which has already been going back down. Regardless what Republicans are claiming. And we're still working on Saudi Arabia and that whole nightmare jackasses contingency, related to OPEC.

The AQI was 50 today when I left home. It’s overcast. The winds have blown the forest fire smoke away and it’s supposed to rain soon. Rained a little bit yesterday. It’s a nice day for a hike, or a walkabout. Now to be accurate, I do believe a “walkabout“ is a walk about and not a standard closed course like I’m doing, walking up and down the same street. My "walkabout" part of my walkabout is metaphorical, in my taking in new information from podcasts and ruminating on things and sharing those thoughts. That is definitely a walkabout. So maybe my title it should be in quotes, but… it’s not.

From the podcast: “Voting for Republicans will not fix inflation. It’s voting for abortion bans and guaranteeing that inflation will continue.” I would also add it will throw Ukraine to Putin. After all we’ve done. After all NATO and others have done to protect and save them against an illegal and genocidal war by an autocrat (who Trump loves) who hasn’t been fairly elected in 20 years. Guaranteeing that you will be elected, as Putin has (nooo... he’s not afraid of open elections at all...), is not an open and free election.

To be clear when Republicans call liberals “extremist“ what they’re actually saying is they’re leaning too far into progress which makes conservative and those with a more backward orientation to social evolution, uncomfortable. When liberals, Democrats and many independents, say Republicans are extremist, they’re actually being extremist, in having enabled, ignored, supported and acted upon sedition and insurrection. That’s something no one should ignore. I don’t care who you are or what side you're on. 

Replacing the government is not in the US Constitution. Regardless of what the framers, a few of them, may have said. If you’re claiming the Constitution as the foundation of your rights to an insurrection, you’re not reading the American Constitution at all. You’re just listening to Republicans, Trump, conspiracy theories on the Internet, and our enemies across the world who full heartedly are supporting you.

So MAGA types are recording people dropping off ballots at drop boxes, some even following those people after that (i.e., Intimidation). Voters should drop ballots while friends surround them with an opaque curtain. That will drive MAGA nuts. This recording people voting is immature intimidation tactics. What are they, in 2nd grade? This wouldn't intimidate me in the least, though it might some. It's the level of irritating like: "I'm not touching you, I'm not touching you!" Good grief. They're devolving. It's just setting up for later actions and gumming up the entire election process, both now and later.

This is more foolish. Even MAGA know Republican's support business, especially big business. And most of them know corporations are price gouging us right now, when they shouldn’t be. Corporations have been set up to help America, by the American government but right now, all they’re doing is reaping profits. Every time in my life that I’ve heard America was an economic trouble, corporations price gouge. Sometimes maintaining a price, is price gouging. And they’re raising prices. But we need all Americans to connect those two things and realize that Republicans aren’t your friend in this. I don’t care who you are. Because even the corporations and wealthy they’re supporting. are based in this country. Damaging the country is not good for anybody. Except for short term profits. But what Republicans don’t get is there’s more to life than numbers, money, and enrichening oneself with wealth and power. I know, sounds stupid saying it, why wouldn't they ignore ethics and reap rewards, right? That's kind of sick though. Those people, people like that, should never of been allowed in politics. Seeing the left as the same, is just incorrect and factually delusional.

It was the Democrats that went after big Pharma recently, and why many, when it kicks in, will be doing better. Republicans didn’t do that, they have been fighting that kind of thing, all the way. Returning Democrats to power after this election means they will go after big Pharma again, as well as corporations. And no, Republicans don't like that. But you're not, we're not, corporations. Not sure how that is so hard for some to see.

It seems to me with Republicans and MAGA doing all they can to end elections, to curb elections, to make it more difficult to vote, we’re on a path to eliminate in-person poll booth voting and we need to immediately go to mail-in ballots. That eliminates all this nonsense about polling booths MAGA types are trying to pull. To gum things up, question everything, intimidate ...that's not AMERICAN. There may be a few problems for some regarding all mail in ballots, but we'll just have to work that out. It may take a year or two if we start now, but it solves a lot of problems Republicans keep drumming up. We’ve been rapidly moving into remote work in recent years, saving our infrastructure and our roads. Considering pandemics and right wing abuses of our citizens in relation to elections, this seems like a pretty obvious fix.

Have you heard that some counties/states are going to hand counted of election ballots? Even though we know for a fact it’s less accurate because of human error then machines? This whole movement by Republicans in the far right, against machine counting is unbelievably divisive. Anyone that knows anything about people and computers should know that hand counting is a bad idea. It's WHY WE DON'T DO IT!

Early Georgia election numbers are in and voting is up 85% from the last midterm election there. Doesn’t mean anybody’s winning, it just means it’s good that we have more people getting involved in voting. Because I really believe if everybody in America voted there would be no MAGA, and there would be no Republican party such as we have. There wouldn't have been an insurrection. Or fear now that Republicans will end democracy here.

Democrats need to be focused on working class people without a college degree and Latinos. Because that seems to be where the leaking votes are going away. That’s from Democratic candidate Tim Ryan. I added the part about Latinos though. Ryan’s opponent is JD Vance who has two mega donors. That, is never good for any candidate's voters.

I need to call Comcast and ask them if there’s a way I can save money while keeping what I’ve got in my current package. This is something you should do every so often for phone and cable and maybe some other things. At least half the time I've called about that, they’ve had some way I can save at least some money and sometimes, a lot.

I have to say, people like Ted Cruz, Mitch McConnell, JD Vance, after having Trump slam them really hard, especially if I was about to get up on stage after Trump said how much I kiss his ass… I would definitely have a come back, You've got to punch back. Those like Trump and Putin, either appreciate that or respond appropriately and not how you might think. I would definitely punch back at Trump when I got to the mic, in a way (if I were MAGA like JD Vance and Trump), where I would get in a comment where the audience would go, "oh I don’t believe he said that" followed by some laughter and applause. Otherwise, why am I up there? Something that would resonate. But I would never let anyone racially slur my wife like McConnell allowed from Trump. Or to attack me like that and I don’t give a damn who they are, I’m coming back at them. And frankly, there’s some integrity involved. Because if you lose your candidacy over something like that, you deserve it. Find another career. That’s the problem with these MAGA Republicans. They have no boundaries. Their ethics are in the Trump cesspool/swamp he created. Their ambition has completely eviscerated their ethics. Do anything to win? The only place that makes sense is in war and it often doesn’t even make sense then. Which is why we have the military governed by civilian authority. When war gets to a point like Putin is in where Russia has been consistently defeated, someone hast to take the reins and say, "OK STOP! ENOUGH ALREADY!" But that's the problem with autocracies. Single point of failure.

JD Vance has invested in companies with foreign workers. Deflating his self promoted image of himself. Looking at his stance on China, there's no there, there.

Tim Ryan had a good point about paying off college tuition loans in that we should at least let some of these people, with high interest-rates, be able to get lower interest rates as that alone would help a lot. And, we need to fix the problem that is the high cost of college tuition. I stand by what I've said, that we get a K-12 for free since over 100 years ago, because we knew that would raise the entire country up. And it did. It was massively cost effective. But everything has advance so far that we need to make that now, K-14. So people can get out of that in a level where there are more jobs open to them. When I graduated high school in 1973 I knew at the time I wasn’t prepared for any decent job. It made me angry. Which was why after three years of trying (to get a really good job, I did have one), I went in the Air Force. I got out, then got a couple of degrees which the VA paid for. But, tuition wasn’t ridiculous. I got a high tech job eventually and made a decent amount of money. Which allowed me an mostly reasonable retirement. I didn't get to a job with a retirement plan until late, or I’d be even better off.

I worked at University of Washington for 7 1/2 years and when I talked to them years later about being vested for retirement, they said I was a few months short. I had thought for years I was vested when I left. I asked them a few years ago about that and they said, "Yep, you're a few months short." But after I left the UDub where I worked at University bookstore, the University of Washington Medical Center, Harborview Medical Center and the UW Personnel office, I was asked to come back and work for Harborview Medical Center again. I wasn’t salaried, though. But I’m just curious if that added that few months on, that I needed? Maybe I was invested there for retirement. But you know how things go right? Probably not.

I mentioned in previous walkabout blogs about tightening your core as you walk and counting your steps. So I’ve been doing that since I first... actually before I first mentioned it, and today I’m doing 100 steps counts. What’s interesting is that it’s gotten easier I can do it for longer now and noticed today that when I tightened up my stomach muscles, sucking in my belly button toward my spine, it also tightens up the muscles above it in my chest, I’ve to my shoulders. Which was not my conscious intention. But that’s where the muscle tone has moved up to. Cool. This, after two years of Covid and long Covid, which kept me extremely sedentary all through 2021, and then again from March 2022, until not that long ago.

Speaking of which, it’s been a few days since my last walk because of the smoke and poor air quality from forest fires. It was over a week before that walk, since my previous one. I wasn’t sure if I’d make it today, but it looks like I am gonna make my standard 5 miles. Took a lot out of me, but it feels good.

Also, I had been complaining about my left ankle which was really painful and problematic since I began walking months ago. I can say now that I believe it’s been healed, at least since my last walk. Though I continue to wear an ankle brace sleeve.

The other day I tried drinking a glass of wine with lunch. Because of my long Covid, it would make my blood pressure go crazy when I did that. So being able to drink any alcohol is a sign of healing. And it went great! I had bought a little four pack of individual, inexpensive wine bottles. Tasted pretty good. I decided yesterday that today would be a good day for a steak. It’s been a couple weeks or so since I had a steak. I'll take the frozen steak out of my freezer, toss it in my air fryer and a little bit later, not very long, I'll be eating steak and win. I can even throw some shrimp on there I keep in the freezer. A class act lunch as a reward for getting my 5 miles down. And for dessert, I have a very tasty (and not very big) sugarless ice cream bar on a stick. Very creamy. Doesn’t taste sugar-free like what I grew up with that tasted nasty and bitter. And it doesn’t affect my blood sugar level at all. Which is good for long covid. Which seems to be fading.

I mentioned this before, but when I walk I use speech to text for my transcription. Especially when you get tired walking, you don’t always enunciate clearly when you get into thought and talking. So I will get back home and remember I had some really insightful things to say but I don’t have a clue what I was saying for a sentence or so in a paragraph because it makes no sense. It’s both comical and frustrating. Sometimes a bit angrifying. But, I’ve learned it’s better than nothing. So I do my best. I get home, I transfer the file to my laptop, put it into my blog, read through it once, cleaning it up as best I can and post it. It’s a bit rough and my thoughts sometimes are a bit jumbled. But I’m not trying to write the great American blog here. Just sharing some ideas. And besides, I want to finish up my book on long Covid. Which is done and the cover graphics are now with my cover artist. I made up the cover but he’s going to take the concept and make it look better than I’ll ever be able to make it look.

Back to this nonsense... it’s truly odd how Republicans don’t give a wit about them being our threat to democracy and only being focused mostly right now on inflation. Because that’s the best selling point they’ve got. Whatever you do, don’t look at who they are, or what they’ve done. Certainly not as judged by any neutral observers.

This is a progressive country and always has been or we would never have been founded. We just have an infatuation every so many years with fascism, autocracy, and conservatism. When you take a group like that, who is a frustrated minority and are consistently out of power...when they get back in power (and then fail so often) it frustrates them to the degree that they become toxic unto themselves. That’s why in part, we had a January 6 insurrection.

My next walk may be Sunday, but if not, probably Monday, in two days. All depending on weather and air quality (that I think may be good at least for a bit).  I'll be able to listen to the next "Ultra" podcast episode! So looking forward to the rest of its' entire season!

Have a great weekend.