Right Wingers

Looking Back 17 Years To September 11, 2001, And This Day A Tuesday, Not To Happen Again Until 2029

Ronald 4 Comments

It is hard to believe, but it has been 17 years since the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Today is a Tuesday, the actual day of the week of the attack, not to be repeated again until 2029.

America lost whatever innocence it had on that day, when we lost 3,000 innocent human beings, and then lost 4.500 in the unnecessary Iraq War, that was planned as an excuse to go after Saddam Hussein, as well as the endless war in Afghanistan, where we have lost 2,400.

Additionally, about 2,000 firefighters, police, and rescue workers involved in the recovery have died from inhaling dust at the World Trade Center site, and many more are dying of cancer, so soon, we will have more victims in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks domestically, than actually died on that day.

Sadly, Osama Bin Laden, although later tracked down and killed in 2011, has triumphed in dividing the nation into a polarized state, and taken away our freedom and sense of security, under attack not only from terrorists, but also from right wingers who want to destroy our Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Their willing ally is President Donald Trump, who wishes to be President for life, and is systematically destroying our rule of law and constitutional order, without any intervention or opposition from the Republican party that nominated him. Now, he is being further assisted by the contested nomination of a Supreme Court Justice, Brett Kavanaugh, who seems ready to back Trump in any legal action, and prevent prosecution of a President who has committed Treason, and engaged in collaboration with Vladimir Putin of Russia, to fix his election, despite losing the popular vote by nearly 3 million votes.

America is in a constitutional crisis far greater than Watergate and Richard Nixon, with only the Civil War a greater event in its significance, and the crisis must be overcome by patriotic Americans who realize how dangerous Trump is, and MUST elect a Democratic Congress, and start the resistance to what Trump has been doing, in order to save everything decent that America represents.

Barack Obama And Religious Extremism: Totally Accurate Statement, So Why The Outcry?

Ronald Leave a comment

President Barack Obama spoke up on Thursday at the Annual Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC on the dangers of religious extremism, promotion of one’s own faith as the only true faith, and legitimizing bloodshed and violence in the name of one’s God.

This was in reaction to the horrors that have been perpetrated by ISIL (ISIS) in the Middle East, including beheadings of Americans, British, and Japanese hostages; and the even more horrific act of taking a Jordanian pilot, captured while attacking ISIL targets, and setting him on fire, causing him to be burned to death.

What Obama said was that any religion that endorses or promotes such bloodshed and violence should be condemned, and he reminded our nation, much of it totally unaware of our history, that we had seen the lynching, butchering, and setting on fire of a few thousand African American men and boys in the American South and Midwest over a period of more than a hundred years of Jim Crow segregation in the 19th and 20th century and Ku Klux Klan influence; had also experienced nearly 250 years of slavery, which included similar mistreatment; and that world wide, there had been the Christian war on Islam during the Crusades; and the Catholic Church Inquisition of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance period.

Obama did not specifically mention the horrible persecution of Jews by Christians over two millenniums, and not just the Catholic Church, but also Protestant groups, including Martin Luther and the Lutheran Church; or the mass murder of Catholics vs Protestants in Northern Ireland, as recently as the period of the Irish Republican Army between 1969 and 1998.

And of course, in the Middle East, today, as shown by the setting on fire of a Jordanian who was Muslim, the old holy war of Shiite and Sunni Muslims continues unabated, as it has for 13 centuries; and there is also bloodshed between Muslims and Hindus in India; and turmoil in the Balkans, that led to mass murder by Christians against Muslims in Bosnia and Kosovo in the 1990s.

From what Obama reminded us of, plus the additional information provided here by the author, and well known to scholars, it is clear how devastating organized religion has been in its promotion of narrow mindedness and hate, and commitment to torture and extermination in the name of God, no matter which religion.

So Obama was offering a moral lesson, but yet the outcry by right wingers, who do not wish to be reminded of the sins of Christianity fanatics, and only wish to look at the Muslim fanatics today, and imagine that this is the whole story of religion in history, is very troubling. They fail to realize that many more Muslims have been killed by the barbarism of ISIL (ISIS), and their refusal to accept and recognize the history of Christianity as being just as full, historically, of violence and bloodshed, bodes ill for the future ability to understand and accept religious differences and promote religious tolerance!

Mitt Romney Fighting History, And Common Sense, By His Stated Plan To Run For President Again!

Ronald 2 Comments

Mitt Romney has a massive ego, a sense of divine direction, a belief in himself as the only person who can move America forward!

What else can explain why the losing Republican Presidential nominee in 2012 is telling his supporters that he intends to run for President once again?

What can Mitt Romney say or do which will change our view of him, a view of a chameleon, with no principles, no convictions, no ethics, except to advance himself, despite being one of the wealthiest people ever to run for President, and having no real need to be President, except he wants to be President!

Mitt Romney is NOT going to be the 2016 GOP nominee, and trying to run to the right of Jeb Bush is a guaranteed lost cause, as there are more than enough true right wingers available, so why should he expect to beat out the likes of Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, or Rick Perry, among others?

Romney does not even offer the idea of greater experience in public office, as he had the least such experience in American history, with the exception of Woodrow Wilson and Wendell Willkie, who had two years and no years of public government experience, as compared to Romney’s one term as Massachusetts Governor, but eager to run for President even as he just began his Governorship!

Romney has run two Presidential races, and lost one, and the list of Presidents who have lost and then won is small indeed.

It includes Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, William Henry Harrison, Grover Cleveland, and Richard Nixon.

All five had much more experience in government and or the military (in the case of Jackson and Harrison) than Mitt Romney.

Face the facts: Romney is NOT Thomas Jefferson; Romney is NOT Andrew Jackson; Romney is NOT Grover Cleveland; and most certainly, Romney is NOT Richard Nixon, who had broad experience and expertise. The Harrison comparison does not matter, as Harrison only served one month as President in 1841.

The best thing Mitt Romney could do is continue doing what he does best: making money faster than one can say one-two-three, as he is not going to be able to outlive his failure to run a decent, honest campaign, and he will NOT be the next Richard Nixon!

CPAC Convention: The Lunatic Right Displays Itself!

Ronald 39 Comments

Watching, listening, and reading about the Conservative Political Action Conference makes anyone with a stable mind roll his eyes in wonderment at what conservatism has become!

All the losers of the past were there and ranting and raving their insanity, including Rick Santorum, Rick Perry, Paul Ryan, and Mike Huckabee. The “newcomers”,” people not yet defeated but soon to be, including Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, Bobby Jindal and Chris Christie, also appeared, and made fools of themselves. Of course, the ultimate lunatic and embarrassment, Donald Trump, also spewed his sick mind and constant need for attention. And to top it off, Sarah Palin is making an appearance, as if any sane, intelligent person cares! And Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, desperately trying to keep his seat, showed up brandishing a rifle, a horrible image for a Senate leader to display just a year after the Sandy Hook Massacre!

Jeb Bush and Scott Walker stayed away, for both a smart move, and Jon Huntsman was also not there, and at least for Bush and Huntsman, who are the most mainstream of this group of characters, it made sense NOT to be there!

Speaker of the House John Boehner was not invited, which should really be seen as a blessing, as he has upset right wingers by being exasperated with the Tea Party Movement, for making his job absolutely impossible in the lower chamber.

It is still reality that ONLY Jeb Bush and Jon Huntsman would have ANY chance to be elected over Hillary Clinton in the Presidential Election of 2016, but not very good odds for either of them. And again, let this author repeat, that the Electoral College strongly favors ANY Democrat to win the White House, and as long as the GOP alienates African Americans, Latinos, women, and many young voters, it will not win the White House. And as long as it fights the idea of national health care coverage for all; acceptance of gay rights and same sex marriage; opposition to immigration reforms; favors the energy industry over the environment; and continues to fight against a living wage for the poor and middle class, it will lose for the long term future! And if it continues to promote religion and theocracy, it will NEVER win the White House ever again, in a nation that believes in separation of church and state!

So those of us who care about our fellow Americans can sit and observe the CPAC Conference, and feel good that the potential candidates and the Republican party are sealing their doom for 2016 and beyond!

Barack Obama On Race, Football, And Marijuana

Ronald 2 Comments

Barack Obama has been very cautious and careful about speaking out on controversial issues, but now, as the fifth anniversary of his accession to the Presidency takes place, he is becoming more open, and it is very refreshing, and really, about time to do so!

Sarah Palin and other right wingers can claim all along that Obama plays the “race card”, when he has never done so in reality. They would love him to play the role of the “angry black man”, so they can further condemn him, and denounce him in the worst possible language!

Instead, Obama frustrates them by his refusal to talk much about race until now, and to reject being the “angry black man.” Rather, he has been dignified, classy, judicious, and respectful toward people he should have long ago rejected in no uncertain terms, and should have denounced them in strong language!

This author would not have the patience and ability to ignore insults that our 44th President has had, and even now, when he starts to speak up openly, he is still graceful and gentlemanly in his language.

So he tells us that he knows some people (actually a lot) dislike him because he is black, and that others like him because he is black! This makes total sense, and there is no debate about that!

He also tells us that if he had a son, he would not let him play tackle football, as too dangerous to the head and neck, and leading to concussions. In this, the author agrees, as no sport is worth one’s health being affected long term. Football may be a popular sport, but it is a vicious, dangerous sport due to the aggressiveness of tackles and other football players, for whom victory is all that matters, and the helmets that are used encourage larger and heavier players to do harm to others, rather than be good sports while playing.

The sad part is how some fans do not give a damn, as long as they can see blood and gore on the field, which pleases their lust for violence. It is as if this is ancient Rome and the gladiators, where spectators did not give a damn about the health, safety, and lives of the participants.

And the fact that the vast majority of players are black, sadly, also promotes a lack of concern by some fans who want the players to be there for entertainment, but no real concern about their long range health and safety long term. If the majority were still white, as decades ago, there would be a greater uproar by fans, and also by team owners and coaches about this health and safety issues, but heck, who seems to care about players of the race that some fans would still not allow in their homes for dinner or social interaction! Face the facts, this is the truth, whether some are willing to say so or not openly!

And Obama speaking up on the effects of marijuana as compared to tobacco and alcohol, that it is far less dangerous than those two drugs, is certainly true, as there is no record of the kind of long range damage of marijuana as compared to tobacco and alcohol. This is not an endorsement of anyone using marijuana, but simply the truth, as Obama makes clear, and ideally, no young person should feel a need to use marijuana, anymore than tobacco or alcohol, as it is not good for one’s health.

Let this author make it clear that he has never used tobacco or marijuana, and rarely drinks alcohol, and has never been drunk, as he prefers to face reality, and does not wish to be under the influence of any of these drugs. It is best for anyone to avoid these different drugs!

But certainly, to have people in prison for marijuana leads to many more blacks than whites, and that is wrong, and reform of sentencing, and release of those in prison for marijuana possession or sale, needs reform immediately!

It was wonderful that Obama opened up on these issues, and it allowed this author to state how he feels about these matters as well, and hopefully, Obama will feel liberated and speak more openly about how he feels, and the critics be damned!

Senate Republican Conservatives In Danger From Tea Party Right Wingers!

Ronald Leave a comment

The Republican Party knows it must gain six seats in the Senate to gain a majority, but as things stand, they are in danger from Tea Party right wingers, who might defeat them in primaries this year, and then could lose safe seats to the Democrats!

This includes Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky; Senator Thad Cochran of Mississippi; Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina; Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee; Senator John Cornyn of Texas; as well as open Republican Senate seats (due to retirements) in Georgia and Nebraska.

The wackiest candidates against these Senators are Matt Bevin in Kentucky; Lee Bright in South Carolina; and Steve Stockman in Texas. But also, three Georgia Senate competitors in Georgia are all wacky—Paul Broun, Phil Gingrey, and Jack Kingston, all sitting Georgia House members, with the only good thing is that two will be eliminated from Congress by running in the Senate primary.

So in theory, instead of gaining six seats, the GOP could lose up to seven seats if the Tea Party succeeds in defeating solid conservative Republican Senators, or in the case of Nebraska and Georgia, solid conservatives who are retiring.