The New Hammer

Instead of hammering out a deal
Mr Boehner is hammering
our heads into the ground!

Boehner & co. keep saying the President got his revenue increase, AKA tax hike in January and now it is time for the spending cuts or the taking away of money from programs aimed at helping the middle class and poor.

Why does no one call him out on this obvious lie?

What happened in January was the Bush tax cuts that were created to expire by Bush and Boehner’s Republican Party and approved by them at that time expired!

These tax cuts were put into effect by this party’s leader as a gift to his base in the top 1%, financially speaking at the same time that he and they lied us into their illegal unfunded, unjust war that has killed far more than just thousands of our children, it killed our economy as well.

President Obama and the Democrats had to waste precious time fixing what the Republican recklessness cost, at least economically speaking as no amount of policy changes can bring back the lives of those brave soldiers Bush sent to their death in search of WMD he knew did not exist!

Now we are faced with an even more insidious Republican Party digging in and demanding more pain for the lower and middle classes in favor of their wealthiest friends.

When will this stop?

When will the media call out these self-serving hypocrites for their ‘oh so obvious’ lies?

When will the public finally understand that when Mitt Romney secretly, he thought, spoke to his friends about the hated 47% of Americans he was actually thinking about the party line of 98% hated Americans!

Because if you are not among the top tier of wealthiest Americans who can fund their life style YOU DO NOT EXIST FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY!

And to that group of persona non-grata should be added minorities, gays, women, and anyone in the news media who reports facts!

And I beseech anyone with a brain to analyze the facts so that when November 2014 rolls around they will not be foolish enough to vote against their best interests and future ever again.

So no Mr. Boehner, the President did not get his revenue increase in January you did, and you know damned well you did!

And as always you are using lies to once again shield those who can most afford to chip in and aid the country’s recovery from ever having to open their wallets again.

Shame on you Mr. Speaker, shame on you!

Will We Ever Again Hear GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLL?

In soccer the goalie's main job is to deflect all shots and stop his opponent from scoring.
He is charged with the task of keeping others from attaining their goals.
Great goalies are world renowned and among the highest paid in their sport.
In America soccer has taken a long time to gain a foothold.
This is because we love high scoring events with prodigious offensive outbursts over defensive struggles that are considered boring.
And that's a shame because in many ways a good defense is the best offense.
A one on one match up between a forward and the goalie featuring a penalty kick is one of the most exciting plays in the game.
Tension mounts as the cool level-headed players face each other.
With striker and goalie intent on reading any sign of movement, any edge to anticipate, react and stop the other the crowd hushes.
One wishes to score, the other needs to stop him.
In an incredibly similar way our politicians have been playing this same game for years.
Unfortunately those in the vast but shrinking middle class have had their goals deflected more and more to the point where no one even talks about scoring anymore, merely surviving the game.
Republicans, and their well funded new arm in the T-Party have become the goalkeepers who have become quite adept at total deflection.
Think of what's going on in the country today:
Unemployment and under employment is at horrendous and dangerously high levels;
Corporations, many who received bailouts and are still receiving tax subsidies are reaping in the profits AND KEEPING THEM;
The only jobs our young college graduates can find are unpaid internships with these greedy fat corporations;
Anyone lucky enough to gain new employment does so at a lower rate with less benefits if any;
Health care costs and insurance premiums to supposedly cover those costs have increased through the roof with co-pays/co-insurance/deductibles and 'un-covered' treatments adding to the costs;
And health care insurance companies' profits rival those of big oil;
Our nation's infrastructure, the very roads upon which we travel or water mains through which we receive that precious liquid is falling apart;
BUT the news is filled with stories about NEXT YEAR'S REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT!
And the Republicans keep it thus by deflecting all eyes away from the current needs of the country.
These above noted needs if addressed and fixed would ultimately help all of us.
BUT THEY MUST BE DEFLECTED AT ALL COSTS if the 'right' is to have any chance of gaining total control of the government.
And if that happens they will be free to use their perceived mandate as license to further kill the middle class' former American dream.
This would seem to be un-American activities bordering on terrorism and yet they deflect our eyes by calling President Obama anti-American even questioning his citizenship!
DEFLECT!

No goal for you!

When the Democrats decry tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of the country the Republicans claim those people are the job creators and must not be harmed.
DEFLECT!!
When Speaker of the House Boehner accidentally allowed $17 Billion in spending for Pell Grants aimed at aiding education his entire party objected and stalled debt ceiling talks claiming runaway costs.
DEFLECT!!!
And when President Obama talks about adding revenue to the country's coffers in order to get us out of this terrible depression by asking the wealthiest Americans to merely contribute their FAIR SHARE Republicans claim class warfare and job killing policies.
DEFLECT!!!!
Speaker Boehner proudly proclaimed that he had been able to get 98% of what he wanted in the debt and deficit talks.  That is a fairly telling number which leaves 2%, the same number of Americans who are also left out of the tax rolls and go 'scot-free' during this social and economic crisis.
It has been said that what you don't know won't hurt you.
For years Americans did not know much about soccer.
Sadly we are learning about the great game in an interesting way, through the eyes of the deflecting goalies of the 'do-nothing' 'stop all progress at any cost' Republican Party.
They have turned our lives into a game for which they have written the rules and appear to be the referees.
And if someone has the nerve to point this fact out they will deflect by blaming Obama or saying something innocuous such as, "Lovely weather we're having!"  Of course they also deny Global Warming - AKA climate change but that's another deflection, I mean story.

GOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLL!

Unless and until we as a nation come to grips with this tactic and rise up to defeat it we will never score a goal  again, let alone be victorious.

And we and our children will be shut out of our own futures!

Reality DC

It's ironic that many pundits have been dropping hints that our country was heading into a disaster similar to what recently happened in Greece.  The analogy is hard to miss but their timing is a bit off.  They should be comparing us not to the Greece of today but rather to the days of Aeschylus and the Greek Tragedies.

Next year's commentators on Fox News

This week one of the financial ratings agencies decided to chime in on what the rest of the world has been watching for years, America's dysfunctional political theater.  It is reality TV at its best, or rather worst.
With so-called Reality TV the viewer should understand that much of what they are seeing is absurdly phony.  The situations are contrived at best and staged at worst.
People who spend more time watching reality shows than living reality lives are missing out on life!
But this is not about them, this is about our elected officials and their counterproductive childish behavior.
When Standard & Poors lowered America's rating from AAA to AA+ it was the first time in the history of ratings that our country was not considered at the top of the financial ladder.
I will let those more well versed in all the ramifications of a lowered financial rating for America discuss what happens now.  I am more interested in the cause and the continued derisive tone that preceded it.
In order to know when it's hot you must also know what cold is.  Without an opposite against which to measure definitions are useless.  If the temperature was always 95 degrees day and night then that would be normal!  We wouldn't even comment on it or have thermometers to tell us it was in fact 95 degrees!
Using that simple bit of logic let's describe the Washington DC of today.
Is it working well?
Seriously??
How does it compare to governments of our past?
Seriously???
Does our future look bright with wonderful possibilities for our children?
The answer to this last question is incredibly subjective as the 2% of Americans at the top of the food chain will say yes, our children will have it great!
But for the rest of us not so much.
They say that politics is the 'art of the possible.'  But I ask how is it possible that our leaders care so little about those of us here on the ground?

Mr. Dickinson knew how
to keep the Riff Raff out!

Well that question is also simple - We voted them in and allowed them to continue the policies that harm us.
I have often used a line from the Broadway play "1776" to describe the mentality of our current electorate and their propensity of voting for people who will hurt them the most.
The words are attributed to Mr. Dickinson, a delegate to the first Constitutional Congress in Philadelphia in the 1770s. In the play he says, "Don't forget that most men with nothing would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich rather than face the reality of being poor."
Unfortunately it still fits and now more than ever I wish the voters would face THE REAL TRUE reality.
Because it is this mentality that is being played on by the representatives of the wealthiest 2% in America and their corporate allies.
Why else would one side of the aisle in Congress demand that we not remove oil subsidies from companies who are making more money than any other company has ever made in the history of the world?  And this at the same time they are demanding we lower benefits to the poor, the elderly, minorities, real housewives of every city and the vast but slowly vanishing middle class!
The answer stares us all in the face every day and every night - The groups being hurt do not have a voice in our current Reality DC theater.  And too many of the members of those groups continue to dream about joining the 2% at the top.

McConnell,
Cheney & Boehner?

Our founding fathers, even Mr. Dickinson would be appalled at the actions of Congress over the last few years.  They were civilized in their dissent and argued for what they believed to be the best course for the most people of America.
The Continental Congress did not have anyone telling another member to "F--k Yourself" (Vice President Cheney) or stand at the podium of Congress and in front of the TV cameras while Congress was in session and shout "Hell no you can't" (John Boehner) because the President had the audacity to try and make our lives better.  (Okay, forget the camera part for the Continental Congress.)
And who can forget Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stating that his one job until 2012 will not be to help the American people live better lives but rather to get rid of President Obama.  His quote, "The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one term president."
Lowering our nation's horrendous unemployment number or fixing our failing infrastructure does not even appear on the radar screens of this elected official as long as Mr. Obama inhabits the Oval Office!

At least these guys
were entertaining!

And he said this before Mr. Obama had done anything as President other than becoming the first Black man to inhabit the White House!
No elected official had ever been quoted using the same vow against any previous President but then we've only had 44 of them so far.
If this is reality I cannot blame people for wanting fairy tales.  Sadly the ones we are getting are Grimm.


So when S&P dropped America from the ranks of the most trustworthy they were not actually rating our ability to pay back any debt.  We can still print money as needed.
What they were doing was what Nielsen has been doing for years, rating a show.

And this reality show ain't no comedy!

Vicious vs. Precious

One of the most frustrating things in life is the feeling of helplessness.  For example when we know something bad is about to happen but we are unable to effect a change.

It is akin to watching an impending car accident with no way to warn the drivers.

Or how about hearing someone tell a lie and knowing that they themselves realize they are lying!

This one is particularly irksome when nobody ever seems willing to point out their lie.

It is this last example that is frustrating Americans or at least middle class Americans when it comes to our political leaders these days.

Many of these talking heads use sound bites to convey a message that they probably do not believe themselves.  They do so for political expediency.  They know the message will stick.

A few years back a candidate for the office of President used a ridiculous ad on television that showed his opponent riding an ever turning ‘sailboard’ (similar to the one shown here) to describe the man as a “flip-flopper.”  He claimed that the guy said one thing one time and then changed his mind to say something else later.

The odd thing is the message worked and the lying candidate was able to squeak into office, with the help of a few other oddities but that’s for another time.

But the ‘flip-flop’ charge is absurd.

Sans flight suit W claims victory!

Suppose the President is following a policy that he or she realizes at a later date is wrong?  For example say the President starts a war for a reason that turns out to be an out and out lie.  Would we want that leader to ‘stay the course’ or would we expect him to take a step back and change direction?

I certainly hope it would be the latter choice lest many lives be lost unnecessarily.

Flip-flopping goes with the territory of being human.  Information helps us make decisions and wrong information clouds our judgment.

But the fact that telling lies and saying what we think the listener wants to hear gets us elected to office means that lying is not only here to stay but is an integral part of the process.

Wouldn’t it be refreshing to have a truthful politician?

The odds of that happening are about the same as me winning the Kentucky Derby - without a horse to ride – barefoot – in the rain – at night - blindfolded.

So we are stuck listening to a never ending procession of inane reasons why the economy is the other guys fault.

And that brings me to the current pressing argument about taxes.

For years the Republican Party has been helping the wealthiest people of the country find loopholes in the tax structure as well as pushing for even more tax breaks with every session of Congress.

The argument is a simple one, in more than one way; “The wealthy create jobs and hire people so they must have tax breaks to give them more money with which to do so.”

That and ‘I’ll respect you in the morning’ are probably two of the biggest lies you will ever hear in your lifetime. (For men the latter is probably the biggest lie.)

We are stuck in a vicious cycle that has the wealthy moving farther into the financial stratosphere while the poor and middle class head toward poverty.

But there is still a chance to turn that vicious cycle into a precious one.

America needs this to happen.

We must take the bull by the horns (not the tail) and face the problem.

Here is a fantasy involving a high ranking member of the Republican Party, for ease of use I choose John Boehner talking questions at a news conference after being given a shot of sodium pentothal:

Reporter: Sir, do you feel that the Bush tax cuts should be continued for all Americans?

Boehner: Absolutely.

R: Really?  For every American? Even those making over a million dollars a year?

A rare photo of Boehner
without his signature
orange glow.

B: Of course. (He takes out a card from his pocket and reads.) The wealthy people in this country create jobs and if we keep stealing money from them they won’t have enough left to hire anyone. And the uncertainty of the Obama tax law is killing their incentive. And without knowing how much they will have to pay for the constitutionally illegal Obamacare health insurance policies how can they hire new workers?  The last election gave us a mandate and the people spoke and we heard them and we want to help them.  It is the policies of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid that are stagnating this great nation and the Barney Franks who are trying to turn our wonderful wealthy citizens into demons. They should be lauded as great people who will turn this country around and make it the greatest nation in the world once again and that’s why…

R: EXCUSE ME SIR? Are you okay?

B: What?  Huh?  Of course I am.  What do you mean?  Why do you ask?

R: Well your eyes seemed to glaze over there for a bit and your speech started to slow near the end of your rant.

B: (Confused and sweating profusely) I’m fine.

R: Glad to hear that.  So now I’d like to get back to the issue at hand.  And if you wouldn’t mind I’d like you to answer with just a yes or a no.  Do you think you can handle that?

B: I suppose, I mean yes.

R: First I ask that you put away the cliff notes.

(B places the folded card back in his pocket.  At this point the drug has finally taken hold and the Congressman’s voice becomes monotone.)

R: Thank you.  I’m going to put forth two scenarios. I want you to state which one works better, okay?

B: Yes.

R: First one: We keep the Bush tax cuts going for all, allowing the wealthiest people to continue to keep nearly all their money as they have been doing for the last ten years.  We then hope they will start to spend some on hiring new workers who in turn will use some of their new salary to buy the products that the wealthy business owners produce even though to date they have not done so nor show signs of wanting to do so as yet.  Okay, that’s the first one.  Can you remember that while I tell you the second one?

B: Yes.

R: Instead of giving the wealthy a continued gift we continue the tax cuts only for the lower or middle class worker. In other words people with incomes of say $250K to $300K per year or less.

Going back to the pre-Bush tax rate on the wealthy, an undisputed time of national prosperity, will afford the government enough money to start fixing the nation’s infrastructure, something the Republicans used to feel was important.

The people hired to fill the newly created jobs will suddenly have an income and extra money to spend.

The spending spurs businesses to produce more and in effect allows them to make more profits, hiring more workers to cover the new orders.

The cycle continues as all involved are now making more money and as a result paying more in taxes which in turn will go toward the government’s bottom line.

This then would aid in lowering the National Debt.  And a lower deficit is another supposed pet project of the Republicans.

So in the long run which scenario do you think would work better for the country and every citizen as a whole?

B: The second one.

R: Thank you sir, that’s all.

A loud roar of elation comes from the room as the reporters joyously leave to celebrate an unexpected productive press conference.

Angry McConnell about to
plant one on Boehner.

John Boehner is greeted by Mitch McConnell who promptly punches him squarely in the nose while the rest of the Republican Party members present at their Waterloo yell and shout that he has really screwed things up.

Multi-national corporations go into closed door meetings to decide how to spin the fiasco.

Fox News who understandably switched to a repeat of “The Best of NASCAR” during the press conference gets ready to report that they have evidence of an imposter being planted in a John Boehner costume.

Andrew Breitbart, at the behest of Roger Ailes, is already working on a fake documentary showing the above to be true.

And somewhere an adviser is translating all that just happened into one-syllable words for Sarah Palin.

If It Walks Like a Duck

Time was when the names used to describe things most closely resembled their functions or at least had some basis in reason.
Even pithy names that might at first seem obscure would, upon closer examination become clear such as the so-called 'morning after pill' RU486. (Are you for 86 as in a short order cook's term for, "there ain't no more.")
The automobile is a word that can be broken down into its roots for simple meaning as an automatic machine for mobility.
But today we have gone away from truth in names especially in the wonderful World of the possible aka politics.
Groups such as Americans for Freedom espouse taking that freedom they so love away from people who don't agree with their views, many on religious grounds.
Other groups claim that they only wish to save marriage but they want to do it by sopping others from getting married.  If that particular group wins they may feel their oats and continue down the road toward more radical ideas and ideals.
For all we know they may even look to Shia law!  After all if someone other than yourself can determine who you cannot marry how much of a leap is it to their determining who you can?
Many of these activist groups have one thing in common, they are under the umbrella of the GOP.
And for that reason I believe we must hereby update the name of that grand old party.  I have a few suggestions that will not cause them to have to change their bath towels.  Care to vote for your favorite?

1 - Group Obstructing Progress (Duh)
2 - Gang Opposing Progress (Ditto)
3 - Good On Payback (To their owners)
4 - Gaga Over Palin (I just don't get this!)
5 - Grow Our Paychecks (In it for themselves!)
6 - God Over People (Not! Just pandering to religious fanatics)
7 - Good On Pandering (See above)
8 - Guys On Prozac (Or they should be)
9 - Get Oxy Please (Their boss Rush needs it)
10 - Give Obama Problems (Only till 2016)

The party represented by an elephant has a long memory.
They remember how they scared America to get into office in the past.  They continue to use the same tactics today and why not? You dance with the partner what brung ya!
As for the definitive name for the party of Palin; Grassly; Cheney; McConnell; Boehner etc. I cannot think of a more apropos one than that incorporating one of my favorite Yiddish words:
Group Of Putzes

This Tan Man is Priceless!

According to House Republican leader John Boehner, “… the Democrats refuse to acknowledge the challenges faced by Social Security in coming years.”

This obviously false statement of the facts is a continuing mantra of the ‘Party of No.’

Unfortunately however it is a key part of their as yet unstated legislative agenda.  That agenda is to be revealed some time in September or when they can finally figure out exactly what it is.

Mr. Boehner goes on to repeat another one of the Republicans’ intelligent sounding but brainless sound bite, “It’s time to have an adult discussion about the future of this critical program.”

Hey Johnny we’re all ready for that discussion so why don’t you run along and find some adults for us to speak with!

The Speaker and his party have acted like children ever since losing the Presidency and the majority in Congress.  They seem to place their fingers in their ears and moan and groan about how they cannot get their way while making sure no one else does either.

This controlled controlling tantrum has weighed heavily on the citizens of this country and especially on those who are not considered to be Republican supporters, namely anyone earning less than a quarter of a million dollars per year.

For the party that represents people who do not need nor ever will miss Social Security if it goes away shouldn’t they leave the discussion about saving it to the grown ups?

'IT' Wins for Now

Now that Bill O'Reilly (Billo to normal humans) has gotten his way by getting some brainless criminal follower of his to kill Dr. Tiller the question remains what will this despicable excuse for a life form do with his on air time?

It is obvious that Billo will not quit nor, it seems will the excrement known as the owners of Fox News fire him so what's next?

As we all wait for 'It' (I will now call him "It" with apologies to the Addams family member of the same name) to pick it's next target I wonder if Rush Lamebrain and Newtered Gingrich are vying for his support.

The GOP is not getting it's hands dirty by calling Justice Sotomayor any names as they have their current non-elected henchmen doing their bidding. These bastions of bull-headedness are using terms such as racist to demean her record. Aside from showing their stupidity and desperateness they are wrong but have no one to tell them so. The party leaders love these attacks so there will be no reprimand coming from people such as John BONER anytime soon.

The fact that they are using the nomination of this qualified judge as a rallying cry to their base for more funding is to be expected. The shame of the matter is that they are getting the funding! What does that say about the base? I guess they are baseless!

But back to 'It.' Who to attack next? Hmmm. So many humans, so little air time.