February 3, 2026

Biden did NOT "put us in a deep hole"!!!

Post pandemic inflation was world-wide, and the USA under President Joe Biden fared better than other industrial nations. The Economist magazine (not a liberal publication) in 2024 called the American economy "the envy of the world."

Republican strategy has long ben to repeat a lie over and over and over again, until it becomes commonly accepted. When Democrats try to debunk the lie, we are playing defense -- which is where they want us. It's the same thing with accusations, like blowing smoke with all the Benghazi hearings. The public concludes where there's smoke, there must be fire.

I thought one of the biggest mistakes of the 2024 Biden then Harris campaign was not touting vigorously enough all the achievements of the Biden administration -- especially the economy, which Trump over and over and over again asserted was a complete disaster.

Of course, tens of millions of voters who still struggle from paycheck to paycheck don't react well to being told everything is hunky dory with the economy.

Democratic politicians make a lot of promises they fail to keep -- primarily because Republicans obstruct legislation that would actually help Americans struggling to make ends meet.

Logically, does it make sense for low income folks, kept poor primarily by Republican policies, to vote Republican?

And yet they do -- and not just because of bigotry and culture wars. Republicans are more successful than Democrats at hammering home narratives that become widely accepted, despite the Republican narratives being false.

The M$M, ostensibly in their effort to be "fair and balanced," promotes a false "both sides" framework which essentially gives equal weight to truth and lies. Trump's mendacity and grift have become normalized, while Democrats have to play by a different set of rules.

And the rightwing noise machine is getting louder as billionaires who curry favor with Trump are acquiring more and more of the conglomerated media landscape.

About the only thing we Democrats have in our favor are the extremities of Mad King Donald's unconstitutional, corrupt, cruel, regime -- such as the brutal ICE invasion of our cities and the unmistakable signs that his feckless tariffs and incompetent handling of our economy is hurting even his own voters in the pocketbook. Added to that are his insane impulses in world affairs which are alienating our allies & trade partners, and the continuing saga of the Epstein files which is only getting worse.

Who knows WHAT will happen next, between now and the November midterms?

Our Democratic leaders have a real opportunity here, so they (and WE) better not blow it. The fate of our Constitutional democracy hangs in the balance.

January 26, 2026

Alex Pretti's gun did not protect him from a tyrannical government

It gave agents of that government an excuse to murder him.

It was NOT a legitimate excuse. It WAS murder. Mr. Pretti had every legal right to carry his firearm, and at no time during the incident was that gun in his hand.

In my opinion, Charlie Kirk was wrong about the 2nd Amendment. Gun advocates conveniently ignore the first part of 2A, which provides the reason for it: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State,"

Are individual gun owners today members of a well regulated militia? 2A was written during a time when the US didn't have much of a standing army; England was still a threat (the War of 1812 had not yet occurred); and America west of the Atlantic seaboard was still a dangerous frontier.

I believe the 2nd Amendment is an anachronism, and needs serious revision. I don't advocate abolishing all personal ownership of firearms, but the daily carnage of crime and the mass shootings of innocents make it perfectly clear that current regulations are tragically insufficient to protect life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Charlie Kirk was not defending our rights; he was an advocate for heavily armed "militia" hate groups that reject democracy which produces policies they don't like -- such as civil liberties for racial and gender minorities.

Although very dangerous and capable of slaughter, could these organized hate groups defeat the US military?

Could we?

Keep in mind that Donald Trump is itching to use the Insurrection Act and impose martial law, especially as the midterm elections draw near. Does anyone here doubt for one second he would sieze ballots under the guise of "election integrity," or cancel elections altogether?

The mission of the ICE thugs unleashed in our cities goes beyond deporting immigrants. They not only want to intimidate citizens who resist; they WANT TO PROVOKE VIOLENCE to give Trump an excuse to impose martial law and bring the might of the US military into our cities.

We cannot save our democracy by arming ourselves, girding for battle. That impulse is understandable, given the outrage we all feel and the genuine threat to the republic Benjamin Franklin said we have -- if we can keep it. Nor is a handgun on our person, intended solely for self defense, useful against multiple heavily armed ICE thugs.

We can only save our Constitutional democracy by organizing and participating in greater numbers in PEACEFUL protest, and perhaps getting in some GOOD TROUBLE of the kind John Louis and MLK did when they showed us the way with their sustained campaign of nonviolent resistance.

Many of them were beaten, and some killed. They were willing to sacrifice for a greater cause. How many more would have been killed if they brought weapons to do battle with police and armed forces?

More to the point, would a violent movement have moved the hearts and minds of the general public and their elected representatives sufficiently to pass historic civil rights and voting rights legislation?

I think not. Now we, like them, live in perilous times. The eyes of history are upon us, with much at stake. We grieve for those who sacrificed so much, as Renee Good and Alex Pretti did. Let us take that grief and turn it into courage, resolve, and the discipline to resist this fascist regime and to resist its attempts to provoke us into violence which can only hurt our cause and end in greater tragedy.

January 25, 2026

What were those mistakes, in terms of convincing Trump voters that Democrats better serve their interests?

IMO the biggest mistake was Biden deciding to run for a 2nd term, at the end of which he would be 86 years old. When he finally dropped out of the campaign after the disastrous June debate exposed his decline it was too late to hold a primary, so a candidate who was not nominated by the voters and had very little appeal to independents had a limited time to mount a successful campaign.

The Harris campaign was also hampered by the lose-lose situation in Gaza. Witholding US military support for Israel would have run afoul of the powerful AIPAC lobby, and given ammo to our political opponents who would have screamed antisemitism and siding with terrorists. Instead, large swaths of Muslim citizens voted for Trump and millions of young people refused to vote for Harris.

But I suspect those aren't the mistakes to which you refer, so I'd like to understand what you think were the biggest mistakes by the Democratic Party which led to Trump’s reelection.

I think one of them was Biden's perceived weakness (and by extension Kamala's) on our southern border. Building a wall would be stupid and ineffective, but they could have made a very public effort to beef up security in preventing illegal crossings. They also could have bolstered their law & order creds by providing more resources and fed cooperation with states and cities in taking down drug cartels & gangs.

But as for the anti-woke cultural war, what could or should the Democratic Party have done differently?

I will not support any candidate who advocates moving backwards on civil rights for People of Color and the LGBTQ community, or who would dismantle the wall between church and state. Or who backtracks on environmental protection and measures to avoid catastrophic climate change.

I think support for Trump and Republicans -- who do not serve the well being of their voters -- is to a large extent manufactured misperceptions by decades of false narratives in widespread rightwing media which is being further consolidated with billionaires purchasing multiple platforms.

I will not dispute that Democrats need more unified and better messaging, but we're up against a huge propaganda machine that keeps getting bigger.

We can certainly use a new charismatic national leader with even broader appeal than Barack Obama.

I'm interested in your thoughts on what the Democratic Party should do differently. I believe Trump is certainly handing us an opportunity, but we also need a positive message backed up with practical solutions in order to gain a lasting majority.

January 14, 2026

"militarized policing practices"

Are these militarized agents actually "policing" -- a term that carries the imprimatur of upholding and enforcing the law?

Their "practices" might accurately be called policing if they were apprehending and deporting undocumented immigrants with no legal status by utilizing judicial warrants and Constitutional due process.

In some cases they might have warrants, but they have been videotaped busting into people's cars and homes without first showing warrants, as required by law. They are also arresting and deporting without due process immigrants who have legal status, sometimes at scheduled court appearances in their lawful course to become citizens.

Beyond that, they are racially profiling people just going about their daily lives -- often brutalizing US citizens. From Trump to Noem and down the chain of command, part of their mission now is to intimidate and instill fear in American citizens engaged in their rights of free speech and protest in opposition to the cruel and illegal "practices" terrorizing their communities.

DHS and ICE have become a political arm and private army serving the interests of an utterly corrupt president using the powers of his office to enrich himself and his cronies while punishing political opponents and any organization which doesn't adequately bend its knee -- utilizing the Justice Dept and FBI headed by those he appointed to do his bidding.

In a larger sense, the "policing practices" most needed to safeguard the American people and the Constitutional rule of law upon which our freedom and prosperity depends would be to remove this lawless president by Constitutional means and bring indictments against those who have committed crimes in his behalf.

January 14, 2026

The "Shining City on a Hill" has never been fully achieved, but...

So many of us believed the United States of America would continue striving for that Shining City, building a "more perfect" Union.

Being a white male born in 1957, I grew up without realizing or acknowledging the opportunity and privilege I had that others did not -- especially those facing racial discrimination who were essentially being denied the American Dream.

Unlike many in my all-white neighborhood, my parents and elderly aunt who lived with us cared deeply about civil rights. I have a vivid memory of coming downstairs one April morning to find Aunt Kate weeping. She had turned on the news, and heard that Dr. King had been murdered. When I went to school that day, my "peers" were celebrating. Their parents had different views than mine.

America has always been subject to the ugly side of human nature -- ignorance, racism, tribalism, unfettered greed at the highest levels of capitalism, and an electoral system corrupted by monied interests.

I saw the promise of a young generation inspired to do what they can for their country squandered on the scorched earth of Vietnam. Then more assassinations, riots, nihilism, drugs, hedonism, selfishness.

But still, progress. Racial slurs and overt sexist remarks directed at women no longer tolerated in many spheres. LGBTQ rights, the first Black president.

The arc of the moral universe is long, but perhaps it steadily bends towards justice. Of course, dedication and persistence among women and men of good will are required to do the bending.

Abraham Lincoln, perhaps our greatest president, during a cataclysmic war tearing our nation apart, in dedicating a cemetery for the fallen, spoke of the last true measure of devotion which would bring new birth of freedom.

Americans once again are experiencing some very dark days, with no clear view of the light of a better future.

Nothing is guaranteed. Arc bending is required. That shining city still resides in many hearts. It is up to us and younger generations of Americans to build it.

January 13, 2026

The proven effectiveness of Dr. King's method cannot be denied

The movement he led would not have succeeded in bending the long arc of the moral universe as far as it did if it had become violent in any way. The hearts and minds of millions of people uninvolved with the movement, who previously had tolerated the injustice of racial discrimination because it did not directly affect them, were moved by the news and images of peaceful human beings brutalized simply for standing up for the Constitutional rights which are supposed to be the birthright of every American citizen.

If the marchers had instead met violence with violence, the narrative of the oppressive authorities would have gained more traction in the court of public opinion. Most Americans want law and order, and want nothing to do with violent rioters.

This is why The Felon and his goons want to provoke violent reactions, and precisely why we must not give it to them. Not only must we refrain from physical violence, we should keep our cool and refrain from verbally abusing those sent to confront us. Vitriol and profanity might be a justifiable reaction and a natural release of the outrage we feel, but it can hurt rather than help our just cause.

Such discipline is not easy to attain -- but it can be found in a place that great leaders refer to as the Higher Ground.

January 12, 2026

HELL NO

How is Mad King Donald going to "protect" the people in Iran -- by staging multiple abductions of their rulers, or dropping bombs? Iran ain't Venezuela, not by a long shot.

Hell, he wanted to shoot protesters here at home during his first term, and now he's sending armed thugs to our communities to brutalize anyone who gets in their way. He wants to provoke more violence so he can declare martial law, then unleash the military to use US cities as "training grounds."

The orange megalomaniac does not give a damn about human beings in Iran, or anywhere -- especially Muslims in "shithole" countries. This psychopath gets off using his "Dept of War" like an angry toddler lashing out when he didn't get his binky.

The tyrannical mullahs in Iran probably want "The Great Satan" to invade, because nothing unites a country like a hated foreign enemy.

In times of war or national emergency, forget about trials and sentencing to death -- just slaughter them in the streets for committing "treason" -- the same thing Trump wants to do against you, me, and everyone who resists this fascist regime.

January 3, 2026

The technologies worry me. Billionaire techbros have sided with The Felon

Not because they like him, but because he makes them even richer and they might ultimately gain real power in an authoritarian state which depends on AI & deep fakes to control an expanding media sphere that displaces honest journalism with a manufactured reality that will shrink the resistance and pacify the masses.

What was the REAL goal of DOGE? It didn't save the government much money, if any at all. But it did wreck government agencies which were an institutional barrier to executive power. Perhaps more importantly, Musk’s hackers siezed data bases which had been protected and siloed, obtaining personal data on nearly all Americans. That kind of information wielded by tech billionaires allied with a fascist regime provides an edge that historical empires did not have.

The point at which an Orwellian dystopia can be prevented might be close at hand. The Felon is demented and incompetent, but the powers behind him are not.

I hope I'm overstating this frightening scenario, and the free world has enough resilience to overcome this 21st century authoritarianism. If the future is still in our hands, we better not let it slip away.

December 31, 2025

To HELL with the "2028 Race" beginning nearly 3 years before the election

This political speculation is a symptom of the dysfunction in our democracy, focusing on contenders in a reality show contest. It's a distraction from the vital work that needs to be done NOW.

I love this quote widely attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt:

So much can happen before 2028. Let's first discuss IDEAS about how to save our democracy, then work to make it happen. Leaders will emerge by what they do and say to inspire people into taking action.

Any politician whose primary focus is on getting elected president at this point is focused more on his or her own career than on The People they are supposed to serve.

Even if all the focus on the next president is not coming from potential candidates but from media talking heads and rank & file voters themselves, then the same applies -- it distracts focus and energy away from the crucial struggle we face TODAY.

December 26, 2025

Trump's absurdity and crass mendacity are obvious without emulation

Except perhaps to the ignorant fools who vote for him.

Newsom or any other strong Democrat should be able to successfully attack Trump without acting like him.

I know what Gavin is doing here, and it may be a politically smart strategy for winning the Democratic presidential primary in 2028. The first requirement is having widespread name recognition. In this age of internet memes and social media, his trolling of Trump is garnering a ton of views and likes -- no doubt more than JB Pritzger, whose sober statements are powerful but not nearly as entertaining.

Newsom probably won't emulate Trump if elected, but neither will he abandon satirical use of social media. And perhaps it would be politically unwise to abandon that tool, even as president.

And perhaps I'm an old fuddy duddy who laments the years when the presidency carried with it expectations of decorum and dignity. I am certainly disgusted by the lack of it, and truly hope our next president will go a long way towards restoring it.

In any event, in the 2028 primary my first criteria in a candidate will be likelihood of victory in the general election, followed by character and policy.