immigration

In Three Sentences…or Less

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It’s a sleepless night caused by our new Trumpistic (sic) societal norms. And surgical recovery. And wonderful, open-windows weather in upstate NY.

Our leader’s insecurity is on full display with the new Wall Street Journal lawsuit. Sticks and stones will break his bones but words…will hurt his ego. Sue the bastiges.**

ICE and DHS (google them) are over their annual budget already. Wondering about waste, fraud, and abuse? Me, too, DOGE..

Closing the border and deportation are two different things. Success at the border, then disaster using “worst of the worst, only” deportation. What?

It’s funny DHS and ICE agents want to protect their identities. As they surround and detain illegal immigrants, who is the “worst of the worst”, then? Maybe ICE should call ahead and tell their targets to mask-up as well, just to be fair.

Incongruity and hypocrisy are highlighted when illegal immigrants are rounded up from American businesses that then have to close because the businesses can’t find workers. Raise your hand if you think this is the first time America has taken advantage of “foreign labor” to make a profit. In a few years, if not already, you may not be able to learn about slavery, sweatshops, and rich men taking advantage of entire classes of foreign people as we Make America Great Again.

The Texas Hill Country Tragedy does not need to be politicized, it came with the rain. Years of denials about warning systems by elected officials are public record as they say “on record” they don’t want to “hear sirens in the middle of the night” or take “Biden Money”. Texas is a blueprint for our future if we allow it.

You hear a lot about common sense from politicians. So, if DOGE fires/lays off workers from national weather services and disaster warning agencies, what is it called if disaster strikes the very areas that need those services and agencies more than ever? I can think of a word.

A politician in North Carolina ran on a platform of de-regulation and was elected. When a family member got seriously hurt during an “unregulated” recreational activity, that same politician filed a bill to regulate it. Now that’s common sense, except for the timing.

A lot is made of Trump, chaos theory, and his ability to play “four-dimensional chess”. It’s time to realize he is in over his head and bouncing from crisis to crisis, winging it. Since he can’t be re-elected, it’s hard to understand since he doesn’t have to make anyone happy, anymore, but himself.

Common sense and Epstein. Before you make any assumptions, read all the records publicly available, including the 2008 “special” deal made by a Geroge Bush appointed Republican Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, who was then appointed Secretary of Labor in Trump’s first term. Maybe MAGA is finally right about something.

When you’re in recovery from surgery, with a drug protocol full of painkillers and anti-somethings, it’s best not to think too much with the free time you spend sitting around “recovering”. This is the third post written during recovery and my sense of humor has “left the building”.

Whether that’s Trump’s fault or mine, I hope it comes back. Humor is all we have left. Enjoy it when you find it.

** See a Michael Keaton movie from 1984 for translation. And humor.

Really, Really Odd Things

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Diversity. Equity. Inclusion. How has one person been able to turn those words from the perfect definition of America into a litmus test for personal loyalty? DEI is the cornerstone of America. Think who originally lived here until we stole their land, moved them to reservations, and decided their culture was not good enough to be “included” in The New World. Manifest Destiny. Google it, young people. It is White Supremacy chronicled and defined.

Let’s think about a couple things:

1.What if the Native Americans (NA) had banned DEI in their own societies and forbid the intrusion of the WASPs(White Anglo-Saxon Protestants) who landed on the NA coast? What if NAs had been able to resist the WASPs, even deport them back to their “home” countries?**

2. What if the WASPS, once they took control of North America, had enforced strict no-DEI laws thereafter? No Polish. No Italians. No Irish. No Catholics. No Jews. No Hispanics. (New Mexico, Arizona, California, and parts of Texas would have to be “ethnically cleansed to get rid of “those people”. Where would America send them?) Understandably, native Africans would still be allowed. (Yes, sarcasm, unfortunately about a serious issue.)

When DEI is discussed now. it is about a xenophobic power issue: we want nothing but white people in charge, making decisions, controlling things. Thank, God the DEI deniers have decided to let people from all Western Civilizations to join in the select group. Poles, Italians, Irish, Catholics, some South Africans, you’re back in, guys. One can only imagine (again??) what sports would look like if we had historically denied DEI. I’ll leave that to your own thoughts, especially if any of your favorite players or members of your fantasy teams would be on a DEI “list” of some sort. DEI is also an instigator in music, food, and cultural activities we all enjoy. Piñata, anyone? Tango? Mardi Gras? Sweat lodges (saunas, now)? Modern Agriculture?

The new administration wants MERIT to be the deciding factor in American Life. Dictionary definition: “the quality of being particularly good or worthy, especially so as to deserve praise or reward.” I was going to skewer the current administration’s lack of using merit until I realized, just now, just here, that “Blind Loyally” is now a job skill! My bad for forgetting to include it in the list of traits needed to manage large Departments of the American Government, or positions of power in the same government. I’ve sadly lost legal standing to criticize Trump placing family members, news sycophants, and other loyalists in any positions he could. I’m sure our new FBI chief, for example, is up the job of doing what he is told to do. And who is a better, merit-based pick for head of the world’s greatest Army, Air Force, and Navy but a former news talking head who…who am I kidding. Nepotism? Affirmative Action? WTF.

We should all understand DEI is dead, and merit has been redefined as anything the hirer wants it to be. We’ll Make America Great Again any way we can, goshdarn it.

Last thought found accidentally by dictionary hopping; The Latin word for God is DEI. Are we denying God by denying DEI? Probably, but only if you are a splitting-hairs-type person who despises the application of DEI in America. As with most wonderfully romantic ideals of our nation, the problem is not DEI, but the political process of DEI. That might let DEI deniers off the “afterlife judgement” hook, but it really doesn’t. Modern American DEI (MAD, get the humor?), needs to reformed and enforced, not vilified and denied. Same for welfare, Medicaid, and other social support groups. Enhance them, reform, them, but do not eliminate them.

Posting needs to be reformed and enhanced, too. This type of polemic would need to be hundreds of pages long to reveal, research, discuss and settle the nuances of any subject. It’s hard to make that readable, let alone humorous.

So you just need to think about things…for now.

** Wonder if Native Americans ever thought of a wall…

Random Facts That Might Be True

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“Poverty exists not because we cannot feed the poor, but because we cannot satisfy the rich.” This Facebook post makes an unverifiable statement. We can’t say if it’s true or not, but here are some numbers. Hopefully, all of them are true, or at least close to true, which is the best we can hope for these days. FYI: if they are true, it is actually the worst we should hope for, and we should do something about it. All numbers are from Google AI. In 2023, 36.9 million Americans live below the poverty line of $32,150 in income per year…FOR A FAMILY OF FOUR. $15,060 for an individual. (Of note, these people do not pay taxes so a “Tax Break” will not help them. Period.) If the reported $22,000,000,000,000 (trillion) of American-held wealth was divided evenly across 335 million Americans, each PERSON would get $60,000, and a family of four (4) $240,000. The ten richest Americans net worth increased by $365,000,000,000 (billion) last year alone. Poverty is more complicated than just money, but—come on—can we fix things or not? We’re Americans, for God’s sake, who pay Quarterbacks, Pitchers, Hoopers, and Porn Stars billions per year. Amen.

Donald Trunp recently “ambushed” the South African president with videos and pictures of atrocities “confirming” White Genocide in South Africa. Most of the “proof” Trump showed was from other countries and other times in Africa, but this isn’t about untruths. He used those untruths, however, to suspend his immigration rules to allow about 50 white South African farmers and their families—who feared for their lives–to legally emigrate(sic) to America. It is estimated 250 Palestinians die each day from activities in Gaza. Their immigration is restricted. Being the leader of the free world is a complex and thankless job.

Months ago, I posted about Quantum Entanglement (QE). If you don’t remember, go back or look it up on google. The Chinese recently proved the communication value of QE by having two particles communicate instantly over 1,000 miles. Instantly. Without any provable connection or equipment except monitors. Boom, goes the mind. Powerless, clean, faster-than-light communication.

And don’t get me started on hydrogen power…yet.

Animals and humans are threatened by climate change all over the world, but Penguins aren’t sitting around moaning about it, they are doing something positive: pooping. It seems (sic) scientists in the Antarctic studying Penguins, noticed when the wind shifted and blew aromas from the Penguin Poop Field (PPF) over the research facility, the weather changed. It is a large PPF. Keep in mind the change was noticed by very sensitive scientific equipment, not necessarily the scientists’ noses. Research revealed the Penguin Poop contains ammonia that binds with moisture in the air to form clouds. The clouds then block the sun’s rays from doing most of the things the sun’s rays do to humans. And penguins. In an entire life of watching and admiring adorable Penguins, never once did I consider they defecated. Or urinated. Or fornicated. They were always so adorable they were just stuffed animals, living forever on ice floes, dancing with their Happy Feet in sartorially splendid butler costumes. Now, they may save the world. Go Skipper!**

Back to immigration. It has been a known and researched problem since the dawn of America, with no comprehensive, bi-partisan solutions in sight. For younger people and those who do not read history, in 2013 the United States Senate was tired of the lack of resolution of the issue and its never-ending problems. The Senate organized a bi-partisan committee—called the Gang of Eight—to draft a solution, once and for all, John McCain, Charles Schumer, Lindsey Graham, and Marco Rubio (Yes, the Trump punching bag/loyalist) were notable participants. Their well-thought-out and debated draft legislation was the best 8 different political individuals could do and the Bill was passed by the Senate. America was halfway to a final reckoning with immigration reform, instead of “kicking the can down the road.” It failed in the House of Representatives, and we went back to each president doing it their own way. Obama, Trump, Biden, and Trump, again. Be human for a minute and imagine how this effected and affected a foreigner who wanted to emigrate (not immigrate) to the United States.

Our weather broke, yesterday and Spring arrived with an explosion of green and sunshine after 7 straight days of gray, rainy, cool weather. Mother Nature must have had second thoughts, so she corrected Herself by shoving dark, stormy clouds into our area for one last reminder of who is The Boss. I filmed a video of the sky with darkness, sideways rain and sleet on one side of the sky, with sunshine and blue sky on the other. Awesome!

** Google him

Does it really need to be said?

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The LR (locker Room) boys were at it again, this past week. (Side note: if anybody reading this is from one of the two locker rooms I frequent, think before you get upset.) The arguments for and against whatever was being discussed (and the offered solutions) all percolated around a central theme: NIMBY, with a touch of GMGA.

NIMBY is “Not In My Back Yard”, and from past essays, GMGA is “Got Mine Go Away”, the process where once someone escapes poverty, or homelessness, or drug addiction, or has an abortion, the same person does little to help anyone else do the same, and even (See: Mark Robinson, 2024 candidate for NC Governor and Justice Thomas) wants to prevent anyone in the same position from getting the same help. Also known as “Ladder Pullers.

Every solution by our group was centered on removing the topical issue from our neighbor hoods, or from our minds. For example, homeless were collected and “removed” to some other locale. Criminals were put in jail for long stretches of time, assuming the time was long enough to rehabilitate them. There was another more vigilantistic (sic) solution, but it was offered more with frustration than actual intent.

Immigration is a perfect example of small, local conversations lacking the power to reach anything but a small, local solution. In a “Tales of Wells Fargo” western starring Dale Robertson, Wells Fargo Agent, he was dispatched to El Paso, Texas, to investigate gun-running by Mexican Bandits illegally crossing the Texas-Mexican border. Crates supposed to be full of shovels for Mexican farmers were really full of standard issue US Army carbines. That’s a TV show from 1957, dealing with southern border problems in 1870’s. THE 1870’s, capitalized for emphasis.

Crime in NY City? Especially post-Giuliani? Watch the 2002 Oscar Winning Movie, “The Gangs of New York” and wonder how much safer or unsafer (sic) NY City is today, compared to 1860. And in the 1960s when the FBI cracked down on NYC organized Crime families, the families moved upstate where the FBI captured many Family Members running through hay fields in Appalachin, NY.

Homelessness, and the poor, are not new to the American Problem Pile, either. But can you solve a national problem by busing the homeless from one state to another?

Health care. There are people who move from state to state to find affordable, decent health care. As a Financial Planner, I saw several foreign born clients leave America entirely, and move back to their original European countries for the free Long Term Care help, something NOT offered in America’s capitalistic Healthcare system. Boy, wait until the United State’s Long Term Care Crisis hits…

These issues need strong, central, deliberative and fair government to reach comprehensive, effective, and lasting solutions. The problems can only be solved from the top down, with the unicornish (sic) “everyone” participating. Even then…

As recently as 2013, The Gang Of Eight (a bi-partisan group of four Republican and 4 Democrat senators) designed a comprehensive bill to fix immigration. It passed the Senate with vote of 68-32 (54 D’s and 14 Rs voted yes) and was killed in a Republican House Committee, never even coming up for vote. Why?

No current politician, or Political Party, NONE, have the will to solve America’s problems. And if the politicians don’t care, why should we?

And what about world-wide problems like pollution and climate change? Can me and my locker room buddies solve those, too?

Yes, but the first step? STOP being Democrat or Republican. Now.