Relief

It is like having a weight lifted off one's shoulders. They will go back to ruining the country. A president re elected based on fear and resentment. The death of print media along with the lack of reading ability among the general public is responsible for this. But like they say, What the Hell.

I am encouraged by the public when it comes to living our lives. So there is something to for which to be grateful.The country is fine. It is the political system and culture that is reeking of stupidity. Most folks think it is a Coke or Pepsi thing in the booth. Not so. Until we stop re electing 98% of congress and the senate, nothing will change. Congress has about a 9% approval rating and is all but certain to be re elected. Explain that. Nobody can.

So it's a typical case of BOHICA. Bend Over Here It Comes AGAIN!  In the words of Lin-chi  the Chinese poet,

In Buddhism there is no place for using effort.
Just be ordinary and nothing special.
Eat your food, move your bowels, pass water,
and when you're tired go and lie down.
The ignorant will laugh at me, but the wise will understand.

Mr. Miller (Barry Goldwater's Campaign manager) left politics and set up a welding shop in New York. When asked why he said taking the millennial view that politics does not matter. It's true. I am a Stoic by temperament so this will sound out of character. It is not.
Peace Out
The Rev.

Orville Gibson's Lament.

Firstly, I am urinated off at the Federal Guvmint due to their raid on the Gibson Guitar company and subsequent shake down for the better part of a million dollars. Not one of those SOB's can produce ANYTHING. Not one of them is a luthier (guitar maker) or an artisan or even a tradesman of any worth. I would be willing to bet that less than one percent of congress would be worth a pile of hyena nuggets when holding a hammer, shovel, wrench, chef's knife or mortar trowel let alone a framing square. In short they have no skills. Never but never trust a man who can't use a shovel. It's like these bastards from Nashville who have never stepped in a pile of manure or shoveled out a stall or been stepped on or been bitten or been chased by a cow protecting her calf wearing a cowboy hat and singing rock. Country music my ass!

All of this is to say that it was nonsense. Also IT SURE GOT THE GUITAR PLAYERS VOTE SEWED UP DIDN'T IT? Well, maybe not so much. I am irritated because this company has had a hard time surviving. Maybe it would be better if they went under, I am not certain about that. Or if they left and moved to Indonesia. Maybe that's the plan.

Next thing. Accusing Mitt of not paying taxes is the same thing as “swift boating” was with John Kerry. It is nonsense. UNLESS IT HELPS BALANCE THE BUDGET, IT DOES NOT MATTER! All of this is nonsense. Not one of them can do math. Not one of them is willing to discuss the government as a percentage of GDP. (Gross Domestic Product if that is too much for anybody.)

I do not care if Mitt paid taxes, I don't care if Obama was born on the damn Moon! If you cannot tell me how that is going to solve the fiscal crisis I am not interested and you are a child or a fan of Hulk Hogan. If anyone thinks this slop is in any way related to solving the country's problems they need a course in logic.

Lyndon Johnson once accused an opponent of having sex with farm animals. One of his aids said, “You know that's not true.” To which Lyndon replied, “I know that. But I want to hear him deny it.” This is funny but it came back to haunt Lyndon when he was hated and reviled. He left office a broken man.

Gay Marriage is between two people not the state. I will say that again. Gay Marriage is between two people and not the state. If we let the federal government decide ANYTHING about marriage they will find a way to set up guide lines for it and eventually decide who does dishes and who takes out the garbage. Jocelyn Elders (former Surgeon General) wanted to teach teen age boys to masturbate. I was against this because sooner or later it would require a license and there would be regulations. I don't care who marries who.

The idea of a bunch of old farts pontificating on birth control for women is INSANE. One look at them an you could see they all needed some action to restore their humanity. None of them would know what to do with a naked woman without consulting an OSHA handbook.

How do you force business men to run successful businesses? How do you force lenders to be responsible in their lending? How do you force them to lend?

The government knows how to pass laws but it cannot sell. It cannot convince. It has no access to the human heart.

The political action committees should have to put the pictures, names and addresses of the board on television. Along with cell numbers. Then they could experience the terror of a possible lynching like the peasants storming the castle of Dr. Frankenstein. It would be fun to see mobs on their front lawn with pitchforks and torches, a hangman's noose in the back ground. It could go on pay per view. They are gutless sunsabitches like cyber bullies.

About the nonsense in Iraq and Afghanistan: nobody sacrificed with the exception of the military. Let me say that again. NOBODY SACRIFICED ANYTHING EXCEPT THE MILITARY. It is a fraud. We should ALL have been taxed to pay for the entire action. Every Dime. Pay as we go. Cash. Today. Also rationing where we had to limit our use of meat, tires, gasoline, and the like.

Instead it is part of the national debt. It contributes to the problem. Too late now, my friend, too late now. We cannot go back and change it.

A big piece of the problem is that the media wants to talk about the past. If anyone reading this thinks he can have a better past, he is a child, not a grown up. This is Big Boy time. Time to put on your Adult Pants and face up to the fact that it is impossible to change the past. We have to fix it. That means we have to make the folks who want to appeal to our emotions aware that it won't work. They do not care what they do to the country. They want power.

I want to see a list of spending cuts from the Democratic National Committee. I also want to see a list of tax increases from the Republican National Committee. I also want to see an Orca tap dancing. Not likely. None of them will even attempt to give real answers because it could result in the end of the world as they know it: not getting reelected. If there is no principle worth getting voted out of office for, why be there?

It is an Oligarchy, friends, and we are not part of it. We are just the great unwashed masses who believe the gruel we are fed. Barack and Mitt are the same guy. Neither one of them has a degree in physics, chemistry, math, language, engineering or any of the hard sciences. I don't think either one has taken a course in rhetoric which is the basis of logic and argument. Yes, I am being a snob here. The truth is neither one of them is fit to carry the book bag of a real scholar. Neither of them could Identify Epictetus, Menelaus or Aeschylus .

This is the best we have to offer? Which one will tell us the real truth? Neither will. Because to do so is to risk certain defeat. Neither will tell us that it is not possible for the president to fix what is wrong. It is congress that bears most of the responsibility for what has gone wrong: they have the power to declare war and they have the power to tax. They have run and hid like frightened children. I sometimes think they want the president to save them too. Congress reflects the electorate. Rep. Steve Latourette said it well when he announced he will not run for office. The parties want your wallet and your conscience.

Harry Truman would not be welcome in today's Democratic Party. Dwight Eisenhower would not be considered by the Republican Party. It is insane.

The time is coming when the markets will say “Enough. The United States of America is a bad bet.” When the Chinese domestic market gets as big as ours they will no longer need us. Then our debt will be less attractive. It cannot continue. We currently have monopoly money. Read Boomerang by Michael Smith. It is about Ireland and empty housing developments. They will never be used. We have become materialists of the first order. We think money is wealth. We think it solves everything. We have “role models”. We refuse to believe the facts that our senses bring us. It is not about congress or the president or the supreme court. It is about what I do. It is about what you do. We elected these folks. No bitching, no complaining. We are responsible for what we leave behind and right now it looks pathetic. Don't blame liberals and conservatives. We are only responsible for what we do. If I listen to sound bites on tv and refuse to read trenchant analysis, whose fault is it if I am taken in? Mine. Not yours, mine.

I am glad I live three hours from the nearest Interstate. I am kind of isolated here in the Four Corners. The folks are nice and the sun shines. The winters are cold and the summer is hot. I know cowboys, truck drivers, college professors, PhD candidates and painters, sculptors, Spanish folks whose families were here in the 1500's Mormons, a Navajo hair dresser, roughnecks homeless guys and millionaires. I really love New Mexico with all its problems and extreme weather, corrupt politicians, good guys and wackos. I seem to fit right in.

T

I am having trouble doing this at home. More later.
The Rev. 

THE SAGA CONTINUES...

It would be wonderful if this writer knew where to begin. We have a guy who was a community organizer and a guy who knows how to bring a return to investors. Both have a very small group to whom they answer. Neither created jobs. Private Equity firms respond to their investors. Nothing wrong with that but it is not about engineering or about invention. Community Organizers respond to folks who think (or mayhap "feel" is a better word) that they have what was once called "the short end of the stick". Again a group who have a limited focus on their aims. Neither group has any idea of the bigger picture. Nor should they.

The political parties are busy pretending that the President will lead us to truth, beauty and salvation. Most of them have not read the constitution. When ever that word comes up folks think of some whacko who believes the BLACK HELICOPTERS ARE IN THE AIR! This stops all rational conversation.

I have come to have a great deal of respect for Tom Coburn from Oklahoma. Even if he is an Okie. So were Woody Guthrie and Will Rogers. He (Coburn) says that in private all the senators know what the solution is on many problems but they are afraid to say it due to not being reelected. Tom is also a Republican who wants the possible. Sounds like Clinton who had the last balanced budget.

Legislation is done in secret. If the bill is long enough it is impossible to determine what is in it. 2,700 pages is too long. It is twice the length of Hillary Clinton's health care bill. The news media colludes in this process by refusing to read the bill front to back. If they are too accurate they will be denied access to officials and access is the mother's milk of television news.

I sometimes think the only way to get the truth out of congress is to water board them all. This should be legal as it is not torture. Even then it would not matter as truth when coerced is incompatible with a democratic republic: it is essential that both sides bargain in good faith. It is about the lack of ethical behaviour in our public life. The truth is relative unless one party punches his opponent in the mouth. Then the truth becomes absolute as the lip begins to swell. It is impossible to have an encounter leading to progress under these conditions. Human relationships are based on an underlying assumption that the other person can and will tell the truth.

We have long since given up teaching civics in school. It is too dangerous. Parents do not want children who can think for themselves: they want clones. They will be angry with any educator who encourages an unbiased inquiry into life and the political system.

We have been told "Be Afraid, be afraid! Be very afraid!! They are coming to get you." The Republicans meant al Quaida and the Democrats meant the Republicans. It is nonsense. I find I cannot have a meaningful conversation with anyone who believes in parties. They are in collusion. 

"A Republic Madam, if you can keep it."  Franklin

It is twilight. No one is going to save us. We must save ourselves but that requires work and honesty. Those two things are scary. We would rather sit in the closet and whine about who will save us.
Peace,
Out

What next?

Here we go again. BHICA, my friends. There is no choice. We have tax and spend and borrow and spend. We can "Reduce the size of the Federal Guvmint" which result in increased state taxes. Or we can create new programs that replicate existing ones and call it "Investment in the Future." The past is gone. I do not care about pranks or teens smoking pot. What plans do the candidates have for addressing the economy is the topic at hand. Specifically. Are willing to fight off the army of lobbyists currently infesting the congress or not? The presidential election means nothing if congress remains the same.
Pray.

My Absence

I have been away for a while
But I hope to be back again soon.
Phil Ochs

There is a rant on youtube that says it better than I can. It is a brother. It is profane but accurate. Here is the link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRmZ9zH-mYM
 Do not go there if you are offended by strong language. DO NOT GO THERE IF YOU GET OFFENDED EASILY!
The point is that the Brother is right.
Leviticus

I have recently taken down my Leviticus Jackson Facebook page. I really miss my grandchildren. Sad.
Part of the reason I've chosen to get rid of the page is the venom that folks seem to feel about the current professional wrestling/political scene. If I am to watch that level of endocrine activity, I choose the novellas of Telemundo. They are more interesting than Univision in my opinion. Better looking women. And not being all that proficient en espanol, I can make as much sense of it as I can the politics/wrestling matches. It is sad to see an entire country taken in by "show business for ugly people". Liberal, conservative, republican, democrat, libertarian, social democrat, centre right, call it what you will it is show business. No charts no numbers. When I ask SPECIFICALLY what the plan is, I get no answers. It is nonsense. We currently have folks destroying the political process for financial gain. Susan Jacoby's book "The Age of American Unreason" should be required reading. We have elected illiterate folks to positions of authority.

There is a very good reason that hard science has fallen into disfavor: it is difficult. 1+2= 3. There is no argument about this. Is it different for Republicans? Is math racist? Is chemistry a plot against minorities? Should logic be a required course in high school where you do not graduate unless you can pass the test? How about being multilingual? How many of the current diplomatic corps in the middle east speak Arabic, Farsi or Hebrew?

The Jerry Springers of the America are in charge of our discourse. I voted in the last municipal election. I will vote in the fall. I will not be a guest on the Maury Povitch Show.

Go with God or Vaya con Dios
Rev. Leviticus Jackson

I will not Swear during this post!

It is truly sad that the Republican field is as dysfunctional as it is. There is none among them to make Obama work harder, to come up with new ideas, to find solutions.

Maybe it is cultural but I've not heard a new idea or a coherent plan from anyone. It reflects who we have become as a people. Dr. Drew wants us all to be afraid and both parties want to tell us that we are helpless and that citizenship doesn't matter.  So we now have a therapeutic excuse. 

They all have the same mindset: SOMEONE WILL SAVE US.  This is untrue. The president does not matter: he cannot fight off the army of special interest groups which will descend upon the capitol like the Black Plague of old. The campaign is a sham. If the congress were functioning correctly there would be less trouble. A 2,700 page health care bill? Please. This is a scam to get opt outs for certain businesses. It is insane. The folks who are against it have no plan to replace it. When ever there is a business whose stock goes up with the prospect of a piece of legislation passing you can be certain that “the fix is in” as they used to say in the boxing world.

The "My way or the Highway" crowd are in charge. During a debate the moderator (from Fox News no less) asked the following question of all the candidates.

"Would you accept a $1 in tax increase if it were tied to a $10 reduction in spending? Please raise your hand if you would." Not one candidate raised his hand. Not one. That tells me they are disingenuous. Meretricious. If that is truly the case we have a "Confederacy of Dunces". None of them are serious.  Give me a 10 to 1 deal and I will take it all day long every day. So would you. It would lead to a balanced budget.

Abortion is a medical issue and not a legal one. Women in that kind of trouble need my prayers not some Modern Day Elmer Gantry in a court telling the God hates them. Birth Care is anti abortion but their attitude is "We will help you. You want to adopt the baby, we will help. You want to keep the baby, we have diapers and formula and doctors and anything else you need. We will find it." In other words they are trying to find a good option for one of God's Children who are having trouble. Putting their money where their mouth is. You will not see them in the headlines because they are too busy finding diapers and doctors and cribs and child care and pre-natal care. Not one of those SOBs on stage is doing anything like that. It would be much more in the national interest to address the number of children being raised in single parent homes. Statistically a child raised in a two parent home has a much better chance in life than one raised without two parents. There is no debate about this but none of the politicians are willing to tackle this because the phrase “single mom” raises sympathy. Children do better with two parents. The math does not lie. Policy has driven the black male out of the home in the 1950's. It leads to poverty and instability. There are a large number of women who view men as a way to become mom and nothing else. This is not directly about money but there are financial implications for the children. This is now commonplace in the white community as well.

The ones who want to tell me that they are successful business men should be out there creating jobs, not running for office. Doing something useful, not getting press coverage and spouting platitudes. Government is NOT business. In the corporate world it is possible to hire and fire and thereby change the culture. Not so in government: the opposition got elected too. The president cannot fire the congress or even part of it. Government is inherently inefficient. Do not expect public policy to be run based on efficiency. It is driven by the prospect of defeat in the next election. The one exception is safety forces: we want the fireman to run into the burning building. We want the paramedic to staunch the flow of blood. We do not want a position paper from any of those folks.

Gay marriage is none of my business. Or any libertarian's. Or any liberal's. Who booty bumps who is of no import on the national scene. Provided it is consensual. The only endocrine system I am concerned with is my own. No body talks anyone into being gay. It is of little importance in politics. Time to stop the fear and resentment.

No one will address earmarks. This is because earmarks are directly connected to campaign contributions. The government has been purchased by the insurance industry, the oil industry, the aircraft industry and the health care industry. No body goes home anymore after their term in office is over. Harry Truman was the last real man in American Politics. JFK might have turned into one but he didn't have the chance. Same with his brother.

The truth is the pressure groups are in charge. Reporters HATE Iowa because they have to talk to actual human beings who do not share the bi-coastal attitude of the media. They show their contempt by griping about snow! “My God! I am forced to walk in the snow! This is outrageous!” The media have their own agenda, most of it to do with selling air time. They are no better. The Ratigan rant I sent you is accurate.

There is no sense of civic responsibility anymore. Cable news is a cancer on the body politic. It will spread. None of us believe in our leaders anymore. Donald Trump is in charge. He is an idiot. Citizenship is not taught in the schools or home. We are or should be better than this.

If you believe in Republicans and Democrats become a fan of the National Football League. This is what the parties have become. Time to take the Big Boy Pill and face up to the facts.

Pray for the Republic. Lincoln is dead. Only Divine Intervention will help