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

I'M A GRAMPA!

I will actually edit this blog. No more typos. Or is it "typoes"? All that being said, on to the topic.

Newt has announced he will no longer be the pit bull we all had assumed because in his words "I have become a grandfather".  This is unbelievable. I could offer some help in this area. Consider the following options.

"I was wrong and behaved disgustingly. I can only ask the forgiveness of those I harmed."

"I have no excuses. I acted badly and let my passions run my life. I have been trying to do better."

I would even go for "I humbly submit that I did nothing to the general public with my private conduct. I harmed and offended the people who were close to me. You are not the offended party. Get a life. I cannot change the past but I can make every effort to treat those in my life better. An apology to the public does nothing to ease the pain that I caused my ex-wife. I hope for her forgiveness."

"As for my lobbying efforts I must admit that this was venal and materialistic on my part. There is no excuse. It was about avarice and my ego. I will try to do better in the future. These people are vermin who attempt to influence Federal Expenditures  and regulations for private gain. They are in large part responsible for the financial crisis in which we currently find ourselves. The founding fathers had no use for them. I am ashamed of myself as I have a PhD. in history and am aware of this. My second initiative if elected President will be to make any contact by a former elected official with a sitting member of congress a felony with a mandatory minimum sentence of being water boarded like he was a member of al Quaida."

I would vote for the bastard myself if only to hear the screams.

I'm a grandfather? This is an indictment of what we call a campaign.


The truly sad part of all this is that competition is supposed to bring out the best in us. The opposition forces me to do better than my best and the country benefits. "I am a grandfather?" Surely you can do better. America deserves better. America deserves accountability. I believe in accountability. Does that make me a Republican? Could you imagine our real cowboy president Teddy Roosevelt saying "I'm a grandfather."? On the other hand he did things like place himself in physical danger. He was the real deal.

As for becoming a Roman Catholic I have only one piece of advice. If you shake hands with a bishop wash them ASAP. I mean if you have read the papers in the past few years...

More later.       

CHILDREN AT MSNBC

OK, Ms. Coulter call Sen. McCain a "Douchebag". On MSNBC. This should be the time when they lose all their sponsors. This is what we do not need. It is fun but it leads to the political dynamic we currently enjoy. There is no question that she would not have used that kind of political language were he there. Carlin was on the Tonight show with Ms. Coulter and there was no explosion. He explained it this way. "It was Leno's House.  I have no desire to disrespect Jay." There are no adults in the media.
I must say in this regard I believe the HELLS ANGELS subscribe to the theory that a punch in the mouth is the best response to person insults or name calling. There are probably a couple of folks who would give Ms. Coulter a "Tune Up". I say it should be on pay per view. I would watch. This is not about her political ideas as she has none. It is about the Republican ideal of Accountability. My Republican Hero Teddy Roosevelt threatened to take another legislator outside and educate him. Harry Truman My Democratic Hero threatened a critic thusly.  "I'm gonna kick his nuts off!". This was in response to what Mr. Truman regarded as unfair criticism of his daughter's piano playing. It was personal.
I want her to throw down with Ms. Clinton after Ms. Clinton had a couple of shots of Dark Eyes or Jim Beam. Again, I would PAY good money to see it.

The way I see it, we need self control in our political life. She does a disservice to the nation. We need adults.