The Political Facts of Life

The Mc Laughlin group covered three topics, but the one that got Mort Zuckerman the most upset was the idea of a nationwide popular initiative on an issue.  To me this is an excellent way to bypass the gridlock we see in “Washington” namely Congress.  There are no filibusters or House speakers refusing to bring issues up for a vote of the full assembly.  Pat Buchannon is more progressive on this issue, and the majority of states seem to regard the Statewide Initiative as American as apple pie.  Thom Hartman this morning raised an even more important reason why we democrats should be championing the ballot initiative.  In the first place when put to a straight vote most Americans will support things like gun control or a minim wage increase to $10.10 an hour.  But the Republicans have found the secret to getting their people VOTING on election day is to put some social measure that probably won't pass like personhood for fetuses, or an constitutional amendment mandating mrayer in school, or a nation wide amendment barring gay couples from marying- that probably won't pass (particularly now) but the people will be in the voting booth voting for whatever yahoo congressman or judge that ARE Republican.  So this is just what we democrats need to do is to pick any issue- - medical marijuana or amnesty for Edward Snowden- - you don't even have to agree with it, but it will get our side out there voting on election day, and will help elect democratic congressman and governors, who have become all important nowadays.

   There was the usual doom and gloom segment on the economy where some new survey says things will be horrible for the next ten years, at least, with a growth rate in the GNP of only 1.6%.   Now the latest “crisis” is the coming exit of the baby boomers from the work force.  There was some babbeling about “productivity” being down, but with robots replacing humans, it’s quite apparent that just the opposite is true.  Business as a whole has never been more "productive" or "efficient".   The Republicans are living in a panacia and one of these days (when their time has come and gone) they'll look back and realize that 2014 was one of their best years.  I have become "educated" to the fact that it's the belief among Republicans that "They can get President Obama to the table' and negotiate bills if both the Senate and House pass a bill they can agree on.  No doubt they are hoping the President will sign off on this Trans-Canada pipeline to Texas, which they have bee doing a full court press on these past five or so years desperately to get passed.  A who is to say they aren't absolutely right?  After all the President has never come out AGAINST the pipeline but has always waffled on the subject.  He has always hidden behind technicalities.  As you know after 1998 President Clinton did a whole scale cave-in on financial deregulation, and it's quite likely President Obama now will do the same thing on energy production and call it a victory.  (Selah)  But on the matter of the US economy what the Republicans are REALLY worried about is that all of these retiring workers will drive DOWN the unemployment rate - - just as the deficet and gasoline prices have been plummeting.  If you will note- - every speech on the economy by republicans- - if followed would raise unemployment.  This is why they went after the part time worker thing of people leaving full time jobs to get an education - - or why the Republicans do NOT want any unemployment coverage extensions because this too will tend to drive the unemployment numbers UPWARD with more people desperately searching for that job that isn't there.  (Selah)  And I believe there was a thing on terrorism, with a catalog of the week’s events - - incidents - - in this area.  I wouldn’t place a lot of credibility in this past week being at all typical of a normal week.  (Selah)  But of course the psychology created in people's mind is "terrorism is a constant threat and things happen ALL THE TIME and thus you can never be sure unless you have a republican in the White House.

In terms of coded language- Hartman just played the Lee Atwater speech on "coding" in 1954 when it came to race, and in 1986 when it came to race, and now (cerca 1988).   Of course Lee Atwater went to his eternal reward over twenty years ago and if I were writing the divine script, you know his soul would be hitting the flames the minute he died.  Atwater was one of those sinister geniuses of our time.  But I see the phrase "Tax Cuts" more as an anti poor people "dog whistle" rather than targeting any particular ethnic group out there.  People on the Mc Laughlin group talk about the "wonderful tax reforms and simplifications we pssed in congress in 1986".   Jim Cooper (a former housemate) took strong measure to that tax bill. The dog whistle speech now is to hike the sales tax and national park or trash collection fees- WHILE slashing taxes for the milti millionaires.  Sales taxes are seen not as tax burden shifting to the poor, which they ARE, but rather by the nice word of "tax simplification".  This is why Herman Caine was such a traitor to his race in his fall 2011 election "9-9-9" platform.  If Caine had had his way we in California would be paying close to eighteen percent sales taxes right now and the richest of corporations would have their tax rates cut- - not from 35% to twenty percent, but from 35% all the way down to nine, which might as well be NEIN percent.

 In terms of these new Ebola cases- I don’t know what to think.  I just don’t trust NJ Gov Christie even when he is telling the truth about all these people that now have to be quarantined.  It does strike me as a little odd that a person who had survived the perils of Africa would consider her quarantine conditions as “inhumane treatment” once back in the States.  But you know anything these Republicans can do to keep the fear going is going to boost their votes on election day.  "Face the Nation" is the latest show to put this "republican spin" on election day chances.  Chuck Schumer made a huge point that if people approached this election rationally - - ALL of the important issues such as immigration, gun control, and the economy, are issues where the American people agree with the Democrats.  Also on the matter of Washington gridlock, the democratic vote is the one to cast, because most of our problems go away with a democratic House.

I find it necessary to talk about the newly announced Social Security increases.  It is 1.7% nationally but thanks to the draconian Jerry Brown administration - - whatever increases are announced nationally, will not be as much for we who live in this State, otherwise known as the State of Poverty.  ( )  But as Thom Hartman explained this morning- - if the new I Phone prices are down 20% and your prescription medication us UP 20%, they will average it out and say "no increase in price" as though old people bought the latest I phones.  But this chain CPI index which the Obama administration was championing for a while is walking insanity!  Here is how that works.  You are used to eating T bone steaks when you retire, but afterwards stake has become too expensive so you switch to hamburger.  Soon hamburger has become too expensive so you switch to chicken.  And when chicken becomes too expensive you switch to this animal grade canned tuna they use in cat food.  Because they claim "your behavior is what should determine the cost of living".  So in former times you had the 20% price offset we discussed above.  But now if you pay 20% more for your prescription drugs- - but now catfood is 20% less than T bone steak USED TO COST before you retired, they will say that your food expenses DECLINED by 20% - !  They could use such crooked accounting measures on Wall Street! - and probably have them.  And you know of course here in California we seem to be paying about forty cents per gallon or $3.40 at the pump - - which is MORE than the rest of the country- for whatever perverse reasons.  I've heard that public transportation has risen and encountered a little "sticker shock" when it came to apartment rentals as well as public transportation rates in many areas.

It seems that Dennis Miller’s great political conversion began in 1995 with a magazine interview and in 1996 he called himself a “conservative libertarian” and said that on most issues he preferred Newt Gingrich to Bill Clinton “but Gingrich is a bit too exclusionary”.   But the thing that cemented his position for the right wing were the 9 – 11 attacks.  So clearly you have a guy with solid progressive and comedic credentials completely flip-flopping and selling out to the right wing.   Right now they are mopping the floor after 3:00 on Sunday afternoon.  The funny thing is that in those days in the mid nineties, I would have viewed Dennis Miller’s move rightward on the political spectrum as a good thing.   But like Tammy Bruce and Laura Schleshenger,  he didn’t just shuffle over a little- but instead jerked hard right.

The San Francisco Giants have taken the lead in games in the World Series and now lead 3 to 2.  Last night their pitcher pitched a complete game and was celebrated.  Last night was a five to nothing shut-out over the Royals.  So for the first time since game one there is real hope that this hammer-lock the KC Royals have on “Destiny” may be broken.  We can hope.  [Saturday] The San Francisco Giants at last won a game that I actually watched winning 11 to 4, even though I grew increasingly drowsy through the game due to lack of coffee.  It looked it was going to be another unhappy night with the Royals seemingly in command.  But then San Francisco kept exploding with hit after his and run after run.  They are now tied two and two, and I hope the Giants truly have their confidence (mojo) back.  I am coming to see it as a left verses right wing stand-off.  At some point after eight I turned it to “Burn Notice” because I felt Bill was expecting to see the show and I was really tired and then I dozed off after a short time of “security distractions” and missed the end of the first episode and didn’t wake again till just after nine thirty- when I decided to go to bed.  However this may not have been wise because there was a party going on to the east of here with driving drums of frenzied disco music.  I can’t imagine what the people on the east wing went through last night- - and I’m glad I had a while building to insulate me from the sound.  It took me a while to get to sleep but I finally did.  Then I woke and the party music was as loud as ever, and I was coughing a lot, I went back to sleep, and at one thirty I awoke and things were quiet.   Paul and others said “They had a lot of pretty lights set up” but he slept through the racket- - as did Loretta, apparently.

 I had Richard Marquardt on the Leo show briefly.  The biggest problem with using a flash is that you can’t count on the background being properly lit- and run the risk that faces closest to the camera will be over-lit.  It was just after the morning coffee break that Lisha had a bunch of questions about Wi Fi and it’s transmission range, and I said I thought it was only a couple of hundred feet.  And she says “Oh, like your neighbors around you could tap into your internet?” and I said “Yes”.  But Lisha was visiting her Mom and wanted to know what had a range of thirty miles or so.  I looked in her Time-Warner modem manual for any reference to satellite transmission and found none.  I told her I needed to do some major research.  I checked and LAN stands for ‘local area network”.  Sometimes you have to get back to basics like a sixth grader with a sex education book.  He needs to know whether what he has learned is really accurate.  At times a person can feel dumb for what he thought he knew but didn’t.  One term that’s repeatedly gone over my head is “mobile broadband” sometimes called “wireless broadband”.   Then there is the whole genus of “mobile computing”, which is what they call any internet that isn’t wired.  But they tell you that cellular phone towers- more than satellites, is where people most often get their signal, which explains why in rural areas they often don’t get internet.   And much as I suspected, Wi Fi is in the 2.4 gig range- - just like your phone.   Anyhow I imparted all of this knowledge to Lisha and she gave me two cigarettes.   I suggested that she get back on the phone to that phone service provider- - and ask them more directed questions.  I told her that just like a site (like Last FM) knows me by my strange call letters without even giving my password, that a provider would know you- - just by your ID.

I was thinking more of the year 1998.  I find that an intriguing year because - - basically I was physically healthier in 1998 than I was either in 1997 or in 1999.  It was the year of Judy’s vitamins.  (GNLD)  It was the year of Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa in baseball.  It was the year of Monica Luinsky and the Clinton impeachment trial.  But alas it was a year I can’t find any VCR tapes from, because I seem to have lost the tapes from 1998 and 1999, though to this date I haven’t done an exhaustive search and they could turn up because in packing- maybe I put them way out of sequence.  I’ve been mad because I recorded excerpts of the Clinton impeachment hearings.  It was also the year the Panasonic tape carriage system went bad and thus I don’t believe I have any audio recordings made since about May of 1998.  It was also the year that Paul lost his jobs with Bates coffins.  As such- - it was my “last year of freedom from Paul and Judy”.   That was a feeling to be savored if I only realized.  It was the last year Long’s Drugstore was in the Buena Park Mall, and often I’d have a meal at Busy Bee and then go and take my blood pressure and it would be 165 or 170 and that would blow my mind, because usually I had a couple of beers before leaving home to get it down.  It was the year of that checkout later at Staters who was friendly, and also a Catholic.  Back then being a Christian was a point in your favor.  I’m not sure that’s the case now – probably not.  It was the only time in my whole life that I met Fred’s son, Stephen - - at that restaurant out on the harbor in mid July of 1998.  It was the only time in my life I had dinner at Midevel Times- in early August 1998.  I remember three directory names for my stuff in 1998.  Early in the year it was WILSHIRE as a takeoff on “Olympic” because the winter Olympics were on, then in April it was PROLOG and in perhaps late July it was MANILLA.  Right about the turn of the year to 1999 it was BADGER and it only just dawned on me that in addition to referring to the Wisconsin Badgers, it may well could be applied to Paul’s badgering, which began in December of 1998.   It was a year I tried St John’s wort starting in early May of 1998 at Dad’s, about the time Sinatra died.