WARNING! VOTER RAGE IS DANGEROUS

The contested election of 2020 between Biden and Trump has reached the boiling point. And it couldn’t come at a worse time. People are already feeling that they’ve lost control during this Covid-19 pandemic. And now, all of a sudden, many fear that their vote has been compromised by a rigged election. It’s like being caught in a tornado following a hurricane. That helpless feeling that our lives are veering out of control. Warning! Voter rage is dangerous.

Most people can’t remember another supposedly rigged election, but I do. The Kennedy-Nixon election in 1960 was so close that it only took the votes in the states of Illinois and Texas to throw it to Kennedy. Historians believe that John’s wealthy father, Joe Kennedy, had the money and political power to somehow rig the votes. I was living in Chicago at that time, in a northern suburb that was strongly Republican. People were furious, but they didn’t contest the election. I’m not sure why. They say Nixon thought about it, but in the end, he decided to concede. He was young enough to know he could run again. And he did.

Kennedy’s election was fraught with controversy, and it didn’t get any better after the Bay of Pigs fiasco when 98 Cuban American’s lost their lives. But John redeemed himself with the triumph of the Cuban Missile crisis. For awhile, the Kennedy era was like Camelot. These young beautiful people were America’s version of royalty. And then it all went South. Kennedy’s assassination was soon followed by the killing of his brother, Bobby. Vice President Lyndon Johnson, who many thought had helped rigged the election in Texas, then took over. But that didn’t end well, either. The Vietnam War caused him to resign from politics, and not run for re-election.

So that’s why this contested election has me worried. Whether it’s Biden or Trump, the winner won’t have won in a landslide, like other popular presidents such as Ronald Reagan and Lyndon Johnson. Voter rage will always be simmering beneath the surface of the political landscape. It won’t take much to make it erupt into something very ominous. In contrast to Kennedy and Nixon, we now have two old men with nothing to lose but the election. Warning! Voter rage is dangerous.

October 16, 2020October 16, 2020

HAVING A COVID-19 MELTDOWN?

Here’s what a covid-19 meltdown feels like: Hours after you’ve done something a bit risky, you start feeling apprehensive, and the worry begins to build . Were you too close to someone at the grocery store? Did that guy without a mask at the pharmacy breathe virus on you? What about that small family dinner? You don’t go inside restaurants except for pickup, but did one of the workers have covid-19? Now, you’re feeling lightheaded. Before you know it, your thoughts are spiraling out of control. Are you having a covid-19 meltdown?

A covid-19 meltdown may last anywhere from a few hours to a few days. During this time, you’re constantly checking the list of symptoms. Can you still smell? You go around sniffing coffee and lavender and a bar of soap. Yes, you can still smell. But now, your nose is dripping, and your eye looks bloodshot. Is it your spring/fall allergies acting up? Or, the virus? . You have an upset stomach. Was it that Mexican food you ate last night, or covid-19. You feel tired. Was it that long hike you took yesterday, or something more serious?

My first covid-19 meltdown happened in late March. This was when our city had less that one tenth of one percent covid-19 cases. The CDC was telling people not to wear masks. It wouldn’t protect you at all. Apparently, they were really were just afraid they were going to run out of masks for essential workers. When it turned out that people really should wear masks, we’d been running around for weeks without them.

Having a Covid-19 Meltdown? Try mindful breathing or a walk through the woods — Having a Covid-19 meltdown? A walk through the woods, or mindful breathing may help.

Around that time, we hosted a small family gathering , including someone from another town. That was when I first began to feel anxious about contracting covid-19. During the next four days, I symptom checked on and off every few hours. At the end of that time period , I relaxed, and put aside my worries.

Now, our city has become a hot spot, with 11% positivity rates. The fear is spreading. Over the past few months, I’ve had a couple more meltdowns. Since I suffer from both spring and fall allergies, any dizziness, fatigue, or dripping nose is alarming. My worries escalate. My husband is diabetic and close to 90. What would he do if I got sick? Where would I go to isolate? Mentally, I began to make plans.

Coping mechanisms that work best for me:

1) A walk along the river or through the woods.

2) Meditation and mindful breathing.

Here’s the thing– in the coming year, it’s probably not going to get any better. No matter who is elected president, the virus will continue to spread. I’ve resigned myself to the ever present danger. We’ll either get the virus, or we won’t. And until the plague has ended, I’ll probably have a few more covid-19 meltdowns.

August 26, 2020August 26, 2020

DC AWASH IN FAMILY DYSFUNCTION

Some of us have experienced more family dysfunction than we would care to admit. The façade of the “perfect family” is one that’s carefully nurtured and preserved. Politicians, especially, strive to present such an image. President Barack Obama and Vice President Mike Pence represent the ideal persona of happily married family men. Unfortunately, right now, Washington DC politicians are awash in a sea of family dysfunction.

Starting last year with Joe Biden’s son, Hunter. He’s the one who got kicked out of the Navy. Nevertheless, he made millions for doing almost nothing in China and the Ukraine while his dad was VP. Then, he got some show girl pregnant and refused to assume responsibility for the daughter she bore him. She had to go to court and get a DNA test to prove paternity. But that’s all water over the dam. He was proudly scheduled as a speaker at the DNC convention.

Things got really juicy in July when Donald Trump’s angry, disgruntled niece-from-hell, wrote a tell-all book about the dysfunctional Trump family. OMG! Senior Trump was a tyrant, an abuser, and Lord knows what all. Granny Trump opted out of motherhood—it was just too much for her. And to top it all off, the oldest son was an alcoholic, and his kids didn’t get any more in the final Trump will than the other grandkids. Well, Mary Trump got even. She went so far as to stir up some sibling rivalry, secretly recording big sissy Mary Anne complaining about baby brother. I guess all of us rant and rave about our sibs at times, but we don’t expect it to be recorded for public consumption.

Back to Biden. We know he likes to smell women’s hair. That seems weird, but not exactly immoral. What we didn’t know, until now, is that he had an affair with his wife , Jill, while she was still married to someone else. Her ex husband is writing a tell all book to be released in October.

Speaking of affairs with a married person. Vice Presidential candidate, Kamala Harris was 29 when she started an affair with 60 year old Willie Brown. His being Speaker of the California State Assembly made up for the age difference, I guess. Trouble was, he had a wife and three children.

DC awash in sea of dysfunction. Kellyanne Conway & husband George finally quit their jobs to become parents. — DC Awash in Sea of Family Dysfunction. Kellyanne Conway and her husband finally quit their jobs to become parents.

Next, we have the, most blatantly dysfunctional family imaginable with Trump advisor, Kellyanne Conway. Her husband started a Super Pack, called the Lincoln Project, to bash Trump. I guess they must have been living separately. We wondered where their four kids fit into all this, but last week, we found out. Their teenage daughter went online to accuse them both of being losers and abusers as parents. Consequently, both Kellyanne and her husband George quit their jobs and presumably are trying to salvage what’s left of their dysfunctional family.

Does it really matter to the voters? Bill Clinton had an affair with Monica Lewinsky and got impeached. He’s been seen at the secret hideaway of sex offender Epstein, but they still had him speaking at the DNC convention.

Reporters just love it all. It gives them something to rant and rave about. But after awhile, you wonder if politicians are a different breed. You’d have to have a hide like a rhinoceros to survive. Maybe all that family dysfunction toughened them up.

Remember the words of PT Barnum: “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.”

February 19, 2020February 19, 2020

Can Bloomberg Buy America?

This is probably one of the scariest things I’ve seen in all my years of observing politics. Here is a man who is on the Democratic national debate stage tonight because he bought his way in. He didn’t campaign or talk directly to real voters. He just threw out a bunch of money that he had no other use for. Just as people who live on the interest and dividends from unearned income, he’s trying to win the election on unearned–bought and paid for–supporters. The question is: Can Bloomberg really buy America? Are we that gullible?

can Bloomberg buy the Deomcratic nomination for president? — Bloomberg can afford a great acting coach to teach him how to simulate compassion for women.

Bloomberg doesn’t even have to come up with a set a policies or beliefs. He can just hire some experts who will do that for him. They say he hasn’t been a strong debater. Money could change all that. Wearing an earpiece is illegal. But, with billions of dollars to spend, it’s highly possible he could acquire a high tech hearing device invisible to the naked eye. Watch and see If he pauses even slightly before answering a question. They claimed Hillary wore an earpiece in the debates with Trump, but it was never proven. Anything is possible when you can afford the best.

Former employees say that Bloomberg fostered a corporate climate that was degrading to female employees. As an example, in a lawsuit, one employee claimed that when a female employee got pregnant, he asked her “What the hell did you do a thing like that for?” . On another occasion, the lawsuit said, Bloomberg berated a female employee who had trouble finding a nanny. “It’s a f—— baby! . . . All you need is some black who doesn’t have to speak English to rescue it from a burning building.”

To overcome his appalling history of mistreating female employees, he could hire some great drama coach to show him how to fake emotions like empathy, compassion, and kindness.

Can Bloomberg buy America? It remains to be seen.