TWITTERDUM & TWITTERDEE ARE DIFFERENT

Like most people my age, I’m not very tech savvy. As an example: I don’t understand what Elon Musk meant when he said that any employee who can write code should come to his office. I asked my grandson what it means to “write code.” He calmly replied, “It means you can write software programs.” I didn’t pursue the topic any further. I’ve been on Twitter for about a decade and outwardly, nothing has changed. However, my blog posts on the new Twitter are getting many more traffic referrals in the past few weeks. I haven’t the faintest idea why. All I know is that Twitterdum and Twitterdee are different. They’re not the same now.

Why in the world would an octogenarian be on Twitter ? I daresay, there are few of us on this particular social media site. It all started when I published my first novel, Take the Money; Romantic Suspense in Costa Rica. After finishing that Herculean task, and seeing the finished product for sale on Amazon, someone said that I should be marketing it on Twitter. Somehow, I figured out how to open a Twitter account. I had no idea what I was doing. In fact, I ended up with two Twitter accounts. I still don’t know how to delete the old one, but someone up there in Twitter heaven knows the difference, and links my blog posts to the right one.

If you think it takes a knowledge of computer science to write a blog, think again. I poked around on the internet and finally found what they call a host server, or something. Once again, in my ignorance, I set up two different blogs on Word Press, but only use the one. I don’t have the technical knowledge of how to delete the old one and this has caused some major problems with analytics. To make matters worse, I decided to move my blog to a different host server., Scratching your head? I can’t explain any of it. However, I do have a statistical plug in that tells me thousands of people all over the world are reading my blog every day. So I just keep writing away.

Back to Twitter. For several years, I used it only for promoting my novel. And then I started this blog, which took on a life of it’s own. For awhile, I thought I’d ask some publisher if they were interested in printing a book of my most popular posts. But a literary agent told me no one publishes something that’s already been over the internet. However, I’m not trying to monetize it– just connecting with family and friends while expressing my opinion on various subjects before I leave this world.

I try to look at both sides when talking politics, empathizing with Republicans and Democrats alike. But somewhere along the way , I must have written something that Twitter didn’t like. They didn’t kick me off, but obviously, they weren’t promoting my blog, because I only got 1 or 2 referrals a month from them. Now I’m getting about 30 or 40 a day. What has happened at Twitter? I don’t know, but I like it. Twitterdum and Twitterdee aren’t the same.. They’re distinctly different now.

January 2, 2022January 2, 2022

UNSUBSCRIBE TO BIDEN & TRUMP

My emails have been piling up incrementally during this pandemic. I used to get about 10 a day, but lately, it’s been closer to 100. Not being too tech savvy, I tried to unsubscribe the hard way: by slowly opening the email on my desktop, then searching the fine print that lets me unsubscribe. Very time consuming. Just found out that my smart phone makes it much easier. Most of these spam emails on my iphone have a bright blue UNSUSCRIBE link at the bottom. One quick click, and the pesky ads from clothing and insurance companies vanish, and don’t return. Now. I wish to unsubscribe to any news flash coming across the screen that contains the name Biden or Trump.

There was a time when I was actually interested in hearing about what those two were saying or doing. That was way back before the pandemic began. Everyone either hated Trump and loved Biden, or vise versa. You had to stay on your toes to defend your president of choice whenever the subject came up—which was often. But the truth is, nobody really cares anymore.

Trump rants and raves, but his base is dwindling and you pretty much know what he’s going to say. Biden only got elected because of Trump’s handling of the Covid Crisis. Just about any of the more viable Democratic candidates could have won. Biden’s made mistakes and he’s not getting any younger. You get the feeling the country is being run by a bunch of suits in a back room who are telling him what to say and when.

So, what I’d like to do is block anything coming across my newsfeed or email that has the name Biden or Trump in it. That would probably cut down of at least 50% of my spam e mail and Iphone news flashes. . But where would I find out what’s going on? How could I keep up with current events? Probably, the old fashioned way. By reading newspapers and magazines, I could go back over any story and sort out fact from opinion.. Most big city newspapers are pretty liberal, And you know that certain magazines are predictably conservative. But at least you can cut through the chaff and figure out for yourself what’s going on without relying on Twitter and AOL.

I wish I could unsubscribe to Biden and Trump. But I can’t.

June 3, 2020June 3, 2020

POLLSTERS: DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL ME

Do you believe in polls? Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don’t. Like most people, I believe what I want to. If I see a poll favoring my candidate of choice, I’ll hope it’s right. On the other hand, if a poll favors a disliked candidate, I’ll doubt its accuracy. When I am asked to take part in surveys and polls, I always decline. Pollsters: don’t ask my opinion, don’t tell me your skewed results.

Most polls are conducted via cell phone or landline. Those are possibly the most irritating calls one could receive. Anyone with common sense refuses to answer calls from an unfamiliar phone number. Consequently, A poll based on the opinions of those who do answer doesn’t really tell me anything.

Many polls are taken over the internet. Poll takers and politicians invade my Facebook, Twitter, and Email accounts. If I log onto various online news reports, I’m often interrupted by a question about Donald Trump or Joe Biden.

The bad part about answering a survey or poll is that you’re now on someone’s sucker list. First, you will be inundated with requests for contributions. Next, you’ll receive numerous newsletters and e mails meant to alarm and enlighten you .

How do these people get access to my social media? I’m tired of spending so much time deleting them. I click on unsubscribe, and beg them to leave me alone, to no avail.. No, I don’t want to hear from their relatives, either.

Back to the accuracy of polls. A poll is just a picture of what people are saying or thinking on a particular day. Voters are fickle. They can easily change their minds the next week or month, depending on current events. For example, the coronavirus pandemic. Or the protests after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis..

Every day, the polls tell us which candidate is favored, disliked, or disapproved of . But you know what? I’d just as soon believe the odds coming out of Vegas.

Pollsters: Stop calling me during dinner, or any time at all. Discontinue invading my social media online. Don’t ask what I think or tell me how I feel..

August 5, 2019August 5, 2019

Mourning A National Tragedy

We’re in shock this morning. Our hearts go out to the victims of the mass shootings in Texas and Ohio, and the lives that have been changed forever. We’re mourning a national tragedy.

This is a national day of mourning — GRIEVING FOR THE VICTIMS OF THIS WEEKEND OF TRAGEDY

Why do these things happen? I don’t remember any mass shootings while raising my children. Some presidential candidates are now politicizing the shootings. But forty years ago we had Democrats and Republicans and Jim Crow Laws and the Vietnam War. Mental illness was widely prevalent, but poorly understood or treated. And there was very little gun control.

This is what we didn’t have: the internet. There were no violent video games so readily available, desensitizing young men to violence. No one had a Facebook account, where people could brag and make other people envious. There was no Instagram or Twitter where you could publicly shame or bully someone to the point of suicide. Now, Instead of face to face relationships and real conversations, everyone just texts. We’ve almost forgotten what it’s like to talk to a real live person.

Technology has changed our world and done wondrous things for our society. But it’s also dehumanized us to the point where violence has become the norm.