For one, I am disappointed in the lack of joyous response to the Pope’s cutting us heathens some slack on the existence of a hell. 

At the same time all that is in, or on, or posted, deal with Trump– none of which lends much “joy”.

Should there not be an inverse relation of these two topics?

 

Eastern North Carolina has spawned a new party, The SHIT-HEELS.   These  are a group that believe we are going to transform hog shit to gasoline, yet deny climate change.

From my friend, Alan:  The head football coach was about to send a rookie college football coach on his first recruiting trip.  The prior season had yielded  no wins, eight losses, and two ties.

Old coach’s instructions.  1.  If  they ask you what our team record was last year, pretend you didn’t understand them.  2. They will likely respond, “…what was your record last season?” 3.  You can then say “Oh! EIGHT AND TWO”.

(It is not whether you win or lose, but how you place the blame. Or CLAIM THE FAME!)

(“It’s the economy, Stupid”!)

Here is a quote of my own.  Almost always the coach being fired is a better person than those firing him/her.

I hated  to fire a coach.  Like shooting your dog.

Historically team wins dictate employment.   2-8, 1-9, 2-8, adios.  Most  recoveries look hopefully like this—first year (3/5) , second year -5/5, third–7/3 and  almost everybody is happy.  Can’t please em all no matter what.

There are a lot of different things going on now.  Historically judgement on football coaches was about four years.  A lot like politics. “Give him four years to build his program” to “he better win next year or he’s gone.” Like politics?   Similarly “…if he gets it done in four years, we’ll give him four more!”

The previous Presidents, Clinton, W, Obama had eight years.

There is currently a lot of chest thumping over the economy.  And, in fact, the current crowd began to brag about this being totally to their credit  very early on.  A little quick for football.

CLINTON from 1992-2000  ended with a surplus budget.  (“It happened during my administration!”–POGO, AND BILL.)  Economy record?  9/1.

2000-2008:  The “W” (give cheney  and rusmfeld plenty of credit).  Iraq and hedge funds.  The term “trillions” at the end of this eight.  Economy record, 0-10.

Obama (2008 – 2016) .  The good news on the street is that we have been in the longest bull stock bull market ever.  About 8/9 years.  Hmm, that puts its beginning about 2008.

JET JOB (definition).  In the sports world when a team improves rapidly, skeptics arise.  Why?  Because to do it right takes time.  When a team goes from 2/8 to 8/2 in the first year of a coach’s tenure, eyes roll.  Pundits ponder.

It can happen quickly.  One team we had pulled 2/8 to 8/2.  I’ve got to say that coach was a really good one and we brought in two all time players at QB and wide  receiver.  After another 2/8 was about to be terminated, one staffer seemed concerned:  “I’m not sure.  This guy has recruited a great group for next year, plus he had the courage to properly red shirt some that will really help.”  Still he was replaced and the new coach went 8/2.

“You can’t make chicken salad until you have the chicken.”  (Buddy Bedgood).

MAYBE JUDGEMENT (CREDIT) ON THIS POLITICAL GROUP SHOULD WAIT UNTIL 2024.  OR 2020?

“The fundamental strategy of tennis singles is to find out what the other guy can’t do, and attack that.” Jack Kramer.
Iraq, 9/11, W?  Who was right? Continuing argument that seems to have caused a polarization like none other.
Did we become so defensive of our initial opinions, that winning the argument was more important than the truth.
The truth will out. It is still unfolding. Yet the paralyzed debate spawns stagnation.
The original GOP debate yielded a 13-0 vote to bomb hell out of Iran. None on the panel served in the Military.
Trump denigrating John McCain’s imprisonment was stunning. Followed by his equating his attendance in “a military
school” as somehow equivalent, or superior to McCain’s actual combat service.  I was aghast. Compounded later by the fact that
the Military School he attended as a young warrior was New York Military Academy, a school where I worked three summer months
as a staff member. We had one water balloon fight. Otherwise the topic of the military never came up.
The debate wherein Trump outed the Bush argument on Iraq, pitted him against the others, who held the line.
Game over for hapless Jeb.  And W.   Yet did opponents of “The Donald” miss their moment?
Is a vote for Trump admitting he was the only one right on Iraq.   Does that mean I, heaven forbid, lose the
Iraq argument?
Given his unbridled self-righteousness will he eventually expose the plethora of evil so far contained?

Asked what he would do differently, Bob Dylan said “…I would be more kind.”
He also said,”…don’t hate nothing but hatred.”

June 7, 2016 on Trump: “…more important than keeping this impetuous, vicious, ignorant, and anti-constitutional man from being at that desk,”
Quote today by ? Chris Matthews? Nope. Rachel Maddow? Try again. Tom Friedman? Sorry.
From THE PRICE PAUL RYAN HAS PAID, by George Will.

PBS featured a show on the Blue Ridge Parkway last night.  The CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) film showed a remarkable performance of men who needed a job.  And I was unaware of the nifty bargain between a North Carolina politician and FDR  that wound with Tar Heels gaining both the lions share of the tourism yielded, and social security.

We have a current similar situation.  Illegal Immigration.  And a wall that won’t happen is all that we have as a solution.    And a common knowledge that something has to be done that honors the law of the land.

The CCC was all about labor.  Is there labor now capable of solving the border problem?

Sources?  How about the military, both active and retired.  Are there not those who could provide the skills needed such as helicopter pilots, officers who need arms and policing skills, those who have injuries yet can  and want to help.  Are we not already paying many of these heroes.   How about a certain kind of prisoner, a trustee-like person who would serve rather than sit.   How about a program for illegals  themselves.  We may be able have them serve a time period of volunteer aid  that creates a legal pathway for them.

Is there data that could make this prediction:   Surely significantly trained personnel would be more mobil than a wall.  Technology and personnel could surely cut the number crossing illegally.   What would a cost analogy of using the above sources (and others) predict, compared to the cost of construction and management of the wall and what it would accomplish.

“…all a fourteen foot wall does is create a market for an eighteen foot ladder.”

PS—Various forms of the legalization of marijuana are growing.  Will this be worse that the ungodly number of young people who are in jail for minor pot offenses.  Or those who have been branded evil for a little weed?   And even more to the above issue,  wouldn’t this shift the tons of money from the drug cartels who force their citizens to risk flight, to taxation accrued in our own country?

We are going to have drugs.  What could be worse than what we have?

Anyone?  Bueller?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The CNN ALL STARS VS “FAIR AND BALANCED” FOX

Anyone else fed up with panels of all the same ilk trashing  the absent opponents?

How  about the admonishments of “…don’t anyone say anything about politics!”

NO CONVERSATION OR DISCUSSION, EQUALS NO COMPROMISE, EQUALS STAGNATION,  EQUALS “DO NOTHING” POLITICIANS DO NOTHING.

Our 17 year “longest war”seems to have no ending?  It had a beginning!  It got vitriolic

when ‘W”and his gang burned up a budget surplus by writing their war “off the books”.

Speaking of admonishments, how about “…don’t go in there (the mid-east.)  You will own it!”  —PoppaBush and Scocroft.

Six trillion in deficit spending jump started the hemorrhaging of cash that is now 22 trillion of national debt.  (no blood mentioned).

Soon the lines were drawn.

Being from the sports world, we settled it head on.  Coaching tennis for forty years, the format we used  was 6-3.  Six singles matches, three doubles matches. Match wins count one point. Lineups in order of ability.

Example:  One head to head would look something like this:

Singles:

FOX TEAM           VS                CNN

#1 male player from Fox  vs  #1male  player from CNN

#1 woman player from Fox vs   #1woman player from  CNN

#2 Male  Fox VS # 2 male player from CNN

#2 WOMAN  VS #2 WOMAN

#3 Males

#3 Women

These are your six singles matches or points. now

DOUBLES–

#1 twosome men from fox  vs  #1  twosome men from CNN.

#1 or best women’s doubles from fox, vs same from CNN

Note the next match often determines the winner in tight matches.

This match then will be a mixed doubles match (one man plays with one woman).

This could get messy.  Mixed doubles is a lot like warfare.  So be it.

George Carlin on changing the rules of football:  LEAVE  THE WOUNDED ON THE FIELD.

 

 

 

 

Emerald Isle, end of April, 2020.

My bride, Margaret, and I have stayed  “at home” six weeks as required.

This time period,  basically all of April, is surely different from the other fourteen Aprils we have spent here.   Most notable is the absence of people.  And the presence of great weather.   Combined I have spent more time realizing how beautiful this place is.  Nature is heavy duty.   Lot of critters.  No people sounds. I think I can hypnotize carpenter bees.

There is a price.  First bump was W Bush and  property value down like a ZION DUNK.  Stoopid war  (still going).  Blood, treasure, deficit of a trillion?  Don’t need wall street regs?  Picnic day for teddy bears.  Write the wars off the books.

Next:  Florence.  (“We’ll  be fine if there is not a bad hurricane”).

I remember Hazy.  1954.  The other names meant more to those they hit.  We will remember  Florence and the flooding.  And property damage.   We were all worried about “deductibles” and labor shortage.

The poor were and still are trying just to stay alive.

What the new virus exposes is how the poor in this country get the short end of the stick.  No one was to blame for the virus.   But do we not have a feeling for those whom the boot heels have crushed so often.

May comes tomorrow.  People can ease back in.  Have we learned  anything?  Winning a political argument,  and/or keeping your lifetime congressional seat have become lesser concerns.

“Tom—God could make a more beautiful day, but doubtless he never did”  (Dr. Lacy G. Hall)

http://datagenetics.com/blog/april12019/index.html

The link above states that a trillion is this big:  If you could start counting dollar bills, one per second, non stop 24 hours a day it  would take approximately 32, 000 years to get to a trillion.

A trillion times 6 or 7.  That a lot of money.

Those who contend that the current economic changes will fry the President’s reelection chances, may won’t to consider some very grim thoughts:

1.  Money vs Death.   One treasured confidant contends that in the final analysis humankind would  pick money.  Hmm.
2. While the deficit trillions are horrendous, they are controlled by the current administration.  Who is “the decider”?
3.  “…we will make him an offer he can’t refuse”.   Fear is a powerful tool.  Money too. The Mafia isn’t the only one who knows how they work.
4. North Carolinians contend (now) that the civil rights  movement began in a Greensboro  Woolworth’s food counter with the “sit-ins”.  The late David Halberstam wrote THE RECKONING about those times.  He contended that a group from Nashville actually led the way.  Diane Nash, Marion Barry,  James Bevel,  among others, were students at Atlanta Baptist.  They had seen enough and made the supreme decision.  They will not frighten us, no matter what.  They wisely realized they were single, a significant factor:  They could not be manipulated by fear for their children’s lives.
5.  Money can be used for good or bad.  Those  in control will choose.  If “the Decider” is a tyrant  who  considers their own wishes only, well?  If  reelection is the goal  and six trillion of “campaign aid” is accessible to one with no scruples, well—?Would one use a race horse head? unlimited pay off for any obstacle?   Use fear (terror if needed),  find ways to hide any amount.  Would one who won’t release their tax forms seem a little suspicious?  One with a past of greed, bankruptcy, draft dodging be the patriot above reproach?

 

“…now is the time for your tears.” (THE LONELY DEATH OF HATTIE CARROLL) by Bob Dylan