Just Stop

Let’s just stop a minute and be honest about what’s going on here…

Facts show very clearly trans-gendered women are not molesting little girls in public restrooms. But some want to believe that, or promote that, because it justifies their hatred of the trans-gendered.

Facts show very clearly that Mexican immigrants do not commit more crimes than citizens. But some want to believe that, or promote that, because it justifies their hatred of Mexican immigrants.

Facts show very clearly that Muslim immigrants and refugees are not running around killing Americans. But some want to believe that, or promote that, because it justifies their hatred of Muslims.

This isn’t about crime, or murder, or molestation, or terrorism. The facts just don’t support it. So when you take that away, what’s left?

Hate.

It’s all about hate. Pure and simple.

And for the first time, in a very long time, we have a government that is willing to use any justification, real or imagined, to act on that hate. We don’t want the “other” here, they’re not like us, they frighten us, they disgust us. So… If they’re not here, we’ll shut them out. If they’re already here, we’ll kick them out. If we can’t kick them out, we’ll make their life hell, so they are forced to act “normal”, and we can pretend they’re not “other”

Like it or not, that is our new national identity. Hate.

This nation was not founded on hate, and one day soon, the rest of us will rise up and take our country back. And all you hateful assholes can continue hating, but we will no longer let your hate define who we are. We will reclaim that shining city on the hill.

Stop the Presses!

A few quotes about the press…

Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.
— Thomas Jefferson

Our first object should therefore be, to leave open all the avenues to truth. The most effectual hitherto found, is the freedom of the press. It is, therefore, the first shut up by those who fear the investigation of their actions.
— Thomas Jefferson

The liberty of the press is essential to the security of freedom in a state: it ought not, therefore, to be restrained.
— John Adams

Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government: When this support is taken away, the constitution of a free society is dissolved, and tyranny is erected on its ruins.
— Benjamin Franklin

A popular Government without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy, or perhaps both.
— James Madison

Without debate, without criticism, no Administration and no country can succeed , and no republic can survive … and that is why our press was protected by the First Amendment.
— John F Kennedy

Societies that repress journalists ultimately oppress people as well.
— Barack Obama

The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!
— Donald Trump

 

 

Scooby Doo – the lost episode…

S C O O B Y    D O O

Episode: Scooby Doo and the Great Orange Trumpmonster

Page 9.
_______________________________________________

DISSOLVE TO…

The gang is gathered triumphantly in the Lincoln Bedroom. The Great Orange Trumpmonster is bound neck to toe in ropes, and leaned up against some wooden barrels.

SHAGGY: Jinkies guys, I can’t believe we caught a REAL Trumpmonster!

VELMA: He’s not a real monster, Shaggy, there’s no such thing.

SHAGGY: Really?

VELMA: Sure, just look…

Velma reaches over and pulls the rubber mask off of the head of the bound Trumpmonster, revealing a familiar face…

THE GANG (in unison): Old Man NIXON!

TRUMPMONSTER/NIXON: And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren’t for you meddling hippies.

SCOOBY-DOO: Well, pardon me!

SHAGGY: Good one, Scoob!

The gang laughs uproariously. Scooby and Shaggy give each other a high five.

FREEZE FRAME.

ROLL CREDITS.

 

 

Super awesome GIF by Chris Phillips
(click here to see animated version, and check out his other work)

He’s Ba-aack….

Alright, I’m back. That “break” lasted for all of three days.
 
What I found was, by laying off of social media (except a very well cultivated apolitical twitter list), I had far more time to spend on “real” media. And while this greatly cut down my exposure to fake news and other nonsense, it dramatically increased my exposure to real news. And while fake news is damned annoying, it is not nearly as terrifying as the real thing. There’s some real dystopian shit going on out there.
 
I wanted to ignore it, I really did. But if I’m going to go down with the founding principles of our republic, I’m going to bitch and scream and and moan and cry about it all the way down. You guys are just going to have to deal with that.
 
So, let me answer this question, which I’m sure some of you are thinking: Why have you become so political, you didn’t used to be that way?
 
In the “old days”, I would make a political comment every once in a rare while. I only did this when something was so egregious or outrageous or important that I felt everybody needed to be aware of it.
 
Well, guess what. That has NOT changed. I still post a political comment only when something is so egregious or outrageous or important that everybody needs to be aware of it.
 
It is not my fault those moments now come several times a day, rather than once every two or three months. Believe me, I wish things could get back to the way they were too. This is exhausting. But it is important. We all need to be aware of it. Like I said, there is some serious dystopian shit going on out there.

Taking a Short Break…

It seems like every day I see at least five new things coming from Trump or his administration that are so completely unprecedented both in their utter stupidity and in their capacity for damage to the American way of life, that I can no longer watch. I can’t watch while this petulant toddler continues to dismantle, piece by piece, what was once the greatest nation on this planet. And even worse and can’t watch all of the apologists and enablers who have signed on to blindly follow this idiot. I no longer recognize my own country, and I find that deeply disturbing. So…
 
I think it’s time for a media break, for the benefit of my own mental health. If you’re going to destroy the country I love, I’d rather not watch. And if you idiots are going to blow up the planet, I’d probably rather not see it coming anyway. So, I’m going to try a media blackout for the rest of February. We’ll see how I feel after that. I may tweet something from time to time, but that’s about it. I will not be reading or responding to much of anything. If you need to reach me, I’ll still respond to PM’s. And there’s always ancient tech like phone, text, and email.
 
One last thing, if anyone hears a date announced for the Science March on Washington, let me know. I like science, and I like Washington, so a march might be just the thing.
 
Take care. Thank you all for your support. See ya in the funny papers…