And Now the Psychotic Presidency

This now psychotic Presidency, I swear.

Check out that headline on this article. It broke yesterday.

Trump cheers on governors as they ignore White House coronavirus guidelines in race to reopen

This President, through his White House and staff, has set guidelines for reopening the nation, our businesses, because, of course, of this killing pandemic but--wait for it---this same President is actually cheering on governors across the nation, supporting them, for opening early, against his own guidelines because, you know, business is important.

What the absolute what?

Thanks, Republicans.

World Homeless Day

Yes sir, today is World Homeless Day. From today's New York Times:

Started in 2010, the day seeks to bring attention to homelessness, a problem that affects tens of millions of people worldwide, according to the United Nations.

In the U.S., more than a half-million people live on the streets or in shelters for temporary stays.

But national statistics show that homelessness is declining. And Salt Lake City has been held up as a model.

The city’s approach is simple: Before tackling the problems that led someone to become homeless, those in need first receive a place to live. The program is credited with reducing the number of chronically homeless people across the state by 91 percent since 2005.

Lloyd Pendleton, who leads Utah’s homeless task force, initially doubted the plan. “I get probably two to five calls a week now,” he said in an interview last year, “wanting to know how we did it.”

For information on how you can help, the National Alliance to End Homelessnessand the National Coalition for the Homeless offer resources.

Notes on a Kansas City Weekend

Things noticed over the weekend;

1)  Prairie Village seems to want to become either Kansas City, Missouri or just more like them.  If you've driven 75th Street headed West lately, you know what I mean.  I don't think any one Kansas City street has ever had any more construction plates on the road than that city (town?) does now;

2)  Meanwhile, in nearby Mission, Kansas, holy cow, people. Johnson drive is a God-awful, bumpy, crowded, narrow, nearly dangerous mess. I suppose that's the only way it can be repaired but what a driving nightmare.  As an additional note, I can't imagine how the businesses on the South side of that street are able to continue. I don't know how long it's been torn up but it's clear it won't be done any time soon;

3) And speaking of Mission, how about that mall, eh?  Seems only two questions come up:  First, will that thing ever be redone? And second, wouldn't it be terrific if they just hadn't torn down the old one?

And finally,

4)  What on Earth would get someone--anyone--who's sane, anyway, to move 1/2 way across the country---all the way to Virginia, for pity's sake---but to STILL, after all these years, focus on our city, Kansas City, and whether or not we build light rail?  What sick, twisted disease must be running around your body or mind to make you fixate like that? It has to be a combination of outrageous egotism and OCD, don't you think?

And I refuse to mention that person's name in any way here, ever, but the surname rhymes with *ss-stain.

America, don't tell me you give a damn about senseless shootings

Every Columbine and every Tuscon, Arizona and every Aurora, Colorado makes it that much easier to point out the ignorance of America's gun laws and the deaths from our far-too-many guns.

Does it change anything or will it?

Heck no, unfortunately. Americans will continue to do nothing or--worse--they will fight to keep our semi-automatic and automatic weapons.

We're just not that bright.

So please, don't pretend America gives a damn about the 12 people killed yesterday and the 59 shot and wounded or the crippling and near-killing of Representative Gabby Gifford and the six killed and 13 wounded then and there in Tuscon last year or the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007 that killed 32 people and wounded 17 others or, finally--at least here, now, today--the Columbine shooting, in which 13 people were killed and 21 were injured.

America, Americans, don't pretend you give a damn--not one bit--about the people who were killed this week in Aurora, Colorado. You feign concern and/or sympathy like someone who posts "I'm so sorry" on Facebook.

It's a an empty gesture.

A very empty gesture.

If you gave a damn, you'd make sure this madness would at least decrease greatly, if not end as completely as possible.

Instead, you do nothing.

As it is, there will be another Columbine, another Tuscon, yet another Virginia Tech, one more Aurora, Colorado.

And the reactions and results will be just the same.

The National Rifle Association thanks you.

Think about it

An adult male in San Francisco, of all places, who dresses up like an elderly nanny, so he can be close to his kids?

Homelessness: Understanding it/Judging it

--Who of us can understand homelessness unless you've been out there and lived it? --Who can understand how that feels? --Who can understand how they got there? Truly. --Who can understand what it's like to not be sure where you're going to sleep that night? --Who of us can understand what it's like to not know where your next meal is coming from? --Who of us understands what it's like to not quite be sure if you're going to be safe, wherever you're going--where you have to go? --Who of us understands what it's like to not be sure if some young person or group is going to beat you up just because you're homeless? --Who of us understands the hostility so many people in society feel toward homelessness and the homeless--and that some of us outwardly show? It seems a lot of us--most?--at least have opinions about homelessness if we don't out-and-out judge it and/or judge the homeless and too frequently we end up with both strong and negative views of both the homeless and homelessness. This thought occurred to me today at a local Quik Trip as there was a homeless person there. It made me think.

Quote of the day--from Glenn Beck

Prior to his Beckapalooza rally in Washington, Beck declared, "I'm only writing a few bullet points. And I am doing that so I don't get in the way of the spirit, in case he wants to talk...if you would just pray that I would be able to hear because sometimes -- sometimes he's screaming at me and I still can't hear it.'' Link to original post: http://politicalhumor.about.com/b/2010/08/31/is-glenn-beck-insane-you-be-the-judge.htm Glen Beck Quote Generator: http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/bl-glenn-beck-quotes.htm

Another, new reason to dread 9/11 this year

I've grown to annually dread September 11 (or 9/11 as it's so repeatedly referred to). The original New York/Pennsylvania/Pentagon tragedy was bad news enough. Now so many people want to run it back up the flag pole, every time it comes around, so we have to live through it (salute it?) one more time so they can be all falsely patriotic and shove it down everyone else's throats. So just when I don't think it can possibly get any worse, it does. Check this out from the same Sarah Palin/Vanity Fair article I posted earlier today: ...Glenn Beck has booked the Dena’ina Center, the largest venue in Anchorage, for a speech on September 11, 2010... “Listen, listen, listen: Why in the world do you imagine Glenn Beck would come to Anchorage on 9/11? You think he might have a special guest? With a special announcement? Oh,” she says, her whole face falling as the implications of a Palin campaign kickoff hit her, “Jesus Christ.” My sentiment exactly. I think I'll unplug everything that day. Link to original article: http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2010/10/sarah-palin-201010?currentPage=all

Think you know Sarah Palin?

Until this morning, I just wrote off Sarah Palin as someone too uninformed and emotionally unstable and, ultimately, inconsequential, to take seriously or to bother myself with. As I said--until this morning. I just got finished reading a Vanity Fair piece on her. Holy cow. Besides making millions of more dollars than I thought she was, she also has far more followers than I realized. If even half of this article is true, folks, we have every reason to be scared. She is nuttier than I knew. A portion of the article: Sarah Palin’s connection with her audience is complete. People who admire her believe she is just like them, and this conviction seems to satisfy their curiosity about the objective facts of her life. Those whose curiosity has not been satisfied have their work cut out for them. Palin has been a national figure for barely two years—John McCain selected her as his running mate in August 2008. Her on-the-record statements about herself amount to a litany of untruths and half-truths. With few exceptions—mostly Palin antagonists in journalism and politics whose beefs with her have long been out in the open—virtually no one who knows Palin well is willing to talk about her on the record, whether because they are loyal and want to protect her (a small and shrinking number), or because they expect her prominence to grow and intend to keep their options open, or because they fear she will exact revenge, as she has been known to do. It is an astonishing phenomenon. Colleagues and acquaintances by the hundreds went on the record to reveal what they knew, for good or ill, about prospective national candidates as diverse as Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Al Gore, and Barack Obama. When it comes to Palin, people button their lips and slink away. I'm telling you, this is an excellent and important read. If you haven't seen it, you owe it to yourself to find out about this woman. She is one scary individual. And she has more power and money than I knew right now. Until she's gone and no longer a factor in American society and politics, I might make the suggestion you occasionally, at least, follow one or more of the following blogs on her: The Immoral Minority: http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/; Shannon Moore: Just a girl from Homer http://shannynmoore.wordpress.com/; Palingates: http://palingates.blogspot.com/. I found them in the Vanity Fair article. I will say, too, that frequently, because of the way Ms. Palin is and what she thinks and believes, it can make for some darned amusing reading. Link: http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2010/10/sarah-palin-201010?currentPage=all