Most People Don't Recognize the Bizarro Election World We've Stepped Into

I don't think most Americans recognize how truly unprecedented and even, honestly, bizarre a world we've entered now, this go 'round with our 2016 presidential election cycle. And it's this headline, last evening, that brought it home to me:

It Looks Like Jeb Bush is About To 

Drop Out

Mind you, it's speculation but between John Ellis' popularity--and lack of it--and so, the corresponding lack of money (see headline, below), it does at least look bad for him, if not politically fatal.  This is from none other than what should be his own people, the Wall Street Journal, last evening:

Jeb Bush Has $10.3 Million on Hand, as Fundraising Slowed

I won't get into the details of his money, any reader can do that on their own. The fact is, if, in this mish-mash of Republican candidates, the "chosen one" of the big money Republicans and traditionalists not only can't make it but is over-run by the likes of the very misogynist and racist Donald Trump and the extremely simplistic, even empty Dr. Ben Carson, well, folks, it means very, very bad things for this nation.

Mind you, it should be clear from this writer and blogger and blog that the last thing I'd personally or politically want is for a Republican of the last 30 years, at least, to win any presidential--or even Congressional--race in our country. But the fact is, if more middle-of-the-road, mainstream---however dumbed-down---John Ellis Bush can't make it in a campaign with the likes of his competition, it bodes badly, very badly for the race itself but for the nation at large. 

Again, from last evening, look at what his toughest competition are doing in the last 24 hours:

Trump, Carson threaten to boycott next GOP debate

Yes. They're running to be president of the United States yet they're threatening to boycott the only debates the party has scheduled. Check that out:

(CNN) Republican front-runners Donald Trump and Ben Carson are threatening to pull out of the next Republican primary debate if the hosts don't agree to their demands.

In a letter to CNBC, which is hosting the next debate, the two candidates said they would not participate in the Oct. 28 debate "if it is longer than 120 minutes including commercials and does not include opening and closing statements."

Facebook political/social satirist Kona Lowell  said it very well last evening:

So Trump and Carson demand that the next debate last only two hours. Fine. Let's analyze this. That's 120 minutes. There are 13 candidates. That means each candidate would get 9.2 minutes. Subtract time for commercials. Include an opening/closing statement for each candidate. That leaves just enough time for Trump to call someone a loser and Carson to compare lowering student loan debt to the Holocaust.

And unfortunately, in America, things are ranked, and often won, simply by how much money one has. With our Citizens United rules from the Supreme Court and very legal campaign contributions--what would be, in the rest of the world, bribes--government representatives win and lose, live and die by how much money they take in.

So John Ellis has 10.3 million dollars on hand.

Very scary Ted Cruz has 13.5 million.

Kooky Ben Carson has nearly the same as John Ellis at 11 million.

Everyone else in this money race is an "also ran" and so, irrelevant.

I'm telling you, folks, this Republican presidential race for 2016 was bad and is getting worse and worse all the time. John Ellis Bush was more of a moderate who tried to be extreme Right Wing, by voice only, in order to get votes and win.

That Donald Trump and Ben Carson are leading the pack, leading this field of candidates both in money and popularity should scare anyone who knows what's good for most all of America, and so, the entire nation.

Link: Who's winning the 2016 GOP money race?

On Guns

Then and now.

Entertainment Overnight -- Singin' In the Rain

Entertainment Overnight -- It's Coming Back Around Again

Daylight Saving Time



Saturday night, October 31, coincidentally, if not also rather ironically.

The Solution to the Middle East

I figured it out.

I figured out a way to end the violence and fighting between the Israelis and Arabs and all others in the Middle East.

We--the world community--give each side one nuclear warhead with the requirement that we--that same world community---shoot off those 2 warheads at precisely the same time, at the other side.

Problem solved.

Peace in the Middle East, at long last.

On This Day, 1948, From Our Very Own President Harry Truman

This speech was given October 13, 1948 in St. Paul, Minnesota. It's sad to see we've been fighting the exact same battles for all these 70 years. I recommend reading the entire speech but here is an excerpt:

'Today the forces of liberalism face a crisis. The people of the United States must make a choice between two ways of living--a decision, which will affect us the rest of our lives and our children and our grandchildren after us.

On the other side, there is the Wall Street way of life and politics. Trust the leader! Let big business take care of prices and profits! Measure all things by money! That is the philosophy of the masters of the Republican Party.

Well, I have been studying the Republican Party for over 12 years at close hand in the Capital of the United States. And by this time, I have discovered where the Republicans stand on most of the major issues.

Since they won't tell you themselves, I am going to tell you.

They approve of the American farmer-but they are willing to help him go broke.

They stand four-square for the American home--but not for housing.

They are strong for labor--but they are stronger for restricting labor's rights.

They favor a minimum wage--the smaller the minimum the better.

They indorse educational opportunity for all--but they won't spend money for teachers or for schools.

They think modern medical care and hospitals are fine--for people who can afford them.

They approve of social security benefits-so much so that they took them away from almost a million people.

They believe in international trade--so much so that they crippled our reciprocal trade program, and killed our International Wheat Agreement.

They favor the admission of displaced persons--but only within shameful racial and religious limitations.

They consider electric power a great blessing-but only when the private power companies get their rake-off.

They say TVA is wonderful--but we ought never to try it again.

They condemn "cruelly high prices"--but fight to the death every effort to bring them down.

They think the American standard of living is a fine thing--so long as it doesn't spread to all the people.

And they admire the Government of the United States so much that they would like to buy it.

Now, my friends, that is the Wall Street Republican way of life. But there is another way--there is another way--the Democratic way, the way of the Democratic Party.

Of course, the Democratic Party is not perfect. Nobody ever said it was. But the Democratic Party believes in the people. It believes in freedom and progress, and it is fighting for its beliefs right now.

In the Democratic Party, you won't find the kind of unity where everybody thinks what the boss tells him to think, and nothing else.

But you will find an overriding purpose to work for the good of mankind. And you will find a program--a concrete, realistic, and practical program that is worth believing in and fighting for.

Now, I call on all liberals and progressives to stand up and be counted for democracy in this great battle. I call on the old Farmer-Labor Party, the old Wisconsin Progressives, the Non-Partisan Leaguers, and the New Dealers to stand up and be counted in this fight.

This is one fight you must get in, and get in with every ounce of strength you have. After November 2d, it will be too late. It will do no good to change your mind on November 3d. The decision is right here and flow.

Against us we have the best propaganda campaign that money can buy.

But we are bound to win--and we are going to win, because we are right! I am here to tell you that in this fight, the people are with us.

With a Democratic President and a Democratic Congress, you will have the right kind of unity in this country.

We will be unified once more on the great program of social advance, which the Democratic Party pioneered in 1933.

We will be unified in support of farm cooperatives, rural electrification, and soil conservation.

We will be unified behind a housing program.

We will be unified on the question of the rights of labor and collective bargaining.

We will be unified for the expansion of social security, the improvement of our educational system, and the expansion of medical aid.

Moreover, we will be unified in our efforts to preserve our prosperity and to spread its benefits equally to all groups in the Nation.

Now, my friends, with such unity as this, we can secure the blessings of freedom for ourselves and our children.

With such unity as this, we can fulfill our God-given responsibility in leading the world to a lasting peace.'

Link: Harry S. Truman: Address in St. Paul

Happy Columbus Day

AK Press

It seems there are still some people out there who celebrate Columbus Day. If you happen to know any of them, please share this description from Bartolome de las Casas of the sort of civilized and heroic behavior Columbus brought to the "new" world:

"And the Christians, with their horses and swords and pikes began to carry out massacres and strange cruelties against them. They attacked the towns and spared neither the children nor the aged nor pregnant women nor women in childbed, not only stabbing them and dismembering them but cutting them to pieces as if dealing with sheep in the slaughter house. They laid bets as to who, with one stroke of the sword, could split a man in two or could cut off his head or spill out his entrails with a single stroke of the pike. They took infants from their mothers' breasts, snatching them by the legs and pitching them headfirst against the crags or snatched them by the arms and threw them into the rivers, roaring with laughter and saying as the babies fell into the water, 'Boil there, you offspring of the devil!' Other infants they put to the sword along with their mothers and anyone else who happened to be nearby. They made some low wide gallows on which the hanged victim's feet almost touched the ground, stringing up their victims in lots of thirteen, in memory of Our Redeemer and His twelve Apostles, then set burning wood at their feet and thus burned them alive. To others they attached straw or wrapped their whole bodies in straw and set them afire. With still others, all those they wanted to capture alive, they cut off their hands and hung them round the victim's neck, saying, "Go now, carry the message," meaning, Take the news to the Indians who have fled to the mountains. They usually dealt with the chieftains and nobles in the following way: they made a grid of rods which they placed on forked sticks, then lashed the victims to the grid and lighted a smoldering fire underneath, so that little by little, as those captives screamed in despair and torment, their souls would leave them...."

Kansas City Royals 2015 Postseason Video

"People will come, Ray. People will most definitely come."



I would have left out the part where he said "People will just hand over their money without even thinking about it." 

That was tacky. Extremely tacky. Otherwise....

Go Royals!

Amy Schumer and SNL Take On 'Merika and Our Guns

More people need to do this. More people need to publicly come out and mock America and Americans on our guns---the quantity and widespread, rather insane use of them in this country.

The Way Republicans Used to Think and Be

Long, long ago, they used to be for the nation, as a whole, not just for the advancement of their own political party.

It would be nice if we---they---could get back to this.

Entertainment Overnight -- Librarian Rhapsody

From Facebook and YouTube, of course.

Health Care in America

From the New Zealand Nurses Organisation on Facebook. 

An American in our health care industry visits that country.

What We've Done to Teaching and "Education" in America

The Fellowship for Putting Stupid Theories into Schools

We’re known by many names across the spectrum left to right

Promoting fear and ostracism, ignorance and blight,

We promise health and happiness in dimly distant days

And ask your current sacrifice to give ourselves a raise.

We don’t get caught because we’ve got new education rules

As one by one we take away our children’s thinking tools

The Fellowship for Putting Stupid Theories into Schools.

It’s awkward when our kids come home with something they have learned

That would have in the good old days have got us staked and burned.

They question blind authority as if that were old hat,

They judge our bland hypocrisy – and we’ll have none of that!

They’ve even said that we should have alternative energy fuels!

But we’ll stop that: we’ll take away their critical thinking tools,

The Fellowship for Putting Stupid Theories into Schools.

Postmodernist, conservative, we’re pretty much on par

We undermine enlightenment embracing the bizarre.

Oh, nothing good will come of it if children learn to think --

They’ll realize we’ve left them at and teetering on the brink.

Our only hope’s to rot their brains and turn them into fools

By teaching tests instead of teaching critical thinking tools.

The Fellowship for Putting Stupid Theories into Schools.

Whenever you have heard a child say something really dumb,

Or seen adults enamored with what art has now become,

Or read about the legislature’s vote to buy a tank

Instead of raising teachers’ pay, it’s us you have to thank –

It isn’t just by accident our citizens are fools --

For we’re the ones who give the zealous ignorant their tools:

The Fellowship for Putting Stupid Theories into Schools.

-- Marcus Bales

Entertainment Overnight -- Reasons Why

Standing on a darkened stage
Stumbling through the lines
Others have excuses
But I have my reasons why

Kansas City All Over Late Night Last Evening

Kansas City, through Eric Stonestreet  and our own Kansas City Royals  figured rather prominently on Jimmy Kimmel Live  last evening:


LET'S GO ROYALS!!

National Do Something Nice Day!

Happy National Do Something Nice Day!

Now, you know what to do---get out there and...

The NRA and Gun Lovers, In a Nutshell

Face it, Archie had the NRA's and gun lover's position down pat when he spewed these gems.


True then, all those years ago. Certainly still true today. They haven't budged a bit. Nothing's changed in any way.

"MORE GUNS!"

Guns In America, III

What's the difference? Exactly?

Entertainment Overnight -- Sunday Edition

America and All Her Guns, Satirized

Expletives included, of course, it's Chris Rock, after all, but this is from years ago.


This rings as true now as if he only wrote and performed it last night, after this Oregon shooting.

If only it were funny.

Fantastic, Thoughtful, Generous Idea From Terrific Local Artist

Check out what Kansas City's own Michael Savage is doing. He posted this today on his Facebook page.

Took a day off…don’t know what to do?!

So I was thinking….always a dangerous thing, I know. And I thought, it’s time for a new “contest” for art! (don’t mind all the commas, not a wordsmith like someone I know)

Here it is! Every month I am going to give a piece of art work, of my choice, away, duh, to one lucky (presumptuous?) and creative person.

Now the the deal. In the wake of so much sadness and craziness these days, and I’ll leave it at that, all I ask is for you, to enter, is to take a pic or record one random act of kindness ( or more) that you yourself instigate. Don’t plan on it, let it happen naturally. I know you have to have your camera ready, but isn’t it always!? Ha! And keep it simple. Example. Help the little old lady across the street. Help change someone’s tire. Buy someone a coke or coffee, hug a sad person, put a new roll of toilet paper on the dispenser when you empty it, cook some food for a needy family, pick a worm up after a heavy rain and set him in the grass, help someone move (well maybe not go that far). Make it fun, charitable, difficult, easy….it doesn’t matter. The point is to be kindand do it with a happy face. No smile, no win. I know most of us do this already, but I think it would be cool at the end of the month to see all the great heartfelt examples captured.

I believe we can have fun and share with our friends on this site. Because you wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think we could be friends. Goofy? Yes I am, but I want to show that we as humans are good and fun and happy. Please don’t feel obliged, but do feel free at the end of each month to participate in looking at the entries, commenting and going away happier.

So….start thinking or preferably not, and just remember to keep that camera ready! And don’t try too hard….it’ll just happen. Thanks and I hope you like the idea. I’ll throw some in there too!

Oh, and if you prefer not to post on this thread (I’ll keep reminding us throughout each month). Feel free to message me. And If you win, I’ll ask you first if you want to be known. And if you don’t I’ll just describe it. Cool? Good luck MY friends. We can change the world.

Especially for free art? Sav

What a cool thing, right?

Virtually any Kansas Citian knows his work, I think, either because of him or because of his fantastic style. For instance, here's one of his takes on our own Country Club Plaza.

Kansas City is so very fortunate to have artists--and people--like Michael living and creating right here in the city. (Charlie Podrebarac, too, I think and all the others, far too many to mention).

So there you are, Kansas City! Go out there and keep doing those nice things for others. For at least a while here, once a month, you'll get a huge reward for it, too! And thank you very much, Michael!

Hillary on Hillary

First Bill and now Hillary. Both.

Smart, funny, and good for the nation.


Everything Republicans aren't.



Enjoy your Sunday, y'all.

Happy National Taco Day!

National Taco Day 2015: Deals, Freebies

The Truth About Guns in America -- Hard Data

Here, ladies and gentlemen, is the truth, the ugly, raw truth of it all--guns in America:

"This is why we have the headlines all wrong: Guns are not being abused or wielded incorrectly in America. They are not “falling into the wrong hands,” ill-begotten by “evil people” and “crazies” and “psychopaths.” This is not true in the slightest.

Just the opposite, actually. When yet another mass killing occurs, when another woman is murdered by her ex-husband (which happens every single day in America, BTW), when another despondent teen kills herself with her dad’s gun (ditto), when more males – and it is almost always males – shoot each other in the street, when more schoolchildren die at the hands of effortlessly well-armed adults, these are not tragedies. It’s exactly what we expect to happen.

The guns are, in a very real way, just fulfilling the destiny we instilled into them. They are doing exactly what we designed them to do, what we demand they do, as physical extensions of our fear and rage. You can’t shove 10 billion tons of carcinogens into the atmosphere and not expect massive outbreaks of cancer. You can’t put 300 million precision tools of death into the culture and not expect their latent, intrinsic objective to be realized, every single day.

This is why all religious and spiritual traditions the world over agree: Guns are for cowards. They provide only the thinnest illusion of authority, the ugliest veneer of control, the most artificial aspect of authentic manhood.

Proof? Simple: Just remove any gun fetishist’s (or terrorist’s, or mass shooter’s) stockpile of weapons, and watch what happens. They are instantly deflated, lost, rendered vulgar and human. All illusions of power and machismo vaporize, leaving only the base energies of hate and fear they often don’t understand, much less know how to transmute into something like kindness and love."

Link:  Shooting up America: Guns are a national disgrace 

Guns in America III

Let's do this.

Guns In America

Some statistics. Some facts.

America has six times as many firearm homicides as Canada, and 15 times as many as Germany.

America has 4.4 percent of the world's population, but almost half of the civilian-owned guns around the world.

This makes no sense whatever, none of it.

There is a mass shooting in America nearly every day.

States with more guns have more gun deaths.

Consistent with this, above, developed nations with more guns also have more gun homicides.

America's biggest gun problem is suicide.

And again, consistently, the states with the most guns report the most suicides.

More guns equals suicides. Reported suicides between 2001 and 2005:

 "Guns and Suicide in the United States"

Guns allow people to kill themselves much more easily.

In states with more guns, more police officers are also killed on duty.

"Firearm Prevalence and Homicides of Law Enforcement Officers in the United States"

Then there are these facts (with links).

1. There's roughly one gun for every person in America
2. Gun crime is more prevalent in the US than in other rich countries
3. Gun homicides (like all homicides) are declining
4. Places with more guns have more homicides
5. There are more gun suicides than gun homicides in America
6. Suicide is more common in places with more guns
7. Living in a house with a gun increases your odds of death
8. Guns contribute to domestic violence
9. Mass shootings aren't getting more common — and are a tiny share of all shootings
10. A tiny fraction of gun violence is committed by the mentally ill
11. Gun control is popular but getting less so

And finally, to give us some hope, there is a great deal of support in America for gun policy proposals.

From the full article over at Vox:

Gun violence in America, in 17 maps and charts

More links:  11 essential facts about guns and mass shootings in America

Twelve facts about guns and mass shootings in the United

About Gun Violence

In Response to Yet Another Senseless American Slaughter

What the world needs now.

Happy World Smile Day!

Yessir! Today is World Smile Day.







So enjoy your day, smile and have a great weekend, y'all.

Guns in America

One more massacre of innocent Americans.

Here we go again.

Some more.

This Australian's stand-up on we Americans and guns, though maybe seen again and again on Facebook, has a great deal of truth in it.


We Americans just aren't very bright.

What Are We Celebrating This Month?

Here they are, ladies and gentlemen--all the things we're celebrating here in America in this new October month:

Adopt A Shelter Dog Month
AIDS Awareness Month
American Cheese Month
Antidepressant Death Awareness Month
Bat Appreciation Month
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
(World) Blindness Awareness Month
Caffeine Addiction Recovery Month
Celiac Disease Awareness Month
Celebrating The Bilingual Child Month
Children’s Magazine Month
Christmas Seal Campaign (10/1-12/31)
Church Library Month
Church Safety and Security Month
Class Reunion Month
Co-op Awareness Month
Cut Out Dissection Month
Down Syndrome Awareness Month
Dyslexia Awareness Month
Eat Better, Eat Together Month
Emotional Intelligence Awareness Month
Emotional Wellness Month
Employee Ownership Month
Energy Management is a Family Affair-Improve Your Home Month (10/1-3/31/13)
Financial Planning Month
Feral Hog Month or Hog Out Month
German-American Heritage Month
Global Diversity Awareness Month
Go Hog Wild – Eat Country Ham
Halloween Safety Month
Head Start Awareness Month
Health Literacy Month
Home Eye Safety Month
Italian-American Heritage Month
International Augmentative & Alternative Communication (AAC) Awareness Month
International Starman Month
International Strategic Planning Month
International Walk To School Month
LGBT History Month
Long Term Care Planning Month
Month of Free Thought
National Animal Safety and Protection Month
National Apple MonthNational Applejack Month
National Arts & Humanities Month
National Audiology Awareness Month
National Bake and Decorate Month
National Book Month
National Bullying Prevention Month
National Caramel Month
National Chili Month
National Chiropractic Month
National Cookbook Month
National Cookie Month
National Crime Prevention Month
National Critical Illness Awareness Month
National Cyber Security Awareness Month
National Dental Hygiene Month
National Dessert Month
National Disability Employment Awareness Month
National Depression Education & Awareness Month
National Domestic Violence Awareness Month
National Ergonomics Month
National Fair Trade Month
National Family Sexuality Education Month
National “Gain The Inside Advantage” Month
National Go On A Field Trip Month
National Kitchen & Bath Month
National Liver Awareness Month
National Medical Librarian Month
National Orthodontic Health Month
National Pasta Month
National Physical Therapy Month
National Pickled Peppers Month
National Pizza Month
National Popcorn Poppin’ Month
National Pork Month
National Pretzel Month
National Protect Your Hearing Month
National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month
National Reading Group Month
National Roller Skating Month
National RSV Awareness Month
National Sarcastic Awareness MonthNational Sausage Month
National Seafood Month
National Spina Bifida Awareness Month
National Stamp Collecting Month
National Toilet Tank Repair Month
National Window Covering Safety Month
National Work and Family Month
National Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Awareness Month
Organize Your Medical Information Month
Pear and Pineapple Month
Photographer Appreciation Month
Polish American Heritage Month
Positive Attitude Month
Raptor Month
Rett Syndrome Awareness Month
Rhizomes and Persimmons Month
Rhubarb Month
Right Brainers Rule! Month
Self-Promotion Month
Spinach Lovers Month
Squirrel Awareness Month Link (Different Than Squirrel Appreciation Day in January)
Tackling Hunger Month
Talk About Prescriptions Month
Vegetarian Month
Wishbones for Pets Month (10/15 – 11/30)
Workplace Politics Awareness Month
World Menopause Month

What will you be celebrating?