Land That I Love - What Happened To It?

Okay.  I'm old.  I'm also tired and angry.  And frustrated because I don't know what to do about it.

I cannot escape the news. Unless I plug my ears and wear blinders so I can't read.  But then what would I do while drinking my morning coffee if not read the paper?

I know all the problems just as you do.  The question is what can we do about them?  The "misbehavers" are getting all the press so if there is a voice of reason out there it's getting drowned out.  Our President is no help. He has his foot in his mouth more often than not.

How such a man was able to create the cabinet he has is beyond me.  It is one of the strogest in years.  Not perfect but strong. I'd like to think they are quietly doing their job even though they are understaffed because of another Presidential misguided notion about the size of gevernment.  Too big?  Yes. But these people do need qualified staff to work with and they're not getting it.

Those misguided notions are a large part of why things are continuing to run amok. No one is all knowing and especially this President.  As a result those who would disrupt, no matter how flawed their reasoning, feel free to do so at will.

I don't understand the hate.  Is it the fault of our universities as some say?  In part.  But before young people ever reach university age, what are they being taught and who is doing the teaching?  Are teachers at fault?  Are parents at fault? It would seem everyone owns a piece of the pie.

As we of a certain age know it has gotten out of control.  How does it get fixed?  Candlelight vigils don't fix things.  Violent demonstrations don't fix things.  We seniors writing about it doesn't.  Who listens to us?

Maybe it's time we seniors quit stewing and get politically active as a block and vet candidates who will do something other than preen for the cameras.  We have a few but no where near enough. Power in numbers and organization.  That's what all the squeaky wheels have.

I don't know.  Anyone game?  Anyone have any ideas?  Can we elders fix it? We at least know our history and respect it.

Who IS Your President?

I'm so weary of demonstrations.  I know we have the legal right to protest but I can't help but wonder if the people really know just what it is they're protesting.  Of course they are not the majority but they sure as heck are the squeaky wheel!

I also wonder how many of them actually voted and if they can indeed name the policies of the Trump administration they are so against.  They have demonstrated quite clearly they don't understand, or don't want to understand, the immigration deal.

I don't care for Trump either.   And yes, I did vote.  But neither for Hillary nor Trump.  But now we have Trump and that a segment of the population is against him has been made abundantly clear.  I'm tired of hearing it.  There is no  much noise it's hard to hear what's going on that's really important.

There are signs that Trump isn't all bad.  He has put in place a very strong national security team.  That's an admission on his part that he has no experience in that area.  He has brought in other extremely strong people for his cabinet and the games being played in Congress to drag out confirmation only hurts the country.  These people need to get to work.

People like George Soros and rumored "shadow administrations" fostering unrest, leaking confidential information and funding demonstrations in order to derail the new administration are doing nothing but hurting the country.  There is business to be attended to and delaying it by purposeful disruption is detrimental.

Trump won.  Whether or not you like the way he won doesn't change the fact.  Isn't it time to give him a chance to get his administration together, cement policy and move forward? Quit responding to sound bites, tainted truths and ill will.

Trump is the President.  I am an American.  And trite as it may sound, he therefore is my President.  Period.  He is also the President of all the protesters whether or not they like it.  Period. Get real, settle down and if you're lucky enough to have a job, get back to work. Period.  

We DO Have Choices

I've been politiced out for some time as you may have noted from my lack of posts.  I took a total break a week before the election, voted my absentee ballot and headed for the New Mexican mountains to search for petroglyphs. All good things, however, come to an end.

I was not keen on Trump nor Hillary but of course one would win.  A rich buffoon or a grifter. We got the rich buffoon. I must admit he has been behaving himself since his win but I'm not holding my breath to see if it lasts.  He's already back on Twitter.

What's of more concern to me now is the senseless violence and protests going on because he won.  This puts a terrible face on the Democrats - they who have as much dissent in their party at this point as the Republicans have had since Obama first took office.

Why are we not hearing it soundly condemned by Democratic leadership?  Instead they are leading by example by doubling down on their vow to destroy the Trump presidency before he even gets started.  Why else would Pelosi et al be in conference with George Soros, the funding source for much of the chaos?

It seems to me the country is in even worse shape than I realized.  This behavior - protests that are really riots, states threatening to secede, sanctuary cities defying the law already digging in - this isn't the America I knew even a few short years ago.  This is a country on the brink of disaster.

I wasn't happy when Obama won his second term but neither I nor anyone who felt the same openly defied his re-election.  In some respects that re-election was even worse than Trump being an unknown entity.  We knew what Obama was, what he would do or more what he would not do.  Still no one took to the streets.

Frankly I'm sick and tired of universities providing "safe" areas for offended students and forbidding the use of certain words because they are offensive even to the point of forbidding certain Halloween costumes for the same reasons.  Enough!  I'm sick of students rioting in the streets.  Funded by who?  Their Parents?  Or the likes of Soros.  It doesn't matter.  I'm willing to wager they don't even understand why they're doing what they are.  I'm betting many of them don't even know who Trump is other than a name they were told to protest.

Since Trump will be our President I'm wishing him the best.  It isn't going to be easy guiding a country in the state ours is in.  We as Americans owe him support over those who would promote anarchy.  It's time to put away the pacifier and diapers and grow up.

To do anything else, frankly, would be "deplorable".

Cop Killers, Killer Cops

I have a friend with whom I became a pen pal during the Iraq war.  He has experience in security work, was a military policeman and is black.  I spoke with him at length this morning regarding the Blue vs Black vs White mess we find ourselves in these days.

He gave me quite a bit to digest but it all goes back to what values you are taught within the family unit and the decisions you choose to make with or without that teaching. The values are there staring you in the face as you go through life. Where do the parents learn the proper values to pass on?  From their faith in the teachings of God.  He took me to ground zero of a different sort and it made a great deal of sense.

He took the issue from being neither black against blue or white but rather an issue of choice of behavior consciously made.  His feeling is that those who partake as agitators and the violent rowdiness that often ensues is done with full knowledge that it is wrong.  They know that because of the political climate they will most likely get a pass.  It matters not at all that they know they are in the wrong.

On the blue side of the equation we talked about the over kill of their actions. No pun intended. That one bullet should do the job.  Emptying the magazine into a person is most likely not necessary. Is it a lack of training or character? Perhaps a combination but no matter which it is a matter of choice on the part of the shooter.

Then there is the media's contribution.  More whites are killed by police than blacks. Yet we rarely hear those stories.  Why is that?  It's a matter of choice.  It's a whole different issue as to why so many, regardless of race, are killed in the first place.

So how do we fix all of it?  I would think some of the ministry in communities where such activity  runs rampant are trying to fill two roles.  That in teaching the value of faith in God and  surrogate parent to too many.  That shouldn't be their role but perhaps it's better than no parenting at all. It still boils down to choice.  Conscious choice.  Whether or not to even attend services.  Whether or not to parent. Whether or not to make the right choice.

There are always consequences.  You either live or you die.  You either love or you hate.  You either make the right choice or you sacrifice your freedom to make any choice at all sooner or later.

I guess what it all boils down to is that I had this conversation with a black man who isn't "black" to me.  He's a friend.  A good friend.  And a very wise one.

Rethink The Direction Of Your Anger!

I listened to Chris Christie announce for the presidency this morning.  I heard him say Americans are not angry but yes, they are frustrated.  Well, some are angry and I suspect among those are the professional protesters.  Why else would there be calls for a mass burning of the American flag because it's only a piece of cloth that we worship while the problem is the oppressed.

Or to disarm the NYPD because they represent the powers that be.  I don't think they'd necessarily agree with that.

Back to the flag.  Yes, it is a piece of cloth and it is merely symbolism but rethink about what it represents.  Not oppression.  Rather at the moment it represents what the country once was, not what it is now.

But don't burn the flag.  Revere it and do what's necessary to return it's stature.  Protest those who have brought it to it's figurative knees.  The politicians.  Both parties are surviving and thriving on discord and it has gone beyond frightening.  It's disgusting.

Who is to blame?  Those among us who are apathetic.  Those who revere a scandal tainted Hillary Clinton above all others in the quest for the presidency.  Just because she's a Democrat?  What a lousy reason.  Because the rest of the declared democratic field is a joke?  Whose fault is that?  Pay attention!

As for the Republican field, there are some good people vying for the nomination but someone had better set a fire under themselves and soon.  Right now they all kind of blend together.  Where's the scrap?  The fight?  The indignity toward how we've fallen in world stature?  Sure they all speak to it and blame this administration but it isn't just them.  Congress is to blame.  The Court too is guilty of over stepping its bounds.  Yet we're not hearing it.  Like the old cell commercial - Verizon if I remember correctly - where the guy is always saying, "Can you hear me now?" No.  I cannot hear you.

But that's what we need.  Someone so strong the press has to pay attention.  Someone who can make headlines during every news cycle so no one can doubt who he or she is. The media isn't going to help them.  They're going to have to do it on their own. The cause, restoring the country to greatness, must become the focal point and the candidate must be the one who rallies the people.

Do we have such a person?  Maybe.  But who and where?  I throw down the gauntlet.  Is anyone willing to pick it up and run with it?  We desperately need you if you're out there.  Time's a wastin'!

Appease The Rabble Rousers

So now we have Al Sharpton calling for a nationalized police force,  Michael Moore suggesting police be disarmed, six officers criminally charged for doing their job and one for murder though the reports I've heard say Mr. Grey injured himself inside the paddy wagon with no officers around.

Granted I don't know what the investigation revealed. but there are a lot of things that do trouble me.  First,  Mayor Rawlings-Blake didn't do herself any favors by turning to Al Sharpton for advice.

As a side point, why isn't this man in jail for tax evasion, why is he still employed by MSNBC and why is he the President's go to man on race relations?  That in itself tells a lot about the thinking of Madam Mayor. She chose the most prominent agitator out there.

How has it come down to appeasing the protesters, most of whom are professionals at that.  Another side point.  Who funds these people?  How do they merge in troubled spots so quickly.  Even with social media, it takes time to arrange lodging and travel or do they just pitch a tent on the street?

Back to the main point. Obama said early on he'd like to nationalize the police.  The Brown Shirts live!  At least the desire for them. The Brown Shirts were the paramilitary wing of the Nazis. Just what we need is a group of federal enforcers. Will vigilantes resurface too?

Are we really moving in that direction?  I hope not but can't help but wonder.  The police are under attack more and more while the criminals are being comforted and allowed to loot or babied because they aren't technically adults.  All for a man with a rap sheet a mile long and facts yet to be known.

For the majority of us who do not live in ghettos this is nonsense but we are not the squeaky wheel.  We are not out there en masse protecting businesses from the hooligans or helping the police in any way we can even if only verbally defending them.  Soon, if we're not careful, they'll be too paralyzed to act.  Not from fear as much as those who command them forbidding them from doing their jobs.  Then what will we have?  Mob rule and city after city will fall.

This is what Al Sharpton wants.  And Michael Moore for what ever reason other than publicity.  I worry that it is also what the President wants. If not, why doesn't he speak out?  He's quick enough when it's about a black victim.  It's absent when it comes to law enforcement.

No wonder those men and women who face the likes of these men who will mock them day in and day out have such a strong brotherhood.  I just hope it's strong enough to stand against those who would like not to have them at all.

Why Can't Cops Protest?

Am I in the minority?  I do not think the police turning their backs on Mayor DeBlasio was in poor taste nor was it an insult to their fallen comrades. If nothing more it was a show of support for the two officers who died because vehemence toward police had gotten out of hand. How else were they going to let it be known they aren't happy with their treatment.

If the Sharpton/DeBlasio race baiters have the right to protest then I think the police should too.  Actually I think they've done it with class considering what they could do.  After all, they are the ones armed to the hilt.

All they did, however, was turn their backs on the person they have a grievance with in the only venue where they could be sure he got the message.  Or at least couldn't deny getting it.  They didn't turn over and burn cars, they didn't break windows, beat civilians nor rob businesses. They didn't rain debris on unsuspecting pedestrians. They merely turned their backs. On the one person with whom they had a grievance.

Is our discomfort because of the brotherhood they share?  They have each others backs in a way no other profession other than active duty combat soldiers do.  Daily they face the worst of us more than the best.  Sure, not all of them are good guys and sometimes we lose patience because it takes so long to weed out the bad ones.  We don't like their 'attitude'.  But what would we do without them?

We want their respect.  Is it too much for them to ask the same from not only those they protect but from those to whom they must answer?  I think not.

I'm willing to wager if we should ever have another, God forbid, incident like 9/11 who do you think would be leading the first responders?  I think I can safely say it wouldn't be the likes of Bill DeBlasio.  Most likely it would be a cop.  We need to remember that. 

Cops And Robbers

There are two sides to every story and it seems in the case of the current protests neither side has it exactly right. Forget that 90% of the protesters who are there are there to protest no matter what.  For many of them it's a way of life and I always wonder who foots the bill for their travel, their bail and the fancy signs they carry.  But this isn't about the protesters.

It's about the cops, for one. They aren't totally innocent in all of this.  They tend to be by nature aggressive.  Of course they have to be.  Meek and mild doesn't get the job done.  But too often they come across as over armed bullies and behave in the same manner.  In defense of that behavior, when the majority of the people you deal with are criminals of one sort or another your defenses and defensiveness are always up. People not used to functioning in that environment get their own defenses up and unintended conflicts occur. What I'm suggesting here is the police need to know when to mind their manners and better sense who they're dealing with.

Now for the blacks who refuse to do more than cry victim.  I've addressed it before and won't go into another lengthy diatribe but attitude and behavior do a lot to put police on edge.  Plus the numbers who are disproportionately involved in arrestable crime.  When there are so many who have raised themselves above ghetto mentality and have become fantastic role models for any race, you know it can be done.

I'm tired of the blacks versus police argument.  The police have a job to do.  If the blacks are the ones most often on the receiving end of the baton ask why.  It's not because of their race.  It's because of their behavior.

Until we all behave by the same code we will continue to be misunderstood by one another. The black population reminds me of other social misunderstandings we harbour.  Take gays who flaunt their lifestyle, are in your face with it knowing full well their behavior is offensive to many. Or other foreign groups who refuse to learn English.  All are minorities of their particular segment of their populations yet they garner the headlines making it difficult for those who would and have risen above it and have become one with the country as Americans.

Perhaps the media, too, needs some retraining.  They need to return to objective reporting.  Truth should trump ratings.  Why doesn't it?

Armageddon American Style

I cannot recall ever seeing the people of our country as angry as they are now.  Everyone is on edge if not at each other's throat.

It' uncomfortable.  The reason?  The almighty dollar and what it does and does not buy.  Can the people defeat what and who it owns?  Let's look at it.

The politicians, bought and paid for.  Their misguided solutions to  problems.  Like Dodds/Frank which is in essence telling banks to go ahead and be stupid because they won't be allowed to fail.

Then there are those financial institutions.  So tarred with regulation they won't lend money which could fix the mortgage mess though they sit on more than adequate reserves.  Yet they are so tone deaf, they use that money - ours - to award themselves once again with large salaries and larger bonuses.  Meanwhile we sit homeless, jobless and hungry.

Back to the politicians.  Even though we keep trying to change the dynamic through elections, it's a blip that lasts only as long as it takes to get them sworn in.  The Democrats still hate the Republicans and vice versa.  The Progressives hate the President.  The President hates Congress.  The Conservatives hate everyone who doesn't agree with them.

Okay.  Maybe hate is too strong a word but the emotion is fast approaching it.  The candidates are mistrusted by the electorate.  They're too far right, not far enough right, the wrong religion, their policies are weak or too convoluted.  Whew.  It's exhausting trying to keep up with it.

It is all, however, tied back to that almighty dollar. The Tea Party started out with people demanding fiscal responsibility until they were hijacked by the extremes who have skewed the intent.  That group was for the most part middle class working people.

Now we have the Occupy Wall Street movement. There is even one being organized by college students for Coeur d'Alene.  This movement, not unlike the Tea Party, started out protesting inequity.  And not unlike the Tea Party it is already being compromised by special interests.

What is clear is the people have had it and then some.  It is palpable.  I've been blogging long enough to notice the edge that has been creeping into those who comment. It's okay.  I ramble at times, just letting whatever I'm looking at be put out there for thought.  What at one time would have been taken as silly is no longer.  People aren't seeing 'silly'.  They're seeing loss and frustration and anger because those who should be able to change things either don't have the ability to or won't.  Angry because we put them in positions of power and feel betrayed by them and because we weren't smart enough to see it beforehand.

How is it all going to end?  Crime is up.  Anxiety is high.  Money is tight. I feel like I'm in the midst of an F5 tornado.  I'd not like to be the storm chaser following this one.  I'd fear there'd not be enough with which to rebuild after it passes.  When it passes.  If it passes.