THE GREATEST TWO MINUTES IN SPORTS
As we start Derby Week in my hometown of Louisville, our one moment of the year to shine, I’d like to take a minute to explain to the uneducated why the Kentucky Derby is called the greatest two minutes in sports. I’d also like to give a few pointers to our many out of town guests as they descend upon our city for the festivities, sort of a “DO'S and DON’TS list if you will based upon my own experiences. We can leave the polarized world of politics behind for awhile and enjoy our time in the Kentucky sunshine (hopefully-spring has been slow in coming this year!). The Derby Festival festivities officially kicked off last weekend with “Thunder over Louisville", a fireworks extravaganza like few others in the country in its sheer size and scope, and a military dominated air show that typically thrills the half a million or so who throng to the Ohio River waterfront to watch. This year the weather was ideal for the show, and perhaps as many as seven hundred fifty thousand or so spectators viewed the spectacle. Derby week really gets cranked up over this weekend, with the mini and marathon races on Saturday, hot air balloon glow and races on Friday and Saturday. The winner’s time in the marathon was just over one hour, which averages out to something like four something minutes per mile. The thoroughbred horses that run in the Kentucky Derby run the mile and a sixteenth in just over TWO minutes, to give you an idea of the speed and athleticism of these fine tuned athletes!!! On Wednesday there is the “Great Steamboat Race”, which to be honest ain’t so great anymore. Since the arch rival Delta Queen was mothballed, the Belle of Louisville’s competition in the race is like some pint sized pretender of a boat that looks nothing like the vessels that prowled our inland waterways during the 1800’s. My ex wife’s father was an actual steam boat pilot who captained the boat, and his after race parties at his house up on the hill overlooking the river were legendary!! It’s just not the same anymore, I’m sorry! But a ride on the old Belle during the actual race can be a lot of fun! Wednesday of Derby week is the day my brother and sister in law and friends and my wife and I have our day at the Downs-actually I could just mail them an annual check, but then I would miss out on the entire track ambiance!!! By the end of the day people are asking me for my picks……and then betting on any other horse!!! But it's fun, the atmosphere is incredible, the mint juleps are great and the cigars tasty, if only to be enjoyed once a year! Now Thursday has become “Thurby”, the unofficial day for the locals to take in the track without being overrun by New Yorkers or Canadians like on Oaks Day or Derby Day. The Kentucky Derby Festival parade is also held on Thursday evening. The town is just getting warmed up for the REAL parties to begin on the next day!!! Friday is Kentucky Oaks Day, the Kentucky Derby for fillies (female horses for the uneducated). This USED to be the day for the locals to enjoy all of the splendor Churchill Downs has to offer without the hassle of one hundred fifty thousand drunks you will encounter on Saturday, but those days are long gone. Oaks crowds are now almost as large as those who descend on the Downs Derby Day, so many of the locals have decided to go to the track on the preceding day, thereby creating the recent phenomenon known as “Thurby”. The after race crowd then takes over every fine dining establishment in the city (no reservation-sorry, folks!!), and those who really have a brand attend the Barnstable bash in Louisville or the Anita Madden party in Lexington for a night of debauchery and merriment! Then comes THE day, Derby Day. The first item to be considered is the weather. In the Ohio Valley on Derby Day we have seen everything from sleet and temperatures in the thirties to monstrous thunderstorms to blistering mid summer heat-so you have to be prepared for anything Mother Nature might throw at you. The next key item, if you are not going to the track, is where you will put your bet down, what pool you will be in or what party you will attend. These are of course, key components in any successful Derby Day merriment. Then comes the actual race. Rarely does the favorite win. The amount of money wagered for this two minute spectacle is staggering-literally hundreds of millions of dollars!! To attend the Kentucky Derby, as I once did from a box seat near the finish line, is an experience like few others. When the University of Louisville marching band strikes up “My Old Kentucky Home” you can’t help but get goose bumps up and down your spine if you are a true native son. When the horses parade around the track to the gate, the atmosphere is absolutely electric. Then “THERE OFF IN THE ___ RUNNING OF THE KENTUCKY DERBY!!! The next couple of minutes is a blur of astonishing speed and grace as these magnificent creatures run the most difficult race of their young lives, and expend every available ounce of energy to hit the finish line. When they turn for home at the sixteenth pole, the race really begins. The sprint to the finish line is the truest test for a champion, and the agony and ecstasy of sport is revealed in these final moments. As the horses cross the finish line, the winners go crazy and the losers scratch their heads, trying to figure out what went wrong. We have seen the absolute spectacular accomplished by super horses, the Triple Crown Winners, and we have seen bitterly disappointing failures. It’s gambling, plain and simple, and for many of us it will be the only time all year we partake of this vice!! But the sheer joy of holding that winning ticket as you approach the betting window is something that has to be experienced!! Sunday following the Derby is brunch day, but frankly most participants are simply burned out vegetables like Clark Griswold in “Vacation”. Some make it bravely through the mimosas and eggs, but many do not, opting for the comfort of their $500.00/night hotel room (three night minimum, thank you!!) bed instead. An army of student volunteers descend upon Churchill Downs for the clean up, and it is an incredible undertaking. The items which have been lost and recovered range from the obvious to the absurd!! And then it’s all over until next year, thankfully!! If you’ve had out of town guests, they will soon be departing back to their everyday lives. But hopefully they will take home with them memories that will last a lifetime, like mine have. So go ahead, have that extra mint julep and remember that you are always welcome back to our fair city!!! HAPPY DERBY WEEK!!!!
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TRUMPS “CABINET OF CLOWNS” REDUX
On the day, hopefully his last, that Scott Pruitt, Director of the EPA, is scheduled to appear before a Senate Subcommittee regarding his questionable ethics during his tenure, I thought it would be appropriate to revisit and update a post I wrote a couple of months ago regarding the Cabinet positions Trump has filled and the individuals who have proven to be totally incompetent for the posts to which they were appointed. The latest fiasco involving White House physician Dr. Ronny Jackson and his appointment to head the Veterans Administration is yet another indication of the complete lack of understanding of the process of governing by POTUS. The resultant actions of these individuals and the impact on the lives of every American today and in the future is proving to be catastrophic for the poor and needy, education, the environment, the consumer and our foreign policy. Trump and the REPUBLIKAN party are totally responsible, and need to be held accountable come November. So let’s look at the list. Steve Mnuchin-Secretary of the Treasury: just take a look at the guy and listen to him speak once and you’ll understand why he is on top of the list. After Trump called Richard Todd of NBC News a “sleeping son of a bitch” during his disturbing campaign rally in Pennsylvania to support another losing Republikan Congressional candidate (do we see a trend here?), Mnuchin stated that Trump had a lot of “funny moments” in his speech, like when he questioned the I.Q. of a black Democratic Congresswoman. Hilarious, Steve. Why don’t you and your wife go pose with some more stacks of money He also lied about a trip to Kentucky to view the solar eclipse, and has abused taxpayer dollars with his lavish travel expenditures. Ryan Zenke-Secretary of the Interior: Selling off parts of our natural resources and wildlife refuges faster than you can award an electrical contract to your next door neighbor in Montana while Puerto Rico remains dark following Hurricane Maria! In addition, there are also a number of ethics questions surrounding Zenke’s use of taxpayer dollars for lavish personal travel and expenses. Do I sense a growing pattern here???? Wilbur Ross-Secretary of Commerce: Lied during his confirmation hearings regarding business dealings with Russia (what a shock!); couldn’t negotiate a trade deal with China so he supports Trump’s proposed tariffs, which will end up costing the American consumer billions of $’s in the long run. Ben Carson-Secretary of health and Human Services-How did that $31,000 dinette set work out for you, Ben? He needed a place to lavishly entertain his guests while he takes school lunches and food stamps away from those that need them. Recently announced plans to triple rent on the needy and make them “work” for their subsidies!! Elaine Chou-Secretary of Transportation: Wife of “Rich” Mitch McConnell-need I say more? Secretary of Energy-Rick Perry: Advocating for utilizing good old coal as our primary energy source, despite the environmental consequences and availability of far more economically viable and cleaner energy sources such as solar and wind power. Betsy Devos-Secretary of Education: see yesterday’s post ‘Heavens to Betsy”. She is truly the epitome of Trump’s appointees-a wealthy Republikan contributor with virtually no qualifications for her position and less understanding of her mission to serve the American people. Scott Pruitt-Environmental Protection Agency: turning EPA into EDA (Environmental Destruction Agency) through his mission of deregulation, and is also a strong advocate for coal. He prefers to travel first class at the tax payer’s expense, while claiming he needs extra security in his detail because of people saying mean things to him on airplanes. Poor Scott! More recent allegations include installation of a $43,000 soundproof phone booth in his office, bulletproof seat covers in his upgraded SUV and preferential treatment on D.C. rent from a lobbyist who was actively involved with his agency, among others. This individual is the worst of the worst, but has been untouchable because of the money influx to the REPUBLIKAN party by the KOCH brothers from his home state of Oklahoma!! Rex Tillerson-Secretary of State: Somebody should tell Trump that he actually has a Secretary of State. Tillerson doesn’t seem to be in any kind of communication loop with the President on Korea or any other subject for that matter. He’s too busy dismantling our diplomatic corps to pay foreign policy much mind. FIRED by tweet!! Replacement yet to be confirmed. Controversy also surrounds Mike Pompeo, his designated repacement on a number of issues. Jeff Sessions-Attorney General: This guy is so bad Trump has wanted to fire him since he recused himself from the Russia investigation, thereby opening the door for the appointment of Robert Mueller as Special Counsel, much to his dismay! He has also spoken out against the legalization of marijuana in states like California and Colorado, despite these states having overwhelmingly approved its sale and use through voter referendums. There is only one word that could characterize the group of individuals: buffoon (plural buffoons)
· In the United States the term is used most commonly to describe inappropriate, clownish figures on the public stage; here the behavior of a variety of public figures have caused them to be described as buffoons by their political opponents. Trump called this cabinet collection “the greatest ever assembled!” He is right; it is the greatest collection of BUFFOONS ever assembled. And they are tearing the very fabric of our country apart. By the time this administration leaves office (hopefully sooner rather than later), it may be too late to reverse the incredible destruction they are wreaking upon our institutions. VOTE THEM ALL OUT IN NOVEMBER!!! TIME TO END THE WAR ON DRUGS
It has been almost fifty years since our favorite Republikan President, “TRICKY” Dick Nixon, declared the so called “war on drugs”. In that period of time, none of the problems truly associated with illicit drugs has been solved, only accentuated by the absurd policies which are still being pursued by the Trump administration today. The Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, is advocating for “tougher penalties” on drug dealers, and CROOKED DONALD even jumped in with the death penalty card. The current epidemic of opiod addiction and abuse can be directly related to the war on drugs. The government’s attempts to restrict the flow of illegal drugs into the United States through interdiction in countries like Columbia, Panama and Mexico by agencies such as the DEA and CIA, as well as the United States military have not been successful. The fact of the matter is, just like the infamous cartel drug Lord El Chapo claimed, the demand for these drugs in our country far outweighs the enforcement capabilities we have to police them. Already the U.S. incarcerates more people than any other nation on earth, and a very large percentage of these inmates are in prison for buying, selling or using illicit drugs. Imprisoning these individuals has done nothing to stem the tide-indeed, you are more likely to be able to obtain your drug of choice in prison than on the street!! We should have learned our lesson from the fiasco known as Prohibition. This was another ill advised attempt by the government to regulate and legislate morality based upon the outcry of a vocal minority, and I think history will show just what an abysmal failure this was. In fact, the unintended consequences of the banning of alcoholic beverages was the rise of the gangsters who sought to control the illegal market for it, much like the ongoing cartel wars going on in Central and South America over cocaine, heroin and meth have been an unintended consequence of the “war on drugs”. Think of the gang violence currently being experienced on our city streets-it is almost exclusively over turf and the ability to sell illicit drugs to a market that cannot be satisfied!!! A number of states, eight I believe to date, have voted to legalize marijuana. There are a number of other states contemplating it. The vast majority of Americans believe the time is right to do so, and there are many medical experts who are claiming that legalization of cannabis would actually help stem the tide of the opiod epidemic. For marijuana to be categorized in the same classification by the government as heroin, LSD or meth as a Schedule I drug while opiods are classified as Schedule II tells you all you need to know about the logic behind this so called “war”!! The amount of cash being generated by this industry is absolutely staggering, and the future looks even bigger. People want weed, plain and simple. For Jeff Sessions to want to go back to the Nixonian days of enforcement makes no sense whatsoever to anybody but Trump’s base!! It’s time for a change of policy and direction. Addictions are a disease, not a crime. We should focus on solving the real issues that are responsible for the underlying drug related problems we have in this country-income inequality, racial inequality and educational inequality. All of these factors combine to make the use of and the buying and selling of illicit drugs such as crack cocaine, meth and heroin as the only viable means of supporting themselves or their family. Breaking this cycle involves a multi faceted approach, primarily on the local level where the problems can be addressed first hand. One of the major problems confronting drug addicts is that they can never be sure of exactly what they are getting. Heroin could be laced with deadly amounts of Fentanyl or any other number of substances. The same is true for cocaine, which can be cut with anything from laxatives to elephant tranquilizers, and of course we all know of the perils involved in the production and use of meth. If these drugs were in fact regulated and dispensed through legitimate outlets, there would be no need for the number of tragic deaths we have seen to date, over 60,000 overdose deaths from opiods last year alone!!! This is unacceptable. Putting more people in jail or building some ridiculous wall will not solve our nations’ unquenchable thirst for drugs. So why not do the smart thing and regulate the distribution and sale of these drugs just like liquor. The same laws would apply regarding driving under the influence, public intoxication, etc., so it’s not like there would be an army of stoned zombies roaming the streets. I know this position will likely draw a lot of criticism, but I say if you have a better solution bring it to the table. The only thing that is certain is that our previous approach to this cultural issue has not been one that has worked, and it’s time to change our strategy. THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY
Who saw this coming???? That the end of American democracy, our leadership position in the free world relinquished to second tier powers like France, our enemies like Russia exploiting our vulnerabilities at every turn and complete political gridlock in Washington-all as a result of our very own President and his actions in just fifteen months or so!! Through his administration and his appointees, the very pillars of our government are being torn asunder, and in the process he has divided our country into warring factions of left vs. right, Republikan vs. Democrat, man vs. woman and on and on. He has continuously attacked the media, is guilty of giving false and misleading statements daily either himself or through his stooge Sarah “HUCKLEBERRY” Sanders. His cabinet is comprised of self serving elitists who are treating the federal government like their own personal check book, individuals like Scott (I DIDN”T DO IT!!) Pruitt and Ben Carson who are determined to undo every regulation that previous administrations had put into place that in any way interfere with the flow of cash from their large corporate sponsors like the Koch brothers. The Immigration position Trump has taken is so foreign to the ideals upon which our nation was founded, “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” Instead, we are building a wall to keep people out!! We have almost one million so called “Dreamers” in this country who are now concerned about being deported from the country they grew up in because our politicians decided it was in their interest to make the issue a political one instead of a humanitarian problem. The foreign policy that we are pursuing is whimsical at best, endangering our very security at worst. We cow tow to Moscow and Putin, openly discuss plans to pull out of both Syria and Afghanistan despite the additional jeopardy it places our men and women in arms under in those theaters of operation and appoint a head of the State department (T REX) whose only objective was to tear it apart, then turn around and fire him, leaving our diplomatic corps in total chaos. Our focus is on building a ridiculous wall between our country and Mexico instead of combating Russian interference in our election process. The information war with Trump depending on the ignorance and racism of his base and the inflammatory words of propaganda mouthpieces he owns like Sean “INSANITY” Hannity which attempt to discredit legitimate media outlets like the Washington Post and New York Times has served its intended and devious purpose-to sow confusion and discontent. He regularly attacks our law enforcement and judiciary establishments like the FBI and DOJ in order to perpetuate the cover up of the illegal activities he and his inner circle have been involved with for decades, casting aspirations on the very institutions that are supposed to be protecting our nation from the very things CROOKED DONALD has already done. The 2016 presidential election was stolen, plain and simple, by a concerted effort by the Trump campaign and the Russians to discredit Hillary Clinton through hacking the DNC e mails and then orchestrating their release through Wikileaks. The media campaign orchestrated by FAUX NEWS and other outlets like Breitbart continuously hammered home the Benghazi story and the supposed classified e mail scandal until people actually bought into the narrative. And ever since that fateful November day, CROOKED DONALD, his multitude of lawyers, appointees and Republikans in Congress have done everything possible to cover this up. There are now two major investigations underway into these allegations, the Mueller probe and now the civil lawsuit filed by the DNC which alleges essentially the same thing. Ladies and gentlemen, please take note-your democracy is being hijacked by a political party and a autocrat intent on instituting policies and programs that threaten the very core of our democratic society. It is no longer a viable option to stand by and watch this “DEATH OF DEMOCRACY” play out-it’s time to become involved!! TRIBES, BRIBES and DIATRIBES
I was listening to a commentator the other day describing the political divide tearing at the fabric of our democracy as “tribal” in nature. The definition of tribal is “a clan based social structure”. I frankly don’t see anything social about our current situation, from demagogues like Sean “INSANITY” Hannity to politicians like CROOKED DONALD Trump constantly attacking their opponents, our law enforcement agencies, the intelligence community and anybody else who takes a different position on the issues. Both parties are equally guilty. Instead of tending to the business of the nation, we have people like Senate Majority leader “RICH” Mitch McConnell telling GOP donors that he plans on keeping the Senate in session longer in order to keep Democratic Senators up for reelection from campaigning this fall ahead of the mid term elections. He isn’t worried about Syria, Afghanistan, Trump’s “Cabinet of Clowns” like Scott Pruitt or reducing our swollen budget deficit-he’s worried about keeping his majority in the Senate. Period. The Democrats for their part spend all of their time and effort trying to figure out how to undermine the Republikan agenda instead of fighting for the issues that matter to the American people, like immigration, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid reform and foreign policy. It seemingly has become a never ending cycle of punch and counterpunch instead of meaningful discussion and policy directives. The other troubling issue surrounding the body politic today is the complete absence of any moral or ethical standards, with lies, misinformation, bribery and smear tactics the norm. Donald Trump has lowered the bar in his administration to the point where it is extremely difficult to differentiate fact from fiction. His Press Secretary, Sarah “HUCKLEBERRY” Sanders, stands at the podium day after day with misstatements of fact, attacks on individuals like James Comey and other lies that her boss wants her to offer up as truth. Others in his administration, like Scott Pruitt and several others who are already gone, have treated taxpayer dollars like their own personal lottery winnings with no regard for the norms of governance. What has happened to us? When did we become a nation of intolerant sectarians who are only concerned with their own particular ideological agendas and will do anything to insure that differing views or opinions are discredited? When did we stop believing that we are one nation, not fifty one nations, and that liberty and justice is guaranteed for all, not just a select few?? We’ve lost our way, folks, and we need to get back on track. There will always be differences of opinion in politics and on the issues that confront us all, but the way we deal with those differences needs to change. Enough of the tribes, bribes and diatribes!!! It's time for real civil discourse between the parties and action on the issues, not more accusations and name calling!! SCOTT PRUITT IS BULLETPROOF!!
I have written several different posts about the CEO of CROOKED DONALD’S “Cabinet of Clowns", EPA Administrator SCOTT (I DIDN”T DO IT!!) PRUITT, the moat recent of which was entitled “TIME TO STOP THE DESTRUCTION OF THE EPA”, in which I detailed the numerous abuses of power and spending that he has been guilty of in the past. Just in the last week it has been revealed that he spent $43,000 of EPA money for a soundproof “phone booth” in his office, approved raises for favored staff members without proper authorization, accepted preferential accommodation rates from a lobbyist whose condo he was “renting” for $50.00/night when the going rate in D.C. is five times as high, and it was just revealed that he had his SUV upgraded (at taxpayer expense, of course) to include bulletproof seat covers!! You read correctly. This inappropriate behavior comes on top of a multitude of other abuses, such as first class travel and a contingent of security personnel to rival his boss’s, all on our dime!! The man is a walking Special Investigation, and yet he has the backing of Trump and other key Republikans such as RICH” Mitch McConnell and “CRYIN” Paul Ryan, who have said nothing as media scrutiny into Pruitt’s activities has intensified of late. His environmental directives have but one objective in mind-to completely dismantle and castrate the EPA of any sort of regulatory powers over those industries which feed the money into the Republikan coffers-oil and gas, coal, mining and refining. Then I remembered from my previous research Pruitt was Attorney General in Oklahoma, and responsible for a number of rulings which opened up his state to the environmentally damaging practice of “fracking”, a process whereby natural gas is extracted from pockets deep underground by injecting chemicals at a very high pressure to release the trapped gas. This practice has proven to be responsible in a number of areas in Oklahoma where the incidence of earthquakes has skyrocketed. Then I also remembered another thing from Oklahoma-the Koch brothers. These individuals have literally been the beneficiary of favorable rulings from Pruitt on both a state and now federal level worth BILLIONS of dollars. In turn, they have lavished hundreds of millions of dollars on various candidates like Pruitt, given huge amounts to the Republikan party, and donated millions to air television misinformation campaigns to suit their political agenda and smear opponents. It is no coincidence that Trump and his Republikan brethren have adapted a “hands off” policy with regard to Scott Pruitt’s tenure as head of the EPA despite the public outcry and growing chorus of both Democrats and some Republicans who are calling for his removal. They can’t afford to alienate their largest benefactor, plain and simple. This benefactor is in the process of buying and selling America, and we cannot allow this disturbing pattern of governance by corporate finance to continue. I just heard that over SIX MILLION people DIED globally in 2017 as a result of air pollution. That’s correct, folks. And yet Scott Pruitt and the Koch brothers, as well as many others in the current administration, from Trump on down, advocate for fossil fuel technologies that are the single biggest contributing factor to the increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, most directly responsible for diseases that caused these deaths. They withdrew the United States from the Paris Climate Accord for some bogus financial reasons. They deny that climate change exists, despite overwhelming scientific evidence to the contrary. In addition, Pruitt is in the process of rolling back a number of pollution control and emission control standards previously established to limit air pollution from power plants and automobiles. This is the damage being inflicted on our great nation right now, today, by this administration and stooges like Pruitt. It is very obvious that the only thing that matters to the Republikan party at this point in time is retaining their control of Congress by any means possible while at the same time instituting policies designed to reward their corporate sponsors but which in fact are causing great harm, both from a health standpoint and to our environment. And now we know why!! The BUCK STARTS HERE!!!! BASEBALL IS A SUMMER SPORT!!
I was watching Sports Center and I saw the miserable weather conditions in which the Cubs and Cardinals attempted to play baseball the other day-temperature in the twenties with winds gusting thirty mph or higher and I believe intermittent snow showers falling. Sunday’s game AND Monday’s game in Chicago also postponed. The same thing happened in Boston, with similarly miserable meteorological conditions. It got me to thinking about what MLB can do to avoid these postponements and the future travel difficulties make up games present to the teams involved-make up dates are usually scheduled on what are supposed to be team travel days during the season, so conflicts usually arise with these dates. I have a much simpler solution to the problem…..PLAY BASEBALL IN THE WARM MONTHS, May through October. No April games, no November play off games. I played some ball in my day, and I can tell you that there aren’t too many things that sting worse than hitting a fastball off of the thin part of the bat when it’s thirty some degrees outside!!! Or trying to throw a baseball when the wind is blowing forty mph!! The sport was intended to be played in the summertime, hence the catch phrase “the boys of SUMMER, not the boys of spring or autumn!!! MLB is looking for ways to get more people interested in the sport, and to start with this would allow the number of regular season games to be reduced by thirty or so games, which would be a good thing (unless you’re a greedy owner!!). One hundred and sixty two games in the regular season is too many, and when you include spring training and the play offs, teams could literally now be playing close to two hundred games per season-that’s way too many. It’s no wonder that so many MLB players go on the DL (Disabled List) during the season-it goes on forever and takes a serious toll on their bodies!! Playing baseball in November is also conflicted. It conflicts with the beginning of the NBA season, The NHL season, and is right in the middle of the NFL schedule. October is the month for the FALL classic, the World Series, NOT NOVEMBER, the month of Gordon Lightfoot’s “gales of November”!! Roughly half of the teams in the major leagues are in cold weather cities and only a few have domed stadiums. So this weather situation is not uncommon-it seems to happen every year. So let’s “PLAY BALL!” but use some common sense about when and where!!! “MAD” MATT BEVIN’S INSANE COMMENT I really wasn’t surprised when I read the following comment this morning attributed to Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin following the State Legislature’s override of his budget vetoes and the massive teachers rally at the state Capitol in Frankfort. Here is the direct quote as reported by Louisville television station WDRB: Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin on the teacher rallies today. “I guarantee you somewhere in Kentucky today a child was sexually assaulted that was left at home because there was nobody there to watch them.” I think this comment speaks volumes about “Mad” Matt’s temperament, which has never been stable since he was voted into office by the UNDERWHELMING thirty percent of people who even bothered to vote. I have written several posts about this nasty little demagogue, who has been on a mission since the day he took office to wage war on the teachers, women, labor unions, the gay and lesbian community and the media in order to further his right wing Evangelical agenda. But this latest remark shows the man’s true colors. He is embarrassed because the state legislature, controlled by his own REPUBLIKAN party, overrode his budget vetoes. His signing into law the so called pension reform bill which was passed at the eleventh hour as part of a totally insignificant sewer bill was a direct slap in the face to every teacher in the state of Kentucky, and they were lawfully assembled at the capitol to make lawmakers aware of their continued concerns with their pension funds being cut. I believe the comment speaks for itself, as it also does to this man’s ignorance and intolerance of anybody who dares to disagree with him or his policies. To indirectly blame the teachers that he and his legislative cronies are trying to screw for a sexual assault that never occurred in the first place is just plain outrageous, and Bevin should be taken to task for it!! It’s inconceivable to me that he has been given a pass this long based upon the damage his administration has already inflicted on our Commonwealth. It’s most unfortunate that we have to put up with this buffoon for two more years, because there is no telling what he’ll do next to lash out at those who oppose him. As of this writing, the voice of reason in the State government, Attorney General Andy Beshear, “MAD” Matt’s likely opponent in the 2020 election, has already filed suit to block the pension reform bill from becoming law. It’s good to know that we have at least one governmental safeguard between us and the dictatorial policies and right wing agenda of “MAD” MATT. As I have said before, it appears to me that this little demagogue has modeled his governmental approach to that of his hero, CROOKED DONALD. He is an absolute threat to our entire Commonwealth, willing to sell out the people of the State to satisfy his corporate backers and lobbyists and further his political agenda. He must be held accountable for his actions, like this ignorant remark!!! TIME TO END THE “INSANITY”, HANNITY!
I absolutely refuse to watch or even call FAUX NEWS by their rightful name. The sub title of this blog is “FAUX NEWS-UNFAIR and UNBALANCED”. The propaganda which spews forth from this so called media outlet is nothing more than the political agenda of Donald Trump. The network has been under increasing attack and scrutiny of late, including by its own people!! Shepard Smith, key anchor for the network, said Sean Hannity’s show wasn’t news but rather “entertainment”. Another anchor quit in protest of the favorable and biased coverage afforded to Trump and his administration. Then there was the outcry over Laura Ingraham’s remarks about one of the Parkland, FL shooting victims, which resulted in the mass exodus of advertisers from her show, resulting in a serious loss of revenue and hitting FAUX NEWS where it hurts, in the pocketbook. But NOTHING compares to the literal insanity I saw from news takes this morning, with “INSANITY” Hannity revealing diagrams of Robert Mueller as a mob boss, with his so called “family” and lines drawn to indicate the relationship between him and others, much like we would have seen in an old “Sopranos” episode or on “Homeland”. The same for James Comey, the fired FBI Director. And then he has a parade of absolute nut jobs like Joe “MOB LAWYER” diGenova (if he isn’t one he should be!), Alan “DUMSH*T” ” Dershowitz and Newt “”GANGGREEN” Gingrich railing on about how the entire Mueller investigation was un American, unfair, unfounded, and a travesty of justice!! Gingrich even compared the FBI raid on “MICHAEL COHEN-TO JAIL I’M GOIN” to tactics the Gestapo used in Nazi Germany!!! This type of REAL FAKE NEWS and incendiary yellow journalism has done nothing to solve any of our nation’s serious issues but only served to further divide us and incite CROOKED DONALD’S so called “base” to further heights of desperation, like this charade by Hannity last night. The noose is getting tighter and everyone who has been a Trump supporter in the past knows how this reality show is going to end. It's time for the advertisers who support Hannity to pull their support from his show as well, when he or his guests are continuosly attempting to undermine the rule of law in our country!!! To all those out there who actually believe the utter nonsense and propaganda that FAUX NEWS is trying to pass off as real news while helping Trump belittle and denigrate serious media outlets like the Washington Post and the New York Times, I would merely ask that you consider another source for your information, because what you’re getting from “INSANITY” Hannity and Laura Ingraham IS NOT REAL NEWS AT ALL!!! To the rest of the 30 per cent or so who would support Trump even if he is guilty of all of the allegations pending against him, collusion with Russia, obstruction of justice in the russia investigation, sexual assault, intimidation, bribery, money laundering, campaign fraud, adultery, etc. I simply say this-your days of glory since Trump stole the Presidency with help from the Russians are fast drawing to a close, and when history looks back on this sad chapter in the American story you WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE!!! CROOKED DONALD played you, just like he does everyone else. In the end, the norms of governance and the rule of law will prevail, but at what cost to all of us????? SYRIAN SLAUGHTER
The ongoing civil war (not any longer a civil war in any use of the word!) inside Syria is a story that apparently no one in Washington seems overly concerned about. I’m not going to pin this one on the Trump administration, although their lack of a clear cut policy with definitive objectives other than defeat ISIL has allowed the situation to deteriorate rapidly of late. The facts are these, irrespective of politics: between 350,000 and 500,000 people have perished since the war began over seven years ago during the so called ‘Arab Spring”, and the majority of these fatalities have been civilian deaths; over seven million persons have been displaced by the conflict; over five million refugees created by the ongoing battles between the regime of Assad and the opposition. These numbers alone are staggering. When you also consider the fact that Assad has used chemical weapons, including saran and chlorine gas, on his own population, and is currently embarked on a mission of genocide on the outskirts of Damascus, killing and gassing women and children indiscriminately, there are actual war crimes being committed. The situation is indeed complicated. Assad’s regime was in grave danger of being toppled, but his long time advocates named Vladimir Putin and Russia were handed a golden opportunity to reestablish themselves in the country and the region at the invitation of Assad to conduct air strikes after a number ISIL offensives had set the Syrian army on its heels. They have done so; Assad has not only survived but now appears to be on the verge of defeating his political opponents and crushing the opposition, by any method available. In the meanwhile, the United States has conducted a couple of operations in response to Syrian regime atrocities, including a cruise missile attack on a Syrian air base following a chemical attack on his own people, and more recently a significant clash between U.S. forces and Russian mercenaries, in which a large number of Russians were killed by air strikes. But our main objective in this country is only to stop the spread of the disease known as ISIL or ISIS, and our focus has been on this mission. Countless cease fires have been brokered and broken, the Russians have consistently vetoed any United Nations resolutions aimed at ending the bloodshed and in the meanwhile more and more civilians are being slaughtered by random bombings, artillery fire and chemical attacks, all aimed at the total elimination of any possible opposition to the regime. And the rest of the world watches, and Trump and other politicians call for a ban on Syrian refugees instead of providing the necessary humanitarian aid and political or military solutions necessary to end this conflict. The stated American end game of Assad stepping aside will NEVER happen, any more so than Kim Jong-un will give up his nuclear weapons program. It is also currently being reported that N. Korea is providing his regime with the materials necessary to produce additional chemical weapons, in spite of a United Nations ban and monitoring that took place following the original chemical attacks. In short, the situation is becoming dire, and the world needs to start paying closer attention to the slaughter being orchestrated by Putin and his proxy and war criminal, Assad. They should be held accountable for the incredible human toll this conflict has extracted on his country and his people, all in order to retain his grip on power. Hopefully, his day of reckoning will come sooner rather than later. As of this post, the world is awaiting the military response from the United States over the latest inhumane chemical attack by Assad against his own people. This attack was in part fueled by Trump's ill advised comments last week regarding withdrawal from Syria altogether, which undoubtedly emboldened both Assad and his puppet master, Putin. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end of this years long nightmare being endured by the Syrian people!!! |
About Mike ColeBorn in Hamilton, OH but a proud Kentuckian since age two. One brother and three sisters. Suburban, Catholic middle-class upbringing. Attended Jefferson Community College and Pasadena Community College. Proud father of four and grandfather to seven, and most of all, a concerned American citizen! Are you??? Categories |