Cry for Aleppo

Will no one "cry" out in anger for the murdered citizens of Aleppo? Will no one mourn the millions of refugees on the road from ruthless dictators and their armies of deluded soldiers? Will no one think about the millions of Americans disenfranchised by the cyber lies and "fake news" of the trolls from Russia (and the American henchmen)?

Does anyone really care about the loss of the American Democratic system to the "halls of high finance" and "backroom economic deals"? China says "the one-China policy is not for sale"! Is there anything in American government, American politics, American ideals -- that is NOT for sale?

Do we live in a country "of the people, by the people, and for the people" or has it been rephrased as "of the one, by the few, and for the rich?" What has happened to us? I for one "cry for Aleppo" and its innocent people slaughtered for no reason -- attacked by all for no reason -- living in constant fear of death --- for no reason --- except senseless, barbarous and insane stupidity? Will anyone "cry for us" when we are going? Anyone?

Projected: FEAR

Fear for my country; fear for my retirement; fear for my job; fear for my social security; fear for my future; fear for all the poor and underprivileged out there; fear for anyone on any kind of government assistance; fear for women; fear for immigrants; fear for Muslims; fear for anyone non-white; fear for the smart and the open; fear for the stupid and the unknowing; fear for colleges; fear for students; fear for young women; fear for older people; fear for seniors; fear for pets; fear for all Americans; fear for all non-Americans; fear for Democrats; fear for Independents; fear for Planned Parenthood; fear for the immediate future/present; fear for the stock market; fear for the middle class; fear for progress; fear for the progressives; fear for people who can think; fear for all of us!!!!!!!

Capitalism Versus Democracy

Sometime each semester I tell my students that we live in a democracy in the US. Capitalism is an economic system that details the relationships involved with buying, selling, consumerism, supply and demand, stock markets, bonds, financial matters of all types, and the various ways that people earn, are taxed, and shape their own economic futures.

Now however the lines between capitalism and democracy have been blurred by our President-elect; now called the Real Estate President. He will be trying to run a political system as if it were an economic one -- something he should have better understood as a graduate of Wharton. And we will have to adjust or be taken up and compromised on a balance sheet somewhere.

Welcome to Idiocracy II.  

President Donald J. Trump

For better or for worse, the businessman with the limited vocabulary and the huge ego will be the next President of the United States -- as of Jan 21, 2017. Will he be a good President? No one can really predict.

Because of his ego, narcissism, and the variety of advisers he will have -- the future is hard to predict. Will he make mistakes? Certainly, every President does. Will he lead us into war, or diplomatic difficulties, or wild internal struggles -- almost certainly, because of his peculiar ego and his unrelenting desire to be right.

Is the United States of America "in decline" with this President, I would like to think "not" -- but the real answer is still out there.

Falling, Falling, Falling...

Moment to moment, news cycle to news cycle, day to day -- we appear to be falling...into something. But what in God's name is it? Is it a government moving away from democracy into some kind of "bullied" capitalistic oligarchy?

Has the increasing speed of change overcome our democratic republic, and changed it irrevocably?
Has America itself morphed away from the "melting pot" to the "land of the white people?"

Can we slow this pace of incredible egotistical "making America 'great' again" into something that actually makes sense: preserving our heritage as a benevolent and kind nation for all future generations? Can we?

Witnesses to History

Are we all witnesses to history? Are we seeing, in unbelievable detail the piece-by-piece destruction of the American Dream -- by Americans?

Have we deliberately allowed ourselves to be so stupid, so estranged from normalcy; that we wish for and actually act out our own destruction? It is said that the "impulse" to suicide is always made with the "desire for something better in mind." Are we that desperate?

To Anyone I Know Who Voted For Trump, Especially My Relatives

You made a mistake. You drank the "koolaid." You bought the excuses, normalized the abnormal, and legitimatized the crook. You failed in your duty to really look into the candidates, and make an intelligent decision for all Americans. You voted your way because you always voted for that party.

You are a moron.

You watched Fox News and accepted it as the truth -- when all it did was appeal to your inner prejudices and stupidities. Yes, you are also a fool. You are gullible. You accepted "fair and balanced" news coverage from all the networks and sources because you think the world is really like television, and television of course always tells the truth.

You are a fool.

You also now think this "successful businessman" (by his own declaration) can do no wrong. He will be an inciter of change -- and you think that is all good. Because you don't know any better. You still think that "the Apprentice" was the best show on television.

You are a tasteless fool.

You are a Trump backer -- allied with white supremacists, the KKK, and all things retrograde and evil in the United States. I feel sorry for you, and your ignorance; but I cannot forgive you. You are the dross of history, the unintentional but causative anomalies of the devil's history among men.