TGIF

It is true that I no longer hold a job. Retirement is a mixed blessing, but that is not what I want to write about.
Even retired, I look forward to weekends. There is just a different aura hovering in the air starting Friday evening. Some of the tension leaves people, and there are different activities afoot. Now some of those activities get a might unsavory, but mostly they are good, naps, sports, shopping, meals, and just general nonsense. I like nonsense.
Maybe my love of the weekend is just a memory of what they were when I was younger. I realize that these days many work those days. I guess I get stuck ib the past a bit, but I also think that it is food to rememver the days when, for two and a half days, folks just tried to enjoy themselves. It was good for body mind and soul.
To those who say that our economy os booming, I have a question. If things are so great, why are people working so many hours just to get by. Yes, some people do love their jobs and some are just work-a-holics, but trist me, I have been there and worked with a whole lot of folks and I can say that most people just pur up with their jobs, and that becomes more and more the case when they are working 55, 60, or more hours a week.. That tolerance soon turns to loathing and no one should have to spend  most of their waking hours at something they detest.
The answer is simple. Let the big corporations, and smaller businesses that are making large ,profits turn loose with some money. Increase wages, and even the Government's numbers show that wages are still too low and hire more people. Give folks more of their own lives back. When you already habe a lot of money, do you really need that much more? When does the profit incentive become just plain, stupid greed.
To those working this weekend, I hope things change your way, For those who have the time off, enjoy every minute of it. Enjoying your weekend has almost become a revolutionary act. Blessings to all.

Back to Work

Okay, the parties over. Barbeque has been eaten, ball games played and beer drunk. You may be tired, nauseous and a bit hung over, but you need to get with it. The lazy days of summer cannot be so lazy this year. Too much to do.
This is the year that will determine where the US goes,  The economy is better, but it will slide back if we return to the ennui that has plagued us for too long. American workers have bemoaned the lack of decent jobs since the Great Recession kicked in. Those jobs are out there now and you best be ready. Go to school in your spare time. Get some training because, if you don't, well, there are a lot of foreign workers trained and ready to roll, who would desperately love to come here.
Take control of your life. Learn and practice decent manners. Not where you put salad forks at a formal dinner, just little things like please and thank you and may I help you. Be neat in your appearance and watch your mouth. Your ability to string together obscenities may be well developed, but it just displays your basic ignorance.
.Go to work ready to work. If you're hung over, that's your fault. Get over it and don't drag around complaining. Problems at home? Unless it involves an unusual disaster, deal with them at home. If it is something dire, tell your boss.  They are human and will probably cut you some slack. If you are the boss, don't take it out on employees. It's not their fault.
Get your financial house in order. You don't need huge bills hanging around. And, get your actual dwelling in order. Life goes smoother when things are neat and organized.
,Take care of yourself. You do no good when you're sickly, so eat well, get some exercise and a bit of rest. You don't need to be a fanatic, eating tofu and hanging out in gyms. Just use some sense.
I've written such posts before and I don't want to preach or bore people, I just sometimes think that many don't realize how fast things are changing. Americans must be ready, moving quickly and intelligently. If we fail this time, things will get very bad. On the other hand, you'll have plenty of free time. No money, but lots of free time.

Just hangin' Out Here

Just hangin' out here in the middle of nowhere. Got nowhere to go, got nothin' to do.
Just hangin' out here, dollar in my hand, whoopin' and hollerin' for the ice cream man.
Dr. John, Shoo Fly Goes Marchin' On. from In the Right Place
Good advice from the Doctor. I have a lot to do and many places to go, but guess what?
Wednesday is the 4th of July and, I guarantee you that there will be little real business done from tomorrow noon until Thursday afternoon. Many have the day off and will be ready to run on Tuesday and recovering Thursday morning. Those who must work will not be happy, eager  employees. So I'm just hangin' out. And, yes, I will be eating some ice cream.
But, the news keeps coming and today we are dealing with tariffs. The President is still not thrilled with China and has started a scuffle with Canada. In addition, he is getting testy with the EU. He is right. We need not put up with unfair trade practices.
However, the Stock Market is getting a wee bit jumpy. On the whole, I could care less about that because there is not a real indicator of the state of the economy. Still, I have some concern because a lot of folks have their retirement funds tied up in there. My advice is get out. Move your money somewhere safe. I have seen bubbles burst. The tech bubble under Clinton and the housing bubble under Bush 2. For a few years, some experts have said that the current Market is over priced and predicting a break. It will come.
Also, as these tariffs take hold, prices will rise. That is how it should be. We have grown to used to buying second rate, dirt cheap products from foreign lands, who. on return, buy little of our properly made goods because of the expense. Instead, they steal our ideas and produce junk, which, like idiots buy. This must stop and will, but, many Americans, like spoiled brats, will scream at higher prices. Forget the increase in jobs. They just want cheap electronics and clothes. Actually, they want both, but that just is not going to happen.
So, look for the economic road to get a might bumpy for a while. Don't worry. Just hang out . And keep an eye out for the ice cream man.

America and Immigration

Today, the new Administration begins the daunting task of dealing with immigration. We really have no idea how many illegal immigrants there are in this Country, but it is a massive amount. We once welcomed immigrants to this Country, but things have changed. People refuse to get this. We are no longer a sparsely populated agrarian economy, nor are we a burgeoning industrial economy. Economically, we are in some period of transition. We just have no idea what we are transitioning to. But, one thing we have no lack of is workers. Economically we do not need more of them.

Illegal immigrants work cheap and are willing to do so because, when they go home or send money home, it is more than they would make in their native land. This willingness to work for low wages, drives down wages for the rest of us. I have lived in areas where illegals are present in large numbers. Because they make little, they are willing to cram as many people into small dwellings as they can. The more people, the less each has to pay for rent. This, in turn, depresses the housing prices in those areas. It also taxes sanitation, education and medical facilities in those areas. Also, poverty breeds crime. These may be politically incorrect statements, but, too bad; they are true.

That whole crime issue should be stressed. Of course not all illegal immigrants are hard core criminals (although the fact that they are here illegally does make them criminals), but things are not what they used to be. A great many have brought with them their gang affiliations and the Mexican gangs are responsible for an enormous amount of drugs entering the Nation.

We simply do not need these people here. They need to go home and, fix the things are that bad there, start a movement to change their homeland.

As far as legal immigration goes, when some one has a skill that is needed in America, great, let them enter, with some noted exceptions and conditions. People from the various terrorist torn lands should not enter. The conditions are simply too volatile and we cannot do adequate vetting. The screening processes would be too time consuming, too costly, and quite frankly, any skills they may have are also possessed by our own people, many of whom are in need of jobs.

The other condition must be acceptance of American law. Keep your religion. Keep your customs. But, only when they do not violate our laws. I bring this up for two reasons. First, there are cultures in Africa, India, and the Mid East that practice such repulsive traditions as female genital mutilation and honor killings. This cannot be tolerated in America and if these people believe that any insistence that give up these reprehensible practices violates their religious freedom, too bad. If they are still in their native lands, let them stay there. If they have immigrated, deport them.

The second problem links to the first. In Europe, Muslim communities have set up areas that are governed by sharia law, a brutally harsh set of laws. There are a few American Muslim communities who would do the same. This is not acceptable. Those who think that we should allow them freedom to do this are idiots. Sharia law includes dress codes for women, restricts education for women, all but prohibits such American traditions as boys and girls dating, practices arranged marriages, and prescribes as penalties for violations of the law stoning and beheading.

In short, why are we debating this? Illegal aliens  are just that, illegal. Deport them and let them apply for legal immigration. Allow that only if they have a marketable skill. Do not allow immigration from lands that are problematic. It really is that simple.

America and the Big Day

Well, here at last is Election Day 20016. Woo hoo. Don't get too comfortable, because things will not be settled tonight. If things are as close as the experts seem to think, it may take days to get all of the absentee ballots counted. Then, we likely will see challenges, which will go to courts, then higher courts, etc, on up to the Supreme Court, which is , now, split 4 to 4. God knows what will happen then. There is even a small, but intriguing, possibility that we could have a tied Electoral vote and the whole thing then winds up in the House of Representative. The House is not bound to just the 2 candidates or any of the fringe candidates. If that happens, all hell will break loose.

No matter what, there are going to be some very nervous folks in DC. The electorate is not happy and all sides are looking for someone to take their anger out on. The problem is twofold. First, demographic. The dominant folks in the US have always been white. Now, it may be that blacks and Hispanics are the dominant group. This causes a division that is not an issue of race in the physical sense; it is an issue of  cultural differences. Add to this the so-called Millennials, who are blatantly Socialist (remember Bernie Sanders), and you have three groups whose values and views are very close to incompatible.

Second, economics; this is even tougher. The economy, around the World is changed. All economic models have always included the idea of growth. Guess what? The population cannot keep growing, the Earth has finite resources, and how the hell may cars and TVs can people buy. The economy cannot keep growing, unless we expand into outer space (I'm all for it, but something funny is going on with that, It seems a logical step, but it is clear that no nation wants to take it. Either we have all grown spineless, or we are not being told something). In addition, America has long controlled most of the World's resources; other people will no longer tolerate that, without a fight. To sum up, a rethinking of economics has to happen, but, I see no chance that any of our leaders can think on that level.

That leads me to a confession. For months I have written about my loathing of Hillary Clinton and I stand by that  . I have said that I would vote for The Donald just to vote against her and urged everyone to do likewise. Well, I just cannot vote for that pompous, half bright megalomaniac. I can't do it. I have listened to his recent speeches and admit that he at least and at last has grown coherent, but, if he enacts everything he espouses, we will be ruined.

He wants tax cuts, and most of those will benefit the wealthy. This is nothing but Reagan's Trickle Down Economy. It didn't work for Ronnie and it will not work now. He wants to rebuild the infrastructure and the military, initiate urban renewal in the black neighborhoods, and overhaul the education system. Worthwhile projects one and all, but they will cost a lot of money, an unthinkable amount. You cannot do that while cutting taxes. It is impossible. If he tries it, and pushes it through what will likely be a divided and totally useless Congress, we will be crippled economically forever.

That brings me to my last point. I am not unable to vote for Trump because of the moral failings in his personal life. He has had problems with women but, if you excluded every male who has similarly misbehaved, we would have had damn few Presidents. I am refusing to vote fro him because of his failed business ethics. I am quite sure that he, to make himself feel kinglike, would run up a massive debt, far worse than the ridiculous one we have now. Why do I think this? Because he has  done it repeatedly in his private businesses. When you are as wealthy as he is, and can create multiple corporations, bankrupting a couple, can, in a twisted way, be extremely beneficial. He admits that he has used tactics like this to make much money, and it is legal. However, people never stop to think about the consequence of bankruptcies are to those who are left holding the debt. The Donald, left massive debts, walked away, and many businesses he had contracted with, were unpaid. That in turn leaves their employees either unpaid or laid off. In addition, Trump's own employees were left unpaid. In addition, investors inn his companies lost big money.

In short, the more I look at Trump, the more I see, not a skilled businessman, but a skilled conman, a cheat and a bully who uses his money, like a petulant child, to get his way.

So there's the choice. A loathsome toad of a woman who does not have an honest bone in her body or a degenerate conman. That is the choice. God help us. Be ready, because the crap is about to hit the fan.
  

Americans Paying Attention to What Matters

I was wrong. It happens every now and then but this surprised me, pleasantly so. It seems that exit polls in Wisconsin show that terrorism is not the main concern of voters. I believed that the recent bombings in Belgium would trigger a reaction in the US but, no.

It seems that the economy is the key issue. Both Parties agree that the stagnant economy is a big problem. Republicans are second most concerned with high taxes while Democrats are upset about the rapidly increasing disparity between the rich and the rest of us. In both Parties, terrorism is third.

I was sure terrorism would be the big thing and push a surge toward the tough talking Cruz or the even tougher talking Trump. I am very pleased that Americans are keeping their eye on the ball and not falling for distractions.

There are many who would argue that terrorist incidents are not solely the work of those proclaiming themselves terrorists. We know, without question, that the CIA (not the whole Agency but rogue elements within it) created Al Qaida and the Taliban, and there is  considerable evidence that they have some kind of contact with ISIL Some think that these incidents are set up just to elicit a panic response from ordinary citizens, which will, in turn pave the way to tighter government control. Maybe, but I do not think so. I am sure of the CIAs manipulation of Al Qaida and the Taliban but I think that ISIL is like the Frankenstein monster, morphing from its parent organizations into something no one controls. Having said that, I am positive that the Powers that run things love to take advantage of these monstrous attacks to tighten their noose of control.

Of course the saner elements of our Nation and the rest of the World are concerned about terrorism and do what can be done to stop it but, to be honest, if people are willing to blow themselves to bits in order to kill a few others, there really is not a hell of a lot anyone can do and what can be done, pretty much is being done. No doubt it can be done better, but such efforts will never be 100% effective.

In the meantime, we all have lives to live and, quite rightly, we need to get a grip on our fairly dead economy. The American people are not panicking over terrorism and are focusing on matters that concern them on an every day basis. I am pleasantly surprised.