Month: December 2025

We Were Maligned

Years ago as Donny was ascending to the halls of power many of us saw it coming and tried to warn people, especially voters, what they were embracing….in those early days we were maligned as alarmists and fakirs….it is called foresight.

You can’t prove you’re from the future, and you’re limited to broadly legal means. Can you persuade enough people to take it more seriously?

After all, you know what’s coming—January 6, the overturning of Roe v. Wade, checks and balances failing, massive open corruption, troops on the streets, abductions by masked men, and concentration camps. But when you warn of these horrors, it sounds outlandish. People won’t believe you. If you insist, you’ll be dismissed as hysterical. Despite knowing the future, you won’t be able to prevent it.

This is not that far from the position many ordinary Americans found themselves in at the start of the Trump era. They weren’t time travelers but saw what was coming clearly enough. They called Trump’s movement fascist from the very start, and often predicted specific milestones of our democratic decline well in advance. They were convinced they were right—and often beside themselves with worry. Accordingly, they did everything they could to get others to listen.

But not enough people did, and many attacked them—even as events proved them right, again and again. As late as February 2025, respected legal commentator Noah Feldman was casually asserting our constitutional system was “working fine” and Jon Stewart was scolding people who used the word “fascist,” claiming all they had done “over the last ten years is cry wolf.”

There is an ancient archetype at work here. In Greek mythology, Cassandra was given the gift of prophecy—of seeing the future—but cursed that she would never be believed. Her name is sometimes used as a pejorative for an overacting alarmist, which, appropriately enough, misses the point. Cassandra was, after all, right. When the Greek army seemingly abandoned the siege of Troy, leaving behind the Trojan horse, she pleaded with the Trojans not to bring it into the city. They did so anyway, and armed men burst out of it, dooming them all.

Why did we see this story again? Why did some immediately see America’s dark future, while others fought them so long and so hard?

https://newrepublic.com/article/204254/survey-2024-election-cassandras-trump-2025

So we were not alarmist…..and yet about 35-40% of the voters still hang onto this creeps coattails for whatever reason.

Maybe people should take a closer look at any political predictions that are made from knowledge and not some knee jerk whim.

The most beautiful words in the English language…..’We Told You So”

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Make America White Again

Ever since Donny entered into politics he has been Hell bent on persecuting people of color….this time around he has taken his desires to full blown attempt to make American a white country again.

The problem with that stupid damn idea is that American has never been a solely white nation….

As Donald Trump deteriorates and his grasp on power fades, he has been lashing out furiously at female journalists and ethnic groups, most recently Somali Americans. His insults land because of their animosity and his power, not their accuracy. Likewise, his administration’s attacks on immigrants are sloppy and driven by lies. It’s strikingly clear that the target is not individuals with criminal records. It’s anyone and everyone guilty of being brown. Native Americans with tribal identification cards, US citizens, people doing crucial work from construction to nursing, military veterans, college students, people sleeping in their own beds, small children: all kinds of residents of this country are under attack.

“ICE raids are cruel, inhumane, and do nothing to serve public safety,” declares Zohran Mamdani, the New York City mayor-elect. Masked thugs smashing car windows and dragging parents away from their babies, terrorizing whole swathes of the population, and interfering with the ability of schools and businesses to function does the opposite. The rounds of targeted hatred by Trump and his minions – for people from Haiti during the 2024 campaign, for people from Venezuela this spring and summer, and most recently for people from Somalia – rely on defamatory lies and insults, because the facts about these groups don’t support the hate.

This terrorizing and demonizing pretends to be in service of recreating a white America that never existed. The US when white supremacists like Trump were young was whiter, but this was never a white country. In 1776, the 13 colonies that became the United States included a significant percentage of Black and Indigenous people (some southern states were a third or more Black). When the US annexed Texas in 1844 and then in 1848 took Mexico’s whole northern half, a Spanish-speaking population was already settled across parts of what’s now the south-west and California. The first African Muslim in what is now the United States came in a Spanish expedition almost a century before the Mayflower brought its fanatical Puritans to the shores of Massachusetts in 1620.

The persecution of huge numbers of brown people and even the mass deportations will not create the white country of far-right fantasy. Los Angeles, for example is an almost 50% Latino city, and despite the ICE and border patrol outrages, arrests, imprisonments and deportations, it remains so. The city’s very name is Spanish, a reminder of who was here first. All the hatred, all the persecution, seems like the panic of racists pretending they can stop the future of this country no longer being majority white through sheer cruelty.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/dec/06/trump-immigration-whiteness

As Donny tries to marginalize people of color he is doing real damage to the whole concept of what the US stands for in this crazy world.

This is a fool’s errand….but what better person to lead than a fool.?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Donny Tackles Animal Abuse?

I know I spend a lot of time belittling the Trump Admin (there are so many reason to do so) but I will give props where props are due….the admin has decided to tackle animal abuse….from dog fighting to experimentation to puppy mills…..

Senior officials in President Donald Trump’s administration say they are cracking down on animal cruelty, rolling out coordinated actions across the Justice Department, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to target dogfighting, puppy mills and animal testing.

“We are forming a strike force… and we’re going to have designated U.S. attorneys in every state to prosecute these [animal abuse] cases,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi on “My View with Lara Trump” on Saturday.

Bondi appeared with Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to discuss their interagency animal welfare initiative.

Bondi said her department would work with the USDA to conduct special training for prosecutors and law enforcement agents on executing search warrants in animal abuse cases.

“We just last week convicted someone, for the first time ever, of using a firearm in a violent crime, and the violent crime was dogfighting,” Bondi said.

In another example that shows “no one is above the law,” Bondi told host Lara Trump that 190 dogs were seized from former NFL player LeShon Johnson.

“That was the most seized from one single defendant. So we’re coming after you if you’re going after these babies,” she said, holding a small black puppy named Guru in her lap.

Rollins said the USDA is taking a tougher approach to shutting down abusive puppy mills, moving away from issuing warnings and toward stricter enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act.

“Compliance with the Animal Welfare Act, which is from the 1960s, was hovering around 65, 67% until the last few years. We’re now closer to 92%, but it’s that 8% that we’re really going to focus on.”

(if you are lazy there is a video within the article cited)

https://www.foxnews.com/media/trump-administration-launches-multi-agency-strike-force-crack-down-animal-abuse

If this is a serious operation and policy then I want to be the first to give them a thumbs up….and I look forward to see just how successful they are in curbing the abuse.

Any thoughts?

+++Off I go for another batches of doctors……hopefully this will be it until after the New Year.+++

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

M4A? Yes Please!

M4A?  Medicare For All.

back in 2019 I wrote about this proposal….a proposal that I feel has some merit….for those that may have missed my post…..it explains what this policy would look like…..

Medicare For All

I bring up this because of the plan that the GOP and Donny are offering the people….

The Senate failed to get anywhere on the health care issue this week. Now it’s the House’s turn to show what it can do. Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled a Republican alternative late Friday, a last-minute sprint as his party refuses to extend the enhanced tax subsidies for those who buy policies through the Affordable Care Act, also called ObamaCare, which are expiring at the end of the year, per the AP. Those subsidies help lower the cost of coverage. Johnson huddled behind closed doors in the morning—as he did days earlier this week—working to assemble the package for consideration as the House focuses the final days of its 2025 work on health care.

“House Republicans are tackling the real drivers of health care costs to provide affordable care,” Johnson said in a statement announcing the package. He said it would be voted on next week. Later Friday, though, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, “House Republicans have introduced toxic legislation that is completely unserious, hurts hardworking America taxpayers, and is not designed to secure bipartisan support. If the bill reaches the House floor, I will strongly oppose it.”

The House GOP offered a 100-page-plus package that focuses on long-sought GOP proposals to enhance access to employer-sponsored health insurance plans and clamp down on so-called pharmacy benefit managers. Republicans propose expanding access to what’s referred to as association health plans, which would allow more small businesses and self-employed individuals to band together and purchase health coverage. Proponents say such plans increase the leverage businesses have to negotiate a lower rate, but critics say the plans provide skimpier coverage than what’s required under the Affordable Care Act.

The Republicans’ proposal would also require more data from pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, as a way to help control drug costs. Critics say PBMs have padded their bottom line and made it more difficult for independent pharmacists to survive. Additionally, the GOP plan includes mention of cost-sharing reductions for some lower-income people who rely on ObamaCare, but those don’t take effect until January 2027. The emerging package doesn’t include an extension of an enhanced tax credit for millions of Americans who get insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act. More here.

This proposal is pure GOP manure!

It will help very few secure adequate and inexpensive health care.

People are starting to wake up to the problem that expanding health coost will do to their family…..

In less than a month, barring some kind of congressional intervention that probably isn’t going to happen at this point, the ACA subsidies are going to end and monthly premiums are going to skyrocket for the 90 percent of ACA enrollees who are relying on them.

Americans aren’t too happy about that — even during the shutdown, over 70 percent of us still wanted to see them extended, including half of Republicans (also — 72 percent of “non-MAGA” Republicans).

This may be part of why recent polling has shown that a large majority of Americans are once again in favor of Medicare for All.

It’s true! A survey from Data For Progress published late last month found that 65 percent of us either strongly or somewhat support “creating a national health insurance program, sometimes called ‘Medicare for All,’” including 49 percent of Republicans.

https://www.wonkette.com/p/medicare-for-all-starting-to-look

Time to stop playing favorites and think will be best for the health of your family.

I feel strongly that M4A is the way to go.

Thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Last Week At The Sh*t Show–21Dec25

Just 4 days until we celebrate the most expensive Christmas ever….but hey life continued at the Sh*t Show….

Last week Donny had a national address, the shortest that I can recall, instead of offering encouraging words at this time of year he did what he always does blamed everyone possible for his failures.

He also announced his plans for our 250 year celebration….

President Donald Trump revealed how the nation’s capital will celebrate America’s 250th birthday next summer.

“2026 will be a celebration of America like no other, honoring our nation and all of its glory,” he said.

Trump’s plans will be carried out through a public, private partnership called Freedom 250.

“We will renew the patriotism, pride and pioneering spirit of America and lay the groundwork for the next 250 years of independence and freedom.”

Trump said the Washington Monument will be lit up with “festive birthday lights to honor the start of this historic anniversary year.”

From June 25-July 10, there will be a “Great American State Fair” on the national mall with pavilions from every state.

In the fall, Washington, D.C., will host the “Patriot Games,” “an unprecedented four-day athletic event featuring the greatest high school athletes, one young man and one young woman from each state and territory.”

there is much more

Trump Announces How America Will Celebrate 250th Birthday

Plans will go ahead to rename the Kennedy Center….

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced today the venerable Kennedy Center will be renamed for President Donald Trump. It will now be known as the Trump-Kennedy Center, she said, “because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year.”

Her full statement is this: “Some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building. Not only from the standpoint of its reconstruction, but also financially, and its reputation. Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future! The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”

https://www.audacy.com/wwjnewsradio/news/national/kennedy-center-to-be-renamed-for-donald-trump

What hard work would that be?

Donny’s gaudy ballroom has gone from the original estimate of $200 million to $300 million and now we are told that it will be $400 million….

Donald Trump says the sprawling White House ballroom he is building on the grounds of the executive mansion will now cost $400 million — a significant jump from earlier estimates.

The president, 79, announced the updated price tag during a Hanukkah reception at the White House on the evening of Tuesday, Dec. 17, where he also revealed that a federal judge has allowed construction on the controversial project to move forward. He repeated the figure multiple times while thanking the official for clearing the way for continued work, describing the ruling as an act of “courage.”

“We’re donating a $400 million ballroom,” Trump said at the event, according to footage shared by CSPAN. “Myself and donors are giving them, free of charge, for nothing.”

https://people.com/trump-says-white-house-ballroom-will-now-cost-400-million-11870965

Will it just keep spiraling?

Then there is his “Patriot Games”…..

President Trump on Thursday unveiled the “Patriot Games,” a four-day athletic competition for top high school athletes from every US state and territory, to be hosted by the White House next fall as part of the nation’s 250th birthday celebrations. In a video released by Freedom 250, a new administration-backed group organizing the anniversary events, Trump said the contest will feature “one young man and one young woman from each state and territory,” CNN reports.

Trump has previously said the event will be televised and overseen by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy. Critics quickly compared the concept to The Hunger Games, the dystopian series in which teenagers battle to the death in a televised arena. California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted a clip from the series, the Hill reports. In the video, Trump also discussed his plans for a new monument in the capital. “We are the only major place without a triumphal arc. A beautiful triumphal arc, one like in Paris, where they have the great, a beautiful arc,” he said, per CNN. “They call it the Arc de Triomphe, and we’re going to have one in Washington, DC, very soon.”

Trump also spoke about his plans for a UFC event on the White House South Lawn scheduled for June 14—his birthday and Flag Day—promising “the greatest champion fighters in the world.” Other events sponsored by Freedom 250 will include a national prayer event and a “Great American State Fair” on the National Mall, USA Today reports. Separate events will be hosted by America250, a bipartisan organization established by the United States Semiquincentennial Commission in 2016.

Did not someone else in history have this thing about athletic games?

Plus a wrestling spectacular on his birthday….tacky at best.

That idiot Hogsbreath has decided to force religion on troops….

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth this week ordered sweeping changes to the U.S. military’s chaplain corps, with a plan to simplify a system that he said has become too focused on “new age” concepts. “Our chaplains are chaplains, not emotional support officers, and we’re going to treat them as such,” Hegseth said in a video statement to the force on Wednesday. “Faith and virtue were traded for self-help and self-care,” Hegseth said, adding that chaplains had been “minimized” and were “viewed by many as therapists, instead of ministers.” He took special aim at the Army, saying its current spiritual fitness guide is pushing secular humanism, and he ordered the service to cease using the program immediately.

Read more at: https://www.stripes.com/branches/army/2025-12-17/hegseth-military-chaplains-20119952.html
Source – Stars and Stripes

Does this really address all religious needs of the troops?
I think not.
Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has long been the idiot in the wood pile….but his take on the Bondi Beach thing is just typical for a moron….

Somehow, Joe Biden is responsible for one of the most horrific shootings in Australian history.

At least, that’s the narrative that Senator Lindsey Graham is pushing. In an interview with Fox News Monday night, the South Carolina lawmaker claimed that former Presidents Barack “Obama and Biden have a lot to do with this.”

“I blame the terrorist, but Obama allowed ISIS to come about when he withdrew from Iraq,” Graham continued. “Donald Trump destroyed the caliphate, killed [Iranian military officer Qassem] Soleimani, and got out of the Iran nuclear deal, and the dumbass Biden—the biggest dumbass on the planet—withdrew from Afghanistan, obliterated our borders, and rejoined the Iran nuclear agreement, making the Ayatollah flush with cash.”

https://newrepublic.com/post/204479/lindsey-graham-blames-bondi-beach-shooting-joe-biden

That does it for me and as usual……after reporting this stuff I feel dirty and the loss of 10 IQ points.

That Was The Week That Was…..as disgusting and pathetic as it was.

I hope everyone has a great Sunday and is preparing for the season without much ado…..and as usual….Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

IST Saturday News Dump–20Dec25

Another Saturday and only 5 days until the big day….

Local–The first ICE agents were seen by me at my favorite taqueria, they make the best carnitas, lights flashing and Gestapo strutting around with the masks and assault weapons….disgusting.

Our weather has been crazy….Monday the high was 40 and Thursday the high was 68….this up and down can drive you batty.

Personal–Not much to report….

This week is just a hodge-podge of reports hopefully my reader will be informed and/or entertained….

First some good news….especially for us cheese lovers…..

Is it an excuse to gorge on cheddar and Gouda? It is not. But a large Swedish study suggests a link between high-fat cheeses and a lower risk of dementia, reports HealthDay News. To be clear, the researchers aren’t saying the cheese is responsible for the lower risk, but they did see an association in their years-long study. The details:

  • The study published in Neurology is based on a study of nearly 28,000 people in Sweden, average age 58, who were followed for about 25 years starting in the 1990s, reports USA Today.
  • Those who reported eating 50 grams or more a day of high-fat cheese (those with more than 20% of fat such as cheddar, Gouda, and Brie) had a lower risk of developing dementia than those who ate less than 15 grams daily. Fifty grams is about two slices of cheddar or a half-cup of shredded cheese.
  • By 2020, about 10% of those in the 50-grams-or-more camp developed dementia, vs 13% of the others.
  • Researchers also saw reduced dementia in those who consumed at least 20 grams of high-fat cream (with 30% to 40% fat) daily.
  • The study did not see similar benefits from butter, milk, low-fat dairy, or fermented milk.
  • One takeaway: “This does not prove that cheese prevents dementia, but it does challenge the idea that all high-fat dairy is harmful for the brain,” study co-author Emily Sonestedt of Sweden’s Lund University tells USA Today. “For most people, it means that enjoying cheese in reasonable amounts, as part of a balanced diet, does not appear to be harmful and may even be linked to some benefit.”
  • A caution: The New York Times notes that cheese and cream are high in saturated fats, and current recommendations urge people to go easy on their consumption. Its coverage ends with a doctor’s recommendation to eat other foods shown to improve brain health such as fruits, nuts, legumes, veggies—the Mediterranean or MIND diets, essentially.

My late wife, Sue, use to say that with enough cheese I could eat a bowling ball…..

Robots are getting smaller…

We’re far from realizing the kind of nanomachines envisioned in media like “The Diamond Age” and Metal Gear Solid, but scientists have just taken a meaningful step towards the next best thing.

A team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and University of Michigan say they’ve built a sub-millimeter sized robot packed with a computer, motor, and sensors, the Washington Post reports. It’s not an actual billionth of a meter in size, but being smaller than a grain of salt, it is still outrageously tiny: a microrobot.

The work, described in a new study in the journal Science Robotics, could be a platform for one day building microscopic robots that could be deployed inside the human body to perform all sorts of medical miracles, like repairing tissues or delivering treatment to areas difficult for surgeons to access.

“It’s the first tiny robot to be able to sense, think and act,” coauthor Marc Miskin, assistant professor of electrical and systems engineering at UPenn, told WaPo

https://futurism.com/future-society/robot-small-travel-human-body

I can think of many things that these could be used for….how about you?

We keep getting reports of the problem we are having with microplastics….it has even invade the insect world….

Microplastics have infiltrated both our bodies — where they’re found in our organs, bodily fluids, and even brains — and every corner of the Earth, from deep inside sealed caves to the depths of the Mariana Trench.

Now, an alarming new data point: asdoctors urgently investigate the effects of all that foreign material in our bodies, scientists are finding that they’re already wreaking havoc on much smaller organisms.

As detailed in a study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, scientists from Carleton University in Ottawa and Canada’s National Wildlife Research Center discovered that crickets that were fed microplastics-contaminated food grew in size by a staggering 25 times over a seven-week period.

That’s despite also being given the option of eating natural food instead — which showed that the crickets were initially unable to distinguish between plastic and real food,then became drawn to the plastic-contaminated stuff.

“When given a choice between uncontaminated and plastic-contaminated food, crickets first had no preference for uncontaminated food but then significantly shifted towards the plastic-contaminated food after nine days,” the paper reads.

https://futurism.com/science-energy/crickets-microplastics-grow-size

I can foresee a scifi movie coming soon….

Our dear leader has been briefed on aliens (ETs not the illegal kind)….then I saw this article….

Octopuses have a way of making familiar rules feel optional. They live on Earth but behave like visitors with a different instruction manual. Scientists study them for answers about intelligence and evolution, and writers keep circling back to them for the same reason. These facts show how octopuses bend biology in ways that feel strange yet are grounded in real research and observation.

An octopus has a brain, sure—but most of its neurons live elsewhere. Roughly two-thirds of them are packed into the arms, which gives each arm its own decision-making power. This means an arm can hunt, taste, or explore without checking in with headquarters.

https://alwayspets.com/s/facts-about-octopuses

My daughter firmly believes that the octopus is an ET….all I can say is there is a lot of smarts for an invertebrate….thoughts?

I need to get to work getting everything ready for our Christmas meal…..so please have a wonderful Saturday and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Proof Is In The Policy

Since 1980 the GOP has been the champion of the anti-choice movement…..they have put all their energy in protecting a fetus from termination and so far they have been successful.

In that time people like me has been preaching that fetus is all important, right of choice has no bearing, that the GOP cares for a fetus and yet once it is born there is no concern.

Now there is more proof that they care nothing for children….

RFJ, Jr, the slug in charge of HHS, has made another of his pronouncements and condemned many children to crisis….

Federal health officials have yanked millions in grants from one of their most outspoken critics, and the American Academy of Pediatrics says kids will pay the price. The Department of Health and Human Services this week canceled seven grants to the AAP worth an estimated $18 million, according to documents reviewed by the Washington Post. The money had funded programs on issues such as sudden infant death, adolescent health, rural care access, birth defects, early autism detection, and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. AAP CEO Mark Del Monte said the sudden cutoff would “directly impact and potentially harm” children and families, adding that the group is weighing a legal challenge.

Administration officials say the grants were scrapped because the projects no longer match the department’s priorities. Termination letters cited the academy’s use of “identity-based language”—including references to “pregnant and postpartum people,” racism- and poverty-related health disparities, and commitments to “diverse perspectives”—as out of step with current CDC and HHS direction. One Health Resources and Services Administration termination letter said a youth health grant didn’t sufficiently emphasize nutrition and chronic-disease prevention. Internal emails show senior political appointees at the HHS and CDC pushing staff to cancel the awards swiftly.

The move comes amid an escalating feud between Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the AAP over vaccines. The academy has accused Kennedy of sidelining scientific advisers, dismantling the CDC’s independent vaccine panel, and weakening trust in immunizations. It has pushed back by making its own vaccination recommendations, reports the AP. The group has also criticized Kennedy’s promotion of leucovorin, a form of vitamin B9, for regular use with kids with autism, noting a lack of evidence on its benefits and risks, per Reuters.

Kennedy has responded by highlighting AAP’s funding from pharmaceutical companies and suggesting its COVID vaccine guidance for children may serve “Big Pharma benefactors,” per the Post. The AAP and other medical groups are already suing the HHS and Kennedy, arguing his changes to federal coronavirus vaccine policy breached the law and asking a court to reconstitute the panel of vaccine advisers. A former senior CDC official warned that cutting off groups like the AAP risks undermining the public health network that connects scientific evidence to everyday medical practice.

This opens up a bunch of health problems, both mental and physical, for children….

I have been telling you so…..at what point do the mindless idiots stop drinking the poison kool-ade?

Just another disgusting individual serving a disgusting leader.

I must return to the hospital today for labs and doctors so I may not be around later……

If you are planning on Christmas parties then please drink responsibly and as always Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Walk Of Shame

This is not the morning after ‘walk of shame’…..

This particular shame was what Donny has done to the plaques of some of our presidents….more from the ‘great student of history’….

It’s not just the Oval Office getting the Trump treatment—now the White House’s Colonnade is talking, too. President Trump has added a new feature to the West Wing walkway he’s dubbed the “Presidential Walk of Fame”: bronze plaques beneath the portraits of his predecessors that read more like campaign broadsides than historical notes. Many were written by Trump himself, according to press secretary Karoline Leavitt, and echo his social media style, complete with random capital letters and exclamation points, ABC News reports.

The plaques for Joe Biden and Barack Obama are the sharpest. Biden’s, paired only with a picture of an autopen rather than a portrait of Biden himself, calls him “by far, the worst President in American History,” falsely claims he took office through “the most corrupt Election ever seen,” and blames him for everything from the Afghanistan withdrawal to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Hamas’ attack on Israel. It also asserts Biden is in “severe mental decline” and slams his use of the autopen. Obama’s plaque labels him “one of the most divisive political figures in American History” and falsely accuses him of spying on Trump’s 2016 campaign and orchestrating what Trump calls the “Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax.”

The text also repeatedly references Hillary Clinton, noting under both Obama’s and Bill Clinton’s portraits that she lost the presidency to Trump. Obama and Biden declined to comment, and the Clintons have not responded to requests for comment. It’s not just Democrats getting criticized on the plaques; the AP reports George W. Bush, who has distanced himself from Trump, is berated on his plaque for starting two wars. Leavitt praised the new displays as “eloquently written descriptions” of each president’s legacy and framed Trump as a “student of history.” There are also two plaques for Trump, one for each term, and both “effusively praise” him, the New York Times reports.

Ronald Reagan’s plaque is similarly effusive, declaring, “he was a fan of President Donald J. Trump before President Trump’s historic run for the White House. Likewise, President Trump was a fan of his!” And the odd notes continue further back in history, with Gerald Ford’s, for example, suggesting he lost his quest for re-election “probably because of his brave pardon of Richard Nixon.” The plaques are part of a broader physical makeover Trump has pushed at the White House. He has paved over the Rose Garden, heavily renovated the Palm Room and Oval Office with more gold trim and new statues, and, most dramatically, demolished the East Wing to build a large ballroom he says will be finished by the end of his term.

Everyday this person proves what a disgusting, vindictive, vile and pathetic human being he truly is….he and his actions should make us all sick to our stomachs.

After thought:  A busy day for ‘bots here on IST….over 900 hits before lunch….anyone else?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

A Steamin’ Pile Of …..

I admit that I am a political junkie and had to watch the speech made by his lord high dumbass last night…..and I was not disappointed.

I figured it would be a lot of  Dems bad, Biden bad, me good, me savior…..and so on….and like I said I was not disappointed….

Here is a quick look at the speech (?)……

President Trump tried in a live speech Wednesday night from the White House to convince the American people that they are wrong to worry about the US economy, saying any challenges are being repaired, the AP reports. “Eleven months ago, I inherited a mess, and I’m fixing it,” Trump said. His remarks came at a crucial time as he tries to rebuild his steadily eroding popularity. Public polling shows most US adults are frustrated with his handling of the economy as inflation picked up after his tariffs raised prices and hiring slowed. Flanked by two Christmas trees with a portrait of George Washington behind him in the White House’s Diplomatic Reception Room, Trump sought to pin any worries about high inflation on his predecessor, Joe Biden.

In 2026, Trump and his party face a referendum on their leadership as the nation heads into the midterm elections that will decide control of the House and the Senate. The White House remarks were a chance for Trump to try to regain some momentum after Republican losses in this year’s elections raised questions about the durability of his coalition. Trump brought charts with him to make the case that the economy is on an upward trajectory. But the hard math internalized by the public paints a more complicated picture of an economy that has some stability but few reasons to inspire much public confidence.

The stock market is up, gasoline prices are down and tech companies are placing large bets on the development of artificial intelligence. But inflation that had been descending after spiking to a four-decade high in 2022 under Biden has reaccelerated after Trump announced his tariffs in April. The consumer price index is increasing at an annual rate of 3%, up from 2.3% in April. The affordability squeeze is also coming from a softening job market. Monthly job gains have averaged a paltry 17,000 since April’s “Liberation Day” in which Trump announced import taxes that he later suspended and then readjusted several months later. The unemployment rate has climbed from 4% in January to 4.6%.

He was right stock markets are up….but only means the Robber Barons are manipulating the crap out of the markets…..average peons like me does not see a good economy….sorry but he is president it is HIS economy no matter how much he wishes otherwise.

Within the speech he tries to get the military indebted to him (he may need them in the coming months)…..

President Trump delivered a politically charged speech Wednesday carried live in prime time on network television, seeking to pin the blame for economic challenges on Democrats while announcing he is sending a $1,776 bonus check to US troops for Christmas, the AP reports. The remarks came as the nation is preparing to settle down to celebrate the holidays, yet Trump was focused more on divisions within the country than a sense of unity. His speech was a rehash of his recent messaging that has so far been unable to calm public anxiety about the cost of groceries, housing, utilities, and other basic goods.

Trump has promised an economic boom, yet inflation has stayed elevated and the job market has weakened sharply in the wake of his import taxes. Trump suggested that his tariffs—which are partly responsible for boosting consumer prices—would fund a new “warrior dividend” for 1.45 million military members, a payment that could ease some of the financial strains for many households. “The checks are already on the way,” he said. Presidential addresses to the nation carried on network television are traditionally less partisan than rally speeches, but Trump gave a condensed version of his usual political remarks, including insistence that he’s “fixing” the economy.

The president sought to end the address on a high note, noting the Olympics and World Cup soccer matches that will take place in the United States next year. Trump made an appeal to patriotism by noting that 2026 is the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and closed his speech by wishing viewers a merry Christmas and a happy new year.

All in all the speech was a POS….as his tradition he blames others for any failures and pats himself on the back for non-existent success…

If you were smart enough to opt out of his speech then I hope this will help you understand what crap was spread.

A classless talk.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

What Happened To The Republican Party?

A very good and regular reader and commenter here on IST, Judy at https://judyt8630.wordpress.com/, she and I have been having a back and forth about the Republican Party and this is just an extension to that conversation.

When I was young I helped my grandfather with his efforts to get out the vote of Ike and the GOP…..those were the days when the GOP was truly a party of the people.

Their platform for that national election was something to be proud of…..

The individual is of supreme importance.

The spirit of our people is the strength of our nation.

America does not prosper unless all Americans prosper.

Government must have a heart as well as a head.

Courage in principle, cooperation in practice make freedom positive.

To stay free, we must stay strong.

Read what the GOP stood for in that election…..https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/republican-party-platform-1956

Like I said it was a platform that every American could be proud of and vote for.

But then in 1960 everything started changing with in the the party….after 65 years of BS it has become the party of today…..so what the Hell happened?

This video is an interview with an ex-Congressperson on what has happened….

The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie goes deep with the artists, activists, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and visionaries who are making the world more libertarian—or at least more interesting—by challenging worn-out ideas and orthodoxies.

Today’s guest is Jeff Flake, former Arizona senator and U.S. ambassador to Turkey, and now head of the brand-new Institute of Politics at Arizona State University. Flake made national headlines in 2017 when he delivered a searing Senate floor speech announcing he would not seek reelection and declaring he would not be complicit in the “degradation of our politics” under Donald Trump and MAGA.

This is an article in Mother Jones….

In May, during an Aspen Institute conference, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told the audience, “I want the Republican Party to take back the party, take it back to where you were when you cared about a woman’s right to choose, you cared about the environment…This country needs a strong Republican Party. And we do. Not a cult. But a strong Republican Party.” Her comments echoed a sentiment that Joe Biden had expressed during the 2020 campaign: If Donald Trump were out of the White House, the GOP would return to normal and be amenable to forging deals and legislative compromises.

Both Pelosi and Biden have bolstered the notion that the current GOP, with its cultlike embrace of Trump and his Big Lie, and its acceptance of the fringiest players, is a break from the past. But was the GOP’s complete surrender to Trumpism an aberration? Or was the party long sliding toward this point? About a year ago, I set out to explore the history of the Republican Party, with this question in mind. What I found was not an exception, but a pattern. Since the 1950s, the GOP has repeatedly mined fear, resentment, prejudice, and grievance and played to extremist forces so the party could win elections. Trump assembling white supremacists, neo-Nazis, Christian nationalists, QAnoners, and others who formed a violent terrorist mob on January 6 is only the most flagrant manifestation of the tried-and-true GOP tactic to court kooks and bigots. It’s an ugly and shameful history that has led the Party of Lincoln, founded in 1854 to oppose the extension of slavery, to the Party of Trump, which capitalizes on racism and assaults democracy.

It Didn’t Start with Trump: The Decades-Long Saga of How the GOP Went Crazy

Just a few attempts to try and illustrate what has gone wrong with the GOP…..

What we know as traditional republicanism may be dead and gone and we can thank no other than Little Donny D-Nothing and his band of goons.

Any Thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”