Missouri Transgender Girl Wins Homecoming Queen and the Right Loses It Tristan Young’s crowning as homecoming queen at a Missouri high school sparks an outpouring of support and ignites a fierce battle in the war of words online. The Advocate By Christopher Wiggins September 20, 2023
The recent crowning of Missouri teen Tristan Young as homecoming queen at Oak Park High School in Kansas City has stirred a fiery debate online.
Young, a transgender student, was voted homecoming queen by her fellow students at her school, reportedly winning over four other cisgender candidates. This marks the second occasion a transgender student has been elected homecoming queen at this school — the first being in 2015, according to multiple reports.
And of course you know the right-wing is having a hissy-fit over it!
Chaya Raichik, who operates the Libs of TikTok account on X, formerly known as Twitter, has targeted transgender people repeatedly with the account, which commands an audience of over 2.5 million followers. Raichik vehemently criticized Young’s victory, resorting to scornful and transphobic language.
Raichik took it further in a deeply dehumanizing post featuring a photo of Young alongside the other homecoming queen contestants. She used this photo to mock and target the teenage girl, writing, “One of these people is a male with an adam’s apple who won homecoming queen in @NKCSchools and 4 others are young girls who had their dreams crushed by a man. Can you guess which one is a male?”
Why is she so violently against her?
The students voted her, they have no problems with her being Homecoming Queen, why does she? She has nothing to do with the school she is just an outside agitator stirring up trouble.
These assertions have raised considerable eyebrows, given that Raichik, 28, insists on presenting herself as a protector of children and is going after a teenager.
What’s it to them? They don’t even know her but they are tearing her apart. They are creating animosity toward a person who just want to live their life… leave us alone!
Standing in defense of Young, an individual underscored their personal experience with Young during their school years, vehemently rejecting the idea that any narrative indoctrinated Young. “Oak Park High School was my Alma Mater. Tristan Young was my friend. I can tell you from experience that Tristan Young wasn’t indoctrinated by a narrative. She was the nicest person I’ve ever had the pleasure of performing with. You have no idea what the f*ck you’re talking about,” they wrote, responding to a bigoted comment about the transgender teen.
The children know.
What all these right-wingers know is that children growing up alongside a trans person, a lesbian, or a gay person will see though all these lies about us… and they will be voting! And that is what these conservatives fear that they will reject their hatemongering.
I think you know what party proposed that. The Republicans always hate Social Security since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed it into law and tried to scuttle it.
A group of Republican lawmakers aims to balance the federal budget and slash government spending by targeting programs like Social Security — and some seniors could see a major reduction in lifetime benefits if the plan makes it into law.
The proposal was unveiled June 14 by U.S. House conservatives, Bloomberg reported. One of its main features is to raise the full retirement age (FRA) at which seniors are entitled to the full benefits they are due.
The 176-member House Republican Study Committee (RSC) approved a fiscal blueprint that would gradually increase the FRA to 69 years old for seniors who turn 62 in 2033. The current full retirement age is 66 or 67, depending on your birth year. For all Americans born in 1960 or later, the FRA is 67.
As Bloomberg noted, workers expecting an earlier retirement benefit will see lifetime payouts reduced if the full retirement age is raised. Those payouts could be drastically reduced for seniors who claim benefits at age 62, when you are first eligible.
The Republicans ruling class are mostly white collar workers who are desk jockeys, while those who pave the roads on a 100 degree summer day, those who roof houses, those who deliver goods, those who do manual labor are lucky to make it to 65 now will even be less likely to make it to retirement age.
Lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle have been working to come up with a fix for Social Security before the program’s Old Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund runs out of money. That could happen within the next decade or so. When it does, Social Security will be solely reliant on payroll taxes for funding — and those taxes only cover about 77% of current benefits.
Work until you drop!
That is what the Republicans are counting on, that you will not live long enough to collect.
Do you know what percentage in Social Security tax the CEO of GM paid?
On an income of 29 million dollars paid SS tax on only 9,932! Or 0.0342% while we all pay 6.2%. Why because only the first $160,200 are taxed.
One of the reasons that the UAW is on strike is to bring back the old
fashion company pensions, they know that IRAs and 401(k)s just don’t
hack it.
While most Democrats want to boost Social Security through higher payroll taxes or reductions to benefits for wealthy Americans, the GOP has largely focused on paring down or privatizing the program.
You see the problem that the Republicans have with SS is that it is government run! They want their billionaire friends to reap in all that money! It is just like what the Republicans did with pensions, Reagan passed the Individual Retirement Accounts because the businesses were complaining that pension plans were costing them too much, while Reagan’s banking friends wanted their cuts to all that money. While IRAs and 401(k)s are good for most middle income people those in the lower income brackets that are just getting by they are horrible! They have just about all they can do to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads let alone saving for retirement.
I also want to point out that the Republicans under Trump's administration cut the top tax brackets for their billionaire friends driving us in trillions of dollars in debt which they are trying to pay off by cutting SS and the social programs.
The New York Times reported that the candidates stand on SS.
Donald J. Trump Former President He says he wouldn’t cut the programs but hasn’t explained how he would keep them solvent.
Former President Donald J. Trump has said he would not make any cuts to Social Security or Medicare benefits. However, he has also opposed raising taxes to bring in more funding for them, which means his plans would not keep the programs solvent for the long term. A spokesman for his campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
***
Ron DeSantis Governor of Florida He says he’s open to Social Security cuts for younger Americans.
Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida has ruled out reducing Social Security benefits for current retirees and people near retirement age, but he has expressed openness to reductions for younger Americans.
***
Nikki Haley Former Governor of South Carolina She says she’s open to cuts for younger Americans.
Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina, has suggested that she would raise the Social Security retirement age for people currently in their 20s in accordance with increases in life expectancy, though she has not given a number. (The retirement age is currently 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.)
***
Vivek Ramaswamy Entrepreneur He says he wouldn’t cut the programs but hasn’t explained how he would keep them solvent.
Vivek Ramaswamy has said he would not touch Social Security or Medicare benefits. “In a shrinking economy, we should not cut entitlements,” he said in July. In an interview with Gray DC a few months earlier, he said that he would not have created the programs, but that people now had “a reasonable expectation” of receiving certain benefits and that “you can’t just pull that rug out from under them.”
Um… Mr. Ramaswamy, SS is not an entitlement! I paid all my life in to it, it is an insurance policy! Not a federal giveaway like the Republicans keep saying it is.
House Republicans released a long-delayed budget blueprint Tuesday that promises to bring the federal budget into balance over a decade through steep cuts to discretionary spending, new restrictions on the social safety net and relatively rosy assumptions of consistently strong economic growth.
What do I think about saving SS?
Remove the $160,200 cap and make the billionaires pay the full 6.2% on their full income! And also have a needs assessment on the payments, some one who is making $29 million dollars doesn’t need SS.
The Republican House is in turmoil running around in circles like a chicken with its head cut off. One deal after another have fallen through, it is almost like the the Republicans want the government to shutdown. The Liberty Caucus have come out with wishy-washy proposals that they keep changing.
With House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s latest funding plan in ruins and lawmakers leaving town for the weekend, there’s no endgame in sight as hard-right Republicans push dangerously closer to a disruptive federal shutdown.
[…]
The Republican McCarthy has repeatedly tried to appease his hard-right flank by agreeing to the steep spending cuts they are demanding to keep government open. But cheered on by Donald Trump, the Republican front-runner for president in 2024, the conservatives have all but seized control in dramatic fashion.
In a crushing defeat Thursday, a handful of Republican hardliners blocked a typically popular defense bill from advancing — the second time this week it was set back, an unheard-of loss for a House speaker.
Okay I said that there was an easy way to break this deadlock, the Liberty Caucus has around 10 members. That is all, McCarthy needs ten votes to pass the stop-gap budget. 10… one zero.
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) had a word for House Republicans on Thursday: “failures.” (Watch the video below.)
The lawmaker appeared on CNN Thursday and expressed deep frustration with the GOP-controlled House’s inability to stop a looming government shutdown. Hindered by holdouts, Republicans failed to advance a defense funding bill earlier, and the lawmakers were sent home by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) without movement toward preventing the possible furlough of many federal employees.
Two members are working across party lines.
Two House Republicans say they might work with Democrats to fund government Freshmen Marc Molinaro and Mike Lawler of New York opened the door to end-running Speaker Kevin McCarthy and partnering with Democrats if the GOP stalemate persists. NBC News By Sahil Kapur and Rebecca Kaplan September 22, 2023
As the Republican stalemate over government funding continues, two freshman GOP House members opened the door Thursday to end-running their party’s leadership and working with Democrats to fund the government.
Reps. Marc Molinaro and Mike Lawler, two New York Republicans who represent Hudson Valley-area districts that voted for President Joe Biden in 2020, said they’re willing to consider a “discharge petition” to force votes on a short-term funding bill — if their party fails to get its act together.
“It is absolutely an option,” Molinaro said outside the Capitol steps. “Working to ensure the government remains functional and that Congress is making the legitimate choices as it relates to funding ... is an important principle.”
[…]
It’s far from clear what the underlying bill would be — and whether enough Republicans would be willing to break with Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and team up with Democrats to force legislation to a vote.
Earlier, Lawler said that as long as Democrats control the Senate and the White House, “any final bill is going to be bipartisan. And if somebody doesn’t realize that, they’re truly clueless.”
But it doesn’t sit well with other Republicans…
Some right-wing Republicans are warning colleagues not to go there.
“I don’t think it’s healthy, obviously, for Republicans to say they’ll go work literally with Democrats,” said Rep. Bob Good, R-Va. “To try to prevent Republicans from pursuing Republican policies — yeah, I think that would be an unhealthy thing.”
But there are also Democrats who are willing to let the Republicans sink in their own mess.
Jayapal said that if Republicans want Democratic help, they should agree to a simple stopgap bill at current funding levels alongside supplemental requests.
“We’re not inclined to save them,” she said.
If McCarthy really wanted to pass the budget measure all he has to do is sit down with the Democrats and come up with a compromise. He could work out a compromise to pass the stopgap spending bill.
It would a political suicide! The Party would castrate him but the government wouldn’t go into shutdown.
But no. For the Republicans it is party before the country.
McCarthy has put power before country, he craves for the Speakership, he craves for the power and he knows that if he seeks bipartisan support he would lose the Speakership.
But the golden cult leader has spoken from on high!
Engraved in stone, THOU SHALL NOT TALK TO THE DEMOCRATS! THOU SHALL NOT WORKOUT A BIPARTISAN DEAL WITH THEM! THOU SHALL PUT PARTY ABOVE ALL OTHERS!
When the government shuts down on October First, remember this when you vote in 2024, the Republicans don’t care about “The People” they only care about the power!
[/Editorial]
***
Updated @ 10:00AM with the NBC article and the HuffPost article.
doublespeak noun dou·ble·speak ˈdə-bəl-ˌspēk : language used to deceive usually through concealment or misrepresentation of truth also : gobbledygook
Gov. Ron DeSantis was sworn in for a second term Tuesday with a muscle-flexing speech in which he celebrated Florida as a “citadel of freedom” while focusing on a wide array of familiar targets broadly captured by his condemnation of “woke ideology.”
In his 16-minute speech, before a 3,000-person crowd, DeSantis defended Florida families, law enforcement and parental rights, while blistering other states, partisan interest groups and a federal government he cast as seeking either to impose “trendy ideologies” or abandoning basic responsibilities.
“We reject this woke ideology,” DeSantis said. “We seek normalcy, not philosophical lunacy. We will not allow reality, facts and truth to become optional. We will never surrender to the woke mob.”
[…]
“We will enact more family-friendly policies that make it easier to raise children and we will defend our children against those who seek to rob them of their innocence,” he said, hinting at another round of legislation similar to last year’s parental rights measure that was ridiculed by opponents as “Don’t Say Gay.”
Translation for Republican DoubleSpeak…
“Citadel of freedom” = banning books, banning saying “Gay”, banning Black history, and banning trans healthcare. “Reject this woke ideology” = we want to discriminate against Blacks, gays. Non-Christians, and other people that don’t look like us. “Family-friendly policies” = forcing LGBTQ+ students back in the closet, allowing right-wing parents to dictate what other can learn.
In an essay...
It Can Happen Here In recent legislation in her home state of Florida, Edwidge Danticat hears echoes of the oppressive regimes in Haiti that her family fled. Harper Bazaar By Edwidge Danticat September 11, 2023
Earlier this year, my 2010 essay collection, Create Dangerously, was adapted for the stage and performed in Miami, where I live. Like the book, the play honors artists, particularly writers who have risked their lives to write their books—as well as the readers who have risked their lives to read them.
It’s a legacy I know well, having grown up first in Haiti, then in the United States among Haitian expatriates. My friend Régine Chassagne, a singer from the indie rock group Arcade Fire, and I recently talked about how during the brutal Duvalier dictatorship in 1963 Haiti, her grand-father, the Haitian poet Roland Chassagne, was arrested at a Port-au-Prince publishing house for sharing “contraband literature.” He was taken to François “Papa Doc” Duvalier’s notorious prison dungeon, Fort Dimanche, and was never heard from again.
[…]
… The law [“Stop W.O.K.E. Act” ] singles out Black-history instruction, noting that it should “examine what it means to be a responsible and respectful person, for the purpose of encouraging tolerance of diversity in a pluralistic society and for nurturing and protecting democratic values and institutions. …
… The “Stop W.O.K.E. Act” has had some preposterous outcomes. In this climate, even spaces supposedly friendly to conservative agendas have been caught in the culture wars. The principal of a charter school that emphasizes “classical education” resigned in March after sixth graders at her school were shown a picture of Michelangelo’s statue of David, which one parent labeled“pornographic.” In May, the state’s Department of Education placed a fifth-grade teacher under investigation after she showed her class the animated film Strange World, which features a gay character. One parent, who attended protests organized by far-right extremists the Proud Boys and the “parental rights” group Moms for Liberty last year, filed a complaint demanding that the book version of Amanda Gorman’s 2021 inaugural poem, “The Hill We Climb,” be removed from “the total environment” and that it was “not for schools.” …
These are long winded paragraphs!
Many public-school teachers I have talked to consider their current reality dystopian. Afraid of breaking draconian laws, librarians and media specialists have had to empty their shelves or cover up their books.
“I think they only want us to teach Republican white men,”one history teacher told me. “Sometimes I’m unsure what place or century we’re in.”
If this is the future you want where oppression = freedom and censorship = liberty in DoubleSpeak, vote Republican.
If you want to stop all this Republican doublespeak vote Democrat.
Robin Witt spent the majority of her life in Florida, most recently working as a contract engineer at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral. But after the state legislature passed a spate of laws impacting the LGBTQ+ community, including restrictions on the ability to receive gender-affirming care, Witt quit her job and moved to Chicago.
"I left my entire network behind for my and my partner's safety," said Witt, who is transgender.
She is far from alone. Out Leadership, a New York City-based company that works with businesses to improve organizational diversity, found that nearly 1 in 4 LGBTQ+ workers across the U.S. have moved to a more inclusive city because of recently passed anti-LGBTQ+ laws. Thirty-six percent would consider moving, and nearly one-third said they would take a pay cut to live in a more inclusive place.
[…]
John "Jack" Lord is a labor and employment lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP in Miami and the leader of the firm's affinity group for LGBTQ+ workers. He knows physicians, nurses and teachers who have left Florida because of laws that strip rights from the LGBTQ+ community.
Jake Kleinmahon, a physician specializing in treating pediatric heart conditions, left Ochsner Hospital for Children in New Orleans and moved to New York after Louisiana lawmakers passed laws restricting LGBTQ+ rights.
When I read comments on the Yahoo site many of the comments are “Good riddance” but the thing is and what these bigots don’t consider is that the people leaving are not fast food employees, they are not just store clerks but doctors, nurses, engineers, teachers, and other professionals.
"DE&I at its heart is about having enough diversity of thought and connection that it actually makes it a wonderful place to work and an even more profitable place to work," Lord said.
What businesses in these states are going to end up with are white, far-right conservatives, who all think one way. What is often overlooked with diversity is that it brings in people who think differently, they don’t just have one way of thinking, what is thinking outside of the box for one culture is the normal for another culture.
When companies hire Dennis Donovan to help them decide where to put a new facility, he opens with a few basic questions: Do they prefer any particular region? Are there any states with tax policies that make them a no-go?
Now, Donovan says, he’s adding another item to the list: Would the company consider a state that bans abortions?“You ask it right up front,” Donovan says.
[...]
States that preserve abortion access are already trying to pull business away from states with bans. “Our pitch to companies is, come to New Jersey, you won’t have to apologize to a big chunk of your employees for the policies of the state,” says Tim Sullivan, chief executive officer of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, a state agency responsible for attracting businesses and investment to the state.
[...]
Donovan, a principal at the Bridgewater, N.J.-based corporate site-selection firm Wadley Donovan Gutshaw Consulting, says he expects recognizable consumer brands and technology companies, in particular, to avoid states with abortion bans, over fears of consumer and employee backlash.
“It will cost jobs, there’s no question about it,” he says. “Companies that could have established operations in those states, won’t.”
I like to point out IBM when two hippies came in one day with this new little computer that fits on a desk… IBM threw out the door, everyone knew mainframes are the way to go! They tossed out a trans woman who later was awarded…
IEEE 2009 Computer Pioneer Award “For contributions to superscalar architecture, including multiple-issue dynamic instruction scheduling, and for the innovation and widespread teaching of simplified VLSI design methods.”
When one of these bigots in Florida or other Republican states needs a pediatrician for their child’s ear infection and they have to wait a couple of weeks to see the doctor, they’ll blame it on the doctor not the fact that many of the pediatrician left the state.
Medical students in states with abortion bans are having trouble getting all the training they need. Senator Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from Wisconsin, is co-sponsoring new legislation to address the issue.
[...]
Given the legal landscape, Stroebel's not sure how or where she'll practice in the future. For now, she just wants to finish her medical education with the state school that she's enrolled in.
The college decision process has always been complex and emotional. High school seniors ask themselves, ‘Can I afford tuition? Will I fit in and be happy? How far from home is it? What does my college say about me?’ And now, for the first time in two generations, young women are making these decisions in a world where access to reproductive health care is not guaranteed.
When these teaching hospitals have a shortage of interns it will be because the future doctors and nurses are not going to states that ban abortion or trans health because the students want a complete education not one minus learning about abortions or trans health. They don’t want to go to a state where the government is looking over your shoulder on how you treat your patients.
These Republican states will not see a sudden drop in new businesses moving to their states because first the companies have to realize that they are hurting for new recruits and then they have to realize why they are hurting, and then the CEOs have to realize that there is more to the bottom line than money, skilled people.
This time they are going after a mural painted on a wall in a high school that a student painted on inclusion and the flap is anything but inclusive.
A mural at Grant Middle School in Michigan has sparked controversy since last year. Courtesy Chandler
So do you see anything here that should get the mural banned? Anything obscene? Anything that you would fine objectionable? Anything that would get it banned?
See the children in the trans tee shirt and the rainbow tights?
An LGBTQ-inclusive student mural created inside a Michigan middle school must be painted over by the end of October. The decision, made last week by the local school board, comes nearly a year after the mural ignited backlash from some parents who said it promoted LGBTQ imagery and witchcraft.
A high schooler in Grant, Michigan, painted the mural inside of a student health center at Grant Middle School after she won a student art contest. Some parents objected to the mural during a Grant Public Schools Board of Education meeting in October because the mural features a student wearing a T-shirt with the colors of the transgender Pride flag, two students wearing the colors of the bisexual Pride flag and another wearing rainbow Pride colors.
But the buttinskies didn’t just find stuff about us but also… witchcraft!!!! Oh you’ll love this!
Some critics argued that the artwork promotes witchcraft because it includes a video game character that looks like a demon and a Hamsa Hand, also known as the Hand of Fatima, a palm-shaped design seen as a symbol of protection in many cultures.
Okay this mural was about inclusion, about getting along with everyone but they object to that, they want to discriminate, they want to exclude people who are different from them, they want the right to discriminate!
The school board voted in June to cut ties with Family Health Care, which operates the Child and Adolescent Health Center inside Grant Middle School, in addition to two other school-based health centers in the area, according to WOOD-TV, an NBC affiliate in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The centers provide free medical, dental and behavioral health care to children, according to the Family Health Care website.
[…]
“While it is disappointing that the mural must be removed by the end of October, it’s a compromise we reluctantly were willing to accept to ensure the children of the Grant community continue to have access to medical and behavioral health care,” Family Health Care said in a statement last week. At the school board meeting last October, Evelyn Gonzales, the Grant High School student who painted the mural, said through tears that she created it “to make people feel welcome.”
What are we becoming? Where inclusion is evil and discriminate is good.
I also want to point out that this was a massive backlash with hundreds upset over it but only “some parents.”
Speaking of bigotry... this from our former anti-Semitic president...
Former President Trump late Sunday shared an image on Truth Social telling “liberal Jews” to “make better choices” amid celebrations of the Jewish New Year.
Trump shared a photo on Sunday evening without any caption of his own. The photo included the message: “Just a quick reminder for liberal Jews who voted to destroy America & Israel because you believed false narratives! Let’s hope you learned from your mistake & make better choices moving forward! Happy New Year!”
The image included a list of measures Trump took while in the White House in support of Israel, including his decision to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights territory.
A majority of Americans said they believe politicians should not have a say in whether transgender people are able to access gender-affirming health care, even as a record number of states press legislation to severely restrict care for transgender youths and adults, according to a poll published Monday by The 19th News.
[...]
Most Republicans agree: When asked if they believe elected leaders should focus on restricting access to gender-affirming care, protecting transgender people or dropping the issue entirely, a plurality of Republicans surveyed — 58 percent — said they do not want politicians to wade into transgender issues.
But the Republican party doesn't care about the voters, they have their own agenda that they want to push for the votes and carter to their conservative base.
Most Americans also believe that lawmakers don’t know enough about transgender issues to make policies.
The Advocate
By Christopher Wiggins
September 18, 2023
Most Americans are not concerned with legislation around transgender issues and harbor doubts about whether lawmakers are informed enough on matters related to trans lives to create fair policies about access to gender-affirming care, according to a survey released Monday.
In their second annual “The State of Our Nation” poll, The 19thandSurveyMonkey examined the state of women in America, with a particular focus on women of color and LGBTQ+ individuals. Respondents were asked about attitudes toward the economy, abortion, health care, guns and the workplace, as well as attitudes toward gender-affirming care and trans rights.
Transgender issues don't feature prominently in most Americans’ political priorities, according to the online survey of more than 20,000 adults conducted in late August. Just 17 percent believed politicians should focus on restricting gender-affirming care, while 33 percent thought they should protect transgender individuals.
All politics are local!
All politics are local!
All politics are local!
People care about what affects their pocketbook, or the street they live on, or the place where they work!
Out California Rep. Robert Garcia, who has the distinction of being the only Democrat who sits on three committees with Georgia firebrand and MAGA Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, was blunt about why Republicans continue to use a losing issue to push hate.
“It’s because the Republican caucus here in Congress is a bunch of bullies. They are willing and happy to attack folks who are the most marginalized, who are such a small part of the population, and who don’t always have the ability or the resources to fight back,” Garcia said in an interview with The Advocate. “They view the trans community and trans families as an opportunity to reignite and continue their cultural wars.”
I think there is another reason… their white nationalistic evangelical Christian base wants it and the Republicans are playing to them, let’s hope the it does the opposite to everyone else. That it turns them off.
“Now that they’ve realized that all their attacks on women’s health and abortion have backfired on them, they’re now turning to the trans community and the broader LGBTQ+ community because it’s both issues as their favorite kind of bullying tactic, and it’s shameful,” Garcia explained.
He added, “It’s also important to remember that they’re also trying to separate trans people from the broader LGBTQ+ community. We’re all in this fight together, and so we’re not going to allow it to happen.”
I think when the Republicans went after drag queens it united us and also people said wait a minute! They overturned Roe v. Wade maybe marriage is next?
More than 57 percent of survey respondents expressed their support for the rights of transgender adults to access gender-affirming care. However, a significantly smaller percentage (39 percent) indicated their support for gender-affirming care for minors, revealing a complex public opinion landscape on this critical issue.
Okay this is where we come in by every means possible we have to educate the public to the Republican lies about health care for us. They have brainwashed to public into believing that minors have surgeries and irreversible treatment to minors. They brainwashed the public into believing the puberty blockers are new and experimental, that they make changes to children that are permanent.
Hopefully the voters will continue to balk at this stuff…
A competitive swimmer who opposes the participation of transgender women in women's sports will be the special guest speaker at Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds' annual fundraiser next month.
Riley Gaines, a former member of the University of Kentucky swim team, raced Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer from the University of Pennsylvania, in the 200-yard freestyle at the 2022 NCAA Swim Championships. Gaines and Thomas tied for fifth place.
This isn’t even about trans swimmers winning events… we lost but they still blame us.
Since then, Gaines has become an outspoken opponent of including transgender women on women's sports teams. The issue has become a flashpoint for conservatives in recent years, including Iowa lawmakers.
Is this an issue that the general public can wrap their heads around? Or do they want something done at that intersection with all the accidents? Do they care about a fifth place winner complained about tying with a trans person?
Ever walk through a field and have all those seeds stick to your pants like Burdock or Beggerticks? When you are a trailblazer all type scum are attracted to you.
Sarah McBride touts that she’d be the first openly transgender member of Congress. She also wants to be known for more than just her gender identity.
Sitting outside a coffee shop blocks from Joe Biden’s favorite beach, the 33-year-old said she sees “the importance of representation. But it’s also my job to make clear to people that I’m more than just one thing, that I am a multi-dimensional human being.”
During several campaign stops on a muggy September afternoon, McBride leaned into her gender identity in largely friendly territory, arguing that recent antagonistic rhetoric about transgender rights made it impossible to ignore. Still, she said there are other parts of her story that have been more formative than her gender identity, namely serving as a caregiver to her late husband Andrew Cray during his terminal battle with cancer.
She has learned the lesson of “All politics are local” that is how she won in Delaware. She is going up against some powerful Democrats in the primaries.
Her first step is getting through the yearlong slog of the Democratic primary. Sen. Tom Carper’s decision to retire and Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester’s bid for his seat opened opportunities for a host of ambitious Democrats. McBride won’t have the field to herself in the deep-blue, close-knit state, and she could face stiff competition from State Treasurer Colleen Davis and State Housing Authority Director Eugene Young. Blunt Rochester is expected to stay neutral in the race to succeed her.
Can she rise above the other candidates?
McBride is already something of a local celebrity, and no stranger to national politics. She made national headlines in 2011 when she came out as transgender, serving as the American University class president at the time. And she has longstanding ties to the Biden family. President Joe Biden wrote the foreword to her 2018 memoir, and McBride said his late son, former Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, was one of her mentors.
The local star power certainly doesn’t hurt on the campaign trail. Delaware State Sen. Russ Huxtable, who’s supporting her, observed that voters tend to recognize her when they’ve campaigned together: “People are like, ‘Oh my gosh, is that Sarah McBride?’”
She has a good pedigree in politics, so she is no stranger to running for office.
Celine Mentzer, 58, was out biking through Delaware’s Amish country when she stopped by to talk to McBride’s volunteer group in Dover. Despite being a Republican, she was considering supporting McBride because she and another Delaware state representative helped her brother get unemployment insurance during the Covid-19 pandemic when he couldn’t get through to state authorities.
“They still cared for him. So I was very impressed,” she said.
All politics are local.
Repeat are me… All politics are local!
I can just picture Rep. Lauren Boebert, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, and the Freedom Caucus having a hissy fit if they have to work with her on a committee.
Two Kansas librarians have been fired after conservative officials in their town mistook a multi-colored display as something for Pride and the "LGBTQ agenda."
Now they're suing, the Washington Post reports.
In June, Kari Wheeler and Brandy Lancaster, librarians at the Sterling Free Public Library in Sterling, a small community in central Kansas, created two displays celebrating and raising awareness about autism and neurodiversity. The displays featured rainbow colors and messages advocating for diversity and understanding, including quotes like “We all think differently” and “In diversity is beauty and strength,” according to the paper.
The displays were part of the nationwide summer reading program themed “All Together Now.”
However, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for Kansas, the displays were misconstrued by a board member as promoting an “LGBTQ agenda,” leading to Wheeler and Lancaster’s termination. The lawsuit alleges that board member Michelle Miller waged an “illegal campaign” to censor the displays based on her misconception, implicating the library’s board, the city, and the mayor in violating the librarians’ rights to free speech.
Wait what’s this? I don’t know but it must be bad, lets fire someone!
But wait there’s more…
However, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for Kansas, the displays were misconstrued by a board member as promoting an “LGBTQ agenda,” leading to Wheeler and Lancaster’s termination. The lawsuit alleges that board member Michelle Miller waged an “illegal campaign” to censor the displays based on her misconception, implicating the library’s board, the city, and the mayor in violating the librarians’ rights to free speech.
But here is the kicker!
The events culminated in two special board meetings in July, the first of which saw Wheeler and Lancaster providing information on state laws protecting library materials from censorship due to differing viewpoints, according to the Post. The second meeting resulted in the firing of both librarians, with board president Jeremy Stinemetz allegedly stating Wheeler had “lost the confidence of the board to effectively perform her position.”
So let me get this straight. There is a law in Kansas blocking books being pulled from shelves because someone complained. It seems like the conservatives thought that laws don’t apply to them.
I hope that they win their lawsuit for a big bundle!
Employees of the Cajon Valley Union School District are concerned over a policy update that forced teachers to remove posters promoting classrooms as a “safe space” for LGBTQ students and educators.
They took those concerns to Tuesday night’s board meeting.
In a pre-recorded video announcement played to employees during campus staff meetings on Monday, Cajon Valley Union School District Superintendent Dr. David Miyashiro directed staff to remove any GLSEN “Safe Space” posters from classrooms and any student-facing rooms on school campuses.
Miyashiro said the posters were in violation of school board policy which prohibits materials that solicit funds for an outside organization or position the school district on “any side of a controversial issue.”
STOP RIGHT THERE!
Since GLSEN doesn’t solicit funds that must mean that the “Safe Space” is a “controversial issue.” Wait, wait what exactly is controversial about having a safe space?
In the video statement, Miyashiro says the civil rights of LGBTQ individuals have become a political debate creating tension at conflict at school board meetings.
“On one hand we have the extreme left, and other hand we have the extreme right. Both sides are doing so much damage and causing so much harm,” Miyashiro said. I still don’t understand , so the other side is saying we don’t want a safe space we want to be able to bully and harass people. Want want to discriminate against minorities!
One counselor said board members have been going into classrooms and taking them down, adding:
"As a counselor what are we supposed to do? Get rid of our signage and not letting this be a safe place? Kids come into our office because of the "safe place" sign. Everyone is welcome."
Yup.
That is what all this “WOKE” is about the right to discriminate. The right to harass. The right to bully.
People we have to get the “vote out” in November 2024 it will all boil down to who can get the voters to the polls.
Olivia Hill is the first openly transgender person ever elected to Nashville's Metro Council. She's also the first transgender woman elected in Tennessee history, according to LGBTQ+ Victory Fund.
Hill secured one of the Council's five at-large seats in Thursday's runoff election with 12.9% of the vote. She joins a historic number of women elected to the Council. All five at-large members will be women, as well as 17 district councilmembers. That adds up to 22 women — a majority of the 40-member council.
"I want to say that I am elated," Hill told The Tennessean after the historic win.
"For every trans kid in the state of Tennessee that has felt discomfort or that they didn't belong..." Hill said. "We are valid. We are who we say we are. And we are going to move forward."
So what do you do if you want to run for office. I am sure that for most of you have never even thought of doing and wouldn’t know how to begin… well I only vaguely know how.
First I recommend joining the party! It seems an obvious step.
Now in its 28th year, the Campaign School for Social Workers has a strong network of over 2,600 alumni from across the country and world, many of whom have gone to serve as elected officials, leaders, advocates, and organizers.
The Campaign School is held annually at the UConn School of Social Work in Hartford, Connecticut. Schools and NASW Chapters across the country have also brought the Campaign to their communities.
It was excellent!!!!
They teach you from square one how to form and manage a political campaign. Even if you don’t run like me, I learned a lot of how you can help a candidate
Step 2 Attend, Connecticut Lobbying Conference given by Gallo & Robinson a lobbyist. OMG a lobbyist! Why would I want to attend training at a lobbyist?
First of all not all lobbyist are evil! I am friends with a couple of lobbyists, one from Planned Parenthood and the other Gallo & Robinson. Yup the ones who give the training.
Gallo & Robinson, LLC. provides non-profits, health care professions, unions and civil rights advocacy groups with a voice in the CT General Assembly that is extremely knowledgeable, backed by years of experience and good relationships with leaders in both parties and at all areas of the Connecticut Government. Gallo & Robinson LLC also helps to build and foster strong grassroots advocacy networks for clients ensuring that decision makers hear from constituents who care about the clients’ issues.
Yeah, they are not lobbyists for large corporations but rather non-profits and unions. Check out their lobbying training “The 42nd Annual Connecticut Lobbying Conference, Thursday, October 26th, 2023” I attended it twice and I learned a lot from the workshop. Here is a tip…
You know those form emails you get to send to you representatives change the “Subject” line. Many legislators sort their emails by the “Subject” line so he may have a thousand emails that start with “Please vote on this important subject” the legislator is by law prohibited from deleting emails so they get moved sight unseen to a dead file.
So if you change the subject line it doesn’t end up in the sort pile, and if you can some of the wording to the form email like at the begin the email with a personal story you will get your email read.
If you run for office you don’t do it out of the blue, get help. The party will help you, Emily’s List will help you, and workshops like that giving by the lobbyist will help you. Just Do It!
Hey you all know that I am a science fiction aficionado. I want you all to read a book by Kurt Vonnegut. Oh that got your attention… “Vonnegut.”
I want you to read the first book he ever wrote! He published it 1952 and it was about GE in Schenectady NY.
Right now we see the UAW, SAG, and WGA, one of the things all the strikes have in common is AI taking over their jobs.
The book that I want you to read is Player Piano, it is a huge book only 352 pages. Here is what Amazon says about the book…
“A funny, savage appraisal of a totally automated American society of the future.”—San Francisco Chronicle
Kurt Vonnegut’s first novel spins the chilling tale of engineer Paul Proteus, who must find a way to live in a world dominated by a supercomputer and run completely by machines. Paul’s rebellion is vintage Vonnegut—wildly funny, deadly serious, and terrifyingly close to reality.
Praise for Player Piano
“An exuberant, crackling style . . . Vonnegut is a black humorist, fantasist and satirist, a man disposed to deep and comic reflection on the human dilemma.”—Life
“His black logic . . . gives us something to laugh about and much to fear.”—The New York Times Book Review
What I find amazing is that he foretold the future because that is exactly what society is going through today loss of jobs due to automation. What gets me is back in 1949 Vonnegut imagine a future with automation taking away job. Wikipedia put it this way,
In a 1973 interview Vonnegut discussed his inspiration to write the book:
I was working for General Electric at the time, right after World War II, and I saw a milling machine for cutting the rotors on jet engines, gas turbines. This was a very expensive thing for a machinist to do, to cut what is essentially one of those Brâncuși forms. So they had a computer-operated milling machine built to cut the blades, and I was fascinated by that. This was in 1949 and the guys who were working on it were foreseeing all sorts of machines being run by little boxes and punched cards. Player Piano was my response to the implications of having everything run by little boxes. The idea of doing that, you know, made sense, perfect sense. To have a little clicking box make all the decisions wasn't a vicious thing to do. But it was too bad for the human beings who got their dignity from their jobs.
Will you need a PhD to find a job and everyone else is on the dole?
They are crawling out of the swamps, they heard the call and are answering it. Trump, DeSantis, the Sirens with their seductive singing and enchanting music are calling the creatures out of the Florida swamps.
Neo-Nazis Gloat as Florida Becomes a Magnet for Hate As white supremacists from as far as Canada revel in intimidating Sunshine State residents, critics blast DeSantis for his silence The Rolling Stone By Tim Dickinson September 14, 2023
NEO-NAZIS HAVE BEEN ecstatic in the wake of their headline-grabbing action outside Orlando earlier this month. White nationalists with handles like “Dietrich,” “Red Pill,” and “Scotty Big Balls” greeted each other with shouts of “Hail victory!” on a Sept. 10 Telegram livestream. Echoing the sentiments of many participants, “Combat Carl” told listeners it was “probably the best weekend of my life.”
The march represented a merger of two neo-Nazi hate groups with different styles — the hard-edged BloodTribe, aka Blutstamm, whose Maine-based leader Christopher Pohlhaus has a runic face tattoo goes and goes by the name “Hammer”; and the Goyim Defense League, a meme-savvy group whose antisemitism is steeped in layers of irony, led by Jon Minadeo II, who calls himself “Handsome Truth.” This was the largest, but only the latest, of a series of high-profile neo-Nazi actions in Florida.
More than 50 members of both groups joined together on Sept. 2 — wearing red shirts and dark shorts, with most covering their faces with black masks. Some toted massive swastika flags, and their hate march culminated with a demonstration on a freeway overpass in Altamonte Springs, where the neo-Nazis performed stiff-armed Hitler salutes and shouted antisemitic threats like, “Jews get the rope!”
Many of these haters were not Florida natives. As detailed on the livestream, they’d traveled from as far Canada and California, spending thousands of dollars on flights and hotels to participate in this show of intimidation in the Sunshine State. And this joint mobilization was augmented, on the same day, by a third neo-Nazi group that rallied just a few miles away, outside DisneyWorld. Members of the Order of the Black Sun staked out an entrance to “the most magical place on Earth,” holding placards reading: “Have you thanked Hitler today?”
The songs of the Sirens are calling them from far and wide.
What have you heard from the DeSantis? Crickets!
”Talk to anybody from any of these marginalized communities. There is a fear on the ground,” says Nikki Fried, who was the highest ranking Jewish woman in the history of state government, stepping down from her cabinet post at the beginning of this year to lead state Democrats. She tells Rolling Stone she’s floored to be living through a moment of American history where she has to “denounce Nazis in my home state — and have a governor who refuses to do so.”
We never had this before, they were scared to crawl out of the swamp, but Trump lured them out to do his dirty work for him and he rewarded them by calling them “Very fine people.” And the Republican party have been courting them ever since.
DeSnatis tried obscure them with a red herring…
But that is advice Governor DeSantis’ camp has, at times, found difficult to follow. In Jan. 2022, a group of hardcore haters staged a rally in Orlando, chanting slogans like “the Jew is the devil” and hoisted hateful banners over freeway overpasses. But when called on to condemn them, Team DeSantis first lofted a false-flag conspiracy theory, instead. In a since-deleted tweet, spokesperson Christina Pushaw asked: “Do we even know if they are Nazis?” and suggested that the hate mongers could have been, “Dem Staffers.”
[…]
The governor has since observed a strategy of silence in response to neo-Nazi actions in the state — even when hate groups have invoked his name and political imagery. In July 2022, a group of neo-Nazis set up camp in front of a right-wing youth conference in Tampa, holding lightning bolt ‘SS’ flags, Nazi posters, and a banner reading “DeSantis Country.” One held a sign trolling DeSantis as “our glorious leader.”
DeSantis is following in the footsteps of Sergeant Schultz of Hogan's Heroes… “I know nothing, nothing!”
DeSantis himself gave a similar answer in response to a Jewish voter who questioned him directly about neo-Nazis sporting his flag, during a “conversation with the candidate” that aired in early August in Manchester, New Hampshire. Without directly condemning the haters, DeSantis bragged that he’d made Florida the most “pro-Israel state in America,” spent millions on security for Jewish day schools, and vowed to “defeat the scourge of anti-semitism.” As for the neo-Nazis waving his banner: “Those are not true supporters of mine,” he said. “That is an operation, to try to link me to something so that it smears me.” DeSantis added: “They are trying to divide, by using that as a weapon against me.”
Don’t look behind the curtain!
The dark truth is that white identity politics and scapegoating of minorities is now part and parcel of the MAGA agenda. Trump made his corner of the GOP a safe space for racists by popularizing the birther conspiracy; slandering Mexican immigrants as “rapists” and “drug dealers”; pursuing a “Muslim ban;” and by insisting that the tiki-torch bearing Charlottesville marchers — who chanted “Jews will not replace us!” in 2017 — included “good people.”
He doesn’t want to antagonize their loyal white nationalists base, the Republicans want to keep them mad so that they vote.
The only way we are going to bring about change is to VOTE! Vote as if your life depends upon it because it does.
I’m not saying that it is a bad thing nor is it a good thing but it is happening, we don’t have any roots. I think one of the sub-divisions is that people tend to be divided into two groups and they are “Homebodies” and "Footloose and fancy-free."
I look at my extended family and most of them are along the Atlantic seaboard from the middle-Atlantic to Maine. Are we as a civilization putting down roots? Or are we scattered to the four winds?
So I asked Google’s Bard: “Are families staying together or are they moving away from where they were born?”
Bard:
The trend of families staying together or moving away from where they were born has been changing over time. In the past, it was more common for families to stay together in the same community or region. This was due to a number of factors, such as the availability of jobs, affordable housing, and strong social networks. However, in recent decades, there has been a growing trend of families moving away from where they were born. This is due to a number of factors, such as the desire for better job opportunities, a more affordable cost of living, or a different lifestyle.
According to a 2020 study by the Pew Research Center, about 3 in 4 adults in the United States live within 30 miles of their parents. However, this number has been declining in recent years. For example, in 1980, about 4 in 5 adults lived within 30 miles of their parents.
There are a number of reasons why families are moving away from where they were born. Some of the most common reasons include:
Job opportunities: Many people move to find better job opportunities. This is especially true for young adults who are just starting their careers.
Cost of living: The cost of living can be a major factor in deciding where to live. Some people move to areas with a lower cost of living in order to save money.
Lifestyle: Some people move to find a different lifestyle. This could mean moving to a larger city, a smaller town, or a different climate.
Education: Some people move to be closer to a good school for their children.
Family: Some people move to be closer to family members.
The trend of families moving away from where they were born is likely to continue in the future. This is due to a number of factors, such as the increasing globalization of the economy and the growing availability of technology. These factors make it easier for people to find jobs and stay connected with family and friends, even if they live far apart.
However, it is important to note that there are also some benefits to families staying together. For example, families who stay together can provide each other with emotional support and help each other out during difficult times. They can also share their cultures and traditions with each other.
Ultimately, the decision of whether to stay together or move away is a personal one that should be made by each family based on their individual circumstances.
Wow!
So that lead to another question.
How does not having strong family ties hurt the society?
Bard:
Strong family ties are important for both individuals and society as a whole. When families are strong, they provide their members with love, support, and a sense of belonging. This can help to promote physical and mental health, reduce crime, and improve educational outcomes.
When families are not strong, it can have a number of negative consequences for society. For example, children who grow up in families with weak ties are more likely to experience poverty, delinquency, and mental health problems. They are also more likely to become involved in crime and violence.
In addition, weak family ties can lead to social problems such as an increase in the number of single-parent households, the breakdown of traditional values, and an increase in social isolation.
Here are some of the specific ways that not having strong family ties can hurt society:
Increased crime and violence: Children who grow up in families with weak ties are more likely to engage in criminal activity and violence. This is because they lack the positive role models and support that they need to develop into law-abiding citizens.
Reduced educational outcomes: Children who grow up in families with weak ties are more likely to drop out of school and have lower academic achievement. This is because they often lack the support and encouragement that they need to succeed in school.
Increased poverty: Families with weak ties are more likely to live in poverty. This is because they may not have the resources or support that they need to make ends meet.
Increased social isolation: People who lack strong family ties are more likely to experience social isolation. This can lead to loneliness, depression, and other mental health problems.
Decreased civic engagement: People who lack strong family ties are less likely to be involved in their communities. This can lead to a decline in civic participation and a decrease in social cohesion.
It is important to note that not all families with weak ties will experience these negative consequences. However, the research suggests that strong family ties are an important protective factor for individuals and society as a whole.
There are a number of things that can be done to strengthen family ties. These include:
Spending time together: Families should make time to spend together, both informally and formally. This could include eating meals together, going on outings, or simply talking and listening to each other.
Communicating effectively: Families should communicate openly and honestly with each other. This means being able to express both positive and negative emotions in a constructive way.
Providing support: Families should provide each other with emotional and practical support. This means being there for each other during difficult times and helping each other out when needed.
Problem-solving together: Families should learn to problem-solve together. This means being able to identify and address problems in a constructive way.
Valuing each other: Families should value each other's contributions. This means recognizing each other's strengths and weaknesses and appreciating each other for who they are.
By strengthening family ties, we can create a more healthy and prosperous society for everyone.
I think that for a machine it got pretty close to what I was thinking that we are becoming a nation of individuals. I look at the town where I grew up, there are some families that wherever you look you see their family name… on streets, on schools, on brooks and ponds, on businesses around town.
I know we have the pioneer spirit but back then they packed up and moved west, but… they established roots again. Now the next generation moves off, and the their generation moves and they really never ever get to know their cousins.
I think that it is getting worst, are we becoming a society of individuals?
So once again I asked Bard… "Are we becoming a society of individuals?"
Bard:
The question of whether we are becoming a society of individuals is a complex one, and there is no easy answer. There are many factors to consider, such as the increasing interconnectedness of the world, the rise of individualism, and the decline of traditional institutions.
On the one hand, there is evidence to suggest that we are becoming more individualistic. People are increasingly choosing to live alone, they are more likely to work from home, and they are spending more time online interacting with people from all over the world. This trend towards individualism is also reflected in our culture, with more emphasis being placed on self-expression and self-fulfillment.
On the other hand, there are also forces that are pulling us together. The increasing interconnectedness of the world means that we are more aware of each other's lives than ever before. We are also more likely to be affected by events that happen far away. This can lead to a sense of shared responsibility and a need for cooperation.
Ultimately, whether we are becoming a society of individuals is a matter of perspective. Some people believe that we are becoming more isolated and atomistic, while others believe that we are becoming more interconnected and interdependent. It is likely that both trends are happening simultaneously, and the balance between them will continue to evolve in the years to come.
Here are some of the factors that are contributing to the rise of individualism:
The decline of traditional institutions, such as the family, the church, and the workplace, which have traditionally provided a sense of community and belonging.
The rise of technology, which has made it easier for people to connect with others from all over the world, but has also made it easier for people to isolate themselves.
The emphasis on self-expression and self-fulfillment in our culture.
Here are some of the factors that are contributing to the increasing interconnectedness of the world:
The rise of globalization, which has brought people from different cultures into closer contact.
The development of new technologies, such as the internet and social media, which have made it easier for people to communicate and collaborate with each other.
The increasing awareness of global problems, such as climate change and poverty, which requires us to work together to find solutions.
It is important to note that these are just some of the factors that are shaping the relationship between individuals and society. The exact nature of this relationship is complex and constantly evolving.
How has COVID enhanced our social isolation? How has the whole "work-at-home" craze individualization affected us?
"How has COVID affected social isolation?"
Bard:
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on social isolation. The measures taken to slow the spread of the virus, such as social distancing, lockdowns, and quarantines, have led to many people being cut off from their social networks.
A study by the Pew Research Center found that the percentage of Americans who said they felt lonely or isolated increased from 22% in January 2020 to 33% in April 2020. The study also found that the increase in loneliness was particularly pronounced among young adults and older adults.
Social isolation can have a number of negative consequences for physical and mental health. People who are socially isolated are more likely to experience depression, anxiety, and other mental health problems. They are also more likely to have chronic health conditions, such as heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.
There are a number of things that people can do to reduce their risk of social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include:
Staying connected with friends and family through phone calls, video chats, and social media.
Joining online groups or communities.
Volunteering or donating to charity.
Getting involved in hobbies or activities that you enjoy.
Taking care of your physical and mental health.
If you are feeling lonely or isolated, it is important to reach out for help. There are many resources available to help you connect with others and build your social support network.
Here are some organizations that can provide help:
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255
It is important to remember that you are not alone. There are many people who are going through the same thing as you. With help, you can overcome social isolation and build a strong social support network.
Hmm... I didn't think of that, an increase in suicidal ideologizations, but I can where it could.
This is a great social experiment that is not bounded by limits nor time, when or where will it end no one knows. Families shouldn't be just for holidays, weddings, or funerals. Families should be about shared memories.
No one know what will happen when the glue that holds society together dissolves.
1) In this song, George Harrison tells us he's willing to devote his money, patience and time to his girlfriend. Of those three things, which can you most easily spare?
Patience, I got plenty being retired.
2) This song had long been a favorite of George's. He first heard it in 1963 when visiting his sister in United States. He couldn't get the tune out of his mind and bought the record by James Ray. Do you have an earworm -- a song that, once you hear it, keeps repeating in your head?
I do, Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer. I saw this video and it stuck with me all day. Now you can have this Earworm...
3) Months later, in February 1964, the Beatles made their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. 73 million viewers saw them, and an astonishing 45.3% of the TV sets in America were tuned in to the show. In addition to the Beatles, Ed Sullivan used his show to introduce Elvis, The Rolling Stones and The Jackson 5. The Ed Sullivan Show ran for 23 years and reruns are now shown in syndication. Have you ever seen it?
Oh yes! Our family used to sit around the television console to watch the “Really great shooow”
It was like this one,
4) While most of the best loved and most recognized Beatles songs were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, it was George who penned "Something." Frank Sinatra called that song "the greatest love song of the last 50 years." What's your favorite love song?
Set your Way-Back-Machine to the 1950s and the Drifters... This Magic Moment.
5) This praise represented a big change for Frank, who predicted in 1964 that the Beatles would be "of no lasting importance." Tell us about something you have changed your mind about.
Oh… there are plenty of things that I changed my mind on. I was going to go home yesterday but I decided to stay until Sunday to be at the cottage while Tropical Storm Lee went by a 100 miles out to sea. We are getting the fringes but, and it is a big but, the surf is supposed to be 10 to 15 feet.! I just wonder how much closer to the Atlantic my cottage will be, the last big storm washed away 10 feet of shore line.
6) Tom Petty, who went on to have more than 25 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, credits George Harrison as a major influence on his music. Tell us about someone who influenced your professional life.
There has been a number of people, my old boss who took my resume when he left the company and the most recent they said to get my MSW.
7) In 1987, when George's recording of "I Got My Mind Set on You" was popular, a squirrel unexpectedly made headlines. The furry fellow closed down the Nasdaq Stock Exchange when he chewed through a phone line. Do you often see squirrels where you live?
Those little rodents you bet! I had a nest of them in my cottage attic (7 he trapped in the attic) and it cost $400 to get rid if them. The trapper probably had a good squirrel stew that night.
8) Also in 1987, third generation race car driver Marco Andretti was born. Naturally the skills required by a race car driver are unique. For example, while we know he can control a car at upwards of 230 mph at Indy, we have no idea if Marco Andretti is good at parallel parking in front of the local post office. How about you? Do you struggle with parallel parking?
Okay here is a true story. I was parking in front of a building at Yale that had a debate that I was going to attend. I went back and forth, back and forth but finally made it into the space.
When I got out of the car a whole group of students sitting on a stonewall applauded and I curtsied to them.
9) Random question: When you woke up this morning, were you ready to face the day? Or do you wish you could have rolled over and snoozed a little longer?
Well, you know that I’m retired so I usually wake and have breakfast around 5 AM and then go back to bed for two or three hours.
Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!
Tropical Storm Lee update @ 8:30 AM
Electricity is back on off at 5:24 AM back on at 8:15 AM
Lots of wind and rain but not excessive but a lot of outages around the Cape. I have been through worst storms. Later on I'll take a ride to the beaches.
Average Wave Period Average Wave Period (APD):5.8 sec
I just wonder how much closer to the Atlantic ocean my cottage with be in the morning, the last hurricane washed away about 10 feet of beach. It is all about the timing, if it is a high tide the storm will wash away a lot of the bluffs, low tide and less damage.
* I bet that you didn't know that you can access buoys all around the country and the world, not only wave height but also temperature of the air and water, barometric pressure, wind speed, and direction.
