Every Body Needs An Asshole, Trump Is Doing The Honors For The GOP.

The Joke... The parts of the body were fighting among themselves over who should be the boss. The brain said it should be the boss because it does all the thinking, the mouth said it should be the boss because it nourishes the body by eating, the hands said they should be, because they do all the work, and so it went on all day with each body part saying why they should be the boss.

The asshole said nothing... it just shut up and shut down, doing none of its work. Two days passed and things got a little uncomfortable. Four days passed and everyone felt quite bloated and were finding it much harder to function; stuff was piling up. By the seventh day the body parts were all screaming to get some relief, all the 'garbage' had piled up and it stunk so bad the body was ready to pass out. Then the asshole spoke up... he was unanimously elected to be the boss.

The Reality... Donald Trump is right now fulfilling that job of being the asshole in the 2016 Presidential elections. He is spewing all the crap that the Republican party and the GOP base wants to hear but all their candidates are too scared to say. The candidates are all willing to say crazy things but only one crazy can drive the Clown Bus at a time... so they won't all look crazy. By letting out all their little 'nuances' and secret dog whistling calls, Trump is forcing everyone to put up or shut up.

The problem the Republican candidates face is that they have nothing to put up as Trump has cornered the market in the insanity area. The inmates are indeed running the ward. He has taken all the nice soundbites that the Republican base has swooned over in past elections, and he is spewing all that garbage, which we have heard over and over for all these years and he has left none for the others to spew.

We have heard other assholes present themselves in the past, Christine O'donnell had to say that she was not a witch... the jury is still out on that, Ron Paul said women can stick some aspirin between their legs if they needed, Romney's Veep Candidate Paul Ryan had to distance himself from his buddy Todd Akin, when they revealed that they considered some types of rapes to be ligitimate... 'Paul Ryan says that he personally believes that rape is just another “method of conception” and not an excuse to allow abortions'... and don't get me started about Sarah Palin!!

Donald Trump has now spewed all the good stuff and we see the Republican hopefuls being left in the dust, quite rapidly I might add. This has awoken the GOP base and the other candidates are scrambling for anything they could now say to make themselves appear valid, sane, smart and compassionate... somethings they have never been known for.

The Donald has republican candidates trying to separate themselves from him and the statements which they have all used in the past, by attempting to tell the truth... enter Ted Cruz. 

Senator (Canadian) Ted Cruz is now proudly representing himself to be a Cuban, (ok he is now a Canadian Cuban...American) and says that he will bring Cuban festivities like pig roasts to the White House if elected. His latest brush with truth telling is to stab his Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in the back by admitting that McConnell is a liar, something the rest of the world knew all along.

Rick Santorum, famous for his 'man on dog' and other gay bashing comments over the years,  now admits to the world via a Rachel Maddow interview, that he does not know anything about LGBT people and if they are born that way. This is something he should at least spend some time thinking about since his decisions on the subject as President, would affect millions of Americans.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry, while under indictment and facing a felony charge, has tried to wear glasses in a blatant attempt to secede from his deserved reputation of being a blockhead...ooops. This act of distraction has not escaped the watchful and trained eye of the Donald as he has had plenty practice weeding out the goats from the sheep on 'The Apprentice.' The Donald recently sold him down the river for the scam he is trying to pull...of trying to look smart. 

I could run down the list of the other 200 or so republican candidates running for the 2016 Presidential elections, but I'll leave that for another time.

Trump is waving the same boring clueless 'build the bridge' flag as those before him and none of them or their base even realize that Mexicans know how to do many things... like picking, gardening, washing dishes, babysitting... and digging tunnels under walls!!... remember El Chapo? It is stupid to think there are no shovels in Mexico!

Regarding that assinine wall idea... there have been as many or more people coming into America through the airports for decades and simply overstaying their visas. President Reagan gave an amnesty and republicans hate him for this. There are also many who drive across from Canada, so to think that the Mexicans are the biggest immigration concern, simply shows the more racist aspect of republican logic... or lack thereof.

So hopefully, the asshole wins the Republican nomination!

I can't wait to see the debates!!

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Does The Internet Spawn Global 'Capitalistic Socialism?'

Enter Zipcar, Uber, Lyft and AirBnB

Lest I lose this audience from the start, let me attempt to first outline certain terms that we may know, but as I realize, 99% of us do not understand. To this end I recommend a really great radio episode by an economist who really discusses these business ideas in great detail.  

The show is called 'Economic Update' hosted by Professor Richard D Wolff, from 9am to 10am, on WBAI radio and the episode was broadcasted on July 17th 2015. It is quite educational and one would be well advised to listen at the above radio links,  it will take you to the archive page of WBAI. At the page, just locate the program 'Economic Update' and click it.

Capitalist Enterprise ; traditional business model which focuses on a top down control and decision making structure with little concern paid to the workers' social well-being, or their ability to work safely and more productively on the job. The focus is mainly on profit without strong concern for social or environmental issues related to the result of doing business.

Capitalism is about 300 yrs old, starting in England in the 17th century and expanding outwards from there to Europe and the Americas... and globally. Called an individualistic system it is not well favored in most countries as the result is always a widening of the economic gap between workers and management while having some unsociable or damaging affects on society and the communities where they operate.

Socialism; Emerged in the 19th century and is more geared toward workers getting a better and/or more humane deal, and better social rewards as a direct result of employment. Geared to also socially serve the communities with greater affect in and around where they exist. Cooperating collectively to conduct profitable business while enhancing the society they exist in as a whole. 

In its largest form, Socialism is thought to mean using the government to have and maintain large economies that were socialistic in focus... this is a misunderstanding, as that is really State Capitalism; it is directly run and regulated by the State. 

Socialism has never been achieved anywhere in the world by major countries like China, Russia, Cuba or France, as they were still run and regulated by States, not private community sources.

State Capitalism is just a means to arrive at Socialism but it is not in itself Socialism... it is just a means to get there. Many people misunderstand this... including Stalin; and think State or Private Capitalism is actually Socialism, but it is not, if you have not transformed the production process into a community social structure or affair. 

A good example of a long existing social success in the form of a Cooperative is the Mondragon Corporation in Spain.

Workers' Self Directed Enterprise;  is an alternative to traditional Capitalist enterprise. This seems to now be the preferred mode of reducing company expenditure and realizing more profits for the company as a result of the reduction. There may be different ownership arrangements but the workers get a better socio economic result than being employed at  the traditional hotel or rental car company. Worker cooperatives are the oldest form of this business model, one example is religious organizations, where the workers are sociably interactive with the community/society they function within, with positive results for everyone involved.

The new trend for some business models has been greately re-done by the use of the internet and using new platforms that helps companies to grow much faster, spread the cost to a wider framework by letting owner/operators share in the operations and the profits, while not burdening the company with owning the hardware or product. 

This is a link to a WNYC Bryan Lehrer episode where the co-founder of Zipcar Robin Chase is interviewed and offers some wonderful ideas about how and why this business platform is successful. In Zipcar's case, the customers have a much better experience fulfilling the needs to get a vehicle when needed, while not having to deal with the rules and practices of a regular car rental company, or owning a vehicle that you only use on weekends.

With new business platforms using the internet, the actual owners of the products being used are in fact the actual workers as well, for instance Air BnB, where the home owners that facilitate the business also maintain their homes and are thereby the owner/operator of that empty room and property used.

In the case of Uber and Lyft, owner/operators are used by these companies via their exclusive app platforms, to connect riders to a privately owned car operated by its owner who is courteous and keeps within the high standards required by the company. The car owner is paid a premium price for their work and is able to fashion their work hours and work zones, around their personal lives, thereby beneftting from having enough time to have other activities including having a family. 

These new businesses are the epitome of having as close to a successful Socialistic business model in the 21st century as is feasible and it is only growing. It is far more cost effective for the companies, as they do not own a car but just an app and a payment system...and makes millions of dollars with it. Welcome to the 21st century!! Open your wings/minds and fly people!

This is the best example of what I call 'Capitalistic Socialism' in the 21st century. 
Could these business models be a boon to self described Socialist Bernie Sanders in the 2016 election, as opposed to the traditional approach of Hillary Clinton? Well, it is Socialism... kinda

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And The GOP Clown Car Turns Into A Bus!

The GOP clown car turned into a bus today, with the addition of one more questionable passenger, Mr. Scott Walker. Walker's terrible reputation precedes him as one of the worst Governors to come out of the GOP's horrendous bag of tricks, only second in my opinion to Chris Christie, who had his state's credit rating drop eight times... maybe, I lost count, it may be up to ten times by now.

Unfortunately for Mr. Walker, his big splash of announcing his candidacy was overshadowed by Hillary Clinton's speech which was also scheduled for today and had the desired effect of drowning out Walker's announcement later in the day,  to join the Presidential race. Walker's speech was carried live on Fox and MSNBC but everyone with an eye for snake oil salesmen, seemed to yawn as he hit all the right 'run of the mill' talking points.

Walker's  main theme was just another right wing fanatical 'same old same old'... repeal Obamacare, cut taxes, cut regulations, increase use of the fossil fuels God has blessed us with, poke Iran and Russia in the eye, kiss Israel's ring, do away with common core and any other sensible educational tools and we could all have the government's support under his watch... to home school our kids. You all know I disagree with the home school idea.

Walkers speech this evening came hard on the heels of what is believed to be his main rival, Donald Trump's own riveting speech. The Donald still stands by the ridiculous claim that Mexicans are sent to the US by the Mexican government, and when they get here they rape and commit crimes to the extent that they are singlehandedly destroying America and deporting every one of them will save us.

I hasten to add that there has not been any blowback by the GOP or the Republican base to Trump's claim, which only confirms that he is indeed talking on behalf of the Republican party and their base as a whole. The RNC has not been able to muzzle Trump and the silence by the GOP and the base says a lot about the racist undertones of the fight wing... an undertone believed to become the biggest plague the party will have to face in this upcoming election.

Unfortunately for Trump, the great escape by the most dangerous drug lord in Mexico proves one thing... Mexicans can dig tunnels and thereby trump Trump's 'great wall.' The Donald has already seen the conspiracy by the Mexican government and has since asked the FBI to investigate the matter.

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Don't Tread On My Nonreligious Liberties Please.

So apparently the majority of the citizens in the US are religious, comprising of many different faiths. Most of them are Christians, who unknowingly are treading on my rights and liberties by subjecting me and others to their religious biases, public religious practices and religiously based laws.

Christians are up in arms with the recent decisions of the SCOTUS and are hell bent on fighting some of these decisions even though some earlier decisions were alright by them... even the one in 2000, when SCOTUS gave Bush the win to beat Gore for the Presidency. I also remember the decisions of Citizens United v FEC and Hobby Lobby both of which were just great for conservatives whether they were Christians or not, but I think most conservatives are Christians as well.

Of particular concern to Christians right now is the decision by SCOTUS, to make same sex marriage legal in all 50 states of the US. Many conservatives are vehement in their opposition based on their religious understanding. 

The field of 2016 Republican Presidential hopefuls are voicing their opinions as well. Mike Huckabee said 'As president, I will never bow down to the false gods of judicial supremacy.”

Ted Cruz had his own ideas to solve the issue..."This week in response to both of these decisions, I have called for another constitutional amendment — this one that would make members of the Supreme Court subject to periodic judicial retention elections," the other candidates were equally colorful in their opinions.

Many laws are made with the minority interest at heart, as the majority are usually the ones putting unbridled blame or stress on said minority. In this instance I believe the nonreligious in America are in the minority and thus deserve the benefit of having their liberties regarded with equal or more urgency. 

Our nonreligious liberties and freedoms are being infringed upon with each religiously biased law passed, as it makes us adhere to religiously dictated dogmas or opinions.

Contrary to popular belief. this United States is not a 'Christian' nation, nor was it ever so.

The nonreligious citizens are bombarded by the delirium of religion in numerous ways. When the majority religious population strive to get their ways or their laws imposed on a whole state or the country, they are violating the wishes and freedoms of the minority nonreligious population. 

The religious right's attempts to have prayers said in schools, their attempts to define marriage between only a man and a woman, their attempts to ban abortions, their attempts to replace the teaching of science with the teaching of Creationism, their attempts to make contraception illegal or to have religious restrictions placed on who can and can't have contraceptives through certain workplaces, their attempts to have businesses discriminate against patrons... are all wrong and against my rights. 

There are many more restrictions based on their religious opinions which are suppressing the wishes of nonreligious people like myself.

When they choose to not bake cakes or take photographs for Gay couples, or dispense prescriptions or issue marriage licences because of religious beliefs... they violate our rights and nonreligious liberties.

If they want to deny us of their services, then simply change the business names to... The religious bake shop... The Jesus Photo store...God's Pharmacy and Marry Before God services.... Then they will not be violating our rights by claiming their right to religious freedom. Until then, they are on the wrong side of the constitution and they tread on us.

I say if they can have religious liberties that they fight for, then it is imperative that my and other nonreligious persons liberties be held in equal regard and be upheld as  a right and individual freedom as promised in the Constitution.

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Obamacare... Whocares?...SCOTUScare!!

Republicans are pissing mad! ... but relieved as reported by The Washington Post. The Republicans were so sure that they would finally see the end to their multi-pronged attacks to repeal or at least to derail Obamacare, also known as The Affordable care act, or ACA. 

They are relieved because  a decision in their favor, would have forced them to be on the spot to make an alternative to Obamacare. More than 6 million Americans mostly in red states would have lost it, and more than 16 million Americans have already benefited from the ACA.

They already attempted around 60 times to repeal the healthcare law, so they hoped for the SCOTUS decision going in their favor... kinda. Their plan for the 2016 election would have been to have the more than 16 million people who benefited, lose or at least be negatively affected by the decision, enough that the Republicans could say Obamacare caused their health woes and if elected, they would fix it. It would have been the perfect tool to win the upcoming election by using an old tactic they have used before... make the electorate forget their problems by giving them bigger problems... probably a new war.

Justices Scallia, Thomas and Alito dissented to the 6 to 3 vote. Justice Scalia huffed and puffed in his dissent that we should go ahead and call the Affordable Care Act,  'SCOTUScare!' 

The decision by the majority is being hailed as a strong statement that is pragmatic in its opinion.  The dissenting justices are said to have a more textualist wish list, while not interpreting the intent and context of the law or at least not holding that intent in higher regard.

Republicans have made multiple challenges to the SCOTUS in a bid to dismantle or destroy the Affordable Care Act... and after the SCOTUS decision today, President Obama said that the law is here to stay. This will now cement his place in history as the person who bucked 100 years of disappointment and dysfunction that has plagued previous attempts to fix our healthcare system.

WNYC has a quite informative discussion and call-in radio program on the decision and live statements by the President after the decision (click to 33.30 minutes on the recording). The President outlined some of the gains offered by the 'ACA' in his speech.

The majority opinion written by Chief justice John Roberts. says that the ACA is 'comprehensive' and 'working', he also says Congress 'wrote this act to improve markets not destroy them.' We now see him being the brunt of some nasty name calling, with slurs calling him traitor, Benedict Arnold, W's worst mistake, or possibly being blackmailed or intimidated.

Speaker John Boehner said they will continue to try to repeal it...“ObamaCare is fundamentally broken, increasing health-care costs for millions of Americans,” House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said in a statement issued by his office. “Today’s ruling doesn’t change that fact.” the Washington Post reports.

One caller to the  WNYC radio show said it would have killed people. This is a statement that is widely shared among Americans.

The ACA was touted as a job killer by conservatives, a fact that has been disproved by the strong job creation that has been happening since the ACA was made law.
The rising healthcare costs have also since slowed from the 10% annual rate.

All the 2016 Republican Presidential hopefuls have of course voiced their vehement cries against the Scotus decision, with some still vowing to repeal and replace the ACA.

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Rachel Dolezal Is As Black As A Christian Or Gay Person Is Themself.

Can we tell a Gay person they are not really gay?
Can we tell a Transgender person that they are not really transgendered?
Can we tell a person who converted to Christianity that they are not really a christian?
Can we tell a white person that because their great great-grandfather was black, that they are not really white?

There is a time when each of these persons listed above, decided or realized that they were the way they said they were. There were a lot of emotions and questions that those people had to answer for themselves before they decided to make that personal change, to accept what they claim; they were gay or transgendered, that they were Christian and not their former religious persuasion, or that they are the color that they say they really are inside themselves. 

There are many physical reasons why people say that they are or are not whom they say they are. Those reasons may be the result of medical abnormalities, read about that here. There are decisions that do not require medical reasons; like changing one's religion to become a Christian... can we tell that person that they are wrong to feel that being a christian is not their true inner self?

We cannot feel the mental anguish a claustrophobic person feels. We cannot force a person to feel love for a religion, enough to fully accept and commit to that religion when they are an Atheist in their mind. 

What if Rachel realized some time later on, that she was molested at an early age, by someone she was close to, someone she trusted... someone who was supposed to protect her and keep her safe? 

How does a person feel toward the one that raped them? Does that rapist not disgust the victim enough that the  victim will never feel comfortable around the rapist again? Would the victim even want to be of the same color, race or even species as the rapist? Can we ever make them change their minds and feel better and not disgusted about the rape, about that person or even about themselves for being part of that horrible act?

I coined the phrase 'Don't just do, be.'  Apart from the obvious, that phrase could be used in this way... can a person do kind things without themselves being a kind person? Can a person do things to show love to someone without having the inner feeling of being in love with them? Human can't just do things only, you have to actually be something, we cannot avoid this and live in some vacuum.

We are not machines, we are human beings, and the greatest part of that existence is being human. You have to connect with your inner self and inner feelings, and only you can tell what feels right about you and to you.

Rachel Dolezal said in interviews today that she is black, she says it feels spiritual and visceral. That is what she feels is true and real and feels right, no one can say that what she feels is wrong. Many said she is lying and she is really a white woman... just like the gay person is not really gay, or the transgendered person is not really trans, or the christian is not really a christian...

These people are not making these feelings up. You have to feel who you really are. Would any Christian tell another person that they are not really a christian and they are really this or that other religion? I think not. Likewise. Rachel is what she says she is, and everyone trying to get their opinions in, saying she is not who or what she says she is, is not being as smart as they think they really are.

Rachel says the naysayers don't know her... she is right about that. According to AP and NBC, so far neither Rachel nor her parents have taken DNA tests to prove one way or the other that she is indeed from their bloodline.

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Rachel Dolezal Is Black, And So Am I.

There seems to be some confusion surrounding Rachel Dolezal. Let me shed some light...

Many Americans don't have a good idea of what other peoples of the world consider true self identity. For some Americans, it's like Hollywood, all they know is that you put on this face... which you take off when you tire of it or need to change your personality to something else to fit in with your surroundings.

I can not yet say why Rachel identifies as a 'black woman' but the mere fact that she does is the whole story in a nutshell... which I shall now explain.

I was a little Indian boy who moved from Caroni to the capital city of Port of Spain, Trinidad at around 1968, as I vaguely remember turning 5 (or 6) then. Caroni at that time was a countryside region known for farming and sugar plantations... which was an area largely populated by those of 'Indian' ancestry.

The city's population is majority black, at least 65 to 70% in my estimation, that was in the 1970's. My family was one of about three or four that were of Indian descent amongst our neighbors. My assimilation with the blacks 'on d block' was swift and easy, as mine was the house on the corner where everyone hung out. My home was a multi-use property having a small deli/grocer space in the front where everyone in close vicinity shopped.

I remember the "Black Power' riots of the 1970's. I was of course a kid back then, no more than 9yrs old and would not be allowed outside after dusk, even though outside for me meant sitting or playing on my own stoop with my other friends.

Growing up in a close knit group where it was 'we' against 'babylon (the cops),' I learned quite early on about the injustices meted out against poor people, regardless of your skin colour. I and the other young people grew up listening to songs by Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Jacob 'Killer' Miller and Steel Pulse to name a few. The songs we knew, sang about the 'blackman' and his struggle against government forces (Babylon) who sought to arrest and terrorise us at every turn.

When as a youth, we put on the shield of being a 'blackman' or picked up the spear of being a black man, it was a move that meant you existed as a soldier against the evil forces of Babylon. Many of us would grow up with a 'rasta' mentality which mimicked the struggles of our Rastafarian brethren in Jamaica, fighting against oppression by the Babylon. 

The main thing to impress upon you is that any and every person who saw and identified with the struggle against oppression was considered to have identified with the 'Blackman.' Foreigners to our shores were no exception, regardless of color or race, as long as you saw the struggle and stood with us, you were one, with us. 

There were whites, browns and blacks who would even go the distance, dread up their hair, give up their old lives and go live in the forests, living off the land and just living a spiritual life with their Jah, their creator. You may have only been there three years or three months... time did not matter, as long as you saw the struggle and picked up that spear, you were one of us.

Rachel Dolezal is a black woman, because she sees the struggle, she stood up against the struggle and she stands with us against the evils and suppression of Babylon against the downtrodden... even here in America. She carries that shield proudly in her current job, and any other she chooses to accept in the future. It is a shield you can't put down, as it is the lens through which you view the world.

Many Americans seem to see the struggle against Babylon as just another form of 'style and fashion' instead of something real that means life and death in certain circles. I don't have to remind you of how many black men have been killed by the police in the past decade. That is the fight of the poor against the forces of Babylon. This is the fight that we see.

That is a struggle that Rachel, in her country, has seen since her youth, has been outraged by... since her youth and has had feelings of disgust for, since her youth. As an adult she has chosen to take up that shield against oppression, she has chosen to take up that spear against the struggle... against the forces of Babylon. 

As long as you place that golden nugget of humility within your heart and stand up as a voice against the struggle, you are a 'Blackman' and it is not a struggle that you can take off or shed, like a piece of clothing, because it controls your emotions.... indeed, your very soul. 

So don't you dare lift one finger against Rachel for her donning the shield of Blackness, because she does not stand alone, she is one of us.... and we love you Rachel Dolezal and stand by you... 'is ah black ting.'

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