Monthly Archives: May 2023

We Need a Walter Cronkite

30 Tuesday May 2023

Posted by in Journalism, Uncategorized

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        The quality of news dissemination today is a shadow of its heydays of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Walter Cronkite, Chet Huntley, David Brinkley and a few others told the news as it happened and did their editorial at the end of the half hour. They often wrote their own scripts and edited the other reports for accuracy and time. The scripted talking heads giving out the corporate agenda didn’t exist then.

            Now the news is designed to be a profit center so it is slanted to target an audience and given by people who have little gravitas. Even a low level news junkie can spot skewed reporting or partial reporting which causes misinformation. The Fourth Amendment was added to the Constitution to investigate and report the news to the public. Watergate was a great example of real reporting. Reporting Trump’s antics was for entertainment factor, not news. Greater number of viewers means higher bottom line.

            Today we have millions of people who are addicted to watching Fox News and News Nation. They are designed to cater to their viewers leading them farther from truth and reality. In addition to those outlets we have podcasters who create conspiracies which are then repeated by other podcasters and cable media. No wonder so many Americans are warped.

            News reporting today has become a profit source and part of the cost-cutting means replacing experienced reporters with millennial novices. Journalism should be an advocate for truth and honesty and not more profit so some billionaires can get richer.

Texas Verses Illinois

30 Tuesday May 2023

Posted by in Healthcare

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        A comparison of Texas and Illinois shows Texas has a little more than four times the area and twice the population. Texas is a red as any state and Illinois is bluer than most. Both states have large cities which are much more liberal than the rural parts of their state. Texans’ revenue comes mostly from the sale of fossil fuel which means they are awash with money now. Back a few decades ago when oil was around ten dollars a barrel Texas was destitute because they don’t have an income tax. Illinois has a moderate income tax which often fails to balance its budget.

            A huge difference between the two states is health care. Illinois is awash with medical facilities. It seems as if every little community has doctors and a clinic or two. Even small towns have a hospital. Few Illinoisans live farther than a half hour from a hospital. Texas on the other hand has hospitals in large cities and some small cities. Many of their larger towns have a hospital with limited capabilities. They are without a full time maternity ward or even an ER staff with maternity knowledge. Several million Texans must drive for hours to get to full service hospital.

            The statistics show that those red states have spent less on health care services and on Medicaid than blue states. The red states policies are why the United States is so “high” on deaths of new mothers. The numbers per hundred thousand births for Germany is 4, Canada is 8, the U.K. is 9 and the U.S. is 24 with over 60,000 estimated near deaths because we don’t track that in the red states.

            Blue states seem to really care more for women’s health.

Gun Addiction

23 Tuesday May 2023

Posted by in Gun Control

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        One follower wondered if I have ever fired a gun from my comments on guns. He figured I must be a liberal who had never been around guns. This is a logical question since I appear to be anti-gun which I now am. It is a complete change from when I was growing up and maturing.

            I have easily fired over 3,000 thousand rounds of .22 caliber through a 50-year-old bolt rifle and a Western style revolver plus a couple of boxes with a semi-rifle. Over open sights with the bolt I could hit a can at 30 yards and a can tossed in the air with the pistol most of the time.

            I shot several boxes of .410, 20, 16 and 12 gauges. I got no thrill out of shot guns because they didn’t require much skill to hit a target. I hit a running rabbit with the .410 at over 40 yards while climbing an open stair, shooting through the steps from the hip. That was a hip shot. I killed another with hip shots from the .22 rifle when it was running at an angle. The last two shots with a hot barrel went off on their own.

            I feel bad for the animals I killed so I quit shooting and ended the addiction of guns when I was 20. The urge is still there when I am around guns but like any other addict I work to overcome the urge. I imagine it is like someone who has smoked, drank, or took drugs.

            Today’s gun addiction is fed by the NRA and gun manufactures through ads and social media. I was a member of the NRA for a few years until I figured out it was all about the money and not gun safety. Oh yes, the actor, Charlton Heston, was paid more to front for the NRA than he ever made in films, according to his agent.

Nothing to Fear

20 Saturday May 2023

Posted by in Gun Control

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        President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said during World War II “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.” Perhaps Americans have never had so much fear as today. This fear is not from an outside entity but from other Americans and Latino immigrants. Other Americans fears include fear between blacks and whites, and within each race.

            An obvious but mostly wrong conclusion is the regular media who carefully avoid race and gang affiliation which would mean non-gang people shouldn’t be overly concerned about their safety. Right wing cable news can’t get through a news cycle without trying to scare their audience into mistrust and fear of almost everyone and their government. Their underlying ideas are you must buy at least one gun to defend yourself and your family because they are coming after you!

            They are coming after you apparently means going to the wrong car in a parking lot, knocking on the wrong door, or driving up the wrong drive way. Other reasons for someone to shoot another person is taking a shortcut through an unfamiliar neighborhood while carrying groceries, jogging on a street too often, pushing a harasser away from your family, or chasing a basketball into a neighbor’s property. The last was a little girl and the father trying to shield her from more bullets.

            Far Right people and the Far Right media constantly make people think their own government is going to take your gun away from them, so they go buy one! Some states promote having a gun while others which want to restrict access are subverted by the easy access neighboring states.

            Of course the gun lobbyists and manufacturers are at the root of those fears. Remember: “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.”

Fourteen Years for Another Billion

20 Saturday May 2023

Posted by in Population

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        Demographers think we reached the first Billion in population around 1802. The second Billion was 1927. The third was 32 years later. The fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth were twelve years apart. Last year the 8,000,000,000th was added to the population.

            The ninth billion will probably be reached about fourteen years from now or 2036. Some believe the following 14 years may see an addition of only 700 million by 2050. The pandemic killed millions but that was just a drop in the overall population. Wars like the Ukraine don’t even rate a blip. Climate change may slow the rate since it is already killing tens of thousands from flooding and starvation in Northern Africa.

            Creating the problem is healthcare for the aged who now are able to live longer so the old axiom of replacing oneself is outdated. Today it is not uncommon for a person to have their great, great grandchildren at their birthday party. That isn’t replacement; it’s an explosion. Even if it was only two kids per family that number at the party could be 30 descendants. I’m 75 with no offspring to suffer the future.

            Social Security was invented by FDR to help the senior citizen survive after retirement because pension plans didn’t exist for many people. Many people contributed to support each retiree but now that number may be around one to one which is impossible budget wise.

            With less people of working age to support the retirees the influx of immigrants is necessary for a good economy. The problem is the necessary influx increases the future number of retirees while increasing our total population. We have a housing shortage today at 340 million. What will it be like at 400 or 500 million? Just think! Only fourteen years to NINE BILLION!

Free Will

20 Saturday May 2023

Posted by in Free Will

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        Two of the common ideas on why humans are different than other creatures is opposing thumbs and free will. The thumbs may be the reason other creatures haven’t invented assembly lines and ways of killing themselves as humans have. The mistake of our arrogance is thinking we are the only creatures with free will.

            I have been around dogs all my life but my last eight (6 Alaskan Malamutes and 2 Shetland Sheep Dogs) have taught me they have free will, too. They decided if they want to obey what I told them to do. They could tell if they were doing right or wrong by my standards. My first Malamute got revenge on me once by chewing up the last twenty pages of a paperback book I had been reading and ignoring her. She hid in our little house because she knew she had done wrong.

            Malamutes are pack animals so they are genetically disposed to decide who the leader is and where their place in the pack is. Once in a while I had to express my dominance by wrapping my arms and legs around them until they stopped struggling which indicated their submission.

            My first Malamute was attacked by two German Shepherds at once and without ever being around a German Shepherd again, communicated that fear to two others who would attack when they saw one. They only had a problem with German Shepherds. That’s communication and free will!

            Birds, bees, ants, horses, and elephants decided they feel they should be with others for the common good and/or friendship. That need for friendship often makes for very strange friendships because of free will to not eat their friends.             Free will is not unique to humans as religious and hunters would like others to think.

A Bear Rug Scam

17 Wednesday May 2023

Posted by in Chicago Bears

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        I am a big fan of professional football; not college or high school. The owners of professional teams seem to be into making money at the expense of the local communities and states. The demand loans backed by the public funds, tax abatements, and infrastructure; paid for by the community. Ever notice the governments that are on the hook for that funding even getting a piece of the sale price when the team is sold? No!

            The Bears organization is trying to convince the local and state governments to help them move from Chicago to Arlington Heights, while leaving Chicago saddled with a 631 Million debt!

            Before the state legislature considers doing anything they should consider the deadbeat Bears paying off that debt and not allowing them to refinance or do any other slick maneuver to get out of paying. Remember they signed the lease under the condition Soldier Field was rebuilt to make for those fancy sky boxes.

            Chicago should slap a lien on the team and take them to court for payment or sale of the team. I don’t care how iconic the team is, they shouldn’t be able to skip out on their debts to Chicago and get more aid to move away.

            It costs hundreds to go to a game now. What will the new location at a new stadium cost? It is about time for the league to stop teams from moving. Isn’t that one of their duties!? The city or the state should pull the rug from under their move.

Stupid is as Stupid Does #2

17 Wednesday May 2023

Posted by in Book Banning

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        Imagine yourself back in the 1950s when kids got their information on sexuality from their friends and pornographic movies. Everyone who didn’t conform to the racial, gender, and sexual ideas of white people were queer and shunned by society’s so call “normal” people.

            Today we have a group of people who feel they can keep their children and other parent’s children from reading about things they feel is unfit for their children. They never consider other parents may not object to the choices of the librarian or teacher. Apparently they can’t trust their child to follow their parent’s wishes. Book burning was one of Hitler’s favorite ways to divide Germany. What Governor Ron DeSantis is pushing those duped parents to do is just one step toward his authoritian views of how the United States would be under his administration.

            Since this isn’t the 1950s parents should realize their kids can get all the information they want from their own or their friend’s devices. Libraries and schools don’t have to worry about being the bad guy in this issue as long as the internet is available.

            So stupid is as stupid does when it comes to parents telling everyone what their child can see or read when the social media and thousands of websites will tell them whatever they want to know.

            Why are so many people eager to follow conmen who only want to get their vote so they can control their lives?

            This isn’t a new issue. While writing this an airing of the March 29, 1975 episode of “Benson” dealt with the same stupid people. The show ended with everyone agreeing it is up to the family to decide what is best for their own children and not others. DeSantis and other demigods should watch the episode!

Bad Data

17 Wednesday May 2023

Posted by in Politics, Polls

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       I wonder how many events are based on telephone polls. Apparently the poll callers use only what we usually call land lines. There are millions less “land lines” than a couple of decades ago so the number of possible respondents is greatly decreased. Most people drop their “land line” when they get their cell phones. I once heard an interview with a pollster saying they couldn’t call cell phones.

            The problem with being limited to “land lines” is the age, personalities, income, affiliations, beliefs, gender, and race are no longer the same as they were a few decades ago. The remaining people are less likely to answer the questions when asked. The polling programs have had to change to the new reality which sometimes gives good information and sometimes terrible information. National policies and campaigns are based on simple questions to complex problems. Often their questions are slanted in such a way that they get the answers they wanted.

            People give money to people wanting to win an election because the polls say they are ahead. Campaigners change their stances on topics because of polls.

            I used to be called quite often by a polling company who usually asked the same questions to see if my feeling on life in America was changing. Their last call was when I was cooking dinner and couldn’t take the ten minutes off to answer their questions, so they didn’t call back again. Too bad because I noticed my answers were moving more green and less tolerant of Republican Party catering to the Far Right.

Two Hundred

11 Thursday May 2023

Posted by in Gun Control, Mass Shootings

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        As I write this somewhere in our country the two hundredth mass shooting is happening or being planned for tomorrow. The 199th was in the Allen, Texas mall which is less than a mile from where my niece and her family live. As she heard about it she called her relatives and friends to tell us all were safe at home.

            Imagine having to call people to tell them you were safe. That area has had tornadoes, floods, and huge lightening storms, yet they didn’t create a reason to make a call. Have we gotten to the point where we need to let people know we weren’t at a church, mall, or school?

            When Texas Governor Greg Abbott was asked if Texas’ gun policy, which he devised, is wrong and needs to be changed, he said Texas was working on the mental health issues of gun owners. Is he just being political, nuts, or just wrapped up in the old western lore. He says blue states have just as many shootings as red states ignoring the fact that guns from red states next to the Blue states supply the guns. Major media doesn’t cover many shootings any more, it’s that common.

            That is 200 mass murders in 128 days, causing more than a thousand to be killed with thousands more wounded. Yet over 400 million guns are not the problem according to those who have lots to gain from putting more guns on the street. How many are enough?