WHAT’S FAIR?   

   Politicians talk a lot about making things fair.  Just what do they really mean?  Does it mean everything is equal?  How is it possible to have absolute fairness for everyone?  Or, does it mean fair for some, but not for all?  Are there degrees of fairness depending?  

   When I was a kid my father punished all four of us boys when one of us fouled up.  We’d wail, “Daddy.  It isn’t fair.”  His retort was always, “What gives you the foolish notion life is meant to be fair?  If God meant for life to be fair, I’d be dining with the Rockefellers tonight.” 

   We all came to believe life is not, in fact, meant to be fair.  So, we don’t really know what fair actually means.  It just sounds good.  Today, the only thing fair is instant replay at sporting events, and that’s not always conclusive.

   I wish fair weather for all of us with occasional rain.

PAYROLL TAX DEDUCTIONS

I’ve never accepted the fact that our government has the right to withhold money from our wages to pay taxes on a calculation of projected anticipated income, i.e. payroll taxes deductions.

At age 14 I got my very first job that actually paid a wage.  I proudly got my Social Security Card that plainly displayed “Not to be used for identification purposes.”  I went to work at the local bus terminal loading and unloading baggage, boxes, cartons, etc. from long-haul buses.  It was during WW II.  They would hire anyone that would work.   I was paid the handsome sum of 40 cents an hour, the then minimum wage, to work 40 hours a week.  I was to be paid every 2 weeks.

I worked my first 2 weeks and was paid by check a few days later.  I looked at the amount.  There was a mistake.  It was only $28.  I had worked 80 hours and it should have been $32.  I complained to my supervisor that I had been shorted and showed him the check.  He replied, “Welcome to the real world, kid.  Uncle Sugar gets his cut before you get yours.”

That ticked me off royally.  And, I’ve been ticked off ever since.  

PUTIN’s LAUGHING     

Putin has to be laughing up his sleeve, “Those dunderhead Democrats can ’t even pull off a government cou d’etat.”  Putin burps and Democrats become obsessed with Putin, Putin, Putin, Russia, Russia, Russia.  Putin posts a few FaceBooks and Instagrams and Democrats go into a tizzy.  Putin meets with Trump and Democrats shout conspiracy, conspiracy, conspiracy.  Matters not what Putin says or does Democrats dig deep down into their bag of tricks and pull out some Putin-Russia exclamation to shout into the nearest megaphones (national news media) to spread despair everywhere.

How about less conspiracy, collusion, obstruction of justice, and more legislate, legislate, legislate?  

FREE SPEECH 

Do we really have free speech?

The other day I was talking with a white male casual acquaintance in a public setting.  We began to talk about political and social beliefs. He leaned forward, looked over his left shoulder, then over his right shoulder, and said, “I believe that if you don’t love it here you should leave.”  I asked why he looked over his shoulders before speaking.  He said, “Not to offend anyone.”

Good grief!  Where in the Constitution do you have the right not to be offended.  What’s our right to free speech come to be?  Female persons of color in Congress publicly say anything and everything with a big microphone and no repercussions. Yet, if you are white, and especially white male, you feel compelled to speak as though you were dancing on eggs.

So, just how free is our free speech?  And, for whom? 

Mueller Report

Today’s House of Representatives hearings proved once and for all the Mueller Report was put together by a gaggle of lawyers while Mueller stood on the sidelines.   The convolution of a report varies inversely with the square root of the number of lawyers assigned.  The only report of accountable substance is made by a committee of one.  Too many bedfellows in the bed breaks the bed.  

ANTIFA - KKK

     Is Antifa the new KKK?  There’s little difference.  They’re both hate groups. They engage in intimidation and terrorism with harassment, physical violence,  assault, and property damage against those they identify as their enemies. They cloak themselves in black masks and white hoods to conceal identification. They fight ideologies directly rather than through electoral means. 

     A common denominator is they are both condoned by the Democrat Party.

     What would the reaction be in Portland if a group of white hooded hoodlums roamed the streets intimidating people and destroying property?

SEND HER BACK

The chant 'Send Her Back' has nothing to do with racism or gender.  It has to do with what she says and does.  How can anyone accept what she says when she constantly trashes America?  We all have great difficulty understanding why anyone who comes here seeking a better life will in turn trash the host nation. It's no different than inviting someone to be a member of your family and that person in turn constantly trashes you.  The slogan"America - Love It or Leave" has been around a long time and has been often seen on car bumpers.  It has nothing to do with racism, so why do the liberal Democrats make such an issue of it?  So, they can have an issue to get Trump.

It's been several years since I last posted to my blog.  A lot has happened. I'm now 90 years old. My dear wife, Patricia, of 65 years passed away.  I've know her since she was 8 years old.  I've had 2 heart attacks and quadruple open heart surgery.  I worked hard all during the rehab and was able to pretty much resume a normal life for an old guy. I live alone in our home of 30 years.  I go to gym 3 days (M-W-F) a week. Walk briskly on the treadmill for 30 minutes (1.4 mile).  Pedal the stationary bike for 5 minutes (0.8 mile).  Work with free weights and work on my posture and balance.  I've fallen 4 times the past 2 years.  Not so bad I wasn't able to get up unassisted, so I work on my balance.  I no longer run Longhorn cattle.  I kept one old steer just for sentimental reasons.  He has a 7 foot horn spread.  A neighbor runs cattle on the pastures.  I began writing a fiction book based on my life experiences and those of other family and friends.  I finished writing and am now in the process of publication.  So keep a sharp lookout for it.  I'm still as opinionated as ever, so I'm going to resume posting to my blog from time to time.  I'm glad to be back and hope you will also be back.  Thanks.