What?

 I watched some of the GOP debate and all I can say is

WHAT?

8 PEOPLE WITH NO ONE A SERIOUS CONTENDER

TO

THAT

GUY

WITH

4

INDICTMENTS

If I was running the GOP show I wouldn't be concerned about Joe Biden

The problem is

internal.

Might have helped

The Dodgers are 26-11 since I posted my article on July 4.  13-1 in August.

Things are going well in the regular season....again.

New pickups adding some depth

Pitching staff reclaiming its gusto

The actual baseball season in LA has been wonderful for ten straight years.

Angels behaving normal......which is not good.

Few surprise teams are doing well and some normal front running teams are not doing so well.

Football season is starting and DJT keeps piling up his court dates.

Trojans play first game on August 26 vs San Jose State

Rams are in for a very hard season.  Will be surprised if they win 5 games.

Very sad to see Lahaina.

FINALLY

 After two years of intense investigation the hammer has fallen.......

and all the GOP wants to do

is

talk

about

HUNTER BIDEN

I just watched Mike Pence talk to the press on his campaign trail and everything he said completely supports the attempt by Donald J Trump to overthrow the Constitution.

His numbers increased from 3.1 percent to 3.1 percent.

NOBODY WHO SUPPORTS DONALD 

CARES

WHAT

THE EX-VICE PRESIDENT

SAYS.

NOBODY

Reminders ...... JUST IN CASE YOU FORGOT

 Donald Trump still thinks he can be President again.

The GOP now has a majority of their voters believing that January 6 wasn't really an attack on the Capital.

IT WAS JUST A SMALL MARCH and DJT had nothing to do with what happened.

The debt ceiling was raised 3 times while Trump was President, with very little hoopla.

President Obama was denied a Supreme Court Judge appointment because Mitch McConnell said it shouldn't happen in the last year of a term.  There was 10 months left in his second term.

Donald J Trump got a nomination approved 10 days before the election in 2020, which he lost.

The odds on winning a Powerball jackpot is 292 MILLION to one

The odds on winning a Mega Millions jackpot is 302 MILLION to one.

The odds on winning a California Super Lotto Plus jackpot is 42 MILLION to one.

The odds on winning a Scratcher for 10 or 20 million dollars is 3.5 MILLION to one.

I play the Scratchers

It takes 230 MILLION years for our Solar System to rotate ONE time around the center of the Milky Way galaxy.

The Earth is traveling at 67,000 MPH

The Solar System is traveling at 515,000 MPH

The Milky Way galaxy is traveling at 1.3 MILLION MPH

IT'S ONLY BEEN 150 YEARS SINCE THE HUMAN RACE LEARNED THAT OUR SOLAR SYSTEM WAS MOVING AROUND THE CENTER OF THE GALAXY

The distance one light year covers, at 186,000 miles a second, is 5.9 TRILLION miles.

BLACK HOLES WILL NEVER ALLOW ANYTHING TO RETURN ONCE IT ABSORBS WHATEVER IT ABSORBS....WHICH APPEARS TO BE ANYTHING HAVING TO DO WITH LIGHT AND MATTER

Donald Trump still thinks he can be President again.

There are millions of people who believe the Universe is only about 8,000 years old.

MILLIONS!

Does it really surprise you that Donald Trump could actually win the GOP nomination while in the middle of a court case.

Webb

One year anniversary!

Go ahead and enjoy the latest images.

The Universe is rather large......just in case you forgot.

2023 Baseball update

 Of course the Dodgers are my main interest in baseball and since last year was the greatest single season they have ever had with 111 wins, I figured now at the halfway mark would be a good time to reflect on what has happened so far in the new season.

Needless to say there have been huge surprises....both positive and negative.

And by the way those surprises extend to all of Major League Baseball.

Injuries' affect all teams in baseball and the Dodgers are no exception.

Two weeks ago the Dodgers had 5 rookies on the field at the same time.  I don't ever remember that happening but I've only been paying close attention since 1958.

During the off-season the Dodger front office gave us every indication that this would be a year where the young studs in their farm system would get some opportunities.

I'm pretty sure they didn't think there would be this many opportunities but alas that is exactly what is happening.

Two of the biggest surprises have been players that haven't seen their rookie seasons in quite awhile.

Justin Hayward and David Peralta 

J.D. Martinez is not a surprise because he has always been good.

Justin Hayward's last five season's have been horrible and  now once again he is a stud.

The pitching staff has been slammed by injuries and new arms are introducing themselves.

Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, Michael Grove and Emmet Sheehan have done a very adequate job of replacing Walker Buehler, Julio Urias, Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin and Ryan Pepiot as well as Noah Syndergaard and now Clayton Kershaw.

After ten years of leading the division this year will prove a huge challenge because other teams have young players that are also getting their chance and are responding.  The Arizona Diamondbacks are a total surprise and San Diego has underperformed so far but they have a lineup that should prove very tough during the second half.

Baseball is game of streaks and the Dodgers last 10 years have been wonderful.  Of course I'm talking about the regular season which is 162 games.  The other season, which requires an additional 11 or 12 victories has been a total success only once....in 2020.

Can the Dodgers win the World Series in 2023?

Two things about baseball......there's no crying and there's no predicting.  Just ask Dave Roberts about last year during spring training.  Big mistake Dave!

Of course the Dodgers can win the World Series.....but so can Tampa Bay, Texas, Houston, San Diego, Minnesota, New York, Atlanta, Cleveland and Cincinnati.....whoa.....wait just a sec.  Cinny was 2000 to 1 before the season started and they currently lead the Central division and apparently have the greatest young player since Mickey Mantle.

Mr. Otani of the Angels has something to say about that.  He is in a class of his own and the rumors keep saying he might be a Dodger next year.  I find it hard to believe they would spend $500 MILLION but then again the owners have more money than Warren Buffet so who knows.

Can the Dodgers win the World Series?

THE REAL QUESTION TO BE ASKED IS....

CAN THE DODGERS REACH THE PLAYOFFS?

And as always I say the same thing I've said since 1958/

I sure hope so!

One thing I'm really ready for is a summer winning streak and hopefully it started last night with a 5-2 win over the surprising Pittsburg Pirates who are only 4 games behind Cincinnati.

The teams that should respond in the second half of 2023 are Philadelphia, St. Louis and the New York Yankees.

July 4 to October 1 is the greatest time for Major League Baseball and I'm ready to play coach......put me in.

Go Dodgers!

Not enough kudos

Last week a great American passed away and there just wasn't a big enough deal about his life and what he accomplished.

It's truly not a ridiculous statement to say that Daniel Ellsberg, as a lone individual, was the most important human being that stopped the Viet-Nam war.

Of course there were numerous groups that made their displeasure known such as student protesters, draft dodgers and Veterans against the War but without Dr. Ellsberg's conscious awakening that misguided war might have gone on for many more years.

There are multiple sources to enlighten you about his life including his own website.

Ellsberg

If you didn't own a copy of the Pentagon Papers then I highly suggest picking up a copy and try to accept the reality that America doesn't always have humanities well being at the center of her actions.

"The Pentagon Papers, officially titled Report of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Vietnam Task Force, is a United States Department of Defense history of the United States' political and military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967."

It always comes down to who has the power at the time in question.  When you hear the fact that Dr. Henry Kissinger called Dr. Daniel Ellsberg "The most dangerous man in America" and realize that Henry had the ear of multiple Presidents over a span of 50 years, and maybe still does, then you begin to understand, or at least comprehend, that what you think is happening and what is actually happening are truly not the same thing.  To be aware of truth in the world of politics one must do excessive research....and to be honest I don't know how that is possible with all the misinformation being generated.  And not only generated on a daily basis but minute by minute, thanks to Social Media outlets and hand held devices.

This short report from 13 years ago on Australian TV highlights the Documentary about Dr. Ellsberg's involvement.

Doc

Of course you should watch the actual Documentary....but maybe that will prevent you from getting the latest Tik-Tok revelation or Twitter feed. 

Don't want to interrupt your reality with actual facts of history.

Please excuse the sarcasm if you aren't a phoneacholic.

And one thing about history that continues to blow my mind.....

THE HUMAN SPIECES DOESN'T SEEM TO WANT TO LEARN FROM HISTORY.

It's not so much about ignoring history, it's about not wanting to acknowledge what we've learned, which in turn means maybe we haven't really learned anything.

As an example...doesn't Russia remember losing 20 MILLION people in WWII?

And it's another example of allowing one person to create a situation that could result in a disaster of unthinkable proportions.

Dr. Daniel Ellsberg is an great example of one person making a decision that enhances how the human race can be viewed in a extremely positive manner when the time comes to judge actions of the 20th Century.

I've read and I remember enough facts about the man to honestly judge him as one of the great American heroes of our time and even in the top 5 when it comes to all of American history.

If you are young go back and learn about him.

If you are older, refresh your experience.

IF YOU ARE ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WHO THINK HE WAS A TRAITOR.....

SHAME ON YOU!

Thanks to AI the next Presidential Election will BE A FIASCO

 If you thought the last election was, shall we say...memorable, then this next one will be a total fiasco.

AI CHATBOTS that are easily accessible will prove to be the most misguided, confusing, irrational and detrimental CREATURES that our political system has ever encountered.

SERIOUSLY!

Think about the conspiracy theorists that only read and listened to the BS during the last few elections.

NOW IMAGINE THAT VISUAL EFFECTS WILL BE INCORPORATED INTO THE VERBAL ARENA.

PEOPLE THAT BELIEVED THE BS AND THEN REPEATED THE BS WILL NOW BE ABLE TO SAY...."DID YOU SEE THAT?"

I'm seriously petrified that someone like a Donald Trump will be able to pay for AI events that have Joe Biden admitting to fornication with a goat.  AND THE VIDEO WILL PROVE IT!

Short post this time due to research on AI.

More to follow

Finally the BOSS reacts to Lies and Misinformation and then the big issue of the day

 After years of simply ignoring reality and most importantly truth, Rupert Murdock dropped the axe on one of his premiere voices at FOX News. I guess it's safe  to say that losing 785 million dollars in a lawsuit can make one react..   Why Sean Hannity isn't following Tucker Carlson to the unemployment line is the real question.  I guess they are waiting for the other lawsuits to reach their conclusion before continuing the purge.

Maria Bartiromo should be fired and I have no idea where she works but her support of Rudi G and Sydney Powell during the election of 2020 remains one of the highlights in the arena of spreading Big Lies and Misinformation.    

By the way Tucker might decide to run for political office because telling lies has proven to be a rather strong trait when seeking public adulation.

The more lies one tells the more popular one becomes.

Of course I could be lying

And today JOE announced that he would be seeking a second term in order to "finish the job" which actually is a vague term when it comes to political jargon.

FINISH THE JOB makes sense when speaking to a house painter or a plumber but when a politician says it I'm instantly put into the campaign mental state which often times makes me dizzy and quite light headed.

The job that needs to be finished, in my opinion, is the job that never got started.

THE REGULATION OF GUN OWNERSHIP AND WEAPONS MANUFACTURING is a subject that Republicans refuse to discuss....especially Republicans who have been elected to ANY office in this country.

The 2nd Amendment is the most ridiculous amendment ever constructed.

2

The human beings who wrote the 2nd Amendment were very aware that a well armed militia was extremely important...which is generally the case when a country has recently secured their independence after a war.  Not one of those people had ANY idea of what future weapon construction would consist of.  It took one minute to reload a musket in 1791 and  today 15 children can be murdered in 30 seconds or less with an assault rifle.

By all accounts there are approximately 400 MILLION guns in America.

Combine that with approximately 40 million people who are extremely close to being certifiably "nuts" and the recipe for disaster is obvious.

WE NEED TO REGULATE GUN OWNERSHIP  and the first step is to regulate weapon manufacturing.

TALK ABOUT ANTI-AMERICAN JARGON!

I prefer the NEW ZEALAND Jargon and the AUSTRALIAN Jargon when it comes to weapons.

And I have no desire to live in either of those countries......

I simply want US to get our priorities straight.

I'm not saying you can't own a gun.....I'm saying you can't own a gun if you haven't been trained and licensed and vetted.

IT SHOULD BE AT LEAST AS HARD AS GETTING A DRIVER'S LICENCE AND OWNING AND DRIVING A CAR WITH CURRENT INSURANCE.

DUH!

Every Earth Day since 2006

 There's a soul in the life of the land where we live

IT'S CLEAR

IT’S CLEAN

IT’S FRESH

AND IT’S OURS

IT DOESN’T CARE WHERE WE’VE COME FROM

IT DOESN’T ASK WHO WE ARE

JUST

DO WE LOVE

WHERE WE STAND

AT THIS TIME

WE CAN DRINK ALL ITS WATER

AND MINE ALL IT’S COAL

BUT WHEN WE MIX THE TWO TOGETHER

IT TROUBLES HER SOUL

WE CAN TEST ALL THE BOMBS

AND DESTROY EVERY LAST TREE

AND THE ONLY THING IT REALLY DOES

IS ELIMINATE YOU AND ME

THE HARM THAT WE BRING

DOESN’T BOTHER THE LAND

WE ONLY HURT OURSELVES

BY FAILING TO UNDERSTAND

THAT THERE’S A SOUL IN THE LIFE OF THE LAND WHERE WE LIVE

IT’S CLEAR

IT’S CLEAN

IT’S FRESH

AND IT’S OURS

IT DOESN’T CARE WHERE WE’VE COME FROM

IT DOESN’T ASK WHO WE ARE

JUST

DO WE LOVE

WHERE WE STAND

AT THIS TIME

WE ARE GIVEN ALL THE TREASURES

THAT ANYONE COULD USE

BUT IF WE DON’T HAVE VISION

THEN ALL WE DO IS LOSE

WE DUMP OUR PROBLEMS

IN EVERY OCEAN, RIVER AND STREAM

WE LIVE BY A CODE OF CONSUMPTION

THAT DARKENS EVERY DREAM

WE THINK THAT OIL IS OUR GOLD

BECAUSE IT MOVES MACHINES AND MAN

AND ALL IT REALLY DOES

IS REMOVE THE SPRINGS OF LAND

WE NEED THAT SPECIAL CRUDE

BECAUSE WE’VE IGNORED OTHER WAYS

AND ALL WE’VE ENDED UP WITH

IS COUGHING THROUGH A HAZE

OUR CHILDREN’S CHILDREN

WILL REALLY PAY THE PRICE

AND JUST THAT THOUGHT ALONE

DOESN’T MAKE US VERY NICE

AND WHEN THE DUST HAS FINALLY SETTLED

AND ALL THE BILLS HAVE BEEN PAID

IT IS ONLY THE SIMPLE FACT

THAT’S THERE’S ONE MISTAKE WE’VE MADE

WE THOUGHT WE CONTROLLED THE EARTH

BY DOMINATING THE LAND

AND IT SIMPLY COMES DOWN TO ONE THING

THAT WE JUST DIDN’T UNDERSTAND

THAT THERE’S A SOUL IN THE LIFE OF THE LAND WHERE WE LIVE

IT’S CLEAR

IT’S CLEAN

IT’S FRESH

AND IT’S OURS

IT DOESN’T CARE WHERE WE COME FROM

IT DOESN’T ASK WHO WE ARE

JUST

DO WE LOVE

WHERE WE STAND

AT THIS TIME

Seriously checking the facts

 

Fact Checking

You probably think this is a liberal site and you might be right....but truth is truth and lies are lies.  There comes a point when even the most loyal supporter of someone has to know the difference.

The question is......

Does the Right Wing of America's political news agenda have a Fact Check site or do they just get their information from Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson?

I watched 15 minutes of Fox News yesterday and am pretty sure they are from another planet.

This country might be politically divided but I'm certain that if Donald J. Trump was reelected President of the United States in 2024there would be division not seen since the Nixon Administration.

If you are too young to know what I'm talking about...….just study American history from 1968 to 1974.

UPDATES.....JUST IN CASE

Major League baseball starts tomorrow...just in case you weren't paying attention

Donald J Trump is running for President again.....just in case you weren't paying attention

Fox News calls DJT President, while talking about him...…just in case you weren't paying attention

American Idol on HULU is worth watching....just in case you weren't paying attention

Yesterday in Southern California was the nicest day in 8 weeks.....JICYWPA

The latest school shooting was queer, which is ok to say,.....just in case you weren't paying attention

Russian and China seem to be moving closer together.....JICYWPA

The Los Angeles Rams appear to be worried about money...…just in case you weren't paying attention

The Dodgers have a challenge from San Diego this year...…JICYWPA

The Governor of Michigan is my new favorite politician...…just in case you weren't paying attention

Israel's political situation is getting quite strange......JICYWPA

Science matters well beyond what you may believe........just in case you weren't paying attention

The game of golf should never upset you if you are a 15 or higher handicap......JICYWPA

BUT IT ABSOLUTELY DOES.....OVER AND OVER AND OVER!!!!!!

The one thing I've noticed lately about life in general.......there is a very large percentage of people on this planet that truly are not paying attention.

Common sense is a real commodity that needs to ne nurtured and cultivated.....and it should be stressed in the earliest years of schooling.

JUST IN CASE YOU WEREN'T PAYING ATTENTION

Just a reminder

 BIG

The GREATEST of all time and general public doesn't seem to notice

 SHIFFRIN

More GOAT

And then there's this comment

Why do all the Chinese diplomats sound like characters from Star Wars?  The latest dude is named Qin Gang and his job is Foreign Minister of China and he just conducted his first news conference since assuming his job last year.

His quote regarding the United States ends with the following words......"with the stakes being the fundamental interests of the two peoples and even the future of humanity."

Fundamental interests refers to ???????????  And the future of humanity refers to ????????

What kind of warning is that?

I realize there is tension regarding Taiwan and their support of Russia's attack on Ukraine but when a high ranking Chinese official uses those words you truly have to wonder if Covid hasn't affected their entire countries sense of reason.

We have ten aircraft carriers and they have one. We have 1500 plus Nuclear warheads and they have 350.  Granted it only takes 10 or 15 to wipe out 75 percent of the human race but you get my point.  The only thing they have more than us is people and history has proven people can be eliminated rather quickly. Just ask Turkey and Syria.

And then the adjoining article on page 3 of the LA TIMES is an article stating that the sister of Kim Jong (also sounding like Star Wars semi-villainy) Kim Yo Jong is warning the United States and South Korea that North Korea is "ready to take quick , overwhelming action"  if those two countries continue to expand their military field actions in the Korean peninsula.  Apparently we flew a B-52 bomber into the region as part of a joint exercise later this month.

By the way please don't worry about me because I've learned to teleport to other dimensions.....or I've been watching Picard on a loop with Mandalorian and  have no sense of reality anymore.

I do have to remind myself that happiness might be based on how much information one can ignore.....

It's getting harder and harder to ignore the political nonsense taking place on a global scale.

I am so thankful that Spring Training is here and that the Dodgers start their season on March 30.

That's the kind of reality I love.

Obviously Russia, North Korea and China need professional baseball leagues.

The head of the Chinese league would be named Bing Bang Yo Ball.

Everyone needs to clam down.

Ambien alert!

How do we place an order for 7 billion doses?

Breath in breathe out breathe in breathe out........................

And once again we address the LARGEST elephant in the room

 About eight or ten years ago I wrote a piece on weapons trade shows and how easy it might be to actually attend and purchase products.

In late February another show took place in Abu Dhabi called The International Defense Exhibition and Conference or IDEX.

IDEX or Weapons Galore

This year's "exhibition" was the LARGEST in their 30 year history with 1,350 companies selling "products." 130,000 human beings attended the 7 day show representing 65 countries.

65 countries with pre-established credit limits and certain restrictions showed up to restock or start accumulating ANY type of weapon manufactured on this planet except of course for Nuclear Bombs.

I say except but in truth I have no idea if there are any restrictions or any credit limits.

Stop for a second and visualize two "buyers" showing up at the same booth at the same time and both parties are there to purchase items that will eliminate the other party from the face of the earth.  One purchases 5 tanks so the other one buys 10.  That upsets the one party so they buy 25 anti-tank missile launchers and the other party buys 50.....and on and on and on and on and on..........

Go back up and click on IDEX or Weapons Galore and spend some time perusing the list of wheelers and dealers and then make sure you fill out the application for the next trade show because I'm fairly certain you will need to start supplying yourself with "products." 

And by the way we aren't just talking about guns.

Uniforms, land mines, weaponized drones, war planes, submarines, mercenaries, tanks and satellites.

1,350 companies!

130,000 customers!

One of those customers is called Germany. They have verbally committed to spend $100 BILLION to reequip it's armed forces.

I wonder if there was  weaponized Food Truck companies represented at the show?

How about weaponized Portable toilets'?

What cellular company makes cell phone trigger switches that will detonate other cell phones that have been freely handed out to soldiers heading out to battle. 

"Oh by the way corporal take this cell phone that was donated to us by T-Mobile munitions division and don't worry the monthly fees have been waived."

Use your imagination for weapons design and keep in mind these shows are biennial so you have two years to prepare.

After reading about this show and how popular it was there might be a good chance you won't need a weapon in two years.

You might not need anything

ever

again.

1,350 COMPANIES!

130,000 CUSTOMERS!

JUST IN CASE YOU WANT A LIST OF EXHIBITORS

Exhibitors

We are so F**K**!

A relationship that has no limits

 The above words are a direct quote from Wang Yi.

Wang is not a movie producer, a figure skater, a fortune cookie maker, a furniture manufacturer, a gaming coder, a chef or a conceptual artist....

Wang Yi is the Chinese Communist Party's MOST senior foreign policy official who just arrived a few days ago in Moscow, Russia to meet with Vladimir Putin.

This next quote comes from Mr. Putin

"In this context, cooperation between the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation on the global arena  is particularly important for stabilizing the international situation."

Currently Russia, China and South Africa are holding Naval drills in the Indian Ocean.

What South Africa is doing with these two communist powers is another question that needs external research, which I will look into later.

Chinese scholars, who work for the government, claim that Washington's warnings over Beijing's relationship with Moscow is a reflection of what they described as a polarizing and distorted U.S. view.

Of course this meeting comes at the same time that Mr. Putin announced that Russia would suspend it's participation in the new START nuclear nonproliferation treaty which was formed in 2011.

The President of China, Xi  Jinping is expected to visit Russia in the near future.

So far we have Yi and Xi and Z and V as letters to observe.  

(Z and V are the letters on the side of warships from Russia and weapons used against Ukraine)

And of course let us not forget our President making a surprise visit to Kyiv over the weekend to meet with President Zelinsky.

I read a story the other day about Lima, Ohio where a plant is building 15 to 20 Abram Tanks every month.

All of this information combined with the.......

Doomsday Clock

........could tend to make one a tad bit nervous if one were inclined to believe that grown adult males really have no sense of history or truly care about the future of the human species on the planet Earth.

If those men listed above don't really care about our future but instead are only focused on the power they hold and the monetary means to hold that power than we really have something to worry about.

WHERE'S THE ULTIMATE VOICE OF REASON?

Where's Admiral Picard when you need him?

I hope this present situation doesn't demand a presence like an Abraham Lincoln or a Martin Luther King.  

I don't see or hear anyone speaking out who expresses a concern for the future of humanity.  The environmentalist who worry about the future of the planet need to direct their energy toward the future of human beings.

The PLANET ISN'T IN JEOPARDY 

The inhabitants of the planet can't really say that.

I realize that a meteor could pretty much ruin our future plans for political and social dominance but that problem is generally under careful observation and tactics can be implemented to deal with that scenario.

OUR CURRENT BEHAVIORAL PATTERNS AMONG CONTINENTS, NATIONS AND COUNTRIES APPEARS TO NEED SOME ALTERATIONS.

IT'S AS IF THE ENTIRE HUMAN RACE NEEDS TO TAKE MUSHROOMS AT THE SAME TIME.

ONE LARGE SCALE TRIP IN ORDER TO OPEN WINDOWS OF THE MIND SO THAT PEOPLE GET BACK TO DOING WHAT THEY DO BEST.

AND THERE IS NOTHING BETTER THAN DEMONSTRATING ACTS OF KINDNESS AND DISPLAYING....

LOVE

NEO-ILLUMINATION #23

                    You have the ability to be loving 

                                      IF NOT

                       Then you need to start practicing

Maybe the Doomsday Clock is our wake-up call.   How many of the 7 and 3/4 billion people on this planet know about the Doomsday Clock?

5%

20%

1%

Well now YOU know so start spreading the word.

A new gun year

Today is the 9th day of February with guns dominating the news.

That chaos at a Mushroom farm in Half Moon Bay might be the strangest.

Did the maniac eat the wrong species?   After watching the Fungi doc I'm pretty sure something took place there that the owner of the farm doesn't want to discuss.

I would like to interject at this point and make one flat out truthful statement.

THERE ARE TOO MANY WEAPONS ON THE PLANET....and way too many guns in America.

Second amendment advocates all know that the original constitutional writers had NO CLUE what would happen and IF they did then the laws would be different today.

AND EACH AND EVERY GUN OWNER KNOWS THAT IS A TRUE STATEMENT.

Fighting for the independence of our Country in 1776 it was very important that everyone be ready.

IF THAT'S WHERE WE ARE IN 2023 

THEN SOMETHING IS TERRIBLY WRONG.......

......and we know something is wrong and there seems to be no solution because the people that own guns and use guns for whatever reason just simply don't see the problem.

I hate the argument that guns don't kill people....people kill people.

GUNS MAKE IT MUCH EASIER TO KILL PEOPLE  and that's a fact Jack.....

I've got a few ideas to take your mind off of "reality."

1)The Smithsonian magazine says one should read more fiction.  It's just one of ten things they say help the brain.  Get the January edition and check it out.  

2)Recently I've been watching Justified on Hulu.  Loved the show when it was on FX and had to sit through commercials.  Without commercials it's even better.

3) Listen to Bonnie Raitt's Grammy winning song of the year more than once.

Just like that

4) Stop watching news shows that run longer than 30 minutes.  If you need to delve deeper than do it without opinions.  Research is the answer if you are really interested in a subject.

5)If you don't have a Major League Baseball TEAM that you follow....GET ONE! It will make your summer much more interesting.

6)Say a little prayer that I have another art show in the very near future.  The very near future can range from 3 months to 2 years.

7)Call someone you haven't talked to recently and talk for at least one half hour.

8) Listen to serious rock and roll from the 50's.  Mainly Buddy Holly.

9)Watch the movie TAR and explain how Cate does what she does

10)Go back in my archives (on the right side of this post) and read "stuff" from 10 years ago.  I'm pretty sure I used to be a lot smarter.

11)Watch Mr. Trump make a complete fool of himself.....again.

And by the way......whoever though balloons would be front page news

I'm off

MTM

And then we rap up 2022

In the United States we have been focused on a few political issues for most of the year:

The January 6 2021 attempt to change the 2020 Presidential election and then the November Mid-Terms, which would clarify how the voters were generally feeling were the two main issues.

But the global news appears to be a much bigger deal.

 I therefore think that  Russia would be the dominant story in 2022.  

Covid  inhaled our awareness for the previous two years and then Mr. Putin decided to push that virus off the front page by declaring that the Ukraine was actually part of Russia and they would reclaim what was lost when the USSR unraveled in 1991.

Starting a new war in the year 2022 really shows how history hasn't really taught us anything.

In the meantime while Putin is dangerously challenging the peace of our planet we are discovering things that are much much much much larger and ultimately much more important.

In May an actual image of the Black Hole at the center of our Milky Way galaxy was captured.

It was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), an array which linked together eight existing radio observatories across the planet to form a single “Earth-sized” virtual telescope. The telescope is named after the “event horizon”, the boundary of the black hole beyond which no light can escape.  (Space.com)

There are astronomers who think that we have 100 million black holes in the Milky Way.  Now if you accept that we have 200 BILLION + stars in the Milky Way, than 100 million Black Holes probably is not an exaggeration.

If you think that Earth is the center of the Universe than you probably think that Trump won the election and that the Easter Bunny is working on coloring eggs while preparing for her holiday in April or May or whenever it takes place.

I've diverted away from politics to science and I'm about to take one step beyond both by sharing with you how my Amygdala (thank you Dr. Conlan) completely went off the charts the other night and as a result the following letter appeared in my mind's eye right before I fell asleep.

It turns out that if this letter was truly written it could change the world.  I saw the letter but my eyes were closed.

SIDE BAR First and foremost I'm writing this letter in English because it appeared in English.

December 25 2022

Dear Citizens of the Planet Earth,

It doesn't matter how I've come to this realization because the motivation does not compare to the action resulting from the motivation.

First and foremost I need to apologize and beg for your forgiveness.

My actions for a very long time have been based on a belief that my country should be the dominate player in all matters  both political and economic.

We have the most land of any country  (11 % )and the diminished property over the last forty years has never set well with me.  I took it personally as a young man and have made it a goal to restore my beloved Motherland to it's original size.  My training with the KGB only enhanced my egotistical dream and I now realize that a form of advanced brainwashing was used to help formulate who I would become.

I'm not happy with who I am and with your help I've decided to alter the present course of action taking place in countries that border Russia,.....obviously starting with The free democracy of Ukraine and their  48 million residents.

I am immediately withdrawing Russian troops from the Ukraine and Crimea.  Financial reparation's will begin today in order to help rebuild the damage we have done to cities and towns in Ukraine.

All military personel will be moved to the Eastern part of Russia in order to secure our borders against the Chinese.  Our military personel will also be used to build the factories that I decided to construct.

I am ordering that 10,000 factories be built throughout Russia to manufacture the same type of goods being manufactured in China, including furniture, clothing and toys.

We should have done this as a country starting in 1950 but we got caught up in the wartime mentality and things simply got out of hand.

Again I apologize for any unnecessary tension created since WW11.  

We are a superpower with an incredible history that dates back  long before the Industrial Revolution.

We should be proud of our heritage without trying to force our ideology on anyone.

We can alter our own economic history without destroying someone else's.

We have enough weapons and therefore one of our first acts will be to start dismantling our nuclear arsenal and would encourage the United States to do the same.

THE NUCLEAR SITUATION ON THIS PLANET ,MUST BE ALTERED  and all countries that are attempting to build nuclear weapons must stop immediately.  We will no longer supply materials to any country that wants to develop nuclear weapons.

Our pipelines that supply natural gas and crude oil will be offered at a discounted price for the next year in order to help offset the effects of climate change.

CLIMATE CHANGE will be addressed by the Russian government on a high priority basis and the factories that will be built will be done so with environmental issues at the forefront.

St. Petersburg will once more resume as a co-capital of Russia along side Moscow.

Russia is around 875 years old and we need to start acting 

age appropriate.

WE NEED TO PUT ON OUR BIG BOY PANTS AND SHOW THE REST OF THE WORLD HOW TO ACT.

Again I apologize for all the inconvenience, stress and aggressive behavior over the last few years and pray that you will forgive me.

I am a changed man and I will prove it starting today, which just happens to be Christmas in many parts of the planet.

Sincerely

Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin

and by the way

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Thoughts on 2022 SPORTS ONLY first

 2022 was an interesting and very successful year for anyone who follows the Rams, Dodgers and Trojans.

The Los Angeles Rams truly gave us a perfect start to the new year by winning the Super Bowl.  Very hard to find anything to complain or bitch about when the team you have followed since 1952 wins the last game of the season.  There was a lot of talk about repeating during the celebration but those of us who pay attention realize that probably was the champagne and beer talking.  

It turns out that talk is indeed cheap.  Very few NFL Super Bowl Champions repeat and sadly the Rams are about to set a negative record for having lost the most games after winning a Super Bowl.   But I keep reminding people that there is only one reigning World Champion until the next Super Bowl.  That one team is the Los Angeles Rams.

And then Baseball season started and the Dodgers were on a mission to take back the Western Division of the National League from the Giants.  Dave Roberts during spring training made a silly comment to Dan Patrick that the "Dodgers would win the World Series"

NOT THAT THEY COULD, BUT THAT THEY WOULD!

Anybody in their right mind who pays attention to sports (especially Baseball) knows there is no such thing as a guarantee and absolutely no predicting.  Goals are set and efforts are made to achieve those goals but saying that you will win the World Series is a mistake that can only come back and bite you in the ass. 

Which it did!

(I'm pretty sure he just got caught up in the Freddie Freeman acquisition and simply lost his mind)

But before the post season started the Los Angeles Dodgers preceded to have their best regular season in franchise history.

Please keep in mind the team was founded in 1883.

111 wins is a really really great number.  Check out triple ones together.  111 should become a symbolic number for the franchise and I expect to see a lot of shirts, hats and hoodies next season with the number 111.   

Because the Dodgers got eliminated early there hasn't been a lot of focus on their regular season success.  That will change once the 2023 season gets under way.  

By the way, spring training starts in about 13 weeks.  And the Dodgers really have their work cut out especially since the Padres just signed Xavier Bogaerts.  That line-up could be the best in baseball.

The Dodger success will depend on their great young players. They have the best minor league system in baseball and 2023 will really let us know how great they are.

Before I move on I want to bring up a few points from the playoffs that nobody seems to be addressing.  Nobody has asked Dave Roberts or Andrew Freidman why Joey Gallo was on the roster and didn't get one at bat.  Nobody has asked why Chris Taylor kept batting against right handed pitchers when he had just come off a neck injury. Nobody has asked why the MAIN cheerleader all season, Hanser Alberto, was removed from the playoff roster.  Nobody has asked why an unproven rookie, Miguel Vargas, was added to the roster and yet didn't play.  Nobody has asked why Dustin May wasn't given one inning, or Graterol. Nobody has asked why Evan Phillips wasn't used in the 7th inning LIKE HE WAS ALL SEASON LONG.  Nobody has asked why a pitcher, Tommy Kahnale, who had only thrown 12 innings ALL SEASON was brought in in the 7th inning.  (He walked the leadoff batter)  Nobody has asked why a journeyman ballplayer, Trace Thompson, started in Center field when everybody knows that Cody Bellinger excels in the playoffs.

SO MANY QUESTIONS AND YET NOT ONE OF THOSE QUESTIONS HAS BEEN ASKED BY THE MEDIA SINCE LAST OCTOBER....AND DAVE AND ANDREW HAVE GIVEN MULTIPLE INTERVIEWS SINCE THEN.

And with those comments I close the 2022 Dodger season and look forward to 2023. 

 I predict the Dodgers will not win 111 games.  

And while there is no predicting in Baseball I've decided to go out on a limb.

AND THEN 2022 BROUGHT A NEW ATTITUDE TO COLLEGE FOOTBALL IN SOUTHERN  CALIFORNIA.

UCLA AND USC BOTH CHANGED THEIR PROGRAMS AROUND AND THE TROJANS CAME EXTREMELY CLOSE TO PLAYING FOR THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.  They also produced the potential Heisman winner (we will know Saturday) and their new coach Lincoln Riley reminded us of Pete Carroll.

After only winning 4 games in 2021 the Trojans currently stand a 11-2 and will play Tulane in the Cotton Bowl on January 2 2023.

So as I wrap up the sports part of my yearly summary I have to say that it was a GREAT year and most likely won't be repeated in 2023.  Rams are out, Dodgers will be challenged by Padres and Caleb Williams might be drafted by the NFL where he probably won't make as much as he did this year playing college football.

BRAND IDENTITY IS THE FUTURE AND THE FUTURE IS HERE AND IT'S CALLED

NIL

Name  Image  Likeness

Have a great Holiday and please note I will be wrapping up real life in 2022 before the end of the year.

Marlin Brando's words as Colonel Kurtz

The news last night that the game show host is going to run again....reminded me of this moment from Mr. Coppola's film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKcAYMb5uk4

And then to break the mood try this......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAEJKg0lSPk

I could link both of these but by doing the work you become involved in the process.

I fully realize that some won't bother to copy and paste just like some won't bother to accept that Donald J. Trump is a self-centered, bombastic, lying, con-artist asshole who was single handily responsible for what took place on January 6 2020. 

It's one thing to be a sore loser....it's another entire thing to believe you didn't lose....and then attempt to destroy our free election process.....as well as ONE of the most important things American is about.......

A PEACEFUL TRANSFER OF POWER.

And the fact that we now have to listen again to his bullshit

 really 

makes

 me

 sad.

AND EVEN MORE DEPRESSING IS THE FACT THAT MILLIONS OF PEOPLE ARE VERY EXCITED THIS MORNING BECAUSE OF HIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

THE HORROR