Now Black Cops are Killing Young Black Men

One of the tasty topics on display currently is the Death by Cop of a young black man, Tyre Nichols, in Memphis. All of the cops in the execution squad were Black. Conservatives heads exploded, “See, see, just what we have been saying all along; it is not a race issue!”

But it is.

There has been a decades long campaign to demonize young Black men. Sending them to jail keeps them from voting, at least it had. And there was money to be made running jails, you know. And well, they are just nig . . . you know.

This demonization was so great, and focused on law enforcement, that even Black cops have come to despise young black men, no matter how squeaky clean they might appear. Think about Black cops who view themselves as “good guys,” yet who still suffer racial discrimination, think about the current situation. It is likely they are thinking: if all those young Black men were not forming gangs and dealing drugs, we wouldn’t face so much blow back. It is all their fault. They themselves fell victim to the propaganda of the “Dangerous Young Black Man.”

A Private IRS?

I was reading a post about how a credit agency (Equifax) has become a private  version of the Internal Revenue Service. The claim is based upon a service provided by Equifax to verify people’s incomes (and other things).

At one point it was stated that IRS information is private (kinda sorta, of course, ask Donald Trump) except for a short time in the 1920’s when progressives got tax filings made public. This last part was written sneeringly (at least I so perceive).

Recently I read a response from a Swede (to the DJT tax forms kerfuffle) and she claimed that in Sweden, tax returns are public documents. She can go to any tax office and request a copy of any citizen’s tax forms, pay a small processing fee, and voilà!

If you stop to think about it, once Americans believe they are being treated unfairly, they begin to revolt. And tax fairness is a big issue. So, having tax returns freely available would be a good thing in an open society, no? It would deter cheaters for one and reinforce the fairness of the system or allow us to focus on aspects that are unfair and deal with them.

So, who would want to keep these official government documents secret? Gosh, you don’t think the rich want people pouring over their tax documents, uncovering all of the cheats, scams, and lies they incorporate, now do you?

Again, the rich are the tail wagging our political dog. They even encourage us to sneer at progressive’s efforts to make our society more visible.

Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!

Various pundits are flying off the rails because the new GOP Speaker of the House of Representatives has put his most radical members on the Oversight and Accountability Committee, the main investigative organ in the House. OMG! What might they do?

Actually, this is a gift to the Democrats. Allow the conspiracy theorists in the House full rein, to investigate everything from Hunter Biden’s laptop to, well, anything with a Biden stamp upon it.

I am making popcorn now because this is going to be great theater. Rather than opposing these GOP crazies, I say stand back and give them an Obamaesque “Proceed.” I am betting on the fact that people are getting tired of meaningless distractions and want to see real actions taken against things like inflation, climate change, you know, real problems.

I can’t wait for them to bring up Hunter Biden’s laptop! Mafia Don’s FBI had a copy of the supposed hard drive from the supposed laptop for years and couldn’t squeeze anything out of it (except I am told some “dick pics”), so I say “have at it!” Oh, and be sure to detail the chain of evidence that proves it is Hunter Biden’s laptop and not just some prop. I can’t wait to see these incompetent buffoons try to convince anybody but a QAnon Internet audience of anything.

MAGA—Make America Gag Again

The televised ordeal of the despicable Kevin McCarthy twisting, twisting slowly in the wind is a predicable outcome of the path the Republican Party has been on these past few decades. They have constantly undermined government and nongovernment institutions in their efforts. (“Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem.” Ronald Regan) Unfortunately for the Republicans, one of the nongovernment organizations they have undermined is the Republican Party.

By enabling extremists and welcoming them and empowering them in their party, they are reaping what they have sowed. As one wag put it “They can’t even manage a ‘Red Wave’ in their own party!” Let us hope that their Red Wave is a “bye-bye” wave as they sink slowly into the swamp of history.

Christian Nationalists Betray Conservative Base

I recently read the following in a Dan Foster column on Medium.com:

After a decade-long statistical analysis of over 160 countries, Nilay Saiya of the University in Singapore has discovered a link between the decline of Christianity in particular countries and the level of official support governments give to Christianity through their laws and policies. Or, to put it another way, as governmental support for Christianity increases, the number of Christians declines significantly. So it turns out that church and state make lousy bedfellows. Who would have thought?

My first thought was “Maybe we should support Christian nationalists, lead them down the garden path, as it were.” But that would be unkind. In fact it seems that the Christian Nationalists are espousing what conservatives hate—socialism/communism.

The reason why the study mentioned above is valid is that its findings were acted out in many European countries. In the United Kingdom, for example, the law established the Church of England as the state church and Christianity as the state religion, granting privileges not afforded to minority religious groups. However, The Guardian reports that less than 40% of Brits now identify as Christians, and only 1% of people aged 18–24 identify as members of the Church of England.

Once sucking off of the government teat, churches had to change their motivations. Their motivations became working to continue getting that government welfare. Lobbyists, that’s what they needed! Helping the poor and downtrodden? Do they vote? Well, if so, then maybe.

If you want to know what your church will be like with government support, look at what Fox News is compared to a genuine news organization. Once it sold its soul to the Republican party, it ended up in court defending itself by stating that “no reasonable person would believe what we say.” Is that what you want your church officials stating when they are dragged into court? (Oh, and when firmly in bed with the government, they won’t be able to weasel their way out of court appearances, now will they?)

Conservatives should recognize the Devil working here, by getting their Churches in bed with the government, OMG! That road to Hell is certainly paved with good intentions, but this road is surely sponsored by the Devil, who wants to see the churches shrink and lose influence with the people as they gain influence in state houses and the Congress.

Conservative Christians are being persecuted . . . by Christian nationalists!

It could be fun for a while, though. Imagine the Catholic Church being subject to FOIA requests. I mean, there are some juicy consequences here, that the Christian Nationalists don’t seem to see.

Ron Santos and the Question of Lying to Get Elected

After Ron Santos got elected to Congress in his New York district, he was declared a bald-faced liar and he admitted it. He is still expecting to be sworn in as a member of Congress if the Republicans can get their act together and elect a Speaker of the House.

Now Republicans are often proponents of using “sound business practices,” so it occurred to me that this may be one of those cases in which “sound business practices” are invoked..

If a new hire at a corporation, say a law office, were exposed as having lied his ass off in order to get hired, including, say, that he graduated from a college and passed the bar exam in that state, what kind of response would you expect? I would expect the miscreant to get frog marched to the exit, his employment contract voided, and a potential law suit awaiting him if he uttered a peep about the whole affair.

So, maybe the new Congressman should have an encounter with his new employer of the same kind. Now, who is his new employer? Oh, yeah, the American people. Maybe a simple Internet poll should be taken (voters only!) to determine whether he should keep his new job. That would be fair, right?

Oh, and how about a law making lying about one’s qualifications, family history, etc. as part of an election campaign being a felony? No one wants lies to be part of our political fabric, now do they? (Shut up, Donald!)

Tucker Carlson Has Had It With Those Damned Atheists

TUCKER CARLSON (GUEST): I must say, my tolerance for atheism has really dwindled to nothing at this point. My – my tolerance for people who are agnostic or aren’t really sure or seeking –

CHARLIE KIRK (HOST): I totally agree with this, yes.

CARLSON: But the idea that there are people who are completely certain as a matter of religious faith that there’s no God, I just find it hilarious and, like, so childish. I just can’t take it seriously.

From the January 2, 2023, edition of Salem’s The Charlie Kirk Show, posted to YouTube

* * *

Dear Tucker,

I am one of those atheists you have no tolerance for and I must point out that you are mistaken as to “But the idea that there are people who are completely certain as a matter of religious faith that there’s no God . . .” My atheism is not an unaceptance of your God, it is an unacceptance of your arguments. Your god has never contacted me, so I have no beef with it. But, you and your theist friends have utterly failed to convince me that your god exists.

So, it is not your god I don’t believe . . . it is you. (I know, shocking isn’t it?)

Sincerely,

An Atheist You have Never Met and Probably Never Will

Republican Comments About Their Current Deadlock in the House of Representatives

Bill, we were able to track down some Republicans to comment on the current deadlock in selecting a new Speaker of the House. Here are some of their comments:

“We are being punished for taking prayer out of our public schools.”

“None of this would have happened if we had just built President Trump’s Wall.”

“See what happens when the Democrats opened the borders.”

“Illegal immigrants . . . is all I have to say.”

“This is payback because we haven’t done anything to prevent Drag Queens from reading to our children in public libraries.”

“This would never happen if we would affirm that we are a Christian Nation.”

“God hates fags!” (Sir, you are off topic . . .”Still true, though!”)

“I blame the “Tax and Spend Democrats” for these problems.”

“But what about Hunter Biden’s laptop?”

“Look at the pretty, sparkly lights.”

Film at 11, back to you, Bill.

Questions to Ask Christian Nationalists

When someone espouses the belief that the U.S. should be declared a Christian Nation, here are questions to ask them.

1. Why do you want the Catholics in charge of the country? Is the Pope going to be running the government? (Catholics are the most populous denomination of U.S. Christians.)
   Note If they answer “Catholics aren’t True Christians™!” ask “Who gets to determine who are True Christians™ and who are not?
2. Will you make laws against atheists, as being unpatriotic or whatever?
3. Will you create tax laws based upon religious status?
4. Where in the Biblical Worldview is the concept of “one man, one vote” supported?
5. Where in the Bible is democracy (representative or direct) addressed or even described?
6. Will religious arguments be allowed in our courts?
7. Will religious arguments be allowed in our state houses?
8. What will happen if a state becomes majority Muslim?
9. If states adopt a state religion as was the case in our early days, will there be a process whereby one religion can supplant another as the state religion? What is that process?
10. If the Bible is to be used in court to support legal positions, which Bible will be considered definitive?
    Note This is especially important as the OT was written by Jews and the NT was written by people becoming Christians. The OT should be disallowed because it is non-Christian. (This will disappoint many evangelicals.)
11. Will the Quran and Scientologist and Mormon and Vedic scriptures be allowed as evidence in courts? If not, where is the line drawn between what is allowed and what is not?
12. Will religious instruction in public schools be mandatory? Will children of non-Christian religions be exempt from those lessons?
13. If the number of Americans claiming to be Christians drops below 50%, then what happens?
    Note From the 1970s until the 1990s, for as long as Pew tracked it, about 90 percent of Americans identified as Christian. Then in just one generation, that number plummeted. By 2020, only 64 percent of Americans identified as Christian.
14. Will marriages be required to be religious ceremonies and will non-Christian marriages be void?

Summation You know, I don’t think they have thought this thing through.

OMG, Making Trump’s Tax Returns Public! It is an outrage!

No.

It is not.

These are government documents and citizens have a right to see those not marked Top Secret or above.

In an actual civilized country, Sweden, any citizen’s tax return can be acquired by any other Swedish citizen who goes to a local tax office, fills out a form, and pays a small fee (for duplication costs). In Sweden, all tax returns are public documents, as they basically are here, except in the minds of those who want to hide their crimes. Or who want to lie about how much they make or about how much wealth they have.

Think about it. We are asked by our government to fill out extensive forms to determine how much tax we should pay. Why would those forms be secret to all other taxpayers, who may be suspicious that fraud is occurring elsewhere in the system? The answer is short—they should not.

Oh, did you see where Trump wrote off a $70,000 “business” expense for “hair care”? Any claim of him being a good businessman should end at that fact right there.