An open letter to the free World…

Posted on September 15, 2019 by luckyotter

SOSbottle

Dear (free) World,

Trump and his immoral, corrupt regime do not speak for the vast majority of us here in America. They have subverted democracy and made it difficult or impossible for us to have a voice, especially in the voting booths, since they have rigged the system so it seems only they can win. Using machiavellian, underhanded tricks and machinations, with little to no transparency, they have succeeded in taking the reigns of power and now they have a huge advantage over the People.

I am so ashamed of our nation right now. I am so sorry that our heartless and amoral leader has chosen the suffering and torture of innocents, the wanton destruction of the earth for personal and financial gain, and the constant lies he tells to paint over the truth. I am sorry he does not value empathy, kindness, being a good neighbor to our allies, and being a good steward of the earth. I am sorry he has aligned us with the cruelest and most inhumane dictatorships in the world, as he continues to cut off former ties with our true allies: other western democracies. I am sorry he targets our most vulnerable citizens for abuse (the sick, poor, young people, People of Color, the disabled, LGBTQ, Muslims, Latin Americans, migrants who just want a chance at a good life, etc.) and hardworking Latin American citizens who are already here, who work hard and help our economy, while he continues to reward parasitic greedy billionaires and environment destroying corporations that do nothing but take, and take, and take from We the People. We’re being extracted by these predators, and yet we are the ones who are gaslighted and blamed for being the takers, even when we’re working three jobs to survive.

We are sorry he has empowered the worst among us, people who are blinded by their hatred of others who don’t look or pray or act just like them, and others of very low character. Please know most of us see what he is doing, and we hate it as much as you do. Our hearts are breaking that we can do so little, but we are still trying everything we can to fight back against the forces of evil. It’s so hard and exhausting though, and we seem to have so few tools at our disposal.

To the rest of the free world, we are so very sorry. This isn’t what America is really about. We have been hijacked.

Please don’t give up on us. We may need your help. Most of us are good people who wish this wasn’t happening.

Regards,

A Concerned Citizen

America will not climb out of the anti-science hole it is jumping into

Posted on May 10, 2019 by luckyotter

This is a depressing article. But I’m reblogging it because it must be said.

Please leave comments on the original post.

The Secular Jurist

By Robert A. Vella

There is a quiet movement afoot in America and perhaps other western countries which no democratic society could withstand should it propagate much further. It might even pose a more problematic existential threat to modern civilization than the current ones we face – rising populist angst, anthropogenic climate change, and war. This movement is rooted deep within our human psyche. It feeds off our dissatisfaction and distrust of authority. It is fertilized by our fragile and insatiable egos. It is often cultivated by disingenuous interests. It is our growing predilection for anti-intellectualism; and, more specifically, our increasing antipathy and animosity towards science.

One might assume I am referring to political conservatism, religious orthodoxy, and other doctrinaire ideologies which assert their own precepts as paramount. One might also assume I’m referring to pragmatic reactionary movements typified by the technophobic attitudes of Neo-Luddism. But, those assumptions would…

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Why aren’t we flooding the streets to protest this presidency?

Posted on May 5, 2019 by luckyotter

Thousands of protesters flood the streets of Seoul, South Korea in a candlelight march to demand the removal of their despotic president on November 19, 2016. They succeeded.

In America in 2019, no one is doing much of anything to protest or resist a despotic, sociopathic president who is a clear and present danger to democracy and the rule of law as we have always known it. We are in grave danger of becoming a totalitarian, fascist regime with the loss of all our rights and protections, and yet are content to sit on our couches and tweet our discontent or just blithely go about our business as if everything is normal.

Why is that so?

There are many, many more of us than them. The power is in our hands. It always has been. All we have to do is use it, as South Korea did in 2016 to remove their despotic president, and many other countries have done (even countries where speaking against the government is a crime), and yet we don’t. Why not?

Sometimes I’m most clearheaded very early in the morning, before my head gets filled with the garbage of daily life. I answered my own question upon waking up this morning. I decided to post my thoughts on Twitter in a series of threaded tweets. To my surprise, my thread went viral, with many retweets and hundreds of comments I am still trying to reply to. It seems that my early morning musings hit a nerve, so I decided to post it here too.

Feel free to share your thoughts.

Why I resist.

Posted on August 11, 2018 by luckyotter

makeamericakindagain

Some people have asked me why I resist Donald Trump.

There are many reasons. Perhaps the two most important ones are these:

I resist so my adult daughter can enjoy the same freedoms women have for the past 45 years and not have to go back to a time when they did not. Even if you don’t believe in abortion (which is perfectly fine), it’s not the government’s job to decide what a woman can and cannot do with her body. That’s up to her and her doctor (and perhaps her husband and/or church should have a say IF she’s conservative). I also worry about governmental attempts to restrict access to birth control and contaception education (both which prevent abortion).

I resist so my gay son can love who he chooses and not be persecuted or discriminated against for that.

But there are other reasons why I resist too:

I resist so future generations (including my descendants, if there are any) can enjoy a safe environment and clean air and water.

I resist so we don’t lose our right to speak our mind and feelings freely without fear of censorship or punishment.

I resist so migrant children and babies aren’t separated from their mothers and fathers and put into cages and abused both physically and emotionally.

I resist because I believe healthcare is a right and not a privilege.

I resist because I hate racism, sexism and any other form of making others “less” for things they have no control over.

I resist because I hate the culture of cruelty and exclusion this administration is encouraging and enabling.

I resist because I don’t believe criminals, sociopaths, malignant narcissists, abusers, hypocrites, greedy Ayn Rand worshipping assholes, white supremacists, religious extremists, and Russian traitors should be running our government.

I resist because I think science is important and takes precedence over religion in matters that affect Americans’ health and wellbeing.

I resist because every working American deserves fair treatment and a wage they can actually live on.

I resist because religion and government should never be merged. Every time in history and in every country religion and government become intertwined, it always leads to violence, fear and hate, terrible suffering, and war. You are free to be as religious as you want to be, and you are free to share your beliefs with others, but you are not free to impose your religious beliefs on others who disagree with you.

I resist because I hate fascism, authoritarianism, and extremism of any kind. Donald Trump checks every box for fascist/authoritarian traits.

I resist because I believe empathy and kindness are important in our leaders, and Donald Trump and his regime have shown absolutely no empathy or kindness.

I resist because I believe a good leader attempts to bring people together, not divide them and tear them apart.

I resist because a good leader cares about ALL Americans, not just their own base (actually, Trump doesn’t even care about them, they are just useful to him. Being the malignant narcissist he is, all he cares about is himself).

I resist because bullying and good leadership do not go together. Ever.

I resist because I believe humility and the ability to admit when you’ve made a mistake is important in our leaders, and Donald Trump and his regime have shown no ability to ever own or take responsibility for their mistakes, or for their cruel and deliberate actions.

I resist because I believe the vulnerable (poor, elderly, children, women, racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ, disabled, sick, etc.) should be cared for and listened to, not silenced, demonized, and treated like lesser beings.

I resist because I believe every child has the right to a free quality public education. If you don’t like public schools, you are free to send your child to a private or religious one (or homeschool your child, though personally I think there should be certain standards for that), but you are not free to restrict other people’s children from being able to access an education.

I resist because I believe the wealthy and corporations should pay higher taxes for the greater good. In every moral and civilized society, that is the way things work, and that is the way things used to work here too. Greed and the lust for power has destroyed all that.

I resist because I believe the Second Amendment must be tempered with good old fashioned common sense, and that means background checks and age restrictions on gun ownership. We are not living in the Wild West.

I resist because the President is not immune to the rule of law, and our system of checks and balances should be functional, not complicit and enabling of his unethical and extremist behavior.

I resist because a free press is vital to democracy, and Trump is trying his damndest to demonize any press that is critical of him, while glorifying “news” outlets that do nothing but lie and spread pro-Trump propaganda

I resist because I don’t like the values Trumpism promotes: wealth and power reign supreme, “might makes right,” toxic masculinity, nationalism and white supremacy, disdain for empathy and other “feminine virtues” as weakness, etc.

I resist because I used to feel safe in my country, but no longer do.

I resist because we are stronger and safer when we work with our allies, not against them.

I resist because I believe in democracy, not fascism.

I resist because I believe in truth, not lies.

I resist because Donald Trump is a terrible example for our children.

I resist because I believe in America, not One Party Rule or a “Cult of Personality.”

I resist because I believe that’s what the real Jesus would do.

Two myths about Trump Republicans.

Posted on May 23, 2018 by luckyotter

Myth #1. Trump Republicans are Conservatives.

conservative

No. Trump Republicans are not conservatives, and here is why:

Conservatives believe in conserving things, not tearing everything to shreds. Trump Republicans are radical fascists and anarchists who seek to tear down “the establishment” and all the things that made America great (and held it together) before. They seek to replace those things with new things that will hurt the vast majority of people and destroy the Constitution itself (conservatives believe in upholding and defending the Constitution).

Conservatives believe in traditional values. But Trump Republicans literally worship a president who is a serial adulterer, slept with a porn star (while his third wife was pregnant), had five children by three different wives, and bragged about grabbing women by the pussy because he’s a big star who can do anything he wants (and then he denied ever saying it). And he’s never, ever repented or apologized for any of it — or anything else he’s ever done. It seems to me that if God chose Trump to be president (as some evangelicals believe), he would have chosen someone who is NOT a narcissistic psychopath and also someone capable of empathy, remorse, and repentance.

The concept of traditional values goes far beyond just family values, though. Having traditional values also means you believe in civility, kindness, generosity, being nice to strangers, and holding your tongue if you have something unkind to say out of respect for that person’s feelings (or broaching the subject in a sensitive, mature way). It means being neighborly. It means being concerned about people who are not as fortunate as you are. It means not mocking or demeaning people you dislike or who are different from you, not calling immigrants “animals,” and not treating people of color and women like slaves or second class citizens.

Conservatives believe in small government. Trump does not believe in small government. Sure, he and his minions like to talk about small government, but the huge windfall they just gave to the rich and corporations through their tax scam created the hugest deficit in history, which is now in the trillions (which will be paid for by us — through huge cuts to earned benefits like social security and Medicare).

Sure, they’re slashing those annoying regulations (most of which help keep us all safe and healthy) because they don’t believe corporations should be accountable or responsible for anything at all, but they sure would like to put a lot of new laws and regulations on private citizens, including our sex lives and reproductive freedom. They’re busy expanding the military and turning ICE into the American Gestapo. The Trump GOP is pushing through all kinds of new laws and bills that will greatly restrict our civil rights and freedoms, especially if you’re in one of the groups they don’t like or respect (women, LGBTQ, POC, and non-white immigrants). They are also pushing through legislation that blurs the line that has always separated church and state in the name of “religious freedom” (which it’s anything but).

The endgame is an oligarch-controlled, evangelical “Christian” theocracy that wouldn’t differ much from living in Saudi Arabia under Sharia law — or Europe during feudal times.

So tell me again how Trump supporters don’t want big government?

Hell, they want fucking Big Brother.

Please stop calling Trump Republicans conservatives. They are conserving nothing.

Myth #2: Trump Republicans Want to Bring Back the 1950s.

1956gop

Perhaps Trump Republicans like the idea of the 1950s — doting housewives whose lives revolve around husband and kids, husbands as the breadwinners, girls who look like girls and boys who look like boys, clearly defined sex roles, conformity, safe suburban neighborhoods, low crime; children’s books, movies, and TV shows that feature lily white protagonists; and little tolerance for cultural or racial diversity or “difference.”

The sexism and racism of the 1950s is well known, but was not really the result of oppressive policy, just the kind of culture we lived in at the time. Most people just took for granted this was the way things worked so it wasn’t an issue for most people — at least not for a few more years. Blacks were definitely discriminated against under Jim Crow, but women at the time for the most part welcomed the opportunity to marry and have “victory children” once their men returned from overseas in the Second World War. There were no laws that women could not pursue traditionally male careers or a more independent life; it just wasn’t something most women considered.

But the 1950s are also known for strong labor unions, higher taxes on the wealthy (in fact they were quite high!), well paying jobs that enabled even working class people to buy homes and new cars, New Deal policies that made it possible for the elderly to live (and die) with dignity and independence rather than be a burden on their children who were trying to raise their own families; affordable healthcare, doctors who actually spent time with their patients and seemed to care about them personally, companies that cared about their employees and offered good benefits and even pensions, good public schools and a strong emphasis on public education, a recognition that science and scientific research trumped superstition and religious dogma, a healthy respect for education and intellectualism, an importance placed on treating others well, having a moral compass and a sense of responsibility to the community, and a general acceptance by all that for the greater good, the rich should pay more taxes.

Hell, by today’s standards, the 1950s were downright socialist!

During the 1950s (and through the early 1970s), government worked for the people instead of the other way around. Our checks and balances were intact and working well. Sure, there were always problems — rampant sexism and racism, communist “witch hunts,” etc — but the gap between the rich and poor was low (much of this due to the rich being taxed at a much higher rate) and most people lived pretty well and felt secure in their lives. Even the less educated, working class could afford nice homes, cars, vacations, and were able to raise children who would later be able to attend college and live better than their parents. The American Dream was a real thing almost anyone could achieve, not the huge lie it is today.

Life was pretty good in the 1950s because of the things Trump and his staff want to take away from us: all the New Deal changes FDR made after the Great Depression, including Social Security and Medicare; high taxes on the rich and corporations; corporate requirements to offer certain benefits to employees, such as health insurance, overtime pay (time and a half) and holiday pay; a minimum wage that was actually a living wage that kept up with inflation; strong public schools, strong labor unions, federal grants for college, a GI bill that allowed veterans and military personnel to purchase inexpensive homes, large public works projects, public libraries, and a public interstate highway system; and all sorts of other things that made life more enjoyable and less stressful and made advancement possible for most Americans. In the 1950s, most people trusted the government, and the government believed that taking care of its people created a healthier and more productive society — as it does in all healthy democracies. We were the envy of the free world.

While Trump Republicans appear to bemoan the “traditional values” of the 1950s, they never stop to think about the fact that much of what Americans enjoyed then was possible because of a government that actually served its people, instead of one that expects to be served by the people.

Trump Republicans do not want to bring back the 1950s, because that would require them to do all the things they hate: raise taxes on the rich, offer more social programs, increase funding for public works projects, public schools, libraries, and infrastructure, raise pay for teachers; take care of the elderly, sick and veterans; improve our national parks and monuments (instead of destroying them and selling them off), encourage and support labor unions, and stop gerrymandering and suppressing votes. It would require the realization that enhancing the common good matters more in building a strong nation and a strong economy than rewarding and placing value on only wealth and power.

Trump Republicans may want to bring us back to the ’50s, but it isn’t the 1950s — it’s the 1850s right before the Civil War and the Gilded Age — or maybe even the 1350s, if the Christofascists ever get their way.

A Confession of Faith in a Time of Crisis

Posted on April 23, 2018 by luckyotter

white-dove

I rarely share religious articles, since I know many or even most of my readers aren’t religious, but I think this one is so important I couldn’t let it pass by. I also think the truths described in it are things we all need to remember in these confusing and dark days of our nation, regardless of your belief system. If nothing else, they will help keep you sane.

I’ve been growing increasingly disturbed and even upset by what I see happening not just in our government, but in many of our churches, especially evangelical churches. The Founding Fathers were wise to demand the separation of church and state, not because they were all atheists (they weren’t), but because when religion and state merge, they tend to corrupt each other. It’s not just government being protected from religion, but also religion being protected from government. As long as churches stayed out of politics, they tended to stay true to the teachings of Christ. But something dark and unsettling is happening within Christian evangelism and it’s way too serious for us to ignore, because, Christian or not, it affects all of us.

Dominionism is a growing movement within evangelism that claims to be Christianity, but is more like what would happen if Christianity was turned inside out and stood on its head. It’s an authoritarian, intolerant, unloving, unforgiving, punitive, and sociopathic belief system which seems to be equal parts Old Testament biblical law and Ayn Rand’s philosophy of selfishness. It’s the Prosperity Gospel with an angry, narcissistic, and unloving God. Christian dominionism is not actually a religion at all — it’s a fascist political movement which is to real Christianity what the Taliban or ISIS is to Islam, and like the Taliban, it hides its anti-woman, anti-gay, white supremacist, violent, and oppressive ideology behind a facade of “Christian” religion.

We are close to a rewriting of the Constitution (Constitutional Convention) by these sick control freaks. The Republican Party and Trump’s cabinet in particular are infested with these zealots. They cannot be reasoned with. They will not compromise. They will not back down. There is nothing they won’t do to achieve complete domination over all of us and of the planet. Their doctrine dictates that doing evil things is okay as long as the end result (Christ’s return and the rapture) is achieved. These people believe they are prophets and apostles who have been anointed to be earthly rulers and have been given permission by God to oppress and abuse the rest of us who are not part of God’s ruling class. There’s nothing biblical or remotely Christian about any of this.

The dominionist movement is aided and abetted by the Koch Brothers and other oligarchs (both American and Russian) who aren’t religious themselves but whose insatiable lust for even more wealth and power dovetails perfectly with what dominionists want (complete control). If they ever do gain full control over our government or are able to rewrite our Constitution, we’ll be living a real life Handmaid’s Tale. The Kochs, Mercers, and other oligarchs working in cahoots with the dominionists will be either be exempt from the oppressive and draconian laws the rest of us will be subject to, or they can just skip off to another country.

As I said in the first paragraph, I’ve been getting upset about this abusive belief system and the threat it poses to my freedom and my life, and the lives, rights, and freedoms of the people I love. Some days I feel like they really are going to win and I start to get anxious and depressed. So I’ve been praying a lot about it.

The following article feels like an answer to my prayer — a reminder of what it really means to be Christian in these times and what is expected of us (because it’s easy to get confused these days with all the misinformation), and at the same time a manifesto against the heretical perversion of Christianity called dominionism. I feel strongly that if Jesus were here sitting next to me, these words would be exactly what he’d say to me.

A Confession of Faith in a Time of Crisis

If the devil wanted to kill a religion.

Posted on February 10, 2018 by luckyotter

goingtochurch

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would not be transparent or obvious about it. If it was Christianity he was trying to destroy, he would not woo people with pentagrams, blood sacrifice, black masses, and upside down crosses, and new commandments telling us to blaspheme God, rape, kill, and steal. That stuff is from the movies because it’s dramatic and scares most of us. If the devil exists, he knows being that transparent would drive most people off rather than attract them.

On the contrary, if the devil wanted to kill a religion (say, Christianity), he would package his diabolical agenda in a nice, “Christian” package. There’s a reason why he’s known as the “Father of Lies.” He would use crosses and Bibles and images of European Jesus. He would talk about vague “Christian values” or “the sanctity of the family.”

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would pick one or two culture-war issues that many religious people have glommed onto (in our culture, this means abortion and homosexuality) and weaponize them. This serves a dial purpose: (1) to deceive conservative Christians into believing his agenda is in fact “good,” and (2) to exert control over people, particularly women. Because people’s sex lives are so personal (and because these issues happen to be popular “culture war” issues today), these two things can be easily weaponized to instill shame and guilt, so those so deceived believe they are not being controlled but are in fact promoting “Godly morals.”

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would twist and pervert Scripture so it became its opposite. This would happen gradually, so the change would barely be noticed. Values once normally accepted as ungodly or evil — greed, money-worship, sexual abuse, child abuse, pedophilia, rape, dishonesty, and treachery, for starters — would be excused, receive “mulligans,” or even be celebrated and encouraged in some situations. Dominionist types believe the means justify the ends, which means that immoral or abusive behavior is okay as long as they help to bring about “God’s kingdom on Earth.” At the same time, values espoused by Jesus in the Bible — charity, empathy, unconditional love, and concern for the poorest and most vulnerable — would be dismissed (at best) or even be called sins (the dominionist evangelical God doesn’t favor those who are sick, poor or disabled, so helping them becomes a “sin”). This bears no resemblance to anything Jesus taught. Religion is simply being used as a handy vehicle to promote a diabolical agenda.

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would cherry pick verses in the Bible to dupe people into thinking his twisted perversion of the original passage is the Word of God. “See? It says so right here in the Bible!” Scripture can be — and is — interpreted many different ways, depending on the translation, what we “read” into the passage, and other factors. Much of the Bible is not as cut and dry as we’d like it to be. Being able to quote from the Bible doesn’t make you a good person or a good Christian. Even Satan can roll Bible verses off the tip of his forked tongue. He could even use some Bible verses to justify evil — and some “Christians” today do just that.

mahatmagandhi

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would weaponize the religion against those people who most espouse the true values of that religion. Good and moral people with kind hearts have been leaving the American evangelical churches in droves lately, because what is being preached is diametrically opposed to what’s in their own God-given conscience. They deplore the hypocrisy, superstition, denial of science and truth, ignorance, hatred, intolerance, emotional abusiveness, and cruelty of the modern evangelical church. But the devil wouldn’t miss these good people, because they’d all be replaced by those most like himself — liars, hypocrites, narcissists, sociopaths, abusers, sadists, control freaks, and those without conscience, compassion, or love.

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would encourage believers to destroy God’s creation (in the name of God, of course) and take no responsibility for its stewardship. He would tell them it’s okay to dump toxic, life-destroying substances in the water and air. He would tell them that laws that protect them against those who would poison them are bad. He would tell them that to use the earth sustainably is a sin because it shows a lack of faith in God’s ability to replenish it. How is this different from telling teenagers it’s not only okay to trash their parents’ home during a party but that to clean up their own mess is wrong because it shows a lack of faith in their parents’ ability to do so?

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would blaspheme God by attributing his own dark and destructive nature to that God. Such a “God” would therefore be constantly angry, war-mongering, narcissistic, compassionless, sadistic, rejecting, hate-filled, and authoritarian. Such a “God” would favor the most powerful and ruthless with riches and material goodies while meting out unspeakable suffering on the most vulnerable, who he hates. He would tell us to steal from the poorest to give to the richest. He would “punish homosexuals” by sending hurricanes that destroy entire cities (that kind of twisted reasoning we hear from the likes of Pat Robertson have no basis in logic at all). He would call social justice and altruistic behavior “socialism” or even “communism” and ruthlessness and cruelty “law and order.” He would be a God devoid of mercy or grace. He would be a God who, were he to meet the Jesus of the Bible, would reject, deport, and even kill him because of his dark skin, poverty, and compassion for the “least of these.” In fact, there would be precious little difference between that “God” and himself.

If the devil wanted to kill a religion, he would tell believers they must vote for and support a certain highly immoral, narcissistic, and cruel person and tell them they will go to hell if they do not. He would gaslight those who can see through the hypocrisy and lies by attributing that same false idol’s depraved values and actions onto them.

It’s not just Christianity that has been perverted into its opposite. The same thing is happening to Islam, once known worldwide as a religion of peace. The Taliban, ISIS and Sharia Law are extremist factions of Islam that twisted this peaceful religion into a cult of war and death.

I don’t know if I believe in a literal devil or not. But I do believe in evil, and in the idea that evil forces exist in this world. The modern American evangelical churches are a hotbed of evildoings in these times. In my opinion, it’s much better to be an atheist. I know plenty of wonderful atheists who are extremely good people who always try to do the right thing, so it’s a total myth that a belief in God is a requirement to have morals or a conscience.

How does one avoid being duped into worshipping a false God? Observe what sort of fruit a church or a religion is bearing. If they bear only rotten fruit, or their teachings and values are authoritarian; or they talk about hell, death and punishment more than they talk about God’s grace or mercy; or if they weaponize their doctrine against the most empathetic or the most vulnerable; or even if you just feel really uncomfortable in that church or with those people, run away!

Why I don’t like e-cards.

Posted on December 24, 2017 by luckyotter

ecard-vs-paper-card

Today a relative of mine sent me an e-Christmas card. While I appreciate the thought (thank you — you know who you are, if you’re reading), e-cards seem like a cheap and lazy substitute the the real thing: an old fashioned, environmentally-unfriendly, paper or cardboard actual pretty card in an envelope with an actual written greeting inside.

When they were a new thing back in the ’90s, e-cards seemed uber-cool and cutting edge. Now, not so much. Today, e-cards are about as cutting edge as AOL or Netscape Navigator (remember those?)

When I receive an e-card (unless it’s from a disabled or ill person who can’t get to the store to buy a card or the post office to mail it), this is what it tells me about you:

It tells me you don’t think enough of me to take the time to purchase an actual card or take the time to mail it at the post office. It also tells me you are either too lazy or cheap to make the effort to drive to the store or post office or spend the $2.00 or $3.00 (or a lot less than that, if they are from a box) to buy a card or the 49 cents to mail the card. But thanks for at least remembering I exist.

Okay, e-cards do save trees. So I guess they’re better for the environment and if you’re an tree-hugging environmentalist, an e-card makes sense. That’s the only advantage I can see to them (besides not having to spend a dime or leave your house).

Cards aren’t a big deal, of course. They aren’t the same as gifts. We send cards to people we aren’t really that close to — casual friends, distant relatives, acquaintances, business associates, co-workers, or neighbors we don’t talk to that much. But a card is still nice to get — they are pretty, tangible things that you can actually hold in your hand. Many people use them as holiday decorations — strung from a garland or propped on a table with other cards, or collected in a pretty basket. It’s always nice to look inside your mailbox and see a red or green envelope sitting there, and then slowly open it to pull out a pretty paper greeting card, perhaps even with a handwritten note from the sender.

E-cards don’t provide that experience. They’re not much fun to “open,” you can’t display them, and you are also usually required to send a “thank you” response card to let the other person know you received it. They are basically virtual cards — like virtual reality, they aren’t the real thing. They are a fascimile of a real card.

When e-cards were new, I used to send them, because, you know, novelty (and well, laziness). But within a year or two the newness wore off and I was back to snail-mailing old fashioned paper cards, because they are just so much nicer. I wish people who sent e-cards would realize that most people would appreciate an actual paper card in an envelope to an e-card. Maybe I’m just being overly petty, since really, it’s the thought that counts anyway.

Here’s a pie chart that proves most people prefer real cards to e-cards.

E-Cards-v-Real-Cards

12 reasons why our political situation isn’t as hopeless as you think.

Posted on December 8, 2017 by luckyotter

plant

It’s an uphill battle trying to remain upbeat and positive when your country is being decimated by a group of amoral thugs who seem to have limitless power and money to do whatever they want, especially when no one seems to be able or willing to stop them. It’s even harder to be positive when you are going to be personally affected by their cruel policies, which have the potential to destroy your life or the lives of your loved ones.

Yes, the situation is bad. It would be dangerous and foolish to deny that. But as the old cliche goes, there is always a silver lining to every dark cloud, and in the midst of all the evil, there are reasons to feel hopeful that good will triumph and we may emerge from this stronger than we have ever been.

Here are 12 reasons why it’s okay to feel hopeful.

1. Robert Mueller knows what he is doing and who he is dealing with. In spite of GOP efforts to stop or discredit him, Mueller knows ways to throw a monkey wrench into their efforts, and is tenaciously pursuing justice for us all. Even if the unthinkable should happen and Trump is able to somehow stop Mueller, I can tell you right now that people aren’t going to just lie down and accept it. I guarantee half of the country will be storming Washington, jamming the phone lines, and showing up in huge numbers to protest against it. Besides that, firing Mueller now would leave no doubt of his guilt. It would be a huge problem for Trump, as it was for Nixon. I realize it’s not 1974 and government is alot more broken than it was then, but I have to believe that it will still work as it’s supposed to, even if it’s not doing it well.

2. There are a lot more people who oppose Trump and his administration than there are supporters. And that number is increasing.

3. Trump’s base is eroding, albeit slowly. Pew just reported that Trump’s approval rating just sunk to 32%. That’s the lowest it’s ever been. Hitler’s approval rating was always much higher, even at the height of his power.

4. George Papadopoulos and Michael Flynn, and most likely others too, have flipped and are giving Mueller vital inside information that will hasten justice and eventually end this nightmare.

5. Despite GOP efforts to undermine the free press and honest investigative journalism, it’s stronger than ever. Readership of newspapers that stay as close to truthful reporting as they can like The New York Times and Washington Post have seen record numbers of subscriptions this year and are still rising. At the same time, Fox News, once the most popular cable news channel, has sunk to third place, behind MSNBC and CNN. Rachel Maddow’s show is the most popular news show on television. As long as the free press remains relatively intact, we will not descend into full fascism or totalitarianism.

6. There is strength in numbers. There are a lot more of us than there are of them. Together, we can do a lot of damage. Snowflakes, while fragile and weak on their own, are formidable when they coalesce to form a blizzard.

7. The Republican Party is self-destructing. While the Democratic Party may not be in good shape either, people are leaving the GOP in droves, even people who have voted Republican all their lives. Among progressives, while there is bickering between Never-Hillary democratic socialists and establishment Democrats, the divisions within various factions of the GOP are much deeper and less likely to mend themselves.

8. People are more motivated to vote than they have been in decades (conservatives have always voted, so those numbers will not increase). Don’t forget the recent blue sweep across many states last month, even a red state like Virginia. Democrat Doug Jones may very well win Alabama, even though that state is deep red and extremely conservative. He and Moore have been polling very close. If a state like Alabama can turn blue, that’s a very good sign for us all.

9. The country is rediscovering its soul and realizing what we have lost under four decades of increasingly right-wing policies. Trump is both the end result of this and the shadow we have refused to face or denied. Now we are compelled to face the truth and make necessary changes. Most of America is finally starting to care about issues that have been increasingly discredited or demonized by Republicans and ignored or dismissed by Democrats. We are waking up to what’s really important. In a sense, Trump is actually doing the country a huge service, as long as we do our part and don’t give up and keep resisting.

10. TIME just gave its Person of the Year award to the women of #MeToo. Sexual abuse is being exposed and addressed at all levels in a way it never has been before.

11. History is being made. If you’re familiar with generational/turning theory, every 80 years or so, the country enters into a Crisis period (the last three were the American Revolution, The Civil War, and The Great Depression/WWII.) in which America reinvents itself. America has always come out of these crisis periods stronger and better than it was before. I have to believe this time is no exception. This won’t last forever.

12. Related to #10, the Millennial Generation (people born 1982 – 2004) is the most politically progressive generation in modern history. They can’t be stopped, because there are so many more of them than Gen-X and even Baby Boomers, who are starting to die off. Most Millennials are politically aware and aren’t allergic to the “s” word. They realize, like Franklin Delano Roosevelt did, that capitalism works best when seasoned with a good helping of European-style democratic socialism, as it was from the late 1930s to the early 1970s when we had policies that actually benefited We the People and not just the corporations and the wealthy. Millennials realize that trickle-up economics (recognizing that jobs are created and the economy thrives when the “little people” are living better), works better than trickle down economics, which has never worked for most Americans. This is the generation that is beginning to have its effects felt in government and politics and is only going to keep increasing.

Visceral Disgust

Posted on November 15, 2017 by luckyotter

One blogger’s opinion about why some white women support Trump.
Please leave comments under original post.

CLUSTER B

“Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill!” said the head. For a moment or two the forest and all the other dimly appreciated places echoed with the parody of laughter. “You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you? Close, close, close! I’m the reason why it’s no go? Why things are what they are?”
Lord of the Flies
William Golding

We know emotions often Trump logic. But I doubt most of us realize the extent to which irrational emotions, many of which are barely on the level of awareness, can take the driver’s seat. An article in Alternet, Why the Majority of White Women Voted for Trump by Kate Manne (discussing a book by the same author, Down Girl: The Logic of Misogyny), has alerted me to the way emotions barely acknowledged can overcome reason.