A TRUE American Patriot does not display the following (in alphabetical order)…
- Authoritarian
- Communist
- Confederate
- Fascist
- Nazi
- Political Party (any and all)
- Socialist
- Trump
…symbology. Period. End of discussion.
patriotism
“Radcen, Donald Trump lives rent-free in your head…”
Yes. Yes, he does.
To my own detriment I sometimes think, I like to discuss politics. No secret to many of you, I’m sure. And in the last 7-ish years the vitriol and blind brain dead partisanship has made the political waters all the more disheartening. Very few people actually care about the country anymore, if you listen to what they say “owning” the other side is paramount. It’s no longer “we’re in this together”, it’s “us vs them”. Many conversations on popular social media sites are with people I do not know, but this happens with people whom I do know, also… and who know better. It is not uncommon for a person to hit me with, “Donald Trump lives rent-free in your head.”
Make no mistake, this is not a compliment. It is squarely an insult. The implication being I am somehow not smart enough to discern what is important and what is not important. A slam at my intellect… a very partisan slam. According to thefreedictionary.com the phrase means…
live rent-free in (one’s) head
slang Of a person, to be a source of antipathy or exasperation to one to the extent of becoming a frequent or continual subject of one’s agitated thoughts. The term indicates that such a person is able to negatively impact one without any repercussions (with the implication that one should not allow such a person to have such an effect on them).
With an example of…
Don’t let your opponent live rent-free in your head, man. Shake it off!
Which is very similar to what other Trump-supporting friends have said to me, “Why are you still harping on Trump? He’s not even president anymore.”
Both phrases are intentionally dismissive. The people who say these things don’t like their worldview being challenged, it seems. Why am I bothering myself with such trifles? Trump is harmless, neutered, right?
🙄
No, the man is not harmless, or yesterday’s news. He should be, but he’s not. The man is a liar and a cheat and a thief… the ultimate con man… and will topple anything for his own gain. He does not care about the country, or you… especially you… or even his own family members. Donald Trump still wields considerable influence. He has almost the whole of the Republican Party scared to death of him (and his base) even though many of them privately despise him and wish he’d just go away. And that’s the whole point, he won’t go away, and he’s still dangerous to the country.
So yes, Donald Trump lives in my head rent-free. I welcome him in. I own it. I have space reserved in my head just for his fake tan and absurd comb-over. I’m not going to lie quiet and let him do his damage unopposed. Donald Trump squarely and intentionally inserts himself into the American political process on an almost daily basis, and as long as he does that he needs the attention. The best way for a person of limited resources like myself to counter such a dangerous person like Donald Trump is to keep them close and to keep their insidious intentions in public view so no one forgets them.
That’s why I unreservedly invite Donald Trump to live in my head.
Remembering D-Day… and Other Associated Thoughts
Today… as I am awake, technically yesterday as it’s just after midnight as I type this… is the 78th anniversary of D-Day, one of the most significant events in World War 2.
And before we begin to our point regarding how we have changed since then I want to extend a profound gratitude to these people for what they did and fought for. It is because of them and people like them that we are here today at all, even if we have forgotten it. So, thank you! 🙂
Having said that, as I have already alluded, we seem to have forgotten the lessons and forgotten what their sacrifice truly means. My elected House Representative (Ashley Hinson) and both Senators (Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst), all Trump-following Republicans, issued the obligatory reverence and thank you statements on social media and elsewhere. Ok, fair enough. Bah, whatever.
I say “whatever” because I’m not sure I believe their sincerity. Ten years ago I would have, but today? I’m just not convinced. All three are following in the Trump “army”, and are Republicans terrified of losing his base, they have all three capitulated and surrendered their values and backbones in the interest of attaining and keeping power… their own and their party’s.
They all three keep slamming President Biden and his policies, warranted or not. But let’s be honest, in today’s divided hyper-partisan political climate they be slamming any Democrat president, Biden or not. And the worst part is deep down they probably don’t believe what they say, which honestly makes it and them even worse. Party over country. No backbone. Yet they keep saying it, so it’s what we have to go with.
If somehow D-Day and 2022 US politics were to converge would these people slam President Roosevelt for botching the war and spending too much and putting American lives at risk and not thinking of America first and on and on and on? Given that so many Republicans have totally abandoned who they were just a few years ago, I believe it’s quite possible they would, so spare me the faux patriotic babble from today’s Republicans, actions speak louder than words, I ain’t buying it.
Ukraine vs Russia, Pt 3
Here’s Part Three of my thoughts on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, so let’s not beat around the bush and get right to it…
Putin’s Claims of NATO Aggression
A big part of Putin’s irrational rationalizations for invading Ukraine is for protection from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a defense treaty organization of a collection of countries primarily in western Europe. His demands… his “security guarantees”… include, but are not limited to, guarantees Ukraine would never join NATO, pulling back NATO weapons and troops away from Russia’s borders to their pre-1997 levels (when NATO expanded eastward), and basically accusing the west of being a bunch of meanies out to get poor little defenseless Russia.
The whole NATO angle is, of course, a total red herring. NATO has never been offensively aggressive in its entire existence. It’s all made up, and no one is buying it. The ironic part is that Putin’s actions will probably cause, I believe, Sweden and Finland to join NATO, two strong countries that have traditionally opted for walking a fine line of neutrality (albeit being closer to the west and NATO).
And the kicker? Should Ukraine survive (without a puppet government), Ukraine just may be fast-tracked into the European Union (EU) and/or NATO, as well.
Putin, the Whole World Really, Has Vastly Underestimated Ukraine… and Overestimated His Own Forces
It was supposed to be over by now. Putin promised his soldiers would surrender easily, that the people would greet them with flowers and open arms. Not only did Putin underestimate Ukrainian’s valiant defense of their country, he also underestimate almost the entire world’s response and their willingness to band together with sanctions and isolation of Russia. Even uber neutral Switzerland is joining in the sanctions. Meanwhile…
- Putin’s own citizens are rising up and protesting,
- there are reports of Russian soldiers asking for food and fuel from Ukrainians,
- correspondence has been leaked of Russian soldiers writing their families saying they have no idea why they’re their or what they’re fighting for,
- the Ukraine Army has been using Russia’s own defensive offensive tactics against the, successfully,
- reports are coming in from everywhere of Ukrainian bravery,
Putin has backed himself into a corner, no doubt about it… but you’ll have to wait for Part 4.
Ukraine vs Russia, Pt 2
Yesterday, in Ukraine vs Russia, Pt 1, we talked about a couple aspects of the Russian invasion. I had originally five or six thoughts, and decided to break them down into smaller posts, so here’s a couple more. Granted, the first one is soft…
Incidental(?), but Interesting Similarities
The past five-ish years there have been a lot of talk regarding Putin and Donald Trump, Russian interference into the 2016 election, and so on. And recently there have been people talking about Trump’s recent praise for Putin regarding the invasion. I am not going to go into those here, those are topics for another conversation, but on February 24, 2022, Putin said…
Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a dire threat to Western nations on Thursday morning, saying they would face “consequences greater than any you have faced in history” if they become involved with his invasion of Ukraine.
Does that sound kind of familiar? Why yes, yes it does. In 2017 then-president Trump said…
“North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States. They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen,” Trump told reporters at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
Trump says North Korea will be met with ‘fire and fury’ if it threatens U.S.
Does this similarity mean anything? Meh, I don’t know. But it stuck out to me. At the very least it demonstrates a similar mindset between the two.
Volodymyr Zelensky is The Man
Zelensky, Ukraine’s president has taken leadership to a new level. Not only does he talk the talk, he walks the walk. He’s out there, literally leading and inspiring his people. He is not baking down. He is not caving in. Read this opinion piece by someone who is there and knows. They put it much better than I can…
When the United States offered to evacuate him amid concerns for his safety, he replied: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride.”
Wow. If that is not inspiring I don’t know what is, and from what I am seeing lately he is indicative of the Ukrainian people. Simply put, Ukrainians are some bad-asses.