Anybody Who Believes This Sh-t IS IGNORANT!

Everyone is well aware of the fact that Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia was one of Trump's most fervent allies among the nation's Republican governors - that is until they started counting votes in the state after the November 3rd General Election! Governor Kemp was one of the first governors in the country to respond to Trump's call to reopen their schools and economies in the face of pandemic closures. Likewise, Kemp and the REPUBLICAN Secretary of State worked tirelessly to suppress black voting in their state (because it so heavily favored Democrats). Now, the Republican top leadership of the state are pariahs in Trumpland - RINOs (Republicans in Name Only), because they refuse to support his lies about voter fraud in their state.

Notice this Tweet from Trump today:

.@BrianKempGA, his puppet Lt. Governor @GeoffDuncanGA, and Secretary of State, are disasters for Georgia. Won’t let professionals get anywhere near Fulton County for signature verifications, or anything else. They are virtually controlled by @staceyabrams & the Democrats. Fools!

see Donald J. Trump

In similar fashion, Trump has turned on his favorite cable news network (Again, because they refuse to accept his narrative about a rigged and fraudulent election). Here's what he had to say about them:

Watching @FoxNews is almost as bad as watching Fake News @CNN. New alternatives are developing!

Before the election, EVERYONE knows that Fox was in the bag for Trump - his biggest cheerleaders.

Donald Trump is a crazy and devious SOB, and ANYONE who believes this sh-t is gullible and ignorant! Joe Biden won big, and he's going to be President of the United States at noon on the 20th of January - You need to start getting used to that fact, Donnie!

Trump's Christmas Gift To America

For weeks, Trump has been obsessed with election fraud and his loss to Joe Biden. During this time, he has largely been AWOL from his duties as president and has instead spent most of his time watching tv, tweeting, playing golf and pardoning his cronies. In the midst of the approval and initial distribution of a vaccine which he could justly take a measure of credit for helping along, he has been silent. And, when Congress finally reached a bipartisan agreement on some stimulus measures for our weakened economy and hurting populace (without any help or input from him), he threatens to veto the measure and leaves town! Merry Christmas America!  

The Republican Party

In much the same way that I regret my former affiliation with Herbert Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God, I'm now ashamed of the fact that I was ever affiliated with the Republican Party! And, although my religious beliefs have changed and evolved a great deal over the years, my former political party has undergone a transformation that makes my own religious experience look like baby steps by comparison!

The Republican Party that once stood for fiscal responsibility, limited government, free trade and democratic institutions is no more. In fact, Donald Trump's Republican Party is now unrecognizable as the party of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Eisenhower and Reagan. In near record time, it has been transformed into a Trump personality cult - completely dedicated to the maintenance of his (and their) grip on the reins of power. And, anyone within the party who dares to oppose Trump or his allies are labeled as RINOs (REPUBLICANS IN NAME ONLY).

As a former Republican, I believe that no one has better summarized the current status of the Grand Old Party than Lincoln Project founder Steve Schmidt. He recently said: "The Republican Party is an organized conspiracy for the purposes of maintaining power for self-interest, and the self-interest of its donor class. There is no fidelity to the American ideal...There has never been a force that has achieved power, or is within reach of achieving power in the next election, that’s been so hostile to the history, the founding, the essence and the entire meaning of the country, as is this Trump and Trumpist movement that has taken over lock, stock, and barrel the Republican Party. It’s no longer dedicated to American democracy. It is dedicated to Trump and Trumpism and to his family, to defense of his indecencies, his autocratic manner, his corruptions, an apologist for the profound damage he has done." see The Republican Party Is An Organized Conspiracy Unfortunately, I am forced to completely agree with his assessment of my old party.

Lessons from Pearl Harbor

On this 79th anniversary of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, it is good to reflect on those events and consider their implications for today. I had the opportunity and privilege to visit Pearl Harbor twenty years ago, and I was struck by the profound symbolism that I observed there.

Our guide was a veteran of those events, and his description of what happened that day was vivid and emotional. When we traveled out to see the USS Arizona Memorial, I read the names of all of the men who had died there and stared down into the water at the outline of the ship that now rests forever on the floor of the harbor. At that time, we could still see little drops of oil trickling up from the wreck below us - like the ship was still bleeding. It was the perfect representation of the death, devastation and defeat that had happened there. The story, however, did not end there.

From there, we traveled to the USS Missouri and walked along the deck where Douglas MacArthur accepted the Japanese surrender which concluded the Second World War. And, from the deck of this symbol of America's ultimate triumph, one could see the memorial over the wreck of the USS Arizona. The juxtaposition of these two symbols of defeat and victory had a profound effect on me and many of the folks who were a part of our tour.

On this important anniversary, we are reminded of the suffering, perseverance and eventual victory of a generation of Americans that Tom Brokaw named America's greatest. We are also reminded that defeats can also be turned into triumphs - that the darkest hours are often followed by a bright dawn. Many years now stand between us and those events, but we still have so much to learn from what happened there so long ago. 

THE 2020 ELECTION WASN'T CLOSE

I'm afraid that many Americans have been left with a false impression regarding the closeness of the recent Presidential contest between Biden and Trump. The notion that the vote was close is attributable to two factors: 1. The way that the vote totals were reported as a consequence of the large number of mail-in ballots because of the pandemic and 2. The hullabaloo created by Donald Trump surrounding spurious claims of fraud and a grand conspiracy to deprive him of victory. In short, the fact that the counting of votes has played out over weeks, and Trump's team has demanded several recounts and launched numerous legal challenges in a number of states has served to divert the public's attention from the actual results.

Nevertheless, despite all of the noise and distractions the counting continued and the results were tallied and are in the process of being certified. Unfortunately, Americans have a notoriously short attention span, and many of the partisans on both sides of the recent contest have largely already moved way beyond the actual results of it. Those results, however, tell a very different tale from the one that most Americans have accepted about the 2020 presidential election; and they deserve another look before we move ahead as a nation.

Joe Biden received 80.2 million votes (or 51.1% of the total), and Donald Trump received 74 million votes (or 47.1 % of the total). Stated another way, six million more Americans voted for Biden than voted for Trump! Where do these totals fit when we compare them to past elections? In 2016, Clinton received about 2.9 million more votes than Trump, but Trump ultimately prevailed in the Electoral College. In 2012, Obama received about 5 million more votes than Romney (Obama received about 51.1% of the total). Hence, we can see that the numbers Biden put on the board in 2020 are very respectable when compared to the previous two contests.

In terms of the Electoral College, Biden will receive 306 electors compared to 232 for Trump (the same margin of victory for Trump over Clinton). Biden won the popular vote in 25 of the 50 states (Trump carried 30 states in 2016). Biden's margins of victory in Michigan and Pennsylvania were significantly greater than Trump's in 2016. Moreover, Biden was able to squeeze out a narrow victory in Georgia and Arizona - two states that have voted Republican for many years).

Hence, we can see that the numbers suggest that Biden's victory over Trump in the 2020 election was decisive. By almost any standard which we could employ, this was NOT a close election! In fact, one might reasonably conclude that any suggestion that Trump won this contest (or that the result was even close) is delusional. In fact, when we look at just the numbers, we are forced to conclude that Donald Trump was soundly rejected for a second term as president!

Trump's Final Act

The vast majority of the political class (both left and right, Democrat and Republican) believe that Joe Biden will be the next President of the United States - that Donald J. Trump's efforts to continue in office will NOT succeed. Nevertheless, it is also becoming increasingly clear to most of those same folks that his refusal to begin the transition process will probably do irreparable harm to our republic. So far, Trump has refused to even share intelligence briefings with the incoming administration (which even a growing number of Republican senators acknowledge is a good idea).

More to the point, the final three paragraphs of a recent CNN editorial by Julian Zelizer summarize what's at stake:

Unfortunately, the US will pay a price for Trump's decision to stonewall Biden's transition. Former Chief of Staff John Kelly blasted the President on Friday and said his refusal to help with the transition "could be catastrophic to our people regardless of who they voted for."

If Trump is unwilling to fulfill his duties as President in the next two months, then the least he can do is step out of the way so the incoming administration can be in the best possible position come Inauguration Day. By refusing to recognize Biden as President-elect, Trump is cleaving the country in two, hamstringing the new administration's ability to move forward, sealing the country's fate with a grave loss of human life due to Covid-19 and potentially dealing a devastating blow to the economy.

If Trump continues on this path, it will be tragic. And historians will look back on the next two months and debate what might have been -- how many lives and livelihoods could have been saved -- if only Trump had been capable of thinking of someone other than himself.

See the complete article here: Trump's Refusal to Concede

LET'S HOPE THAT REPUBLICANS BUY WHAT TRUMP IS SELLING!

As the much anticipated and expected "Blue Wave" did not materialize, it now appears that control of the United States Senate will come down to what happens in the runoff elections in Georgia. Moreover, it appears that Biden's margin of victory in that state was just over fourteen thousand votes - not likely to be overturned, but not big! Hence, for Democrats to have any chance of capturing those two seats, Republicans are going to have to swallow Trump's narrative that their votes don't really count - that Democrats will discard Republican votes and pad their own totals. Hopefully, they will realize that their votes aren't going to count anyway, so they may as well stay home for this new election!

Wait a minute! I know that many of my Republican friends will have no sense of humor about this, so I will point out the intentional use of satire and sarcasm for this post. I do NOT really hope that Republicans buy what Trump is selling. I hope that they will reject his false narrative about voter fraud in 2020 and realize that their votes held off that "Blue Wave." And, if Biden can find even a few Republican senators that would be willing to play something other than a purely obstructionist role during the next four years, I'm thinking divided government may even prove to be a good thing - tempering or thwarting the more extreme impulses/agenda of some of Biden's supporters on the left. Maybe that would be something we could all eventually rally around - moving the republic back to the middle (restoring some of our equilibrium)? 

Are Trump and His Supporters Demanding a Fair Election?

Trump has succeeded in creating a cult. He has been described by Ted Cruz as a pathological liar, yet his manipulation of social and other media has produced a diehard core of credulous followers who will believe him regardless of contrary evidence. If Trump says it, it's true. 

 

Trump hates nothing more than losing. In his mind, he's always a winner. So, his narrative is that since he's a winner, ergo, he was going to win. And if he didn't win, the only possible explanation was that the election was rigged and stolen from him. 

 

He will pursue that narrative to the bitter end and leave office still claiming to have won. In the time he has left, he will sow as much discord as he can. Anything not to be a loser. He has denigrated "losers" his whole life, so he can't possibly be one of them.

 

Regardless of results, if Trump claims he really won, his followers will keep on believing him.

 

And since Trump loves being the cynosure and feeling relevant, he will tantalize his supporters with talk of running in 2024. Meantime, any Republican with eyes on the presidency in 2024 knows to avoid upsetting Trump because they've seen his vindictiveness play out numerous times. So, they will supinely parrot his lies about a stolen election. How sad for them — and for our country.

Reginald Killingley

Big Sandy, Texas

I'm Flying the Flag Again!

Those who know me, know that "I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy." My patriotism has always been an important part of who I am as a person.

My roots run deep in the United States of America. I am a descendant of the Cherokee Vann family and have familial ties to Roanoke, Jamestown and Plymouth. I am a descendant of one of the first Africans enslaved in what was then a British colony. I am also a descendant of slave owners and abolitionists. I am also the kinsman of numerous soldiers who have served this country in the Revolutionary War, War of 1812,  Mexican War, Civil War, WWI, WWII and Korea. And I also served honorably in the United States Army during the time of the First Gulf War. Yes "I'm a real live nephew of my Uncle Sam."

This year, for the first time in my life, I didn't attend any Independence Day celebrations. I had always jubilantly joined in the cookouts, fireworks and parades; but I could not bring myself to celebrate a country that I felt was not keeping faith with its institutions and traditions. In fact, I had vowed to myself never to observe the Fourth, display the flag or stand for the nation's anthem again if Donald Trump was reelected! I believed that it would be hypocritical and disingenuous to continue to celebrate a nation which no longer existed.

Fortunately, a strong majority of our people have repudiated Donald Trump and placed the presidency of our republic in the hands of a decent and capable institutionalist. For now, at least, this great experiment in self-government continues. Four years of Trump has done incalculable damage to our institutions and traditions, but he has thankfully been unable to completely destroy them.

I can't even begin to put into words just how good it felt to dig that flag out of the back of the closet and slip it back into its holder on the front of our house. I pray that I will never feel compelled to put it away again. 

The Dawn of a New Day OR More of the Same?

Donald Trump continues to demonstrate on a daily basis that he is unfit to be President of the United States! One has only to scan his Twitter account since election day to see that this is true. On election night, he tweeted: "I will be making a statement tonight. A big WIN!" And, as we all know, neither one of the major party candidates for President was in a position to make such a statement that evening. We all knew that the Coronavirus Pandemic had generated the return of an inordinately large number of mail-in ballots (which Trump had been decrying for months prior, and many states had precluded from being opened and counted until the polls had closed). Hence, we ALL knew (including Trump) that almost all of the initial vote counting would reflect only the totals of the ballots that had been cast on election day! Indeed, as of the writing of this post, election officials are still counting those mail-in votes in MANY states!

Moreover, in the days following the election, Trump has continuously issued tweets demanding that Americans who chose to vote by mail be disenfranchised - that their votes not be counted. On the day after the election, Trump tweeted: "How come every time they count Mail-In ballot dumps they are so devastating in their percentage and power of destruction?" The answer of course was clear to everyone: Democrats (and those who were fearful of exposure to Covid-19) were encouraged to vote by mail, and Republicans were encouraged by their man to vote on election day! Hence, it came as a surprise to NO ONE that mail-in ballots heavily favored the Democratic candidate when they were unsealed and counted (just as election day voting favored the Republican candidate)! A little later, Trump continued his offensive with this tweet: "They are finding Biden votes all over the place — in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan. So bad for our Country!" And this tweet which was blocked by Twitter because it was considered to be so blatantly misleading: "They are working hard to make up 500,000 vote advantage in Pennsylvania disappear — ASAP. Likewise, Michigan and others!" No one was "working hard" to erase his advantage - They were simply counting votes! Later that day, he tweeted: "We are winning Pennsylvania big, but the PA Secretary of State just announced that there are 'Millions of ballots left to be counted.'" In desperation, watching his election day margin disappear, Trump tweeted the following day: "STOP THE COUNT!"

Reading Trump's Twitter thread is like walking through an alternative reality. And, while he is preoccupied with tweeting, his lawyers have been working tirelessly to throw every legal challenge that they can imagine at state election officials to try to influence the outcome of the counting in favor of their boss! Even though observers from both parties have been present throughout the counting of these ballots, they have demanded more Trump supporters and a closer view of the process. In short, they have been throwing everything at the wall and hoping something will stick. Moreover, Trump and his allies look incredulous when anyone has the audacity to accuse them of undermining the integrity of the election process!

Fortunately, as of this writing, the counting of votes continues. It is my sincere hope and prayer that Trump's tantrums and efforts to disrupt that process will continue to fall flat. It appears that Joseph R. Biden is now on track to be confirmed as the 46th President of the United States. In the popular vote, Biden is currently ahead of Trump by 4 million votes! That's quite a margin, but we know that the final tally will probably be even more impressive because of the nature of those mail-in ballots that are currently being counted. In my opinion, Trump has done incalculable damage to this republic and its institutions, and I share his impatience with the counting. Biden's victory can't come soon enough for me! I'm looking forward to the dawn of a new day!  

Another Trump Environmental Disaster in the Making

The Trump Administration has been a disaster for the environment. The Great Orange One has withdrawn the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement, rolled back environmental regulations, encouraged fossil fuel development, reduced the size of national monuments and is now trying to open up the Tongass National Forest to logging!

Check out this article in The Washington Post:

Trump Strips Alaska's Tongass

Among many others, another reason not to support the re-election of this buffoon!

Rudi and Rupert hate being ignored!

In case you haven't heard, Rudi Giuliani passed along a sleazy story about a laptop that supposedly belonged to Hunter Biden to Rupert Murdoch's New York Post. Of course, the entire point of the story was to damage Democratic nominee Joe Biden by linking him to his son's supposedly shady business dealings overseas. The reason you may not have heard about the story is that most social media and all reputable news outlets have completely ignored the story!

At best, it was a clumsy and ham-handed effort to sling some mud. It was definitely a joint effort by the world's greatest conservative media mogul, and the previously highly regarded former mayor of New York. Unfortunately, a great many of the intelligence analysts who have looked at the story have concluded that the genesis of the smear most likely began as another Russian disinformation effort directed at securing the re-election of their favorite president. 

Oh well, I guess we can all be thankful that the story never saw the light of day outside of the self-reinforcing conservative bubble. We can only imagine how much the lack of attention infuriates Rudi, Rupert and The Donald! 

MAGA - Dump Trump!

After four years of extreme polarization and chaos, it's time to turn the page! We've had four years of bullying friends and opponents. We've had four years of a relentless effort to erase the entire legacy of President Obama. We've had four years of working to undermine democratic institutions and sustained attacks on a free press. We've had four years of a foreign policy that has sought to ridicule and harangue longtime allies and embrace strongmen and dictators around the world. We've had four years of stoking/inflaming long simmering racial tensions. We've had four years of governing exclusively for the benefit of RED states and actively pursuing policies to hurt BLUE states. And, finally, we have had ten months of trying to spin a deadly pandemic, and a stubborn refusal to fundamentally address either the health or economic issues which it has generated.

That America is NOT in a good place right now should be self-evident to everyone. I've heard it said that doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity. How do we get out of this dark place that we're obviously in right now? How do we restore some semblance of tranquility and normalcy at home and our reputation as the leader of the free world? In short, how can we make America great again? The answer to me seems obvious: Change our leadership and direction. It's time to dump Trump and try something different!

The New England Journal of Medicine

 Like Scientific American, The New England Journal of Medicine has taken the extraordinary step of weighing-in on the 2020 race for president. The New York Times reported that the unprecedented editorial read: “When it comes to the response to the largest public health crisis of our time, our current political leaders have demonstrated that they are dangerously incompetent. We should not abet them and enable the deaths of thousands more Americans by allowing them to keep their jobs.”

Rebuking Trump

Christians and Trump

Pastor Bill Watson of the Church of God International delivered a sermon on August 15 entitled “Let Your Voice Be Heard.” https://www.cgi.org/weeklysermons?sapurl=LytxNWdtL2xiL21pLytoNXo3NTc1P2VtYmVkPXRydWU=

In his sermon, Mr. Watson made clear who he thinks his congregation should be voting for in November. He said:

Brethren, I’m sounding an alarm. I don’t know whether you would agree with this or not…but I personally believe…we are one election away from losing this country very severely. And, consequently, all I’m saying is we have the power - because there is power in the people’s vote, if indeed you should be so inclined, to do that - because frankly ‘all hands on deck.’ I don’t know how you think about voting…but I will tell you this: you have a voice in our system…And I have just shared with you over the last two weeks what is really going on with this guy <name unintelligible> and his cultural Marxism - and tacticians like Saul Alinsky, who are implementing as field lieutenants, through his book, even while he’s dead - cause he died in 72…And I’ll say this: God will not bless a nation beyond its own vote. We have the record: “Israel you want a king? Take it. I’m not going to cast the tribes out of the country - that was your job to do - to hold the line, to teach your children, to save and to preserve your families, to get back to God”…Israel failed to do it, and what happened to them? They failed as a nation. They went into captivity…And guess what, if we don’t have ‘all hands on deck,’ there’s going to be a lot of good people that are going to have to unnecessarily suffer too. So, what’s my message brethren? My message is very simple: Remember Joshua and Caleb and their courage. Don’t be like the other eleven…learn to appreciate their resolve and their courage. Don’t underestimate the need for resolve and courage. I could spend hours up here showing you even more detail of the tactics that have been used to fool us, to change us, and to melt us down and compromise us…So remember…that God is in your life and by what he’s shown you…And you see God’s done a lot for you – done a lot for me…God’s been good, brethren, good to all of us here in this land of Manasseh. And it’s really important that all of us understand that we’ve got to preserve this country, and we’ve got to act! God is not going to do it for us…Don’t be afraid brethren to make a stand - when making a stand you know is right. You have a choice in the next three months coming up to make a choice for nationalism and populism, if you’re a voter…You have a choice to choose: Are you going to vote nationalistic - a country with borders – policy, policy, policy! OR Are you going to vote for a socialistic government, open borders, reengage into the Globalist agenda…and vote for the socialist party.

This is a good example of the way Christians justify their support for a man who is morally bankrupt.

A Train Wreck!

As the debate between Trump and Biden drew to a close, I turned to Darlene and said "this is a train wreck!" In looking at some of the post debate commentary, I see that many folks had the exact same reaction to the event. Moreover, if anyone was looking for a coherent statement of the differences between the two candidates, they were almost certainly sadly disappointed with what actually transpired. I know that I was!

I was also frankly a little shocked by the performance of the moderator, Chris Wallace. As someone who has admired his performance as a journalist for many years, I was dismayed by his powerlessness in the face of Donald Trump's relentless attacks and blatant disregard for the rules of the debate (ostensibly agreed upon in advance by both campaigns). When it was over, it was clear that Trump had succeeded in demolishing yet another norm of American politics (and can anyone doubt that that is precisely what he wanted to accomplish?).

Frankly, if I were Joe Biden, this would be the one and only debate of this election year - I would NOT do another one. It wasn't just the fact that Trump talked over his opponent and continually interrupted him - It was the fact that the mayhem/chaos prevented American voters from deriving ANY benefit whatsoever from what transpired. In other words, this debate was an exercise in futility. And, after participating in such an event or witnessing such an event, I can't imagine ANYONE (except Trump) wanting a repeat of what happened tonight. In fact, I'm going to predict that the audience for a second debate (if we have one) will be much smaller than this one. What do you think?

1860/2020: On the Brink of Civil War

I have been writing about the dangerous state of affairs that exist within the current political climate in the United States of America. The extremes on both the right and the left have seemingly thrown caution to the wind and have embraced a scorched earth approach to ensuring the triumph of their side. In short, the long simmering culture war is threatening to turn into a full-fledged civil war. Moreover, I'm not the only one who thinks that this is a real possibility.

Salon just published a piece by Chauncey DeVega entitled Disunited States: Could a second Civil War...really happen? The article is based on a new book by Richard Kreitner entitled Break It Up. The piece opens by pointing out how the current occupant of the Oval Office thinks in terms of red and blue states, and how he feels absolutely no obligation to assist blue states. The article then moves on to point out how Trump and Barr have threatened to use the Insurrection Act and charge people with sedition who choose to oppose his "victory" in November.

DeVega relates how Kreitner views the "Age of Trump" as "one of several moments in the country's history where it almost collapsed into a state of civil war and widespread political violence." He continues: "What we are learning as a people in the Age of Trump is that what holds the United States and the constitutional order together is a matter of habit and practice. I would perhaps go so far as to say inertia. The United States has really not been able to agree on institutional arrangements that would make for a stable and unified nation."

As the article makes clear, this unsettled nature of "institutional arrangements" goes all the way back to the founding of the nation. The compromises that the Founding Fathers fashioned in terms of state vs federal power, and popular governance on the federal level vs state control (giving smaller states a larger voice in the Senate), are wearing thin. We are also reminded how righteous extremists provoked the Civil War of 1861-1865, and how the rebels were accommodated and appeased as they were ushered back into the union. In short, there has always been a substantial part of our citizenry who have resisted any diminution of white supremacy within this nation. In other words, some of the same issues that haunted our ancestors are still with us today - never having been entirely resolved by those earlier conflicts.

Finally, when DeVega asked Kreitner about a possible scenario for how the nation might disintegrate into civil war, he pointed to our current circumstances. He concluded: "There is an election that is existential, one of the most important in American history. There are many millions of guns in the United States and lots of discussions by the right wing about using them. The issues that led to the first civil war remain in many ways unresolved. There is a massive reckoning over the country's own history that has been long postponed. Resolving such matters is rarely peaceful. There are also foreign adversaries and other forces who are interfering in the election. All the elements for the story are present right now in America."

The stakes couldn't be higher. Both sides are playing for keeps. The margins for compromise have grown smaller and smaller with each day. The sides have already been chosen. The fuse has been lit; and, unfortunately, I don't see anyone on the scene who is willing and able to defuse it!

Mitch McConnell is a HYPOCRITE!

Whatever your ideology, whatever your stance on Roe v Wade, Mitch McConnell's statement on the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg should be condemned by everyone with an ounce of decency or any sense of fair play. We all recall how the Senate Majority Leader refused to consider Barack Obama's nominee to replace Justice Scalia when he died in February of 2016 - citing the approaching November Presidential election as his reason for doing so. Justice RBG, who also happened to enjoy a close friendship with Scalia, has died less than two months before the 2020 election; but Senator McConnell has already declared that he has no such scruples this time around. If he does succeed in replacing Ginsburg, let's all hope that this is Senator McConnell's final act.

"My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed" - Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Science is on Biden's side!

In a first, the 175 year old magazine Scientific American has endorsed a candidate for President of the United States!  see Scientific American Endorses Joe Biden Citing the now clear evidence that Trump's policies have "badly damaged the U.S. and its people," they have endorsed Democratic nominee Joe Biden for president.

The editors point out that Trump's response to Covid-19 has been "dishonest and inept." They also point to the fact that his administration has discarded many environmental protections and has actively sought to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. In short, they claim that Trump's rejection of science, common sense public health measures and global warming have endangered this republic; and this blogger completely agrees with that assessment.

Moreover, the magazine's editors point to Trump's own record to back up their claims. Their opinion, however, is not based entirely on the very negative nature of Trump's performance on these issues. They go on to cite several key provisions of Biden's plans that would improve the dismal circumstances in which the nation finds itself at present.

The editors conclude: "It's time to move Trump out and elect Biden, who has a record of following the data and being guided by science." I wholeheartedly agree - We desperately need a leader who will be guided by scientific evidence and common sense! 

Big Trouble Ahead?

If the result of the upcoming election is not decisive, it appears to me that our country is headed for big trouble (of the 1860 variety). Trump and his supporters are already laying the groundwork for challenging any result that doesn't make them the winners (with challenges to mail-in voting and charges of voter fraud). Likewise, liberals and Democratic operatives have been screaming about the potential impact of changes implemented by Trump's Postmaster General and ongoing efforts by Russians to help Trump in the election. Add to this assertions by both sides that a win by the other will result in the demise of this republic, and you have a recipe for disaster in November.

That's why I believe we need an old-fashioned landslide this Fall! If you think about it, there has been a significant portion of our electorate who has regarded the last three presidents (Bush 43, Obama and Trump) as being illegitimate. That is NOT a good trend and doesn't bode well for our acceptance of the results of this upcoming election. In such a polarized climate, this may be an exercise in wishful thinking. Nevertheless, for the sake of our country, I'm praying for a decisive result in November. Without it, I fear that we may be approaching a time of trouble that will rival what happened between the 1860 election and the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln.

What kind of country do we want to be?

The last night of the Democratic National Convention underscored the stark contrast between the two men who are running for President of the United States this year. Do we want kindness and compassion or meanness and indifference? Do we want a President who helps someone who stutters, or someone who makes fun of folks who do? Do we want someone who admires and befriends strongmen, or someone who listens to and supports other democratic leaders? Do we want someone who values truth, or someone who is willing to say whatever it takes to win? Do we want someone who is only interested in those who support him, or someone who tries to accommodate those with whom he disagrees?

Whatever one might think of his ideology or policies, it is clear that Joe Biden is a man of character and integrity. It is clear that he is someone who has suffered loss and has refused to wallow in self-pity. It is also apparent that he loves this country and is devoted to public service.

For me, the choice is clear. Those who are familiar with this blog know that I decided long ago that Donald Trump is unfit for the office he currently holds - that I would NOT support his reelection was a forgone conclusion. I am, however, pleasantly surprised that my vote does not have to be negative - it will not be an unpleasant task to vote FOR Joseph R. Biden for President of this republic! And I hope all of you will consider doing the same.

Here We Go Again!

 The Wall Street Journal has published an article about current efforts by foreign actors to interfere in the upcoming 2020 U.S. election. Apparently U.S. intelligence officials have determined that Russia, China and Iran are all actively working to influence American voters ahead of the November election. See the article here: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/russia-working-to-damage-biden-s-white-house-bid-spy-agencies-say/ar-BB17HAvg?ocid=msedgntp

Their reporting is confirmed by the Director of The National Counterintelligence and Security Center, William Evanina. In a statement on their website, he wrote:

"China is expanding its influence efforts to shape the policy environment in the United States, pressure political figures it views as opposed to China’s interests, and counter criticism of China. Beijing recognizes its efforts might affect the presidential race.

Russia’s persistent objective is to weaken the United States and diminish our global role. Using a range of efforts, including internet trolls and other proxies, Russia continues to spread disinformation in the U.S. that is designed to undermine confidence in our democratic process and denigrate what it sees as an anti-Russia 'establishment' in America.

Iran seeks to undermine U.S. democratic institutions and divide the country in advance of the elections. Iran’s efforts center around online influence, such as spreading disinformation on social media and recirculating anti-U.S. content."

See his full statement here: https://www.dni.gov/index.php/ncsc-newsroom/item/2136-statement-by-ncsc-director-william-evanina-100-days-until-election-2020

In short, here we go again! Let's hope Russia isn't as successful this time as they were in 2016! Hopefully, a Biden Administration will take a more active role in fighting back against these attempts.

 

FACT CHECK: Trump has NOT done more for blacks than Abraham Lincoln or John Lewis!

Donald Trump says "Nobody has done more for black Americans than I have." He makes this claim because of black employment statistics during his administration prior to the economic downturn resulting from the pandemic.

For the sake of argument, let's give Trump credit for creating those jobs. Abraham Lincoln emancipated the slaves and made black Americans citizens of these United States. John Lewis was one of the primary figures in the Civil Rights Movement and worked tirelessly to ensure that black Americans had a voice at the ballot box. Hmmmm, in the grand sweep of history, three years of job creation doesn't seem like much compared to those achievements. What do you think?

You Don't Have To Take Dr Fauci's Word For It!

Trump recently shared a video of several doctors endorsing hydroxychloroquine as a treatment/cure for Covid-19. And, as he has done on numerous occasions, Dr. Anthony Fauci again pointed out that this drug is not efficacious in the treatment of this virus.

For those who reflexively dismiss anything that the good doctor says, I thought it would be instructive to share a few words from one of my daughters' good friends who happens to also be a nurse. When the virus threatened to overwhelm New York, she volunteered to travel there from Alabama and work for several weeks with Covid patients. What follows is her report about her experience:

"The STAPLE treatment when I was in NYC was hydrochloroquine and Zithromax. I treated every patient with the appropriate dose of those medications and on my entire unit, only saw ONE PATIENT able to be extubated and get better. So, if this is the cure, why didn’t it work? Why did so many people die? Because I can tell you from experience that those medications are exactly what we were using to treat at that time. The video they put out is massively irresponsible.

You guys can absolutely quote me on this issue. I was there. I administered all those medications and saw almost all of my patients get worse or die. The doctors in the video are seriously misrepresenting actual treatments and are adding fuel to the fire of this being a political issue instead of a human issue. It’s disheartening and frustrating as a nurse who’s worked with these patients, and is currently working with these patients, to work yourselves to death to try and treat this virus and be told “the cure has been here all along” when it hasn’t worked and isn’t working. WE DID HCQ AND ZITHROMAX TO NO AVAIL. I’m not saying that they can’t help, but to be listed as the cure? Go to someone else with your lies. Go to someone who didn’t FaceTime families to say goodbye to their loved ones after administering this “cure”. Go to someone who didn’t have to help load body bags after administering this “cure”. Go to someone who didn’t actively treat people and watch them die over and over and over again with this “cure”. It’s the most harmful and hurtful thing to have ever heard as a nurse who administered this “cure” to hundreds of people and then watched them die.

On a positive note, I am seeing better results with remdesivir. We have been treating people at our hospital with this and seen many become better afterwards. I’m not saying that’s the cure, because I am just a nurse, however I am saying that my coworkers and patients who have gotten COVID have had good results after this treatment. There is always hope. We are doing everything we can. We are working tirelessly to help stop the spread and death rate. My patients are so loved by me and my staff, and we are trying."

Trump Rewards Stone's Loyalty

In his final comment on the post preceding this one, nck wrote: "Does Roger Stone's release signal Trumps commitment to 'law and order', or does it serve his commitment to show that indeed the system is rigged?"

The Trump White House issued the following statement on the subject: "Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Grant of Clemency commuting the unjust sentence of Roger Stone, Jr.

Roger Stone is a victim of the Russia Hoax that the Left and its allies in the media perpetuated for years in an attempt to undermine the Trump Presidency.  There was never any collusion between the Trump Campaign, or the Trump Administration, with Russia.  Such collusion was never anything other than a fantasy of partisans unable to accept the result of the 2016 election.  The collusion delusion spawned endless and farcical investigations, conducted at great taxpayer expense, looking for evidence that did not exist.  As it became clear that these witch hunts would never bear fruit, the Special Counsel’s Office resorted to process-based charges leveled at high-profile people in an attempt to manufacture the false impression of criminality lurking below the surface.  These charges were the product of recklessness borne of frustration and malice." see the full statement here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/statement-press-secretary-regarding-executive-grant-clemency-roger-stone-jr/

In other words, Roger Stone supported and perpetuated Donald Trump's narrative on Russian interference in the 2016 election. To be clear, U.S. intelligence has conclusively confirmed that Putin's Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election in support of its favorite candidate, Donald J. Trump. Moreover, Mueller's investigation confirmed that Trump and his allies welcomed and encouraged that interference. The investigation failed to demonstrate that the Trump campaign's activities rose to the level of collusion as defined by statutory law. And, the Mueller investigation demonstrated that Trump and his allies had actively sought to obstruct the investigation (which his Attorney General declined to pursue or turn over to Congress).

Hence, Trump's commutation of Stone's sentence (characterized by that same Attorney General as being fair) is a continuation of his efforts to obstruct justice and reward those who have aided/assisted him in that endeavor. The White House statement even noted that Roger Stone "is also well known for his outspoken support for President Donald J. Trump and opposition to Hillary Clinton." While the Mueller investigation was still ongoing, Trump signaled that he would reward those who remained loyal to him. Like most mob bosses, Trump demands absolute loyalty and silence from his minions. He abhors, excoriates and seeks vengeance on all who cross him and takes care of those who have to take one for the boss. 

Trump doesn't understand American history!

In an event at Mount Rushmore that was purportedly designed to celebrate Independence Day, Donald Trump accused liberals of trying to tear down America and erase its history. For him and many of his followers, the left is trying to rewrite history and destroy the greatest nation on the face of the earth. For Donald Trump, the history of the United States is a story of continuous success and goodness and should be a source of pride for every patriotic, red-blooded American.

In his speech at the monument, Trump declared: "Our nation is witnessing a merciless campaign to wipe out our history, defame our heroes, erase our values, and indoctrinate our children. Angry mobs are trying to tear down statues of our founders, deface our most sacred memorials, and unleash a wave of violent crime in our cities. Many of these people have no idea why they’re doing this, but some know what they are doing. They think the American people are weak and soft and submissive, but no, the American people are strong and proud and they will not allow our country and all of its values, history, and culture to be taken from them." (see citation at the end of this post for transcript source)

He continued: "Make no mistake. This left-wing cultural revolution is designed to overthrow the American Revolution. In so doing they would destroy the very civilization that rescued billions from poverty, disease, violence, and hunger, and that lifted humanity to new heights of achievement, discovery, and progress. To make this possible, they are determined to tear down every statue, symbol, and memory of our national heritage." (see citation at the end of this post for transcript source)

Unfortunately, Trump's statements reflect a fundamentally flawed understanding of American history and the folks who are protesting. As with all things human, America is a mix of good and bad. The truth is that there is much to be proud of in America's story, but there is also much to regret about America's past.

Yes, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were great and brilliant men, but they also owned large numbers of their fellow humans and forced them to toil on their plantations. Yes, our founding fathers were influenced by Judeo-Christian principles, but they were also children of the Enlightenment. Yes, the story of westward expansion is one of hard work and heroism, but it is also one of exploitation, murder and theft. Yes, the United States has been an economic success story, but that success was built in part on the use of slave labor and the destruction of our natural environment. Yes, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson were great generals, but they were also traitors to the United States of America. Yes, the emancipation of the slaves is a glorious chapter in our history, but Jim Crow and lynching are also a part of that story. Yes, the 1950's were a golden age for many white Americans, but they weren't so great for many people of color.

The vast majority of the protesters do not want to destroy our values, history and culture. Most of them simply want to extend the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to all Americans. They simply want to ensure that everyone is treated equally before the law. They want to make sure that the telling of our history includes the unpleasant truths that have so often been ignored in times past. They want Trump and his followers to understand that they too are an integral part of American culture - that tacos and pizza are just as American as hamburgers and apple pie!

Transcript Source: https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/donald-trump-speech-transcript-at-mount-rushmore-4th-of-july-event

Unfortunately, we're not all in this together!

The Trump Administration has quietly and effectively been shifting gears over the last few weeks. Trump continues to pay lip service to the medical experts and is even willing to occasionally acknowledge that social distancing has prevented a greater loss of life. Nevertheless, it appears that he has decided that he hasn't got a chance of being reelected if the pandemic induced economic downturn continues. Trump has concluded that the only viable option available to him is to reopen the economy as soon as possible and hope that it recovers sufficiently in time for the election in November.

Even as his administration was rolling out a reasonable outline for reopening the economy, Trump was tweeting support for protests against stay-at-home orders by many of the nation's governors. Since then, he has also given his support to governors (like Georgia Governor Kemp) who have announced plans to reopen their states - plans that do not follow the standard laid out in his own administration's guidelines! Moreover, his so called "Attorney General" William Barr has announced that the Justice Department will likely join challenges to stay-at-home orders in the courts.

At first, Trump claimed he had the authority to reopen the economy on his own. When that blew up, he acknowledged that the individual governors had the authority to reopen their states, and then he quietly set about the task of putting pressure on them to do just that. The strategy appears to be - shift the blame for the economic meltdown to these governors and their stay-at-home orders and force them to abandon the restrictions that they've put in place to protect their citizens.

How can he put people's lives at risk and open the country up to a second wave of the virus? By claiming that the damage to the economy has put more lives and livelihoods at risk than the virus itself! We begin to see the outlines of this hateful and cynical mantra taking shape: We must risk losing a few lives for the greater good! This is social Darwinism at its "finest" - the weak and vulnerable must give way to the strong and invincible! And, when the death toll climbs, they will dismiss it as the cost of survival.

It is my fervent hope that the majority of folks will not fall for this crap, but none of us should be under any illusion that we are all in this together. It is now clear that some of us have opted out of the crusade against Covid-19!

Don't Give These Folks A Pass!

I've heard it from family members and friends who are Trump supporters: "I'm tired of social distancing and sheltering in place!" and "Why ruin the economy for the sake of a virus with a two percent mortality rate?" and "This is just a plot to ruin Trump, the U.S. economy or both!" Apparently, my circle of Trumpists are not unique in this regard. The Daily Beast published an article entitled "Trumpists Urging People to Leave Their Homes to Own the Libs."

Will Sommer, Erin Banco and Sam Stein wrote: "A protest movement is taking hold targeting states that have extended social-distancing rules, closed schools and restricted access to large religious gatherings. And it’s being fed by loyalists and political allies of President Donald Trump." They continued: "The tension has prompted Republican lawmakers and supporters of the president to publicly call for Americans to defy their local orders, claiming they infringe on constitutional rights."

So much for community spirit and self-sacrifice for the sake of the weak and vulnerable! And make no mistake, this isn't about constitutional rights - what about the rights of the elderly and  immunocompromised folks who live among us? Isn't LIFE one of the fundamental rights referenced in our Declaration of Independence? Are we going to throw out the entire history of the Twentieth Century and say that our government doesn't have any interest in protecting the health of its citizens? Are we going to exalt economic prosperity over human life?

The popular CBS program Sunday Morning recently had a piece featuring Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks, both of whom lived through the Great Depression and served during World War II - members of the Greatest Generation. In addition to the comic relief they provided, their advice to all of us recalled their own lifetime experiences - If we keep our heads down and do what we're supposed to do, we'll get through this. Sounds like good advice from representatives of a generation that is universally respected.

My take away - we cannot let these rebels win! We must not allow those who would sabotage our collective efforts to halt the spread of this virus to succeed. Those of us who do still believe in community spirit and self-sacrifice must point out the selfish, careless and reckless actions and rhetoric of these mean-spirited people (especially the ones we love). Don't go along to get along and don't give them a pass on this one!   

Donald Trump on Coronavirus

I'm listening to Trump's daily briefing on the Coronavirus and am sick at my stomach. Virtually all of his comments are along the lines of look what we've done and look what we're doing. He simply cannot refrain from making this all about him. He predicted that looking back on this sometime in the future we'll be very proud of the job that we did.

And, although he managed to say nice things about the way that three Democratic governors have handled the crisis (New York, New Jersey and Washington), he couldn't help himself from taking a swipe at the Governor of Illinois. As a citizen of the state, I can say that we are very well satisfied with the response of Governor J.B. Pritzker. He took decisive action early and has worked tirelessly to contain the virus in our state.

With people beginning to talk about the Trump Administration's late start and the chaotic and decentralized way that things have been handled, he's working overtime to rewrite the story. The economic fallout from shutting down the economy has got him running scared - not because he cares about our nation, but because it could jeopardize his chances for reelection.

Hide and watch. I predict that Trump will crow from the White House rooftop about the success of his Administration's efforts if the death toll turns out to be anything less than 100,000. And it will make no difference to him or his supporters if our country's statistics are among the worst in the world, he will only be interested in the fact that he has beat the projections. Likewise, if the death toll falls anywhere within those projections, he will talk about the lives HE saved. He will declare success! In short, there is virtually no outcome possible where he will not say that he and his Administration have done anything less than a stellar job in their handling of this crisis. He will give himself the traditional A+ rating, and there won't be any admission that any mistakes were made.

I continue to applaud the efforts of our nation's health care workers and governors. Most of our people and businesses have rallied to contain this virus. There is much to swell our hearts and take pride in during these trying times - the performance of the current occupant of the Oval Office is NOT one of them!

History Repeating Itself?

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." -- George Santayana

Professor Timothy Joseph's article, "Trump's Impeachment Is Just Like The Fall of The Roman Empire," which appeared here: https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/trumps-impeachment-just-fall-roman-empire-121346 is a sobering read for anyone concerned about the fate of the United States of America.

He wrote: "The Republican senators’ speedy exoneration of Trump marks perhaps the most dramatic step in their capitulation to the president over the past three years.

That process, as I wrote in The Conversation last fall, recalls the ancient Roman senate’s compliance with the autocratic rule of the emperors and its transformation into a body largely reliant on the emperors’ whims.

Along with the senatorial fealty that was again on display, there was another development that links the era of the Roman Republic’s transformation into an autocratic state with the ongoing political developments in the United States. It’s a development that may point to where the country is headed.

Trump’s lawyers argued that the president’s personal position is inseparable from that of the nation itself. This is similar to the notion that took hold during the ascendancy of the man known as Rome’s first emperor, Augustus, who was in power from 31 B.C. to A.D. 14.

Trump defense attorney Alan Dershowitz asserted that “abuse of power” by the president is not an impeachable offense. A central part of Dershowitz’s argument was that “every public official that I know believes that his election is in the public interest” and that “if a president does something which he believes will help him get elected in the public interest, that cannot be the kind of quid pro quo that results in impeachment.”

This inability to separate the personal interests of a leader from the interests of the country he or she leads has powerful echoes in ancient Rome.

There, no formal change from a republican system to an autocratic system ever occurred. Rather, there was an erosion of the republican institutions, a steady creep over decades of authoritarian decision-making, and the consolidation of power within one individual – all with the name “Republic” preserved."

This should scare the hell out of every true patriot!

A Courageous Patriot

How far my former political party has fallen! Only one out of fifty-three Republican senators with the courage to convict this lawless man who has hijacked the party of Lincoln! And, not just any Republican senator, the man who was their nominee for president in 2012 - the senator from Utah, Mitt Romney. After enduring a relentless and ruthless effort to ensure that he remain a "team player," he decided that the oath which he took before God to do impartial justice and protect the Constitution of the United States superseded any obligation he had to person or party. Well done senator, if I were a Utah voter, I would vote to reelect you to office.

In his remarks before the United States Senate, Romney said:

"The defense <Trump's legal team> argues that the Senate should leave the impeachment decision to the voters. While that logic is appealing to our democratic instincts, it is inconsistent with the Constitution’s requirement that the Senate, not the voters, try the president. Hamilton explained that the Founders’ decision to invest senators with this obligation rather than leave it to voters was
intended to minimize—to the extent possible—the partisan sentiments of the public.
This verdict is ours to render. The people will judge us for how well and faithfully we fulfilled our
duty. The grave question the Constitution tasks senators to answer is whether the President
committed an act so extreme and egregious that it rises to the level of a 'high crime and
misdemeanor.'
Yes, he did.
The President asked a foreign government to investigate his political rival.
The President withheld vital military funds from that government to press it to do so.
The President delayed funds for an American ally at war with Russian invaders.
The President’s purpose was personal and political.
Accordingly, the President is guilty of an appalling abuse of the public trust.
What he did was not 'perfect'— No, it was a flagrant assault on our electoral rights, our national
security interests, and our fundamental values. Corrupting an election to keep oneself in office is
perhaps the most abusive and destructive violation of one’s oath of office that I can imagine."

A full transcript of his remarks is available here:
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry/full-text-romney-s-speech-why-he-ll-vote-convict-n1130936

Trump's Dystopian America

For those who are unfamiliar with my background, a brief summation is in order for the purposes of this post. I am a Christian, patriot and family man. I served as an infantryman in the U.S. Army for over two years and was honorably discharged at the conclusion of my enlistment. I have been a student of the history and politics of the United States for all of my life (my degree majors were history and political science). Recently, I authored a book (An American Family Bible) on my family's role in the history of the United States covering the period 1585-1987. Formerly, I was a registered Republican for many years, but I have been an independent and unaffiliated voter in more recent years. I have always flown the flag, recited the pledge of allegiance and enthusiastically celebrated Independence Day. And I used to enjoy watching episodes of The Apprentice on NBC.

Nevertheless, as past posts on this blog have indicated, I have been dismayed by developments of the last four years - the election and subsequent presidency of "the Donald." In just four short years, this man has succeeded in undermining my faith in the institutions and country which I have faithfully served and revered for my entire life. He has taken a divided country and erected an impenetrable barrier between the two sides. He has actively sought to undermine public confidence in the rule of law, the separation of powers, freedom of the press and U.S. intelligence gathering. He has also reshaped the once mighty Republican Party into a personality cult devoted to himself. However, I believe the most damning way in which he has undermined our republic is in the realm of the confidence we formerly enjoyed in the results of our elections.

By inviting foreign interference in the 2016 election and soliciting foreign interference in the 2020 election, he has called into question not only the legitimacy of his own presidency - but our ability to have any confidence that the results of all future elections will be the real verdict of the American people. Moreover, it appears that he has been completely successful in thwarting any efforts by the press or the U.S. Congress to put a stop to his cheating!

After successfully stonewalling the House impeachment inquiry (not producing a single witness or document subpoenaed by that body), he has succeeded in bullying all but two Republican senators into joining him in covering up his misdeeds. At the end of last week, the U.S. Senate voted 51-49 not to call any witnesses or subpoena any documents in the President's trial before that body. They did this knowing that John Bolton and others could provide incriminating or exculpatory evidence in Trump's trial - it simply didn't matter (Moreover, even when Bolton's book finally comes out, Trump has succeeded in completely destroying the credibility of a man who was formerly widely regarded within conservative and Republican circles). The paramount objective of my former party's senators was ending the trial and preventing Trump's removal from office! During the trial, Trump's defense team argued that the President is allowed to stonewall to protect executive privilege and can do anything to get himself reelected because he believes it to be in the national interest that he continue to be president!

Think about the implications of these assertions being allowed to stand - think about what these precedents mean for presidential power going forward. If the president cannot be indicted for crimes and can thwart any investigations into his wrongdoing and cannot be impeached and removed from office for abuse of power, then we no longer have a president - we have a king or dictator. The only check left on a rogue chief executive would be an election, uh-oh!

Add to all of this the fact that the American electorate has already elected this man once and at least half of them don't want to see him removed from office and there won't be any meaningful restraints on foreign interference in the upcoming election, and the prospects for Trump's reelection don't seem as remote as one might hope. Hence, I believe if Trump is reelected the game is up. American democracy will be a thing of the past - a story for the history books. The nation that I have served, loved and defended for all of my life will no longer exist! Hence, I may have to reevaluate my attachment to Independence Day celebrations and patriotism if the objects of my devotion no longer exist!