I have written (a lot) about the democratic system here in Aus, vs the democratic system of the USA, and the system of the Solomon Islands. There are numerous differences.
My favourite variance is the fact that it is illegal to NOT v vote here in Aus. “…under federal electoral law, it is compulsory for all eligible Australian citizens to enrol and vote in federal elections, by-elections and referendums.” https://www.aec.gov.au/faqs/
This morning I have been in a conversation with a good, smart, well read, old compadre. We were talking for about an hour yesterday. My dear old friend suffers severe Trump Derangement Syndrome. I fear it may be terminal with him.
Most of our conversation was a laundry list of complaints about “Fucking Trump”, “fucking idiots in Congress”, “fucking useless electoral system”, and more… on and on. A long and drawn out verbal diarrhea session where all the ills and all the wrongs and all that is bad and uncool is because of… Trump, fucking Trump, the fucking system, the fucking secretaries, the fucking system…
Of course there is little introspection, critical thought given to much that isn’t a slogan or a bumper sticker or a meme… I could almost hear the sad, loser liberal media in his words.
I very much enjoy conversations like this. I like listening to what folks think. I like trying to understand their angst. I often end up working as a therapist. There is so much anger and aggression and misinformation. I like being the centrist. Because I dont like Trump and I dont like the other side I dont have a position to defend. I can talk about his position, working to discuss and direct and research the foundational facts, required, aiming to help alleviate the misinformation and mental illness that is part and parcel of TDS…
Like the US Electoral College. My friend simply does not understand it. Historical or contextually.
According to my friend California should be allowed to decide who is in charge. They have the largest economy, the largest population, pay the most taxes in the US so…
He points to the system where Congressional districts are defined by population yet each state is only given 2 Senatorial seats. California should have 52 congressmen and 52 Senators. Wyoming should only get 1 of each. According to my friend.
I sent couple visuals to help our conversation…
From a blue v red perspective, from a DNC v RNC perspective, this shows the 2024 electoral college results. Without the electoral college the heavily populated, heavily liberal, very elite coastal states would forever control the highest offices.
Here we can see congressional districts and electoral college votes per state…
I like this visual because it shows us the changes afoot… six states lost population/ congressional seats. six states gained population/ congressional seats.
So I end up with my electoral system for dumbasses v2.0.
Without the forethoughtful and original thought process of the founding framers of the US system I believe the elite would rule us all.
And the day continues in its soft, cozy, comfortable manner.
Still early, still chilly, still wrapped in a granny-blanket waiting for blood sports to start. It is a calm and sunny morning. After all the rain the sun feels good.
Steam rising from damp dog rugs makes a nice visual…
With April passing and May arriving we should -SHOULD- be heading into some dry weather. Could use some dry weather.
Here is recorded rainfall for April:
ALL up, I count in excess of 400mm/ 16inches/ almost half a meter of wet… in the last 27 days…
I was talking to a good friend living in Adelaide, South Australia… he said hey have not had 10mm/ half an inch of rain since late last year. Which is worse? Drought or flood?
My neighbour came to talk yesterday. He recently installed a new septic system. He’s a do-it yourself kinda guy, borrowed my tractor to back fill the hole. Yesterday he said the plastic tank he’d installed had “popped out of the ground”. The tank being pretty much empty, the heavy rains of the last couple days filled the hole with water, and the tank floated up and out. He has a big hassle to contend with. Thats the problem with do-it yourself.
A side note: I have seen tanks buried in the ground float up and out. I have seen a cement swimming pool pop out. Never a positive.
Being “rural”, living “country” one must learn to be rather self sufficient. You cant always choose to put things off. A water-line leak, a fence down, live stock, weeds, pests, snakes and rodents all turn a do-it-yourself guy into a farmer. My neighbour is new at farming but he’s got all the skills required to be a good one.
Speaking of snakes… I have posted this but it is worthy of a monthly round up…
I am cleaning in my much neglected workshop. This shop is my “dirty” shop where I cut and work wood. Maintain and store machines and tools. Stack and store all the paints and herbicides and insecticides a farmer needs. I have spools of fencing wire, ropes, plumbing fittings, cables, cords and fence posts galore. Piles of old wood I’ve harvested from the floods. Barrels and buckets and tables and benches… all covered in a thick detritus of dust, rat shit, toad turds, and snake skins.
I found a small skin on the floor just a couple weeks ago. Nothing really new. Every once in a while I’ll hear/ find a snake behind a pile of plywood or under a neglected tarp. Most common is that the snakes run n hide and stay away, if you make enough noise. Or such is the theory…
I have yet to really come face to face with a poisonous snake.
… Cleaning a corner of my shed that has not been cleaned for quite some time… I have a small table set up where all my chargers and batteries live. I’ve been pushing stuff under and around the table for a long time… a couple unused wheels, a incomplete steel table, a couple spools of stainless cable, a pile of rope…
I am down on a knee, fishing stuff out from under the table, when I see it…
I jumped and screamed…. eeeee…. before I realised what I was looking at…
Life is good when you know your old heart can take such a jolt.
Another wet, wet, wet day/ night… Ive not yet gone outside to check the rain gauge. I am guessing when I say we got the better part of 70mm/ 3inch in the last 24hours. Things are wet.
Im still happily wrapped up in a granny-blanket. I’ll wait a bit before I get moving, active, productive. No sunshine today. I’ll head to my workshop and carve on my sticks… Wood, not War…
I see things, as I wander and read, that make me scratch my head in wonder… I wonder why folks dont turn their brains on, use their mental capacity to be aware, to puzzle simple things out…
This post got my attention:
I very much understand the misguided intent behind the words. It does not have to be factual, make sense or even add up, if we’re attacking the nasty orange devil man.
I “saw” this without really thinking about it, giving it much thought, but my dyslexic mind fixated on the numbers… My mind knows that 3million divided by 10thousand is 3hundred… 3,000,000 / 10,000 =300. I dont have to think about it, I do mental arithmetic and by simply dropping the zeros the answer of “300” pops up without much thought power. I can see the answer without framing the equation. I am dyslexic.
So, a smart, worthy, experienced old friend posts this meme… the meme states that “1 golf trip for 1 old man” can feed over 10,000 elderly, in need citizens… and no one does the math. That simple. We just go along with something utterly and blatantly wrong. Because we dont turn our brains on? Because we have been dumbed-down? Maybe we forgot where the on-switch is? If we believe that $300.00 can feed a person for a year.
Saddens me greatly.
I have one old and dear friend from my childhood that suffers from Alzheimer’s. We talk about our shared past. He says I help him not lose all his memories. This guy is Phd level genius. A magnificent musician. He does amazing things developing bionic prosthetics. But he has little memory. It is hard, sad, trying to be so, so smart, and not remember your wife.
My point: This intentional dumbing down, accepting stupid bullshit, reposting and propagating the sheer ignorance of it all… Its sadder than my old buddy that has an organic reason for his mental losses.
But this aint the USofA. Voting here is very well organised, and yes, you need an ID. It’s easy, they know who you are, once you are on the list. Technically it’s illegal to NOT vote here In Australia. You fail to vote you get fined 55bucks. They do know who you are here in Aus.
I know a number of people that have forgotten or neglected to register to vote. They dont appear to suffer from their law breaking.
When I became an Aussie citizen I was given a pretty impressive info pack that led me through the labyrinth of services, registrations, benefits and more. I have a Medicare card. The medical benefits are worthy. I have a senior citizen card that gets me discounts on my car insurance, but little else than cheap hair cuts and discount coffee.
For folks that are of a mono-democratic mindset, here in Aus we have a parliamentary system within a preferential voting system. Nothing like the USA or the Solomons. Both run a “first past the post” electoral system. He with the mostest votes at the end of counting wins… no matter that a single constituency with only 5000 electors, running 10 nominees can elect a “winner” with only 501/ 10+% of the vote.
Here in Aus you must “preference” your votes… 1 for your favourite, 2 for the next choice, and so on… my constituency had 8 candidates. I had to number each.
If my #1vote does not get enough votes in the first counting, my preference #2vote gets my vote… and so on, until a winner emerges with a clear majority.
And such it is…
I am casting my vote early and by mail:
Last thought: I simply do not understand why the USA does not adopt a clear, transparent and functional electoral system.
I grew up Catholic. Very Catholic. Easter, Easter Sunday, and the extra goodies, only came after the 40days of Lent. Good Catholics took pride in not-doing-with during Lent… not doing with sweets, or dessert. or movies on Saturdays. Lent for a kid raised Catholic was kinda bleak.
Easter was good, worth looking forward to, but before Easter, being Catholic, we had all sorts of time consuming and self deprecating customs… The Stations Of The Cross… who remembers that one. How many times can you say the Rosary in a single day? It was called “Holy Week” and we said the rosary a whole bunch before Easter Sunday. We “did” the stations of the cross a lot during Holy Week.
The Stations of the Cross are a 14-step Catholic devotion that commemorates Jesus Christ’s last day on Earth as a man. The 14 devotions, or stations, focus on specific events of His last day, beginning with His condemnation. The stations are commonly used as a mini pilgrimage as the individual moves from station to station. At each station, the individual recalls and meditates on a specific event from Christ’s last day. Specific prayers are recited, then the individual moves to the next station until all 14 are complete. The Stations of the Cross are commonly found in churches as a series of 14 small icons or images. They can also appear in church yards arranged along paths. The stations are most commonly prayed during Lent on Wednesdays and Fridays, and especially on Good Friday, the day of the year upon which the events actually occurred.
I am sitting in golden sunshine. The air is cool. Calmness pervades. My sperm-bank, Dandy, snoozes by the door. A scent of a breeze from the north. Wind chimes waiver silently. My bitches all snooze in their kennels, waiting feeding-time.
I revel in my memory, remembering is good…
Easter, being the end of Lent, would mean a grand feast, after Easter-Mass. There’d be a Priest or two, A couple or three Nuns, friends and Family. Mom would have been cooking and fix’n for days. The table laden with fresh, good “Vittles”. Lots of good Mom’s-home-made sweets. My favourite was the greek sugar cookies, kourabietes… https://souvlakiforthesoul.com/koulouria/
My mom was raised Orthodox, so we got both Catholic and Greek Easters. Both were good.
I’m watching the planet. Viewing the globe through my rose colored glasses. Ruminating upon matters big and small… and I must admit to being a bit confused, perplexed, bewildered…
The civil war in the Democratic Party ratcheted up another notch as a group founded by Democratic National Committee (DNC) Vice Chair David Hogg said it plans to spend millions to unseat Democratic incumbents it believes aren’t pushing back hard enough on President Donald Trump.
I hear him saying that the old farts gotta go. That the moderates gotta go. That the DNC has to move to the left, become more progressive, more militant… ??? …
* Democrats’ anger boiled over in private this week, with several venting that Hogg is putting his own interests above those of the party. * “I think this is a mistake,” said a second House Democrat who spoke anonymously. “Now, are people pissed? … I don’t know a single person who is happy about it.” * A third told Axios it “seems inappropriate for a DNC vice chair to threaten sitting Dems.” * A fourth said they are “totally dumbfounded” that “instead of focusing on [winning], we’re focusing inward in a circular firing squad.” * Yes, but: Some lawmakers, particularly progressives, are defending his plan, arguing that the party needs an effective core in order to appeal to voters. * “He makes some good points. We do have some ranking members who should step aside,” said Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), * McGovern, the ranking member of the House Rules Committee, added that Democrats also “have some long term members who are terrific.” * A fifth House Democrat who spoke anonymously said Democrats “should have the most effective members right now. Competition is not a bad thing,” though they argued age shouldn’t be the only criteria.
AOC and Bernie are flying around in a private jet, lecturing people about socialism… I wonder if they are paying attention?
Yep, I think I agree with Newsweek… I see a DNC Civil War brewing.
Following my “perplexed” post I received comments from respected friends commenting per “Trump’s trashing of the share markets”.
It’s a worthy discussion. One I’ll look at herein, BUT…. BUUUTTTT… my “perplexed” post dealt specifically with the “hands off” protests. I was/ am perplexed per what was being “protested”. I have a friend who posted over 50 picts of signs and banners from the protest he attended on the West Coast. I dont think there is a single issue, subject, topic that was not covered. Nor was there a single explicative, swear word that wasn’t proudly brandished about.
Remembering that the protests, as I am told, were beautiful…
So, leaving the protests, I shall discuss the stock markets…
In 2016 the stock market(s) caught a chill…
What happened in 2016 finance? Several events impacted the world economy in 2016. World markets witnessed a crash after China’s steep fall in stock markets in January 2016. An increasingly interconnecting world makes countries vulnerable to events in others.26 Dec 2016
At that time I had a fair amount of my wealth invested in a “portfolio”. The market(s) started coughing in late 2015. By January 2016 I’d lost 5% of my portfolio. It took me a couple weeks to get my “brokers” to give me my money back. To de-invest. It was a mess. When you want to invest they love you. When you say “I’m done” they dont want to hear from you. Or talk to you.
Here’s an email from that time…
Nicole, Just checking in and adding a bit more info… Balance at 23 October 2015 = 2137526.49, balance as of today = 2086339.94. Not pretty. Will feel better once I get this slide stopped.
Funny thing about this account… It took ages to get my $2mil original investment returned. My 2mil had grown up to 2.15mil but when liquidated I got less than 2.05mil. About a year later I received a credit of $50,000 from the fund management firm. They’d short changed me. The regulators eventually caught it and fined them. Forced them to pay me out.
So, The Trump trashing of the markets… Its not pretty: How many trillions has the stock market lost?The sell-off that began on Thursday has intensified, wiping trillions of dollars from global share prices, after US president Donald Trump announced new tariffs. Bloomberg have calculated that around $9.5tn (£7.39tn) has been wiped off global share prices since the US announced new trade levies.
Sounds terrible. And I dont want to down play anyone’s losses. Losses are indeed real… But, in 2015 when I started “losing” money, I knew I’d only invested $2mil in my portfolio. My value had increased over a number of years to around $2.15mil. I’d increased my wealth by about 7%. Then I lost about 5% of what I’d made. When I cashed my portfolio out I accepted a decrease of my “return on investment”. I was penalised, charged extra, raped, noting I never really ever lost anything. I got my $2mil back, but instead of a 7% ROI, I got maybe 3%. Maybe.
If I had left my investment alone, the increases between 2016 and 2025 would have seen me thinking I was clever, happy that I’d made such wise investments.
The long and the short: I didnt lose a dime. But I’d wasted time and wasn’t happy and decided there and then that I’d stay clear of the share market and invest my wealth, my future in tangibles, brick and mortar, LAND!
And I did.
I still do.
So, acknowledging that the crashing of the share market is terrible, huge, important… I am only indirectly affected. I’m not smart enough to play the share markets.
For those folks that are involved in the market(s)… The old rule of thumb is “ride hit out”. Most folks won’t lose anything from their principle. Stick it out, trends show us the markets will come back.
The other rule of thumb is “buy while prices are low”. If you are an investor, the market is running a fire sale.
Wishing every one all the best in these confusing times.
Ive been driving a lot today. Thinking a lot. Listening to the half hourly news…
I decided I needed help to figure out what is what in the USofA. I watched the recent anger, the recent protests, the recent angst. What I see confuses me a whole bunch.
So I decided to ask for some help, some advice. I asked two people I know well, respect a lot and who had each attended one of the many “protests” held over the week end. It was titled/ advertised as the “hands off” protest. The following is what I sent…
Hey there… need some help if I may…
As an outsider looking in, I am confused by what I see in the USA.
I understand the polarised nature of the US society… sadly most of the world is split along a 50/50 line. No matter what the question, 50% say yea, 50% say nay.Influences and preferences sway left and right.
Ive lived “overseas” since January 1981. I now hold 3 passports. I have only ever voted in one country, Australia. It’s illegal not to vote here.
So, I’m not the most political creature, but I am a long time commentator. And a very conservative businessman. I started a business in the Solomons in the 80s, my son and daughter run it today. I have a business here in Australia. I am well versed on taxes, liabilities, trade, commercial finance, etc, etc. As a businessman I have never seen a “good” elected administration. They all suck in some way, shape, form, they all mismanage the public purse.
I claim to be a centrist… I think both (all) sides of the political spectrum to be corrupt, self serving, unfaithful, cant respect any of them. New politicians may have a modicum of self respect, but they lose it shortly after taking office. Too much temptation. Too much corruption.
I use Australia as an example of bad governance, bad decision making… in the name of “Green”, manufacturing has been shipped off these shores to Asia and beyond. Aus is resource rich but is phasing out coal, something they export heaps of. Phasing out natural gas, another thing they export heaps of. And ore… no smelting/ value adding of resources done on these shores, anymore. No oil is refined here anymore. Minimum wage is something like 20$s an hour. Rent is around 3500$ per month for an average house. A Macdonalds burger is 20bucks. Its is a very expensive country to call home.
I have not been back to the USA since 2019.
So I am wondering what and why the protests.
I get it… Trump is a despicable human… or such I believe. I get it. He is impossible to “like”. I have an articulate reason why I believe Trump aint respectable. I know why I dont like him.
But why the protests… is it for shutting down USAID? Cancelling all things DEI? Taking boys from girls locker rooms? Claiming that there are only 2 sexes.
Are his policies unacceptable? I dont know. I dont live there. In my opinion the USA is in a mess. I’d like to think the last election has led us to where we are. I’d like to think supporting the system is the best first choice.
I feel/ fear the emotion I perceive in the USA to be very close to hysteria. I do not get the violence and civil dismantling taking place. Ive lived through civil wars and huge amounts of civil unrest… and do know it aint cool.
So, I need some help and I see you were at a protest.
What are your take aways? Why did all this happen?
In my past I too attended a protest that was really a riot spiced with looting plus a few murders thrown in…
Hope all is well with you.
Come visit Australia
Smiles
Mike
I cant publish what my friends said. I cant/ won’t quote them. But I will summarise what I gained from the experience, from the interaction…
I found that emotion is the driving force. I failed to gain any articulate clarity as to why or how, but I got consensus that it was “BEAUTIFUL”. My old buddy, living on the West Coast, said it was… “…beautiful, like the old days, man…”. My close female friend in the midwest too said it was “…beautiful, nice, friendly…”.
I didn’t get to understand why they each wanted to join the protests, what they individually were protesting. An inherent distrust “of The Man” is a shared theme with my old buddy, but I didn’t get much of a reason why…. “dismantling the system” was mentioned, but I remain uncertain what system we speak of. I heard an articulated fear that the loss of the Dept of Education would be bad, but a quick discussion on the past 50year decline of standards fosters agreement that change is needed. Is it a bad thing that each state now gets to mange their own education-system? Give it a chance.
The deportation theme is a hot potato. Both agree that legal immigration is good, and the recent mass-migration of illegals has not improved their lives…. BUT… both have BUTssss….
The LGbtxzy+Tranz theme is a distraction. Live and let live is easy, but dicks in the girls locker room aint cool. Each of my friends agree with that. Both have children.
Billionaires running the country… nothing new, agreed. We all agree that the Elites are the puppet masters. My contention has always been that both DNC and RNC politicians/ operatives work for the same people.
So it boils down to personalities. Not polices. Or such is my take away… and it was beautiful…
Weather has shifted, a bit, for a day or two. Would be good if it were to be fine n dry for a week or two. Technically we are heading into our annual “dry season”. Last year we didn’t get a dry season at all. Nope, we got a wet season then we got an even wetter season.
In our modern world, in this AI influenced and computer driven existence, the one thing we can not do is control, or even predict the weather.
Weather influences everything in our lives. Our mental health is very severely influenced by the weather.
In my “retired” life I make a hobby out of what I used to consider work. Being retired means I should not really be working too hard on my hobbies. I should not be stressing too much, worrying too much on anything.
And I dont, really, very much, unless the weather is against me.
The weather has been against me for a couple years now.
I was talking the other day to a heavy-equipment contractor that does a lot of work for me. Dave is a guy that owns a big tipper, a roller, a bob-cat, and a raft of add ons. He builds roads, does hard seal, cuts building sites. He does a great job.
Recent heavy rains ate up my roads here on the farm, so I need Dave to come fix things up. But not soon, not now… not before this wet, wet, wet weather slows down. And I need to install more drainage. Hydrostatic forces demand adequate drainage.
Dave tells me sad stories… When I met Dave he had a partner, Ben. That was months ago. Ben has fallen by the way side. Couldn’t survive as a private business dude, as a sole-proprietor. Nope, the weather and the insane hours and the long wet spells with no income did not suit Ben, so he dropped out, went back to being a salaried mechanic.
Ben had thought, had hoped that he could make being a private business dude work. When the weather is good you make it look easy. But when the weather is against you… you get a long week off because of rain, then have to work 30hours a day to catch up. Ben is a young guy with young kids. Dave is older. The frenetic, unpredictable life style and income did not suit Ben at all. He’d hoped he could fly with the business birds, but life and security and familial demands clipped this wings.
Another guy, a genius motorcycle mechanic that has done heaps of work for me, was flying high in the business world. Building a reputation. Busy as he wanted to be. He helped me with two of my vintage bikes – before he had his first kid.
His business was growing. Mama and baby ran the front, sold T-shirts and coffees while he wrenched in the back. Then they had a second kid. Not long after that the needs of the young family changed. Mama needed more security. She sent him down to the local Toyota dealership to get a “real” job. She still sells coffee and T-shirts in the shop, but no mechanical work done any more.
Welcome to the world of being a business dude.
A while back, not far from my farm, an elderly gentleman-farmer was out checking his stock. He got stuck in the mud, bogged down, trapped. Could not get himself free, out, unstuck. Over 24hours later a neighbour came looking for the guy. He was alive but in a bad way. He later died in hospital. Death by weather?
Being a farmer is a high risk occupation.
What am I waffling about? TTSIA… the title says it all…
I can see clearly now, the rain is gone I can see all obstacles in my way Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-shiny day It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-shiny day I think I can make it now, the pain is gone All of the bad feelings have disappeared Here is the rainbow I’ve been prayin’ for It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-shiny day Look all around, there’s nothin’ but blue skies Look straight ahead, nothin’ but blue skies I can see clearly now, the rain is gone I can see all obstacles in my way Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-shiny day It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-shiny day It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-shiny day It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-shiny day
First quarter of 2025 done, dusted, home and hosed..
The Newz… The Bluez…
Australian Federal Election has been announced for May 3.
We have the incumbent, Albeneze and the Labor party, who have been running the country into the ground for the past three years. The Nut Zero BS has seen way tooo much $$ going in the wrong directions, into the wrong pockets. Cost of living, cost of everything is stoopid.
We have Dutton and the Liberals trying to take over, take control, from what could be one of the few one-term administrations in Aus history… Dutton and the Liberals, like the Abeneze and Labor, are making promises, spending $$$ that is not available, buying votes with the public purse.
Status Quo as near as I can tell.
Aus needs to decide which forward path they wish to take. Chase the elusive Nut Zero, dismantle and export all manufacturing, decrease co2 emissions by exporting everything from energy to productivity to profitability.
It may well be too late to reverse the trend, to cease the hemorrhage of resources and capacity.
A fun fact… Private investment in Nut Zero here in Aus is… well, it’s hard to say. We can see that the Federal Administration is still throwing money around, but numbers are hard to find. It is in the billions… Billions of $$s of public funds invested in backing winners and wieners… From what I see very little private funding is involved. its pretty much all Gov’t grants to would be “green” enterprises.
A lovely morning here in my valley. Sunshine, fresh breeze, dosing dawgs, and Blood Sports. What’s not to like?
Ive been up since 6am watching a full morning of Blood Sports. A “fight night” out of Mexico City. Mexican fighters are all tough, tough, tough. Some great bouts.
I was recently told that my writing does not support my position as a Centrist. That my words are better suited and slanted for someone with an overall authoritarian attitude. And I do understand. For the past 2+ months Ive been under the influence of logic and as such I believe that: 1) Donald Trump won the General Election without dispute. The Democratic Voice has had its say. PERIOD. 2) All the crying and whining and gnashing of teeth is nothing more than posturing. 3) The DNC played every dirty trick, cheated, lied, prevaricated, and manipulated – To No Avail. The DNC and their lap-dogs in the Legacy Media tried hard, lied hard – To No Avail. 4) My Centrist position could, emotionally continue to lash out at both/ all sides, could, emotionally, continue to be angry, mad, and illogical. But I shall breath deeply, and be hopeful, be supportive in the HOPE THAT THE US ELECTORATE WAS RIGHT.
I said this in late January… If you cant lend a hand, if you cant grab a paddle and help us all move forward to a better place, shut the fuck up.
I know people, close to me, who have/ shall lose their jobs due to the DOGE cost cutting measures. Of course I am compassionate/ sympathetic… but, as they say in the Islands… sore hola boko.
I also know people who lost their jobs when Maytag moved to Mexico. No one went on a destructive spree then. Why now? What is different now? Who is paying for all the energy, emotion, destruction? Make no doubt, it is premeditated and orchestrated and paid for by our ever friendly DNC faithful.
Think about that for a minute.
All this fake outrage and bullshit sanctimonious chest beating is foolish. Sad. Patently Negative.
Seriously, explain to me how burning anything Tesla is productive? Explain, please, how violence and destruction of private property is beneficial? Explain how applauding a morbidly obese man running into Teslas with his fat-fuck scooter is positive. No, it is NEGATIVE in its entirety. Your sanctimonious BS does nothing more than inspire other sad, lonely wanna be modern heroes into foolish and dangerous action.
So… DNC faithful… Never Trumpers… explain to me how all this childish “acting out” benefits anyone, any where in the US system… Two Billion dollars were foolishly wasted by the DNC in the recent run to the White House. The DNC lied, bribed, lied and lied again for 4 years. Their prevarication in regards to the condition of Sad Sick Joe Biden was, remains criminal. Do you remember all the lies… He IS sharp. He runs circles around all of us. And now we know that was not true. It was all a premeditated lie. Aimed at misleading you, us, everyone – for nefarious reasons.
So why, may I ask, are all these, why all you supposedly smart folks banging Never Trump drums? Do you really think the past administration was good for you, good to you? Explain please how an extra 10-20 million illegal migrants assisted, benefited your life. Explain how the mismanagement of trillions of dollars and the accumulation of a death-strangle-debt is “good”, how it makes your life better.
I’ll wait…
One of my favourite BS taking points is this… The Oligarchs are taking over the USA… Trump and his Billionaires are taking over… allow me to bring some logic to the table:
As of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, based on available data up to March 29, 2025, here’s the breakdown of billionaire support for Donald Trump and Kamala Harris: – Donald Trump: Approximately 52 billionaires supported Trump, either through public endorsements or financial contributions. Notable backers included Elon Musk (who donated over $250 million across various efforts), Timothy Mellon ($150 million to MAGA Inc.), Miriam Adelson, and Diane Hendricks, according to analyses from Forbes (October 31, 2024) and Bloomberg (October 28, 2024). – Kamala Harris: Approximately 83 billionaires supported Harris, also via endorsements or donations. Prominent names included Michael Bloomberg, Bill Gates ($50 million to Future Forward), Melinda French Gates, Reid Hoffman, and Mark Cuban, per Forbes (October 31, 2024) and The New York Times (October 2024).
Sorry, sore hola…
If I had one wish I could make, one wish to use… I’d wish for all those close to me to become more logical, less emotional, less foolish and misled. Open your eyes. Unless it is in your favour to be lied to and cheated by those you elect to Office. Open your eyes, please.
More later
Oh yea, 30hours of rain fall Wed-Fri this past week:
Damn! Another month almost shot. Time sure flies… when its bucketing down with rain…
So, as March ends, as the 1st quarter of 2025 expires, as the world sizzles and political rhetoric is turned to High Volume… I watch and listen. And am quite surprised by what I see…
I wonder why fiscal management in the public venue is such a bad idea. I wonder why raising the standard of the education system(s) is such a bad idea. I wonder why anyone would disagree with smarter, wiser, more effective (?) foreign aid. Less wars, less refugees, less pain and suffering… I am confused.
Lets look at a couple things…
Education:
In 1867, the Congress of the United States passed legislation providing ‘‘That there shall be established at the City of Washington, a department of education, for the purpose of collecting such statistics and facts as shall show the condition and progress of education in the several States and Territories, and of diffusing such information respecting the organization and management of schools and school systems, and methods of teaching, as shall aid the people of the United States in the establishment and maintenance of efficient school systems, and otherwise promote the cause of education throughout the country.’’ The department was to be headed by a Commissioner of Education. The Commissioner was to be paid a salary of $4,000 a year, and he was authorized to appoint three clerks, at annual salaries of $2,000, $1,800, and $1,600, to help him carry out his duties.
A lot to consume. Its is dated but the past info stays pertinent.
The above blurb gives us a historic reference in regards to a “department of education”. I dont think the department of education in 1867 is what we have today.
So, in 2025…(from wikipedia) The United States Department of Education is a cabinet-level department of the United States government, originating in 1980. The department began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services by the Department of Education Organization Act, which President Jimmy Carter signed into law on October 17, 1979.[3][4] An earlier iteration was formed in 1867 but was quickly demoted to the Office of Education a year later.[5]
Ok, ok… what does the DOE do, and what does it cost?
More from Wiki… The Department of Education is administered by the United States secretary of education. In 2021 it had more than 4,000 employees – the smallest staff of the Cabinet agencies[6] – and a 2024 budget of $268 billion, up from $14 billion when it was established in 1979. In 2025, the department’s budget was about four percent of the total US federal spending.[7]
I found this… https://educationdata.org/public-education-spending-statistics * Public education spending in the United States falls short of global benchmarks and lags behind economic growth; K-12 schools spend $857.2 billion total ($17,277 per pupil) annually. * Federal, state, and local governments provide $878.2 billion or $17,700 per pupil to fund K-12 public education. * The difference between spending and funding is $21.0 billion or $423 per pupil. * The federal government provides 13.6% of funding for public K-12 education. * Public postsecondary schools spend an average of $30,228 per pupil.
Hmmm… 17k per annum per student… Sounds like a lot… But Wiki tells us: In 2023, 28% of adults scored at or below Level 1, 29% at Level 2, and 44% at Level 3 or above.[1] Adults scoring in the lowest levels of literacy increased 9 percentage points between 2017 and 2023. In 2017, 19% of U.S. adults achieved a Level 1 or below in literacy while 48% achieved the highest levels.[2] Anything below Level 3 is considered “partially illiterate” (see also § Definitions below).[3] Adults scoring below Level 1 can comprehend simple sentences and short paragraphs with minimal structure but will struggle with multi-step instructions or complex sentences, while those at Level 1 can locate explicitly cued information in short texts, lists, or simple digital pages with minimal distractions but will struggle with multi-page texts and complex prose.[4] In general, both groups struggle reading complex sentences, texts requiring multiple-step processing, and texts with distractions.[4]
“28% of adults scored at or below Level 1, 29% at Level 2“…
“Anything below Level 3 is considered “partially illiterate”…
Over half the population of the USA is “partially illiterate”.
Damn!
878Billion$$s for less than 50% illiteracy… Damn!
I go back to where I started this… I wonder why fiscal management in the public venue is such a bad idea. I wonder why raising the standard of the education system(s) is such a bad idea.
I see and hear soooo many people righteously pound their chests, bang their keyboards with an outrage that foolishly says “don’t mess with the Dep of Ed, we’re doing just fine”… No, we’re not doing fine. We are paying more for less. We have allowed entrenched systems to become fouled, deformed.
Its no longer education if only 50% of the those processing through the system are functionally illiterate.
And the beat goes on, as the rain fall, as the river rises… My hand is healing nicely…
Where are we… what’s happening, where we going, where we been…
Today is Thursday, my side of the planet. Almost 9am. A steady, even rain falling. Flora and fauna singing. A soft sigh can be heard from the Land. My dogs are comfortably curled up in their kennels. My hands are healing nicely.
Weather man predicts more and more and more of the same.
Dumped this out yesterday, before the rains settled in:
So I sit. Have a couple Magpies on the verandah singing their songs. Have at least 3 stags on the property bellowing their prowess. There are no less than 20 deer near the house. A stag on the hill behind us, a stag on the hill to the north, a stag in the yard. Does n fauns being gathered into herds. Soon the antler clashing shall begin. Its a circle of life sorta thing…
So I sit. Wrapped in a granny blanket. Watching and reading.
I love the fact that the ever principled folks that love their country and are good patriotic citizens and identify as “Democrats” are once again resorting to vandalism and terrorism. Sure, makes perfect sense… we dont get our way, we dont like the situation, we blame Elon Musk, attack anyone in a Tesla. Attack Tesla dealerships, attack anything Tesla. Sure, makes sense to me. Very mature, very sensible policy… alienate all those faithful DNC posers who drive a Tesla, who bought a Tesla as a sign of virtue, as a symbol of modern, wise, real, electric DNC support… sure, makes sense to me…
NOT!
Just like the idea, the ideal of masculinity in the DNC perverted world… Masculinity is TOXIC! cant have masculinity. Nope, not allowed. So we frame guys like Tampon Tim from MN as a tough guy, as an example of modern masculinity. Or Bonk the Babysitter Doug? A fine, prime, modern example of a masculine male. Exclude, remove, reject, eject all masculinity from the Party. Chase the masculine males out of the DNC. Redefine masculinity so a chick-with-a-dick is the Man of the Year. Or was it woman of the year?
I dont get it. The DNC either has changed beyond any recognition, OR, I was terribly fooled and misled and wrong for much of my young life when I claimed to be Democrat. Luckily, between 1970 and 1980 I was exposed to behind the scenes conning and corruption in politics generally, and in the DNC specifically, and figured out way back then that the DNC was not “my party”, not my friend. Of course, way back then, I viewed the RNC as corrupt and fat and despicable, which meant I didn’t have a political party.
The beginnings of my centrist position?
But I dont get it at all… “Take down Musk” has been repeated and bleated. But I dont get it… like crowing about a “made in America” product you want to see destroyed. Lets check a few facts…
Gigafactory Texas, Tesla’s headquarters, just outside of Austin, Texas
Total assets
US$122.1 billion (2024)
Total equity
US$72.9 billion (2024)
Owner
Elon Musk (13%)
Number of employees
125,665 (2024)
Golly geee… sure, once again makes perfect sense as a political strategy… fight to destroy the livelihood of 125thousand folks. Great way to get them to vote for you next time.
Also noting that Musk only owns 13% of the enterprise.
What else does Musk own… Tesla, SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), Neuralink, xAI and The Boring Company,
Do the folks at the DNC strategic (tragic) head quarters really think this is a good plan? Or is it like calling Trump a nazi? Do it, do it, do it, do it and do it more… gotta work eventually???? !!!
I heard a discussion the other day about “Mental Illness” and TDS, and the status of emotion and angst and instability in the USA’s political scene… in the DNC’s base… The question is this: should we demean the real mental illness on the streets by granting unruly and misled children the status of being mentally ill? The excuse of being Mentally Ill?
There is no doubt that mental Illness is an issue. But are these often pandered and pampered left wing loonies that toss fire bombs or attack folks in MAGA hats, are they mentally ill or just fucking stoopid? Misled, stoopid, duped, fooled, and used. And criminal. They are acting in a criminal fashion. You try to snatch my red hat and I’ll stand my ground. I’ll make you think twice about your actions, as you nurse a broken arm for a month or two…
I can stand in your space, get in your face, attempt to assault you, attempt to steal your hat, chase you, threaten you… and its OK… On what planet?
We have the likes of MsCrocket from TX who openly, verbally advocates violence. Chucky the Jew Schumer, tells us they have people they “send out” to disrupt local discussions, local town halls. He is describing paid provocateurs that travel, say, to Iowa, to yell and disrupt and confuse. They pose as members of the community, they bring the press, and terrorise and threaten the locals.
Again, another good example of how to get folks to support your agenda.
NOT!
My coffee is done. Time to do some house keeping. Gracie has flown off for a tour of Greece. I’m on my own for a while.
8am Sunday morning. Early blood sport on the tube. The morning thus far has been soft, gentle, very pleasant.
I can remember, as a small child, waking and feeling good. Felling happy. Felling content. I can drift back in my memory and relive the feeling.
But I dont have to, not today.
The muted morning sunlight does not offer a lot of warmth. The weather-y past week or two still lingers. The pastel coloured skies offer no indication; rain coming, a blistering hot n humid day… only time will tell.
As I have written, the past couple weeks have been bizzy, frenetic, fun filled. And a bit painful…
10days ago I got my hands, yes plural, stuck in my dog, Bella’s, mouth…
Bella is a 5yr old Maremma. What is a Maremma, I hear you say… The Maremmano-Abruzzese Sheepdog (Italian: Cane da pastore maremmano-abruzzese), also known as the Maremmano, Maremma Sheepdog, or Abruzzese Sheepdog (Italian: pastore abruzzese), among other names, is an Italian breed of livestock guardian dog. It is indigenous to central Italy, especially to the Maremma region of Tuscany and Lazio, and to northern areas of Southern Italy, particularly to Abruzzo. It has been used for centuries by Italian shepherds to guard sheep from wolves.
She weights about 40kg/90lbs. I can attest to the sharpness of her teeth. She is beautiful and very even natured… so how did I get my hands in her mouth?
Folks always and all ways have post-event advice on how to… How to do anything… there is always and all ways cheap, peanut-gallery advice from multiple venues… Before I rant n rave a bit ( I have been given much post event advice here) allow me to explain what I am doing in my kennels…
My kennels are set up for breeding. I have three complete, fully sexed, large females. Each weight about 40kgs, two of these bitches are specially bred for their protective nature, for their defensive instincts. Bella, may be less dangerous, but too has been bred for her defensive instinct.
So how do you get bit by your own dog???
We are heading into breeding season. All three bitches are coming on heat. This makes them all a bit bitchy, hard to get along with, difficult and, yes, dangerous.
I accept the fact that my dogs are dangerous. All dogs are dangerous, no doubt, but my dogs first have not been desexed and second, are exactly what I want for my breeding. And third, Nia and Quel are specially bred mastiffs. When they bite on something, when they latch onto something, they do not let go…
So comments like, “…get a garden hose, they’ll stop when you put the hose on them…”, is false. Sure, your run of the mill dogs in your back yard may not like the hose but its a useless and futile exercise in my kennels. I know, I have tried. Mike’s Matiffs are different. The garden hose dont work.
It was the 11th, I was cleaning the kennels. Preparing to put the bitches in, thinking we’d be on heat soon, and, yes, I didn’t want them fighting. The kennels have been quiet for a few months. No dog in-heat, no puppies, we all live quietly together in the big fenced yard.
As I clean, the bitches are noticeably bitchy with each other.
Important to note that my main “breeding bitches” Nia and Quel are sisters. Its a known “thing” in dog breeding/ raising that pups from the same litter, if raised together, will trigger each other. Will cause trouble by instigating each other. One starts barking, the other joins in. One gets angry… yep…
So Quel and Nia jump on Bella. Both lock onto her. Its noise n gnashing of teeth time… I am not afraid or inexperienced. Been here before. Bella can take a bit of mauling. Nia is the instigator, if I grab her collar, put her in a choke, drag her to her kennel, we will be ok… I grab Nia’s collar, but get my left hand too close to Bella’s mouth. And Bella latches on…
She gets a good bite on my hand. I quickly grab her mouth with my right hand, get my left hand out. There is blood everywhere. Both hands lacerated. Dogs still fighting. Not good.
That lasted maybe 4 seconds… One second we’re ok, the next my hands are tore up.
It took a bit… I had to get inside and stop the blood. I know Im kinda ok, no arterial bleeding, no serious damage but a shit load of blood… I get inside, contain the blood by wrapping a snake bite bandage around the hand. I tie and tape dish-cloths around my fingers… It all took a bit of time, it was a struggle between bouts of nausea and in the throes of shock… but it all came together… I still need to go out to sort the dogs…
They had quit fighting. We’re still testy. I get them each in their kennels.
In between the bite and the return to the kennels I went through various levels of shock. At one point, hands roughly bandaged and blood sorta staunched, I stood in a cold shower. Id gone through feeling sick, shaking and sweating while dressing the wounds. Once the adrenaline slipped I felt very unwell. A cold shower was a winner, kept me from losing control, made me feel “better”.
Gracie had been in town. After I got the blood stopped I called her. She showed up and helped me bandage things up properly.
Been 9 days since I posted… There has been a bunch going on.
In chronological order:
A week ago last Monday I was cleaning my dog kennels when I got my hands caught on my dog, Bella’s, mouth. Not a good situation. Lots of blood. A big slice on my left hand, fingers on both Hands lacerated. Not a good situation.
Dog bites are never good.
As I was moving inside, aiming to clean the wounds, stop the bleeding, I stumbled and fell and stuck my ribs into a sturdy wooden stool.
So I end up with both hands impaired, a really sore, bruised area on my rib cage, and one of my longest serving Amigos showing up for a visit… and a Hemmer Girl party on the weekend.
Willis arriving for a visit is an event. A big event. The Hemmer Girl party, planned for months, is a huge event.
A lot to do. A lot to get done…
I first met Willis in the mid 80s. He and his wife, MsEllie, have been part of our big, glorious family ever since. They were around when our last child, Paul, was born. We were around when their daughter, Talia, was born. I last saw Willis in 2018 in the USA.
Also, if hands n ribs n old compadres aint enough to keep and ol fart bizzy… son, Don’s, wife and 3 daughters flew in from the Solomons for a long weekend of family fun. We’d planned this weekend for a months. The three Hemmer girls in the Solomons were coming to enjoy the Hemmer girls here in Aus. And, my brother’s 18yr old daughter is here going to Uni. So it was a week of Hemmer girl fun n games…
We had: Andromeda, Nova, Vera, Dawnie, Gigi, and Elora. Plus moms and grandma.
Plus Willis…
So, the plan had been to have a HillBilly vroom BBQ on the Saturday, and the Hemmer Girls had a date together on Sunday. Cyclone Alfie got us a week previous. The ground was still real wet so a big Vroom BBQ was not to be. A smaller “family” BBQ was more sensible.
Willis flew in 10pm Thursday, The Solo-Girls flew in Friday eve, Saturday we had Vrooom…
Also, icing on the cake, we had Angelo’s son, Andre come visit. He’s almost 1yr old.
Above we have: Angelo, Andromeda in the orange shirt, Angelo’s mother and sister in law, Vera, Andre, Ash, Maria, Lizza, and Elora. Joan is in the back ground. Dawnie sitting in the shadows.
It was a great day. Our tribe had four generations represented. A first for us, Andre is our first Great-Granny.
So we got wheels turning and fuel burning. Our youngest rider, Nova, 6, frightens her 10yr old cousins. Nove is a born rider, a born hell raiser.
Angelo’s in-laws are not versed in Vroom. This means that the Moms of their family worry and fret, all the noise, all the danger, all the smiles… not what Moms approve of… until that is, they get a good ride in the Beast. The Beast is fast and fun and noisy and flies high and long. Once you get a ride in the Beast you yearn for more, and more, and more…
About Willis: Life is filled with mysteries and occurrences both large and small that effect one’s trajectory one’s trajectory in life, like a magnetic pull on a compass certain meetings, mishaps, misunderstandings and events have life long, lasting, forever influence. Compatibilities, differences, shared interests and more are needed to make lasting relationships.
Willis and I have been gigging together for almost 40 years. I have worked for him. He has worked for me. We were partners in one business venture. We once had a gig where we attempted to get the Japanese government to fund a mini-nuclear plant on Guadalcanal. (I note here that this was a great, smart idea that simply went nowhere, but it should have and if it had, GCanal would be different, better, energy secure.)
In one incarnation, Willis was the boss of an engineering/ ship yard/ fabrication operation on the Island of Liapari. We decided to see if we could build a ground-effect-craft. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground-effect_vehicle It was very cool but not a great success.
In the past decade or so (I retired in 2023) we both are slower, less entrepreneurial, more involved with families and such than spreadsheets and bottom-lines. From 2013-2019 I was in there USA riding a fair bit, and saw Willis sorta regularly. He and MsEllie joined us for there notorious “Granny Does Vegas” trip in 2015. I rode up for an overnight to see Willis and Ellie in 2018. Last time we were face to face.
Somewhere in the last 10years or so my Big Boer Buddy, Gerhardus, got to know Willis. When covid struck BigG stored his bike with Willis. Saturday gave the three of us a good chance to catch up on quite a few years of billshitting…
Monday morning here. We saw 50mm/2inches of rain over night. Our little steam is now a biggish babbling brook. Another night (day) of rain like this and we’ll start seeing some flooding. The cattle show no interest.
Many regions round us have been hit hard by both Alfie and the aftermath. A lot of rain has fallen on the coast. South of us, into NSW, the rivers are up and the rains continue to fall. We have been very lucky thus far. Mamma said its better to be lucky, than good looking…
Here is today’s weather picture:
We can expect the weather to hang around for a couple more days.
Which means not much is going to get done. Schools are closed. Over 200,000 connections still without power. Trains, buses, airports, all are compromised, either not on schedule, or at risk of being cancelled. Rail-lines need to be inspected and potentially repaired before trains can run. I did check international flights into BNE and see quite a bit of activity. Im sure there are very many highly stressed travellers either looking to fly in, or looking to fly out.
This is the sort of weather event that leaves folks stranded in airports.
Makes me think of the many times Ive been stuck in an airport, in a city I didn’t want to be in. Some airports are better than others. Some cities are better than others. For many years I traveled with a pandanas mat, folded up in my carryon. Mostly for the baby that was usually traveling with, Id unfold the mat and the kid would have a nice space to be. The mats were big enough for mom and dad and siblings. Everyone could stretch out.
But any airport is better than your car stuck in a snow drift in Iowa. Always kept my sleeping bag in the back seat of the junker-car I was driving. Made for some cold, miserable nights but survived them all.
And the beat goes on.
Need to go out and check on the farm, maybe work on a stick. Have a couple very nice sticks on the table. This weather puts me behind in my mowing but it does mean I get to do a bunch of whittling…
Weather is still happening this fine, grey, overcast, wet Sunday morning. The air is still. The deep, low roar that has been the storm brewing off shore, is gone. The tension in the air is gone. I think the storm is gone, has moved down south, is dumping heaps of rain there. It’s not over yet, for the folks south of us.
The past weathery week has meant a fair amount of reading, sitting and reading, sitting and reading and writing.
I am a bit stunned, amazed how so many of my very intelligent friends can be so blind, so pig headed, so stubborn, so stupid… We are months past the “election”, and 50 or so days into the 2nd DJT administration, and folks still bleat like sheep in a thunderstorm… still say dumbshit, meaningless nonsense, post completely wrong, false, incorrect and mindless drivel.
I reference this:
So, after a number of weeks since the election and the inauguration, we still harp on about Fox and Trump and Lies…
hmmm, Gold Fish Brain syndrome I suspect…
I suspect that it is selective memory and not forgetfulness that leads one to “not remembering’ that only 3 months ago we were being told that Biden was fine, the world was good, the border was secure and inflation wasn’t inflation. An array of talking heads all towed the DNC party line. As we watched the President of the USA dotter, and trip, and stumble, and mumble…
What lies does the above visual reference? It’s unclear, inarticulate. Designed to resonate with one that holds a negative emotion towards both Trump and Fox.
Again, my centrists position in life has me wondering what indeed is being purveyed herein? I dont get it.
Tho one dear old Trump-Derangement-challenged old friend of mine did blame the loss of the election on the fact that Americans are stupid and watch too much Fox News…
Makes me query if watching CNN, or MSNBC makes one smarter…
I have said before that I try to watch everything. I annoy everyone by switching channels a lot. Sure, Rachel Maddow is hard to take but my old stance remains… If I dont listen, how do I know what theyre saying?
I would be willing to wager my best bitch, Quel, that the person who posted the above, and the person that drew it, do not watch Fox.
So how do they know?
I know Al Sharpton is a misleading race baiter, at best, and quite an ugly, sad human, more than not. But I do listen to him. How else can I have an educated opinion per what he is saying?
Sure, Fox can be hard to take. Too much news in the form of entertainment/ comedy for my liking. A new caster that laughs and jokes, hmmm…. But CNN and MSNBC have blown their credibility by joining the DNC conspiracy to lie and dupe the electorate. For the past many years we have been knowingly misled. Knowingly told lies. Day after day after day.
Seriously, I am looking for someone/ anyone to explain to me how anyone can take what is heard on CNN and MSNBC with anything but a huge grain of salt. We know the DNC has been lying and deceiving for the past number of years. What makes them “worthy” of much attention now?
Or, is it that my dear, dear left leaning friends are seriously hampered in their ability to see fact, to see reality. Is the Trump derangement syndrome so severe?
I suspect it is.
And all this makes my simple life harder…
I simply do not understand… as above… After being lied to for years by the recent DNC driven agenda, how can anyone trust anything, anymore?
That why I read, study, listen and write, and why I am more and more of a centrist as time goes on…
The Native Iowan 
thoughts and opinions