WHO WILL DRIVE THE CAR?

WHO WILL DRIVE THE CAR?

Many of my relatives and friends are CONSERVATIVE  CHRISTIAN  REPUBLICANS. They have since Richard Nixon expected and have been provided with solid Conservative Republican presidential candidates from 1976 until 2016.  This year these typical Republicans were vanquished by a guy name Donald J. Trump who has dominated the political news ever since he entered the presidential race in June of 2015.  The Republican Party, the GOP, does not exist anymore.  It has fractured into at least three or four distinct entities. These splinters have very little in common, except that they oppose the Democratic Party and its agenda. Republican voters of long standing are now looking for that solid candidate they have always depended on to carry their mantel and they find Donald  J. Trump, a TV celebrity with absolutely no governing experience.

What to do?  Well for starters let's define the problem you all face. Donald J. Trump is NOT a Republican; he is NOT Conservative and he is NOT a Christian.  Since he is hard to classify, I have put Donald and his core supporters in The Worldwide Wrestling Entertainment Party---the WWEP, because he has always identified with professional wrestling and he is a member of the WWE Hall of Fame. He runs his shows (rallies) about the same way that  the promoters run the wrestling shows  on TV. Donald has, over the past 15 months, failed to demonstrate any of the core values we normally expect in a person competing to be president of the United States and the leader of the Free World, be they Republican or Democrat.

I will give you my assessment of Donald J. Trump. He is a brilliant, charming manipulator of people who can quickly recognize their weaknesses and persuade them to do whatever he wants, even if it goes against their own self interests. All his life he has used people to get what he wants and if they complain or object he belittles them, calls them names or threatens to sue them.  He steals people's money by deception, refusing to pay bills, avoiding taxes; and in his businesses by over selling products so investors think they are getting a great deal.  He is one of the best con-artists of our time and he is just one step away from being president.

Growing up I knew a lot of people who stuck pretty tightly to their Party affiliation and I believe that is still true in many parts of our country today.  There are many people who if SATAN himself walked into town as a Republican or Democrat they would vote for him just to avoid going to the other party. Sometimes when Donald is spouting his nastiness, I can almost see the the forked tail and horns. In this election, we voters are faced with a unique choice in the history of our country.  Never before have we faced a candidate like Trump, who says "I will take care of you, believe me".  People want to believe him, because they don't really want to be responsible for everything; they want to trust that he will do what he promises.  That is the essence of the game--- you trust the person to take care of you and you give him what he wants.

Through history most revolutions  and political movements that make big promises to take care of everybody have devolved to Strongman or Dictator rule. Often too late, people come to realize they have sacrificed their freedoms to gain personal safety,  convenience or prosperity. That is what Donald is offering and if you fall for it, future generations are going to pay a very dear price for your bad choice.

As an educator I recognize Donald.  I have had students in my classroom like him.  I believe he has a personality disorder that does not allow him to show empathy for others or ever admit a mistake.  He may care about family or colleagues but he does not seem capable of showing it in public.  This is not mental illness, it is a permanent condition in the wiring of his brain that just makes him very uncomfortable showing real  emotion or concern for other people. He seems to be incapable of admitting failure or apologizing for anything he has done or said. There is no cure and he will never pivot to be the caring person many Republicans would like to see. Have you ever seen Donald laugh or really present a genuine smile? I do not think Donald  J. Trump is capable of really caring for other people and as a result I do not believe he has the qualities needed to be President of the United States.

So what is a Conservative, Christian Republican to do?  You are getting into a car for a long trip and you have a choice of two drivers.  One driver has never driven a car,  does not know where he is going and has no real plan for the trip.   The other driver  knows how to drive a car, has experience taking trips,  has decided what needs to be done and is planning activities at  the end of the trip.  You and your family's lives are in the balance. Who do you choose?

The person who can't drive the car and has no idea where he is going OR the person who knows how to drive the car, has made plans for the trip and knows where she wants to take you.

That is your choice on Election Day 2016.

FRIDAY JULY 29---THE TRIP HOME

FRIDAY JULY 29---TRIP HOME TO MT GRETNA

We arrived in Mt Gretna about 3 pm, ate at a local restaurant and rolled into our driveway about 4:30.  Bea proceeded to go to the house to open up and I heard a verbal alarm.  The top section of the screen door into the porch was knocked out and lying on the floor.  As she continued on,  she observed large white spots on the floor and discovered a hawk at the other end of the porch---it was trying to get through the screen. 

JUVENILE RED-SHOULDERED HAWK

It was producing very loud, screaming distress calls as it struggled to escape.



We tried to get it to fly out an open door, but it would not budge.  

JUVENILE RED-SHOULDERED HAWK 

So using gloves, I grabbed it by the wings. It felt thin and was panting---it did not struggle.  We took pictures and I put it down on the floor of our deck; and it flew up into a nearby tree.  it did not appear to be injured in any way so that was a good sign. 

Rebecca who had been watching our place while we were away, checked the house Thursday morning and saw no sign of the break-in. Apparently during the day either Thursday or Friday this good sized bird flew right through the screen door.

Some of my colleagues , who are better at identifying birds than I, have decided this was a juvenile Red-shouldered Hawk. Why did it hit the screen with such force so as to knock it completely out of the door?  My guess is that our resident Red-tailed Hawk, a much larger bird, did not look kindly on this "teenager" visiting our place and decided to attack it, causing it to go through the screen in panic.  Fortunately neither screen nor bird were any worse off from the experience. 

Rebecca also found the shed skin of our resident Black Rat Snake.  It is nice to know it is still around, but we wish it would catch and eat the mice that keep coming into our house.

  


Welcomed home.

THURSDAY JULY 28----DAY 4 0F THE CONVENTION

THURSDAY JULY 28---DAY 4 OF THE CONVENTION

Nico and I spent most of the last day resting and watching the Convention speeches on TV.

 

BEA AND FELLOW DELEGATE JO ELLEN LITZ

This was Bea's special day. She booked a Uber driver for the trip to the Convention site, but he decided to give them a "tour" of Philadelphia causing she and Jo Ellen to arrive late.  As a result they ended up sitting with the Arkansas delegation near the stage.  Some  of the speakers were hard to see because of signs, but during Hillary's acceptance speech Bea had a clear view of her, when she said "I accept the Democratic nomination for President of the United States".  

 

HILLARY GIVING HER ACCEPTANCE SPEECH

It was quite a thrill for her to be there and be part of the process of nominating the first woman to be president of the United States. The experience made all the hard work she had done to get to the Convention worthwhile.

 

BALLOON DROP

 

THE AFTERMATH

Women should rule the world.