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.

WEDNESDAY JULY 27---DAY 3 AT THE DNC

WEDNESDAY JULY 27---DAY 3 OF THE CONVENTION

The adventure on Wednesday started in the afternoon. After exploring some of the city, Christine, Nico and I  decided to go to the Mutter Museum. I tagged along in my Wheel Chair. The trip was a bit different than Tuesday---it was longer and the sidewalks were  slanted to the street making my job harder. This museum is well known for its unusual medical displays.

  


I was first drawn to the Civil War room.  I was heartened to learn, much to my surprise, that most operations performed during the War involved the use of some form of anesthetic such as chloro-form to ease patient pain. Doctors in Philadelphia received many wounded soldiers and performed amputations and other surgeries in local hospitals.  Most arms and legs amputated were burned, but some doctors kept the limbs for medical research; and some of the arms are currently on display in the Museum.  Even though medical practice did not use disinfectants on wounds they did try to keep them clean and dry,  so if you lost an arm  or a leg, you were a lot better off than the guy who was shot in the torso.  I also saw some wounds that were fatal, like the skull with a round 1 inch hole through it.


They also had a body in a case whose fat had been converted to soap preserving her.  The soil where this person was buried contained chemicals that converted her fat to soap and this acted as a preservative.


Most of the Museum consisted of skeletal remains and preserved specimens.  Once you got past the two-headed babies and the huge tumors the rest of the place was quite interesting.  I asked the security guard who took me to the elevator if any of this stuff phased him? His answer---"No, I spent 20 years in the military."


On the way back to our hotel we passed through a park where a lot of young people were enjoying their day. We stopped at a fast food place where I had a milk shake and met "Tony Two-Canes". I had seen Tony earlier on the street and I had watched him using two canes in his struggle to carry items to his seat while in the restaurant.  As we were leaving I spoke to him and he told me homeless people gave him the nickname.  He had also been in a wheel chair but had graduated to using two canes. As I left he said "I will pray for you."  I thanked him. 


On our way back to the hotel, Chris helped me at times by pushing me up some ramps and when I got tired. But I wheeled my Chair most of the way and I was surprised I did not feel more worn out.


In the evening after Bea returned from the Convention, we went to a party. We took a cab---he got lost and we arrived late.  The food was great, but we did not meet any bigwigs.

TUESDAY JULY 26 DAY 3---BROWNS AT THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION

TUESDAY JULY 26---DAY 2 OF THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION

Each day of the convention I wore a Howard Dean hat from his presidential bid in 2004.  It had buttons on it and I got a lot of comments when wearing it. At breakfast on Tuesday, Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota gave the funniest political speech I heard all week.  As she was leaving, she spied my hat and came over and shook my hand and said how much she enjoyed working with Howard Dean.

My adventures started today after lunch. I decided to use my Wheel Chair.  On Monday I was able to get around with my prosthetic leg and a walker, but I had a lot of leg pain, so periodic rest stops were required.  I have very little leg pain when traveling in the Chair without my prosthesis.

I decided to start by going to the Convention Center to see what was going on there.  The buses in Philadelphia are equipped with chair lifts and the driver was able to load me on to the bus.  It was about a 15 minute ride to my destination.  The Philadelphia Convention Center is a block long building and once i returned to the street I had to travel for quite a distance to find a ramp entrance.

Inside they offered a set of three conference-like sessions on very specific topics.  I chose the Rural Council.  The presentations included individual speakers and panel discussions. Senator Tester of Montana, Senator Highcamp of North Dakota  and Rep Costa of California were the main speakers. Since there was no interaction with the audience, I thought the two hour program was interesting, but rather dry.  Much of the focus was on the problems facing farmers in the west with little reference to agriculture in the east. Suggestions included increased funding for  research at land grant schools (like PSU) and an improved Federal Farm Bill that helps the family operations instead if big business.  Also the aging of farmers, high levels of poverty in rural areas, the increase in drug addiction, as well as a declining population were presented as real issues for agriculture and rural areas as the country moves into the future.  The very last speaker was a native American who only had about 5 minutes to present. I felt that was unfortunate and expressed such to one of the organizers. Also I suggested that the plight of African-American farmers in the South and Hispanic farmers in the Southwest should have been part of the discourse as well.

On my way out of the Convention Center I visited a display set up by Progressive Change Campaign Committee and discussed a variety of topics with one of the staff.

Once I exited the Center I moved to the spot where the bus dropped me off. When I arrived I asked a volunteer when the next bus would arrive?  She said there probably will not be any  buses due to street closures caused by marching demonstrators.  After about 20 minutes of searching for a bus or possibly a cab with no luck, I thanked them for their efforts and decided to head back to my hotel in my Wheel Chair. Now, I still have pretty good upper body strength, but this is the first time I ever tried traveling this far in my Chair.

My first stop was at Dilwurth Park near City Hall. This spot has about 100 fountains of water that pop out of a flat stone surface.  They shoot up to a height of about 5 feet and are situated such that kids can run into the area get wet and run back out.  Some of them just sat in the midst of the spouts of water enjoying the cooling effect---it was in the 90's.  A guy dressed like a Biblical character was walking back and forth through the fountains carrying a cross inscribed with "Vote for Jesus".

Just beyond the park I encountered the demonstration.  There were police everywhere.  One group I spoke to, were from New Jersey. The sidewalks were all blocked by police and there was not a ramp to be seen, so I asked someone to lower me down the curb and into the street.  When i arrived in the middle of the street it suddenly dawned on me that I was in the middle of the demonstration.

On my left were a couple of vans and maybe 400 demonstrators.  On my right about 100 feet away there was a phalanx of maybe 50 police officers on bicycles.

 I spoke to one of the guys by the van.  He said he had driven up from Miami to take part in the demonstrations.  He spent the previouus week at the RNC convention in Cleveland.   During the conversation he asked me how old I was.  When I told him 76, he lamented that I looked better than he did at 60. He was smoking a cigarette, had long scraggly hair and looked like a transplant from the 1960's.  Interesting fellow.

My next challenge was to get back up on the sidewalk.  I approached a couple of policemen on the other side of the street and they pulled me up onto the sidewalk and I was on my way. As I moved on, the demonstration remained  stationery with a woman yelling into a microphone about how terrible Hillary was. It was a ragtag group with no real cohesive message---just a group of boisterous people.  There was no violence---just a peaceful protest. As I traveled toward my hotel the streets were mostly blocked off and the sidewalks were empty making my mode of travel pretty easy.  At one point I stopped to take a break and parked back next to a building.  I had noticed an expensive looking bus sitting along the curb in front of me, but did not think much about it.  Suddenly at least 10 guys in black suits and sunglasses descended on the area.    Wow, this should be interesting. With the secret service, or what ever they were, stationed all around the bus, a tall black gentleman  wearing flowing robes and wearing a orange stripped hat emerged from a nearby building and entered the bus. He was soon joined by others including a woman in a beautiful blue dress.  I asked one of the guards who the person was and he wouldn't tell me. That was an interesting experience.

As I was motoring down the sidewalk the buses passed me going south on Broad Street with a full police escort---flashing lights and sirens blaring.  The man appeared to be an African leader, but I have no idea who he was.  But it was obvious that the authorities wanted to keep him safe.

Soon after I arrived at my hotel, the demonstration peacefully moved down Broad Street, past the hotel and on down the street. They had police cars in front and police on bicycles beside and behind them.  They were completely boxed in.  This tactic seemed to be very effective in allowing the demonstrators to protest and march, but at the same time preventing any outbreak of violence.

I checked a map---I had wheeled my chair about a half a mile.

This was a big day for Bea. At breakfast she signed a petition indicating her support for Hillary during Tuesday's roll call.  Later at the convention during the roll call of states she stood just a few feet from Pennsylvania's Governor Tom Wolf as he read off the votes for Hillary and Bernie Sanders.

Late Tuesday evening our daughter Christine joined us from Baltimore.


NOTE:  After the convention we were told Bea was shown on FOX NEWS during Bill Clinton's speech on Tuesday.  Wow, a TV star.