11.15.2024 – far easier for

far easier for
guilty man to stand trial
than innocent one

As a man who has had both experiences, I can tell you that it’s far, far easier for a guilty man to stand trial than an innocent one.

When you are guilty you are depending entirely upon your legal rights; the maze of protections, legal maneuvers, and loopholes that can help you beat the rap.

You have no qualms whatsoever about using them; the law says you have that right.

When you are innocent you are always in a rage of indignation.

You feel helpless and put upon.

You are totally on the defensive.

Constantly you have to fight back the desire to leap up and scream out your innocence.

You can’t believe that this massive grinding machinery can be doing this to you.

From the book Where the Money Was by Willie Sutton, (Viking, New York, 1976).

Willie Sutton was a famous bank robber who may have been more famous by responding, “That’s where the money is.” when he was asked why he robbed banks.

It was his description of the difference between a guilty person and an innocent person on trial; that caught my eye.

Especially when I applied to politics today.

There is this feller that many agree is guilty as sin and yet he evades any and all punishment.

He is depending entirely upon his legal rights; the maze of protections, legal maneuvers, and loopholes that can help him beat the rap and he has no qualms about using them.

I feel a rage of indignation.

I feel helpless.

I feel totally on the defensive.

I constantly you have to fight back the desire to leap up and scream out that there is a difference between innocence and this guy.

And finally, I can’t believe that this massive grinding machinery can be doing this to you.

Deep down I feel those who support this feller know they are wrong.

Someday … the race is not always to the swift or to the strong.

11.14.2024 – the least qualified –

the least qualified –
remarkably dishonest …
he’s also depraved

Then there was a different camp — normie Republican — that had an entirely different view. They did not believe Trump’s words. They rolled their eyes at media alarmism and responded with some version of “stop clutching your pearls. This is just Trump being Trump. He’s far more bark than bite.”

But Trump’s selection of Matt Gaetz as his nominee for attorney general, along with his selection of Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense and Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence, shows that Trump did mean what he said. He is going to govern with a sense of vengeance, and personal loyalty really is the coin of his realm.

Gaetz’s nomination is particularly dreadful. He isn’t just the least-qualified attorney general in American history (he barely practiced law before running for elected office and has served mainly as a MAGA gadfly in Congress), he’s also remarkably dishonest and depraved.

I want to stay off of politics if I can but when someone like David French can string together the sentence “He isn’t just the least-qualified attorney general in American history (he barely practiced law before running for elected office and has served mainly as a MAGA gadfly in Congress), he’s also remarkably dishonest and depraved.” in the opinion piece, Trump’s Choice of Matt Gaetz Should Surprise No One, I have to take notice of the words least-qualified, remarkably dishonest and depraved being in used in context of a nominee for Attorney General.

People on the other side of the divide have tried to explain how their candidate was ‘imperfect’ and was making statements just to get elected.

Well, this candidate continues to make statements, continues to make a mockery of this country and of the people who felt they could somehow support him but seperate themselves from what is to come.

Good luck.

Mr. French closes with: Gaetz’s nomination is reaffirmation that the Donald Trump who tried to overthrow an American election hasn’t matured or evolved or grown.

11-13-2024 – when it’s not your day

when it’s not your day
and you can still win, that’s a …
sign of a good team

“For me I’m not going to tell him anything because I don’t feel like this is, oh, man, what are you doing? These weren’t ill-advised throws. It wasn’t our day. When it’s not your day and you can still win, that’s a sign of a good team.”

Detroit Lions Head Coach on the 5 interception performance of Lions Quarterback Jerod Goff in a game that saw Detroit score 19 second half points Houston Texans, 26-23.

“Man, that is the definition of resiliency,” Campbell said. “You guys just kept bangin’ away, right? We did whatever we had to do. And we just bought our time.”

“We get our points. Bates, that was freakin’ ginormous, alright?“

My college team is awful.

My pro team, for the first time in my life, is good.

Good good.

Lucky good.

Rather be lucky than good good.

Finding ways to win games they have no business winning.

Winning games they should win.

Going to sit on the beach of this Detroit Lions team and enjoy the warm sunshine and soft breeze as long as I can.

11.12.2024 – system doesn’t work

system doesn’t work
justifies further lack of
participation

This episode of Cavin and Hobbs so sums up my day.

Sorry and sad to say that one, this was over 30 years ago and two, this is the attitude that the opposition counts on.

Still, it’s worth typing out the text.

When I grow up, I’m not going to read the newspaper and I’m not going to follow complex issues and I’m not going to vote.

That way I can complain that the government doesn’t represent me.

Then, when everything goes down the tubes, I can say the system doesn’t work and justify my further lack of participation.

An ingeniously self-fulfilling plan.

It’s a lot more fun to blame things than to fix them.

It’s a lot more fun to blame things than to fix them.

BOY, HOWDY!

11.11.2024 – succumbed criminal pride

succumbed criminal pride
vanquished by the free peoples
it tried to enslave

On November 11, 1918, an armistice was signed to end the fighting known as then, the Great War and now as the humble, World War 1.

According to one travel website, To avoid humiliating the German delegation, Marshal Foch sought an out-of-the-way location near Paris. For this reason, the Rethondes Clearing in the Compiègne Forest was chosen. The World War I Armistice was signed on 11 November 1918 by the Allies and the German plenipotentiaries.

The allied commander in chief, Marshall Ferdinand Foch had his personal rail car moved to a rail siding in the Compiegne forest and in this rail car, the armistice was signed.

The forest clearing or Clairière de l’Armistice (“Glade of the Armistice”, or “Armistice Clearing”) became a memorial and large monument went up with the legend:

Here on the eleventh of November 1918 succumbed the criminal pride of the German Reich. Vanquished by the free peoples which it tried to enslave.

In June of 1940, France was over run by German armies and France gave up.

Adolf Hitler had no thoughts about avoiding humiliation and ordered that the French surrender at the same place in the same rail car which would be brought out from the museum where it was on display.

Hitler would sit in the same chair used by Marshall Foch.

History records that a car arrived with the representatives of France who were visibly shaken to find where they had been brought.

They had not been told where the surrender would take place.

William Shirer was on the scene for CBS Radio and he later wrote:

“Through my glasses I saw the Führer stop, glance at the [Alsace-Lorraine] monument. … Then he read the inscription on the great granite block in the center of the clearing: Here on the eleventh of November 1918 succumbed the criminal pride of the German empire … vanquished by the free peoples which it tried to enslave.” I look for the expression on Hitler’s face. I am but fifty yards from him and see him through my glasses as though he were directly in front of me. I have seen that face many times at the great moments of his life. But today! It is afire with scorn, anger, hate, revenge, triumph. He steps off the monument and contrives to make even this gesture a masterpiece of contempt. He glances back at it contemptuous, angry. … Suddenly, as though his face were not giving quite complete expression to his feelings, he throws his whole body into harmony with his mood. He swiftly snaps his hands on his hips, arches his shoulders, plants his feet wide apart. It is a magnificent gesture of defiance, of burning contempt.

All the memorials in the Clairière de l’Armistice were later destroyed by the Germans the Rail Car itself was brought to Berlin.

Five years later Hitler was dead.

Many years later the Clairière de l’Armistice was restored.

History still records that it was on this spot that is was Here on the eleventh of November 1918 succumbed the criminal pride of the German Reich. Vanquished by the free peoples which it tried to enslave.