tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54759906019873807082024-03-27T14:25:30.991-04:00JacksPotpourriPRIOR POSTINGS ON JACKSPOTPOURRI ARE ACCESSIBLE VIA THE BLOG ARCHIVE OFF TO THE RIGHT. You're invited to submit articles involving politics, satire, economics, media, or wherever your creativity leads you. Send them to jacklippman18@gmail.com. TO RECEIVE (or to cancel receiving) EMAILS ALERTING YOU TO BLOG POSTINGS, LET ME KNOW at jacklippman18@gmail.com. Blog can be accessed at https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com or at https://jacklippmanflnynj.substack.comJack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.comBlogger877125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-20027053904195630622024-03-27T10:28:00.001-04:002024-03-27T14:24:59.826-04:00March 27, 2024 - NBC's Blunder, Alternate Facts, Stacking up the Candidates, Political Poetry, and College Sports Gambling<p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b> * * * </b></span><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDZZnXeyNp9lFGlCQsGtFqoNGII26ScMT-e3KTddqkL2Y1zt222rKHXOMFGTmciTwhApVnKu0aqrGotxCGb1sVNcMVSPrmVU0dX4uzZbKMSFdwodecqR9RKLF4zEA5YfST6pV6bocw1406pI3Y4RVEb4r_mGV4Gc-UOMWtriUIb5ZoYe0wHqLjcJF2se4/s942/NBC%20peacock.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="849" data-original-width="942" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDZZnXeyNp9lFGlCQsGtFqoNGII26ScMT-e3KTddqkL2Y1zt222rKHXOMFGTmciTwhApVnKu0aqrGotxCGb1sVNcMVSPrmVU0dX4uzZbKMSFdwodecqR9RKLF4zEA5YfST6pV6bocw1406pI3Y4RVEb4r_mGV4Gc-UOMWtriUIb5ZoYe0wHqLjcJF2se4/s320/NBC%20peacock.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">NBC Peacock's feathers in disarray</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><b><br /></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><u><i>NBC Makes a Mistake</i></u></b></span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span>Jackspotpourri was all set to go out this morning with a seething denunciation of NBC's hiring of Trumpublican liar Ronna McDaniel, recently replaced as G.O.P. co-chairperson by Donald John Trump's daughter-in-law, Lara. Public opinion and NBC's professional staff of journalists got there before this blog did and NBC, recognizing the error of its ways, has announced that her hiring as a political analyst has been canceled. </span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">As a replacement for our readers, Jackspotpourri is including a 2020 piece on alternate facts</span>.<span style="color: #cc0000;"> Fortunately, </span></span></span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span><span style="color: #cc0000;">Ms. McDaniel's cancellation is not an alternate fact, but other things that you believe might be. </span></span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">JL </span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> * * *</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Bulletin from The Office of Alternate Facts</u></i></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>An apple, loosened from its attachment to its branch on an
apple tree, will fall to the ground. It
won’t shoot upward toward the sky nor remain hanging there in mid-air where it
was before its stem snapped. This is
because of what Isaac Newton defined as “gravity” in his laws of motion.<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>But, friends, hold on a second, please! Let us assume that at the same instant that
the apple falls from the tree, right here in the United States, a similar apple
becomes detached from its stem on an apple tree in Argentina. That apple will similarly fall to the ground,
but clearly, it is not falling in the same direction as its North American cousin
fell. That is because by just looking at
a globe, you can see that what is “pointing upwards” in the Northern hemisphere
is “pointing downwards” in the Southern hemisphere, and of course, vice versa. You can see the difference. You can’t tell me “up” and “down” are the
same thing directions in these two places.
To an extraterrestrial observer out in space with a very powerful telescope,
those apples clearly would appear to be falling in different directions! So clearly, just as some claim that “gravity”
is a fact, it can be proposed that there is an alternate fact stating that, at
a minimum, “up” and “down” are not the same thing as Newton claims they can be.<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Well, for “believers” in what Newton suggested, there had
to have been an explanation for the crazy idea of “up” equaling “down” in
different places on our planet. The
three “laws of motion” that he devised serve well to explain to “believers” that
something called “gravity” is the force that brings this about. That is, of course, if they choose to believe
in them. To back up these “laws,” an impressive
formula is included to prove the theory.
(This is included in the appendix.)
Simply, they supposedly claim that every<span style="background: white; color: #222222;"> object in the universe that has “mass” exerts a pull, or
force, on every other object that has “mass” and that that pull or force, in
the case of the apples and everything else in the universe, is what creates the
illusion of “up” and “down,” and also keeps the planets revolving around the
sun rather than their falling haphazardly out into space and gives order to
most other things in the universe. </span></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial;">Today, most people accept this
explanation of what “gravity” is as factual.
Newton did not, however, deal with the possibility that there might be
alternate facts, as your looking at a globe illustrates to anyone whose mind is
not closed. Someone standing precisely on the Earth’s
south pole clearly is upside down from someone standing precisely on the
Earth’s north pole, no matter how one claims otherwise. And of course, an empirical, objective look
at matters scientific requires such open minds.
Right? And that is precisely why our
group is dedicated to promulgating alternate facts.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>When we next meet, our
agenda will include a new, revealing, paper on why, really, if you sail far
enough out into the ocean, you will indeed fall off the earth. This is contrary to the fake news which has
been circulating for about the past four or five hundred years claiming that
our planet is a sphere rather than a flat surface, as had previously been well
documented for many centuries by the revealing woodcuts made by many extremely learned
monks. (One of these woodcuts is
included in the Appendix.)<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Meanwhile, let me remind you
that the deadline is approaching for registering for our 2020 worldwide seminar
on “Climate Change – The Greatest Hoax Since Noah’s Ark.” Originally scheduled for a lovely resort on Australia’s
southeast coast, we may be relocating that event since the “Happy Koala Lodge”
doesn’t seem to be answering the phone. Wherever we end up, be sure to bring your
alternate facts. Rumors that prospective
alternate locations have been subject to unexpected volcanic action, wildfires,
flooding or earthquake are clearly no more than fresh fake news originating
with supporters of the aforementioned Mr. Newton, whom it is rumored is
currently trying to understand the alternate facts recently reported in the
media that apples actually have been occasionally seen falling upward from
trees in Buenos Aires! Always, friends, please keep your mind open to
new ideas.<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Jack Lippman, Acting Alternate Factotum<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Appendix:<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">A: Newton’s three laws of motion</span></i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> may be stated as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><ol start="1" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Every
object in a state of uniform motion will remain in that state of motion
unless an external </span><span color="windowtext"><a href="http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/Force.html"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: blue; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">force</span></a></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> acts on it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Force
equals </span><span color="windowtext"><a href="http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/mass.html#mas"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: blue; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">mass</span></a></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> times acceleration [f (t)
= m a (t)].<o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">For
every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.<o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
</ol><p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;">
</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">B: Woodcut
illustrating that the earth is flat. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQcfMNjN_7PVxbETLz8sMg0YozJ8mi0qpw_O9CobxSYoR-QFhL8fsH8iPg1o68KUX2UHLEhvCKMHQzDsUREN9ZGvbfI6S07SO1yPyYsm4f3cZme8L5bCv_aw5r10OvJSFBRw8oH7TYfk88gcE255YB0q4IYyRW0a2wZftoHBO8AHrpnK52-XcRrqSZM9M/s244/Flat%20Earth%20Woodcut.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="207" data-original-width="244" height="339" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQcfMNjN_7PVxbETLz8sMg0YozJ8mi0qpw_O9CobxSYoR-QFhL8fsH8iPg1o68KUX2UHLEhvCKMHQzDsUREN9ZGvbfI6S07SO1yPyYsm4f3cZme8L5bCv_aw5r10OvJSFBRw8oH7TYfk88gcE255YB0q4IYyRW0a2wZftoHBO8AHrpnK52-XcRrqSZM9M/w400-h339/Flat%20Earth%20Woodcut.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">(Translation of inscription: ‘A missionary from the Middle Ages, or
possibly a middle-aged missionary, announces that he had found the point where
the heavens and the Earth touch one another.’) This graphically confirms the flatness of the
earth. Our modern-day Alternate Fact Research Team
out in the field tends to place that point about three miles north of the city
of Manaus on the Amazon River in Brazil.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial;">JL </span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraph"><b style="background-color: white;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * *</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>The Race for the Presidency</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The major issues that the 47<sup>th</sup>
president of the United State will face can be summarized as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Domestic</span></span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"> –
Immigration at our Southern Border, Inflation, the Economic Outlook, Abortion
Rights, Gun Violence, the Role of Government, Interpretation of the
Constitution.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Foreign</span></span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"> –
Russian aggression in Ukraine, Israel reaction to Hamas, China as a competitor.
<u><o:p></o:p></u></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Both President Biden and his challenger, Donald
John Trump, should have positions on these nine major issues. The President’s positions are easy to pin
down because he, as president, is involved in them daily. Trump’s position can be ascertained from his
prior presidency and what he is saying in his campaigning, bearing in mind that
words are far less definitive than <span style="color: #cc0000;">actions</span> which, as the old saying goes '<span style="color: #cc0000;">speak louder than words</span>.' <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;"><u>Let’s take a quick look at where they stand.</u></span><span style="color: #2f5597; font-size: large; text-decoration-line: underline;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Both stand for limiting <span style="color: red;">illegal immigration </span>at our Southern border. Biden wants to do it within our system of
laws, as a Federal matter, bearing in mind the problem it poses for cities and
States impacted by it. Trump just wants
to shut it down, building physical as well as legal walls, nationally or in
individual States. Trump shuns
bi-partisan agree-upon solutions that might take away a campaign argument from him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Biden counts on economic growth, less
unemployment, infrastructure improvements, more spendable income, and Federal
Reserve control of interest rates and the money supply to combat <span style="color: red;">inflation</span>. Slow to take effect, these steps enable
Trump to claim they are not working and that the problem is rampant, highly
visible in food and fuel prices.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Biden claims his administration is creating <span style="color: red;">economic</span> growth and the statistics, led by a healthy
stock market, prove it. Trump claims
things were better when he was President, and he deserves credit for economic
growth started when he was in charge.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Biden stands for <span style="color: red;">abortion
rights</span>. Trump is mostly silent on this issue, but his Supreme Court
appointees have turned this into a national debate, with most Republicans
seeking to restrict such women’s rights.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Biden is for Federal laws controlling <span style="color: red;">gun violence</span>. Trump wants it left to the States and cherishes
the support he gets at that level in the courts and from gun owners, some of whom are hostile to government involvement.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Biden’s administration favors <span style="color: red;">government regulation </span>that benefits the working
person, the environment, health, safety, and the economy.
Trump feels regulations stifle the economy, which left alone, will better
benefit the people, the old 'trickle down' con game.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">While Trump believes in a literal,
‘originalist’ reading of <span style="color: red;">the Constitution </span>and
its Amendments, Biden feels it should be interpreted in terms of its
consequences for the present and the future. (The SCOTUS decision keeping Trump on the Colorado ballot was a flip-flop of these positions!)<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Trump is not interested in supporting <span style="color: red;">Ukraine</span>’s battle against Russia, taking an ‘America
First’ approach. He continues not being a fan of NATO, even telling Russia to 'do what the hell you want' against those NATO states behind in their dues. Biden feels Russian
aggression must be stopped there with aid to Ukraine before it involves Europe and the United
States. Trump wholly supports anything <span style="color: red;">Israel</span> does to defend itself while Biden, while still
supporting Israel, still hopes for a two-state solution there, recognizing
Palestinian concerns. Trump supports a one-state solution, favoring Israel’s extremists and Bibi Netanyahu. Both
see <span style="color: red;">China</span> as a growing economic adversary but
Biden seeks a way of working with them, setting firm rules, while Trump
manifests hostility as the best course for us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">There it is.
<span style="color: red;">Take your choice! </span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 196.5pt;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Recommendation:
<span style="color: red;">It is bothersome that Donald Trump admires autocratic
heads of state like Hungary’s Viktor Orban and of course, Vladimir Putin, whose
views of democracy differ from what has always prevailed in the United States. He
is a potential ‘strong man,’ if not a dictator, and that is reason enough </span>NOT
<span style="color: red;">to vote for Trump. </span>While Trump may claim that
Biden has ‘weaponized’ the government against him, that is not so. Biden’s administration has merely executed the
laws passed by Congress, which is what these two branches of our government are
constitutionally designed to do. It is from such carrying out of our laws that the defeated former president's legal troubles come. But remember, no one is above the law, even a former president.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I would be remiss if I didn’t report the beginnings of a faint tremor I sense suggesting that Donald John Trump might not be the
Republican nominee in November, after all.
<span style="color: #2b00fe;">His increasing moments of irrationality, ignited by legal and money
problems that would torment and unnerve the most stable of people, may result
in a total mental collapse driving him over the precipice deeper into the false reality that has long captured
his mind. </span> Just look at his face lately! Nikki Haley, Mike Pence, and Chris
Christie (now suddenly back in the fray) stand ready to replace him, if Republicans decide
to dump him before it is too late. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * *</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Locally, it is important to donate to Democratic candidates who are in close races where your support is crucial. </span> In Florida, that means voting for Debbie Muscarsel-Powell for the United States Senate. She has a great chance of putting Rick Scott (who seems to be against everything good about America) out to pasture. Learn about her, and donate, at </span></span></b><b style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 19.8px;"><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/" style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</a> </span><span style="line-height: 19.8px;">or <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/ " target="_blank">just CLICK RIGHT HERE.</a></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"></span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC30EzQpkbv9Vev0sVTb1Zlinw9Cdxri6yJRDSH6IxUj4itLvmI6MtCa-EQTRqeIDhjcvfnmxiWR-nQkcjowE2TitQxI295FwCNjOy56oO9PxtKRXtUU2POk4HB1vRj6vu8Zz82kN-Bdtv2RgSvjymo1SfKY8peI7ojPDobN1zaEQJXvdAhFXwkuDBxm8/s225/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC30EzQpkbv9Vev0sVTb1Zlinw9Cdxri6yJRDSH6IxUj4itLvmI6MtCa-EQTRqeIDhjcvfnmxiWR-nQkcjowE2TitQxI295FwCNjOy56oO9PxtKRXtUU2POk4HB1vRj6vu8Zz82kN-Bdtv2RgSvjymo1SfKY8peI7ojPDobN1zaEQJXvdAhFXwkuDBxm8/w256-h256/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" width="256" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Florida's next Senator, with your help, <br />Debbie Muscarsel-Powell</span></td></tr></tbody></table><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">And wherever you are, please make sure that you are registered to vote, and you have taken the necessary steps to 'vote by mail.' Who knows? We might have a late season hurricane on November 5. In Palm Beach County, call the Supervisor of Elections at </span></span></b><span style="background-color: white; color: #565656; font-size: 18px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">(561) 656-6208.</span></b></span></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL </span></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * *</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Poetry Corner Goes Political</u></i></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">A woman’s choice,</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Put to the vote,<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Defeats the lies </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Shoved down our throat.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;"> </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">Should we allow</span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> A gun or two,</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> Defense against</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> What some might do?</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Make up your mind,</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Don’t let it slide,<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">These are the things<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #38761d;">You must decide.</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;"> </span><span style="color: #800180;">It’s up to you,</span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> It’s up to me,<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #800180; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> It’s part of our<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #800180;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">De</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">moc</span><span style="color: #ff00fe;">ra</span><span style="color: #274e13;">cy.</span></span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> * * *</span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><u>College Sports Gambling - and Transfers</u></span></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I continue to be dismayed by the number of
online gambling sites advertised on television and of course on the internet. They all say that their customers must be age
18, but that is pretty difficult for them to accurately confirm. The net result is that betting on college
sports events comes off as being a normal, legitimate, thing to do. It isn’t.
And this misconception is being established in the minds of young
people.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Back in the day (an expression I dislike
because your day may differ from mine), a guy who dropped by the corner candy
store each afternoon would take bets along with letting you pick the ‘numbers’
for that day. We knew it was illegal,
but the individual amounts wagered were piddling and nobody usually got
hurt. If someone did, they deserved it
for not paying what they owed if the local bookie had been dumb enough to
extend betting credit to them. This kind
of wagering is not to be confused in the well-regulated betting systems at
racetracks or in State-sanctioned ‘off track betting’ facilities.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">There are many aspects of sports that can be
bet on, ranging from scores, total points scored, margins of victory, parlays
of several events, race results, to individual performances. This leads to fans screaming at a basketball
game for a coach to leave his starters in for the last minute of a game in
which his team is leading by twenty points, because the ‘spread’ was that they
were favored to win by at least nineteen and a half points, or a particular
player was just short of the number of points the oddsmakers had predicted he
would score.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Combine this acceptance of sports gambling as
legitimate with the ‘transfer portal’ whereby talented college athletes find it
easy to switch schools, usually for a better chance of making it to the NBA or NFL
or making more money from a better deal using their name, image, and location
(NIL) from marketers. Some of the
low-seeded teams in the current NCAA basketball tournament are performing very
well because of players who, were it not for the ‘transfer portal,’ would be
playing at schools where basketball is played at a higher level, although perhaps
sitting on the bench there. We consider
them to be ‘student-athletes,’ but ‘athlete-students’ might be a better way of
referring to them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">If </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">*</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">Podunk
College managed to recruit, via the ‘transfer portal,’ half a dozen Big Ten,
Big East, SEC, or ACC players who might be only the ‘sixth or seventh’ players
at their present schools, Podunk’s team would possibly rise to the top of
Podunk’s lower ranked conference, getting them a bid to the NCAA ‘March
Madness,’ and a rise in the national polls as well, especially if the players
they acquired through the transfer portal all were at least six foot nine in
height. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">As for that ‘transfer portal,’ I continue to be
puzzled by ‘student-athletes’ like Jack Gohlke who led Oakland College, a
school no one really ever heard of before (it is a renamed version of Michigan
State’s satellite campus in Oakland, MI, founded in 1957) to an upset victory
over Kentucky in this year’s NCAA March Madness. He played for five years at Hillsdale College
(yes, that bastion of conservative ideas) at a lower competitive level and is
now doing ‘graduate’ work at Oakland, playing his sixth year of college hoops.
C’mon, this kind of ‘gaming the system’ creates what I would call a class of ‘professional
college athletes.’ Also in this
category, and there are many, is another wandering ‘professional college
athlete,’ the University of Connecticut’s Cam Spencer, whose basketball journey
has taken him through Loyola of Baltimore, Rutgers, and now a fifth year at
Connecticut, a team favored to win the NCAA championship next weekend.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Right now, in the headlines, read about how
baseball star Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is in deep doo-doo for swiping big
bucks from his employers to pay off gambling debts to the tune of about half a
million dollars. While Ohtani wasn’t
involved, it is very difficult to separate the worlds of gambling and
sports. I find it hard to believe that
this guy’s bookie (an illegal one, not the online version) let him run his tab
that high without knowing that his boss, multi-millionaire Ohtani, would
eventually be good for it. This story is
still a work in progress, but the aroma has already arrived.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">We are no longer in the naïve age where the
Cincinnati Red’s Pete Rose was banned from baseball’s Hall of Fame for betting
on his own team to win, not lose, baseball games, which was what he was being
paid a salary to do, anyway. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Who wants to take bets on when the inevitable
major scandal in college football or basketball takes place? The lure of
getting more now-acceptable money from more lucrative ‘Name, Image, and
Location’ (NIL) compensation deals at other schools, and hope for a six or
seven figure professional contract, fuel the transfer portal in an environment
that encourages gambling. And these
kids, most of whom will never ‘make it big,’ have an opportunity to cash in by
playing not quite up to their abilities while still in college. It is only a matter of time. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The first step to a solution would be a
four-year contract (or maybe five), locking them into any school giving them an
athletic scholarship, but the agents of the ‘student-athletes’ have great
lawyers who have fought that successfully in court. I wonder how many of these agents’ and lawyers’
phone numbers are included among the contacts on prominent gamblers’ smart
phones.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Elsewhere, a while back on Jackspotpourri, I
explained that colleges and universities were in the ‘education’ business and
not the ‘sports’ business, and that all athletic activity above the intramural
level should be dropped by them. The
University of Chicago and MIT are good examples. If an alumni group, or another group of local
supporters wanted to hire coaches and athletes with no connection to the school
whatsoever to don uniforms and represent the school on the gridiron or
basketball court, that would be fine.
They would purchase or lease the school’s stadium and other sports
facilities and even provide a professional marching band and cheerleaders, all
dressed up with the school’s colors, and that would be fine too. They could even continue to use the school’s
traditional ‘fight on’ songs. The NBA and the NFL might even want to subsidize
such teams, from which they would recruit players, and the colleges and
universities would get a cut of whatever money such teams would make, and then
get back into the business of providing what they were established for,
providing higher education. If you are offered a bet on this happening, take my
advice, and bet against it, however tempting the odds might be.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">*</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif">There is a community in central
Massachusetts, not too far from Worcester, named Podunk, but to my knowledge,
there is no college there, and little else.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL
<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: large;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></span></u></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Strange “Hits’</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">! </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040;">The large number of those accessing
Jackspotpouri from Singapore has suddenly ceased. In their place, however,
there have appeared large numbers of ‘hits’ on each posting in the hundreds, as was the case with those from Singapore, but this time from Hong Kong! I suspect that the Chinese are playing around
with internet transmissions, possibly to try to identify who is reading them. </span></b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">.</span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> a link to that address in your email to them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email
addresses to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief
comment from you. Each will receive a link to click on that
will directly connect them to the blog.</span></b><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b></span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span>This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">JL</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></p></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-5399100457570923412024-03-23T15:34:00.002-04:002024-03-23T22:54:20.623-04:00March 23, 2024 - A Task For Democrats, Massacre in Moscow, A Poem for Locals, and Where I Stand<b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i> * * * </i></span></b><div><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Poetry Corner </u></i></span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Here’ a poem I’ve written that might have some meaning to Floridians living in Palm Beach County:</b></span> </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSk9pF5z73iZ_-PyIPjTknGJ5V_26Pc48Z7jKGcOWyWayooBQihTM1J6SqovvbmQDeYJkixQdnd_TRhAsSDzWSX5BJeuMYgPiNGGQ2gY-b7pyk_ZMoyTN9URPqaOBhTKfJobvrwkOJ3CkqnzeCk04qYb-TVKdjPaWBTVFmJwPFawdKSbEpfVqDZaNTjrg/s300/Pier.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSk9pF5z73iZ_-PyIPjTknGJ5V_26Pc48Z7jKGcOWyWayooBQihTM1J6SqovvbmQDeYJkixQdnd_TRhAsSDzWSX5BJeuMYgPiNGGQ2gY-b7pyk_ZMoyTN9URPqaOBhTKfJobvrwkOJ3CkqnzeCk04qYb-TVKdjPaWBTVFmJwPFawdKSbEpfVqDZaNTjrg/w400-h224/Pier.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: arial;">Westward</span></span></u></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: arial;"> <u>Ho</u>!</span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>From
Fed’ral Highway driving west, </b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Go
cross the road that’s called Seacrest, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Speed
over Congress, then through Jog, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>What
years before was swamp and bog. </b></span></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>On
Military prancing, </b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>On
El Clair Ranch, a’dancing, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Through
Hagen Ranch, a’flyin, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Pass
the road named after Lyon. <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Once
you’re past Four-Forty-One, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Watch
for gators in the sun. <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Other
creatures, quite a bunch, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Some
will be a python’s lunch.
<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>When
you reach Im-mok’-a-lee, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Skip
signs to Naples that you’ll see, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>You’re
almost there, it can’t be far, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Just
speed ahead, in your car. <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>But
when she floats, then you’ll know, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Too
late to shout, ‘Westward Ho,’ </b></span></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: large; font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Too
late to hit your brakes real slow, </b></span></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>You’ve
reached the Gulf of Mexico, <o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>You’re
<span style="background-color: #eeeeee;"><u><span>IN</span></u> </span>the Gulf of Mexico! <br /></b></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzOCwPYBpEU760vYGRADWm8I9bMLzpY9kLp4NnUj2Drn468qikKJK05yz3eSufw_TW45uG_9gjHuDZwmLLdfszn_TXncoh63GTYPl3ApFcgMUFQkplexg2PrOtiTZP62p2wqE6zDXpWgbcXP9hViIm9CLA-Nogqin_gv8HPzBdq8AgkA11D-20Tzo4VLU/s640/waves.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="107" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzOCwPYBpEU760vYGRADWm8I9bMLzpY9kLp4NnUj2Drn468qikKJK05yz3eSufw_TW45uG_9gjHuDZwmLLdfszn_TXncoh63GTYPl3ApFcgMUFQkplexg2PrOtiTZP62p2wqE6zDXpWgbcXP9hViIm9CLA-Nogqin_gv8HPzBdq8AgkA11D-20Tzo4VLU/w523-h107/waves.png" width="523" /></a></i></div><i><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /><b><br /></b></span></i><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></i></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></b></div><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> *
* *</span></b><p></p></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><u><i>The Task Before Us</i></u></b></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Trumpublicans are busy gaming the legal system as it affects their likely presidential candidate with <span style="color: #cc0000;">delays</span> that will last far beyond the November election and<span style="color: #cc0000;"> litigating for Court opinions permitting them to lie</span> and spread disinformation without impediment, under the guise of freedom of speech. What was once 48 months to defend against these two strategies has shrunk to well under eight months! </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">That is not enough time to stop them from playing these games.</span> It would be a misdirection of Democrats’ energy and resources to bother to fight their delaying tactics and their lies at this point. We can hope, of course, that the defeated and indicted former president will continue to make an ass of himself to appeal to his base, and incidentally lose millions of independent and 'true' Republican voters in doing so, but we cannot count on that being enough. </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>The only reliable antidote to their tactics is a massive outpouring of votes at the national and State levels in November to repudiate them.
Begin working to make that happen before dinner tonight. <span style="color: #cc0000;">That is the task before us. Tomorrow, after breakfast, may be too late. </span> Hint: Forwarding this posting of Jackspotpourri to your friends, neighbors, and relatives might be a good start.</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> * *</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">I was about to list a whole bunch of things about which Democrats can brag, from the economy to standing up against Trumpubican attacks on abortion rights but instead, I am starting with a letter which </span></b></span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">appeared in the Palm Post the other day that touches most of the bases</span>: </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i><span style="color: #cc0000;"> ‘Four years ago we were living through chaotic and dark times. 30,000 people a month were dying of COVID, while former President Trump downplayed its existence. The Dow lost 35% of its value, plunging 10,000 to 20,000 points. Every day featured news about Trump’s antics, his ineptitude, his inability to lead, and his coddling of dictators. Joe Biden promised he would tame COVID, stabilize our economy, bring dignity and competence back to our government, and restore our relations with our friends and allies. 'And here we are today, COVID a distant memory, the Dow nearing 40,000, our 401k’s secure, our economy leading the world, our allies working in unison with us again, and a calm, professional, consistent management of the nation’s business back on track. Trump would like to drag us back down into that chaos, that darkness, that constant focus on the one person that matters to Trump — himself. Are you better off than four years ago? For me the answer is 'yes.' </span></i></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Yes, that's a fine letter! </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Don’t underestimate the job the President has done in rebuilding our connections to other freedom-loving nations, especially our NATO partners, relations to which were shredded by his predecessor in office. His standing up for Ukraine in their struggle with Russia keeps their aggressive behavior out of Western Europe and from our doorstep. And don’t forget his defense of the rights of women concerning abortion, made difficult by his predecessor’s Supreme Court appointees. <span style="color: #cc0000;">Spread this message. </span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Joe Biden is on the people’s side. Donald Trump is not. He is for himself.</span> But the echoing of his lies by the MAGA minority massages his ego into believing otherwise. </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Counting on his continuing to make a fool of himself or waiting for our legal system to catch up with him isn’t enough. <span style="color: #cc0000;">Your time, energy, and occasional donations (if you can afford them) to deserving candidates are needed to preserve representative democracy in this country.</span> <span style="color: #2b00fe;">That is the task before us.</span> <span style="color: #cc0000;">The next move is yours, and as I suggested above, the time is now, not tomorrow.</span> </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">* *</b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>A friend asked me the other day where would be the best place to make a political donation, in view of the many pleas for donations received daily online and in the mail. </b><span style="color: #cc0000; font-weight: bold;"> Right now, at least for Floridians,</span> <span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>I would recommend a donation to support Debbie Muscarsel-Powell in her Senate race.</b></span><b> Control of the Senate is at stake and the incumbent, when it comes down to it, is no friend of Medicare nor Social Security. Permit me to point out that neither of these programs are 'entitlements,' as preached by him. Beneficiaries of these programs have contributed toward them, through payroll deductions, for years. </b><span style="color: #cc0000; font-weight: bold;">For more information about Ms. Muscarsel-Powell,</span><b> or to donate, visit </b></span><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 19.8px; text-decoration-line: none;"><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</a> </span><span style="line-height: 19.8px; text-decoration-line: none;">or <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/" target="_blank">CLICK RIGHT HERE.</a></span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>JL </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> * * * </b></span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><b><u>
Where I Stand</u></b></i></span> - </span></span><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u>You're Entitled to Know</u></span> </span></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">As you might suspect from following Jackspotpourri, I do have strong personal opinions, often more extreme than the positions of those candidates I support. I am not ashamed of these positions and now restate them, </b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">recognizing that not everyone shares them. And if you don't agree with me, that's fine too.</b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">1. If President Biden is re-elected in November, and has Democratic majorities in both Houses of Congress, he must immediately expand the Supreme Court, appointing four additional Justices. </span></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">2. Peace in the Middle East is possible only if two changes occur, and they are related to one another. While we are not yet at the point where they will take place, bringing them about should be our goal. One change is that all groups and nations supporting the Palestinians must agree to the establishment of a Palestinian state that would live peacefully alongside the State of Israel, whose permanent existence would be recognized by all of them and not be challenged by any of them in any manner whatsoever. The other change is that the State of Israel must officially end settlements, past, present, or future, by Israelis in the areas destined to be included in a new Palestinian state. Only then will there be peace. Neither side will be happy initially with such changes, having to abandon their long-existing positions, but eventually they will come to enjoy the peace such changes will bring about. </span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> JL </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> * * * </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Massacre in Moscow</u></i></b></span></div><div><br /></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Both the United States and Russia failed miserably in their efforts to understand the region known as Afghanistan which they mistakenly thought of as a governable nation. </b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Being able to grow poppies and inspire terrorists, in an environment dominated by an unforgiving religious zealotry, does not entitle an area to claim to be a nation.</b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">The deadly attack on the rock concert in suburban Moscow by Afghanistani-inspired ISIS terrorists echoes the attack on an Israeli rock concert by Hamas terrorists. Though not tied to ISIS, Hamas' philosophy also stems from Islamic extremism. Supposedly defeated in Iraq and Syria, ISIS still exists in the Islamic world. They play by their own rules. And other extremists follow.</b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">It is up to the United States, Russia, Western Europe, and the rest of the Islamic world, including Iran, to deal with such terrorism, a task made difficult by its masquerading as a religious movement as much as a political one. </b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Even though the warnings, made possible by our superior intelligence operations, went unheeded, the United States did alert the Russians of the possible Moscow attack. This points up that Islamic extremism is a beast of its own, overriding whatever disagreements non-Islamic nations might have among themselves.</b></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> JL </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> * * *</b></span></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><i><u>
Housekeeping on Jackspotpourri </u></i></b></span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Singaporeans!</span>
I don’t know why but I still am getting a large number of ‘hits’ on Jackspotpourri from Singapore. They might represent individual internet users, or possibly a government, business, academic, or private entity. I just don’t know. If any Singaporean has an explanation, please let me know by Email (jacklippman18@gmail.com). And if you don’t want to send me such an Email, I will understand. </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts:</span> If you are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at jacklippman18@gmail.com. </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Forwarding Postings:</span> Please forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it. Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.
If you want to send someone the blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com or you can provide a link to that address in your email to them. </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>There’s another, perhaps easier, method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from you. Each will receive a link to click that will directly connect them to the blog. </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Either way will work, sending them the link to https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com, or clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.
Again, I urge you to forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if they are a registered voter. </b></span></div><div><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>This is an election year. Spread the word. </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>JL </b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;"> * * *</span></b></span></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-57306921121912174502024-03-18T10:34:00.000-04:002024-03-18T10:34:21.270-04:00March 18, 2024 - Conseqences, Meaness, and All About Joe<p> </p><span style="font-size: medium;"> * * *</span><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Consequences Count
</u></i></b></span></div></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Supreme
Court decisions can look in one of two directions, ‘Originalism’ or
‘Consequentialism.’ The first means
sticking to the letter of the law as it appears in the Constitution, the words
that were written at the nation’s birth, in its Amendments, or in prior SCOTUS
decisions (stare decisis), or combinations of these sources. ‘Consequentialism’ means looking beyond
these ‘Originalist’ bases of decisions and anticipating what their results, or
consequences, would be. </span></span></b></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Our
present SCOTUS leans in the Originalist direction in its decisions regarding
abortion by saying that because the Founding Fathers didn’t put it into the
Constitution, not mentioning it meant it was the States’ and not the Federal
government’s concern. As to decisions
regarding weapons possession, SCOTUS decisions are solidly based on the final
fourteen words of the Second Amendment, also leaving guns as a concern of
individual States.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">If
our SCOTUS were to move away from this Originalist orientation, it would need a
basis for doing so, and its Consequentialist decision telling Colorado that it
couldn’t knock Donald John Trump off of the presidential primary ballot in that
State, regardless of the precise language in Section 3 of the Fourteenth
Amendment saying that it could, did exactly that! <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo1F8pBBzva4sLkHAUuBG9fyI9MPu1Pe1mH7Ow1aQw6E8yjyGPlCktw2AzimYdtW8NRL59V99u638VPdV0ZsHGSDVSWaWpa90WlvXmu0OQpbVfbSwEtdFPaSZoCOPcxz4oS6X2DI_0EFFfLdLqfzAIYzF4qDC296akk765TbAzQDD4aVZ82bi_me9LqvI/s2500/Alito.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1666" data-original-width="2500" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo1F8pBBzva4sLkHAUuBG9fyI9MPu1Pe1mH7Ow1aQw6E8yjyGPlCktw2AzimYdtW8NRL59V99u638VPdV0ZsHGSDVSWaWpa90WlvXmu0OQpbVfbSwEtdFPaSZoCOPcxz4oS6X2DI_0EFFfLdLqfzAIYzF4qDC296akk765TbAzQDD4aVZ82bi_me9LqvI/s320/Alito.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Jusice Alito's departure from Originalism</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">Jill
Lepore in the New Yorker </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">(March
18 Issue), reporting on the SCOTUS’ unanimously telling Colorado it couldn’t
remove Trump from the Colorado ballot, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">described that decision’s reliance on arguments about
potential <u>consequences</u></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">
including ‘conflicting State outcomes.’ The Court’s decision pointed out that
‘an evolving electoral map, for instance, could dramatically change the
behavior of voters, parties, and States across the country, in different ways
and at different times’ and that ‘nothing in the Constitution requires that we
endure such chaos.’ </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">All
of a sudden the Originalist SCOTUS became the Consequentialist SCOTUS! </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">And this from the pen of Justice Alito, no
less.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">The
point of this switcheroo is that it means that </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">the SCOTUS is now open to recognizing the
consequences of their decisions</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">,
something that in recent years, they have not been doing. They never looked at
the consequences of their decisions regarding the Second Amendment or abortion
rights, but with their flip flop in regard to Colorado’s dependance on Section
3 of the Fourteenth Amendment, consequences suddenly became important. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">While
many were dismayed by the SCOTUS’ telling Colorado that they could not remove
Trump from their ballot, despite what the Constitution specifically said,
because of what would be the consequences of such a decision, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">the way is now open for the Justices to now
consider the consequences of their decisions in their approach to abortion and
guns. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Out
of the darkness of the Supreme Court has come a glimmer of light upon which
future decisions can be based.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>What
Would Lincoln Do</u>?</i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">A
recent letter writer to the local newspaper, in pointing out G.O.P. opposition
in Congress to an environmentally favorable piece of legislation, wrote ‘Is
there anything positive and good that Republicans stand behind? To sum it up in a way any young child could
understand, </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">they are just plain mean.’</span><span style="color: #404040;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">It
might seem that with the occasional exception of a few syndicated columnists
(like Cal Thomas), many newspapers, generally reflect, especially in their
opinion and letters pages, a liberal, progressive, standpoint, very close to
that of the Democratic Party.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Conservatives
and Republicans who object to this fail to recognize that positions based on
lies and misrepresentation are difficult or even dishonest to present, and
that’s why they don’t appear frequently in most newspapers and media, except
for right-wing mouthpieces like the New York Post, FoxNews, Newsmax, and
OAN Thus they accuse mainstream media (MSM) of
being biased.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Sooner
or later their dishonesty will make the Republican Party into a mere footnote
to history, and little more. They will
only be remembered as chronic obstructionists and wouldn’t even warrant that
were it not for Abraham Lincoln and Theodore
Roosevelt both of whom had their own ideas, despite their Republican label. Neither of them would cast a vote for any
Republican today.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Take
the Time to Read About Joe Biden</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The
March 11 issue of the New Yorker magazine included an excellent article on
President Biden and the challenges he faces in the upcoming election. Unfortunately, the article ran fifteen pages
of small print and the magazine is overly optimistic if they believe most its
readers will read the entire article. I
scanned through a good portion of it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">After
fully describing Biden’s background and political career, the article made the
point that the country was in really bad shape when Biden took office. Still recovering from the Covid epidemic, and
the damage it did to the economy, he instituted programs such as the American
Rescue Act, and took other steps, including deficit reduction, to get the
country back on the right track.
</span><span style="color: #cc0000;">Although all of his goals have not been reached, the nation is well
along the path to fully repairing the damage it suffered due to Covid and the
defeated former president’s half-baked, backward-looking domestic programs,
ridiculed by all but the most reactionary economists and libertarians.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The article pointed out that this
message, describing Biden’s very significant accomplishments, has not broken
through to the American public. When the
President says something, it is reported in the media, and that’s usually the
end of the story except for a few columnists’ remarks</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">.</span><span style="color: #c00000;"> When
the defeated former president speaks, however, it is not only reported in the
media, but echoed and re-echoed repeatedly via the conservative internet sites
and radical news sources that make no bones about being loyal to him and his
aversion to the truth</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">These
sources have a historic way of dealing with the losses that the Republicans
have suffered in most elections over the past four years, and that is patching
over a loss with a lie! </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">When the South lost the Civil War, they ignored
the fact that it was fought over the issue of slavery, and promulgated the lie
that it was fought to ‘defend States’ rights.’
</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">This
led to a corrupted ‘Reconstruction.’</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">(Some
historians still believe that and are among those running around today opposing
Critical Race Theory, an academic discipline that recognizes the influence of
historic facts concerning race on our politics and government.) <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">Similarly,
when President Biden’s predecessor in office lost the 2020 election, he
concocted the lie that he really won that election, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">leading to the January 21, 2021 Capitol rioting
and the glue holding together the fractious Republican majority in the
House. Their modus operandi became the act
of challenging the truth with lies, hoping enough voters will believe them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">The
article dwelt on the challenge this poses to President Biden’s 2024 campaign. If you have the time, read it at </span></b><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/11/joe-biden-profile"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/11/joe-biden-profile</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/11/joe-biden-profile" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> * * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><i>S</i></span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">ingaporeans</span></u></b><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">!</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040;">I don’t know why but I
still am getting a large number of ‘hits’ on Jackspotpourri from
Singapore. They might represent individual internet users, or possibly a
government, business, academic, or private entity. I just don’t
know. If any Singaporean has an explanation, please let me know by Email
(</span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040;">). And if you don’t want to send me such an Email, I will
understand.</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> a link to that address in your email to them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> <b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> <b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">JL</span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-49282352421705404062024-03-13T09:07:00.000-04:002024-03-13T09:07:53.029-04:00March 13, 2024 - An American Disgrace, Voting by Mail, Arming Ukraine, and the Truth About Rick Scott<p> </p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"> * * *</span><div><p style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Living With History - Ukraine</u></i></span></b></p><p style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #363737;">It has been commented elsewhere that ‘Ukraine stands between an aggressive Russian dictator and a democratic Europe.' I agree, and just as we recognized the importance of a democratic Europe to our own security in 1940, we should be doing so today. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">That is why I am glad that President Biden has found a way to ship additional munitions to the struggling Ukrainians, </span><span>despite the opposition of those who worship at the shrine of St. Donald of Trump.</span><span style="color: #363737;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; font-family: arial; margin-left: 135pt;"><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></span></p><p style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif">The tragedy we face is that<span style="color: #cc0000;"> our defeated former president's often admiring attitude toward authoritarian rulers, like Vladimir Putin and Victor Orban, has spread to our Republican Party</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #363737;"> which knows that without his base’s support, they couldn't elect a dog catcher in Dubuque, nor most of their other candidates. </span></span></b></p><p style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #363737;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As individuals, we must all do our part to work so that we are not counted among 'those who ignore history’ and ‘are forced to relive it,' as many philosphers, including George Santayana, have warned.</span><o:p style="font-size: 14pt;"></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">JL </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 19.8px;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; font-family: arial; margin-left: 135pt;"><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span><b><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"> * * *<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"> </span></span></b></span></span></p><div><b style="font-family: arial;"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><u>An American Disgrace: Mitch McConnell</u></span></i></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">The
online magazine ‘Slate’ recently published a revealing piece about the
tremendous harm to the nation that was done by Mitch McConnell, who is still in
the Senate but giving up his leadership role.
Visit </span><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/03/mitch-mcconnell-retire-trump-federal-judiciary.html"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/03/mitch-mcconnell-retire-trump-federal-judiciary.html</span></a><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> to read it or <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/03/mitch-mcconnell-retire-trump-federal-judiciary.html " target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">What
the article reveals is enough to push Democrats to </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">demand that President Biden, if he wins
re-election in November and is blessed with Democratic majorities in both
Houses of Congress, appoint four additional Justices to the Supreme Court!</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> Once
that is accomplished, cases involving abortion, gun violence, voting rights,
and business regulation ought to be navigated to the SCOTUS taking America’s
judiciary out of the hands of those who have lost touch with the American
people! <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgul47mFtftawyHs9Z9GhqFbQWmyd_75ludiDcXN9ZE8Nkzn0xM3hMM-fLnsSyLIBXy4SRDPDv6wOqivdOFmzPH0-vN3qwEfnBcQIw_yp8TqQ5PKN-vj6kePZ9NFzrEZOkKy15gFcwqivjn7r2qQzU6qSnN-BBw6qVe-yDpfVm96OTsU9Exp3iyXXjKlU8/s1400/mcconnellmitch.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="787" data-original-width="1400" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgul47mFtftawyHs9Z9GhqFbQWmyd_75ludiDcXN9ZE8Nkzn0xM3hMM-fLnsSyLIBXy4SRDPDv6wOqivdOFmzPH0-vN3qwEfnBcQIw_yp8TqQ5PKN-vj6kePZ9NFzrEZOkKy15gFcwqivjn7r2qQzU6qSnN-BBw6qVe-yDpfVm96OTsU9Exp3iyXXjKlU8/s320/mcconnellmitch.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">McConnell</td></tr></tbody></table><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">McConnell
knew a conservative judiciary without term limits was a more potent and more
permanent tool in governing than winning control of Congress and the
presidency.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> The Founding Fathers never
envisioned this when they wrote the Constitution! Something must be done to change things on the SCOTUS, and restore the
balance between the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches of our
government.</span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Meanwhile,
our judiciary, that at its lower and appellate levels mostly recognizes the
lawless behavior of our defeated and indicted former president, is being
stymied by a SCOTUS that fails to recognize that </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘Justice delayed is Justice
denied.’ </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> That maxim has been stated in a
variety of ways by William Penn, by Nineteenth century British prime minister
William Gladstone, and of course by Martin Luther King from a Birmingham
jail. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">Again, the solution appears two paragraphs above
in red.</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">JL</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">
* * *</span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><u><span style="color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">Voting by Mail – </span></u></i><i><u><span style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">Why it is Crucial to Florida's Senate Race</span></u></i></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten used to voting by
mail. It’s safe and simple. </span><span style="color: #cc0000; line-height: 110%;"> But
just because you might have done it in the past does not mean you can
automatically continue to do so.</span><span style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;"> </span><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to renew your ‘voting by
mail’ status before the next election in order to receive a ‘vote by mail’
ballot. </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach County, do it right
now by visiting </span><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><span style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></a><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a></span><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> For those who do not want do it online, they can
sign up for vote-by-mail by calling </span><span style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida counties, visit
the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">The simplest argument for voting by mail is that the weather may be terrible, or you might not feel well, on Election Day. Don't take that chance!</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span><b><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"> * *</span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: large; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="line-height: 110%;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;"><i><u>Why Rick Scott Must be Defeated and Your Role</u></i></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">Voting is particularly important in 2024
because some knowledgeable pundits, despite polls that disagree with one
another and change from week to week, are coming around to believe America will
re-elect a Democratic president and turn the House ‘blue’ in November but are
not quite so sure about the Senate. I'm not a 'pundit' but that's also what I
believe. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">That’s why it is important for
clear-thinking Floridians to vote for Debbie Muscarsel-Powell to replace
Florida Senator Rick Scott in the Senate </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">to insure a Democratic majority there. </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><u><span style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">Six years ago, Scott won by only
10,033 votes, state-wide, so defeating him is very attainable</span></u><span style="color: red; line-height: 110%;"> in view of his stand on abortion, and for seniors (even
independents and Republicans), Scott’s historic opposition to Medicare and
Social Security which he wanted to put up to a vote in Congress every five
years should be the clincher. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 15pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Currently, Republicans are trying to lie
their way out of his originally having taken that position. The truth is that Scott’s ’12 Point Plan’ to ‘Rescue
America’ originally contained these words,<span style="color: red;"> ‘<u>We will eliminate all
federal programs that can be done locally</u>.’ </span> Specifically, on page 19 of
the 31 page detailed description of his plan, Scott provided that <span style="color: #c00000;">“All
federal legislation sunsets in 5 years. If a law is worth keeping, Congress can
pass it again.”</span><span style="color: #333333;"> I’m not making this
up. It comes directly from Scott. Read on!<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 15pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #333333;">That encompasses a lot of laws to ‘sunset’! Among the many federal laws on the books is one
called the </span><span style="color: #cc0000;"><u><span>Social Security Act</span></u><span>. </span></span><span style="color: #333333;"> You’ve heard of that? This law was originally passed in 1935 to
create </span><u><span style="color: #c00000;">Unemployment Insurance</span></u><span style="color: #333333;">, </span><u><span style="color: #c00000;">Aid to
Dependent Children</span></u><span style="color: #c00000;"> </span><span style="color: #333333;">(cash welfare for widows and
orphans --- later extended to cover all poor single women with children renamed
</span><u><span style="color: #c00000;">Aid to Families with Dependent Children </span></u><u><span style="color: #333333;">(AFDC</span></u><span style="color: #333333;">), and </span><span style="color: #c00000; text-decoration-line: underline;">Old Age
and Survivors Pensions </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u>(</u>what is commonly thought of today as <u>“</u></span><span style="color: #cc0000; text-decoration-line: underline;">Social Security</span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">.”)</span><span style="color: #333333;">. That
law has 21 separate ‘titles’ enumerating its many benefits. Included in the
current law is an entire section covering </span><u><span style="color: #c00000;">Medicare</span></u><span style="color: #333333;"> which is
administered by the Social Security Administration. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span>(</span><span><u>Medicare
was passed as an amendment to the Social Security Act in 1965</u></span><span>.)</span></span><span style="color: #333333;"> Scott
especially wanted to get his paws on that. </span></b></span></p><p style="background: white; margin: 15pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"></span></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXdQotttviDkzXfaoIYERUnqsR6VCivhhk_mqbELchTAUuYmAc8iy-ggYrc9U-l9UBKg3TAGz4ctUrce4LrbffdkdMUEbpkuiSn6nkhUsRpuiUMXTdMEiiymYaP2Q5roqvufFqmOJSoDNATQTL1ich-eB58DE_Ww8VK6lST_FQm80y1mGwkn7g3VXz5I/s980/Rick%20Scott.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="551" data-original-width="980" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXdQotttviDkzXfaoIYERUnqsR6VCivhhk_mqbELchTAUuYmAc8iy-ggYrc9U-l9UBKg3TAGz4ctUrce4LrbffdkdMUEbpkuiSn6nkhUsRpuiUMXTdMEiiymYaP2Q5roqvufFqmOJSoDNATQTL1ich-eB58DE_Ww8VK6lST_FQm80y1mGwkn7g3VXz5I/s320/Rick%20Scott.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Very Replacable Senator Scott</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="background: white; margin: 15pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #333333;">Before Rick went into politics, he was the CEO of a hospital
chain which carried out the largest Medicare fraud case in the program’s
history. An artful dodger, he wasn’t personally
charged, but this should give you an idea of where he was, and still is, coming
from. </span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">When saner Republicans
realized the politically suicidal nature of eliminating such programs, which
already had their MAGA wing drooling with glee, Scott’s program-cutting ‘plan’
was amended in February, 2023, to specifically exclude Medicare, Social
Security, and Veterans benefits from what he would get rid of as Federal
programs. Scott claimed at that time that he never had intended to include them
in what he would eliminate from Federal management. But that is not what it originally had said! Words have meaning. Even for Republicans. <u>And I believe that is what is still in his
head</u>!</span><span style="line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">Republicans are trying
to lie their way out of his originally having taken that position. In fact, </span><span style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">when President Biden, not one for missing an opportunity to ‘strike
back,’ during his State of the Union address, mentioned this cruel Republican
attempt at ‘sunsetting’ Medicare and Social Security every five years, </span><span style="line-height: 110%;">the pious liar sitting in the House
Speaker’s chair repeatedly </span><span style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">shook his head
negatively, like a child’s wind-up toy.</span><span style="color: #2f5496; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">If
there is any need to ‘Rescue America,’ it is from Republican leadership in
Congress, </span><span>which puts a higher priority on keeping the support of the defeated and indicted former president than addressing such pressing issues as the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, our Southern border, and seeing that those who rioted on January 6, 2021 and the inciter of that attack on the Capitol, are punished. And of course, <span style="color: #2b00fe;">America must be rescued from the likes o</span>f </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Florida’s Senator Rick Scott, and that is what</span></span><span style="color: #2f5496; line-height: 110%;"> </span><span style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">Debbie Muscarsel-Powell’s</span><span style="color: #2f5496; line-height: 110%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">campaign is all about.</span></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"></span></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3S_Su3K6gTZLNmt0lHoU0-jOmNkdDPnOGAkRzAqyOpXn0Wxi14cX5Ykh1e6qJZaaxmhEd9gGZibR9WaVOwAW3C8BLanfKcPe88RPFUedvcuU25PXrSuqMKMhtwPymUXXULIsDXBSsclD8DIW7fx_xZRx8h70fp-adscf6kN8sw0Gal7kVmRCCFHLbcN8/s225/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="93" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3S_Su3K6gTZLNmt0lHoU0-jOmNkdDPnOGAkRzAqyOpXn0Wxi14cX5Ykh1e6qJZaaxmhEd9gGZibR9WaVOwAW3C8BLanfKcPe88RPFUedvcuU25PXrSuqMKMhtwPymUXXULIsDXBSsclD8DIW7fx_xZRx8h70fp-adscf6kN8sw0Gal7kVmRCCFHLbcN8/w93-h93/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" width="93" /></a></span></b></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">For more information about Florida’s next
Senator, Debbie Muscarel-Powell, just visit </span><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/"><span style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</span></a><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"> </span><span style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">or just <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/ " target="_blank">CLICK RIGHT HERE!</a></span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 19.8px;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="line-height: 19.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">* * *</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large; line-height: 19.8px;"><i><u>Salt Shortage</u>?</i></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 19.8px;">There is a looming shortage of salt in this country right now because most Americans are using it up rapidly, taking ‘a grain of salt’ with anything and everything a Republican politician might say! Proverbially, anyway.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"></b></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR90JynoPbClEh-yYu_WtU53Pqs7n_6myUkDG8WAYws6QXGcNqEInbYB-2500eyEQHI0sKuHJ_NaBGDdqMPljLXzJGbPC6wMb8_mn6sp8vD3i-l-8LwPf7wGnDbPvt65lcewfkH1YuVOjfKRauTl7AyGbsD3C41wEm9PcWs6SQTAbmCOBGtJTdq5ankRQ/s1500/Salt%20shaker.jpg"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1500" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR90JynoPbClEh-yYu_WtU53Pqs7n_6myUkDG8WAYws6QXGcNqEInbYB-2500eyEQHI0sKuHJ_NaBGDdqMPljLXzJGbPC6wMb8_mn6sp8vD3i-l-8LwPf7wGnDbPvt65lcewfkH1YuVOjfKRauTl7AyGbsD3C41wEm9PcWs6SQTAbmCOBGtJTdq5ankRQ/w200-h200/Salt%20shaker.jpg" width="200" /></a></b></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: large;">* * *</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><o:p style="font-size: 13.5pt;"></o:p></span></span></b></p><p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><br /></p><p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">A Note of Caution: The opinions I post come from this blog or either of my two email addresses,
shown at the bottom of most correspondence I send. If you encounter
anything else purportedly coming from me, please let me know. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">(One of our regular followers has encountered such emails,
not coming from me and simply identified as coming from a ‘J.Lippman.’)</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">JL </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt;"><span style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span><b><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"> * * *</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></u></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="background-color: transparent; font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #c00000;">Singaporeans</span></u><span style="color: #c00000;">!</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #404040;">I don’t know why but I
still am getting a large number of ‘hits’ on Jackspotpourri from
Singapore. They might represent individual internet users, or possibly a government,
business, academic, or private entity. I just don’t know. If any
Singaporean has an explanation, please let me know by Email (</span><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><span style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></a><span style="color: #404040;">). And if you don’t want to send me such an Email, I will
understand.</span><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts</span></u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span><span style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span><span style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email
at </span><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><span style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></a><span style="color: #222222;">.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Forwarding Postings</span></u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><span style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></a> or
you can provide<span style="color: #222222;"> a link to that address in your email to them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span><span style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email
addresses to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief
comment from you. Each will receive a link to click on that
will directly connect them to the blog.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><span style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></a><span style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span><span style="color: #222222;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span><b style="color: #222222; font-size: large;"> </b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">JL</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>
* * *</b></span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></span></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-16268160045718373532024-03-09T18:00:00.001-05:002024-03-10T12:00:10.806-04:00March 9, 2024 - Political Stuff and a Letter About Ending Wars<p> </p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i> * * * </i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Political Stuff
</u></i></b></span></div><div><br /></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">President Biden’s State of
the Union address</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> on Thursday was a great success. He pointed out the challenges his
administration was attempting to meet, what it has accomplished, and where it
was heading. Neither did he duck the difficult
problems the nation faces on our Southern border, in Ukraine and in Gaza, but
took a positive approach to them. He
spoke of the necessity of defending and preserving democracy everywhere, from Russia’s
designs on Ukraine to the attack on our Capitol on January 6. 2021. And most of all, he did not appear anywhere
close to the doddering old man his opponents, particularly on Fox News, paint
him. He looked and sounded strong.</span></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_UsyKckN6pQCur1nZyDopFFvMiNPXsxi7rdkY8wFtcxG8YWdCt_xg8y8RJ6tcA3vDD2taQNau0fGrrDmtceFybb1U-U4kvAm0bU8QSuUUrL-uSAteSnSXljrcj2INQuxe29SniR5jpoLYJrNNow19g2CkYnmM4dgrA8llbOxbf_zNPiYdIvoW2KbFdBY/s1440/Biden-state-of-the-union.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="907" data-original-width="1440" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_UsyKckN6pQCur1nZyDopFFvMiNPXsxi7rdkY8wFtcxG8YWdCt_xg8y8RJ6tcA3vDD2taQNau0fGrrDmtceFybb1U-U4kvAm0bU8QSuUUrL-uSAteSnSXljrcj2INQuxe29SniR5jpoLYJrNNow19g2CkYnmM4dgrA8llbOxbf_zNPiYdIvoW2KbFdBY/w400-h253/Biden-state-of-the-union.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joe Laying it on the Line</td></tr></tbody></table><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">He took his gloves off</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> in
referring to his ‘predecessor in office,’ pounding on Trump’s avoiding a
solution for the immigration problem in order to keep it as a campaign issue,
and his ignoring the danger of Vladimir Putin to the rest of Europe. The presence of the Prime Minister of Sweden,
NATO’s latest addition, emphasized this. He gave the Supreme Court Justices
sitting there a dirty look because of their decisions leading to more delay in
the litigation involving his predecessor and their reversal of Roe vs Wade. And in the balcony with the First Lady were
women benefitting from Biden’s accomplishments as well as those harmed by his
predecessor’s positions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">The Republicans sat silently
through most of the speech</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">, except for the grotesque clown from Georgia, with
her MAGA hat, whom most Republicans wish would crawl back into her hole. Most won’t say it, but even though it works
in her district, her coarseness hurts their party nationwide. When she
interrupted the President about a recent murder of a woman by an illegal
immigrant, Biden flipped her position by pointing out that the bi-partisan
legislation, squelched by order of his predecessor and opponent in eight months,
was designed to address the kind of problem.
Throughout Biden’s speech, House Speaker Johnson had a pained expression
on his face, as if he were constipated.
And the G.O.P. TV rebuttal by Alabama Senator Katie Britt from her
kitchen (another slap at women’s rights) was at best pathetic. They probably
couldn’t get a better-known Republican to take on Biden.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">It was a good night for
Democrats.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Meanwhile, while Donald John
Trump was busy winning Republican primaries, it should be noted that a
considerable number of Republicans were not voting for him in those contests</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. I don’t think very many of them who had
supported other possible nominees, especially Ms. Haley, will be very eager to
vote for Trump in November. Most will
not be voting for President Biden, but a goodly number might just not vote at
all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">On the other side of the
coin, President Biden is himself presently losing some supporters because of
his backing of Israel’s war against Hamas and his waffling on our immigration policy
on our Southern border.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">This opposition
will probably return to the Democrat’s ‘big tent’ by November 5 because these
voters realize that Donald John Trump’s positions on these issues, which he
rarely addresses specifically, would be much more unacceptable than the
President’s.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">More evidence that Donald
John Trump lives in a fantasy world is the fairyland palace in which he
resides. If he cannot be a royal
monarch, he can at least play at being one.
Only a megalomaniac would live in a house like that, which doubles as a
catering hall. Meanwhile, this ‘monarch’
faces 91 indictments as a lawbreaker. Here’s
one of the rooms in his ‘royal palace’ in Florida, where ultimately, God
willing, he probably will face some form of ‘house arrest.’ Not bad digs, eh?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2gTS0y3LiDDVza0SI_Pl2kQxlukCQYtuxTuagYnGon6BZZrfHSeF7TQqZ7xf6HFtraekhIzHG7B-IM3GosXrKN5EY7awriKeu-u_pQ9yRgkJHq6NBgDRJWfCujWyKfGycOrwDzjeZGYzkbeDgrMGXG_OCi9sIDBIKE0O_CU8JETuGVre9xp_OQajBBho/s2449/mar-a-lago%20veranda.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2449" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2gTS0y3LiDDVza0SI_Pl2kQxlukCQYtuxTuagYnGon6BZZrfHSeF7TQqZ7xf6HFtraekhIzHG7B-IM3GosXrKN5EY7awriKeu-u_pQ9yRgkJHq6NBgDRJWfCujWyKfGycOrwDzjeZGYzkbeDgrMGXG_OCi9sIDBIKE0O_CU8JETuGVre9xp_OQajBBho/w418-h640/mar-a-lago%20veranda.jpg" width="418" /></span></a></b></div><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><p></p>
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<v:path gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect" o:extrusionok="f">
<o:lock aspectratio="t" v:ext="edit">
</o:lock></v:path></v:stroke></v:shapetype><v:shape alt="A large dining room with chandeliers" id="Picture_x0020_1" o:spid="_x0000_i1025" style="height: 9in; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 423.75pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:title="A large dining room with chandeliers" src="file:///C:/Users/jackl/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.jpg">
</v:imagedata></v:shape></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If the lawyers he hires,
hopefully counting on the Republican National Committee’s picking up Trump’s
legal bills if he welches on paying them himself (he has a history of doing
that), were not specialists in seeking all conceivable varieties of delays, he
would have long since been tried, convicted, and sentenced, just as hundreds of
his followers whom he incited to riot on January 6, 2021, have been. Justice ultimately will triumph.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 186.75pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">*
* *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>A Letter About Ending Wars</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Here’s a letter I’ve just sent
off to the Palm Beach Post. While I
believe in a two-state solution for the Palestinians, I also believe in the
right of Israel to wage a relentless war against Hamas on the Gaza Strip. Here’s the text of the letter which I doubt
they will print:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘Although it is unfortunate that our bombing missions
killed many Japanese civilians, including thousands in Hiroshima and Nagasaki,
and many Germans civilians lost their lives in the Allies’ incessant day and
night bombing of the Third Reich, it remains a historical fact that it was
Germany and Japan that started World War Two with the German invasion of Poland
in 1939 and the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Neither later
requested a ‘ceasefire’ to relieve the Allies’ pressure on them, and both ultimately
surrendered unconditionally. Why then does the world seem to ignore this
lesson of history when all that Israel is doing is finishing a war started by
Hamas? It would end tomorrow if Hamas
returned the hostages they hold, dropped their weapons, and recognized the
existence of the State of Israel. Losers do not dictate the terms that end
wars, especially ones that they had started.’</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Bottom
Line: If you throw down a gauntlet, as was done in days of old, you must expect
a response!</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 186.75pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">*
* *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">Voting by Mail – </span></u></i></b><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">Why it is So Very Important</span></u></i></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">!</span></i></b></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten used to voting by
mail. It’s safe and simple. </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">But just because you might have done it in the past does not
mean you can automatically continue to do so.</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to renew your ‘voting by
mail’ status before the next election in order to receive a ‘vote by mail’
ballot. </span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach County, do it right
now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail " target="_blank">CLICKING HERE!</a></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> For those who do not want do it online, they can
sign up for vote-by-mail by calling </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida counties, visit
the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="color: #404040; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> *
*</span><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This is particularly important in 2024 because some knowledgable
pundits, despite polls that disagree with one another and all change from week
to week, are coming around to believe America will re-elect a Democratic
president and turn the House ‘blue’ in November but are not quite so sure about
the Senate. I'm not a 'pundit' but that's also what I believe. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">That’s why it is
important for clear-thinking Floridians to vote for Debbie Muscarsel-Powell to
replace Florida Senator Rick Scott in the Senate </span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">to insure a Democratic majority there. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: red; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Six years ago, Scott won by only 10,033 votes, state-wide, so
defeating him is very attainable in view of his stand on abortion, and for
seniors </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: red; font-size: 13.5pt;">(even independents and Republicans), Scott’s historic opposition to
Medicare and Social Security which he wanted to put up to a vote in Congress
every five years should be the clincher.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">For more information, visit </span></b><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/ " target="_blank">CLICK RIGHT HERE!</a></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri </span></span></u></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>The only emails I send come from this blog or either of my two email addresses, shown at the bottom of any correspondence I send. If you encounter anything else purportedly coming from me, please let me know.</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 12pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 12pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 12pt;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">, just send me your email address
and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a posting to
someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly
alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 12pt;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 12pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 12pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 12pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> a link to that address in your email to them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 12pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 12pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 12pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-24230379305794065552024-03-05T10:06:00.008-05:002024-03-05T12:25:58.212-05:00March 5, 2024 - Judge Cannon, Fixing the SCOTUS, Democratic Voters, MAGA Voters, and Your Thursday TV Date. * * * <div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>I Was Right About That Judge & How to Save the Supreme Court</u></i></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">As predicted in Friday’s
Jackspotpourri, Federal Judge Aileen Cannon again worshipped at the shrine of Saint
Donald of Trump </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">(who had
appointed her) by finding some far-fetched reasons to delay his trial about the
stolen classified documents found hidden by him at Mar-a-Lago after he left
office. Really, she is aiming at a date
after the election, probably one in the next century. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>https://www.debbieforflorida.com/ or just <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/2423037930579406555"><span style="color: blue;">CLICK HERE.</span></a> </b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfHxnT2uueqp2Fd_0H7zD7f48VwWER3cbiVONXPBKIZaPjzrmxsDfzKmDCYCY4psa-_P_tE3tBkWTuQLLYWCC_OSAOzmdQx-Va1d6HnX69oPnfhUNO263kMBL11cVEZ55mx3hS1Upbifuonleien59CzsjplWAG00CrlB8mooPxsGqWxHoQhDo_QL0iZA/s640/Judge%20Cannon.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="427" data-original-width="640" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfHxnT2uueqp2Fd_0H7zD7f48VwWER3cbiVONXPBKIZaPjzrmxsDfzKmDCYCY4psa-_P_tE3tBkWTuQLLYWCC_OSAOzmdQx-Va1d6HnX69oPnfhUNO263kMBL11cVEZ55mx3hS1Upbifuonleien59CzsjplWAG00CrlB8mooPxsGqWxHoQhDo_QL0iZA/w320-h214/Judge%20Cannon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Judge Cannon</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #2b00fe; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"></span></b></span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Her action,</span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"> which I suspect would not have taken place were it not for the SCOTUS’ delaying action last week regarding his claims of presidential immunity</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2f5496; line-height: 19.8px;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">in the January 6 Insurrection litigation,</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> reveals the site of the cancer spreading throughout our government.</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;"> </span></b></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;">Do not confuse <u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">that</span></u> forthcoming decision with yesterday’s generally expected, but still troubling, ruling denying Colorado's (and other States') efforts to bar Trump from the ballot based on Sec. 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment. I feel that SCOTUS decisions restricting the power of States to do things that affect the entire nation are usually good ones, although the SCOTUS illogically does not apply such thinking to State laws regarding abortion. Yesterday's decision unnecessarily went beyond Colorado's effort to remove Trump from the ballot. </span></b></span></b></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">The site of the cancer that I mention is <u>the Supreme Court itself</u> </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">and just as physicians seek out the source of a spreading cancer in a human body, the Executive and Legislative branches of our government should fill the same role in curing the Judicial branch of its metastasizing disease.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Here is the story and the solution summed up in seven nutshells: </span>(It's too big for just one.)</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; margin-left: 27pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">1.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">According to the Constitution, the Supreme Court’s Justices are appointed by the President with the assent of the Senate, with no limitation on their term of office other than specifying that they shall hold office during ‘good behavior.’ (But we need not go there right now.)<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; margin-left: 27pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">2.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">The Constitution says nothing about the number of Justices, which leaves it in the lap of Congress, and by that, implying the necessity of passage by both of its Houses.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; margin-left: 27pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">3.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">Congress has determined the number of Justices included in legislation known as Judiciary Acts, passed and revised on several occasions, including in 1869 when such an Act settled on there being nine Justices.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; margin-left: 27pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">4.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">In 2021, legislation was introduced in Congress as the Judicial Act of 2021 (HR 2584 and S1141) to change that number to one Chief Justice and twelve Associate Justices, but it died in committee, never even being voted on.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; margin-left: 27pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">5.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">If the Democrats win control of both Houses of Congress in November, 2024, and President Biden is re-elected, such legislation should be reintroduced.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; margin-left: 27pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">6.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">If passed by Congress, a re-elected President Biden should then consider appointing four additional Justices. Or, he might, <u>by simply threatening to do so</u>, pressure the existing SCOTUS to change its direction concerning issues such as abortion rights, gun violence, government regulatory authority, and voting rights. Franklin Delano Roosevelt successfully used such a strategy to bring about New Deal reforms such as Social Security without having to expand the Court, the threat of his doing so sufficing.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="background: white; margin-left: 27pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">7.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><span style="color: #404040;">So, it’s up to you when you vote for president and both Houses of Congress on November 5 (or earlier ‘by mail’ or at early voting sites) to fight this cancer in our government. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">You can be the oncologist.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> * * *</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Sticking With Joe Despite a Lot of Stuff</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">In the previous Jackspotpourri, I pointed out that those opposing the re-election of President Biden because of his support for Israel’s strong reaction to the October attack by Hamas should recognize that Donald John Trump’s position on that issue is infinitely worse for Palestinian hopes, Israel’s security, and world peace, as shown by his past actions, which do not even consider the possibility of a two-state solution</span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">. I hoped in that posting that such voters would recognize this, and still vote to give their State’s electoral votes to President Biden. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 19.8px;">Let me now add that this also applies to those who feel President Biden’s approach to controlling immigration on our Southern border is too close to that of his predecessor’s </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">and therefore oppose his re-election. And just as is the case in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, this ignores that Trump’s position is far worse for the country, at least in my opinion. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">At Donald John Trump’s direction, Republicans scuttled a <u>bi-partisan Congressional solution</u> to the immigration challenge on our Southern border, something that took weeks of compromises and tough negotiations to come up with. He prefers the situation there remaining unresolved, something to use as an election tool. He will oppose any real solution by anyone other than himself, especially Joe Biden, and his supposed friends in Congress will do whatever he says, fearing the loss of Trumpublican votes back home. Meanwhile, those who want to come here, legally or illegally, suffer in an environment of ambiguity.</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">Dictators of some of the nations these immigrants are fleeing even spoke at the recent CPAC gathering </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #111d22; line-height: 19.8px;">(Conservative Political Action Conference)</span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">, attended by many by Republicans including Trump, also a speaker there. (See the previous posting of Jackspotpourri where that meeting’s Christian Nationalist flavor is discussed.) </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">I hope voters who are uncomfortable with President Biden’s position on immigration will nevertheless still vote for him.</span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;"> The Congressional bi-partisan plan, giving Republicans most of what they want, was still better than the ideas of Donald John Trump. He wants more than the Republicans and Democrats in Congress came up with. As always, his demands are heartless and racially-based.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">If normally Democratic voters choose to stay away from the polls because of a single issue, they might cause the electoral college defeat of President Biden, whose positions on both issues are far better than Trump’s for everyone concerned, at least in my opinion. </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">And that applies to all single issues that some might oppose, including Israel, the Palestinians, or immigration. They must look at the ‘big picture.’</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">Some consider Joe Biden’s age to be such an issue. </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">Well, I am ten years older than Joe, and am not concerned with his age. I’ve been back there already, living through my ‘eighties’ and believe he can handle the territory there. To make it that far, you have to be strong! Trump is only three years younger than the President, and probably far less healthy than Biden if only because of his carb and fat-laden eating habits. Furthermore, I fear whoever will be his running mate, most likely someone like Jim Jordan or Matt Gaetz. As heavily documented in the previous Jackspotpourri, Joe has Kamala Harris as his understudy who can do the job very competently in the unlikely event of his passing or retirement. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">It is imperative that any doubters on these counts remain Democratic voters and stick with Joe. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The return of Donald John Trump to the White House</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">, and the hordes of his followers he would bring into Congress and the State Houses </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">would be an unmitigated disaster for our country and prove to the world that our great experiment in representative democracy Is a failure. </span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;"> The election of Donald John Trump to the presidency in November will be fatal to democracy in our country.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">This is a challenge for you to rise up to and meet! Start now! There are many things you can be doing and they all start locally. Ask your local Democratic precinct leader how you can help. </span>That can't wait until November 5.</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 19.8px;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 19.8px;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>MAGA Voters Know What They are Doing</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I’ve been as guilty as others in attributing Republican victories in elections, including those in States that gave their electoral votes to Donald John Trump in 2016 and in 2020, to such things as ignorance, gullibility, and plain old stupidity. </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">A letter writer in the Palm Beach Post reported a study by two University of Kansas professors, published in ‘Critical Sociology,’ that came closer to the true explanation: </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">‘<u>They voted for Trump because they share his views on race, women’s rights, immigrants, and gay rights</u>,’ </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;">they wrote.</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">It’s that simple. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">They knew exactly what they were doing. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;">That is a sad commentary on some of the inhabitants of our representative democracy. Buying into evil might work in Vladimir Putin's Russia or even in Viktor Orban’s Hungary but it ought not to in the United States.</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.8px;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">(Just another reason to subscribe to a delivered paper newspaper, preferably a local one with national connections, one that you can sit down with and read over a cup of coffee, a far more thorough way of keeping up with the news than TV or the internet.)</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 19.8px;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 19.8px;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><u>The State of the Union Addr</u></i></span></span></b><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><u>ess - Thursday</u></i></span></span></b><b style="background-color: transparent; font-size: xx-large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-weight: 700;">President Biden will make his election-year State of the Union address on</span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #333333; line-height: 19.8px;"> Thursday evening. More than just a campaign stop, he's expected to address Russia's war in Ukraine, Israel's war in Gaza, and domestic issues such as border security, the economy, and reproductive rights as they affect all Americans. Be there with him in front of your TV screen.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP2uZWJ3K_l6wlN2Z5j2rK-pzoKfXcTjBjPVFn-j1lnocH8idku1I_fyH2_JV_u8FSbedIaY2OK9vPOdUgXXgkImLizEY0K7KxoL-ccfgrk4wvlKi8EZVY1qScVU-OLbABokHPy0gfTzyV_QRfNxHFACiRd_S0-KGD0j_nozEyFQ2URZEBRSIg4Oo6UhM/s1400/Biden%20before%20Congress.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="787" data-original-width="1400" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP2uZWJ3K_l6wlN2Z5j2rK-pzoKfXcTjBjPVFn-j1lnocH8idku1I_fyH2_JV_u8FSbedIaY2OK9vPOdUgXXgkImLizEY0K7KxoL-ccfgrk4wvlKi8EZVY1qScVU-OLbABokHPy0gfTzyV_QRfNxHFACiRd_S0-KGD0j_nozEyFQ2URZEBRSIg4Oo6UhM/w400-h225/Biden%20before%20Congress.jpg" width="400" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #333333; line-height: 19.8px;"><br /></span></b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 19.8px;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 19.8px;"> * * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 19.8px;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 35.2px;">Voting by Mail – </span></u></i></b><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: red; line-height: 35.2px;">Why it is So Very Important</span></u></i></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 35.2px;">!</span></i></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">Florida voters have gotten used to voting by mail. It’s safe and simple. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">But just because you might have done it in the past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">Current State election laws require you to renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before the next election in order to receive a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">If you vote in Palm Beach County, do it right now by visiting </span></b><span style="color: black;"><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: medium; line-height: 19.8px;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a></span><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> For those who do not want do it online, they can sign up for vote-by-mail by calling </span></span></b><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">(561) 656 6208. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 19.8px;">In other Florida counties, visit the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"> * *</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 19.8px;">This is particularly important in 2024 because some knowledgable pundits, despite polls that disagree with one another and all change from week to week, are coming around to believe America will re-elect a Democratic president and turn the House ‘blue’ in November but are not quite so sure about the Senate. I'm not a 'pundit' but that's also what I believe. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">That’s why it is important that Florida seniors vote for Debbie Muscarsel-Powell to replace Florida Senator Rick Scott in the </span></b></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 19.8px;">Senate </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 19.8px;">to insure a Democratic majority there.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></b></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiic-3Rz7y4b_oLtujFYtS4_iouxvzCrnMVltXPwCMlcUuv57SEyxqgaCQeRaPfUSWoJkGCeqeLSKSSjXEUfIGcrcxr85LhyphenhyphenOVEghiC_1yKK0qy-cSZfBCSXrCIIVoEfjkgAkU42EhbKFagMs4L0Jj4jabBLbTNJq_ZDwgcipwRcHUVfGLRb7VemxYUEc/s225/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiic-3Rz7y4b_oLtujFYtS4_iouxvzCrnMVltXPwCMlcUuv57SEyxqgaCQeRaPfUSWoJkGCeqeLSKSSjXEUfIGcrcxr85LhyphenhyphenOVEghiC_1yKK0qy-cSZfBCSXrCIIVoEfjkgAkU42EhbKFagMs4L0Jj4jabBLbTNJq_ZDwgcipwRcHUVfGLRb7VemxYUEc/w103-h103/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" width="103" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Debbie</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>That should be an easy choice for seniors, (even independents and Republicans) considering Scott’<u>s</u> historic opposition to Medicare and Social Security both of which he wanted to put up to a vote in Congress every five years.</b></span></span></div><div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">And of course, for those who want still more reasons
to support Ms. Muscarsel-Powell, there’s Scott’s opposition to women’s abortion
rights, his opposition to realistic laws concerning gun violence, his failure
to actively support democracy in Ukraine, and his willingness to accept the
narrowing of voters rights in some States. For more information, just visit </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"> </b><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</span></b></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"> </span><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a> </span></b></p><span style="font-family: arial;">
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large; margin-left: 135pt;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;"><u>Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</u></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email
at </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black;"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></b></p></span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-3990297959399167102024-03-01T17:23:00.003-05:002024-03-04T02:12:34.742-05:00March 1, 2024 - The Supreme Court, Dissatisfaction With Biden's Support of Israel, Delayed Justice, Party Loyalty, Vice President Harris, a Published Letter, and Banning Books<div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i> * * *</i></b></span></div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>The Supreme Court Blows Another One</u></i></b></span><div><span><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-size: large;">(As we predicted back in December)</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"></span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBPHeIDVf1eVLkl__uqT_G-e9x79HX-unj3bl5Yax47KXHvET5TX34fV6WSkyVK14I_I2QN0kfhF_dIntG8xcC29p_IAUk3wWm3l4lE9zFTmCI0fhiRnr1sSYBWoMj2JiUxRMAI3rhuIGAqpfMN00OVCuOWmHVwR0U4Ye631LFvTB6rnHF-5Fa5pg3fkc/s2560/Supreme-Court-Building-1-scaled.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1707" data-original-width="2560" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBPHeIDVf1eVLkl__uqT_G-e9x79HX-unj3bl5Yax47KXHvET5TX34fV6WSkyVK14I_I2QN0kfhF_dIntG8xcC29p_IAUk3wWm3l4lE9zFTmCI0fhiRnr1sSYBWoMj2JiUxRMAI3rhuIGAqpfMN00OVCuOWmHVwR0U4Ye631LFvTB6rnHF-5Fa5pg3fkc/w400-h266/Supreme-Court-Building-1-scaled.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Supreme Court Meets Here</td></tr></tbody></table><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;">Back on December 16, 2023,
on Jackspotpourri, I commented on a word finally appearing in the
Merriam-Webster dictionary: </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="color: red;">Clusterfuck!</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;"> Following is a copy of what I wrote. </span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Note
the last two paragraphs</span></span></u></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000;">where I
anticipated the Supreme Court’s approval of a delay in the case involving
Donald John Trump’s criminal immunity once out of office, denied to him by two
lower Federal courts.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;">The SCOTUS’ final
decision, according to what almost all legal experts predict, is highly likely
to support the lower court decisions, denying him such immunity, but is now
scheduled to arrive too late to affect the November election, which constitutes
a success for Trump’s strategy of </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">delay, delay, delay, delay, delay, delay, delay,
… and more delay! </span></span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;">It w</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;">ill now take the
American voter, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000;">as I
wrote back in December</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;">, to do the job the SCOTUS lacked
the guts to do this week, that is to let the lower decisions stripping Trump of
any post-presidential immunity stand, by just deciding not to hear the case …
which they did not do.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">What
they did do, however, was to shove the American electorate into a position of
ignorance by Election Day (or sooner for early and mail-in voters) concerning
the legal status of one of the two major presidential candidates, something
they could have clarified by acting more promptly, but did not do. Their decision
to gum up the works and eat up time hearing the case required the assent of four
Justices with political motivation. I can guess who they were: Probably Alito, Thomas and two of Trump's appointees, Justices who put political expediency ahead of patriotism. </span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The Supreme Court should
be ashamed of itself. President Biden, with Senate approval, would be
entirely correct, right now, if he appointed four additional Justices, an act
justified by the political games the SCOTUS, loaded with those three Trump political appointees,
plays. That’s not quite as simple as it seems because of the Judiciary Act, but
it’s a distinct possibility.</span></span></b><b style="font-size: xx-large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b style="font-size: xx-large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: 13.5pt;"><u>Here's what I wrote on December 16</u></span></b><b style="font-size: xx-large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: 13.5pt;">:</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040;">"I've hesitated to use the word 'clusterfuck' in postings on Jackspotpourri but since
it appears in the Merriam-Webster
dictionary and other dictionaries, I suppose it is now acceptable. Barely. </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"> (Merriam-Webster
definition - 'vulgar slang. : a complex and utterly disordered and mismanaged
situation : <u>a muddled mess</u>.')<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040;"> ‘Clusterfuck’
well describes the management of the House of Representatives by its Rpublican
majority. That’s what it is!</span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040;"> It also might be applied to describe our justice
system's attempt to resolve the charges against the indicted former president,
charges that probably won't be finally resolved until too late to have any
meaning. More clusterfuck!</span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #cc0000;"> But fear not, there is an excellent chance
that both of these <u>'<i>muddled messes</i></u>' will be resolved by that most supreme of all courts,
the American voter, on November 5, 2024.”</span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b style="font-size: xx-large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><u>And
in the following Jackspotpourri posting on December 21, 2023, I again reminded
followers of the issue</u></span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">. <span style="color: #2b00fe;">Here’s what I
wrote then,</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> firmly accusing the SCOTUS of being a party to a Clusterfuck.</span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span>“Add to this the pending request by
Department of Justice prosecutor Jack Smith that the SCOTUS rule quickly,
because of the forthcoming 2024 election, as to any presidential immunity that
Trump might have against charges based on his behavior in connection with the
January 6, 2021 insurrection. </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #cc0000; line-height: 110%;">To use a word I mentioned in a posting on here a few days
ago, this is a real 'clusterfuck' and the Supreme Court is right in the middle
of it.”</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">And now, while I am in a predictive mood</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">,</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 110%;"> let me throw two other
possibilities into the mix, the second one of which can lead to a major
Constitutional crisis, something we can call a </span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">‘Super-Clusterfuck.’ </span></b></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;">Neither
are guaranteed to happen but they leave something about which to think or lose
sleep or both.</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; text-indent: 0px;"><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">(1) What if</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> Judge Cannon in
Fort Pierce, another Trump appointee whom it appears puts loyalty to him ahead
of loyalty to her country, and who is in charge of the Mar-a-Lago purloined documents
case, another criminal indictment of our forty-fifth president, takes a hint
from the SCOTUS and also decides to delay her court’s proceedings, pushing
their ultimate result until after the upcoming presidential election?</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; text-indent: 0px;"><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 110%;">(2) What If by some miracle,
(a) Donald Trump wins the election on November 5, 2024, but only after</span></span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 110%;">r (b) a
likely SCOTUS decision, perhaps in June, that all constitutional law experts are convinced will confirm the two lower courts’
decisions as to his lack of post-presidential immunity and (c) the criminal
case regarding his actions on January 6, 2021 then being allowed to proceed, finally
being decided against him, but too late to affect the election result (d) but
not too late to prevent his trial, possible conviction, and sentencing in late
November and December of 2024, BEFORE his January 2025 inauguration? Where does that leave us? </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">With the presidential inauguration of a convicted
felon in a flag-draped prison yard, with a prison band tootling ‘Hail to the
Chief,’ followed by an immediate on-site pardon of himself?</span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; text-indent: 0px;"><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">That should be unacceptable to the nation, and if it happens, will totally demolish the integrity of the presidency and the Constitution. National chaos will then reign.</span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; text-indent: 0px;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">Of course, The best solution
would be for American voters to make sure Donald John Trump is soundly defeated
on November 5, so that we all can get some sleep, and that representative democracy in this country will be saved.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; text-indent: 0px;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> *
* *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Democrats Dissatisfied with
Biden</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #444444; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">Ultimately, those opposed to
President Biden's candidacy because of his pro-Israeli position, however much
he may modify it, know that the electoral votes of the States where they vote
remain critical to again keep Donald John Trump out of office. I am specifically talking about Michigan.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #cc0000; line-height: 110%;">From 2016 to 2020, Trump
supported Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, a major
obstacle to any two-state solution there.</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #444444; line-height: 110%;"> His return to office would guarantee
further violence, something only Palestinian extremists and Israeli settlers
seem to find acceptable, both groups desirous of a one-state solution that
would disregard the presence and survival of the other group.</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #444444; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">Whatever misgivings some may
have about re-electing Joe Biden, they pale when compared to the dangers to our
country and world peace the return of Donald John Trump to the presidency can
bring.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Justice
Delayed is Justice Denied</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">The Sixth Amendment to our
Constitution provides for speedy trials.
This is particularly important to those who believe they are innocent
of the charges against them. Every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">If, however,
they know they are really guilty as charged, they will use every legal maneuver and diversion available to preserve their ‘innocent until proven guilty’ status for as long
as possible. Doing so, as the defeated and indicted forty-fifth president is doing, is tantamount to an admission of guilt. Voters are entitled to treat it as such, if they wish.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: normal;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘Delayed Justice’ denies
speedy trials of both the innocents’ cases </span><u><span style="color: #cc0000;">and also of those brought by the
State, in its efforts on the part of the people to bring lawbreakers to
justice</span></u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">. Some of our Supreme Court
Justices must have been sleeping in their law school classes on the day this
was discussed. </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Party Loyalty</u></i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">With Mitch McConnell
throwing in the towel as leader of Republicans in the Senate, I wonder if he
will very quietly join those shunned Republicans like Senator Mitt Romney and former
Representative Liz Cheney who refuse to become Trumpublicans. I don’t know if they will vote for Joe Biden,
but they may convince many Republicans who still put country ahead of Trumpism</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> to skip voting for a president in
November. </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Not all Republicans run
around wearing MAGA hats, and I wonder if Republican National Party
chairperson Ronna McDaniel, pushed into resigning by Trump, has thrown hers
into the trash. She will be replaced by
Donald John Trump’s daughter-in-law. </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I don’t know why but this
leads my thoughts to the concern with extremism in the Armed Forces, a danger
presently under investigation. Would a Trump victory in November result in one
of his sons becoming our Secretary of Defense?
</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u><br /></u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Getting to Know Kamala Harris</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Back in the corporate world,
I once was made to sit through a management course that featured a ‘module’
called the ‘Mack Truck.’ It pointed out
that it is part of every executive’s job to plan for his succession if one day,
while driving to work, his car has an encounter with a Mack Truck in which it
is on the losing end, being demolished and ending the executive’s life.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">With a presidential election
coming up where the incumbent is 80 years old and his challenger 78, the ‘Mack
Truck’ lesson becomes pertinent. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I have no idea whom Donald
John Trump will select to be his running mate, but I strongly suspect he will
be a right-wing conservative, a breed of public official whose expertise is one
of ‘destruction of government functions’ rather than one experienced in
carrying out government functions, as defined in our Constitution to be the job
of the head of the Executive Branch.
Trump himself lacked these skills as the mess he created from 2016 to
2020 proves. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">On the Democratic side,
President Biden’s running mate will certainly be Vice President Kamala
Harris. While there has been some
criticism of her lately, mostly unwarranted, she has recently stepped up more
often into the spotlight, showing the fire she exhibited in 2020 when she was a
candidate for her party’s presidential nomination. She seems quite capable of filling the very
necessary role suggested by the ‘Mack Truck’ module. Evidence of this appeared in a recent
Bloomberg article that you can find at </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-02-16/kamala-harris-made-the-most-of-her-munich-moment"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-02-16/kamala-harris-made-the-most-of-her-munich-moment</span></b></a></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">, or by <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-02-16/kamala-harris-made-the-most-of-her-munich-moment" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> And if that isn’t enough for you, check out
what the Washington Post’s Eugene Robinson has to say about Kamala at <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/02/22/kamala-harris-foreign-policy-experience/">https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/02/22/kamala-harris-foreign-policy-experience/</a>
or just <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/02/22/kamala-harris-foreign-policy-experience/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Joe Biden’s experience as a
vice president serving under Barack Obama makes him well aware of the
responsibilities of that office. Having
held it, he appreciates the nuances of the job.
Otherwise, he would be replacing Kamala Harris right now instead than
making her the nation’s spokesperson at an important international conference. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">President Biden has confidence in Kamala Harris and the
American public should as well.</span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"> <u>Read the
two articles mentioned above</u>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Trump, or anyone he would
choose to attend such a conclave, with no interest in strengthening NATO, would
not represent the United States as well as did Kamala Harris. All Donald John Trump
and his MAGA gang are good at is cultivating chaos. Just as Trump is unfit to be president, anyone whom he would select as a running mate would be equally unfit.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Singaporeans!</u></i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">I don’t know why but I keep
getting a large number of ‘hits’ on Jackspotpourri from Singapore. They might represent individual internet
users, or possibly a government, business, academic, or private entity. I just don’t know. If any Singaporean has an explanation, please
let me know by Email (</span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">). And
if you don’t want to send me such an Email, I will understand.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><i><u>Voting </u></i></o:p></span></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">by Mail – </span></u></i></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><i><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">Why it is So Very Important</span></u></i></b><b style="color: #2b00fe;"><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">!</span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten used to voting by
mail. It’s safe and simple. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the past does not
mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to renew your ‘voting by
mail’ status before the next election in order to receive a ‘vote by mail’
ballot. </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach County, do it right
now by visiting </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> or by </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail" target="_blank"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">CLICKING HERE</span></b></a></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">. For those who do not want do it online, they can
sign up for vote-by-mail by calling </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida counties, visit
the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">This is particularly important in 2024
because many pollsters are coming around to believe America will re-elect a
Democratic president and turn the House ‘blue’ in November but are not quite so
sure about the Senate. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">That’s why it is
important that Florida seniors vote for Debbie Muscarsel-Powell to replace
Florida Senator Rick Scott in the Senate </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">to insure a Democratic majority there.</span></b></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGaDOJp2LmFHQoSrASBiGcZoHd5xcZUykoJCjd_IYvwx4zwaU2GOaDGAN_E-0MTAetwecPMawcHooOXzlmUBlOpku4p-t9yrVe2p_R2rWV3tv1MoYM3Smk9pvn2ocTmQoHbdVQE39mzTMSQYnqDZM5ybRcxb1ZUdsuov_qlFuArB57hKTHtzSJ_vj63qE/s225/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGaDOJp2LmFHQoSrASBiGcZoHd5xcZUykoJCjd_IYvwx4zwaU2GOaDGAN_E-0MTAetwecPMawcHooOXzlmUBlOpku4p-t9yrVe2p_R2rWV3tv1MoYM3Smk9pvn2ocTmQoHbdVQE39mzTMSQYnqDZM5ybRcxb1ZUdsuov_qlFuArB57hKTHtzSJ_vj63qE/s1600/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Debbie Muscarsel-Powell</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span><b style="font-size: large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: red; line-height: 110%;">That should be an easy choice for seniors,
(even independents and Republicans) considering Scott’s historic opposition to
Medicare and Social Security which he wanted to put up to a vote in Congress
every five years.</span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">And of course, for those who want still more
reasons to support Ms. Muscarsel-Powell, there’s Scott’s opposition to women’s
abortion rights, and his efforts to make voting more difficult. For more
information, visit </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</span></b></a></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/ " target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a></span></b></span><b style="font-size: xx-large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: xx-large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large; margin-left: 135pt;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large; line-height: 110%;"><i><u>‘Fahrenheit
451’ </u></i></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">One
of our followers correctly pointed out that Fahrenheit 451 is </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">‘the temperature at which paper burns
efficiently, so you need to heat up a bonfire to that temperature to burn
books.’ </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">The protagonist in </span></b></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">Ray
Bradbury’s 1953 novel with that title is a government fireman assigned to
that duty. Fiction, yes, but only a step
beyond banning books, Note the following flyer, passed on to us by another
follower of Jackspotpourri. </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"><v:shape alt="A flyer for a school" id="Picture_x0020_2" o:spid="_x0000_i1025" style="height: 554.25pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 428.25pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:title="A flyer for a school" src="file:///C:/Users/jackl/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image002.jpg">
</v:imagedata></v:shape></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvIaQX-jAj2DZyZuM06j99kFIueJvu6Fpb3wDlo3ewKPY3cyF7vwrcc7-p1oQ6r_w3BV_T5GeBI2XgCUq8GrOUnzcbrthEDmrnUoZSXbo_0ebCn9a0RNNs8D8r2RhZfiTIUfe4VoL8dQ-kOc12gkO7UJQJ7XHylwn-sI8pDfd5XfVv1_Kpkm_on0tTkjE/s506/img032.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="391" height="706" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvIaQX-jAj2DZyZuM06j99kFIueJvu6Fpb3wDlo3ewKPY3cyF7vwrcc7-p1oQ6r_w3BV_T5GeBI2XgCUq8GrOUnzcbrthEDmrnUoZSXbo_0ebCn9a0RNNs8D8r2RhZfiTIUfe4VoL8dQ-kOc12gkO7UJQJ7XHylwn-sI8pDfd5XfVv1_Kpkm_on0tTkjE/w545-h706/img032.jpg" width="545" /></a></span></b></div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /> <o:p></o:p></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large; margin-left: 135pt;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>We Get Published … Again</u></i></span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><o:p style="font-size: 12pt;"></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">I’m glad that I was wrong
about the Palm Beach Post not publishing more than one letter per month from a
reader. Thursday’s Post carried the
following letter from me, proving that I am not ‘all politics.’ <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘The 'transfer portal' has changed college athletics, and
not for the better. The generous scholarships provided to 'student-athletes'
should be accompanied by an ironclad contractual relationship lasting four
years. The NFL and the NBA should work to establish minor league farm
systems as exist in baseball, with no academic connections whatsoever.
Only then will America's colleges get down to fully devoting their
energies to education, as do all colleges in the rest of the world. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 110%;">Not
included in the letter was my opinion that the college providing the
scholarship should permit the athlete to be additionally compensated through </span></b><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">N</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 110%;">ame, </span></b><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">I</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 110%;">mage, and </span></b><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">L</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 110%;">ocation payments during their four years there. If he or she chose to leave that school,
however, the NCAA should not permit their further participation in
intercollegiate athletics, their ‘ironclad’ four-year contractual relationship
with the scholarship-granting college specifically including such a
restriction. </span></b></span><b style="font-size: xx-large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large; margin-left: 135pt;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><i><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">.</span><span style="color: #222222;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black;"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b><span style="color: black;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b><span style="color: black;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></span></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-38154904081231134002024-02-27T10:42:00.000-05:002024-02-27T10:42:14.359-05:00February 27, 2024 - A Theological Apology, a Bosch painting, Christian Nationalism, and Fahrenheit 451<p> </p> * * * <div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>An Apology for My Lack of Theological Correctness
</u></i></b></span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I must apologize for an
error in the last posting of Jackspotpourri that placed Alabama Chief Justice
Tom Parker in purgatory, on the way to Hell, for his presuming to know God’s
‘views’ on embryos created through IVF procedures.</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">My knowledge of Christian
theology was not broad enough to recognize that redemption is possible for
those in purgatory. </span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; line-height: 110%;">That is not the case for Judge Parker who on his
demise will go straight to Hell</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; line-height: 110%;">, </span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">which I usually imagine
as pictured by the Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch’s in his depictions of the
‘netherworld.’ Because of the
resemblance of Bosch’s image of Hell to the steel mills of Birmingham, Alabama,
Justice Parker should feel right at home there.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><v:shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" filled="f" id="_x0000_t75" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f">
<v:stroke joinstyle="miter">
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<v:path gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect" o:extrusionok="f">
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</o:lock></v:path></v:stroke></v:shapetype><v:shape alt="A painting of a battle scene" id="_x0000_i1026" style="height: 344.25pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 330.75pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:title="A painting of a battle scene" src="file:///C:/Users/jackl/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.jpg">
</v:imagedata></v:shape></span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiltOwryAgjC00SwbP3DFXqLvU74ggxffSQfWxQB3UGc87AL2BpwVrl8krr_Yprx0ndUKWy_v7rjnyGHjWRhMqYib6BVoN_zNILrviaNBDvbyhcRrckLEaoba4f5xp-8gBG_38wT7P18C0_7Jz6QTLuEY1xW3NOxp0bpdHZAesKuPWArPK21dUgnbe_BU8/s600/Hell%20by%20Bosch.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="577" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiltOwryAgjC00SwbP3DFXqLvU74ggxffSQfWxQB3UGc87AL2BpwVrl8krr_Yprx0ndUKWy_v7rjnyGHjWRhMqYib6BVoN_zNILrviaNBDvbyhcRrckLEaoba4f5xp-8gBG_38wT7P18C0_7Jz6QTLuEY1xW3NOxp0bpdHZAesKuPWArPK21dUgnbe_BU8/s16000/Hell%20by%20Bosch.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of Bosch's depictions of Hell</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Christian Nationalism Finally Defined</u></i></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">The phrase ‘Christian
Nationalism’ has come into use, usually negatively, as something that is not so
nice, as a reaction to those who attempt to overlay a Christian veneer onto
their politics. Defensively, these folks
consider the very phrase ‘Christian Nationalism’ to be pejorative and something
used by those who disagree with their religious principles being inserted into
politics, and who use it </span></b><b><span style="color: #111d22; line-height: 110%;">as a smear
against Christian conservatives who defend the role of religion in American
public life. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #111d22; line-height: 110%;">Some Christian conservatives compare it to
similar views of Christianity as held by Vladimir Putin in Russia and Viktor
Orban in Hungary, and scratch their heads, wondering whether that is praise for
such an infusion of religion into politics or a criticism of it. </span></b><b><span style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">But they agree that the lack of a standard definition for
‘Christian Nationalism’ allows its critics to jump in and bundle evils like
white supremacy and racism with standard conservative views on marriage,
family, and politics, which for many Christians is not the case. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #111d22; line-height: 110%;">But let’s settle this once and for all by quoting one of the lead-off
speakers at this week’s meeting of CPAC (Conservative Political Action
Conference) just outside of Washington, DC.
The attendees were all Republicans, including hundreds of elected
officials, with nary a Democrat in sight.
</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">On Thursday there, as
reported by CNN, right-wing activist Jack Posobiec opened that conclave (I
could have spelled that word with a ‘K’ instead of a ‘C’ but that might be too suggestive)
with these remarks: </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">“Welcome to the end of democracy. We are here
to overthrow it completely. We didn’t get all the way there on January 6, but
we will endeavor to get rid of it and replace it with this right here.” </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">At
this point, to a cheering audience, he held up a cross necklace and continued: </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">“After we burn that swamp to the ground, we
will establish the new American republic on its ashes, and our first order of
business will be <u>righteous retribution</u> for those who betrayed America.” <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Designating </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000;">‘retribution,’ </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">one of the mainstays of the multi-indicted Donald
John Trump’s presidential campaign, as something </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000;">‘righteous’ </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">does not make it so, and in fact the Bible criticizes engaging in
‘retribution’ and suggests ‘turning the other cheek.’ </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000;">But we cannot expect
Christian Nationalists to have a familiarity with the left-wing propaganda included in the Bible as found in the 'Sermon on the Mount,’ </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">for example. They should check out </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Matthew 5, specifically 5:38. </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><u><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">Be that as it
may, there’s your definition of Christian Nationalism</span></u></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">, spelled out right here in these United States
at that CPAC meeting, and if you listen carefully, represented by the Chief
Justice of the State of Alabama (the fellow I’ve consigned to Bosch's Hell) and the conspicuously
devout Speaker of the House, who feigns a more objective stance in public. These people are the best arguments for the
separation of Church and State in this country, as stated in the First
Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Don’t hold your breath
waiting for those Republicans who still have not imbibed of the elixir that
Donald John Trump peddles to denounce such a misuse of religion. It won’t be coming.</span></b><b><span style="color: #111d22; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> *
* *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;">‘<u>Fahrenheit 451</u>’</span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">In 1953, Ray Bradbury, one
of the great writers of science fiction during the last century, wrote a
dystopian novel titled ‘Fahrenheit 451.’
Do you know from what that title is derived? Watch for the answer in the next
Jackspotpourri. Clue: the answer is
relevant today.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> *
* *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><u><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">Voting by Mail –
</span></u></i><i><u><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; line-height: 110%;">Why it is So Very
Important</span></u></i><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">!</span></i></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: large; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten
used to voting by mail. It’s safe and simple. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the
past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to
renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before the next election in order to receive
a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach
County, do it right now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE</a>. For those
who do not want do it online, they can sign up for vote-by-mail by
calling </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida
counties, visit the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><v:shape alt="A close-up of a person smiling
Description automatically generated" id="Picture_x0020_1" o:spid="_x0000_i1025" style="height: 168.75pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 164.25pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:title="A close-up of a person smiling
Description automatically generated" src="file:///C:/Users/jackl/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image002.jpg">
</v:imagedata></v:shape></span></b><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 110%;">This is particularly
important in 2024 because many pollsters are coming around to believe America
will re-elect a Democratic president and turn the House ‘blue’ in November but
are not quite so sure about the Senate. </span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">That’s why it is important that Florida seniors vote for Debbie
Muscarsel-Powell to replace Florida Senator Rick Scott in the Senate </span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 110%;">to insure a Democratic majority there.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiok0cYdmj6ngM1Cf4QfrWj_m5B8f_GGQaBDnz2D3ywm3fNMQyhDgsnJaUTM-VwMcPqbcFBwAE1kp4bnbPxmdhP-GWW_SqtgD4sbgrHnH55YBHOXjcB8Ep8-XSjJC6sNdC7GkXdlpDjgBWefGiIVAGeG4gFQ4woNLeDLlAz2P3MsXuUkUQrLNkybAquazs/s225/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiok0cYdmj6ngM1Cf4QfrWj_m5B8f_GGQaBDnz2D3ywm3fNMQyhDgsnJaUTM-VwMcPqbcFBwAE1kp4bnbPxmdhP-GWW_SqtgD4sbgrHnH55YBHOXjcB8Ep8-XSjJC6sNdC7GkXdlpDjgBWefGiIVAGeG4gFQ4woNLeDLlAz2P3MsXuUkUQrLNkybAquazs/w320-h320/Debbi%20M-P%202.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Debbie Muscarsel-Powell, <br />Democratic Senatorial Candidate</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">That should be an easy
choice for seniors, (even independents and Republicans) considering Scott’s
historic opposition to Medicare and Social Security which he wanted to put up
to a vote in Congress every five years.</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">And of course, for those who want still more reasons to support Ms.
Muscarsel-Powell, there’s Scott’s opposition to women’s abortion rights, and
his efforts to make voting more difficult.
For more information, visit </span></b><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</span></b></a><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a> </span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></span><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts</span></u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span><span style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span><span style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email
at </span><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><span style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></a><span style="color: #222222;">.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Forwarding Postings</span></u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><span style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></a> or
you can provide<span style="color: #222222;"> a link to that address in your email to them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778" style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"> </b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span style="color: #222222;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"> </b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-16780544668902359632024-02-24T10:47:00.000-05:002024-02-24T10:47:03.447-05:00February 24, 2024 - Letters, Gun Violence, a Fine Senate Candidate, and an Unfit State Chief Justice<span style="font-size: medium;"> * * * </span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Writing Those Letters and Fighting Gun Violence
</u></i></b></span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">My letter to the Palm Beach
Post concerning gun violence</span><span style="color: #404040;"> (see my most recent posting four days ago), </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">was published
on February 21.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> Unfortunaely, the Post managed to mess up its second sentence but the message did come through. I have contacted the
paper’s editor and perhaps he will have his staff brush up on the English
language, but still, reaching many thousands of their readers is better than what Jackspotpourri
usually attracts. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I believe the Post will not
print more than one letter a month from an individual reader. I know one resident here who writes letters
to the Sun-Sentinel under his wife’s name to avoid their similar restriction. Clever! </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Go back and read my letter (on some devices, that prior posting appears
right after this) and consider donating to the charities fighting gun violence:
BradyUnited, Giffords, or Everytown.
Just google them with the words ‘gun control’ to get to their sites.
Support them! <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"></span></b></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-vQ2dtfpNcb5f2bvE96kyGaN_6teo6pJENj2OI11Q-MIjkbfUtm2zNYNvz2JM4aI10962A3QqloaeSdPqf1Lyj2yi-cLuiTMtjbOw489FKSWbF5YWSJI4oagEMuZiFszV0Jf3pCrycjZAYfVGiOFqim8GGMdKCbg6-LyeLxqnSrZ-qA48s6R4hTf_9A/s960/Debbi%20M-P.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-vQ2dtfpNcb5f2bvE96kyGaN_6teo6pJENj2OI11Q-MIjkbfUtm2zNYNvz2JM4aI10962A3QqloaeSdPqf1Lyj2yi-cLuiTMtjbOw489FKSWbF5YWSJI4oagEMuZiFszV0Jf3pCrycjZAYfVGiOFqim8GGMdKCbg6-LyeLxqnSrZ-qA48s6R4hTf_9A/w400-h266/Debbi%20M-P.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Debbie Muscarsel-Powell</td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><b><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Work to Replace Rick with Debbie</u></i></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">Errors in using the English
language, as mentioned above, should be taken in stride because this is
‘Florida,’ and not a more enlightened State, of which there are perhaps 48 in
the country. That’s why we manage to elect to office those like Ron DeSantis
and RickScott. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">And speaking of Scott, he
can be retired from the Senate in November if you <u>vote for Debbie
Muscarsel-Powell to replace him</u>. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">Please join me in helping
get her elected. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">She is a strong backer
of the President and will work in the Senate to pass measures that will benefit
all Americans. Keeping a Senate majority
in November is extremely important because of its role in confirming Supreme
Court nominees, and of course, Rick Scott is an insult to democracy, proven by
his anti-Social Security, anti-Medicare positions as well as his history as CEO
of a private hospital chain that was convicted of defrauding Medicare some
years ago.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Check out Debbie’s website
at </span></b><a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">https://www.debbieforflorida.com/</span></b></a><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> and make a donation to help her defeat Rick
Scott. <a href="https://www.debbieforflorida.com/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a> to get there.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><u><i>Alabama – Less Enlighted
than Florida!</i></u></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">One of the two possibly less
enlightened States than Florida is Alabama.
A judge there recently ruled that embryos created during the invitro
fertilization process (IVF) are ‘extrauterine children’ and legally protected
like any other child. Destroying such an
embryo could result in criminal charges.
As a result, IVF procedures are already ending in Alabama while their few remaining sane legislators are scrambling to remedy this crazy judge's decision.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">The judge, Alabama Chief
Justice Tom Parker, wrote in an opinion attached to the ruling as follows: </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">“In
summary, the theologically based view of the sanctity of life adopted by the
people of Alabama encompasses the following (1) God made every person in His
image; (2) each person therefore has a value that far exceeds the ability of
human beings to calculate; and (3) human life cannot be wrongfully destroyed <u>without
incurring the wrath of a holy God, who views the destruction of His image as an
affront to Himself</u>.” <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">This
guy presumes to know how the Creator views things! That is at best the kind of claptrap preached
at rural camp meetings under a tent on some cow pasture. Nobody has a clue as to how God ‘views’
things, including clergy, judges, journalists, or politicians.</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">Aside from Alabama's Chief Justice being unfit for office, as a denier of the First Amendment, this raises some interesting questions:</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">First</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;">, <span style="letter-spacing: -0.1pt;">Until the 1960 election of John Fitzgerald
Kennedy, no Roman Catholic had ever been elected to the presidency and only
one, Al Smith in 1928, had even run. Politicians feared they would lose votes
by nominating a candidate susceptible to the charge of potentially being under
the domination of the Pope in Rome.</span></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">That kind of logic can lead to the point where
Protestants are denied nominations by our major political parties, the way
Catholics once were, because of the many among them representing theocratic ideas, opening the door to undemocratic Christian Nationalism domination of our
government. Officials such as Alabama's
Chief Justice and the Speaker of the House of Representatives come to mind.</span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2f5496; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"> This won't happen, of course, but if Catholics can be discriminated against, why not Protestants? The parallel should be noted.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">While still recognizing and honoring the role religion has
played in our history, we still must keep it out of government, including
judicial decisions made by courts. JFK’s
election proved this could be done and of course, the Founding Fathers knew it
from their parents’ and grandparents’ horrid experiences back in England in the
seventeenth century. Today’s Republicans
must learn to recognize this, even if it means removing 'under God' from the
Pledge to the Flag and getting rid of chaplains in legislative bodies.</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">Secondly, </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Could
that ‘wrath of a holy God’ to which Justice Parker refers be represented by the
Creator having visited upon us the person of Donald John Trump as our deserved punishment
for the deaths of those resulting from gun violence, poverty, and unjust wars
against other human beings, </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">all of whom were also created ‘in his image.’</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">This jerk (I cannot come up
with a more polite way of describing Judge Tom Parker, the Chief Justice in
Alabama) should be put in a time machine, shipped back to the Inquisition, where
Torquemada might hire him to help burn people at the stake. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Anyone who is truly
religious and believes in an afterlife knows that on his demise, Judge Parker
will go to Hell, if there is such a place. Come to think of it, he may already be in
Purgatory, waiting for a boat ride across the River Styx to Hades, Purgatory
being the local waiting room of Satan’s realm, more commonly known to some as the
State of Alabama, a fact made obvious by those they elect to public office.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">An inner voice says, ‘Enough,
Jack.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><u><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">Voting by Mail –
</span></u></i><i><u><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; line-height: 110%;">This is Very
Important</span></u></i><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">!</span></i></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: large; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten
used to voting by mail. It’s safe and simple. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the
past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to
renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before the next election in order to receive
a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach
County, do it right now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> or by clicking here For those
who do not want do it online, they can sign up for vote-by-mail by
calling </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida
counties, visit the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 135pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts</span></u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span><span style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span><span style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email
at </span><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><span style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></a><span style="color: #222222;">.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Forwarding Postings</span></u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><span style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></a> or
you can provide<span style="color: #222222;"> a link to that address in your email to them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778" style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> <o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL</span></span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-88029372601636542632024-02-20T16:02:00.000-05:002024-02-20T16:02:57.242-05:00February 20, 2024 - Donald John Trump, a Maureen Dowd Column, and Shootings at a Super Bowl Victory Celebration<p> </p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;"> </span> * * * </i></b></span><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim35Dmb1ZifoDRqqFThscxXfSq5_bNanosc8XpMyOBnZCVc-L7DF2cSVdaf39BLsEuZUw9TuuxDp-bxC9waimT5s_ZpOGO4DUzksVXUO9wC3OtW2ilubHeS_ocROiGu_4YW5d8rYMKBeTyQa_KLaZg8sQLQTKWQ8R8TsmQu0OeLRaO1SN6kuN5oc0zBYc/s222/Kansas%20City%20Chief%20logo.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="148" data-original-width="222" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim35Dmb1ZifoDRqqFThscxXfSq5_bNanosc8XpMyOBnZCVc-L7DF2cSVdaf39BLsEuZUw9TuuxDp-bxC9waimT5s_ZpOGO4DUzksVXUO9wC3OtW2ilubHeS_ocROiGu_4YW5d8rYMKBeTyQa_KLaZg8sQLQTKWQ8R8TsmQu0OeLRaO1SN6kuN5oc0zBYc/w400-h267/Kansas%20City%20Chief%20logo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><i><br /></i></b></span><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Kansas City Shooting and a Letter</u></i></span></span></b></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Hal Habib, sportswriter on the Palm Beach Post, recently wrote about the shooting at the giant rally in Kansas City celebrating the Chiefs winning the in the Super Bowl a few days earlier, pointing out that gunshots are not uncommon at athletic events. I wrote a letter to the Palm Beach Post, expanding on Habib’s remarks. I will let you know if they publish it. (I write these letters because if they publish them, they are exposed to almost 100,000 daily readers, far more than this blog is.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> Anyway, here it the content of my letter.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">‘Hal Habib's (2/18) article on shootings at athletic events touches on the broader problem of preventing gun violence. It involves keeping people with dangerous histories from having access to guns, the difficulty of legislating simple reforms regarding purchasing, owning, and carrying weapons, and recognizing that belated 'thoughts and prayers' are no match for what a gun can do. Most important of all is getting the Supreme Court to recognize that the Second Amendment's intention was merely to provide States with armed citizens to recruit into militias to counter what they feared most, the army of a Federal government opposed to individual States' rights, specifically the right to own slaves. I hope that it is only a matter of time until that Court reverses its 2008 decision in D.C. vs Heller, which has led to thousands of deaths in this country from gun violence.’</span></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 166.5pt;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 19.8px;"> * * *</span></span></p><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>‘<u>Do Whatever the Hell They Want</u>’
</i></b></span></div></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #31445d;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #31445d;">Speaking
at a rally in Conway, South Carolina, a week ago, Donald John Trump told a
story to make a point, something that not necessarily had actually taken place,
but illustrating how as president, he might have told a NATO member’s head of
state that </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">he would withhold U.S. help and “encourage” Russia to do as it wished
with our NATO allies that do not contribute enough to military spending</span><span style="color: #31445d;">.
</span><span style="color: #cc0000;">Apparently,</span><span style="color: #31445d;"> </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">Trump often massages his ego with such imaginative fantasies.</span></span></span></b></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></span></b></div><div>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">“You
didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?”</span><span style="color: #31445d;"> Trump recounted what he might have said,
continuing his fantasy, </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">“No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would
encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay. You gotta pay your bills.” </span><span style="color: #31445d;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p><p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglaHpakcetSEt0nYJN3PjYDBox5GLT9VNiQ40LJHT51Zt3sEmsLQ0i_DVHo73xU5_dQxdHX1_rFFN2U6TBcaYUQL-HUHlsLx7PnjmLXRj1MNYc4MeXq-O4yKTo8ZPbrqv_LPMEhHyuTuhSS-uN7yCxyyre6vLI_LegOGLfVdCEzLdCGwUUZAiBi1UgBDk/s760/Trump%20screaming.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="760" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglaHpakcetSEt0nYJN3PjYDBox5GLT9VNiQ40LJHT51Zt3sEmsLQ0i_DVHo73xU5_dQxdHX1_rFFN2U6TBcaYUQL-HUHlsLx7PnjmLXRj1MNYc4MeXq-O4yKTo8ZPbrqv_LPMEhHyuTuhSS-uN7yCxyyre6vLI_LegOGLfVdCEzLdCGwUUZAiBi1UgBDk/s320/Trump%20screaming.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Yadda, Yadda, Yadda </td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #31445d;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Avoiding
paying his own bills, incidentally, is something, that Donald John Trump has
spent a lifetime developing into a science.
Ask the local contractors and vendors in Atlantic City where Trump once
ran a number of gambling casinos. It is
very difficult to fail in the casino business, where the numbers are heavily loaded
against the customers, but Donald John Trump managed to do that.</span></span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"></span></span></span></b></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfhvXhQ638-l15_0zwD9GX8F5cj2r0bTCHXuZGDsoqb1w5AMbR4ofZT3B4rMByblQRg-aHbbFI6-LmQ5GPCoXii4BVCrrGYz_T8gRf9yuy5A9-0HK23h06zejngpYPzxJnDHTesgCJGANEB0g-IZ52iUiOdnII-NzHygiSyrc6DbbupGL2bBr1g4tW1Q/s929/Navalny.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="523" data-original-width="929" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglfhvXhQ638-l15_0zwD9GX8F5cj2r0bTCHXuZGDsoqb1w5AMbR4ofZT3B4rMByblQRg-aHbbFI6-LmQ5GPCoXii4BVCrrGYz_T8gRf9yuy5A9-0HK23h06zejngpYPzxJnDHTesgCJGANEB0g-IZ52iUiOdnII-NzHygiSyrc6DbbupGL2bBr1g4tW1Q/w200-h113/Navalny.jpeg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aleksei Navalny, Dead <br />in a Russian prison</td></tr></tbody></table><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">The last
thing the United States needs is a president who might tell the Russians to ‘do
whatever the hell they want.’ </span> <span style="color: #31445d;">Doing
‘whatever the hell they want’ includes bringing about the deaths of political
opposition leader </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Aleksei Navalny </span><span style="color: #31445d;">and Wagner Group leader </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Yevgeny Prigozin</span><span style="color: #31445d;">,
both of whom gave Vladimir Putin reasons to want them out of the way, along
with perhaps millions of other Russians whose names we will never see in the
newspapers. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b><p></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #31445d;">It's time
for the American people and especially what is left of the Republican Party to
separate themselves from Donald John Trump and all those who support him. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Anyone who votes for him, or follows his dictates in Congress, belongs either
in a mental institution or in some other
country,</span><span style="color: #31445d;"> and that of course includes </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Tucker Carlson</span><span style="color: #31445d;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 166.5pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 110%;"> *
* *</span><span style="line-height: 110%; text-decoration-line: underline;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="background: white; margin-left: 166.5pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><u>A ‘Florida Fraudster' and </u></span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><u>a Russian "Killer</u>' </span></span></b></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><i><u>Plus a Trumpster's Reaction</u></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;">I recently forwarded Maureen Dowd’s brilliant
column on Donald John Trump and Vladimir Putin, (New York Times, Feb. 17) to some on my contact list</span><span style="color: #cc0000;"> and included a
copy to someone who I knew would disagree with it, a dyed-in-the-wool Trump
supporter. </span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;">Patti Davis, President Ronald Reagan’s
daughter, recently recalled (in a piece originally appearing in the New York
Times) that her father had pointed out to her that</span><span style="color: #cc0000;"> ‘dictatorships aren’t
created by one person, they’re created by all the people who fall in line and
say yes.’ </span><span style="color: #222222;">That is perhaps why I forwarded Ms. Dowd’s column to someone who I
know who has ‘fallen in line’ behind Donald John Trump’s litany of lies.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Because the
Times sometimes has a ‘pay-wall’ making its content unavailable to
non-subscribers, rather than providing a link that might therefore be
useless to many, let’s start with the 'purloined' text itself of Ms. Dowd’s
column. Draw the blinds and read on:<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘The
Florida Fraudster and the Russian 'Killer’ </span><span style="color: #0070c0;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">By Maureen
Dowd in the New York Times (February 17, 2024)</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">“When
I </span></i></b><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/21/us/with-flag-as-his-backdrop-bush-urges-help-for-the-poor.html"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">covered</span></i></b></a><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> George
H.W. Bush’s presidential campaign in 1988, he was so eager to wrap himself in
the American flag that he took us to a New Jersey flag factory. That way, he
could claim that the G.O.P. was “on the American side” while caressing pieces
of striped, red-and-white nylon.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">At the
time, it seemed like a cynical move by Republicans, trying to bogart
patriotism. But at least they respected our country enough to try to monopolize
its symbol.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">That
vanishing breed of Republican pledged allegiance to the American flag. Now
Republicans pledge allegiance to Donald Trump’s ego. He has to be bigger than
everything — even America itself.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">“Bush
wrapped himself in the American flag,” David Axelrod said. “Trump wants to wrap
himself in the Mar-a-Lago flag.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Just as
Trump has remade the Republican Party in his own nasty and selfish image, he
wants to remake America in his own nasty and selfish image.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Trump
doesn’t seem to subscribe to any of the verities about this country. He doesn’t
believe America is exceptional. He only believes that Trump is exceptional — an
exception to all the rules that the rest of us live by.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">If
American laws get in his way — like counting votes to choose a president — he
tries to smash them. He’s bigger than democracy, after all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">If
American values get in his way — like our distaste for authoritarians like
Vladimir Putin and Viktor Orban — he mocks those values. When Putin and Orban
flattered Trump, that seemed more important to the Mar-a-Lago megalomaniac than
our nation’s proud history of facing down autocrats.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Bill
O’Reilly asked President Trump in 2017 why he respected Putin even though he
was “a killer.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">“You got
a lot of killers,” he replied. “What, you think our country’s so innocent?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">America
the Beautiful, our Shining City on a Hill, is not so hot. Get in his way, and
Trump will bust up institutions, trash courts, tear down cultural icons like
Taylor Swift and egg on acolytes to storm the Capitol.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">He
doesn’t see America as the idealistic leader of the free world. He sees the
world as “The Hunger Games,” as Axelrod put it. And frighteningly, Trump
sometimes acts as if he prefers America’s enemies to America.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The
former president shocked the world last weekend when he said at a rally that if
NATO countries did not pay more for defense, he would “encourage” Russia “to do
whatever the hell they want” to our allies. Biden called that “un-American.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Trump’s
bromance with the sociopathic Putin, unimpeded by Putin’s foul bid to swallow
Ukraine, grew even more sickening with news that the Russian president’s most
potent opponent, Aleksei Navalny, 47, died mysteriously in an Arctic prison —
very, very suddenly, as high-profile Putin critics often do.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">“Make no
mistake: Putin is responsible,” President Biden said.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">When a
CNN reporter asked if Trump had a response to the heroic Navalny’s death, the
Trump campaign pointed her to a Truth Social post that wasn’t about Navalny or
Putin. It was about how awful America was.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">“America
is no longer respected,” Trump posted, “because we have an incompetent
president who is weak and doesn’t understand what the World is thinking.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">This
American Carnage garbage is how he bonds with his base, many of whom are deeply
cynical about politics and government, seeing hypocrisy and conspiracies
everywhere.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">His
hallucinatory worshipers admire him as a strongman, even when he’s shown to be
liable for sexual assault and an aggrandizing con man whose real estate empire
was a Potemkin village. On Friday, a New York judge ordered Trump to pay a
penalty of $355 million plus interest and barred him from holding high-up roles
at any New York business — including his own — for three years, saying about
Trump & Company, “Their complete lack of contrition and remorse borders on
pathological.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">The
Renfields to Trump’s Dracula are also busy playing sycophants to dictators. At
an Axios conference in Miami, Jared Kushner — who was festooned with $2 billion
in Saudi investments after he left the White House — </span></i></b><a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/02/14/jared-kushner-saudi-crown-prince-salman-visioanry" target="_blank"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">called</span></i></b></a><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> Mohammed bin Salman a
“visionary leader.” Asked about the crown prince’s complicity in Jamal
Khashoggi’s murder, Kushner replied with exasperation, “Are we really still
doing this?”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Before
Navalny’s death, Tucker Carlson — who scorned Ukraine’s desperate fight for its
independence — cavorted in the Kremlin. His interview with Putin was so
indulgent that even Putin complained of a “lack of sharp questions.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">In an interview
with an Egyptian journalist, Carlson defended his decision not to ask Putin
about freedom of speech or assassinations of his opponents.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">“Every
leader kills people,” Carlson said blithely, adding, “Leadership requires
killing people, sorry.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Will the
craven Republicans ever stand up against autocracy — at home or abroad?<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Navalny’s
death at the hands of the murderous Putin has given momentum to the push for
military assistance for Ukraine.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="css-at9mc1" style="background: white; margin: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">It’s the
American thing to do.”</span><span style="color: #0070c0;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">Well, as expected, my ‘Trump-supporting friend’ replied
to me as follows: </span></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">“Trump kept Putin on a
string so he would stay in line & not go around the USA. But Trump is not
in power now so Putin does as he wants.
Once Trump is back in office you will see Putin fall in line.”</span></i></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">Though I know it
would not change him, I answered him as follows:<br />
</span></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">“You
have it wrong. Actually, it was Putin who kept Trump on a string
with hopes of business connections in Russia and tried to get him to try to
weaken NATO and ignore Russian aggression, in his attempt to restore what used
to be the Soviet Union. Putin did not attempt to 'go around the USA' but
preferred to go 'through the USA’ via his 'friend' in the White House and his
followers, like you. But with Trump not 'in power,' his
efforts become evident to all, lacking an American president who would ignore
his invasion of Ukraine and continued murder of opponents. Stay well.”</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><u>Really, it does not pay to argue with these people. They cannot be changed and your time is too valuable in an election year to waste on them!</u></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">JL</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">Voting by Mail –
</span></u></i></b><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; line-height: 110%;">This is Very
Important</span></u></i></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; line-height: 110%;">!</span></i></b></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten
used to voting by mail. It’s safe and simple. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the
past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to
renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before the next election in order to receive
a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach
County, do it right now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2288bb; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail " target="_blank">CLICKING HERE</a> For those
who do not want do it online, they can sign up for vote-by-mail by
calling </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida
counties, visit the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><u>Sort of an Apology</u></span><span style="color: #2f5496; font-size: medium; text-decoration-line: underline;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">In my previous posting on
Jackspotpourri, I reminded Republicans to be sure to put it on their calendars
to vote on the special day set aside for Republican voters in the forthcoming
presidential election, November 6, 2024.
</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">Of course, I was joking
because that is one day after the real Election Day, long after the polls have
closed. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">I am making this comment now
because </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">it occurs to me that anyone who believes what comes out of the mouths
of Republican candidates is likely to believe anything, even my joke </span><span style="color: #404040;">about the
date of the upcoming election. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Take my
word for it, Republicans, Election Day is November 5, 2024. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">That will be a historic date
for them, possibly the final appearance of the dying Republican Party on any
meaningful ballot in this country. And the
G.O.P.’s funeral director will be none other than Donald John Trump. The Party’s pallbearers will be
Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Greene, the governors of Texas and Florida, and if they
don’t end up back in jail, the convicted but pardoned Paul Manafort and Roger
Stone.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u>Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</u></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b style="font-size: large;"><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email
at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com" style="font-size: large;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: large;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b style="font-size: large;"><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif">:</span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> </span></b></span><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">a link to that address in your email to
them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">JL</span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-91694590715914143412024-02-15T23:06:00.000-05:002024-02-15T23:06:12.165-05:00February15, 2024 - Taylor Swift, Voting By Mail, Garland's Mistake, Political Advice to Joe, Tom Suozzi's Victory<p> </p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i> * * * </i></b></span><div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p> </o:p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><u><b><i>Merrick Garland’s Mistake</i></b></u></span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u> - Lawyers’ Ethics</u> (or lack thereof)</i></b></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b></b></span></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVlCzF2SDhJsGdmGSXkImPvh79pSoPsmIrp_bblheAGTA9v0H2E57yaG_n3Dc0cJSNY1snwtpu5hrwVckY494OWG4iD7Hvhe5OQrcvq0fVknqceqleAWg9Edg7lULlzO6rouOsBvU6coxIzq35eT7EBOrLVERHRhixuAmbRJtg-isE2sQG1dpQkixn2hU/s1500/Merrick%20Garland.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVlCzF2SDhJsGdmGSXkImPvh79pSoPsmIrp_bblheAGTA9v0H2E57yaG_n3Dc0cJSNY1snwtpu5hrwVckY494OWG4iD7Hvhe5OQrcvq0fVknqceqleAWg9Edg7lULlzO6rouOsBvU6coxIzq35eT7EBOrLVERHRhixuAmbRJtg-isE2sQG1dpQkixn2hU/s320/Merrick%20Garland.jpg" width="256" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Attorney-General Garland</td></tr></tbody></table><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Here’s a letter I sent to the Palm Beach Post the other day. I will let you know if they publish it.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘Attorney-General Merrick Garland made a mistake when he appointed Robert Gur as a Special Counsel looking into President Biden's possible mishandling of documents when he left the vice presidency in 2016. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He should have been aware that the ethics of some in the legal profession are far below those found in other professions,</span><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> such as medicine, dentistry, teaching, and even the practice of cosmetology. Gur colored his report finding nothing worth pursuing further with his own political opinions, specifically those relating to President Biden's age. </span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><i><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">'This is the same kind of thing that James Comey and Bill Barr, also lawyers, did in letting their personal political opinions put a negative slant on their reports on Hillary Clinton's emails and Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian involvement in our 2016 elections, respectively. </span><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">'That the Palm Beach Post periodically publishes lists of lawyers disciplined by the Florida Supreme Court for ethical violations indicates the existence of this problem in the legal profession, something I don't see regularly publicized for other professions by whatever agency is responsible for regulating them. </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Garland, a lawyer himself, should have known better.’</span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">JL</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> * * *</span></b></p><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Taylor Swift’s Politics
</u></i></b></span></div><div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #404040;">The media (USA Today) report that </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">‘nearly
one in five Americans believe Taylor Swift is part of a 2024 plot to help Joe
Biden’</span></i> <u style="color: #404040;">might</u><span style="color: #404040;"> be correct! Regardless of whether or not Ms. Swift's is part of it, </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">I can at least confirm the existence of such a ‘plot’ or conspiracy
because <u>I too am part of it</u>! </span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">We meet periodically to discuss how to get
people to register to vote, to write ‘postal cards,’ to communicate with
legislators, sign petitions, join ‘phone banks,’ and other activities that are
part of the responsibility of being politically active in a democracy.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">I now suspect that the strange lady showing up
at some of our meetings, but not ‘signing in,’ wearing dark glasses and a Miami
Dolphin jersey. intentionally to mislead us, might be Ms. Swift, while a
stand-in fills her role in her world-wide tour.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 24pt; line-height: 110%;">Voting by Mail –
</span></u></i></b><b><i><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 24pt; line-height: 110%;">This is Very
Important</span></u></i></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 24pt; line-height: 110%;">!</span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten
used to voting by mail. It’s safe and simple. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the
past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to
renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before the next election in order to receive
a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach
County, do it right now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail " target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> For those
who do not want do it online, they can sign up for vote-by-mail by
calling </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida
counties, visit the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(One final word to emphasize <u>the non-partisan nature of
this blog</u>: </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Encourage your
Republican friends to vote in person at their polling places on Wednesday,
November 6, 2024, a day set aside for Republican voters throughout the nation.)</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>What’s Gonna Be, Gonna Be</u>!</i></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: large;">So here's my advice to Joe.</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Face it. The two candidates for president on your
ballot in November (excluding numerous third-party candidates who will never
get an electoral vote, and just mess things up, possibly affecting the outcome
in a particular State, …. so please ignore them) will be President Biden and
his predecessor in office, Donald John Trump.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In my opinion,
anyone who votes for Donald does not care about the future of representative
democracy in the United States, but many millions will vote for him, for a
variety of reasons into which I won’t be going at this time. I think Joe Biden will be re-elected, but it
will be close.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">My advice, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">which he has not solicited, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">to President Biden is threefold. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">First,</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">he must avoid taking overly strong
positions on issues which might lose him some votes. These include the Middle East, Ukraine, and
immigration, legal and otherwise, particularly at our Southern border. He must tread carefully in these areas, maintaining
his present positions, but not advocating anything monumental. The months
before the election are not the time for engaging in arguments,</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">nor spending resources to point out that John
Donald Trump is mired in both civil and criminal litigation (for which he has
been indicted) that will apparently go on for many years. Biden need not expend any resources on
that. News media will do it
automatically, and for free.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I feel that
primarily, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">President Biden should make this election about the
nation’s continuing progress under his Administration </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;">(think the Inflation Reduction Act, the CHIPs
and Science Act, the Infrastructure & Investment Jobs Act and its resulting
job-creating projects, the rising stock market, and decreasing inflation.) </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">But he should not ignore the destructive
potential of a second Trump term, using Donald’s own words.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> He should mix a little about the future with
a little about the past, enunciating his successes compared to Trump’s
failures. </span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;">Most importantly, this requires him to </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: red;">TURN UP THE VOLUME</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Secondly, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">President Biden must light
a fire under Vice President Harris. When
a candidate for president is 81 years old, that automatically ups the
importance of the vice-presidency.
Kamala Harris must demonstrate her capabilities along with projecting an
image of strength as she did early in her 2020 campaign for the Democratic
presidential nomination. If it appears
that she is failing to do both very quickly, replacement on the ticket should
be considered.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Thirdly</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, if Donald John Trump
manages to win the election and Congress, </span></b><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">both within the
realm of possibility</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, </span></b></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">the future of our representative democracy
can only be saved by the Supreme Court.</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">As an insurance policy to
protect the country should that happen, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">President Biden
should</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">right now</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;">,
</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">while the Democrats still control the Senate,</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">nominate four additional Justices </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">to
the SCOTUS</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, thrice corrupted with reactionary ‘originalist’ appointees made by
Trump during his administration, who view history through a rear-view mirror. This is permissible under the Constitution,
which is silent on the number of SCOTUS Justices, and once nominated, only
require a simple majority vote by the Senate.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I know President
Biden would be criticized for doing this, a purely political tactic, but it is
necessary in view of the dangers another term for Trump will bring: </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">a national ban on
abortions, easy and simple access to weapons for every American, Department of
Justice prosecution of his political opposition, blindness to the effects of
climate change, freeing the very wealthy from paying their fair share of taxes,
and an end to regulation of major businesses and of our financial marketplaces.
</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-size: large; line-height: 110%;">3 + 4 = 7 > 6 </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>Justices Kagan, </b></span></span><b style="font-family: arial; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Sotomayor, Brown plus four new appointees
will leave Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett, and Chief
Justice Roberts as a minority on the SCOTUS. </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">* *</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Finally, as screwed-up, divided, and unpredictable as the American
voters are and have been, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">all
it takes is a crisis to bring them together.</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> This unification occurred in </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">1776</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> (the crisis then was the refusal of the colonists’ British
‘masters’ to grant independence), again in </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">1861</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> (the crisis then was the secessionists’ determination to
expand slavery Westward), and in </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">1941</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> (the crisis then was
the desire of the Axis powers to rule the world).</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">You will note that about eighty years separated each of these
three crises. It has been about 84 years
since Pearl Harbor, so we are about due for another one. </span><span style="color: #2f5496;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #c00000;">Today’s crisis
is the threat to representative democracy in the United States posed by the
vast number of American people, not quite a majority, who have lost faith in
democracy and are willing to give an autocratic form of government, if not a
dictatorship, a chance. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Donald John
Trump personally is not the threat representing this crisis. It is the American people who support him,
and who have mobilized the Republican Party as their tool, who are the threat.</span><span style="color: #c00000;"> Some of their reasons to do so are malign.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Defeating them, or at least effectively dealing with their anger, will
be more difficult than defeating the Redcoats in the 1770s, Johnny Reb in 1860s,
or the Axis powers in the 1940s. The
nation’s motto, E Pluribus Unum (out of many, one) demands unification at this
time.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Our best chance of achieving that without bloodshed, in addition to the
threefold advice I offer to President Biden in the paragraphs above, is
democracy’s giving the Republican Party enough rope with which to hang itself
in the full view of the American people.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial;"><u>Suozzi Wins in New York’s Third C.D.</u></span></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">An Omen!</span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: x-large;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In his victory speech after
his winning election in New York’s 3rd Congressional district to replace a
disgraced, indicted, and expelled professional
Republican liar, Tom Suozzi (a former Democratic centrist congressman who had
given up his seat to unsuccessfully run in the Democratic 2022 primary for New
York’s governorship) identified specific groups, </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">thanking his Jewish, Irish,
Italian, Black, Latino, Korean, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Japanese, and Chinese
supporters</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, to raucous cheers, for helping him win by an unexpectedly large
margin. Democrat Suozzi is also a former
Nassau County executive and Mayor of Glen Cove.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">It was clear that the groups
that form Long Island’s traditional conservative Republican base were absent
from Suozzi’s list of those increasingly inhabiting and dominating the Third Congressional district. It sounded to me
like the resurrection of the alliances that kept the Democrats in power during
the days of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">And that is a good sign.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">One bad sign</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, however, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">something
that I have not seen reported in the media</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, was the brief attempt during
Suozzi’s speech of a demonstrator with a Palestinian flag who attempted to push
onto the platform but was quickly turned away.
I witnessed the episode, which took no more than one or two seconds, on
MSNBC, my source of viewing the speech delivered live.
Suozzi, who must run again in November, should take note of this as also
must President Biden. </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In trying for a win in November, Republicans are not above using Biden's support, however hedged, of Israel's defensive war against Hamas as an issue. Remember that Donald John Trump has practically encouraged Vladimir Putin to attack NATO members who are behind on their dues. When you think that Republicans have sunk to the lowest levels possible, they always find something even lower to sink to. The 2024 General Election may be that party's last rodeo. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">a link to that address in your email to
them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email
addresses to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief
comment from you. Each will receive a link to click on that
will directly connect them to the blog.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-89855252378544749262024-02-08T19:04:00.001-05:002024-02-09T12:08:54.276-05:00February 8, 2024 - Voting by Mail, Politics, the NPVIC, and Basketball Woes<p> </p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; text-decoration-line: underline;">Voting by Mail</span> – <span style="color: red; text-decoration-line: underline;">This is Very Important</span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">!</span></i></b></span><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters have gotten
used to voting by mail. It’s safe and simple. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the
past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Current State election laws require you to
renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before the next election in order to receive
a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach
County, do it right now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2288bb; font-size: medium;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> For those
who do not want do it online, they can sign up for vote-by-mail by
calling </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656
6208. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida
counties, visit the website of your Supervisor of Elections or call them. </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5rp-zBZlFjNWWnK3w1K95pn-wBvbu3itMcGhCnw2Sbehhyphenhyphenp7NK0VmXltziHLkijaFBWd7WlwP6L14RIYQQNosJ3-HtsAz_Ip97aebdIhyphenhyphene7in8Y2fx37NPzeHK34eu3yg_TjE45WlvVDBhrGj8ga2H1fpc3khF-_CLwTeonlh12-vmq5YGbZNR7jhsM8/s300/One%20way%20sign.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5rp-zBZlFjNWWnK3w1K95pn-wBvbu3itMcGhCnw2Sbehhyphenhyphenp7NK0VmXltziHLkijaFBWd7WlwP6L14RIYQQNosJ3-HtsAz_Ip97aebdIhyphenhyphene7in8Y2fx37NPzeHK34eu3yg_TjE45WlvVDBhrGj8ga2H1fpc3khF-_CLwTeonlh12-vmq5YGbZNR7jhsM8/w320-h179/One%20way%20sign.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Street Sign Republicans <br />Don't See Along Trump Avenue<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; line-height: 17.6px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><u>Carlson, Trump, Loyalty, and Republicans</u></span><span style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 24pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">It is hard to believe that there are people in this country who take Tucker Carlson, presently in Moscow, seriously, but there are.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">Despite their bluster, I get the feeling that the remnants of the Republican Party, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">now in its death throes</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">as the defeated and indicted former president attempts to re-create it in his own personal image as ‘der Fuhrer,’ are now scurrying for shelter. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">They throw roadblocks up in Congress, they frantically propose unpassable cosmetic legislation to counter real bi-partisan measures, they pray for endless delays in the litigation Donald John Trump (likely to be stripped of whatever presidential immunity he claims) faces, they pursue impeachments that would never survive a Senate vote, and they hope that their loyalty to Trump will save them in the end</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">. </span></b></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">It won't. It never has. With Trump, LOYALTY IS A ONE-WAY STREET. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"><u>The trouble is that there are no street signs to alert Republicans to that</u></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">, and they depend on all the wrong sources for information ... like Carlson.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> * * *</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><u>More Politics -Today’s Wrap-Up</u></span><span style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 24pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">It is clear that the Trumpublican Party is not interested in
passing the bi-partisan Senate immigration legislation, most of which they have
long advocated, because their indicted, defeated, former president wants it as
a campaign issue when he runs for president again. The last thing he wants to do is allow
President Biden to receive credit for what he failed to accomplish.</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">And believe me, the former president will be on the ballot in
all 50 States, as the Supreme Court finds a lawyerly ‘off ramp’ to the court
challenges to his candidacy. When they make a decision, it will be to ‘punt,’ and those who dislike Donald will not risk a ‘roughing the kicker’ penalty because there are bigger
cases coming down the pike at the SCOTUS, specifically dealing with the January
6, 2021 insurrection and the former president’s immunity claims in regard to
it, necessitating their remaining in the Supreme Court's good graces. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">Trump has no other issue that might appeal to voters living outside
of his shrinking MAGA base. <span style="color: #2b00fe;">Right now,
like petulant children, Trumpublicans are holding other important issues like
support for Ukraine and Israel as hostages, so they can keep an immigration
crisis alive for Trump to use as a campaign issue. He has nothing else to lie
about</span> because the economy has improved under President Biden, the stock market
is up, inflation is down, and a majority of Americans support abortion rights
and gun controls. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">An immigration crisis is all he has to run with so solving it
is not in his interest,</span> even though it is paramount in the nation’s interest, which is something that has never been of concern to Donald. <span style="color: #cc0000;">This tactic resembles the refusal of Arab
nations to try to end the Palestinian refugee crisis. Doing so would take away their major weapon
in opposing the State of Israel.</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">Yet these idiots in the House still are wasting time trying
to ‘impeach’ the Homeland Security Secretary without any evidence, claiming
that he failed to do what they refuse to even consider doing at this time,
passing ‘ready-to-go’ bi-partisan immigration legislation. Kissing Trump’s butt is the House majority’s
highest priority because the small percentage of voters who blindly follow his
commands often comprise their margin of victory in their Congressional
districts. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">I feel that
Trumpublicans will go down to an overwhelming defeat in November, losing the
presidency, both Houses of Congress, and many State governments to the
Democrats.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">But because of</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> our convoluted election process, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><u>such a result cannot be guaranteed</u></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. The possibility remains for a<span style="letter-spacing: -0.1pt;"> triumph by the evil anti-democratic forces that
our representative democracy's Achilles Heel permits to exist. I refer to the obsolete Electoral College, the
role of States in gerrymandering and regulating voting, a Supreme Court lacking
checks and balances once appointed, and the First Amendment's providing a cloak
of legitimacy for professional liars.</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But intelligent
voters, using their heads, can make sure our representative democracy survives.
</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><u>You have to do your part</u>! </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And that includes
working to get others to commit to that task. Consider these your 'marching orders.'</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><u>Flushing College Basketball Down the Tube</u></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Rick Pitino</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, now
entering his 70s and continuing to coach basketball, this time at Saint Johns,
</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">recently had some comments on the state of recruiting, transfers, and rules for
compensation of players</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> through NIL (use of players’ </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #c00000;"><u>N</u></span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">ames, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><u>I</u></span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">mages, and </span></b><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">L</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">ocation)
programs in today’s college basketball. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">He painted the
NCAA’s rules as toothless and unable to stand up in court against players
acting as individual athletes, with skilled lawyers, who make themselves available to any
school who wants to recruit them. Even
though Pitino hired, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">oops, </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I mean recruited, ten available and established
players from other schools for his St. Johns team (any of whom who could hire a
good lawyer and walk away from St Johns next season for a better deal), he
condemned the existing system as destructive of maintaining a ‘culture’ and an
ongoing ‘program’ for any college with a basketball team. ‘Culture?’
I thought that had something to do with yogurt, not basketball.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">My hypothetical
example:</span><span style="color: #404040;"> If some privately-owned barber
college or trade school managed to receive accreditation as a real institution
of higher learning, bought its way into a financially hard-up existing
conference, and offered several million dollars worth of scholarships and NIL
money to a dozen highly talented basketball players from real colleges, they might
even end up in the finals of the NCAA’s March Madness.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Pitino made his
remarks after his St. Johns team was defeated by the University of Connecticut,
whose team, incidentally, was led by likely All-American Cam Spencer, who
deserted Rutgers to play his fifth year of eligibility at UCONN (his third
college), dooming the Scarlet Knights to an unexpectedly poor season. Meanwhile, not innocent themselves, Rutgers' football operation has
recruited the University of Minnesota’s quarterback to lead their backfield
this Fall, a possible improvement over their existing quarterback. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Hired hands in
the persons of agents and lawyers specializing in this kind of stuff are
flushing all college sports, at least at the top level where ticket sales and
conference TV rights bring in the big money, down the tube. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Colleges and
universities are primarily educational institutions and not just way stations where
athletes can incidentally hang their hats for a while as they proceed along their career
paths. Fortunately, some college
presidents do remember that, the University of Chicago and MIT being examples.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Many do not and
you can find them at the top of schools in the SEC, the Big Ten, the ACC,
and the Big 12, earning a fraction of
what their football and basketball coaches make. Meanwhile, the PAC has passed away, its carcass picked over by some of the aforementioned colleges who are pumping this infection downward to lesser schools, latched onto to fill their TV schedules. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact</u></i></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>I sat through a 'zoomed' lecture the other evening about <span style="color: #cc0000;">the </span></b></span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: medium;"><b>National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC)</b></span></span><span face=""Google Sans", Roboto, arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #202124; font-size: 20px;">, <b>a program that would result in the popular election of our president without the many years it would take to abolish our Constitutionally-mandated Electoral College system that occasionally results in a candidate who lost the nation-wide popular vote ending up in the White House, like Donald Trump or George W, Bush. The Amendment process to accomplish such a change to a popular vote decision might take many, many, decades, probably less than the NPVIC would take to become a reality.</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Google Sans", Roboto, arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #202124; font-size: 20px;"><b>Right now, the electoral votes of all but two States go entirely to the winner of the most votes in that State, </b></span><b style="color: #202124; font-size: 20px;">even if the winner there won by one vote. </b><b style="color: #202124; font-size: 20px;">(New Hampshire and Nebraska divide their electoral votes proportionately.) This is unfair to voters in populous States, underrepresented in the Electoral College, and beneficial to small, overrepresented, rural States. In California, for example, one electoral vote represents about 717,000 people. In Wyoming, one electoral vote represents about 193,000 people.</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b style="color: #202124; font-size: 20px;">Because campaigning will not change the results in solidly Democratic or Republican States like California or South Dakota, candidates don't waste campaign resources on getting the electoral votes of such States. The campaigns are directed to States that might go either way, ignoring the rest. The NPVIC would eliminate this, making every vote cast in the nation, in every State, equally crucial. </b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Google Sans, Roboto, arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 20px;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">The Constitution makes it the responsibility of each State to determine how to cast their Electoral votes, and that is the NPVIC's approach. It takes 270 electoral votes to elect a president. If enough States pass a law providing that the candidate who received the most popular votes, </span><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">nationwide</span></u><span style="color: #cc0000;">, automatically receive the electoral votes of that State, regardless of the presidential voting results there, that would in effect elect the president by a popular, nationwide vote, once the number of electoral votes thusly available were at least 270.</span></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Google Sans, Roboto, arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 20px;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Right now, enough States have bought into this program so that it would produce 205 Electoral votes, 65 shy of enough to elect a president.</span><span style="color: #202124;"> Getting additional States to get involved is difficult at this point because many of the States not yet in the program are small ones that are not interested in having a popularly elected president, which might be to their disadvantage. But times can change. </span></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Google Sans, Roboto, arial, sans-serif" style="color: #202124;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 20px;"><b>Certainly, those 65 Electoral votes might be picked up by 2028, 2032, 2036, or 2040, all far sooner than the many, many, years getting rid of the Electoral College would take via an Amendment. (That would require the approval of two-thirds of both Houses of Congress and the legislatures of three-quarters of the States, a daunting requirement.)</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> * * *</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 18pt;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial;"><u><br /></u></span></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 18pt;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial;"><u>Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</u></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
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blog, you can just tell them to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> <b>or
you can provide</b></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">a link to that address in your email to
them. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> Google
Blogspot, the platform on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that
possible. If you click on the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom
of every posting, you will have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses
to which that blog posting will be forwarded, along with a brief comment from
you. Each will receive a link to click on that will directly
connect them to the blog.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/3462461815458153778"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting. Try it!</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">This is
an election year. Spread the word.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-34624618154581537782024-02-03T12:32:00.006-05:002024-02-03T13:17:20.447-05:00February 3, 2024 - 150 Million Supreme Court Replacements, Non-Existent Republican Loyalty, and Israel Commentary<p> </p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;"> </span> * *<span style="color: #2b00fe;"> *</span></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>To Your Honors, the Voters
</u></i></b></span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I am convinced
that none of the litigation involving our indicted and defeated former
president will be fully resolved by the November elections. Lawyer-initiated delays, appeals, and the
time needed to even consider frivolous excuses will assure that in all 50
States, Donald Trump will be on the ballot with slates of electors pledged to
support him. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOwEaiXmyxQ2nSJUiFBmUl0GF1Y4at3_kc8mhWggFBV6W49ZlEMWEmd65lVdbWdya9QAaahl_4wqnjw8FNFTVPlnpR5zeu_OpzJy-FddSV1Ls7V2BmwsIfKABrUMBoYRcNImuQoLkQWfvfgro79CYWUv5hl9fUXmtm7276jmZyFxXcspjYuGjyunO2HU/s300/Football%20punter.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOwEaiXmyxQ2nSJUiFBmUl0GF1Y4at3_kc8mhWggFBV6W49ZlEMWEmd65lVdbWdya9QAaahl_4wqnjw8FNFTVPlnpR5zeu_OpzJy-FddSV1Ls7V2BmwsIfKABrUMBoYRcNImuQoLkQWfvfgro79CYWUv5hl9fUXmtm7276jmZyFxXcspjYuGjyunO2HU/w320-h179/Football%20punter.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Supreme Court in Action</span></td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Like a football
team on fourth down on their own twenty-yard line, the Supreme Court will
‘punt,’ coming up with legalistic, technical reasons (some are calling them
‘off-ramps’) for doing nothing and not making meaningful decision about the
defeated former president’s eligibility to run for office, or in regard to the
numerous court cases stemming from the charges made by our government’s lawyers
against him. His having appointed three
SCOTUS justices might be the reason for this.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The bottom line
is that a judicial system accustomed to taking its time to do anything will
have failed a country needing its clear decisions before the next presidential
election. That being the case, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">it is the American voting public that must be
the judge and jury</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> in these cases. The
judges have abdicated their roles.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Folks, put on
your black robes. The Supreme Court has
put theirs in a closet somewhere.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Most of the
evidence that has been or will be presented in court is available to you, the
voter, on TV and in the newspapers. You can be the judge and the jury in
deciding whether the charges against Donald John Trump have any merit, and
whether he should be returned to the White House. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">The judiciary
will find a way to avoid its responsibilities, and therefore, it is your
decision, your Honors, to make on November 5, 2024, not theirs any longer. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>No Such Thing as a Loyal Republican</u></i></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The Trumpublican
Party has turned on one of their own, Oklahoma Senator James Lankford, for his
support of a bi-partisan bill to help solve the immigration problem on our
southern border. He risks following the path pioneered by Liz Chaney. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;">Clearly, following the </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u>dict</u>ates</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;">
(that’s what a </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u>dict</u>ator</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> orders to be done) of the G.O.P’s likely
presidential candidate has a far higher priority than doing what's best for the
country. </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Even though the measure
contains most of what Republicans have been asking for, its passage, Trump
feels, might reflect favorably on President Biden. </span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> <span style="color: #404040;">So letting the crisis persist becomes
Republican policy. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Ugh.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">'Traditional'
Republicans should open their eyes to the fact that today's G.O.P. is not a
decent place for them to call home. It
ain’t their fathers’ Republican Party. While
not expecting them to become Democrats, Republican Senators can at least
declare themselves to be 'Independents' and act that way, as Senators Sinema,
King, and Sanders have done for various reasons, free to let their consciences (and
their constituents wishes) be their guides.
<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">As for </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">traditional
Republican voters </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">back home, they </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">have three choices:</span><span style="color: #404040;"> </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">1. Vote for Democrats, 2. Skip voting
entirely, or 3. Hold their noses and vote for Republicans.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> (They should
remember that It is impossible to hold one’s nose for four years, as many
unsuccessfully tried to do from 2016 to 2020.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Latest Thoughts on Israel </u></i></span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Every time I think I’ve written what I thought was a comprehensive,
definitive, piece about Israel, the situation there boils over and I start
typing again. The following is my summation, as of this moment, of the problems
facing Israel and a tentative solution.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> I am certain many
reading this will disagree with me. Your
constructive criticism is invited which, with your approval, can be included on
Jackspotpourri.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* *</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Benjamin Netanyahu depends on allies from Israel’s extreme right to
maintain a majority in the Knesset. By
themselves, these extremists are a small minority in that body. Many Israelis do somewhat agree with them
though, but only because they are not being offered any practical alternatives
at this time, especially in the light of Hamas’ October 7 attack. Netanyahu, whose
Likud Party falls short of having a majority on its own, depends on the support
of these extremists to form a government and has given several key cabinet
posts to their leaders.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This dependence on extremists creates problems for what I believe are
the majority of Israelis. Right now,<span style="color: #2b00fe;"> their criticism of the extremists who
support Netanyahu is muted while all Israelis unite to defend their nation from
Hamas, work to permanently destroy it, along with hoping efforts to bring about
the safe return of the hostages Hamas holds will succeed.</span> Sooner or
later though, they will have to deal with the increasingly unpopular Benjamin
Netanyahu and the extremists he has brought into his government. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Basically, the extremist Israeli position is</span> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">a mirror image </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">of that of the
Palestinian extremists, currently manifested and spearheaded by Hamas, which
believes in fighting to establish a Palestinian state that extends ‘from the
river</span> (the Jordan) <span style="color: #2b00fe;">to the sea </span>(the Mediterranean)<span style="color: #2b00fe;">’. To Israelis, this sounds
like a frightening Arab version of Nazi Germany’s effort to be ‘judenrein.’ </span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But getting back to that </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘mirror
image,’ </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">the Israeli extremists look back thousands of years to when all the
territory comprising today’s Palestine was their homeland, </span>a powerful state
which only disappeared after being subjugated by the Romans, who had no
tolerance for the religious beliefs of those whom they conquered. Consequently,
all but a tiny remnant of Jews left what had been their homeland for more
welcoming parts of the world in what became known as the Diaspora.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Late in the Nineteenth century, motivated by antisemitism in a Europe, to
which many Jews had migrated, the idea of returning to their historic homeland,
Israel, was popularized by Theodor Hertzl. This became known as Zionism. In the
Twentieth century, the Holocaust made Zionism more than just a hope, but a
reality. (The anthem ‘Hatikvah’ translates as ‘the hope.’)</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">After the fall of the Roman Empire, control of Palestine ultimately
ended up in the hands of the Ottoman Empire, which was not unfriendly to Jews
returning to what had once been their homeland. After all, the Muslim Ottomans thought,
at least they weren’t crusading Christians.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Over four hundred years of Ottoman rule, some Jews did exactly that,
purchasing land and establishing communities in Palestine. Into this environment, as Hertzl’s Zionism
took root, some antagonism between the growing Jewish population and the
Palestinian Arabs appeared, occasionally erupting into violence. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">After the First World War, the Ottoman Empire disappeared, and Palestine
became a ‘mandate’ administered by Great Britain. In 1947, the United Nations
partitioned it into two areas, one for Jews, which became the State of Israel
in 1948, and one for the Palestinian Arabs, who refused to form a State,
counting on their Arab neighbors to rid Palestine of the Jews and provide them
with a state running ‘from the river to the sea.’ Militarily, they repeatedly failed to do
this, and <span style="color: #cc0000;">since 1967, the State of Israel has also occupied the territory that
would have been a Palestinian state, territory they never really coveted,
except for strategic areas such as the Golan Heights.</span> And that, more or less, is where we are
today.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The Israeli
extremists’ mirror image </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">of the Palestinian extremist vision of a state extending ‘from
the river to the sea’ would </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">be
a State of Israel with its borders expanded to what they were before Israel
fell before the Roman legions many centuries ago</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, and that is the desire
of Israeli’s extremists. The Palestinians could remain if they chose to, but
their citizenship there would have some limitations, since an expanded Israel
would clearly be a Jewish state, or they could leave if they wish, despite no
Arab nation throwing out a welcome mat for them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Both goals, an exclusionary Jewish state or an exclusionary Palestinian
state, are one-state solutions, doomed to failure.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Netanyahu’s
government, and prior Likud leaders, have gone along with allowing extensive
Israeli settlements in the territory that would have been the Palestinian state
under the UN’s partition plan.
Approximately 700,000 Israelis live in such well-established, usually
fenced-off, and armed settlements there, supported enthusiastically by the
right-wing Israeli extremists to whom Netanyahu owes his position. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">To my way of thinking, that is the crux of the
problem</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Because Netanyahu caters to
Israeli extremists is no reason for us to also take that position.</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Many,
if not most, Israelis do not support them either, although they are hesitant to
attack their government while it is fighting a war against Hamas and trying to
negotiate a return of hostages held by Hamas.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">To put this in a
demographic perspective, The State of Israel’s total population is a bit under
nine and a half million, of which about 73% are Jewish and about 21% are Muslim.
Beyond its borders in the occupied
territories are two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and perhaps three
million on the West Bank. Looking at the
entire area, encompassing the State of Israel and the occupied territories
including Gaza, population-wise, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">it
seems safe to say that Palestinians account for more than 40% of the people
there. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">These numbers, which cannot
be ignored, seem to point in one direction, and that is to a two-state
solution. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The presence of
these 700,000 Israelis in the settlements constitutes an obstacle to that. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(Quietly, almost on tip-toes, the United States
government is slowly swinging toward a position recognizing that and beginning
to criticize the militancy of some settlers and of the Israeli troops stationed
there supposedly to defend them.)<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">My feeling is that
there must be such a solution because a one-state solution would not provide an
answer for those, either Israeli or Palestinian, who would be excluded from, or
at best be second-class citizens of, whatever single state were established,
</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">and would be willing to fight to maintain their dominant identity there.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> That would guarantee continuing violence by
Hamas-inspired extremists or by armed Israeli settlers. The attack by Hamas
from within Gaza is an example of this, going so far as to include Israel’s
armed forces in the struggle. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Months ago, on
this blog, I outlined the way to a two-state solution. It starts with incrementally moving those
700,000 Israelis back to within the borders of the State of Israel over twenty
years, from what then would become part of a disarmed Palestinian state that must
first agree to permanently live peacefully next to the State of Israel. These Israelis would be compensated and
resettled within Israel. The borders of
the two states would approximate what the 1947 United Nations partition laid
out.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">To this I now add that the peaceful intentions of such a
disarmed state would have to be guaranteed and financed by Sunni Muslim states
such as Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, all of which desire and would benefit
from peaceful relationships with the State of Israel, undeniably motivated in
part by the need for unity against a common adversary, Iran</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">.</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">As for obvious
Iranian objections to such an arrangement, either directly or through its
‘proxies,’ that would be a challenge to be dealt with by the United States independently
as well as through the world’s financial community, without whose support Iran would
be bankrupt. Iranians must have a market for their petroleum. They cannot drink
it.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If snags and
problems develop in bringing about this two-state solution, remember that it
would take place incrementally during the twenty-year period mentioned above, providing
the time and opportunity to make changes and modifications in its details. Certainly, this is preferable to the violence
and war which would accompany any one-state solution.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">each time
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<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
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<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though!</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
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<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-25567085454061373202024-01-31T13:53:00.000-05:002024-01-31T13:53:58.424-05:00January 31, 2024 - DJT is Nothing, Lincoln in 1838, the Uneducatable, Joe's Accomplishments, and a Suggested Boycott<p> </p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘<u>Donald Trump is Nothing</u>!’ - </span><span style="color: red; text-decoration-line: underline;">A Melting Iceberg</span></i></b></span><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">There are at
least two sides to most political and economic issues ... and Republicans and
Democrats usually have opposing positions.
I believe that the positions of Democrats are more in the best interests
of the American public than those of the Republicans. But that is not what I am about to address.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Democrats have a
tougher job presenting their ideas because before getting through to the nuts
and bolts of their arguments, and hopefully reaching a bi-partisan compromise,
they must first expend their energies working through the layers of lies and
plotting which the Republican Party, led by the defeated and indicted
forty-fifth ex-president, wrap around their arguments, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">which sometimes, when finally revealed, turn
out to be nothing more than just opposition,
without anything constructive about them.
<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Democrats in
Congress and elsewhere, before even getting to the real issues, have been
forced to wade through this morass, wasting their resources, challenging lies
and fighting MAGA intrigues. Leaving it
to the courts to resolve, that in our system of justice always tries to be
fair to defendants, often benefits Donald Trump and his acolytes. Just look how
they have used the courts to slow down the wheels of justice. For example, it
will be years before litigation stemming from Trump’s theft of government
documents is resolved.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The answer</span></u><span style="color: #404040;">: At this point, </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #c00000;">Democrats must concentrate on tearing down
Trump's image. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Doing that is more
important than the political and economic issues on the table,</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> which tend to hold
people’s attention only momentarily. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">A day should not
go by without Democrats pointing out that he is a scoundrel, thief, liar,
philanderer, and who is presently under indictment by grand juries for numerous
crimes committed against the laws of the United States and of several States. </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">He
must be demonized so that his lies and MAGA intrigues are shattered in the eyes
of those who still believe in him.</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Only
then will Democrats be able to return to arguing about issues with their
Republican opponents, who would no longer be able to hide behind a shattered
Donald Trump.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This may not be
as enormous a task as it seems because </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Trump is very successful at demonizing
himself </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">with his own words and actions, increasingly illustrating how unhinged
from reality he has become. That must be
hammered home to those who still support him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCzWw5xuXHgxd0QWQoAlGW_BwD12tAQiVJMyMiSeXd9qmGd593sB8h7LFjCRmg_Lc8YOY8ujL9dFwJlR8L-V5oI2GClqpOOxVHnNwCxzTct-twxF3p76s-eBSgtgP12MibciPITSUxasl7WZJuDg16xkHRsy4lbWPcONWn-PcdVZJeJP1qcmGw8AohjY0/s1200/Bear%20on%20iceberg.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCzWw5xuXHgxd0QWQoAlGW_BwD12tAQiVJMyMiSeXd9qmGd593sB8h7LFjCRmg_Lc8YOY8ujL9dFwJlR8L-V5oI2GClqpOOxVHnNwCxzTct-twxF3p76s-eBSgtgP12MibciPITSUxasl7WZJuDg16xkHRsy4lbWPcONWn-PcdVZJeJP1qcmGw8AohjY0/s320/Bear%20on%20iceberg.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And as it melts, he drowns</div><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Confusing Nikki
Haley with Nancy Pelosi and fulminating about her choice of dresses were only </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">hints at his dementia, the top of </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">the
melting iceberg</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">that is Donald
Trump</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. Rather than wasting energy
contradicting his lies and trickery in regard to individual issues, Democrats
should ‘go for the jugular’ and totally shatter his image first. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> Then the
dying Republican Party would have no place to hide.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Trump’s ‘melting’ </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">continued this past week with E. Jean Carroll</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> winning her sexual assault lawsuit against
Trump in which a jury awarded her $83,000,000</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. Ms.
Carroll, an author and magazine columnist, drove home the importance, not only
of her lawsuit and its significance to all women, but of its shattering Trump’s
image and reputation as well.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">To the world (on
Rachel Maddow’s TV show), as a successful litigant, she proudly announced that </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘Donald Trump is nothing. We need not be afraid of him.’ </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The
sooner America realizes this, the better off the nation will be, leaving
it to historians to document the damage
to democracy this ‘big nothing’ did bring about.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">‘Donald Trump is nothing. We need not be afraid of him.’ </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>In 1838, Lincoln
Saw the Problem </u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The other day,
Heather Cox Richardson (in her ‘Letters From an American’ daily posting) wrote
about a young Abraham Lincoln’s ‘Lyceum’ address in 1838, more than two decades
before the Civil War. Lincoln felt that
the passions of Americans that had fueled the nation’s independence and growth
were no longer needed in those roles and seemed to be turning in less noble
directions, criticizing our own government, with the English no longer
available as a target. Basically, he said it was time to ‘cool it,’ using the
phrase ‘sober reason.’ </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> These were his
words, referring to what was that period’s MAGA movement. </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> (They called themselves ‘Know-Nothings.) These
words are still pertinent today:</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">“The Founders
had used their passions to create a system of laws, but the time for passion
had passed, lest it tear the nation apart. The next generation must support
democracy through “sober reason,” he said. He called for Americans to exercise
‘<em>general intelligence</em></span></i></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, <em>sound
morality</em>, and in particular, <em>a reverence for the constitution and laws.</em>”<i> <o:p></o:p></i></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Makes sense, and
he became president 21 years later, but those passions still tore the nation
apart then, as it threatens to do again today. We cannot let that happen, as </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">a
glance back at history</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> teaches us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In 1861, the
South's slave owners rallied the passions of the residents of what became the Confederacy by
stoking their fears of the Federal government's disturbing the expansion of the
basis of their economy, slavery.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Similarly,
today's Republican Party stokes the passions of Americans with fears that out-of-control
immigration will disturb their way of life. </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">That is why, as ordered by their
likely presidential candidate, they oppose the Senate's and President Biden's
initially bi-partisan efforts to finally control immigration. </span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">They prefer a
crisis over immigration as the only campaign issue left to them</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, since they've
already lost the battle over abortion in the minds of the nation's voters. I suspect that after November, what remains of
the G.O.P. will just be a part of a new Whig party, along with the fascists and
libertarians.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">But crucial to this all happening is the shattering of
the already melting image of Donald Trump that Ms. Carroll correctly
characterized by saying :</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘Donald
Trump is nothing. We need not be afraid
of him.’ </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>How Do We
Educate the Uneducatable</u>?</i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If you read
‘real’ newspapers, you should know the score regarding what is going on in the
world around us. The identity of the troublemakers, internationally and
domestically, is no secret. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I believe that if
we were to come up with solutions for the war in Ukraine, for the Palestinians,
for the immigrants on our Southern border, and most other problems that we
face, doing so would remove weapons currently used by those who want to perpetuate
these crises to gain supporters for their own nefarious aims. Real solutions
would leave them weaponless.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">The
’Uneducatable’</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> - Yet there are many millions of Americans who absolutely refuse
to connect the dots which lead to today's Russia, Iran, their non-state
followers like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, as well as to the present
leadership of the Republican Party, right here in the United States, that
shamelessly play politics with the future of democracy. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">As a result, too
many Americans are functionally ‘uneducatable.’</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;"> That is because they have one
thing in common. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">They view everything
through a </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">rear-view mirror</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, afraid to think about any changes the future might
bring. Thus, they end up supporting
those whose aims are to perpetuate, not resolve, crises.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But they cannot
be ignored because in many States, they are a majority, whose votes affect the
Electoral College and enable gerrymandering of congressional districts. That is
the problem we face. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And guess who the
chief purveyor of those </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">rear-view mirrors</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> is! </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Must we just wait for the </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">iceberg</span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> referred to earlier in this posting to melt
down to a puddle? <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;">Do you have an
answer? </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u>Let’s hear it!</u></span><span style="color: #404040;"> E. Jean Carroll, as cited above had one. </span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘Donald Trump is nothing. We need not be afraid of him.’ </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Time to spread that truth!
</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">‘Donald Trump is nothing. We need not be afraid of him.’</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Joe Biden’s
Accomplishments</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Don’t take my
word for them. Check out Simon
Rosenberg’s ‘Hopium Chronicles’ (especially the Jan. 29 posting) to be
enlightened! Find them at </span></b><a href="https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href=" https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;">Boycott Targets?</span></b></u></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If any ‘captains
of industry’ (or just plain consumers) who might follow this blog object to the
ridiculous 'State's Rights' crap coming out of Texas governor Abbott’s mouth, they
might consider boycotting some of the businesses headquartered in the Lone Star
State. Some have competitors elsewhere who
understand that immigration law is a federal, and not a State, area of
governance. For a list of the top 25 Texas-based Fortune 500 companies, check out
</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> https://www.concordia.edu/blog/top-25-fortune-500-companies-headquartered-in-texas.html</span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href="https://www.concordia.edu/blog/top-25-fortune-500-companies-headquartered-in-texas.html" target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Obviously,
consumers or local entities don’t deal directly with most of them but they
still might find other, non-Texas-based competitors of these companies where
they can spend their money. Numbers
1,2,3,7,10,12,19, and 23 on the list might fit in this category.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 192.75pt; mso-add-space: auto;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-14582664500386866902024-01-25T14:40:00.002-05:002024-01-25T21:36:21.758-05:00January 25, 2024 - Letter From Israel, Insurance Advertising, Hacking, Biden's Accomplishments, How 'Bad Guys' Get Elected, and Trust in Democracy. <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Letter From Israel and a Bit More</u></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH4QRYmSetiHJQPuiSdm97otONbxjjylwRAh_oSR25hmmoOPmE5rrsUlAPSi3dpmePe5SbjzgpIu2_c0DPq7jcbHJueZ74ZGC2tQwrUZs0ufjJEfUDJUSNAsL5Jnc4hgGKtBHFag2YEu37I8hYRRDtRf68y129nq-sv2JXeQnZhSYOkXS0v2YJ4TFRzz8/s2559/Netanyahu%20New%20Yorker.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2559" data-original-width="1706" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH4QRYmSetiHJQPuiSdm97otONbxjjylwRAh_oSR25hmmoOPmE5rrsUlAPSi3dpmePe5SbjzgpIu2_c0DPq7jcbHJueZ74ZGC2tQwrUZs0ufjJEfUDJUSNAsL5Jnc4hgGKtBHFag2YEu37I8hYRRDtRf68y129nq-sv2JXeQnZhSYOkXS0v2YJ4TFRzz8/s320/Netanyahu%20New%20Yorker.webp" width="213" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image that accompanied<br />the New Yorker article.</td></tr></tbody></table></i></b></span><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Far too lengthy
to include on Jackspotpourri is the ‘Letter from Israel’ by David Remnick, New
Yorker magazine editor, who has made several visits to Israel since the Hamas
attack in October. He writes about
whether Benjamin Netanyahu puts his own interests above that of the State of
Israel, and even recalls the Revisionist Zionism of Zev Jabotinsky, in which
Bibi’s father believed and is strongly reflected in Bibi’s present Knesset
coalition that wants nothing to do with a two-state solution.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Sit down and
devote at least half an hour to reading it and learn what difficult decisions
Israel really faces today. Copy and
paste https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/letter-from-israel on your browser line
to read the piece from the Jan. 22, 2024 issue of the magazine or just <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/letter-from-israel " target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">And this might
be an appropriate time to mention that my ‘two-state’ solution recommended in
the previous posting of Jackspotpourri resulted in only one person asking to be
taken off my list of those receiving alerts of fresh postings. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Insurance
Advertising</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The property and casualty insurance
industry, businesses that collect money, invest, or lend it, making a profit,
and end up paying out more than operating expenses and agents’ commissions ONLY
when their ‘policyholders’ submit property damage or automobile claims (which for most of them is ‘never’) is part of our nation’s conservative financial structure. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">They seem to be
ashamed of that, however, because much of their advertising tries to make them
appear to be anything other than ‘conservative.’ Just look at their names. What images do
</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">‘Progressive’ </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">and </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">‘Liberty’</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> bring to mind?
And one company (</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">GEICO</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">) is even named after those who hold civil service
jobs, working class people employed by the government. This is the antithesis of being
‘conservative.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The one that
takes the cake, however, is a very American insurer that appears to be named
after the collectivization of all agriculture in Russia instituted by the
Bolsheviks after they overthrew the Tsar in 1918, replacing individual
enterprises with</span><span style="color: #cc0000;"> '</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">State Farms.’ </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> That
name also has been applied to agricultural activities at what were once called
‘poorhouses,’ orphanages, and prisons run by government agencies. That
explanation of its origin appears to be more ‘conservative’ than the Russian
one.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Unavoidable
Assholes Among Us</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Someone to whom
I send emails occasionally has let me know that she is getting some emails that
look like they’re from me, but obviously are not.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">When you get email, phone calls or text messages from sources that you don't recognize, you risk being 'hacked,' if you respond to them. I usually ignore such communications. Occasionally though, I might answer a phone call from my own area code that I suspect is from a neighbor who is not in my 'contact' list. (I never click on any links in a suspicious email or text message.) </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I recently ordered a printer cartridge online directly from the manufacturer of my printer, using its website. Within a day or so, I started receiving obviously amateurish texts directing me to click on a link to clarify my address with the sender who was pretending to be with the USPS. I ignored them, of course, and there was no problem with the delivery of the cartridge. My conclusion is that someone 'hacked' my order. I don't know how I could have avoided this problem.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">It is difficult not to be 'hacked' occasionally with your phone number or email address falling into the hands of a robot.</span></b><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> Despite the virus protection systems we pay
for, and a reasonably cautious approach to communications, such ‘hacking’ is
close to unavoidable, particularly when an attachment or an image is involved
or an email is sent to many recipients. Just be careful. There are many ‘A.H.’s out there, and not all
are robots.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;"><b><i><u>Some Folks Just Won't Give Joe Credit for Anything</u></i></b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The daily
postings of Professor Heather Cox Richardson (Letters from an American) are
always worthwhile reading. I recommend
that you sign up for them at </span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #404040;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/. </b></span></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">They are
free, unless you choose to make comments, in which case monthly membership is available. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">HCR’s
January 19, 2024, posting is particularly noteworthy, and well worth passing on
to your friends and relatives. While
praising President Biden and his administration, it also warns of dangers to
our representative democracy posed by those who oppose it. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> In its
entirety, here is HCR’s posting (the <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">highlighting</span> is mine):</span></b></span></p>
<p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 19.2pt; margin-top: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="background-color: #fcff01;">‘President
Joe Biden today signed the continuing resolution</span><span style="background-color: white;"> that will keep the government operating
into March.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Meanwhile, <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">the stock market roared as two
of the three major indexes hit new record highs</span>. The S&P 500, which
measures the value of 500 of the largest companies in the country, and the Dow
Jones Industrial Average, which does the same for 30 companies considered to be
industry leaders, both rose to all-time highs. The third major index, the
Nasdaq Composite, which is weighted toward technology stocks, did not hit a
record high, although its 1.7% jump was higher than that of the S&P 500
(1.2%) or the Dow (1.1%).<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">Investors appear to be buoyed by the fact the rate of
inflation has come down in the U.S. and by news that consumers are feeling
better about the economy</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;">. A report out today by Goldman
Sachs Economics Research noted that consumer spending is strong and predicted
that “job gains, positive real wage growth, will lead to around 3% real
disposable income growth” and that “household balance sheets have strengthened.”
It also noted that “[t]he US has led the way on disinflation,” and it predicted
further drops in 2024. That will likely mean the sort of interest rate cuts the
stock market likes. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">The economic policies of the Biden-Harris administration
have also benefited workers.</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;"> The unemployment rate has been
under 4% for more than two years, and wages have risen higher than inflation in
that same period. Production is up as well, to 4.9% in the third quarter of
2023 (the U.S. growth rate under Trump even before the pandemic was
2.5%). <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">The administration has worked to end some of the most
obvious financial inequities in the U.S</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;">., such
as the unexpected “junk fees” tacked on to airline or concert tickets, or to
car or apartment rentals. On Wednesday <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced a
proposed rule for bank overdraft fees</span> at banks that have more than $10
billion in assets. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">While banks now can charge
what they wish if a customer’s balance falls below zero, the proposed rule
would allow them to charge no more than what it cost them to break even on
providing overdraft services or, alternatively, an industry-wide fee that reflects
the amount it costs to deal with overdrafts: $3, $6, $7, or $14. The amount
will be established after a public hearing period.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Ken Sweet and Cora Lewis
of the Associated Press note that while the average overdraft is $26.61, some
banks charge as much as $39 per overdraft. The CFPB estimates that in the past
20 years, banks have collected more than $280 billion in overdraft fees. (One
bank’s chief executive officer named his boat “Overdraft.”) Over the past two
years, pressure has made banks cut back on their fees and they now take in
about $8 billion a year from those overdraft fees. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Bankers say regulation is
unnecessary and will force them to end the overdraft service, pushing people
out of the banking system. <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">Biden
said that the rule would save U.S. families $3.5 billion annually.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">The administration has also addressed the student loan
crisis by reexamining the loan histories of student borrowers.</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;"> An NPR
investigation led by Cory Turner revealed that banks mismanaged loans, denying
borrowers the terms under which they had signed on to them. Rather than
honoring the government’s promise that so long as a borrower paid what the
government thought was reasonable on a loan for 20 or 25 years (undergrad or
graduate), the debt would be forgiven, banks urged borrowers to put the loan
into “forbearance,” under which payments paused but the debt continued to
accrue interest, making the amount balloon. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">The Education Department
has been reexamining all those old loans to find this sort of mismanagement as
well as other problems, like borrowers not getting credit for payments to count
toward their 20 years of payments, or borrowers who chose public service not
receiving the debt relief they were promised.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Today the administration
announced $4.9 billion of student debt cancellation for almost 74,000
borrowers. That brings the total of borrowers whose debt has been canceled to
3.7 million Americans, with an erasure of $136.6 billion. Nearly 30,000 of
today’s relieved borrowers had been in repayment for at least 20 years but
never got the relief they should have; nearly 44,000 had earned debt
forgiveness after 10 years of public service as teachers, nurses, and
firefighters.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">Biden has been traveling the country recently, touting
how the economic policies of the Biden-Harris administration have benefited
ordinary Americans.</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;"> In Emmaus, Pennsylvania, last
Friday he visited a bicycle shop, a running shoe store, and a coffee shop to
emphasize how small businesses are booming under his administration: <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">in the three years since he took
office, there have been 16 million applications to start new businesses,</span>
the highest number on record.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">Biden was in Raleigh, North Carolina, yesterday to
announce another $82 million in support for broadband access</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;">,
bringing the total of government infrastructure funding in North Carolina
during the Biden administration to $3 billion. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">On social media, <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">the administration compared its
investments in the American people to those of President Franklin Delano
Roosevelt’s New Deal in the 1930s, which were enormously popular.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">They were popular, that is, until those opposed to
business regulation convinced white voters that the government’s protection of
civil rights, which came along with its protection of ordinary Americans
through regulation of business, provision of a basic social safety net, and
promotion of infrastructure, meant redistribution of white tax dollars to
undeserving Black people.</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">The same effort to make sure that ordinary Americans
don’t work together to restore basic fairness in the economy and rights in
society is visible now in the attempt to attribute a recent Boeing airplane
malfunction, in which a door panel blew off mid-flight, to diversity, equity,
and inclusion (DEI) efforts.</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;"> Tesnim Zekeria at <em>Popular Information</em> yesterday
chronicled how that accusation spread across the right-wing ecosystem and onto
the Fox News Channel, where Fox Business host Sean Duffy warned: “This is a
dangerous business when you’re focused on DEI and maybe less focused on
engineering and safety.” <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">As Zekeria explains, <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">“this narrative has no basis in
fact.”</span> Neither Boeing nor its supplier, Spirit AeroSystems, is
particularly diverse, either at the workforce level, where minorities make up
35% of Boeing employees and 26% of those at Spirit AeroSystems, or on the
corporate ladder, where the overwhelming majority of executives are white men.
Zekeria notes that right-wing media figures have also erroneously blamed last
year’s train derailment in Ohio and the collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank on
DEI initiatives.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">The real culprit at Boeing</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;">, Zekeria
suggests, <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">was the weakened
regulations on Boeing</span> and Spirit <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">thanks</span> <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">to</span> more than $65 million in l<span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">obbying</span> efforts.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">Perhaps an even more transparent attempt to keep ordinary
Americans from working together is the attacks former Fox News Channel
personality Tucker Carlson has launched against Vice President Kamala Harris,
calling her “a member of the new master race”</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;"> who
“must be shown maximum respect at all times, no matter what she says or does.”
Philip Bump of the <em>Washington
Post</em> noted yesterday that this construction suggests that
Harris, who identifies as both Black and Indian, represents all nonwhite
Americans as a united force opposed to white Americans. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #004e9a; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">But Harris’s actions
actually represent something else altogether. She has crossed the country since
June 2022, when the Supreme Court overturned the 1973<em> Roe v. Wade</em> decision
that recognized the constitutional right to abortion, talking about the right
of all Americans to bodily autonomy. That the Supreme Court felt able to take
away a constitutional right has worried many Americans about what they might do
next, and <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">people all over
the country have been coming together in opposition to the small minority that
appears to have taken over the levers of our democracy. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: yellow; color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt; mso-highlight: yellow;">Driving the wedge of racism into that majority coalition
seems to be a desperate attempt to stop ordinary Americans from taking back
control of the country.’</span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #004e9a; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Dammit!</u> <u>They
Were Legitimately Elected! </u></i></span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And before we
leave Professor HCR for the day, her January 22 posting led me to post this
comment on ‘Letters from an American.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">‘HCR quotes President Biden, who in referring to women's reproductive
rights, used the words</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></i></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;">'<u>Because
of Republican elected officials</u>.' </span></i></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">Those five words are the
key to most of the problems challenging America today. <span style="color: #c00000;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">American voters, for a variety of reasons, continue to elect enough
Republicans, especially on the State level, whose agendas are rarely in their
interests, throwing sand into the gears of our government. That's how we end up
with the DeSantis's, the Tubervilles, the Gaetz's, the Roys, the Jordans, the
Abbotts, etc. in public office, our defeated and indicted former president,
likely to run again, being the best example of all. </span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">History will not r</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">eflect
kindly on the way the misuse of our representative democracy resulted in this
happening. Although it's the best system that has come along in many centuries,
it continues to be hampered by</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"> its Achilles Heel</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">, which we must not ignore.’<span style="color: #c00000;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;">Voting by Mail</span></b></u></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters
have gotten used to voting by mail. It’s
safe and simple. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the
past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Current
State election laws require you to renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before
the next election in order to receive a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If you vote in Palm Beach County, do it right
now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or by clicking here For those who do not want do it online, they
can sign up for vote-by-mail by calling </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(561) 656 6208. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In other Florida counties, visit the website of
your Supervisor of Elections or call them.
<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Do Americans
Still Trust Democracy?</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">There are plenty
of reasons NOT to vote for Donald Trump for any office whatsoever, let alone a return to the
White House. Here’s a brief summary:</span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;">He committed massive, decades-long financial
fraud, proven in New York’s civil courts which also, in another case, labeled
him to be a ‘rapist.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;">He incited an insurrection attacking the US Capitol
and tried to end American democracy, acts which have resulted in Federal and
State indictments for attempting to change the results of a presidential
election.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;">He stole America's secrets, lied to the FBI,
shared them with others and betrayed the country, resulting in a Federal
indictment.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;">He and his family have taken billions from
foreign governments, while in office, a violation of the Constitution’s
‘emoluments’ provision.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;">He ended Roe v Wade, severely limiting
women’s reproductive rights with three right-wing anti-abortion SCOTUS
appointments, justices who also close their eyes to the deaths resulting from
the senseless proliferation of guns in our communities.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;">He has pardoned convicted criminals whose
crimes were connected to his presidency.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Why then would
anyone even think of voting for him?</span><span style="color: #404040;"> Well,
Martin Gurri, right-wing scholar, quoted on Wednesday in Bari Weiss’ ‘Free
Press’ blog, seems to think that many Americans, <u>even aware of the litany of
offenses listed above</u></span></span></b><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #404040;"><u>,</u> have lost faith in our democratic process that gave us Donald Trump and despit</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #404040;">e them, and are willing to turn to him again. Gurri, who apparently believes that America’s
elite has given up on the nation’s voters recognizing Trump’s massive flaws,
wrote:</span></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt;"><b><i><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;">“Trump appears to act as a sort of funhouse mirror on which the
progressive elites who run most institutions, including the federal government,
see themselves reflected in the most monstrous and frightening light, … The
malady now exposed is this: the elites have lost faith in representative
democracy. To smash the nightmare image of themselves that Trump evokes, they
are willing to twist and force our system until it breaks.”</span> <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt;"><b><span style="color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> I strongly disagree with Gurri who sees authoritarianism
by Democrats where there is none. The
‘Executive Branch’ is only doing what it is supposed to do: carry out the laws
passed by the ‘Legislative Branch.’ <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt;"><b><span style="color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">The significant percentage of
registered Republicans who voted for Nikki Haley in the New Hampshire G.O.P.
primary, while a distinct minority, were saying ‘no’ to Trump’s candidacy and may
be reluctant to even vote in November.
Except for Haley (and probably Chris Christie) most of the would-be Republican alternatives to him
are now dutifully, hypocritically, and shamelessly, falling in line behind him, willing to trade in traditional Republican conservatism for a 'fuhrer.'<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;">Republicans who decide to stay
home on Election Day, together with the nation’s Democratic and independent
voters, will lead President Biden to re-election in November, but it will not
be easy. Some ‘elites’ may have given up
on democracy, as Gurri suggests, but I don’t think the country is willing to
trade it in for authoritarianism.
Answering my own question</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 14pt;">, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Do
Americans Still Trust Democracy?’</span> </span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"> I say ‘yes.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri<o:p></o:p></span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.</span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span> <span style="font-family: arial;">
* * *</span></span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-67055526283671681842024-01-20T09:47:00.002-05:002024-01-20T09:56:40.872-05:00January 20, 2024 - Voting by Mail, Words, Your Role in Preserving Democracy, and My Views on Peace for Israel<p> </p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Voting by Mail</u></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu1L-leuuH-8utLdXAThDB6-EW0rLBb6j0MOzB24yN0Mc9zwuKnA7e2ETYZdDubJingjk-k2JE0X-ocnwUQTJPDi0FXBjfRkVspYr28dqqDKXkvgwpFpv8eQEo7EQ0B35I0t7finNqyX-p0uGE2sG7iH0fov2PdWpZYOibBtS3_UTYx1gJ3rXC389a2ys/s300/vote%20by%20mail%20paper%20planes.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu1L-leuuH-8utLdXAThDB6-EW0rLBb6j0MOzB24yN0Mc9zwuKnA7e2ETYZdDubJingjk-k2JE0X-ocnwUQTJPDi0FXBjfRkVspYr28dqqDKXkvgwpFpv8eQEo7EQ0B35I0t7finNqyX-p0uGE2sG7iH0fov2PdWpZYOibBtS3_UTYx1gJ3rXC389a2ys/w320-h179/vote%20by%20mail%20paper%20planes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></i></b></span><div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Florida voters
have gotten used to voting by mail. It’s
safe and simple. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But just because you might have done it in the
past does not mean you can automatically continue to do so. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Current
State election laws require you to renew your ‘voting by mail’ status before
the next election in order to receive a ‘vote by mail’ ballot. If you vote in Palm Beach County, do it right
now by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.votepalmbeach.gov/Voters/Vote-By-Mail" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> In other Florida counties, visit your
Supervisor of Elections’ website. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This
announcement is sufficient reason for you to pass this message, if not the
entire posting, on to others. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">That’s why it’s the ‘lead item.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Words</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This blog, and
other commenters, throw the words </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘defeated’
</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">and </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘indicted’
</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">around frequently when referring to former
president Donald Trump. These are
serious words not to be taken lightly.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Trump was clearly and decisively</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">defeated </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">in the 2020
presidential election, in both the popular and electoral vote results. Repeated recounts and challenges have proven
that to be an immutable fact.</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The
only ones who challenge his </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">defeat</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> are Trump himself and his loyal supporters,
who would swear it were raining cats and dogs on a clear, cloudless day, if
that would ingratiate them to their leader. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘Defeated’ means but one thing: Losing.
</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In the 2020 presidential
elections, Donald Trump was the loser.
Period. End of story.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">As for being </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">indicted,</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">’ according to our laws before anyone is charged with a
crime, a non-partisan, non-political, group of citizens, chosen from the
public, must privately review the evidence the state has and decide whether it
is sufficient to warrant the state’s prosecutor proceeding to go to trial
attempting to convict an accused person with committing that crime. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This
is known as an indictment</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The
group deciding to proceed with indicting someone is known as a ‘grand jury’ </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">as differentiated from a ‘petit jury,’ the group
that, after a indicted person is tried, determines if they are guilty or
innocent. But </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">a
grand jury must first decide to indict a person for committing a crime, and If
there is no indictment, there is no trial, no petit jury, and the story is over</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">.</span><span style="color: #404040;">
Finished. Period. End of story.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Another word to
be familiar with is ‘</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">pardon</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">.’ </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The
president of the United States has the ability to ‘pardon’ those indicted by a
grand jury, tried in a court, found guilty by a petit jury, and sentenced for
committing a crime against the United States</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">. </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> A
pardon also is effective for those who plead guilty, sometimes avoiding a
trial, or bringing an end to one, pre-empting what might </span></b></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">otherwise be a
sentence but it still is the equivalent of being convicted. </span></span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">While a pardon frees convicted criminals from being sentenced to imprisonment, it does not
eradicate their conviction, whether it be by a ‘plea bargain’ or a trial by a
jury.’</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> It acknowledges their guilt
in committing a crime. </span></b></span></p></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #404040;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpa9J6Bnhp92ZUI6J1j-rtx1UF7i8Smnk2n0LJxOnHRv8oLSHwRQNmBmMaMWGzV-x_t24FIgnFROPiaev3X4ngDvr83rignmjtpPVJZ1p5L07k-ryVyMnksZOHi83jWPDaw6eevK09ScTSSAQbwpxRkqX9qOaPlntYQABeSa6lwz63WbwNiU59-fFyc_8/s1920/get%20out%20of%20jail%20card.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1121" data-original-width="1920" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpa9J6Bnhp92ZUI6J1j-rtx1UF7i8Smnk2n0LJxOnHRv8oLSHwRQNmBmMaMWGzV-x_t24FIgnFROPiaev3X4ngDvr83rignmjtpPVJZ1p5L07k-ryVyMnksZOHi83jWPDaw6eevK09ScTSSAQbwpxRkqX9qOaPlntYQABeSa6lwz63WbwNiU59-fFyc_8/s320/get%20out%20of%20jail%20card.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="text-align: left;"><span>A ‘pardon’ refers only to a sentence or possible<br />sentencing. It is no more than the equivalent of a ‘get<br />out of jail free’ card in the Monopoly board game. It does<br />not override the actions of a court or of a jury.</span></b></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></span></b></span><p></p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(My using the adjective ‘convicted’ serves to distinguish those
criminals who have been adjudged as guilty in a trial or by pleading guilty from
those criminals out there who have yet to be brought to justice. Many Republican office holders fall into this
latter category.)</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">American voters
should be aware that a convicted criminal, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Roger Stone</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, long-time Republican activist, pardoned by Trump
after being indicted, tried, convicted, and given a lengthy prison sentence for
the crimes that he committed against the United States in the course of his
work supporting the defeated, indicted, former president,</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> has never served a day in jail.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Trump also
‘pardoned’ his advisor </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Steve
Bannon </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">who while indicted for his
transgressions, cut a deal with the court, admitting his guilt, and never even went
to trial. Similarly, armed with a
presidential pardon, retired General </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Michael
Flynn</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, briefly the forty-fifth
president’s National Security Advisor, pleaded guilty to the charges against
him (lying to the FBI) and plea bargained his way out of a prison sentence. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">These
two are also ‘convicted criminals’ who never served a day in jail.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The defeated, indicted, former president, who intends to again
run for the presidency this year, has even said that he would pardon hundreds
of criminals who have been indicted, tried, convicted, and sentenced for their
involvement in the January 6, 2021
attack on the Capitol. Ignoring that we
are a nation based on laws, he has likened their imprisonment to being held as
‘hostages.’ </span><span style="color: #2f5496;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Finally, in
compiling the words applicable to Trump, let’s consider adding ‘rapist.’
Because that designation was pinned on the Donald by the judge in a civil
matter (the E. Jean Carroll defamation case in New York), it doesn’t carry the
weight it would if he were so named in a criminal case. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But
summing up, we have millions of Republican voters supporting a defeated and
indicted former president, also a rapist, and a chronic pardoner of convicted
criminals who had supported him, who wants to be president again. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Wow! These voters must be very dumb, or
something. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Donald Trump has
no respect for the law. In the past, his
hiring of lawyers has primarily been for the purpose of evading our laws, Michael Cohen, his 'fixer,' having been a prime example. Now, of course, he hires them to defend him in
court against the charges for which he has been indicted as well as trying to
delay these court cases until after Election Day in November. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Important Words: </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Defeated
– Indicted – Pardon – Rapist. All accurately
apply to our former president. And don’t
forget ‘Liar.’</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"></span></b></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUtjSEpzDo8jCbx3usk_WpDfxLUS3uFEArjp1fexEqMe2PRENkDxWRxDMiVvjU4Yl8thhUJlibStShBqdh_q80A2WwMqFFC4nhpmTlXwY8CeUL9VT99-TczSe-b6A92El19bWL1JmaiMOSNC_NOck1zs9wcX55HKYalAeQUr_6tqHZRAhHy_J1OGfMCDA/s1500/Soprano.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="997" data-original-width="1500" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUtjSEpzDo8jCbx3usk_WpDfxLUS3uFEArjp1fexEqMe2PRENkDxWRxDMiVvjU4Yl8thhUJlibStShBqdh_q80A2WwMqFFC4nhpmTlXwY8CeUL9VT99-TczSe-b6A92El19bWL1JmaiMOSNC_NOck1zs9wcX55HKYalAeQUr_6tqHZRAhHy_J1OGfMCDA/w163-h108/Soprano.jpg" width="163" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Tony Soprano</span></td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Anyone who even
thinks of voting for Donald Trump for any office whatsoever is out of their
mind. On this, the twenty-fifth
anniversary of the TV show, ‘The Sopranos,’ he makes even the fictitious Mafia
capo Tony Soprano look benign.<o:p></o:p></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> * * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Governing or
Campaigning</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p style="font-size: 14pt;"></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Those who feel
that Joe Biden is not being aggressive enough in combatting his likely opponent
in the upcoming presidential election should remember that his primary
responsibility is still ‘governing’ while the efforts of his likely opponent are directed at ‘campaigning’ and staying out of jail, somehow blending the two.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><u><span style="color: red;">Your</span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"> Role in Preserving
Democracy</span></u></i></span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p style="font-size: 14pt;"></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">A strong indicator
of a possible future failure of democracy in the United States is its liberality
in giving voters the opportunity to vote for a candidate whose campaigns is
filled with lies, who has been indicted for both political and business crimes,
who has also been convicted in civil court as a rapist, and whose campaign
promises include the reduction of many democratic rights. </span><span style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But such voters have the right to vote for
whomever they wish!</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> That comes with democracy.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Donald Trump, in his litigation, seeks immunity from obedience to the laws of this country, saying that a president could not function if he or she had to act withing the law's limits, placing the presidency 'above the law,' claiming that impeachment, confirmed in the Senate, is the only guardrail against presidential lawbreaking. These are the words of dictators, but, voters still have the right to vote them into office in a democracy.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Such democratic
principles allowed </span><span style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">France</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, after it beheaded its monarchs, to turn
to the a series of autocrats culminating with </span><span style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Napoleon</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> Bonaparte and </span><span style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Germany,</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> after World War One, to finally
turn to the dictatorship of Adolph</span><span style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> Hitler</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. Neither story ended well. There are many other
examples in history. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Dealing with this Achilles heel of democracy is an ever-present
challenge for us. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Right now, the
best thing for people to do is to work hard to see that candidates who support
preserving representative democracy in our country are elected. That requires not only voting for them but
also getting involved in making sure many, many, others do so as well. One’s local Democratic organization might be
a good place to which to turn. Another
might be found by visiting </span></b><a href="http://www.activateamerica.vote/"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">www.activateamerica.vote</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> where you can </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">learn how to make phone calls,
send emails and write postal cards to voters in crucial races</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> across the
country where democracy is at stake. <a href="www.activateamerica.vote " target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a> to view their website.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Recapitulating
My Views on Bringing Peace to the State of Israel</u></i></span></span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">It is not
antisemitic nor anti-Zionist to oppose or criticize certain policies of the
State of Israel. </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Just as I want
the hostages held by Hamas to be returned, I want Israel’s war against Hamas to
have a less deadly effect on the civilian population of Gaza, used as a shield there
by Hamas. </span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Israel's establishment in 1948 by the United Nations, the organization that became
responsible for the former British ‘mandate’ over Palestine, an entity created
following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War One, was fueled by the
need for the rebirth of a Jewish homeland as existed many centuries ago,
defined as Zionism, brought to the world's attention because of the need to provide a place that would welcome the Jews who
survived the Holocaust in Europe during World War Two.</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">The United
Nations’ 1947 partition plan envisioned two states to be formed there. Israel
became one of them, as a Jewish state. A parallel Arab state never was formed
by Arabs who wanted the entire territory of the ‘mandate’ and in fact, lost the
areas that would have been a Palestinian state in unsuccessful wars to destroy
Israel culminating in 1967.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Today Israel
controls those lands as ‘occupied territories.’
Over the years, despite extensive Arab populations there, Israeli
extremists have settled there, hoping it would eventually be part of what would be a
larger Israel, as existed in historic biblical terms.
These extremists have sufficient strength in the Knesset, Israel’s
parliament, to make the settlement of Israelis in these ‘occupied territories’
a part of Israeli government policy.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">So
long as this continues, I do not see any hope for the two-state solution envisioned
by the United Nations in 1947 coming about, and as a result, it means a
continuation in one form or another of hostility toward the State of Israel by
the Arab world.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-size: 14pt;"><u>A</u> <u>Radical</u> <u>Solution</u>: I believe that </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #004f88; font-size: 14pt;">t</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">he State of Israel must make it known to the world that it
will no longer encourage Israelis to settle in these ‘occupied territories’ and
is willing to take steps to incrementally abandon settlements that already
exist there, resettling their 700,000 occupants within the State of Israel</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">,</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">but only after the
Palestinians and their supporters in Muslim nations throughout the world firmly
accept and guarantee the idea of a Palestinian state, existing peacefully
alongside of the State of Israel. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt;">That should be the deal.</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt;">Just as the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 provided a home
for those survivors of the Holocaust other nations were unwilling to welcome,
the belated establishment of a Palestinian state at this time would provide a
home for Palestinian refugees who have not been welcomed by neighboring Arab
states.</span></b></span><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">These would be terribly
difficult decisions for Israelis, Palestinians, and both neighboring and
distant Muslim nations to make, but I see it as the only road to peace.</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> Government policies cannot be altered
overnight and opposition to such changes will be inevitable, but truly, change must
ultimately take place. Until then, I see
no hope for Israel surviving other than as a ‘garrison’ state, continually
fighting off those who want to eliminate it from the map, as the present war in
Gaza, which is solving nothing, illustrates.
Even when Israel totally obliterates Hamas militarily along with its
leadership, its agenda of destruction of Israel will be taken up by other
extremist groups.</span></b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">I repeat that I
do not believe opposing or criticizing certain policies of the State of
Israel’s government would be antisemitic nor anti-Zionist. Many Israelis do
exactly that every day. I believe the settlements
in ‘occupied territory’ are the focal point of Israel’s problems today. Once
that problem is solved, everything else will fall into place.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">If you disagree
with me, please let me know what you think would be a solution to this problem,
for inclusion in a future blog posting.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri<o:p></o:p></span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, just send me your email
address and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a
posting to someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be
similarly alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><b>T</b></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">here’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-12594774476564699582024-01-13T13:26:00.001-05:002024-01-13T13:37:40.347-05:00January 16, 2024 - Trying to Clarify Presidential Immunity, Loss of Free Airwaves, and Iran.<p> * * *</p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u> The Indicted Former President’s Quest for Immunity</u></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b> </b></td></tr></tbody></table></i><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizfnjinbkW6-oGEL92A-Qi3XOR-5JArC7vCGPLuccY47lDZkh15PuDFfLrHleIJSn11aCrVJ_mkR153kPIaPrA_uIlcwgsvdoJ0QGtmzsQ5MBe_vT2Yy08-sf7hhLF9aFjz-pi8JknVu4BfUpdeUVcb5lMKemYUr3MOFgy_bc8Cd7A7H9nv0jLYVfNAxI/s1240/Jack%20Smith.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="827" data-original-width="1240" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizfnjinbkW6-oGEL92A-Qi3XOR-5JArC7vCGPLuccY47lDZkh15PuDFfLrHleIJSn11aCrVJ_mkR153kPIaPrA_uIlcwgsvdoJ0QGtmzsQ5MBe_vT2Yy08-sf7hhLF9aFjz-pi8JknVu4BfUpdeUVcb5lMKemYUr3MOFgy_bc8Cd7A7H9nv0jLYVfNAxI/s320/Jack%20Smith.webp" width="320" /></b></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Jack Smith, Special Counsel prosecuting the defeated <br />former president for complicity with the attempt by the <br />January 6, 2020 insurrectionists to prevent the official<br />counting of the 2020 presidential electoral votes as<br />mandated by the Constitution.</b></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></b></span><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">There’s been a
lot in the news these past few days about presidential ‘immunity’ from civil
and criminal prosecution. A Federal District
court in D.C.’s decision had ruled that former president Trump had none and the
issue was debated this week in a Federal Court of Appeals to which Trump had
appealed. Trump feels that without such immunity, he would certainly lose the
case being brought against him in a D.C. Federal court by our Department of
Justice, where the jury pool is heavily Democratic, regarding his role in the
January 6, 2021, events.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">The basic
argument</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">made by Trump’s
lawyers, and he was in the courtroom at the time, </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">was that so long as a president’s impeachment
by the House was not confirmed by the Senate, he retained immunity against
charges against him, </span><u><span style="color: #2b00fe;">a full, confirmed, impeachment process being the only way
of removing a president and with it, his or her immunity from prosecution. </span></u><span style="color: #c00000;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Section 3 of the
Fourteenth Amendment specifically lists those offices where insurrectionists
and those who aid and abet them cannot ever again run for office. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The
absence of the presidency from this list, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">developed in the shadow of the Civil War, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">was intentional, Trump’s lawyer implied, leaving
the impeachment process as the only way of overriding the presidency’s omission
from this list. Only after an impeachment was
confirmed by the Senate, the former president might then lose his or her
immunity from prosecution.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The Senate on
two occasions has twice refused to confirm such impeachments of Trump by the
House. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This, Trump’s lawyer implied, was the intention
of the writers of the Fourteenth Amendment in order to preserve the presidency
as a separate and equal branch of government not subservient to the legislative
or judicial branches, all three established by our Constitution.</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This left Trump, whose impeachment by the House
was twice <u>not</u> confirmed by the Senate, as unimpeached, and therefore,
still immune from prosecution on the DOJ’s charges</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In
fact, Trump’s lawyers pointed out, such would be the nature of the immunity of any
president who was not thusly successfully impeached; they could do anything he
wanted with impunity, even order the hypothetical murder of a political
opponent! A president who feared being
impeached, and losing that immunity, might even resign before an impeachment
might be voted on by the Senate, thereby continuing to retain his 'unimpeached
status' and his immunity from prosecution afterwards.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The three judges
on the Appeals Court questioned Trump’s lawyer closely and in likelihood, will
reject his arguments, as really stretching a point. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"></span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Simply
stated, my understanding is that impeachment is a political process, described
in the Constitution, regarding removing a president from office while immunity is
a courtroom legal process and one has nothing to do with the other.</span><span style="color: #c00000;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If this matter
gets to the Supreme Court, they will have to figure out a way of either
reversing or confirming whatever the Appeals Court is likely to announce in a few
weeks. They might decline to hear the
case, an action in itself, or suggest that Congress legislate a solution. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I ask whether the SCOTUS can do its job properly without fearing the potentially violent repercussions
that might occur if they agreed with taking away Trump’s immunity, and allowing
his name’s removal from ballots, based upon Sec. 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment? Can the SCOTUS truly wear a blindfold in making this decision? <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Marty London, a retired attorney who has ‘been there’ and ‘done that’ (he defended Spiro Agnew,
Nixon’s vice-president, against impeachment) has addressed the issue on his
blog.</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> Read it at https://londonsbh.blogspot.com/
or <a href="https://londonsbh.blogspot.com/ " target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a> </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The bottom line is that
this matter, if stretched out long enough, can allow Trump to remain on the
ballot in November. That is his
objective. His lawyers know the facts
are against them, but arguing about them, making as many motions as possible, offers further opportunity for delay, which is
what they are being paid to bring about. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u><b>Those Were the Days</b></u></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">When I was
growing up, radio broadcasts were free.
If you had a radio with an antenna, even a ‘crystal set’ that you could
make yourself, you could hear the broadcasts as they were transmitted through
the airwaves. When TV came along in the
1940s, that freedom continued, but not for long.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilkDJ-lT2DPu5FZFiOV9GXs6au0jnnc1xfA498OTopKCKaS1B8_O-v71dooTh99BklG-nbxnOvHhNbfUyyheh5Ymy3IMyzrrF-YNNcp3Goy82926V49TP-tuJsv3MsFHnXR9SkBap8aMMqUedg-5MODhZWIs2SUt2_QBfJTQlOq-nP2LddneJYlr_gITg/s612/TV%20antennas.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilkDJ-lT2DPu5FZFiOV9GXs6au0jnnc1xfA498OTopKCKaS1B8_O-v71dooTh99BklG-nbxnOvHhNbfUyyheh5Ymy3IMyzrrF-YNNcp3Goy82926V49TP-tuJsv3MsFHnXR9SkBap8aMMqUedg-5MODhZWIs2SUt2_QBfJTQlOq-nP2LddneJYlr_gITg/s320/TV%20antennas.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Way Back When ...</b></td></tr></tbody></table><b><br /><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Soon, a wired-in
version of TV called ‘cable’ came into existence, supplementing rooftop
antennas. It wasn’t very expensive, at least at first, and it offered hundreds
of channels as opposed to the thirteen free ones that we had become used to,
and vaguely hinted at a reduction in advertising, since subscription fees would
to some extent replace ad revenues. That turned out to be a marketing lie. (Some 'digital' channels can still be picked up by old style rooftop antennas, but their signals don't match 'cable' and few count on them for TV reception. These do not include 'dish' type antennas which operate differently.)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Today, with the
advent and growth of the internet, TV programming is now also available from
sources to which one must subscribe and pay for separately. Slowly, desirable programming is migrating to
‘streamed’ sources such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Peacock, Max, Hulu, etc. replacing
some of what was on ‘cable, and even films traditionally initially
seen only in physical theatre settings. More and more, some athletic events are available only through internet ‘streamed’ channels, at an additional price, rather
than on ‘cable,’ for which we've been accustomed to paying.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">There are people
out there whose full-time jobs are devoted to finding ways to get you to pay
for what was once free. No one can deny
that television, in countries where it is run by the government and not the
private sector, does not hold a candle to the variety of choices that we have
here. Nevertheless, even recognizing the
minimal efforts of the Federal Communication Commission to serve the public’s
interests, I wish that the media companies that profit from these arrangements
would get their grubby hands out of my pockets. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>What’s With
Iran</u>?</i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">Naval and military engagement by the Houthis and
Hezbollah in support of Hamas’ war against Israel are occurring because Iran,
whose orders they follow, is in no position to risk getting involved itself. <span style="color: #cc0000;">Its economy is sufficiently fragile</span> that taking
that risk with more direct support of Hamas' agenda of eliminating the State of
Israel, with which they politically agree, would be too big a bite for them to
take <span style="color: #cc0000;">so they sit on the sidelines, content with providing weapons and training, letting others do their dirty work. </span></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">I also suspect that there are unspoken limits to Shia Iran's
commitment to Sunni extremism, which they know can come back to bite them</span>, as
the recent cemetery bombing there by a resurgent ISIS was a symptom. (ISIS and most of the Arab world is mostly Sunni; Iran is mostly Shia.
The division between them goes back a long, long time to the conflict over the
leadership of Islam after the passing of its prophet, Mohammad in 632 A.D.)</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><i>(This might be a good place to explain that some Muslims felt that after Mohammad's death, leadership should remain 'in his family,' specifically with his nephew, Ali, and his descendants. These were and continue to be the Shia. Others felt that leadership should be left to scholars and politicians, at that time led by Abu Bakr, and were known as and continue to be the Sunni. Each group initially thought it perfectly acceptable to murder leaders ot the other group and their entire families.) </i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">each time
there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri</span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, just send me your email address
and we’ll see that you do. And if you are forwarding a posting to
someone, you might suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly
alerted. You can pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com" style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the blog, exactly as
you are now seeing it, with all of its bells and whistles, you can just
tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it, particularly if
they are a registered voter.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span></div></div></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-77628689763279173552024-01-09T13:50:00.001-05:002024-01-09T17:27:11.905-05:00January 9, 2024 - Four Political Questions, Rarely Discussed Truths, the Diet Bowl, Loyalty, and More<p> * * * </p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u> Four Questions</u></i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i></i></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWztKS4KBnFzh5I0zKYMIhCEWSfatg_My4FY-zrE86OBTYOrymsYkHbjwo4imRTgt9dc3qRhm5VOTcK0eg8nrmvsrI3NEfa2_BOOQaYwoZy2Z4eq4W85RGpuQ5lSo6-QP0tRXN7Zx9Zz7PQvonlXpG_mpaSwRoZ3wKKwTj51dRQ7Oc9cOKGPqb8pQSYc/s2500/Question-mark.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1315" data-original-width="2500" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWztKS4KBnFzh5I0zKYMIhCEWSfatg_My4FY-zrE86OBTYOrymsYkHbjwo4imRTgt9dc3qRhm5VOTcK0eg8nrmvsrI3NEfa2_BOOQaYwoZy2Z4eq4W85RGpuQ5lSo6-QP0tRXN7Zx9Zz7PQvonlXpG_mpaSwRoZ3wKKwTj51dRQ7Oc9cOKGPqb8pQSYc/w400-h210/Question-mark.jpg" width="400" /></a></i></b></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 110%;">One</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; font-weight: bold; line-height: 110%;"> - How many million American voters do you believe
fail to recognize the dangers </span></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">to
representative democracy as we have known it in this country since 1789 </span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">presented by Donald Trump </span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">and by those Republicans hanging onto his coat-tails
who blindly follow him, hoping to end up in Congress or on a public payroll
somewhere?</span></b></span><br /><span style="color: #404040;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Two</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> - How many million American voters</span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, dependent upon TV and the internet for news
now that newspapers are dying</span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">,
do you believe understand that Donald Trump is</span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> not just a defeated (he still won’t admit it
four years later) former president running for that office again, but </span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">someone who wants the power of a dictator for
himself </span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">and for whatever
Republican, Libertarian, or Fascist follows him in office, should he win election
in November?</span></b><br /><span style="color: #404040;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Three</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> - How many million American voters do you believe think
the lies that come out of the mouths of Donald Trump and those that support him
are just normal, meaningless, political statements made in the heat of a
campaign </span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #004f88; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">and that those
warning the nation of the danger he and his Republican followers represent (like this blog) can
be ignored because they are just playing the same political game that he is
playing?</span></b><br /><span style="color: #004f88;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Four</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> - How many million American voters do you believe
dismiss the charges brought against Donald Trump in Federal, New York, and
Georgia courts </span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">as just mere politics, a ‘weaponization’ of our legal system against
Trump?</span></b><br /></span><div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">My guess,
recognizing that Trump received about 70 million votes in losing in 2020, is
about that number, perhaps a few less. And
that is terrible. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">What are you going to do about it? The nation’s future is in YOUR hands. </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Don't miss the cartoon further on in this posting! <span style="color: red;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Rarely Discussed
Truths</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p style="font-size: 14pt;"></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">When Donald Trump talks about mass deportation
of immigrants, some of whom he recently referred to as ‘vermin,’ retribution
against those who have not shown loyalty to him and using the military and the
Department of Justice to carry out his punishment of them and those behind any
civil or criminal charges against him, you get a picture of who he really
is. And it is not a nice picture. It is that of a tin pot dictator.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But that picture appeals to a
significant number of Americans who, although they will not readily admit it, includes
those who feel that our government spends a disproportionate amount of its
tax-funded resources to benefit people of color who number only between 13% and
14% of our population, and that too many of its decision-makers are Jews who
number only a little more than 2% of our population. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH59fRR-3ikY7ablmErmYAkmvArvf0CjQTdEh9fXt4p5W0YqauXpbb41970INomH_7rbOjFq874ZwxveOcDDBK88O9HT_ftFJ3PcQhI6wG3oMqggyAoCg-pcmyZ-iXfiqiJuc8jsJa9N__ZpLgg3hsPPF411NiLv0-d1v0DpX4w7lJPpGFSb6_aQ78FaE/s992/Charlottesville%20Rioters.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="661" data-original-width="992" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH59fRR-3ikY7ablmErmYAkmvArvf0CjQTdEh9fXt4p5W0YqauXpbb41970INomH_7rbOjFq874ZwxveOcDDBK88O9HT_ftFJ3PcQhI6wG3oMqggyAoCg-pcmyZ-iXfiqiJuc8jsJa9N__ZpLgg3hsPPF411NiLv0-d1v0DpX4w7lJPpGFSb6_aQ78FaE/s320/Charlottesville%20Rioters.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Trump claimed that there were 'fine people on both<br />sides' in the 2018 Charlottesville rioting giving credibility<br />to racists and antisemites like this fellow. I worry<br />about those that are not so public in their feelings.</b></span></td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">They don’t come out and say these things. They
don’t boast about their racism and antisemitism in public, but that’s what they
mean when they talk of ‘welfare queens’ and disparage ‘Critical Race Theory’
and ‘Diversity-Equity-Inclusion’ ideas without even attempting to understand
them, and repeatedly refer to our country’s ‘Christian’ founding, exemplified
by the current House Speaker who puts his evangelical religious beliefs ahead
of the Constitution that he is sworn to uphold.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">And of course, these folks always vote
Republican.</span> These are rarely discussed
truths.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>The Diet Bowl</u>!</i></span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p style="font-size: 14pt;"></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Okay, we know
that the top college football team in America belongs to the University of Michigan which defeated the University
of Washington on Monday evening. In about a month, the Superbowl will crown
the top team in the NFL. But it will be
almost two months until the NCAA’s college basketball ‘March Madness’ takes the
stage. And the flowers will be blooming
all over this country and Canada before the NBA and NHL champions are crowned.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">What is the
sports enthusiast to do between these playoff events? Well, I have an idea:</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> The Diet Bowl!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The four
finalists will be Nutrisystem, Jenny Craig, GOLO, and that old standby, Weight
Watchers. Each will name a team of a man
and a woman in their thirties, each about 150 pounds overweight but otherwise
healthy. During a five-week period, each
will follow their teams’ regimens, weighing in at the end of each week on
national TV. The team that loses the most weight after five weeks will be
crowned the Diet Bowl champion. (It might be a good idea to ban the losers from TV advertising for six months.) <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Online wagering on
this competition will be available each week in States where sports betting is
legal, with odds being monitored and calculated on a ‘pari-mutual’ basis by a
consortium of Las Vegas casinos, with about ten percent of the total amount wagered
nationwide being taken off the top and donated to a recognized charity such as
the American Heart Association. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Any takers? Or are you content with watching Ball State
shoot baskets against Toledo in the MAC or re-runs of Michigan beating Washington</span></b><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">?
Hey, baseball spring training games start at the end of February!</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>A Recent Posting Supplemented</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p style="font-size: 14pt;"></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u><br /></u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI27QV3g4sAMfasMYHu-2xaVHWe62TIuZMlaXkDqMB8ddNltcy2PBVa4hJwW8ivkei1bcREw8NyQX1uq5APiPmfuHZDVusNi9EvXArVS3NhmAwSLqc2VBl7qi758QfC2zf2N2lZNSRNx8trZMYCj1POIVsm7iaiNAoKumO79Vhn8VDKO8HEiTGy62gZlc/s4024/coco%20Gauff.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2682" data-original-width="4024" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI27QV3g4sAMfasMYHu-2xaVHWe62TIuZMlaXkDqMB8ddNltcy2PBVa4hJwW8ivkei1bcREw8NyQX1uq5APiPmfuHZDVusNi9EvXArVS3NhmAwSLqc2VBl7qi758QfC2zf2N2lZNSRNx8trZMYCj1POIVsm7iaiNAoKumO79Vhn8VDKO8HEiTGy62gZlc/w200-h133/coco%20Gauff.webp" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coco Gauff</td></tr></tbody></table></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">When I suggested back on December 29 that the water in Palm Beach County might be the reason so many great athletes
come from hereabouts, I named a few (</span><span style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Lamar Jackson and Trey Turner</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">). Of course, we must add tennis champion </span><span style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Coco
Gauff</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> to that list … and also a significant number of NFL linemen from high
schools out in the Everglades whom we just take for granted. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> * * *</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large; line-height: 110%;"><i><u>Loyalty Defined</u></i></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">An old business associate of mine often referred to the willingness of clients and customers, well-served for years (and athletes) to switch to a competitor when a better
deal turned up, and pointed out that, </span><span style="background: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘loyalty is just a word in the dictionary
between lox and lozenge,’ </span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> And that is true! </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">My trusty old 1986 Merriam Webster
‘Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary’ (that replaced an earlier edition from my college years) does back up this witticism on its page 708 as reproduced below.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq-KGwIVmYQ2kBlVJty-nxbpNgj7t9n3YxfomujUrXBLk1-A94WQEHwJevrFdd2Mc0I0mZ-95vrXeJ6qIQUi9HMjLmK3akAIw09hGTz-N3L_ys0lMc1-G7npE2ENbiFhrLZO8KNwbwUKOBXu_oKDngSzRkIDM4w3DStt120w7KX3us0B_sL6u18g_thCk/s1201/Screenshot%202024-01-07%20185632_resized_letter.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="974" height="601" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq-KGwIVmYQ2kBlVJty-nxbpNgj7t9n3YxfomujUrXBLk1-A94WQEHwJevrFdd2Mc0I0mZ-95vrXeJ6qIQUi9HMjLmK3akAIw09hGTz-N3L_ys0lMc1-G7npE2ENbiFhrLZO8KNwbwUKOBXu_oKDngSzRkIDM4w3DStt120w7KX3us0B_sL6u18g_thCk/w488-h601/Screenshot%202024-01-07%20185632_resized_letter.jpg" width="488" /></a></b></div><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%; mso-no-proof: yes;"><v:shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" filled="f" id="_x0000_t75" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f">
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(The dictionary
definitions above ran onto a second column on that same page. I have taken the liberty of cutting and
pasting the columns together.)<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"> * * *</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large; line-height: 35.2px;"><i><u>A Timely Cartoon Published on Monday</u></i></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: xx-large; font-style: italic;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDrzc3zKOQL_IekLY6H8Cihqex0kkPHWLbOBcXWB6xhaV98CXaDo_fBW8-3xvQxvoioya1o_QRsbeGUDsj-hcY3HLfIFZcdpunzAzNRY-eYuWERDORJi8H4ihqNeTgL-hQvMVLOu5xQNAleBUqFUzQ4NwYeb7jA2rssXb1x3-mpASWeMWBlvf_Zk2uKxo/s1525/Born%20Loser.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="1525" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDrzc3zKOQL_IekLY6H8Cihqex0kkPHWLbOBcXWB6xhaV98CXaDo_fBW8-3xvQxvoioya1o_QRsbeGUDsj-hcY3HLfIFZcdpunzAzNRY-eYuWERDORJi8H4ihqNeTgL-hQvMVLOu5xQNAleBUqFUzQ4NwYeb7jA2rssXb1x3-mpASWeMWBlvf_Zk2uKxo/w640-h182/Born%20Loser.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;">'Born Loser' cartoon (by Art & Chip Sansom) published Monday morning, January 8, in many newspapers before the Michigan-Washinton football game. It really makes a statement, as good cartoons should. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;">JL</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 20.5333px;"><o:p> * * *</o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large; font-style: italic;"><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address an</span></b>nough</span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">d we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com" style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p></div><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><br /><u><br /></u></i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i></i></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCrKJVR94KiQJ3DuI2x4M9nPQ9pKb2h4whUHLASci3XCcWcNR1mrfYXyZsvXeA1AwU6RvvH0K5N4rjulkjBRFic4emzZ1P2Jp4QOwpZ5VxXDA77CUtJjEU0L4IuTEtxxSGPPnl1pigE1rRllnoRNjICFyMW-kaATT4NXUoPoejhajodP8CS3i7jM_n-Tk/s2500/Question-mark.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></i></b></span></div><p></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-91354439149069884762024-01-06T10:52:00.003-05:002024-01-06T12:19:14.693-05:00January 6, 2024 - An Anniversary, What President Biden is Saying, Words from Claudine May, Bret Stephens, Marc Thiessen, Archie Bunker, and the Challenge before the Supreme Court<p> </p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><b> * * *</b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ymtaZIfxLZmxQpSqIBtR_oOXEVcW7uypAEs6sW0tqQ-1-r_XlJsYmyFRKFEQZp0NQqMUM0biOcAooXyTfgs4SE8R4hqj_1dwwCaecrEk4V8TghI_Nlbtc308avPkMolwdknjPxZ9RrFgz4FNrkvPbNgMfpdMj5Viy5DDvYhQZWVTXSzrZFRJf1jFfvs/s3500/Attack%20on%20Capitol.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2368" data-original-width="3500" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ymtaZIfxLZmxQpSqIBtR_oOXEVcW7uypAEs6sW0tqQ-1-r_XlJsYmyFRKFEQZp0NQqMUM0biOcAooXyTfgs4SE8R4hqj_1dwwCaecrEk4V8TghI_Nlbtc308avPkMolwdknjPxZ9RrFgz4FNrkvPbNgMfpdMj5Viy5DDvYhQZWVTXSzrZFRJf1jFfvs/w400-h271/Attack%20on%20Capitol.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><b><br /></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b>Today is the Anniversary of the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol instigated by the losing presidential candidate.</b></span></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b> * * *</b></span></div><div><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large; line-height: 110%;"><i><u>What the President is Saying</u></i></span></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">President Biden
has started an ad campaign to counter the lies that Republicans spread in their
efforts to replace our representative democracy with an authoritarian
state. Here’s the ad. Just <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opICiMkVhc4 " target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a> or copy and paste </span></b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opICiMkVhc4" style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opICiMkVhc4</span></b></a><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> on your
browser line. Pass it on!</span></b></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Frankly, I would
prefer a series of ads stressing specific issues such as abortion rights, gun
violence, and voting rights. It is true
that ‘democracy is at stake’ but that won’t, in itself an abstract idea,
attract voters. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Also, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">for an
excellent summary of President Biden’s remarks made near Vallley Forge yesterday
concerning the dangers Donald Trump continues to pose to our representative
democracy</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">, copy and paste </span></b><a href="https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/january-5-2024"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/january-5-2024</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> on your browser line to read Professor
Heather Cox Richardson’s excellent summary of them or just <a href="https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/january-5-2024" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And while you’re
in a </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘click here’ mode,</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #004f88; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">take a look at conservative columnist Marc
Thiessen’s recent column listing the ten best things he believes President
Biden accomplished in 2023. Copy and paste https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/12/27/biden-best-policy-actions-2023/
on your browser line or just <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/12/27/biden-best-policy-actions-2023/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>. They are very convincing.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">He followed this
up with another column listing what he believes to be the ten worst things the
President did in 2023. After all,
Thiessen is a conservative, so this is as expected. Find it at
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/12/29/biden-worst-ten-actions-policy-2023-missteps/ or just <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/12/29/biden-worst-ten-actions-policy-2023-missteps/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;">I find the good
things Thiessen credits to the President far outweigh the very debatable ‘missteps’
he attributes to him. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">The bottom line is
that President Biden is trying to make democracy work for all of us, while his
likely opponent is working to replace representative democracy with an autocracy
and is dragging the otherwise leaderless Republican Party along with him. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I see
immigration as the President’s most vulnerable issue. (Theissen’s list of ‘missteps’ ranks it as
number 4.) President Biden must come up
with at least some ideas leading to a solution to a problem that resulted in,
according to an article in the New York Times, n</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #363636; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">early 2.5 million people crossing our southern
border in the fiscal year 2023, many of whom end up looking for help in
northern cities, some sent there by Texas’ governor, and wreaking havoc with
their budgets, despite some Federal aid. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Pointing out the
danger Republicans, and specifically Donald Trump, are to democracy fails to
address the immigration issue.</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> <span style="color: #363636;"> In December, more than 10,000 migrants were
intercepted at the southern border on some days, among the most ever, but that doesn’t
happen every day and is just a drop in a bucket containing the two and a half
million seeking entry last year.
Republican solutions to this problem like barbed wire, higher walls, and
troops on the border are heartless, impractical, and contradict what has been
part of the American dream since the nation’s founding. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">But Joe Biden must come up with some ideas to
counter these Republican ideas concerning our southern border.</span><span style="color: #363636;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #363636; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">What makes it
worse is that the Republican majority in the House of Representatives is willing
to use proposing such measures as leverage to block needed legislation in other
areas. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuB1kpxmir-fwSNVcNMO-NFfGD6Rlpa2BMIdgAEplgHUSxT65RJGNz4dU9kaqC5VXMkOp0Zw3sGnejYRGl679E7PuNb4Gl8lZDky8SU7han-Lb9MCsqh5AZBXGFnGeR7PdD9BZ5YGphjTBLbH72eufZz_m86Y10YAdA8TEaHzknk53-Iv8G4sixstUjd8/s450/Snake%20eating%20tail.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="450" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuB1kpxmir-fwSNVcNMO-NFfGD6Rlpa2BMIdgAEplgHUSxT65RJGNz4dU9kaqC5VXMkOp0Zw3sGnejYRGl679E7PuNb4Gl8lZDky8SU7han-Lb9MCsqh5AZBXGFnGeR7PdD9BZ5YGphjTBLbH72eufZz_m86Y10YAdA8TEaHzknk53-Iv8G4sixstUjd8/w200-h200/Snake%20eating%20tail.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></b></div><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;">Future historians may label this period as 'Democracy
Running Wild' because only in a representative democracy is it possible to put
into power those intent on destroying it. It's sort of like a snake implanting its
fangs on its own rear end, chewing away, eventually consuming itself.</span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">The choice is
yours.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Stress in Academia </u></i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And here’s another link to check out. The New York Times opinion column by Claudine
Gay, the resigned president of Harvard University. included these words: <i>‘</i></span></b><i style="font-family: arial;"><span style="background: white; color: #363636; font-size: 15pt; line-height: 110%;"><b>I neglected to clearly articulate that calls
for the genocide of Jewish people are abhorrent and unacceptable and that I
would use every tool at my disposal to protect students from that kind of
hate.’</b></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">‘Neglect’ is the operative word in that
sentence. <span style="color: #cc0000;">It is clear to me that such
‘neglect’ is the result of a weakness that comes with the unavoidable
priorities that anyone, including Ms. Gay, bring along with them to their jobs,
based upon their racial, ethnic, and religious heritages</span>. We are who we are and there is nothing we
really can do about that, other than recognize who we are. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Such weaknesses, and they include those of
traditional ‘white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant males,’ as well as members fitting
into other possible ‘profiles,’ cannot just be checked at the door to the
office. They come with the person put
into that office, but that should not prevent them from doing an excellent job
in carrying out the duties of their position. <span style="color: #2b00fe;"> When they manifest themselves in the kind of
‘neglect’ Ms. Gay admits to, they should be quickly corrected, and that is what
she attempted to do. </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">To read Ms. Gay’s opinion column from the
Times, visit https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/03/opinion/claudine-gay-harvard-president.html?campaign_id=190&emc=edit_ufn_20240103&instance_id=111625&nl=from-the-times&regi_id=78918068&segment_id=154191&te=1&user_id=02fa158150d34dc186b01b1b8ec7a224 or just <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/03/opinion/claudine-gay-harvard-president.html?campaign_id=190&emc=edit_ufn_20240103&instance_id=111625&nl=from-the-times&regi_id=78918068&segment_id=154191&te=1&user_id=02fa158150d34dc186b01b1b8ec7a224 " target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a>. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> * * *</o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>But New York Times columnist </u></i></b></span></span><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Bret Stephens</u></i></span><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;"> is
less charitable to Ms. Gay than I am. </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In
a recent column, he points out that colleges are places for learning and research
and not social engineering. He says, in
trying to explain how Harvard reached this point, that </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">‘</span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 15pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Where there used to be a pinnacle, there’s now
a crater. It was created when the social-justice model of higher education,
currently centered on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts — and heavily
invested in the administrative side of the university — blew up the excellence
model, centered on the ideal of intellectual merit and chiefly concerned with
knowledge, discovery and the free and vigorous contest of ideas.’</span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 15pt; line-height: 110%;">His entire New
York Times column can be found at
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/02/opinion/harvard-claudine-gay-resignation.html
or by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/02/opinion/harvard-claudine-gay-resignation.html " target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 15pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #363636;">Again, this is
something about which one must make up their own minds. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">How far can one go in defending the rights of
the misinformed to poison the minds of the uninformed, considering that such rights
are the same rights that permit truths to be spread as well, even in a hostile
environment?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span>JL</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #363636; font-family: arial; font-size: 15pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Correction: I
was wrong! </u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The expression
‘If you don’t know where you’re going, you may end up somewhere else’
originated with Yogi Berra, and not Casey Stengel. But after all, I’ve never been a Yankee fan
anyway. It is, however, in its
nonsensical way, true. It means that if
you act without a goal or objective, what you reach might be a result that you
never would have contemplated if you had bothered to think about it beforehand.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;"><i><u>Sock-Shoe,
Sock-Shoe or Sock-Sock, Shoe-Shoe?</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In the old Archie Bunker TV sitcom (‘All in the
Family’), there was a memorable episode where Archie (Carroll O’Connor) berated
his son-in-law (Rob Reiner) about the way he put on his socks and shoes. Archie
pointed out that putting a sock and a shoe on one foot first, and only then on
the other foot, was dangerous! When
‘Meathead’ asked why, Archie pointed out that if there were some kind of
emergency, like a burglar or a fire, before he got the second sock and shoe on,
he would be hampered by being barefoot on one foot, whereas if he put socks on
both feet first, at least he would not be barefoot on one foot in dealing with
an intervening emergency. I think of
this every time I put my socks and shoes on, of course usually following
Reiner’s ‘Meathead’ method. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><i><span style="color: red; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><u>The Supreme Court and Donald Trump</u></span></i></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">There will be millions of words written between
now and next month when the Supreme Court comes down with its decision as to
whether Section 3 of the Constitution’s Fourteenth Amendment even applies to
Donald Trump, whose former position of president is not specifically named in
that Section’s language, although he did take an oath to defend the
Constitution of which it is a part. </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">While facing many charges for which he has been
indicted federally, he has yet to be convicted of them, and some questions are
still pending in Appellate courts. That
makes him ‘innocent until proven guilty.’
Only the most loyal of his supporters though, question the overwhelming
evidence against him. Our prisons are
filled with many convicted on far less evidence.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">But does this evidence justify removing him
from State ballots used in selecting presidential electors? Maybe?
Maybe not? The core of Trump’s
legal strategy has been to repeatedly delay all litigation until the nation is
so close to Election Day, that eliminating him from ballots will be next to
impossible.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The Supreme Court will try to find a way to avoid
appearing partisan in their decision concerning Trump's appeal of the Colorado
Supreme Court’s decision that indeed, even before any Federal conviction, accepted
that he did engage in an insurrection, although they did not tie that to
Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment, when they ruled against his being on the
ballot in that State. They believed
there that the overwhelming evidence that Trump was involved in instigating the
January 6, 2021 insurrection sufficed to remove him from the ballot. Once again, let’s go back to that word I used
in recent blog posting: this is a real
‘clusterfuck.’ Any decision the SCOTUS
makes will leave a lot of people unhappy.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> *
*<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Right now, President Biden ought to be thinking
about quickly appointing additional Justices to the Supreme Court, a move many
were urging a few months ago. It is not
too late. </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">If the SCOTUS’ February decision gives a crucial boost
to the credibility of Donald Trump’s campaign, that may still happen.</span> Such appointments might seem highhanded on President
Biden’s part but they might be the only path to our preserving our democracy,
presently being threatened by the candidacy of Trump, whose announced plans, if
elected, are those of a dictator.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The appointments, the hearings, and the
Democratic Senate’s confirmation of additional Justices can be completed before
mid-Summer and a case to remove Trump from the presidential race brought before
a new thirteen Justice court. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">I would hate to see things reach that point,
but it might be necessary to preserve representative democracy in the United
States. </span><span> Let’s see what the SCOTUS does
in February, when they try to support the Constitution, preserve democracy, and
avoid offending those who believe Trump’s lies. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">
I am not overly optimistic.</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting
on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-954426038757036372024-01-03T08:39:00.002-05:002024-01-03T08:59:03.557-05:00January 3, 2024 - Six Hundred Hits, Toyotas, Fireside Chats, Two Very Important Columns, and Stormy Weather<p> </p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i> * * * </i></b></span><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i> <u>Almost 600 First Day Hits</u>!
</i></b></span></div><div><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The last posting
of Jackspotpourri (Dec. 29, 2023), the one that included New Year’s greetings
and my thoughts on nouns being used in place of adjectives to make something
sound pejorative, attracted almost 600 viewers within its first 24 hours of
being posted! Almost all of them were
from the United States, too. </span></b></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I usually post
about a half a dozen myself as I develop a blog’s content <i>(they’re not
supposed to show up in the count, but they do anyway, even when I follow the Google Analytic rules about
counting ‘hits’)</i>, but that is still an enormous number, including those who showed an interest piqued by my email alert or who clicked on a link to Jackspotpourri that had
been forwarded to them. </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Strangly, there was no corresponding increase in those asking to be added to that list receiving email alerts for each posting, so that 600 number might be an error of some kind. We'll see. But meanwhile, it makes me proud of the blog anyhow.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Usually, I am
happy when I can confirm that about three or four dozen of you have chosen to
view my output. Keep it up. I will try to deserve your doing so.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: grey; font-family: arial; font-size: 10.5pt; letter-spacing: -0.1pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Should We be
Boycotting Toyota</u>?</i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><br /></i></span></span></b></p>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrhOoufNPyhjLb_GHMWG9gdckFRHmvdmlETPc4EKAhl891Tna9XlurCKGX4bZJyHeHsqysFVwxudzAUnvFXFe9_1ZA2v3tpx8rI8PK3wfurx9f8-1zOPwQaRnHSGGcoXg-q9zKO1-qY0nWvlbHQwe7ZuOppTKfVT8SbRigK-YdvOpiS6VRvYiVdoRjBTo/s900/Yemen%20toyota.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="900" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrhOoufNPyhjLb_GHMWG9gdckFRHmvdmlETPc4EKAhl891Tna9XlurCKGX4bZJyHeHsqysFVwxudzAUnvFXFe9_1ZA2v3tpx8rI8PK3wfurx9f8-1zOPwQaRnHSGGcoXg-q9zKO1-qY0nWvlbHQwe7ZuOppTKfVT8SbRigK-YdvOpiS6VRvYiVdoRjBTo/w400-h266/Yemen%20toyota.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Houtis Driving Toyotas in Yemen. - These are the terrorists<br />attacking shipping in the Red Sea using the Israeli-Hamas<br />war to gain support among other Arab extremists.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If you follow
the pictures and videos covering the Israeli-Hamas war, and other struggles in
the Middle East, it seems that terrorist militants usually seem to be driving around in Toyota
vehicles. Even the Houtis in Yemen,
pictured above, drive them. </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">That is no
accident. ISIS and other Muslim
terrorist groups seem to favor Toyotas and have no difficulty in obtaining them. Check out an article on this which can be
found at </span></b><a href="https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Wild-Blue-Yonder/Article-Display/Article/3600155/toyotas-and-terrorists-why-are-isiss-trucks-better-than-ours-said-the-american/"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Wild-Blue-Yonder/Article-Display/Article/3600155/toyotas-and-terrorists-why-are-isiss-trucks-better-than-ours-said-the-american/</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href="https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Wild-Blue-Yonder/Article-Display/Article/3600155/toyotas-and-terrorists-why-are-isiss-trucks-better-than-ours-said-the-american/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE.</a> There are several more informative links to
be found there.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Back in the late
1930’s and during World War Two, many Americans of Jewish faith avoided Ford
products because of Henry Ford’s overt antisemitism and friendship with Adolf
Hitler. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The world-wide
distribution system for Toyota vehicles is difficult to get a handle on, but
right now, I personally wouldn’t purchase one … or a Lexus either (Forgive me for hanging on to my five-year-old
I-300 model) which they also manufacture.
The Totota/Lexus people know who their terrorist customers are! They should do something about it. Or their non-terrorist customers should.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Joe Biden Ain’t
FDR</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Despite
favorable statistics regarding employment and inflation, as well as government
support and encouragement of infrastructure and economic projects benefitting
all Americans, Republicans keep telling lies about the ‘recession’ we are in. (Interest
rates are another problem but they too will be improving shortly.) There are always people who will believe lies.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">President Biden
lacks the communicative skills that enabled Franklin Delano Roosevelt to reach
the public with fireside chats, but he must find a way to get his message
out.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> </span><span style="color: red;">More than just his words, FDR
proved through his comforting fireside chats that as Professor Marshall McLuhan
proclaimed, the ‘medium is the message,’</span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> The good economic news is a message
something that President Biden must learn to better get across to the public.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7wHtuUyVF2GZw7GBYZSKianJgdb-LiqLk91gd-jW4KV5V01etlR7OApF6IXgrmTi8u_-hF351o_aY27BwvRNoqIyGrBXjscuIoOFv49-XXJyboMe3KdcSK0q1ufN_KiJwc-HHyfIEg1g2awxW-wPScB1OI2laUKDtGgMyaHc45RTpZF9t_0-SbDGuikI/s1300/Fireside%20Chat%20One.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1013" data-original-width="1300" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7wHtuUyVF2GZw7GBYZSKianJgdb-LiqLk91gd-jW4KV5V01etlR7OApF6IXgrmTi8u_-hF351o_aY27BwvRNoqIyGrBXjscuIoOFv49-XXJyboMe3KdcSK0q1ufN_KiJwc-HHyfIEg1g2awxW-wPScB1OI2laUKDtGgMyaHc45RTpZF9t_0-SbDGuikI/w320-h250/Fireside%20Chat%20One.webp" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">FDR spoke, and ...</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="596" data-original-width="645" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSeze3LsN2oaZof7fsj5lTRfQ15fieIoyQWXyYo-DiBhCu92eeCurSQxjC3ZFE4_-cd0ih-sZPtQYTgcsP6_xNA1NvoaazO0bmm6qpy2dxOXODC3x9TIGnXWJ5N9gaeXH-p-75Dmh6HTeSNODjikilpFFaRY1H68xGxcprHIH5EzD-YDVREbpKwUTu0u0/s320/Fireside%20Chat%20Two.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">America listened. The 'medium was the message,' <br />bringing the White House into the living rooms of <br />Americans.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSeze3LsN2oaZof7fsj5lTRfQ15fieIoyQWXyYo-DiBhCu92eeCurSQxjC3ZFE4_-cd0ih-sZPtQYTgcsP6_xNA1NvoaazO0bmm6qpy2dxOXODC3x9TIGnXWJ5N9gaeXH-p-75Dmh6HTeSNODjikilpFFaRY1H68xGxcprHIH5EzD-YDVREbpKwUTu0u0/s645/Fireside%20Chat%20Two.png"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Two Important
Columns and Possible Stormy Weather for Democracy</u></i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;">Immigration as
an issue in the 2024 presidential race just won’t go away. </span><span style="color: red;">Columnist Mary Sanchez fears that the
defeated former president’s tirades on immigrants will lead him back into the
White House, where he can finally become the dictator he has boasted that he
would be at least on his ‘day one’ in office. </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">While we were taught in childhood that ‘sticks and stones can break your
bones, but words can never harm you,’ Trump’s appeal to the gullible
contradicts that. Read her full column
at https://tribunecontentagency.com/article/mary-sanchez-the-problem-isnt-trump-and-his-tirade-about-immigrant-bloodlines/
or by <a href="https://tribunecontentagency.com/article/mary-sanchez-the-problem-isnt-trump-and-his-tirade-about-immigrant-bloodlines/" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> (You can skip her column if you are among those very rare Americans who are neither descendants of immigrants nor immigrants themselves.)</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Another column
to check out is that of conservative </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: red;">Ross Douthat </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">whose recent New York Times piece </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: red;">seems to argue that</span><span style="color: #2b00fe;"> t</span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">aking the defeated former president off of the 2024
presidential ballot in some States would ultimately do greater harm to the
Constitution</span><span style="color: red;"> by basing such an action on Article 14’s Section 3, </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">than is the
prospect of defending the Constitution by broadly defining ‘insurrection’ to
get him off of the ballot.</span><span style="color: #404040;"> Too many seem
to swallow what I believe is Douthat's tortured reasoning, and even that of the sources he quotes. Check out the
Douthat column at https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/23/opinion/colorado-ruling-trump.html
or by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/23/opinion/colorado-ruling-trump.html" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I disagree with Douthat. <span style="color: red;">I believe the Supreme Court will be the ultimate arbiter of what constitutes 'insurrection' in today's terms, not those of the post-Civil War years or the First World War, when last they addressed that issue. </span> Department of Justice prosecutor Jack Smith (actually the people's lawyer, and that means YOUR lawyer) believes that what the defeated former president did on January 6, 2021 indeed constituted aiding and abetting 'insurrection,' if not being even more closely tied to it. </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And hanging over this, <span style="color: #2b00fe;">Prosecutor Smith is also asking the SCOTUS to clarify the degree of immunity Donald Trump had, if any, while he still was president as well as after he was replaced by the winner of the 2020 election,</span> Joe Biden, from the charge of violating Sec. 3 of the 14th Amendment. </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: large; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: red;">If the SCOTUS comes down with a narrow definition of 'insurrection' to apply to Trump, letting him off the 'aiding and abetting' hook, or decides that even if he violated Sec. 3 of the 14th Amendment, he was and is immune from prosecution, democracy is in for some very stormy weather in this country and it might be a good time to check out your suitcases.</span> Remember the old Boy Scout motto, 'Be Prepared.' <span style="color: red;"><u>Physically</u> and <u>emotionally</u>.</span></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><u>Skip This if You Want To</u></span></i></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I can’t seem to
get off of the kick I was on in the last posting of Jackspotpourri concerning
the ruination of college football by the ‘transfer portal.’ </span></b><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I promise that this will be my last venture into that morass until next December</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Here’s a letter
(I don’t know if they’ll print it) I sent to the Palm Beach Post on that
subject. (Dan Wolken is a USA Today
sports columnist the Post frequently publishes.)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><i>In questioning the value of college football bowl games (Dec.
29 issue), sportswriter Dan Wolken paraphrases Ole Miss (and former
FAU) coach Lane Kiffen as saying that he couldn't think of any other sport with
a system where 'free agency' starts while the season is still going
on. I couldn't agree more with him. Players entering the 'transfer
portal' leave their teams playing with second and third-stringers in many of
these money-making bowl games, especially in the quarterback
position, cheating both their teammates and the fans. The major solutions
Wolken discusses won't happen for years, but at least college
football could start now by postponing their 'transfer portal' period until
after the last of the bowl games are played.</i></span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">In addition to
the ‘transfer portal,’ the sport doesn’t seem to object to those players likely
to continue their careers in the NFL from ‘opting out’ of post-season bowl
games, out of fear of an injury affecting their career path. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I would suggest
any athletic scholarship aid to a student include a provision requiring that it
be immediately fully returned (with interest) to the school that provided it if an uninjured
player chooses to thusly ‘opt out’ of a bowl game. This would also apply to any
‘NIL’ money received due to the use of his (or her) name. image, or likeness in
media advertising. If players are being
‘paid to play, then ‘play they must,’ so long as they are healthy. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This problem
isn’t just limited to quarterbacks.
Florida State’s 63 to 3 shellacking by the University of Georgia in the
Orange Bowl was chiefly due to the ‘opting out’ of half a dozen NFL-bound FSU
defensive backs. This was in addition to
the loss of their number two quarterback, who had replaced their injured
starter, and who chose to enter the transfer portal last week because his
starting role didn’t seem secure for next season, when the ‘numero uno’
quarterback was likely to return, along with a bunch of new aspirants for that
role. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This type of
‘clusterfuck’ messed up many other bowl games that would have been far more
competitive as well if the transfer portal and the ability to painlessly ‘opt
out’ didn’t exist. I hope this is the
last year this foolishness is permitted.
<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Rule changes are
due immediately, and they should be made by the colleges themselves and not the
business and media interests (like Capital One, Allstate, and ESPN) that profit
greatly from the bowl games. And to
avoid mismatches (like Oregon vs Liberty in one of this year’s final bowl games
prior to the actual bowl playoffs between the top four selected teams), ‘strength of
a team’s schedule’ should be factored in as well.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">(A footnote: That 63 to 3 score confirms the wise decision
of the college football playoff committee that chose to exclude ‘undefeated’ Florida
State from their final four-team playoff, </span><span style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">prompting Florida's </span></i></b><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">legislature, governor,
and senators to complain without good reason about the ‘injustice’ perpetrated
upon FSU, just as they routinely complain about abortion rights, history and
books that offend them, and the skimpiest of gun regulations, also without good
reasons.</span><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> Any of the four other teams in
the playoffs, Michigan, Washinton, Texas, and Alabama, probably would have
duplicated Georgia’s thrashing of the fatally weakened Seminoles by sixty
points, cheapening the whole purpose of having the playoffs in the first place,
which is to determine the ‘best’ major college team. It is good that next year’s college playoffs
will be expanded to a dozen teams, giving more worthy college teams a shot at
reaching the pinnacle. Delaying the
transfer portal, eliminating the ‘opt-outs,’ and paying attention to a team’s
‘strength of schedule’ will guarantee an honest result.) </span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And as I said, <u>this will be my last venture into that morass until next December</u></span></i></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: red; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">. </span></b><b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><u><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting
on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com" style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-82890804478120978862023-12-29T17:30:00.002-05:002023-12-29T17:40:42.630-05:00December 29, 2023 - A Scholarly Poet, Pejorative Nouns, SuperBowl Prediction, College Football Transfers, and Why Diplomats Have a Tough Job<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRNIDU87nbfJ9l74XngXc6w3ZFgxfZSpmnihedJH2tGO7K8kvsePzYST5wkfkdXH0EKt5Gg_AF_pzWNA0e4mAebSNsISJAUF7R2ReZkzkNgmSTJtfJUqPbO2D1Ijx4g8vbzhm4sCWydxf3Zv77IcKW7K4oFzNGgY_RBhyphenhyphen-I0ETfSvtgLE0XbvoTmSBdaU/s612/new%20years%20baby%202024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="442" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRNIDU87nbfJ9l74XngXc6w3ZFgxfZSpmnihedJH2tGO7K8kvsePzYST5wkfkdXH0EKt5Gg_AF_pzWNA0e4mAebSNsISJAUF7R2ReZkzkNgmSTJtfJUqPbO2D1Ijx4g8vbzhm4sCWydxf3Zv77IcKW7K4oFzNGgY_RBhyphenhyphen-I0ETfSvtgLE0XbvoTmSBdaU/w289-h400/new%20years%20baby%202024.jpg" width="289" /></a></div><br /> <p></p> <div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Let's wrap up 2023 with hope for a better 2024, one in which domestic problems like immigration and riddng politics of liars are resolved along with bringing peace to the Middle East and Ukraine. You can make a difference. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Happy New Year!</span></b></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div> * * *<div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>The Night Before Christmas and All Through the House</u> …</i></b></span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Clement Clarke
Moore, whose famous poem ‘A Visit from St. Nicholas’ appeared in the last
posting, was much more than just a poet.
In fact, he felt that poem was far, far, down on his list of
accomplishments, and for years, he didn’t even admit to having written it. Find out more by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/clement-clarke-moore"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/clement-clarke-moore</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> or by <a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/clement-clarke-moore" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> </span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Adjectives and Nouns Can Be Poisonous</u></i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">I am not a grammarian,
nor have I ever been a teacher, but I recognize that substituting a noun
for an adjective to modify a noun can impart a pejorative sense to it,
disparaging it. The only example I can
come up with is the antisemitic habit of calling a Jewish doctor or a Jewish
businessman, a ‘Jew doctor’ or a ‘Jew businessman.’ Get the idea?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Ever Since 20<sup>th</sup>
century Republican politician and Minnesota governor Harold Stassen, perennial
potential presidential nominee, started calling the other major party the
‘Democrat party,’ other Republicans have continued the habit. Doing so allows them to speak as if the
Democrats were not ‘democratic.’ It is a cheap shot and mildly insulting, but if they want to do it, who can stop them.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">What gets me,
however, is when supposedly non-partisan journalists, news reporters, or even
worse, Democrats, blindly accept this misnomer and start calling the party of
Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden, the ‘Democrat’
Party. </span>This purely Republican habit
should be brought to their attention every time you encounter it being used by those who should know better.<span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Early Superbowl
Prediction Based on H2O</u></i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This year’s
Superbowl will be won by the Baltimore Ravens.
Why? Their quarterback, Lamar
Jackson, comes from my adopted neighborhood, having graduated from Boynton
Beach High School. His talents will make
the difference, regardless of whom they face on February 11. It could be that it has something to do with
the water around here, water that all-star Philadelphia Philly shortstop Trea
Turner, who graduated from neighboring Park Vista High School, and numerous
other local professional athletes, also drank.
But it doesn’t seem to help me.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>As College
Football Goes Down the Tube</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i></i></span></span></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQeCm1ZSROaiPWiKdDHe0-i3nZk2iB9HEo3NgbumnInWdC_no96H21sHZYtJ_5LUdCoOZhDMTcQke1Ir3FqbGYgrUzphC7LLcGxpwihMvlkO9N9dRR0cbW7RyYSvTWH6a0ENR9v4s8lw8kxovyLeIWBdxrXkSv-24-L8eH99kFz5RjbSSP9cajblsQLYk/s1600/Springsteen.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1126" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQeCm1ZSROaiPWiKdDHe0-i3nZk2iB9HEo3NgbumnInWdC_no96H21sHZYtJ_5LUdCoOZhDMTcQke1Ir3FqbGYgrUzphC7LLcGxpwihMvlkO9N9dRR0cbW7RyYSvTWH6a0ENR9v4s8lw8kxovyLeIWBdxrXkSv-24-L8eH99kFz5RjbSSP9cajblsQLYk/s320/Springsteen.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Springsteen singing 'This gun's for hire.'</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">And speaking of
football, those of you who have been following Jackspotpourri know that I have
repeatedly condemned the ‘transfer portal’ as the ruination of college
football. True, it does enable talented
athletes to seek college connections that would lead to greater remuneration
and ultimately, the possibility of lucrative professional contracts for
them. But in doing so, it drastically
changes the nature of college football to little more than a training ground
for the NFL.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Right now,
according to the Athletic, a website that reports on such things, 46 FBS </span></b><span style="background: white; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 110%;"> </span><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">scholarship
transfer quarterbacks have already made commitments to new schools! <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">There are about
133 college teams in that FBS classification,</span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> formerly known as
Division I-A, the highest level of college football in the United States. Generously assuming that each FBS school has
about three scholarship quarterbacks on their rosters, I conclude that this means
a good number of these schools’ quarterbacks, about 12% of them (46 out of a
total of perhaps 399 quarterbacks), including some who are not just benchwarmers,
are jumping ship via the transfer portal seeking greener pastures. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">This may be fine for the athletes, and the teams in need of the quality quarterback
whom they failed to have drafted out of high school, but it significantly weakens
the teams that they are departing, leaving them looking into who’s coming
through the other side of that same transfer portal. This might work just fine in a schoolyard game
but not in big time college football. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Check out the quarterbacks at many ‘Power Five’ schools to see how many
are still at the institution where they started their freshman year. The number is shocking. Dillon Gabriel who started off at UCF,
starred at Oklahoma, and is now transferring to Oregon is a fine example. There are many others, even at legendary
football schools like Notre Dame, which has just picked up Wake Forest’s
quarterback, Sam Hartman, for his last year of eligibility. The concept of a ‘student-athlete’ is a
joke. More fitting is Bruce
Springsteen’s line from ‘Dancing in the Dark’:
‘this gun’s for hire.’</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">I once knew an executive in the insurance industry who explained that
‘loyalty’ was no more than a word in the dictionary somewhere between ‘lox’ and
‘lozenge.’ </span> It's a quality too many college athletes on full four-year scholarships totally lack.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">Back when I was in the Army over 65 years ago, a buddy of mine from
Texas boasted that he was an excellent place kicker, capable of kicking long
field goals, and of course, easy extra points after touchdowns. I don’t think he ever attended college, but
he made a nice living during the football season as a well-paid place kicker
for one game at a time for the many small college and semi-pro teams down there that you’ve
never heard of. The coaches just gave him
a helmet and a jersey and told him what his name for the game would be and
handed him a few twenty dollar bills. (That was long ago when that was good money!) They didn’t have a transfer portal in those days. Yeah, ‘this gun’s for hire.’</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Diplomacy Made
Simple</u></i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">It’s really very
simple. Israel should agree to a
complete and permanent cease-fire in Gaza, and also at flashpoints on the West
Bank and along the Lebanese border, in exchange for their antagonists in Iran
and the Arab world accepting the permanence and the legitimacy of the State of
Israel, and cease all attempts to destroy or undermine it, with their agreeing
to do so being internationally enforceable and monitored, by nations more trustworthy than the United Nations. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #404040;">Only then can
the extremists on both sides be removed from power and everyone can sit down
and determine the details of a two-state solution, where the Palestinians would at last have a state of their own alongside of Israel.
</span><span style="color: #cc0000;"><u>That must be part of the
deal</u>. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">If Israel’s
antagonists cannot agree to that, then Israel should never consider a cease-fire
in Gaza, or anywhere else for that matter, because doing so amounts to putting
down its weapons in its fight for survival without getting anything in return. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Diplomats know
that while Israel would eventually go along with such a deal, </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Israel’s
antagonists would have to be bribed</span><span style="color: #cc0000;"> to accept it.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">That would be because Israel’s
agreeing to a cease-fire in Gaza and an independent Palestinian state would not be enough
for those of them pledged to totally destroy the State of Israel. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Such bribery or ‘baksheesh’ is common in that
part of the world.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">The bribe money will
have to come from oil-rich (for the time being, anyway, until electric vehicles impoverish them) Arab states and Iran,
as well as from the Western nations that control the world’s financial systems and
be structured to endure for at least the next century, locked</span></b><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"> safely away from being touched by those with evil intent.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">So I guess
diplomacy really isn’t that simple. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;">
* * * <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b><b><i><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 18pt;">Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</span></u></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting
on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">:</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000; font-size: 14pt;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: 14pt;">but I
recommend sending them the link.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; font-size: 14pt;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-10413681137877038422023-12-24T13:32:00.002-05:002023-12-24T14:05:13.133-05:00December 24, 2023 - A Holiday Message, Babies and Bathwater, a Bret Stephens Times Column, and a Revolution in College Football<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjow54O_tU0-Io-WrVYBuO8NgEsS1KyKRjjMvYLBmr23vxYWdM6io3BFA5m3Dqtt4JGZ8nGF011rXqzJlMdyguk9J3Pz2Fwh-hKtqxOAuaWtX4GluSOsrUjF_FLry3X9iNREdFb4L9IQWjp61r2tZ7lCRbQlc4W3q6TekDv4ERyBoElnMTyAjmnuv8bfm8/s65/Holly.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="65" data-original-width="65" height="65" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjow54O_tU0-Io-WrVYBuO8NgEsS1KyKRjjMvYLBmr23vxYWdM6io3BFA5m3Dqtt4JGZ8nGF011rXqzJlMdyguk9J3Pz2Fwh-hKtqxOAuaWtX4GluSOsrUjF_FLry3X9iNREdFb4L9IQWjp61r2tZ7lCRbQlc4W3q6TekDv4ERyBoElnMTyAjmnuv8bfm8/s1600/Holly.jpg" width="65" /></a><br /><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> * * *</span></p><p><b style="color: #38761d; font-family: arial; font-size: xx-large;"><i><u>Holiday Greetings</u> </i></b></p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Until a few years ago, my daughter and grandson lived around the corner from a small park and playground on Tenth Avenue in Manhattan. The plaque on its gate announced that it was named in honor of Clement Clarke Moore, who had he not written the following poem, no one would ever have heard of … </b></span><div><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">\</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> <span style="color: #cc0000;"><u>A Visit from St. Nicholas</u></span></span></b></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> 'Twas
the night before Christmas, when all through the house<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Not a
creature was stirring, not even a mouse;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> The
stockings were hung by the chimney with care,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> In
hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> The
children were nestled all snug in their beds;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> While
visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And
mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Had
just settled our brains for a long winter's nap,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> When
out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> I
sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Away to
the window I flew like a flash,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Tore
open the shutters and threw up the sash.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> The
moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Gave a
lustre of midday to objects below,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> When
what to my wondering eyes did appear,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> But a
miniature sleigh and eight tiny rein-deer,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> With a
little old driver so lively and quick,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> I knew
in a moment he must be St. Nick.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> More
rapid than eagles his coursers they came,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And he
whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">
"Now, <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Dasher</span></em>!
now, <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Dancer</span></em>! now <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Prancer</span></em> and <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Vixen</span></em>!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">
On, <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Comet</span></em>! on, <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Cupid</span></em>! on, <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Donder</span></em> and <em><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Blitzen</span></em>!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> To the
top of the porch! to the top of the wall!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Now
dash away! dash away! dash away all!"<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> As
leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> When
they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> So up
to the housetop the coursers they flew<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> With
the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too—<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And
then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> The
prancing and pawing of each little hoof.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> As I
drew in my head, and was turning around,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Down
the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> He was
dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And his
clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> A
bundle of toys he had flung on his back,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And he
looked like a pedler just opening his pack.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> His
eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples, how merry!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> His
cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> His
droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And the
beard on his chin was as white as the snow;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> The
stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And the
smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> He had
a broad face and a little round belly<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> That
shook when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> He was
chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And I
laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> A wink
of his eye and a twist of his head<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> Soon
gave me to know I had nothing to dread;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> He
spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And
filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And
laying his finger aside of his nose,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And
giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> He
sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> And
away they all flew like the down of a thistle.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> But I
heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight—<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-indent: -12pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><em><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="border: 1pt none windowtext; line-height: 110%; padding: 0in;"> “Happy
Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”</span></b></em><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Let this be Jackpotpourri’s
Holiday message to you all!</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> *
* *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Preserving Representative Democracy</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">When people living in a
representative democracy don’t like the way things are going for them from an
economic or cultural standpoint, they look to place the blame on the government
they themselves put into power. This may result in their using their right to
vote, nationally or in the State in which they live, to reject the
democratically elected government they put into power, and vote to replace it
with a more efficient, usually authoritarian, form of government. Representative democracy permits them to do
this, in effect allowing it to commit suicide.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">This has happened in democracies
such as Germany and Italy between the two World Wars of the last century. It has happened in individual States in this
country such as Texas and Florida that have elected governors and legislatures
with authoritarian agendas. Right now,
Hungary and Poland are leaning in that direction.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">When dissatisfied with
democratically elected government, voters should look more carefully at the
agenda of candidates for office. Some
offer reasonable solutions to whatever problems exist and others blame those
problems on democracy itself and look no further than asking for extensive
powers to fix things themselves. ‘Trust
me,’ they say. ‘I can fix things.’ That’s a very bad idea. We must never throw out the baby with the
bath water</span></b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">.</span></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUvyYj_IzpmIGfPto34Zhp1ibh5nTRUeEVtxe6sw_AudIsUDssHJUF6PyL-uXOpvhsKrgdYodZOSm5hWUzJhv13bdKjfa6rQ2_FShfqsPmyY8gwUCoyCGz3M33qUxr_IN-J9UsCKtL0PmEqItZu9eNvLRi3HXOv0BoHF2YKj4qQqwkPjQhYrtIsUSWCE/s725/Baby%20bathwater.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="610" data-original-width="725" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUvyYj_IzpmIGfPto34Zhp1ibh5nTRUeEVtxe6sw_AudIsUDssHJUF6PyL-uXOpvhsKrgdYodZOSm5hWUzJhv13bdKjfa6rQ2_FShfqsPmyY8gwUCoyCGz3M33qUxr_IN-J9UsCKtL0PmEqItZu9eNvLRi3HXOv0BoHF2YKj4qQqwkPjQhYrtIsUSWCE/w400-h336/Baby%20bathwater.png" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><br /></span><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">(That expression started in
medieval times, when a family might take a single bath once every few weeks,
all using the same bathtub filled with water, one after another, starting with
the parents and continuing through the children, with the infants being bathed
last. By then the water in the tub was
so dirty that there was a chance of spilling out the baby as well when it was
emptied.)</span></i></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> *
* *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Bret Stephens Column: ‘Why I Can’t Stop Writing About Oct. 7’</u></i></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;">Don’t miss this New York Times
opinion column linking together Hamas, antisemitism, and the mood in America
today. Copy and paste </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/19/opinion/october-7-jews-hamas.html">https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/19/opinion/october-7-jews-hamas.html</a></span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; line-height: 110%;"> on your browser line or just
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/19/opinion/october-7-jews-hamas.html" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a> . It's Stephens' last column for 2023.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> *
* *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><i><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: x-large;"><u>A Revolutionary Football Game</u></span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">A few comments
about the recent ‘Boca Bowl’ football game are in order. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">First of all,
calling it the ‘Roof Claim’ bowl game is too reminiscent of the occasionally
shady, if not criminal, operations of some roofers, insurance companies,
adjusters, and law firms, involved in submitting homeowners’ insurance claims
for roof damage, a good deal of which occurred in Palm Beach County, site of
the Boca Bowl. That’s one of the reasons
homeowners’ insurance remains in a permanent state of crisis in Florida. </span></b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">(For
your information, the game was played in Florida Atlantic University’s stadium
in Boca Raton.)</span></i><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> The sponsor of
this bowl game might be entirely legitimate, but still the </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">naming of the bowl game
seems unsavory. </span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">Otherwise, the
University of South Florida’s 45-0 victory over Syracuse University was
remarkable in two ways.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">During a college
football game, there is a 40 second period between plays during which the offensive
team must run a play without being penalized for ‘delay of game.’ This gives the officials plenty of time to
place the ball on the ground ready for the next play, and for the team with the
ball to run that next play. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">USF led the nation’s college football teams in
the quickness it getting off those next plays, usually taking no more than
twelve or thirteen seconds, once the ball was placed on the line of scrimmage. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">And that was the
case in the Boca Bowl. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">South Florida never bothered with a seconds-consuming
‘huddle’ and their players were always quick to take their positions for the
next play</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">, probably
orally called by the quarterback, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">regardless
of whether or not the clock had been stopped, even for a variety of reasons </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">such as penalties, an injured player on the
field, reviews of a referee’s decisions, a ‘time out, the direction of a
runner’s momentum going out of bounds, or a first down during the last two
minutes of a game’s second and fourth periods.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #38761d; line-height: 110%;">As a result,
USF’s offense was rapid-fire, rarely giving the Syracuse defense time to
recover from the previous play and get ready for the next one. </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> This is why Syracuse, not a bad team, lost 45
to 0</span></b><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;">. (This season, the teams they had defeated included
Wake Forest, Pitt, Army, and Purdue.)</span></i><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"> But against USF’s rapid-fire offense, Syracuse’s
defensive line was in a permanent state of exhaustion and their secondary
usually not in the right places to defend against passing, neither having
enough time to recover and reset itself.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">The other effect
of this manner of play by USF was upon the TV presentation of the game. Quick TV replays of the action, commentary by
the telecasters, and ‘squeezed-in’ commercials, features of most football
telecasts, were drastically reduced. The telecast even missed USF’s first
touchdown because it was busy dissecting the prior play, about a dozen seconds
earlier, which hadn’t succeeded. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #38761d;">They
had to show the touchdown as a replay.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">If other teams
copy USF’s style of play, which breaks no rules of the game, there will be a
revolution in the way football telecasts are managed.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: arial; font-size: medium; line-height: 110%;"> </span></b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjow54O_tU0-Io-WrVYBuO8NgEsS1KyKRjjMvYLBmr23vxYWdM6io3BFA5m3Dqtt4JGZ8nGF011rXqzJlMdyguk9J3Pz2Fwh-hKtqxOAuaWtX4GluSOsrUjF_FLry3X9iNREdFb4L9IQWjp61r2tZ7lCRbQlc4W3q6TekDv4ERyBoElnMTyAjmnuv8bfm8/s65/Holly.jpg" style="font-family: arial; font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="65" data-original-width="65" height="65" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjow54O_tU0-Io-WrVYBuO8NgEsS1KyKRjjMvYLBmr23vxYWdM6io3BFA5m3Dqtt4JGZ8nGF011rXqzJlMdyguk9J3Pz2Fwh-hKtqxOAuaWtX4GluSOsrUjF_FLry3X9iNREdFb4L9IQWjp61r2tZ7lCRbQlc4W3q6TekDv4ERyBoElnMTyAjmnuv8bfm8/s1600/Holly.jpg" width="65" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u>Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</u></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif">Email Alerts</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif">:</span></b></span><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting
on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at </span></b><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com" style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></b></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: large;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><u><span face=""Arial",sans-serif">Forwarding Postings</span></u></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif">:</span></b></span><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></b><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">but I
recommend sending them the link.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> <o:p></o:p></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjow54O_tU0-Io-WrVYBuO8NgEsS1KyKRjjMvYLBmr23vxYWdM6io3BFA5m3Dqtt4JGZ8nGF011rXqzJlMdyguk9J3Pz2Fwh-hKtqxOAuaWtX4GluSOsrUjF_FLry3X9iNREdFb4L9IQWjp61r2tZ7lCRbQlc4W3q6TekDv4ERyBoElnMTyAjmnuv8bfm8/s65/Holly.jpg" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: arial; font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="65" data-original-width="65" height="65" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjow54O_tU0-Io-WrVYBuO8NgEsS1KyKRjjMvYLBmr23vxYWdM6io3BFA5m3Dqtt4JGZ8nGF011rXqzJlMdyguk9J3Pz2Fwh-hKtqxOAuaWtX4GluSOsrUjF_FLry3X9iNREdFb4L9IQWjp61r2tZ7lCRbQlc4W3q6TekDv4ERyBoElnMTyAjmnuv8bfm8/s1600/Holly.jpg" width="65" /></a></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">JL</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-11750456136264761932023-12-21T09:39:00.000-05:002023-12-21T09:39:21.290-05:00December 21, 2023 - The Role of Diplomats and Colorado Court Removes Trump from Primary Ballot<p> </p> * * * <div><br /></div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Colorado Supreme Court Removes Donald From Primary Ballot
</u></i></b></span></div><div><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #404040; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 110%;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The papers and
the TV have been filled with the news that the Colorado Supreme Court (contrary
to the courts of some other States) has ruled that Donald Trump cannot be on
that State’s presidential primary ballot!
Zowie! Maybe!</span></span></b></div><div><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNmUPoNUM2DYFVbi1gyCDbSNW0heL8QMQnyIHYZb3nO_jz2-4y3GXJ_CW_SSZklHsKdPVf3bwG69qHVyx2p3KuFKgsXtZAUo4Q4vdSQiDOQxREGO__EGqDziph6itNc-RbXmAYB_jca6_Y_CyTPMxdknE_SaOmFw-WGwYlSrqj079c-q49avczeqYv8R4/s600/Trump%20mug%20shot.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNmUPoNUM2DYFVbi1gyCDbSNW0heL8QMQnyIHYZb3nO_jz2-4y3GXJ_CW_SSZklHsKdPVf3bwG69qHVyx2p3KuFKgsXtZAUo4Q4vdSQiDOQxREGO__EGqDziph6itNc-RbXmAYB_jca6_Y_CyTPMxdknE_SaOmFw-WGwYlSrqj079c-q49avczeqYv8R4/w320-h320/Trump%20mug%20shot.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He will try to use this to his advantage, claiming<br />that it proves the 'deep state' is out to get him.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">But hold on a
second! While Sec. 3 of the Constitution’s
14th Amendment specifically mentions Senators, Representatives, and other
office holders, it does not specifically mention the office of the President. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Recognizing
that, the Colorado court held, however, that the amendment applied to the
President because his ‘personal actions’ amounted to his engaging in an
'insurrection' and that sufficed to take him off of the ballot, even though he
was not specifically in violation of Sec. 3 of the 14th Amendment, his office
not being included in the broad array of office holders it does mention who
lose the right to hold office if they were involved in insurrection against the
government or the Constitution. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">While it takes a
really stupid person to claim, in view of all the evidence presented, that
Trump did not incite the January 6 insurrection, I can see the three members of
the Supreme Court appointed by him plus Justices Thomas and Alito (that makes
it a majority) voting to overturn the Colorado decision in the absence of any
specific mention of the Presidency in the Amendment. This would follow their ‘originalist’ approach
to the Constitution’s language, not reading into it what it doesn’t
specifically say. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Three other
justices will say it does indeed apply to him, and Chief Justice Roberts will probably
join with an opinion of his own. <span style="color: #2b00fe;">Some
might say the timing of these opinions ought to be separable from the political
environment in which we now exist, but that environment should not be ignored
by the SCOTUS either.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I suspect that
while Roberts will vote along with the five Justices overruling the Colorado
decision, he will write a separate fence-straddling opinion that not quite, but
almost, goes along with the Colorado decision that said Trump's personal
actions amounted to his engaging in an 'insurrection' anyway although his
office was not specifically mentioned in Sec. 3 of the 14th Amendment's
language. <span style="color: #2b00fe;">Roberts is probably staying up nights trying to figure out how to
phrase it. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;">Add to this the
pending request by Department of Justice prosecutor Jack Smith that the SCOTUS
rule quickly, because of the forthcoming 2024 election, as to any presidential immunity
that Trump might have against charges based on his behavior in connection with
the January 6, 2021 insurrection. <span style="color: #cc0000;">To use
a word I mentioned in a posting on here a few days ago, this is a real
'clusterfuck' and the Supreme Court is right in the middle of it.</span></span></b><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u style="font-size: xx-large;">The Role of
Diplomats</u></span></span></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">In the overall Israeli-Palestinian
dispute, of which the war in Gaza is part, <span style="color: #cc0000;">it is the role of diplomats to rein
in the extremists on both sides. </span>Once that is done, the war will end and there
will be a chance for peace.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Excluding the
extremists, most reasonable people seem to agree that there must be a two-state
solution, with an independent Palestinian state accompanying the State of
Israel in what was until 1947 the British-administered ‘mandate’ of Palestine,
formerly part of the Ottoman empire dismembered after the First World War. The United Nations produced a map at that
time, more or less defining the borders of each state, with Jerusalem, still a
problem today, being internationalized. Getting there is the problem.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"></span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfvb8EUSyhdne7iOyf1TX60Vir2V5apK_LAEcQPnPaM0hjBhn-IVF13uwINQpwwWnsCa0RN_-O3Qyrahd_RFEGBNZcxb4cmbIi69K5gYp8IWLvKL69_01-LIQoZWpv2ili629FMKt5ZUjLv4bTCpsKGqZk7rmuHucL11L77FKIvHN-nrLTq20_gsBEF4/s348/Map%20of%201947%20Partition.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="348" data-original-width="190" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfvb8EUSyhdne7iOyf1TX60Vir2V5apK_LAEcQPnPaM0hjBhn-IVF13uwINQpwwWnsCa0RN_-O3Qyrahd_RFEGBNZcxb4cmbIi69K5gYp8IWLvKL69_01-LIQoZWpv2ili629FMKt5ZUjLv4bTCpsKGqZk7rmuHucL11L77FKIvHN-nrLTq20_gsBEF4/w219-h400/Map%20of%201947%20Partition.jpg" width="219" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Original 1947 Partition Map</td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Diplomats must get those who
desire a Palestinian state, be they in Gaza or in territories lost to Israel in
the abortive wars against it, to acknowledge the permanent existence of the
State of Israel, renouncing any attempt to eliminate it.</span> And they must do so in a manner that
convinces Israel of their honest intent, removing the necessity for Israel to
guarantee Palestinian sincerity with the threat of military action, as they
have been forced to carry out in Gaza. <span style="color: #2b00fe;">I
don’t know how diplomacy can accomplish this, but it must.</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">These diplomats must also get
Israel to renounce any desire for territorial expansion beyond its borders despite the failure of the Arabs in Palestine and in
neighboring countries to accept the UN’s partition of the ‘mandate.’ </span> This would mean the discontinuance of Israeli
settlements in the ‘occupied territories’ outside of the borders of the State
of Israel, territory lost by the Arab states supporting the Palestinians in
their abortive wars against Israel and that would be part of a Palestinian
state. It would also call for the
gradual, scheduled, removal of such existing settlements. <span style="color: #2b00fe;">I also do not know how diplomacy can
accomplish this, but it must.</span></span></b><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Right now, extremists on both
sides will not agree to any of this.</span><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> I
suspect, however, that eventually such ideas would be acceptable to the majority of
Israelis and Palestinians, despite opposition by Israelis living in
‘settlements’ and Palestinians who never did and still do not accept partition,
and are now living elsewhere as refugees or their descendants.</span></b><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Unquestionably, these extreme changes
in philosophy on both sides are preferable to the bloodshed that is proving to
be a part of any ‘single-state’ solution.
Both Jews and Muslims should look to a bit of theology from another
religion that preaches that </b><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">‘blessed are the
peacemakers.’ And of course, diplomats
are today’s peacemakers.</span></span></b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">JL</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;"><u>Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</u></span><span style="font-size: medium; text-decoration-line: underline;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u>Email Alerts</u>:</span> If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting
on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at <a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><span style="text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></a>.</b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><u>Forwarding Postings</u>:</span> Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span style="text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </b><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.</span></b></span><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> </span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.<o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Either way will work, sending
them the link to <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><span style="text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></a>, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, <span style="color: #cc0000;">but I
recommend sending them the link.</span><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.<o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">JL</b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;">
* * *</span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-39823531799629320342023-12-16T16:54:00.002-05:002023-12-16T19:44:11.572-05:00December 16, 2023 - Immigration, Israeli-Hamas War, Optimism, Charitable Donations, SCOTUS' Black Marks, and finally, CLUSTERFUCK!<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_9-UAWSLQNNNY6VA0lq6oubgSHQ1f_9Xyoneh9hGpaPZMXMsz5yN4_hMDVfUx06lLvU4hHqFenh9I7rZE9Ho6VzQbA3VQF9Uaq5LwBVEJ9aBtcNCzFNKKC5lLtHFjedLy0sXC5wmuky-d6l0v_nsaGpaHmuQhHgvr0Y7AUsqek6FKJxuB7lZbiafZA5w/s3352/clusterfuck.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3352" data-original-width="2500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_9-UAWSLQNNNY6VA0lq6oubgSHQ1f_9Xyoneh9hGpaPZMXMsz5yN4_hMDVfUx06lLvU4hHqFenh9I7rZE9Ho6VzQbA3VQF9Uaq5LwBVEJ9aBtcNCzFNKKC5lLtHFjedLy0sXC5wmuky-d6l0v_nsaGpaHmuQhHgvr0Y7AUsqek6FKJxuB7lZbiafZA5w/w299-h400/clusterfuck.jpg" width="299" /></a></div><br /><p></p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;"> </span>* * * </i></b></span><div><div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Clusterfuck
</u></i></b></span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I've hesitated
to use the word 'clusterfuck' in postings on Jackspotpourri but since it
appears in the Merriam-Webster dictionary and other dictionaries, I suppose it
is now acceptable. Barely. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><i><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">(Merriam-Webster
definition - 'vulgar slang. : a complex and utterly disordered and mismanaged
situation : <u>a muddled mess</u>.') <span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">‘Clusterfuck’ well
describes the management of the House of Representatives by its Republican
majority. That’s what it is!<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It also might be
applied to describe our justice system's attempt to resolve the charges against
the indicted former president, charges that probably won't be finally resolved
until too late to have any meaning. More
clusterfuck!<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">But fear not, there
is an excellent chance that both of these <u>'<i>muddled messes</i></u>' will
be resolved by that most supreme of all courts, the American voter, on November
5, 2024.</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Immigration Problem Just Won't Go Away</u></i></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">It is poetically
coincidental that </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">‘muddled messes’</span><span style="color: #404040;"> of ‘clusterfuck’ bring to mind the </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">‘huddled
masses’ </span><span style="color: #404040;">in Emma Lazarus’ poem inscribed on the base of the Statue of Liberty,
referring to those desiring to emigrate to our country. Up until our tightening of immigration laws
in 1924, the United States welcomed most immigrants recognizing their value to
our society. </span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b>(Unless you are
a descendant of the original Native American population, here before European
explorers ever came anywhere near to our continent, you are yourself a descendant
from immigrants or perhaps are one yourself!)</b></span><span style="color: #404040;">
</span><b style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">Even though the very
restrictive 1924 immigration law has been revised, enabling more immigrants to
come to the United States, especially as students, or those providing skills
that we need, or those wealthy enough to be able to invest in our economy,
immigration policy still qualifies as ‘clusterfuck.’ Republican legislators are today using that need for a new immigration policy as a hostage, demanding that it be taken
care of in a manner to their liking before other totally unrelated, but extremely crucial, legislation can
be considered in the House of Representatives. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">
Now that is truly more ‘clusterfuck.’</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There are many
reasons why most of the population of the planet, given the opportunity, would
want to emigrate to the United State. Except
for a few European countries, there are no places on Earth with as high a
standard of living, greater economic opportunity, or better guarantees of
freedom. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Seekers of
Asylum: </span> <span style="color: #404040;">But it is the hundreds of
thousands of those living to the south of the United States fleeing oppressive
governments and in constant fear of gang violence, who make the headlines as they seek political
asylum here. Now, they are being
joined by those from elsewhere on the planet who have scraped up the resources to
get them here and who get in line with them, facing similar dangers where they
now live. Spanish is not the only language spoken by those seeking to enter the
United States on its southern border.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">But there has to
be a limit to the number to which asylum is granted. There is only so much
space in this country, and opportunity here is not infinite. Clearly,
the burden of hosting such potential immigrants should not be borne by the
areas where they first enter the country or eventually settle. If they are admitted as immigrants, it is a
national responsibility. Invariably,
such immigrants are initially in need of public services, if not support, that
must be funded by America’s taxpayers. That
bothers a lot of people </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">(… who happen to be descendent from earlier immigrants.)</span><span style="color: #404040;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Obviously, it is
in the interest of the United States to work to improve the conditions in the
places from which such immigrants come, so they might have no reason to leave
there, but that cannot be done overnight.
Meanwhile, closing our eyes to this problem is not an alternative. Failure to properly address this problem can
result in some Americans supporting those who want to totally shut the door to
all immigrants, extinguishing the torch held aloft by the Statue of
Liberty. That is a very bad idea. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"></span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPF5SckpY3hQTBbSEvpv3voz4aOa-8Flr0IRuccivrgA-e0_kWajM9Ku6II9Tm5ckEGM0E9ZR6oq0tf3iK0MZDJztesFxtnfpKrYeLs7krJyQNBR0QjjeHXI9JpzRKtJebwJSDam0DJAqajsPRkqXN6FwoWsv0im1gQ8NbcescHa5j5nXHf6NIwHQ6yo/s1600/Statue%20of%20liberty%20torch.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPF5SckpY3hQTBbSEvpv3voz4aOa-8Flr0IRuccivrgA-e0_kWajM9Ku6II9Tm5ckEGM0E9ZR6oq0tf3iK0MZDJztesFxtnfpKrYeLs7krJyQNBR0QjjeHXI9JpzRKtJebwJSDam0DJAqajsPRkqXN6FwoWsv0im1gQ8NbcescHa5j5nXHf6NIwHQ6yo/s320/Statue%20of%20liberty%20torch.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">But it must not be extinguished</td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #404040;">You even can sense
this in those urban areas, distant from the southern border, where many immigrants
end up and seek support. New York City
is an example. Florida’s
hypocrite-in-chief and governor, Ron DeSantis, even flew a load of immigrants
from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, in Massachusetts, to make this point, even
though his State is sorely in need of agricultural labor that immigrants, legal
and otherwise, have provided for years. </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">This
situation is indeed a ‘muddled mess’ or a (you fill in the word). </span> <span style="color: #404040;">Something must be done to address it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></span></b><b><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><u>Another ‘Muddled Mess’ – The
Israeli-Hamas War</u></span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The Israeli-Hamas war can be
ended quickly if those who started the current hostilities on October 7
announced their abandonment of their policies of working to wipe the State of
Israel from the map, and of their intent to resume similar attacks in the future
as soon as they are able to.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Until Hamas does that on their own
or are forced to do it by those who provide them with financial and military
aid, Israel will have to continue its military actions to destroy, or at least
totally degrade, the military and governmental structure of Hamas within the
Gaza Strip.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Getting the innocent civilian
population there out of the way is as much a problem for the Arab states that
support Hamas as it is for Israel, but these nations seem to ignore it. They must allow Palestinians access to their
countries, at least until they finance the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip as
a peaceful entity, governed by those not dedicated to the destruction of the
State of Israel, to which Gaza’s Palestinian population can return. </span></span></b><b><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It is clear that Hamas has lost,
or will lose, the present military struggle that they started on October 7. If this forces them to abandon their
policies of working to wipe out the State of Israel, and of their intent to
resume similar attacks in the future as soon as they are able to, it might
appear to be a surrender on their part.</span></span></b><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #c00000;"><span style="font-size: large;">But don’t be fooled!</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #c00000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">it is entirely possible that they always anticipated
losing the military struggle they knew their attack would bring about, but
proceeded not with the aim of winning militarily, but with the aim of unifying
Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, and elsewhere, in their aim of eventually
destroying the State of Israel, rather than seek a two-state solution, and
totally replacing it with an independent Palestinian state. The unavoidable deaths of thousands of innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza, resulting from Hamas military targets being intentionally located amidst civilian populations, would only bring more support to Hamas among Palestinians elsewhere.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">That is why Israel should not jump to agree
to any ‘cease-fire’ or surrender that allows Hamas to walk away with that kind
of ‘moral’ victory, gaining the allegiance of Palestinians outside of Gaza to
their deadly philosophy. </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Eventually, Hamas must still renounce
both its dedication to the destruction of the State of Israel and its intention
to stage further attacks upon it, even if they don’t really mean it. That would be a start, even though no one should
expect the Israelis to believe them either.
That’s why Israel must continue to attack Hamas militants wherever in Gaza they may be, and once the fighting ends, which someday it will, must ‘keep its powder dry.’</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Peace has to start somewhere.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Optimism
Department</u></i></span><span style="color: #404040; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">If you still need a dose of
optimism in the face of the lies and ignorance that are hallmarks of the
Republican Party, (and since it’s raining as I write this so you might be
cancelling your outside activities for the day), check out the latest from Simon
Rosenberg, eternal optimist, found at </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><b><a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/WhctKKZPGTFhrlgmvjWprcLhjSPcMFLVXHtDHJKFvFWKKglGsFqRfDmsBkDXQNZzKLFlQvq">https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/WhctKKZPGTFhrlgmvjWprcLhjSPcMFLVXHtDHJKFvFWKKglGsFqRfDmsBkDXQNZzKLFlQvq</a></b></span></span><b><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Or by <a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/WhctKKZPGTFhrlgmvjWprcLhjSPcMFLVXHtDHJKFvFWKKglGsFqRfDmsBkDXQNZzKLFlQvq" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">And some guarded optimism crept
into a New York Times column by Paul Krugman the other day when he concluded by
writing</span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #c00000;">. <i>‘… the fundamental puzzle isn’t that people are unhappy
despite favorable macroeconomic indicators.
It is that Americans say that things are terrible but behave as if
they’re doing pretty well. And I, at
least, am inclined to place more weight on what people do than what they say.’</i></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>Nineteen Dollars a Month, Please</u></i></span><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It bothers me that charities that advertise on
television no longer seem to be asking for donations, usually in amounts less
than $50 or $100, the kind of donations that have been their lifeblood for
years.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">All they seem to be asking donors for these
days are commitments for a monthly contribution, usually $19 a month, that adds
up to $228 a year, an amount that that usually also gets the donor a cheap
blanket or tee shirt. You know the
organizations that I am talking about, hospitals that specialize in children’s
diseases, abandoned dogs and cats, homeless teenagers, starving children, endangered
wildlife and other highly emotionally charged needs. Lately, in this holiday season, some of them even
have ‘Silent Night’ playing in the background.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">I gladly contribute regularly to several charities,
and at this time recommend that you do so as well, if you can afford to do
so. One good one is the ‘Season to
Share’ (</span></b><a href="https://yourcommunityfoundation.org/funds/season-to-share/"><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">https://yourcommunityfoundation.org/funds/season-to-share/</span></b></a><b><span style="line-height: 110%;">) that
solicits through my local newspaper, the Palm Beach Post. Many other newspapers have similar
campaigns. But I don’t commit to monthly
donations to any of them. I don’t think
that is a wise idea.<span style="color: #2b00fe;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><u><i><span style="color: #222222;">Black </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Marks on SCOTUS</span></i></u></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s slipping out in the news
that Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts had been working on a compromise that
would have saved some of the provisions of Roe vs Wade, protecting some abortion
rights.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">These efforts were totally
sidetracked, however, when a tentative draft copy of the Dobbs decision, the 2022 ruling
that totally reversed Roe vs Wade was ‘leaked.’
It is rumored that Justice Alito was the source of what obviously was a leak intended to short-circuit Roberts’ efforts. If this were the case, Alito’s name will be
joining that of the late Justice Scalia, whose opinion unleased the murderous proliferation
of guns in this country, among the black marks on the reputation of the SCOTUS,
almost equaling Justice Taney’s infamous Dred Scott pro-slavery decision in 1857.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #404040; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: medium;"><u>Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</u></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b style="font-size: large;"><u>Email Alerts</u>:<span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting
on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at </span><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><span style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></a></span><span style="color: #222222;">.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b style="font-size: large;"><u>Forwarding Postings</u>:<span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a></span><b><span style="color: #222222;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span>but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><span style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></a></span><span style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span>but I
recommend sending them the link.<span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b> <o:p></o:p></b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="color: #222222;">JL</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white; color: #2b00fe;"><b><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></span></b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></span></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5475990601987380708.post-50117537094170035132023-12-13T12:27:00.000-05:002023-12-13T12:27:16.127-05:00December 13, 2023 - 'Hopium' and Israel's Overplayed Hand<p> </p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: arial; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>A Big Dose of Optimism = An Addiction to Hope = ‘Hopium</u>’ </i></b></span><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">I
occasionally follow Simon Rosenberg’s blog, the ‘Hopium Chronicles’ although I
am not a paid subscriber to it on Substack where it appears. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Rosenberg, long active in
Democratic politics, is always optimistic and upbeat. That’s exactly what the
Democrats need today. </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif">Incidentally, Rosenberg </span></b><b style="background-color: white;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif">was the only ‘pundit’ who had no doubt that the Republicans would fall flat on their faces in 2020’s elections. </span></b></span></div><div><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div><b><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJSdCm-85HsS8g2VGMZHX7ltmpgeIn49C0rMpVxst1f7CpEH17GqtOZMz0HyvF-UHGkggiLsfKsC630O7hWo-fi5uxOksH8hhoSaKeEuz34vg6Y2edgxulrvIOJW5KFvsQV3l2vs9bcscn1gHc__BGhIGXBj3MaU1WOIDBb4AL0iNG6sH28G9A6HghYts/s318/Simon%20Rosenberg.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="318" data-original-width="318" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJSdCm-85HsS8g2VGMZHX7ltmpgeIn49C0rMpVxst1f7CpEH17GqtOZMz0HyvF-UHGkggiLsfKsC630O7hWo-fi5uxOksH8hhoSaKeEuz34vg6Y2edgxulrvIOJW5KFvsQV3l2vs9bcscn1gHc__BGhIGXBj3MaU1WOIDBb4AL0iNG6sH28G9A6HghYts/w125-h125/Simon%20Rosenberg.jpg" width="125" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rosenberg</td></tr></tbody></table></span></b></div><div><p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 15.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 15pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">In the
December 12 posting of the ‘Hopium Chronicles,’ Rosenberg pointed out that in a
Reuters poll, “</span></b><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">31% of Republicans say they will note vote for Trump if he is
convicted of a felony crime. It’s a reminder of what a risk Trump is for
Republicans. He only got 46% of the vote last time, and has more baggage than
any candidate in modern American history. Consider what Trump and the
Republicans will have to defend in 2024:</span></i></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">convicted
for trying to rape a woman in a department store<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">oversaw
one of the largest financial frauds in American history<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">more
responsible for ending Roe and stripping away the reproductive rights of women
than any other person in America<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">executed
what may be the most consequential security breach in American history and lied
about it to the FBI<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">has
taken more money from foreign governments than any politician in American
history, and is without doubt, the single most corrupt politician our country
has ever seen<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">praised
dictators, appeased and partnered with Putin, denigrated NATO and openly
undermined American power and interests around the world<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">oversaw
a party-wide effort to overturn an American election, end American democracy
for all time and is promising to finish the job in 2025<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif">led
an armed assault on the US Congress<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span>·<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--></span><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">support
for more dead kids in schools, a warmer planet, the stripping of fundamental
rights common throughout the world, taking health care away from tens of
millions, mass deportation…’</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></span></b></span></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 60.0pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 0in 60pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2f5496;"><span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></i></span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif">To read more of <span style="color: #cc0000;">the good news</span> on ‘Hopium Chronicles,’ visit it at </span></b><a href="https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/by"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/by</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"> or by <a href="https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/by" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE.</a> It is
free, although followers can upgrade to a level where they can participate in
the blog, for monthly fee. </span></b></span></p><p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #c00000; font-size: medium;">Rosenberg
concludes the December 12 posting by reminding us that we must ‘Keep working
hard. We all have a lot of work to do.</span><span><span style="color: #c00000; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic;">’ </span><span style="font-size: medium;">I agree.</span><span style="color: #c00000; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p style="background: white; line-height: 19.5pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">JL</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">
* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial; line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>A Bad Move by Israel Strengthened Hamas</u></i></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Before reading on, let me make it clear that it
is possible for both Jews and non-Jews to oppose the policies of the
government of the State of Israel <u>without</u> being accused of being anti-Zionist
or antisemitic. <span style="color: #c00000;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">And now, let me get this
straight. According to the New York
Times, the Israeli government cooperated with oil-rich Qatar’s generous
financing of the Hamas government on the Gaza Strip over the years to keep
Hamas strong enough to balance the Palestinian Authority over on the West Bank
but not strong enough to create a military problem for Israel. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">This required a very delicate
balancing act, and one that obviously failed. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm0w2JHo_Ax6ShqPyv-EZKDANGyjQ7aWAXXpaHagR9YyW4CkKCSFqTq-h0Ub9yn7g0rtROIlQPqVdNdh6AD65dIrok3xgyfIlYC8NSEZIbndyT_O-t5sdhDfbmZjFaQD5QAKmH7DKtTrOjLKftBSr2zTPnMcaA41RcVvQiMMYLDwZLd6gSgVqzse81zR4/s650/Qatar%20Map.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="338" data-original-width="650" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm0w2JHo_Ax6ShqPyv-EZKDANGyjQ7aWAXXpaHagR9YyW4CkKCSFqTq-h0Ub9yn7g0rtROIlQPqVdNdh6AD65dIrok3xgyfIlYC8NSEZIbndyT_O-t5sdhDfbmZjFaQD5QAKmH7DKtTrOjLKftBSr2zTPnMcaA41RcVvQiMMYLDwZLd6gSgVqzse81zR4/w400-h208/Qatar%20Map.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The United States, with its military and intelligence presence in Bahrain, certainly <br />must have known what was going on in neighboring Qatar.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">To review the Times article, visit </span></b><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/10/world/middleeast/israel-qatar-money-prop-up-hamas.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-israel-gaza&variant=show&region=BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT&block=storyline_flex_guide_recirc"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/10/world/middleeast/israel-qatar-money-prop-up-hamas.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-israel-gaza&variant=show&region=BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT&block=storyline_flex_guide_recirc</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"> or just <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/10/world/middleeast/israel-qatar-money-prop-up-hamas.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-israel-gaza&variant=show&region=BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT&block=storyline_flex_guide_recirc " target="_blank">JUST CLICK HERE.</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Supposedly, the Qatari money would not be used
by Hamas to strengthen its military activities, but even so, Israel ignored the
fact that it freed up other Hamas resources to prepare for its October 7 attack
on Israel. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">In my opinion, the Israeli government was foolish
in attempting to encourage and take advantage of the division among Palestinian
groups in their degree of animosity toward Israel as an Israeli strategy
to avoid a two-state solution. Hamas, wanted to eliminate the State of Israel entirely, while the
Palestinian Authority merely resented and hated it. Israel was attempting to play one against the
other to its advantage, using Qatar’s money to bolster Hamas.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">With the two Palestinian groups
in disagreement, there would be no one single entity to participate in a
two-state solution with Israel, thereby providing encouragement to Israeli
settlers in the occupied territories on the West Bank to assume that area would
eventually be part of Israel in a one-state </span></b></span><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;">solution </span></b><b style="font-size: large;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">and leading
them to behave aggressively toward the Palestinians there. </span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">(This is no piddling number. Israeli sources say there are about 500,000
Israeli settlers living on the West Bank and in other occupied territories
outside of the borders of the State of Israel.
Palestinian sources put that number at 700,000.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Many Israelis saw the fallacy of this position,
but it still enabled Benjamin Netanyahu to lock in the votes of the extreme
right-wing religious parties in the Knesset, parties that believed in a
one-state solution and an expanded Israel, votes that he needed to remain in
power. <span style="color: #c00000;">Now, a
harshly awakened Israel is attempting to destroy both Hamas’ military operation
and along with it, Hamas’ civilian infrastructure that it foolishly allowed to
exist in Gaza for the purpose of balancing the Palestinian Authority on the
West Bank.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">As Hamas’ military is being destroyed in Gaza, Israeli settlers on the
West Bank are becoming more aggressive, and in effect starting to take it over.</span><span style="color: #2f5496;"> </span></span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;">The present Israeli government
seems content with that for the time being, closing their eyes to the fact that
it is just another solution that will fail. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">All that is left for the Palestinians seems to
be Hamas’ philosophy of eliminating the State of Israel, but with no real power
to accomplish that<span style="color: #2f5496;">. </span><span style="color: #2b00fe;">It doesn’t take a genius to see
that this is resulting in the Palestinians on the West Bank, unhappy with the supposedly
corrupt Palestinian Authority there and subject to increasing harassment by the
settlers, coming together with those supporting Hamas in Gaza in opposition to
the very existence of the State of Israel.</span><span style="color: #2f5496;">
</span>This ‘coming together’ is exactly the opposite of the disunion
among Palestinians that Netanyahu’s bankrupt policies intended to foster. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">In a way, it reopens the road to a two-state
solution, but it is a much rockier and boulder-strewn road than it was before
Netanyahu’s dealing with Qatar strengthened Hamas. That road needs repaving.<span style="color: #2f5496; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000; line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">This is what happens when those
in charge, and this applies to both Israelis and Palestinians, allow extremists
to determine their actions. Right now, neither recognize the eventuality of a two-state solution.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="line-height: 110%;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">And I repeat, it is possible for even Jews, in
Israel or elsewhere, to oppose the policies of the government of the State of
Israel without being accused of being anti-Zionist or antisemitic.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">JL</span></span></b><b style="color: #222222; font-size: large;"> </b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
* * *</span></span></b><b style="color: #363636; font-size: large;"> </b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;"><u>Housekeeping on
Jackspotpourri</u></span><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: medium; text-decoration-line: underline;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">Email Alerts</span></u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you
are NOT receiving emails from me alerting you each time there is a new posting
on Jackspotpourri, just send me your email address and we’ll see that you
do. And if you are forwarding a posting to someone, you might
suggest that they do the same, so they will be similarly alerted. You can
pass those email addresses to me by email at </span><a href="mailto:jacklippman18@gmail.com"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">jacklippman18@gmail.com</span></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">Forwarding Postings</span></u><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">:</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2f5496;"> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Please
forward this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.
Friends, relatives, enemies, etc.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">If you want to send someone the
blog, exactly as you are now seeing it, with all of its bells
and whistles, you can just tell folks to check it out by visiting </span></b><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></b></a><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"> or
by providing a link to that address in your email to them. </span></b><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #cc0000;"> I
think this is the best method of forwarding Jackspotpourri.<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">There’s another, perhaps easier,
method of forwarding it though! Google Blogspot, the platform
on which Jackspotpourri is prepared, makes that possible. If you click on
the tiny envelope with the arrow at the bottom of every posting, you will
have the opportunity to list up to ten email addresses to which that blog
posting will be forwarded, along with a comment from you. Each
will receive a link to the textual portion only of the blog that
you are now reading, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">but without the illustrations,
colors, variations in typography, or the 'sidebar' features such as access to
the blog's archives.</span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">Either way will work, sending
them the link to </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5475990601987380708/6081650797179997385"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2288bb;">https://jackspotpourri.blogspot.com</span></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;">, or
clicking on the envelope at the bottom of this posting, </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;">but I
recommend sending them the link.</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #c00000;">Again, I urge you to forward
this posting to anyone you think might benefit from reading it.</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial;">JL</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><b><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span>
* * *</span></span></b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p></div>Jack Lippmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06254734313050452119noreply@blogger.com0