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Taking Dictation

I have no

capacity

for taking

dictation

or anything

else

like it.

I’ll never be

a secretary

or assistant

to 

an administrator

who listens to

a dictator.

Those compliant

with a tyrant

like those

who chose

to remain

silent,

may survive

and even 

thrive,

for 

at least

a while

or more.

But,

in time,

history’s 

rhyme

will seek

poetic

justice.

It’s not

just us

as never 

before

or ever

again.

When power

corrupts

and monopolizes,

taking dictation

finalizes

consolidation

of power.

Whether 

government

or corporation,

the excessive 

power

manifestation

somehow

gets justification

(and monetization )

while deterioration

ensues.

But…

You have agency

to disrupt

complacency 

and the responsibility

to do so.

Those who

take notes

in history

class

know the past

is more

than prologue.

It’s a dialogue

with the present

and future

that we must

nurture

without

taking

dictation.

Mass Murder. Literally. Moms Demand Action

Children.

Children.

Children attending

Mass.

Murdered.

At School.

In Church

there.

Thoughts

and prayers

instead of laws

by naysayers

when kids 

were literally

shot

while praying.

Alas,

this is mass

murder,

literally

at mass.

How much

more crass

can we be?

I saw a

photo

like no

other

of a 

mother

running 

down the

street

in bare

feet

holding 

her shoes,

sprinting

toward 

the school,

with mother’s

fuel

and fear.

I tear

up just

thinking of

this image;

this extraordinary,

yet insanely

ordinary

scene.

Just back

to school.

Nothing

more cruel,

than doing

nothing

about

mass 

murder.

especially

of children.

Don’t accept

this

unconscionableness.

We can’t remain

still,

hopeless.

Momentum

takes time.

You can take action now:

https://momsdemandaction.org/

The Point of No Return

The point of

no return

is to learn-

not just

yearn-

for something

else.

We don’t 

grow younger

or

have more

innocence

when life

provides us

ongoing

experience.

We tend to 

digress

and at times

regress

making progress

seemingly

less 

likely.

Home isn’t

there

where it 

is no more,

before

we moved

away.

We can’t

really stay

the way

we were,

but we sure

can mature

and play

wiser.

Ironically,

it looks

quite silly,

but seems 

to be 

impactful.

Forget 

being tactful.

We live

in the gutter

now.

It’s how

you utter

the message

that matters

so it splatters

across all

media.

No encyclopedia

needed,

just deep 

seeded

anger,

and a commitment

to mirror

this horror

show.

The point 

of no

return

is to know

(and to show)

that we are

better than

this.

To boldly 

go 

where no

one

has gone

before

has moved 

from Star Trek

to South Park;

our stark

cartoonish

reality.

Finally,

heroically,

momentum

is increasing

as Newsom

is teasing

Trump,

with a 

shocking,

and mocking

style.

Sadly,

this is 

progress,

(and also

hilarious)

if we are 

serious

about 

the point

of no

return.

DC Comic Con

It’s a marvel

to behold

what’s about

to unfold

in DC.

Crime is down

in the capital

town,

despite

what the 

spiteful

prez says.

He’ll pretend

to defend

all that is

sacred

when really

it’s hatred

he  preserves

and unleashes.

He releases

The Guard

when the going

gets hard-

only

for him.

Funny

how  despite

his bluster,

he couldn’t 

muster

The National

Guard

—it was too

hard—

during

his insurrection.

Now his protection

against

being a joke

is deflection

and crackdown

wherever it’s 

woke

in his projection.

LA

and DC,

and soon each

city

will start to see

and pay 

dearly

for this beloved

embodiment

of antiestablishment:

the president

who regards

the presidency

as a joke

of expediency

to be ever more

greedy

and powerful

because he

can.

Plastic Surgery

I’m a hypocrite;

I know it.

I admit it,

though

I think 

the problem

is public

as well as

corporate.

I know

it would be

drastic

to forgo

the use of

plastic,

because it

really is

fantastic,

but it’s 

poisonous.

Poisoning us

like smoking

does,

without noticing

thus.

Leaching into

water sources,

air and soil,

natural resources,

mammals

and all animals,

and the atmosphere

here

on earth,

is deceptively toxic

from so much plastic.

Who knew 

that from

the era of

“The Graduate”

we’d gradually,

inadvertently,

blindly,

slowly

kill everything.

Micro 

and nano

plastics

are found

underground

and inside us.

But the demand

for change

in how we 

arrange

our lives

for health

is rather strange.

We know

the plastic

problem

continues

to grow,

though we

dare not

abstain,

which is 

a stain

on our 

humanity.

Kennedy,

the Secretary

of Health,

and Human

Services,

has an opportunity

to shift away

from mRNA

funding cuts,

to finding 

the guts

to take on

Big Plastic.

It’s so ubiquitous,

this poisonous

stuff 

that’s poisoning

us 

and the environment,

but its

retirement

is not yet

a conversation.

It will 

necessitate

those who 

might hesitate

to boldly

demand policy

private

and public,

that plastic

becomes

less ubiquitous

and poisonous

to us

and every

living thing

around us.

Start here:

https://www.beyondplastics.org/act

https://www.beyondplastics.org/

Love Island

The Epstein isle,

now a classified

file

of those

attached 

to the vile

pedofile,

can even

revile

the most

MAGA.

The saga

has a 

lifespan

that began

years ago

and you 

know who

was a fan.

The Donald

fondled

whoever

he wanted

and taunted

throughout

his life.

But the current 

strife

within his

coalition

is based 

on the position

he put 

himself in 

in order 

to secure

the win.

Is the cover up

worse 

than the crime

this time?

Stay tuned

for the reality

show’s

finale.

Or maybe

there’ll be

a sequel.

Few,

if any,

will equal

Epstein

in all of his

pure evil,

but guilt

by association

in this

constellation

could be

a revelation

of consequence.

In this instance,

the dissonance

as Trump

tries to distance

himself from

evidence

revealed

long ago,

that they

partied

together

(birds of a feather),

at least

somewhat,

from what

we know.

But clearly

there’s more

that would

be revealed

if these

classified

documents

became

unsealed.

He’s concealed

his perversions

of laws and norms

and forms

tales—

ok, lies—

on a whim.

Will Epstein’s

ghost

harm him

the most?

I’m curious

to know

what reality

will show.

This might

be the most

watched episode

yet.

The Late Show

Defund PBS.

Extort CBS

to obey

in advance

and pay

in advance

to dance

with 

the devil.

Making 

a show

of 

The Late Show

just 

to let you

know

that speech

won’t be 

free

even in

comedy.

The dissolution

of an institution 

of American

culture

shows how

the culture

of cancelling

is now cancelling

culture.

And:

each branch

of government,

and education,

the Kennedy Center,

public radio 

and television,

in addition

to science-

the environment,

weather,

and medicine.

Let’s not forget

women

who have lost

the right 

to legal

abortion.

Everything

is being 

scrapped

and crapped 

on,

as of late,

making a show

of how great

America was.

NOAA’s Arc

In an atmosphere

of fear

and threat

and perpetual

distortions,

we get

flooded

with antediluvian

actions

compounded by 

distractions

of epic

proportions.

The contortions 

of explanation

from the current

administration

on everything

from reigning

in immigration

to raining

inundation,

when the

lapse in 

communication

seemed to

exacerbate

a biblical

situation,

severely

compounds

the loss

and frustration

that somehow

is still

siloed.

The National

Oceanic

and Atmospheric

Administration

endured

DOGE

job 

eliminations

which

seemed to

affect

communications

between

the National

Weather Service

and state

actors.

But detractors

will insist

that deathly

flooding

would persist

no matter 

what.

Yes,

the rains

were extraordinary

and likely

to cause

adversity.

But was

the calamity

necessarily

due to

an impossibility?

The unbearable 

tragedy

from the floods

in Texas

reminds us

that nature

can be 

quite cruel.

But humans

fuel

the result

of nature’s

tumult

one way

or another. 

NOAA’s

arc 

of expansion

decades since

its creation

has provided

communication

and exploration

tools

that only fools

in this administration

would find

dispensable.

We’ve seen

this with

other agencies,

like USAID

where the lack

from the cutback

means

more die.

Defunding research

and/or communication

leaves

those most

in need

in the lurch

in the most

horrible

situation.

Responsible

oversight

might

seem ancient

when the penchant

for disruption

is au curant. 

Until recently,

NOAA’s arc

was built

conscientiously

to protect

us 

and the environment.

As 911 

and Katrina revealed,

the politics 

concealed

breakdowns

between authorities.

The disparities

were ignored

until 

the devastation

was toured

and the discoveries

appalling.

NOAA’s arc

again

reminds me

that  we

must bend

the arc

of history

creatively

toward justice

and sustainability.

Wealthcare

The MAGA agenda

will upend a

well understood

program that could

keep poor 

people

from more 

suffering

should they become

sick

or hurt.

The wealthier

the healthier,

as the Big Beautiful Bill

will

ensure

a tax break

for the rich

which

comes at

a cost.

We have lost

the ability

to maintain

stability

for the neediest

among us.

Medicaid is

obtained

by those

most strained

by few resources.

Those who suspect

that those who

collect 

Medicaid

are afraid 

to work

and shirk

responsibility,

have the ability

to see

conspiracy

and cheating

in everything.

Hmmmm….

Perhaps it’s 

projecting?

Of course 

we need checks

and balances,

but they offer

allowances

for this President.

Imagine being

injured

with pain

that has lingered,

inhibiting

being able

to work

or 

pay for

medical care.

But Wealthcare

is there

to protect

and defend

the indefensible

for whom

everything

is affordable

except the cost

of the Big Beautiful

Bill.

Call your representatives

on Capitol Hill!

Strike Too

Rummy

was no dummy,

despite

his slightly

self evident

statement

about unknown

unknowns:

“Reports that say 

that something hasn’t happened 

are always interesting to me, 

because as we know, 

there are known knowns;

there are things we know we know.

We also know

there are known unknowns;

that is to say

we know there are some things

we do not know.

But there are also 

unknown unknowns—

the ones we don’t know

we don’t know.

And if one looks throughout

the history 

of our country

and other free countries,

it is the latter

category

that tends to be

the difficult ones.”

Then “Mission Accomplished”

was declared

and we 

all know

how well 

that fared.

And yet,

the Iranian 

nuclear threat

seemingly contained

for years

diplomatically,

was fantastically

upended

when Israel

descended upon

Iran’s

nuclear sites 

and military

brass;

exquisitely precise

for a military

operation

of decapitation.

Whether you like

a preemptive strike

or not

is not up to Congress

right now.

Trump’s surprise move

may behoove him,

if Iran’s nuclear threat

was obliterated.

But what 

we don’t 

seem to learn

is my very concern:

we don’t know

the unknown

unknowns .

And history

has shown

that home grown

autocracies

don’t easily

or necessarily

become democracies,

so I’m not sure

which mission

has been

accomplished.

The bravery

of diplomacy

and norms

of democracy

must be brought 

back 

to the fore

before

strike three.

There are just

too many

unknown

unknowns

for me

to be 

assured 

of safety.