"An image purportedly showing a screenshot from a Russian state TV news program featuring eight Republican U.S. senators — Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Mitt Romney (R-Utah), John Cornyn (R-TX), Richard Burr (R-NC), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Ron Johnson (R-WI), and John Thune (R-SD) — made its way online in January 2019, along with the claim that the pictured American lawmakers were being “honored” or “thanked” for lifting sanctions against three companies controlled by Russian oligarch Oleg V. Deripaska ....."
Courtesy of SNOPES fact check, read:
Did Russian State TV Thank GOP Lawmakers for Lifting Sanctions?
Russia knows who its friends are. ---
American Republican Senators AND Twitler Donald J. Trump!
Saturday, February 23, 2019
Wednesday, February 20, 2019
USA Needs A Change In Government Structure
Preface
America's original 13 colonies banded together to form the United States of America. The first constitution for the United States was the Articles of Confederation which were adopted by the Continental Congress, also known as the Philadelphia Congress, on November 15, 1777. However, the Articles were not ratified by all thirteen states until March 1, 1781.
Not long after its adoption, there was a call to hold a convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. to discuss and draft improvements to the Articles of Confederation.
The Convention met between May and September of 1787 to address the problems of the weak central government that existed under the Articles of Confederation. However, most of the delegates (not all) in attendance concluded that a new system of government was needed, not simply a revised version of the Articles of Confederation.
The Philadelphia Convention became known as The Constitutional Convention of 1787. At the Convention, several plans were introduced. James Madison's plan, known as the Virginia Plan, was the most important plan. The Virginia Plan was a proposal by Virginia delegates for a bicameral legislative branch. After much debate, several major compromises were reached at The Constitutional Convention.
Ratification of the new Constitution of the United States of America was a long, tedious process. The new proposed Constitution did not require ratification of all 13 States to take effect; it only required ratification of 9 States.
"On June 21, 1788, the Constitution became the official governing document of the United States of America when New Hampshire became the ninth of 13 states to ratify it." Virginia soon followed with ratification on June 25, 1788, with New York quickly following on July 26, 1788, becoming the 10th and 11th States to ratify the new constitution.
The lack of guarantees of individual rights was a major impediment to the ratification process. It was not until a bill of rights was proposed by Congress in 1789 that North Carolina became the 12th State in the process and ratified the Constitution on November 21, 1789. Rhode Island had originally rejected the Constitution in March 1788 by means of popular referendum. However, in 1790 upon being faced with the possibility of being treated as a foreign government, Rhode Island called for a ratifying convention and ratified the Constitution on May 29, 1790 by only a 2 vote margin, making Rhode Island the last of the original 13 colonies to ratify the present day Constitution.
Soon after the new Constitution of the United States of America as written in 1787 was ratified, the first ten amendments, known as The Bill of Rights, were passed. As of today, there are a total of 27 Amendments to the United States Constitution.
NOW, on to my Commentary:
There have been many criticisms of the National Government of the United States of America. People have been critical of electing the President by means of the Electoral College, of the way in which Congress functions or doesn't function, of national legislative "career politicians" who have no term limits (except by means of the ballot box - that sarcasm is all mine) and whose primary interest is being elected to another term, of Presidents for everything from A to Z, of corrupt elected officials bought and paid for by special interests, ---- and the list goes on and on and on.
As you know, the United States of America Congress consists of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Right now, the House of Representatives has a Democratic Party majority and the Senate has a Republican Party majority.
The U.S. House of Representatives is based on the one person/one vote principle, with the House consisting of 435 Representatives proportionally representing the population of the 50 states. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives each represent a portion of their state known as a Congressional District, which averages 700,000 people.
The Senate is not based on the one person/one vote principle. The U.S. Senate consists of 2 Senators from each of the 50 States, for a total of 100 Senators. Unlike a U.S. Representative, each Senator represents the entire population of a State, regardless of the State's population. Consequently, a State with a small population, such as Rhode Island (1.06 million people) has an equal vote (read that as "has as much power") in the Senate as a State with a large population, such as New York (19.85 million).
The President blames Democrats for everything that isn't right in American politics, as do Republicans in general. Democrats blame Republicans. The Senate political majority blames the United States House of Representatives; and the House majority blames the Senate. It seems as though no one in the National Government will take responsibility, let alone be held accountable for their own words, actions, and deeds. And what of being responsive to the American public?
Well, I have my own thoughts on a resolution to this whole thing.
We need a new Constitutional Convention.
I say change the term of office of President to 6 years with election being in odd numbered years and limited to one term, change the term of office for members of the House of Representatives to 6 years with one-third of its membership elected every 2 years with election being in even numbered years thereby assuring continuity of government and also limited to one term, and totally eliminate the Senate. With no more worries about running for re-election, maybe those elected officials will work at getting things done rather than posturing for the next election.
ADDENDUM
COUNTERPOINT FROM DALE PERCHECK
America's original 13 colonies banded together to form the United States of America. The first constitution for the United States was the Articles of Confederation which were adopted by the Continental Congress, also known as the Philadelphia Congress, on November 15, 1777. However, the Articles were not ratified by all thirteen states until March 1, 1781.
Not long after its adoption, there was a call to hold a convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. to discuss and draft improvements to the Articles of Confederation.
The Convention met between May and September of 1787 to address the problems of the weak central government that existed under the Articles of Confederation. However, most of the delegates (not all) in attendance concluded that a new system of government was needed, not simply a revised version of the Articles of Confederation.
The Philadelphia Convention became known as The Constitutional Convention of 1787. At the Convention, several plans were introduced. James Madison's plan, known as the Virginia Plan, was the most important plan. The Virginia Plan was a proposal by Virginia delegates for a bicameral legislative branch. After much debate, several major compromises were reached at The Constitutional Convention.
Ratification of the new Constitution of the United States of America was a long, tedious process. The new proposed Constitution did not require ratification of all 13 States to take effect; it only required ratification of 9 States.
"On June 21, 1788, the Constitution became the official governing document of the United States of America when New Hampshire became the ninth of 13 states to ratify it." Virginia soon followed with ratification on June 25, 1788, with New York quickly following on July 26, 1788, becoming the 10th and 11th States to ratify the new constitution.
The lack of guarantees of individual rights was a major impediment to the ratification process. It was not until a bill of rights was proposed by Congress in 1789 that North Carolina became the 12th State in the process and ratified the Constitution on November 21, 1789. Rhode Island had originally rejected the Constitution in March 1788 by means of popular referendum. However, in 1790 upon being faced with the possibility of being treated as a foreign government, Rhode Island called for a ratifying convention and ratified the Constitution on May 29, 1790 by only a 2 vote margin, making Rhode Island the last of the original 13 colonies to ratify the present day Constitution.
Soon after the new Constitution of the United States of America as written in 1787 was ratified, the first ten amendments, known as The Bill of Rights, were passed. As of today, there are a total of 27 Amendments to the United States Constitution.
NOW, on to my Commentary:
There have been many criticisms of the National Government of the United States of America. People have been critical of electing the President by means of the Electoral College, of the way in which Congress functions or doesn't function, of national legislative "career politicians" who have no term limits (except by means of the ballot box - that sarcasm is all mine) and whose primary interest is being elected to another term, of Presidents for everything from A to Z, of corrupt elected officials bought and paid for by special interests, ---- and the list goes on and on and on.
As you know, the United States of America Congress consists of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Right now, the House of Representatives has a Democratic Party majority and the Senate has a Republican Party majority.
The U.S. House of Representatives is based on the one person/one vote principle, with the House consisting of 435 Representatives proportionally representing the population of the 50 states. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives each represent a portion of their state known as a Congressional District, which averages 700,000 people.
The Senate is not based on the one person/one vote principle. The U.S. Senate consists of 2 Senators from each of the 50 States, for a total of 100 Senators. Unlike a U.S. Representative, each Senator represents the entire population of a State, regardless of the State's population. Consequently, a State with a small population, such as Rhode Island (1.06 million people) has an equal vote (read that as "has as much power") in the Senate as a State with a large population, such as New York (19.85 million).
The President blames Democrats for everything that isn't right in American politics, as do Republicans in general. Democrats blame Republicans. The Senate political majority blames the United States House of Representatives; and the House majority blames the Senate. It seems as though no one in the National Government will take responsibility, let alone be held accountable for their own words, actions, and deeds. And what of being responsive to the American public?
Well, I have my own thoughts on a resolution to this whole thing.
We need a new Constitutional Convention.
I say change the term of office of President to 6 years with election being in odd numbered years and limited to one term, change the term of office for members of the House of Representatives to 6 years with one-third of its membership elected every 2 years with election being in even numbered years thereby assuring continuity of government and also limited to one term, and totally eliminate the Senate. With no more worries about running for re-election, maybe those elected officials will work at getting things done rather than posturing for the next election.
ADDENDUM
COUNTERPOINT FROM DALE PERCHECK
Thursday, February 7, 2019
The Psychology of a Donald J. Trump Supporter
Can avid supporters of Donald J. Trump, who I sometimes refer to as Trumpeteers, Trumpettes, Trumpsters, and/or Twitlerites, be analyzed using the scientific method?
According to an article in Psychology Today, one study concluded that there are five major psychological phenomena that help explain the extreme devotion and unwavering admiration of Trumpeteers for the highly unpredictable and often inflammatory Donald J. Trump:
According to an article in Psychology Today, one study concluded that there are five major psychological phenomena that help explain the extreme devotion and unwavering admiration of Trumpeteers for the highly unpredictable and often inflammatory Donald J. Trump:
- Authoritarian Personality Syndrome
- Social dominance orientation
- Prejudice
- Intergroup contact
- Relative deprivation
ref:The Pacific Standard publshed an article reporting that one social scientific study of Trumpsters concluded they are driven by a combination of racial resentment and authoritarianism, and that another social scientific study concluded that support for Trump is associated with authoritarian aggression.
An Analysis of Trump Supporters Has Identified 5 Key TraitsA new report sheds light on the psychological basis for Trump's support.Posted Dec 31, 2017
ref:Being in agreement with the findings of the afore-mentioned studies, I conclude with what could very well be a standard response on the various social media sites to Trumpeteers, Trumpettes, Trumpsters, and Twitlerites as follows:
INSIDE THE MINDS OF HARDCORE TRUMP SUPPORTERSNew research finds the president's earliest and strongest followers embody a particularly belligerent strain of authoritarian thinking.TOM JACOBS, FEB 15, 2018
Saturday, January 26, 2019
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
USA under Donald J. Trump: Republic, Democracy. Oligarchy, Dictatorship, or what?
The United States of America Congress consists of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Right now, the House of Representatives has a Democratic Party majority and the Senate has a Republican Party majority.
The U.S. House of Representatives is based on the one person/one vote principle, with the House consisting of 435 Reoresentatives proportionally representing the population of the 50 states. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives each represent a portion of their state known as a Congressional District, which averages 700,000 people.
The U.S. Senate consists of 100 Senators, each of whom represent an entire state with each state, regardless of population, having 2 Senators, thereby enabling a small population state such as Rhode Island (1.06 million people) to have an equal vote in the Senate as a large population state such as New York (19.85 million).
Recently, the DEMOCRATIC Party controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to fund and re-open the U.S. Government. That bill was not even voted on by the REPUBLICAN Party controlled U.S. Senate because REPUBLICAN Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would not allow the DEMOCRATIC Party controlled House of Representatives passed legislation to be put to a vote in the REPUBLICAN controlled Senate, stating he would not allow anything that REPUBLICAN Donald J. Trump, who became President via the Electoral College despite not receiving a majority vote of the Amercan people, would not approve.
I say that it is the Republicans, who represent a minority of the American voters, not the Democrats, who represent the majority of the American voters, that are forcing their political beliefs and agenda onto the majority of the American people. And, the Republicans are controlled by the Supreme Puppet Master Donald J. Trump.
It seems to me that American national government is following the path forged by Germany when it transitioned from government under the Weimar Republic to government under the National Socialist German Workers' Party and Adolf Hitler.
That being stated, looking at the reality of national government in the United States today rather than political ideological form of government, I have to wonder if the USA under Donald J. Trump is a Republic, a Democracy. an Oligarchy, a Dictatorship, or what.
Right now, the House of Representatives has a Democratic Party majority and the Senate has a Republican Party majority.
The U.S. House of Representatives is based on the one person/one vote principle, with the House consisting of 435 Reoresentatives proportionally representing the population of the 50 states. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives each represent a portion of their state known as a Congressional District, which averages 700,000 people.
The U.S. Senate consists of 100 Senators, each of whom represent an entire state with each state, regardless of population, having 2 Senators, thereby enabling a small population state such as Rhode Island (1.06 million people) to have an equal vote in the Senate as a large population state such as New York (19.85 million).
Recently, the DEMOCRATIC Party controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to fund and re-open the U.S. Government. That bill was not even voted on by the REPUBLICAN Party controlled U.S. Senate because REPUBLICAN Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would not allow the DEMOCRATIC Party controlled House of Representatives passed legislation to be put to a vote in the REPUBLICAN controlled Senate, stating he would not allow anything that REPUBLICAN Donald J. Trump, who became President via the Electoral College despite not receiving a majority vote of the Amercan people, would not approve.
I say that it is the Republicans, who represent a minority of the American voters, not the Democrats, who represent the majority of the American voters, that are forcing their political beliefs and agenda onto the majority of the American people. And, the Republicans are controlled by the Supreme Puppet Master Donald J. Trump.
It seems to me that American national government is following the path forged by Germany when it transitioned from government under the Weimar Republic to government under the National Socialist German Workers' Party and Adolf Hitler.
That being stated, looking at the reality of national government in the United States today rather than political ideological form of government, I have to wonder if the USA under Donald J. Trump is a Republic, a Democracy. an Oligarchy, a Dictatorship, or what.
Sunday, January 13, 2019
Dictatorship USA!
Is the USA becoming a dictatorship government under Donald Trump and the Republican Party?
I refer you to the following article:
GOP Rejected Obama's Executive Reach, but Accepts Trump's by Lisa Mascaro, AP Congressional Correspondent
More food for thought:
F.B.I. Opened Inquiry Into Whether Trump Was Secretly Working on Behalf of Russia by Adam Goldman, Michael S. Schmidt and Nicholas Fandos
I refer you to the following article:
GOP Rejected Obama's Executive Reach, but Accepts Trump's by Lisa Mascaro, AP Congressional Correspondent
More food for thought:
F.B.I. Opened Inquiry Into Whether Trump Was Secretly Working on Behalf of Russia by Adam Goldman, Michael S. Schmidt and Nicholas Fandos
Monday, December 31, 2018
Snopes and Political Conservatives, such as Troy Neff, who are Avid Practitioners of Selective Perception
It is not uncommon for me to do fact-checking the best I can. Frequently, I have cited articles from Snopes.
This past March 18, 2018, political conservative Troy Neff posted a status update on his Facebook wall in which he wrote,
Well, back on that Sunday of March 18, 2018 at 10:30 p.m., Troy Neff wrote the following on my Facebook:
Concurrently, while doing my research about Snopes, I read the following in a Wikipedia article:
I did indeed find many articles concerning the veracity Snopes, in which many of the articles seemed biased in their dependence on selective perception in the same manner as selective perception has been used by both Troy Neff and 'Ditch Cuyahoga' (or whatever his or her real name might be).
I now selectively choose to refer readers to just one of the articles that I read. That article describes Snopes as being least biased and its fact reporting as high. You may read the report yourself over at:
I say, "Give me the facts." "Just the facts, ma'am."
This past March 18, 2018, political conservative Troy Neff posted a status update on his Facebook wall in which he wrote,
“Here’s more of your peaceful protest. And this ain’t California.” and to which he attached a link to a Fox News Article entitled, Student with ‘Trump’ flag assaulted by mob during National School Walkout.I responded as a reply to that posting on his Facebook wall by posting two links to articles without making any comment of my own. One link was to a fact check article by Snopes entitled “Did Donald Trump Encourage Violence at His Rallies?” The other was a link was to an article from Mashable entitled “All the times Trump has called for violence at his rallies.”
Well, back on that Sunday of March 18, 2018 at 10:30 p.m., Troy Neff wrote the following on my Facebook:
"Your 1st Amendment right is extended to you on your page. Not mine. Snopes? Seriously gtfo here with that dumb shit. It’s called personal responsibility. But I’d guess a hypocrite would forget about Obama saying to bring a gun if they have a knife.I responded to Troy Neff with:
The left has been ridiculously violent. That’s ok. We’re over it.
You’re special for sure."
"Government 101 Lesson, Troy Neff. First Amendment only applies to the national government.To which, Troy Neff simply replied,
p.s. My mother always said, 'Two wrongs do not make a right.'
It appears to me, Troy, that you fail to practice what you preach. Is it really necessary for you to use potty mouth language to make your point?"
"Yes."Fast forward to the morning of December 31, 2018: On my Roland's Ramblings blog, I received the following comment from Ditch Cuyahoga <dcuyahoga@gmail.com> {107.77.161.8} in response to Regarding Troy Neff of Toledo, Ohio, a Roland's Ramblings blog entry that I had posted on March 19, 2018:
"In all fairness, using Snopes to back your argument automatically makes your point invalid. It has been proven they are wrong more times than right. Easy to research that."Consequently, I did indeed research Snopes.
Concurrently, while doing my research about Snopes, I read the following in a Wikipedia article:
Selective perception is the process by which individuals perceive what they want to in media messages while ignoring opposing viewpoints. It is a broad term to identify the behavior all people exhibit to tend to "see things" based on their particular frame of reference.
I did indeed find many articles concerning the veracity Snopes, in which many of the articles seemed biased in their dependence on selective perception in the same manner as selective perception has been used by both Troy Neff and 'Ditch Cuyahoga' (or whatever his or her real name might be).
I now selectively choose to refer readers to just one of the articles that I read. That article describes Snopes as being least biased and its fact reporting as high. You may read the report yourself over at:
I say, "Give me the facts." "Just the facts, ma'am."
Monday, December 24, 2018
Saturday, December 22, 2018
Tuesday, December 18, 2018
Bernie Sanders
I wonder how the United States of America would be faring today if Bernie Sanders, my preferred candidate, had been elected President in 2016.
So, who is this Noam Chomsky person who made that quote in the meme above?
Well, read about Noam Chomsky over here.
Read about Bernie Sanders at:
- Bernie Sanders courtesy of Ballotpedia
- Bernie Sanders's file courtesy of PolitiFact
So, who is this Noam Chomsky person who made that quote in the meme above?
Well, read about Noam Chomsky over here.
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