Is the Fourth Estate -- a press independent of government dictates -- a necessary vital check on truth and honesty in our form of government we expect our Presidential candidates to observe?
Why aren't the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times Newspapers endorsing a Presidential candidate in this critical election year with the very state of our nation's democratic republic, constitution at stake?
Why would the practice of recommending candidates this election year suddenly be discontinued?
Do the billionaire owners of these two newspapers not respect editorial management's decision freedom?
Are the billionaires aligning themselves defacto with one of the candidates?
Are we already seeing the beginning of the stifling of the free press?
Isn't elimination of the press one of the goals of countries with dictators, autocratic leaders, despots who determine what constitutes news "facts" citizens receive?
Aren't these "facts" put forth as truth often actually lies from such leaders?
Have we already been primed by one former President and candidate to accept lies as truth?
Would we want such a leader to be the President of our country?
Vice Presidential candidates Gov.Tim Walz and Sen. JD Vance revealed the core issue American voters need to consider I observed after viewing their refreshingly civil debate.
Unlike former Vice President Pence who refused to certify the 2020 election based on Trump citing the election was stollen which was untrue, Vance declined to say Trump lost the 2020 election.
"Representative Ted Lieu, an impeachment manager in the second impeachment case against Mr. Trump, said that JD Vance’s comments on the transfer of power after 2020 election were disqualifying." Read the Guardian article by clicking the link.
What could happen after our 2024 election if Trump loses again and decides to repeat what lead to the January 6th debacle ..... insurrection?
American voters have a 2024 election choice : "Who's gonna honor that democracy and who's gonna honor Donald Trump?" questioned Vice Presidential candidate Walz.
Fellow elderblogger, Kalilly, who writes at: https://www.kalilily.net/ has launched with several colleagues a petition to urge the Congressional Task Forces on Aging to devise and recommend funding for a plan to provide subsidies that enable remodeling of old outdated facilities and the constructions of new models of affordable senior housing that meet the needs of older adults for safety, comfort, and personal connections she notes.
"Survival is not Enough" "The crisis in affordable and humane housing for seniors is rapidly increasing. According to Bloomberg, “By 2034, the Census Bureau projects that the US will be home to more people over 65 than people under 18. Finding safe and affordable housing for this fast-growing segment of the population is becoming an urgent task, as the number of 65-and-over residents who are considered cost-burdened reached record highs in 2021, while federal housing subsidies only reached 36.5% of older households who were eligible.”
This certainly seems a pertinent issue with our aging population experiencing homelessness for so many as this nation has. You are invited to read, sign the petition if you find it to be of interest at https://www.change.org/ImproveSeniorHousing and share with others as well.
Patiently waiting for the wheels of justice to roll forward for January 6th accountability about which I've previously written.
Questionas voters consider where to cast their 2024 ballot ----
If 45 becomes President, he acts chaotically as he has demonstrated he does ..... his supporters determine they made a mistake ..... but he won't leave office ..... what then?
Citizen voters won’t be able to get him out, legally if he makes all the constitution and court system changes he has said he will make in the process of establishing his dictatorship -- there will be no election as he will have prevented that. Or, any election, if there is one, will likely be rigged much as he demonstrated attempting to do after 2020.
At least if another political party's candidate has been elected we can legally remove them from office by various peaceful means — impeachment, or at the latest, with an election at the end of their 4 year term.
90th birthday video of live appearance on NBC- TV Today (promotes a special later that night but not this year)
All is well as can be with me. I keep moving closer to that ninth decade with very few of my long time friends left on this planet to accompany me while I'm here. I continue my "rightsizing" activities at a snails pace which contributes to why I haven't resumed writing here.
Perhaps in the significant year to come I will be unable to resist returning here to write espousing my views on whatever topics capture my attention.
Meanwhile, I continue to enjoy my family and indulging myself in the ordinary necessities and self-entertaining activities of daily living which give our lives meaning.
Wishing for peace everywhere with good health, prosperity, a life filled with happiness and only the best for each of you in this momentous year to come!
THE TENORS -- Auld Lang Syne from "Christmas Together" album "... shot on location in Newfoundland and Labrador with generous support of Parks Canada".
390 Cannon House Office Building, Washington DC 20515
Televised live on the Committee's site, PBS and other channels as mentioned in this L.A. Times newspaper article along with discussion about what to expect, what has occurred and other political commentary HERE
The final Committee report release expected soon may be discussed.
QUESTION: Will the Committee's final report rightfully include findings about ALL involved in the January 6th seditious activities -- including any that may have involved former President Donald J. Trump, any Congresspersons, U.S. Government law enforcement departments including FBI, Secret Service, other organizations, any religious entities, corporate and private financial backers, foreign governments?
CATCH-UP BREAK
Hope all is going well for each of you. Expect you may be busy with life including any preparations for the coming holidays. I'm continuing to focus on my need to catch-up on some matters here, so am not writing on any topics interesting me this week and for the next several weeks.
The Committee's subpoena to Donald Trump to testify resulted in the 45th President failing to comply and suing the Committee.
Former integrity chief Jack Smith, has been appointed by the Attorney General as a special counsel to "oversee the Justice Department's criminal investigations involving Donald Trump" as NPR describes HERE
QUESTION: Will the Committee's final report rightfully include findings about all involved in the January 6th seditious activities in addition to those of former President Donald J. Trump -- the Congresspersons, Government law enforcement departments including FBI, Secret Service, other organizations, any religious entities, possibly any corporate and private financial backers?
UP WHERE WE BELONGsung by Buffy Sainte-Marie
This is the composer's version of the song which is best known from the movie, "An Officer and a Gentleman" sung by Joe Cocker. "Buffy won an Oscar for this song with Jack Nitzsche and Will Jennings."
PERSPECTIVE
How we view life's experiences is all a matter of perspective. Buffy Sainte-Marie, now 81 years old, recalled in her youth being taught in school that in 1492 Columbus discovered America, but as an indigenous native Canadian American Cree Indian she knew that wasn't true. She said, in 1492 we Indians in America discovered Columbus.
Buffy expressed a variety of thoughts in her music's lyrics through the years including some about current events as others like Bob Dylan did. Elvis Presley and other singers performed and recorded her songs. Her career progressed until unbeknown to her the U.S. government began black-listing her, suppressed her music recordings she discovered years later in her FBI files. Not realizing her activism had become of concern, she thought her popularity has just waned.
Other credits Buffy has acquired included repeated appearances on Sesame Street introducing that young community to indigenous people. The story-line with her husband continued through her pregnancy, subsequent natural breast-feeding of her new-born baby.
Thanksgiving's celebration fostered my remembrances of what I was taught about the holiday in school. We focused on the Pilgrims and the Indians forging a friendship by sharing a meal.
Were some of you in later generations taught more facts about the Pilgrims and Indians relationship?
I have long since learned there is much more to the story of the Native American Indians, the indigenous people of our nation, from whom the Pilgrims began taking their land with and without their agreement.
The American Indian perspective on the Thanksgiving myth can be viewed on PBS.org HERE
"Wampanoag historian Linda Coombs and Narragansett Knowledge Keeper Cassius Spears speak with filmmaker Yvonne Russo about the experiences of Native populations at the time of European settlers' arrival in New England 400 years ago, and what is actually known about the first Thanksgiving."
The arriving pilgrims encountered the aftermath of a plague thought to have been brought to them a short time earlier by fishermen. Thousands of Indians died in this fast moving disease that decimated their villages of their health care providers and even those who bury the dead. Seeing this devastation a pilgrim leader reported God had cleared the land for them revealing an insensitive, even heinous view -- lacking in compassion for other human beings to say the least by this Christian likely intolerant of others different spiritual views.
Centuries later I recall attending the reading of a new book by author Dee Brown when we lived in Arizona. "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" proved to be a novel describing how the American west was won. Heart-breaking descriptions reveal the "...systematic destruction of American Indian tribes in the late nineteenth century" as Good Reads reviews HERE
Native American Cultural Heritage Month is currently being celebrated on PBS. A number of programs are being aired about life on the reservations today you may find of interest.
Indian reservation life can still leave much to be desired for many residents lacking basic utilities taken for granted elsewhere. Agreements between the Indians and the U.S. Government also can continue to present challenges resolving.
Now may be a reckoning time as our nation's people need to relinquish the colorful notions and stories told about our history. The reality of our indigenous people, also of those held in slavery often has been romanticized and is long overdue for truthful descriptions.
We might also want to take special care to tolerate, especially in leadership positions and news disseminators, only those committed to speaking, writing truth.
