Mario Lanza

                                                                Drink Drink Drink

Robert Goulet

                                                            The Impossible Dream

The Vogues

                                                              Five O'clock World

Dean Martin

                                                                    Let It Snow

The Cascades

                                                         Rhythm of the Falling Rain

Glenn Miller

                                                                 String of Pearls

Transgender Asylum-Seeker Who Died In ICE Custody Was Beaten, Autopsy Shows

Roxsana Hernández Rodriguez had “deep bruises” on her body and died of dehydration, an independent autopsy found.

By Dominique Mosbergen 

Full report here.

Trump Falsely Claims Border Agents Were Badly Hurt In Migrant Tear Gas Clashes

He said the tear gas was “very safe” as he slammed the migrants as violent criminals.

By Willa Frej 

President Donald Trump attempted to downplay the scenes of migrant children being tear-gassed at the southern U.S. border over the weekend, blaming the violence on the migrants themselves.

He told reporters Monday that three U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents “were very badly hurt, getting hit with rocks and stones” after closing the San Ysidro port of entry on Sunday. This contradicts the CBP commissioner, who has said that no agents were badly injured.

Agents were required to use force, Trump added, “because they were being rushed by some very tough people and they used tear gas.” He also said the tear gas was “very safe” and the people suffering from its effects “to a certain extent were the people that were putting it out there.”

Officials fired tear gas on a group of migrants after they attempted to overcome a border fence. The Associated Press witnessed children screaming and coughing amid the gas.

“You really say, why is a parent running up into an area where they know the tear gas is forming and it’s going to be formed and they’re running up with a child?” Trump added. “In some cases, you know, they’re not the parents. These are people, they call them grabbers.”

He used the term to describe people that he claims, without evidence, pretend to cross the border with their children in order to receive preferential treatment.

CBP commissioner Kevin McAleenan denied that any border agents were injured in the scuffle.

″[CBP] effectively managed an extremely dangerous situation involving over 1,000 individuals who sought to enter the US unlawfully in large groups,” he said Monday in a statement. “They did so safely and without any reported serious injuries on either side of the border.”

More than 5,600 migrants who have traveled from Central America are currently sheltering in a sports complex in Tijuana, waiting to apply for asylum in the U.S. The Trump administration has limited the number of asylum applications it processes daily and has decided, on days like Sunday, to close primary ports of entry.

It means the migrants could remain in Mexico indefinitely, placing strain on a city not equipped to handle the influx. Some Tijuana residents have already clashed with police over the presence of the migrants.

Annual report finds dangerous toys on store shelves

Watch out for dangerous and toxic toys this holiday season. The Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group Foundation's (WISPIRG) 33rd annual "Trouble in Toyland" report found toxic amounts of boron in slime products, and a failure by Amazon to appropriately label choking hazards.

Boron can cause nausea, vomiting and other health issues, while choking hazards are a leading cause of toy-related deaths. Find the full list of potentially dangerous toys at ToySafetyTips.org.

"Parents shouldn't have to play detective, or do lab-tests on toys to make sure they're safe for kids. But in 2018, we're still finding hazards in some of the most popular toys," said Emma Fisher, WISPIRG Foundation organizer. "Manufacturers, retailers and policymakers must do better to ensure products are safe before they end up in kids' hands."

For more than 30 years, the consumer group's "Trouble in Toyland" report has offered toy safety guidelines for parents and caregivers. It has also provided examples of toys currently on store shelves that pose potential safety hazards to small children. Key findings from this year's report include the following:

A number of popular "slimes" had toxic levels of boron, likely in the form of borax, up to 15 times the European Union's limit. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, ingesting boron can cause nausea, vomiting, long-term reproductive health issues, and can even be fatal.

In a survey of five search pages for balloons sold on Amazon, the WISPIRG Foundation found no choking hazard labels on 87 percent of the latex balloons marketed to parents of children under age 2, an apparent violation of the law. Among children's products, balloons are the leading cause of suffocation death.

The report also highlights two smart toys, a robot toy and a tablet, with privacy concerns discovered through an investigation by the Mozilla Foundation.

While there are no limits on boron in children's toys in the United States, the WISPIRG Foundation called for placing warning labels on products and a full public hearing to determine safe levels of boron.

Earl Scruggs and Lester Flat

                                                  Foggy Mountain Breakdown - 1949

Mueller: Paul Manafort Broke Plea Deal By Lying To Investigators In Russia Probe

The special counsel’s complaint argues that the plea agreement with Trump’s former campaign chair is now invalid.

By Lydia O’Connor 

 

Special counsel Robert Mueller filed a complaint Monday alleging that former Donald Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort breached his plea deal by lying during his interviews with prosecutors.

Manafort’s lies, which are not specified in the complaint, nullify all the promises federal prosecutors made to him as part of the plea agreement he reached two months ago in the investigation over Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, Mueller’s complaint argues.

“A breach relieves the government of any obligations it has under the agreement, including its agreement to a reduction in the Sentencing Guidelines for acceptance of responsibility, but leaves intact all the obligations of the defendant as well as his guilty pleas,” the filing reads.

Lawyers for Manafort, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy against the United States and conspiracy to obstruct justice as part of his plea deal in September, say the complaint is invalid. He was also convicted on eight counts of financial fraud in August in connection with his work as a political consultant in Ukraine.

Manafort’s plea deal with Mueller marked a major development in the special counsel’s investigation into Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. By agreeing to cooperate with Mueller, Manafort was expected to provide the investigation with valuable information about what, if any, role Trump’s campaign had in Russia’s interference in the election.

His decision to cooperate with the investigation all but guaranteed he could not count on a presidential pardon from Trump.

Mason Williams

                                                                    Classical Gas

The New Christy Minstrels

                                                                   Green Green

Trump Tear Gasses Children at U.S./Mexico Boarder

Trump signed an official declaration giving the military the right to use lethal force against those trying to illegally cross the boarder.  

I Guess shooting them is next.

Full report here.

Peter, Paul, and Mary

                                                                Don't Think Twice

The Doors

                                                               Riders On The Storm

Doris Day - for bj

                                                                 Close Your Eyes

Booker T. and the M G's

                                                                 Green Onions

Oscar Peterson

                                                               Boogie Blues Etude

B. B. King - Live - 1973

Muddy Waters

                                                            Champagne & Reefer

Happy Thanksgiving ?

First we set up a country of slavery, then we commit genocide against the Native American.

For that behavior we consider ourselves a great nation. A nation we worked hard to build all on our own.

We worship the founding fathers who preached words of high morality, yet, they discriminated against everyone and murdered anyone who got in the way of their goals.

Their goal was a country of white supremacy.

The same kind of country Trump wants. 

There are many things to be thankful for, but our character and behavior as a country should not be held as the ideal.

So watch the parades, the football games, and celebrate with your families.

You might want to discuss with your family the violence and murder we committed to get our country and how we continue to destroy this land.

The Native American still lives in poverty on little land cages we forced them into after we got done killing all their ancestors.

If you want to give thanks, give thanks to the Native Americans who helped the white immigrants survive their first years in a new land, then turned around and murdered them.

Read TODAY's headline about what we are doing to the ancestors of the Natives who helped the Pilgrims. 

I can't celebrate the greatness of America knowing the truth of how we "settled" this land.

We just elected one of our biggest racist bigots president of our country.

How have we taken care of the land?

It's easy to say we have progressed from the barbaric killers we once were, but look around, killing each other is still our national sport.

Coleman Hawkins

                                                                      Soul Blues

Sonny Boy Williamson

                                                              Keep It To Yourself

In rare rebuke, Chief Justice Roberts slams Trump for comment about 'Obama judge'

The president later responded on Twitter, defending his attacks on the Ninth Circuit for ruling against him in an asylum case.

By Pete Williams and Associated Press

WASHINGTON — In a highly unusual public statement, Chief Justice John Roberts rebutted President Donald Trump's statement that a ruling against the administration was made by "an Obama judge."

Asked Wednesday by the Associated Press about the president's comment, Roberts responded, "We do not have Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges. What we have is an extraordinary group of dedicated judges doing their level best to do equal right to those appearing before them."

He added on the day before Thanksgiving that an "independent judiciary is something we should all be thankful for."

It's the first time the Republican-appointed leader of the federal judiciary has offered even a hint of criticism of Trump, who has previously blasted federal judges who ruled against him.

The president responded several hours later in a string of tweets, claiming there are, in fact, "Obama judges" and attacking the Ninth Circuit court.

Trump made his initial comment on Tuesday about the "Obama judge" in response to questions about Monday's ruling by Federal District Court Judge Jon Tigar in San Francisco that put a temporary hold on the administration's plan for refusing to consider asylum applications from immigrants who cross the border illegally.

 

"You go the 9th Circuit and it's a disgrace," Trump said. "And I'm going to put in a major complaint because you cannot win — if you're us — a case in the 9th Circuit and I think it's a disgrace. This was an Obama judge. And I'll tell you what, it's not going to happen like this anymore."

Tigar was nominated by President Barack Obama, but Roberts has consistently pushed back against claims that judges made decisions based on political considerations.

"I will not criticize the political branches," he said in a speech in October. "Our role is very clear. We are to interpret the Constitution and laws of the United States and ensure that the political branches act within them."

Even so, Roberts has had resisted responding directly to Trump's attacks on judges.

Trump said it was a "so-called judge" who issued the first federal ruling against his travel ban. During the 2016 presidential campaign, after calling for a wall on the southern border, he said U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel might be biased against him in a trial over Trump University because of the judge's Mexican heritage.

Trump's latest remarks come as the Supreme Court is enmeshed in controversy over his appointment of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Several justices have spoken out about judicial independence and the danger of having the court viewed as a political institution that is divided between five conservative Republicans and four liberal Democrats.

The White House had no immediate response to a request for comment on Roberts' criticism on Wednesday.

Tchaikovsky

                                                              Waltz of the Flowers

The Vienna Boys Choir

                                            The Blue Danube Waltz- Johann Strauss Jr.

Don McLean

                                                                 Castle In The Air

Jan and Dean

                                                              Dead Man's Curve

Trump Is Not Our Real President

I am so tired of hearing liberals say that.

Trump is our real president, regardless if he lost the popular vote, which has NEVER been the way this country defines the winner of a presidential election.

And I have news for you, unfair gerrymandering, vote suppression, vote stealing, unfair voting laws, etc., etc.....have also been part of the American voting process since the start of our country.

Denying the history of the reality of the voting experience of this country for the last over 200 years will lead to a losing strategy.

The American people voted for Trump as our president. Pretending that is not true is a fantasy that will actually help Trump win in 2020.

It's sad to learn your country actually voted for such a hate filled bigot for its leader, just as sad to have to admit that is a big part of our country's character and always has been. Wishing that was not true won't make it go away. Saying that is not true won't make it go away. Believing that is not true won't change the fact that it is true.

Get real America. The sooner you accept the fact that Trump is our real president and WE elected him president, the sooner we can plan a strategy to overcome our worst characteristics and boot him out of office. Like an addict we have to realize we have hit the gutter before we can change. Like an addict we have to stop giving ourselves false reasons to explain our behavior.

As the Democrats fight over who will be our next Congressional leader we better start right now deciding who we want to be our next president and why. Democrats are rightfully happy about their mid-term election win and if they want to win big again in 2020 they better get busy. Stop worrying about how you can put Trump in jail and start planning a strategy to get him out of office. Once he is gone you will have plenty of time to make sure he pays the price, like the criminal he is.    

Count Basie

                                 
                                                          Swingin" The Blues - 1941

George Harrison

                                                                   My Sweet Lord

Jelly Roll Morton

                                                                The Pearls - 1927

Bob Dylan

                                                              Mr. Tambourine Man

Judge Orders White House To Reinstate Jim Acosta’s Press Credentials

By Carla Herreria and Marina Fang

Full story

This is a temporary order until the case goes to court, if it does.  

Trump EPA Official Who Fought Coal Cleanup Arrested On Criminal Ethics Charges

By Mary Papenfuss

Full Story

Could Pelosi Lose Her Leadership Position?

There is a movement by the new Democratic House majority to oust Pelosi as their leader. 14 House democrats have signed a letter of intent to not vote for Pelosi as leader. Democrats would need 20 votes to oust Pelosi. Insiders say Pelosie's chances of keeping her leadership role is good. The anti-Pelosi Democrats have not put up an alternate candidate. It's hard to lose an election with no one running against you. I prefer to see Pelosi gone.

The Republican House members could have a say in this fight, but they would most certainly vote for Pelosi to keep the in fighting in the new Democratic majority going.

There is the possibility of splitting the Democratic caucus creating the same problem Obama had with Blue Dog Democrats when Obama had House majority for his first two years as president.   

Gershwin Plays Gershwin

                                          The Piano Rolls - Sweet and Lowdown - 1926

The Andrews Sisters

                                                         Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy

Donald Trump Is Still The Favorite To Win In 2020 — Just Look At The Midterm Map

By Benjamin Waddell

 

A lengthy but interesting article - full article

‘Deplorable And Inhumane’: Police Find 44 Dead Dogs In Woman’s Freezer

Detectives health department officials also discovered more than 100 dogs living in inhumane conditions.

By David Barden 

 

A New Jersey woman has been charged with animal cruelty after 44 deceased dogs were discovered stored in freezers throughout her home.

State police allege Donna Roberts, 65, also kept 130 living dogs in “deplorable and inhumane conditions in and around her home,” according to a statement posted to Facebook.

Detectives and officials from the Burlington County Health Department visited Roberts’ home on Tuesday to carry out an inspection. Once there, they “observed evidence of animal cruelty inflicted upon various breeds of dogs on the property.”

The odor of animal feces and ammonia permeated the inside of the home, which caused several of the responders to experience dizziness and nausea, the statement said.

While the demise of the deceased dogs remains under investigation, New Jersey State Police Superintendent Col. Patrick Callahan said the other dogs at the property were also kept in terrible living conditions.

“Troopers take an oath to protect and safeguard life, including the lives and well-being of pets, which can be vulnerable to abuse,” Callahan said.

Roberts was released from police custody with a pending court date.

Rhapsody In Blue

                                                           George Gershwin - 1924

Prince

                                                                 Let's Go Crazy

Singin' The Blues

                                            Bix Beiderbecke - Frank Trumbauer - 1927

Led Zepplin

                                                                Immigrant Song

Top Census Scientist’s Testimony Casts Doubt On Motives For Study On Citizenship Question

The researcher says he outlined the cost and harm of adding the question. It didn’t matter.

By Sam Levine 

NEW YORK ― The Census Bureau’s top scientist testified Tuesday that neither he nor other top Census officials thought the decision to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census was a good idea.

The scientist, John Abowd, supervised a team of Census Bureau researchers that studied the effect of adding the question and ultimately advised against it in January. Abowd met with Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross only one time to discuss his recommendation, in February, before Ross ultimately decided to add the question. 

Abowd testified Tuesday that he and other top Census Bureau officials were surprised to learn in June that Ross was interested in adding the question months before he even began the possibility of studying it. Ross initially said that he began considering the question only after the Justice Department requested it in December so that it could better enforce the Voting Rights Act. 

Abowd’s testimony came as part of an ongoing federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s decision to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. Abowd’s analysis of the effect of the citizenship question is one of the most important pieces of evidence in the suit for the plaintiffs ―18 states, the District of Columbia, several cities and a handful of immigrant groups ― who say the decision to add the question was motivated by discriminatory intent and ignored clear evidence that adding the question would decrease the number of people who respond to the census. An inaccurate census would have far-reaching consequences, since the survey is used to draw electoral districts and allocate hundreds of billions of dollars of federal funds. 

Abowd was repeatedly questioned Tuesday about a January memo he wrote to Ross in which he advised against adding the citizenship question. In the memo, Abowd said it would be very costly and harm the quality of the census count. He also said any citizenship data collected in a census would be substantially less accurate than information that’s available from administrative sources. He recommended that the Census Bureau get citizenship data from existing government records.

Dale Ho, the director of the ACLU’s voting rights project, pressed Abowd about a separate Census Bureau estimate showing that the non-response rate to a census survey with a citizenship question on it increased more among households with at least one non-citizen in it than it did among households of all U.S. citizens. Abowd testified that the Census Bureau was estimating the effect of the citizenship question based on the best information it had and could have better studied the question if it had more notice of the request to add the question because it could have done a randomized control trial. 

Ho’s questions to Abowd were meant to undercut Ross’s March memo justifying the decision to add the citizenship question. In the memo, Ross said he set out to take a “hard look” at the possibility of adding a citizenship question and that there was little empirical evidence that adding the question would lead to a decline in response rates. 

Abowd’s testimony suggested that, based on the Census Bureau’s review of the existing data, adding a citizenship question would decrease the response rate. 

Even though Abowd and his team had developed an analysis of the downside of a citizenship question, Department of Justice officials did not want to meet with them to discuss alternatives. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions blocked Justice Department officials from discussing alternatives, a top official in the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a deposition.

Abowd said it was unusual for an agency not to meet with the Census Bureau to follow up on a request for data.

Abowd’s testimony is expected to continue Wednesday, when he is expected to face questioning from Justice Department attorneys.

I'm Waiting To Hear

Which House Democrat has been assigned to write the articles of impeachment?

Which House Democrat is writing the bills to cut funding for the presidents hate policies?

Which House Democrats are writing the bills to improve our infrastructure?

Which House Democrats are writing the new tax bill to bring sanity back to our government finances?

Which House Democrats are writing the legislation to fix the ACA, or better yet, write a single payer plan?

Which House Democrat is writing the bill to cut funding for the military forces marching on our Southern boarder?

I know, the Democrats don't take office until January 2019 and I'm sure by then they will have all their moves down on paper ready to block Trump's hate.

OK, I'm waiting, but I haven't even heard of anything but subpoenas.We know who are getting the subpoenas ready.

There is so much the Democratic House alone can do to stop the fascist president, but all they want is revenge against Trump. 

The House controls the money. Trump can't do much without money. Trump wouldn't know what to do without money. Trump can't even fly Air Force One without appropriations from the House.

If you want revenge then stop trying to put the SOB in jail, or criminal peril and just stop the SOB from instituting his hate.

The Spencer Davis Group

                        Gimme Some Lovin'

Americans Make Another Choice

On Veterans Day Trump tweeted that the vote count in Florida should stop and the Republican candidates be announced the winners. Ignoring all laws.

If the vote were stopped, that would toss out tens of thousands of oversea ballots from military members who have until this Friday to get their votes to Florida.

You Americans voted for a real fascist for your president.

I heard there were protests in the streets to save Muller's job and his investigation.

Where are the protesters in the streets to save servicepeople's votes and the rule of law? It's obviously more important to get Trump than to secure rights for our fighting military, or follow the rule of law.

This is the behavior of anger and revenge, not doing what is right.

GO liberals GO!! Get Trump!!

YES

                                                        I've Seen All Good People

Heroes ?

One of the problems with having such a low life for a president is that he lowers the bar for everything,

Being Veterans Day,  it's hard to imagine we have to remind ourselves who real heroes are.

Jim Acosta is not a hero because he had his press credentials lifted by the White House.

Heroes are not actors, or athletes, or celebrities, unless they did something to save someone's life.

An act of charity does not make someone a hero. It makes then a decent human being.

Some people have jobs that put them in danger of losing their life for the public good. Sgt. Ron Helus is such a man. A true hero.

Trump seems to be changing the reality of life. Why we let him do that, is beyond me.

Standing up against Trump does not make someone a hero. It makes them a good citizen.

The Moody Blues

                                                                      The Balance

Judge Cites Trump’s ‘Shithole Countries’ Remark In Ruling On Census Lawsuit

Such slurs are “evidence that official action may be motivated” by an “unlawful purpose,” according to the ruling.

By Mary Papenfuss 

A federal judge pointed to President Donald Trump’s shockingly disparaging comments about immigrants and foreigners in his ruling that allows a lawsuit to proceed that seeks to block a census question on citizenship status.

U.S. District Judge George Hazel said in a ruling in Maryland on Friday that plaintiffs had properly supported their claim that a Trump administration decision to add a citizenship question to the census for the first time in 70 years was motivated at least in part by discrimination.

In reaching his decision he cited Trump’s widely reported comment in January at a private meeting with lawmakers “distinguishing immigrants of color— ‘these people from shithole countries’—from white immigrants from countries like Norway,” the judge wrote.

Hazel also noted Trump’s “degrading comparisons of immigrants to ‘animals’ who ‘infest’ the country.”

While “these statements were not made specifically in relation to the citizenship question, they are nonetheless relevant to understanding the administration’s motivations,” the judge wrote. “And while the use of racial slurs, epithets, or other derogatory language does not alone prove discriminatory intent, it is evidence that official action may be motivated by such an unlawful purpose.”

The Justice Department had argued that the lawsuit by the plaintiffs — including the nonprofit labor-rights group La Union del Pueblo Entero — should be thrown out.

A number of lawsuits are arguing that the citizenship question will have a chilling effect on immigrants and keep them from participating in the census. The result would be to make the census inaccurate. It would also dilute immigrants’ political power because census data are used to draw electoral districts and determine how hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funds are allocated.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross added the question earlier this year, saying the answer would help the Justice Department improve enforcement of the Voting Rights Act.

Billie Holiday

                                                                   Strange Fruit

Myths of America and the Baby Boomer Generation

One of my favorite sayings is by Orson Wells. He said he didn't think history could possibly be true, because it's told by people. We all know if you tell a story to one person by the time that story gets back to you after being relaid by many other people it doesn't bare any resemblance to the truth of the original story you told/started.

The truth of liberals, or the Democratic party of the last 50 years (the Baby Boomer generation) being the defender of the American way, or builder of an American empire respected around the world, is not true at all. That was the achievement of the parents (the Greatest Generation) of the generation of the last 50 years, otherwise known as the Baby Boomers. The Baby Boomers like to take credit for actions that never actually happened, or did not happen the way they like to tell their story.

This Baby Boomer generation that once claimed they were the generation of peace and love are the same people who created the violence and death they claim ended an unjust war in Southeast Asia. A nice tale, but that's not exactly what happened.

This same peace loving generation were the same people who bombed ROTC buildings, started fires and riots all over the country, spit on servicemen returning from Vietnam calling them baby killers and were the cause of deaths supposedly in the name of a revolution for the betterment of America.  It was liberal hate at its best.This Baby Boomer generation who have been in majority rule of business and politics for the last 40 years and are responsible for our current, horrible situation. 

The Vietnam war ended on Nixon, Kissinger, and North Vietnam's schedule. If there was any public pressure it was coming from the older generation after they realized they had been lied to by the liberal idol of the Great Society and champion of racial rights LBJ. It was LBJ who lied about the Gulf of Ton kin. It was LBJ who was told he could not win the war, yet, sent more and more Americans to their deaths in Vietnam. LBJ used every dirty military weapon (agent orange, napalm, etc., etc...) America had short of using an atomic bomb.

Nixon even supported giving the vote to 18 year olds (the protest generation) knowing it would not lose him the election, not to mention the new young voters turnout to vote was small. The older generation were all for Nixon and the young protesters were to small a voting block to swing the election. During all the violent protests Nixon won two presidential elections, one by a landslide. Nixon did not end the war until 1973-1974 and by that time the war protest had been going on for almost ten years, even though it did grow to include the older generations.

Then this peace and love generation (Baby Boomers) that supposedly cared about their brothers went on the next four decades to help build the Republican dominance and majority with the major chant of "No New Taxes." We are now taxed less than at almost anytime in history, but these Boomers want all the goodies from the government they can get, without paying for it. They denied the Communal taxation that had really built a great country, in favor of their selfish, yuppie lifestyle.

The Boomers cheered on Bush and his Iraq invasion calling those who disagreed traitors, even though it was known Bush lied and caused 10's of thousands of innocent people to die. Running up 20 trillion in debt over several presidents, mostly Republican presidents. The Boomers did not care about maintaining America;s infrastructure, or any other public necessity. They decided that public servants like teachers could be paid shit, while their crooked politicians got raises all the time and their corporate lifestyles made them wealthy.

Their biggest entertainment was watching one of their liberal icons get impeached for a blow job and making the conservatives the bad guys. Their government treated Veterans like shit until after 9/11, including a budget cut for Veteran benefits and Veteran hospitals during the Iraq war. The government did not even acknowledge agent orange as a covered illness until 40 years after the Vietnam war during which time thousands died from effects of agent orange.

The Baby Boomers are truly a selfish generation which have left America broke, crumbling, at each others throats with political partisanship, and topped off their last 50 years by giving us Trump the fascist as our president. They would like to disclaim this legacy, but their votes as a majority have created this destruction of America.

This supposed liberal generation of peace and love turned out to be a selfish, hate filled generation that destroyed America for future Americans. They fell pretty good about the election last week, but that does nothing to fix the last 40 years of destruction they ruled over.

The facts of the past and reality of America's current sad situation cannot be denied. The Baby Boomers were always out for their own gratification as younger people, middle age people, and as senior citizens, no matter what the consequences.

The Baby Boomers were given a great country financially and militarily strong and respected around the world. Now they are passing on a country destroyed in almost every category, except we can still destroy the world militarily, yet, no other country respects America anymore.

A sad situation for future Americans, that may never dig out of the hole one generation of Americans dug for us because of their neglect and selfishness.  

Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1, B-flat minor

                                                                   Van Cliburn

Debussy - Clair de Lune

                                                                    Van Cliburn

Beethoven - Fur Elise

                                                                      Van Cliburn

Johnny Mathis

                                                                          Misty

The Turtles

                                                                    Let Me Be

Bing Crosby

                                                                Young At Heart

If You Want A Just World, Neither Republicans Nor Democrats Will Give It To You

By Sarah van Gelder

The midterm elections are over. Women won historic gains in the House, which Democrats now appear to be on track to control. Voters in three red states ― Idaho, Nebraska and Utah ― approved expanding Medicaid, a repudiation of GOP efforts to discredit government run health care. And voters in Florida approved a measure giving ex-felons the right to vote ― one of the most significant expansions of voting rights in decades.

The most expensive midterm election in U.S. history fired up people on all sides, including many young people who went all out to put a check on the extremism of the Trump administration.  

This is a good time to congratulate those who voted in spite of the obstacles. It’s a time to thank those who ran campaigns aimed at justice and inclusion, whether or not they prevailed, and to commit to supporting newly elected officials in being as bold as the times require.

But that’s not enough.

President Donald Trump is still in office, and he continues to be one of the most powerful and dangerous men in the world.

There are nearly 13,000 migrant children being held in government custody in the U.S., and immigrants throughout the country are living in fear of deportation and worse.

White supremacist and misogynist violence continues to threaten our communities.

The enormous tax giveaway to the super wealthy has helped raise our deficit 17 percent higher than last year, the highest it’s been since 2012, when the nation was recovering from a huge recession. Republican leaders have hinted they may look to cut Medicare and Social Security to make up the shortfall.

What happens if fresh water becomes scarce, if there is widespread failure of agriculture and mass migration of climate refugees?

Meanwhile, the poor and middle class are increasingly insecure: A minimum-wage job doesn’t pay enough to rent a modest two-bedroom apartment in any U.S. state. Nearly half of Americans say they would struggle to cover an unexpected emergency expense of a few hundred dollars, and the insecurity and anger feed political extremism.

And, most daunting of all, environmental collapse is proceeding much more quickly than scientists expected. As scary as the IPCC climate change report was (and it was a stark warning), the models used by this international commission don’t account for the runaway effects of an ice-free ocean, of methane releases from melting permafrost and warmer oceans, and other ways in which global warming effects are beginning to build their own momentum. These runaway effects could make global heating irreversible.

Many are now quietly talking about what happens if fresh water becomes scarce, if there is widespread failure of agriculture and mass migration of climate refugees — many are quietly talking about a collapse of human civilization. Some are even talking about human extinction.

The changes needed to tackle these crises are monumental. To even start to address them requires huge political will. In the U.S., neither party is remotely up to it. Both are too wedded to the status quo and to the flow of money from large corporate donors and the super wealthy.

At a recent talk I gave, a member of the audience admitted to despair and asked me where I found hope.

I think we’re screwed, I told him. I’m done with hope.

If we hang on to the structures and mindsets of global corporate rule; the dominance of straight white men; and environmental destruction, and hope a few tweaks will right things, then hope is not helping.

We need much more foundational change, starting with placing a higher value on people’s well-being and the well-being of all children for seven generations than on the accumulation of wealth for the few. Inclusion, instead of fear-mongering and divisiveness, must guide us. Stewarding, rather than exploiting, the natural world must define our ways of life.

And to go deep enough with that shift, we need to begin where we live.

On my 12,000-mile road trip around the U.S. collecting stories for The Revolution Where You Live, I saw example after example of people making profound change. In communities from Detroit, Michigan, to Greensboro, North Carolina, from a North Dakota Indian reservation to the Kentucky coal fields, I found real progress as people came together, imagined the world they wanted, and then took one small step after the next to achieve their goals.

Too often, people are asked to donate money to a national organization or to sign online petitions ― but not to be leaders. Or, they’re told to change themselves or what they buy, as though isolated individuals can change entrenched systems.

These approaches do little to build power or real change, and they make us feel powerless, and rightly so.

But when we act together, where we live, we can support each other and build power. We can start by electing truly forward-thinking representatives, but we can do much more to effect deep change. We can resist, reimagine the world we want, restore it, and build resilience.

Begin small or large, but begin where you live, and you’ll find you have far more power than you might have imagined.

Since the election of 2016, resistance has been front and center. But many are also doing the deeply healing work of restoration — making right the wrongs that have been done to people and the planet. Likewise, many are building their own personal resilience so they can weather the shocks that come with rapidly changing times, while also weaving together stronger communities. And many are reimagining and building the world they want, beginning where they live.

This election was an important check on the power of the extremists who control the Republican Party, and we now have a group of promising new public leaders serving in Washington, D.C. and in state and local government around the country.

Still, the change we need today goes much deeper.

So pause to catch your breath, and then reach out to the people you canvassed or phone banked with, or people you know who are on fire to act. Begin small or large, but begin where you live, and you’ll find you have far more power than you might have imagined. There is too much at stake to wait until 2020 — we can work now to build a just, sustainable, and compassionate world.