Lobbyists and Congress and Drugs....Oh My

     I guess I cannot avoid political commentary this election season. Right off the bat, let me say that Trump is a vile idiot and Hillary is a sneaky genius. I haven't trusted a politician since Lincoln...and yes, I might just be that old.

This election is quite heated and is causing even greater divides in our already fraying nation. Let us all please remember one very important thing; the President is not the one with the power. With relatively few exceptions, anything proposed by the Executive Branch must be approved by Congress. Does that mean congress wields the power? Yes and no. Congress has power over the president, and the nation as a whole but it is in fact the Lobbyists who control congress; thus lobbyists are in control of our nation. Let me rephrase that, the money stemming from big lobbyists and their clients is in charge of our country.

     The largest lobby in the U.S. is the pharmaceutical industry. According to the non-partisan watchdog group, Center for Responsive Politics ( https://www.opensecrets.org/ ), thus far in 2016, pharmacy groups have contributed to candidates, political parties, and outside groups to the sum of $18,218,665. Contributions to sitting congress members total $4,569,909 to Democrats and $7,035,182. The previous year, 1,369 lobbyists acting on behalf of 344 pharmaceutical and health related clients spent over $238 million. The highest recent figure,$272.8 million, came in 2009, at the time the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was on the floor. These companies, Bayer, Pfizer, Glaxo etc. have agendas to keep their products on the shelf at the highest price the market will tolerate. They do not want marijuana legalized nationally as it will greatly cut into their profits. They did not want the ACA to pass because it cut into their profits. Look at the numbers again and you'll have a better understanding of why so many seniors can't afford to take care of themselves. So much money is being poured into D.C. that prices on medicine must remain high in order for these companies to maintain their projected profit margins.

     If we really want change to occur in this nation, the whole process needs to be revamped. Lobbyists need to be eliminated as well as the party National Committees. With the exception of the Electoral College, I wish the process would revert to the original format; whoever has the most votes is President and the runner-up is Vice-President.

Money, Money, Money,Money

Let's Really Make Change:

     

    I was reading about the changes that are coming regarding the faces on paper money. Apparently, Harriet Tubman will be gracing the $10 bill; replacing Alexander Hamilton (the 1st Secretary of the Treasury). Andrew Jackson, our 7th President who set in motion the "Trail of Tears", will remain on the $20 bill. The government's reasoning for this inane decision is that the $10 bill is the most easily and often counterfeited and this change will halt that problem, albeit temporarily. Have they considered putting Tubman on the 10 and Hamilton on the 20? Problem solved. But I have an even better idea to revamp the whole thing. As Americans, what do we value almost as highly as money? Television! Let's replace the current faces with those that are really important to us.

One Dollar Bill- Hawkeye Pierce:  Hawkeye was a sinful idealist who protested the inhumanity of war through wit and rash tantrums. I selected him because he not only espoused his ideologies verbally, he took action...and made a killer martini.

Five Dollar Bill- Archie Bunker: As much as I hate to replace my favorite guy, Honest Abe, I think his antithesis is appropriate for this honor. Archie continually showed us the stupidity of bigotry and it's cause; ignorance. The next time you encounter a bigot of any kind, just remember Archie and laugh like hell.

Ten Dollar Bill- George Jefferson: Now this is a guy who loved money. George was also a racist and was an odd mirror image of Archie. The difference is, George "moved on up" while Archie stagnated in Queens. Although he was thoroughly obnoxious, George was an example of an African-American who made it out of childhood poverty, to the suburbs, and finally to a "penthouse in the sky." Who better exemplifies the American Dream?

Twenty Dollar Bill- Mary Richards: This lady was nerdy and hip at the same time. She was a walking contradiction who broke boundaries in 1970s, misogynistic America. SHE left her fiance at the alter and took off on the road alone, landed a white-collar job, and maintained an adorable studio apartment. She had her share of dates but was more than willing to stay single knowing she did not need a husband to make her complete. Hats off to you, Mary.

Fifty Dollar Bill- Cosmo Kramer: What can be said about Kramer? He truly was a hipster doofus, before being one became fashionable. He lived on his own terms and breached societal rules on a daily basis, most often in ignorant bliss. Kramer is my hero; a man who invited strangers into his apartment in order to avail them of the opportunity to smoke inside. A fellow who gave his left-over Chinese food to a homeless man then upon return asked for his Tupperware back. In the traditional sense, he was not a model citizen, however I feel that if we had more Kramer's among us, the world might be a richer, and certainly funnier, place.

One Hundred Dollar Bill- Lucy Ricardo: There was no way that face wasn't going on a bill. Lucille (Ball) and Lucy (Ricardo) were very different women. Unlike Ball, Lucy was subservient to her husband in 1950's New York. However, what we must realize is that Lucy was clever enough to usually get her way, however disastrous the consequences may have been for her husband and neighbors. More often than not, she did get in the show. Her plans and schemes may have verged on the insane but the results she achieved were usually in her favor. Here's to Lucy (and Ethel). I raise my glass of Vitameatavegamin to you!

Why Not Peyton?

Peyton Manning vs. Dr. Huxtable

Ok, Bill Cosby was accused of numerous sexual assaults, including rape, and had his life turned upside down. Cosby has yet to be convicted of anything yet his career and reputation have been destroyed. We all form our own opinions based on media reports and intuition long before the inside of a court room is ever seen...sometimes. I grew up loving Bill Cosby, back to his days of Fat Albert, and with a heavy heart have convicted him of these heinous accusations. I'm glad his career is over, his reputation ruined, and his squeaky clean facade dismantled. So then, why isn't everyone doing the same with Manning? Unlike Cosby, I never liked Manning; he always seemed a little shifty to me and I just couldn't believe others couldn't see through his act. Well, now the stage lights have come on and his make-up is off...so where's all the outrage? Why is poor little Peyton being given a pass? (excuse the pun) Tom Brady got caught deflating footballs; he is the Nixon of the NFL. It was the talk of the town for months. Yes, as a society we spent our time discussing the weight of footballs and weather or not they factored in the outcome of a game...A GAME! When Johnny Manziel, the quarterback for the Cleveland Browns, has one too many drinks and makes a public ass of himself, the media has a field day. Apparently public degradation of an alcoholic is amusing; but let's not forget the media wouldn't keep publishing these things if there wasn't an eager audience. I could go on for pages about the abuses perpetrated, on and off the field, by these athlete "heroes." But back to good old Peyton, the Good Ole Boy.

Really Ladies????

Why so quick to persecute Mr. Cosby but not Manning? Both had good guy images. Both excelled in their fields. Both made commercials. Both are white.....oh wait, no they're not....is that it? Are the very people that cry for a color blind society really oblivious to this? That's not even the worst of it. What about the female physician twho was allegedly abused by Manning WHILE she was treating his injury? Why aren't the empowered women who also happen to be football fans as outraged as I? Why is Tennessee's response to this, and all the other sexual assault charges they face, on the back pages? 

The most troubling question that has been rattling around in my brain is this: Why do we value the career of a quarterback over that of a physician? Her career was ruined; he just won a trophy and sells insurance on TV. Physicians heal people; sexual predators harm them.

 I ask that all my friends who truly want a color-blind, gender-neutral society to get angry. I want you to repost this. I want you to really think. Cosby was accused by numerous women, Manning was accused by one(that we know of); does that make it ok? Does a person's first act of sexual abuse get a pass? No! So for all of you that personally convicted Bill Cosby, I ask: Why not Peyton?

I Pledge to Simplify

     The Pledge of Allegiance continues to be a topic of heated debates. The sticking point is the word "God." This can be resolved quickly if we take into consideration another word in the Pledge; "Liberty." If, during the recitation, we are pledging to honor the liberty of our fellow citizens then we must allow everyone the agency to determine which god they honor, if any at all. If you adhere to atheism, just remain silent during the phrase "Under God." If you refer to God by another name, freely say that name, "Under Allah... Vishnu...Jesus...etc." Being allowed to freely and openly aver your choice of a god or remain silent during this particular phrase is paramount to remaining an indivisible nation.

Bellamy's handwritten draft of Pledge of Allegiance

(http://rbscp.lib.rochester.edu/1779)

     "Indivisible" is perhaps the most significant word in the Pledge. Written by Francis Bellamy (a Christian Socialist) and first published on September 8, 1892, the original version of the Pledge had no mention of God; nor did it mention the United States. Bellamy was affected greatly by the American Civil War and was prompted to write the Pledge, specifically to include not only the word "indivisible," but the phrase "one nation." The revised version in 1923 added (among other grammatical changes) "the United States of America." It was not until 1954 under the perceived threat of Communism that "Under God" was incorporated into the Pledge. This again brings me to my confusion when people say they want the "Old America" back yet at the same time want God in the Pledge of Allegiance. Personally, I would rather go back to 1923 than 1954; I'd love to go to a Speakeasy and try the Charleston. 
     If we are to stay one, indivisible nation, we must address conflicts such as this collectively. The best part of being American is that we are each entitled to our opinions. That being the case, disagreements and opposing views are guaranteed to ensue. To differ, disagree, and vary in opinion is fine; it is actually wonderful as if we all keep our minds open, new ideas will follow. Opposing each other with closed minds creates divisions and that is exactly what we are pledging not to do! Conversations, not arguments, are conducted with open minds and result in wonderful, new ideas. Let us then respect our neighbor's liberty and discuss guidelines under which we will remain an indivisible nation.
   

Change Exposes Cowards

     Poorly worded postings on Facebook are fodder for this blogger. One that caught my eye recently asked that "God Bless the Old America." So many things are wrong here. First, which God?  As there are roughly 5,000 gods worshiped in the world, this is very exclusionary. Let me just say, in an effort to give you a better understanding of my position, I believe in God; my own version of God. If I thought about it for any length of time, I'd say I'm a Deist. That being said, given the source of the post, I am guessing it's the Christian version of God. 
     In the post I saw, there was a U.S. flag in the background. Using my well-honed detective skills, I concluded that the America God was being asked to bless, was the United States of America and not one of the two continents once inhabited by indigenous people. Now that I understood which God and which America, I just had to decipher the meaning of "old." The U.S. is now as old as it has ever been. By the time you finish reading this, it will be even older. If the person who posted this wants to go back in time, he really wants God to bless the Young America. Now, that makes sense! After all, when a living entity (which is exactly what a country is) is young, she makes mistakes; lots of them. The young America did need some supernatural guidance as she was wrought with mistakes; read the Articles of Confederation or an early draft of the Constitution, or I don't know, think about slavery. As the U.S. has gotten older, through the acts of courageous men and women who fought and died (right here at home), this country has corrected her mistakes. Why then, does anyone want to go back to a former time when so many people were denied so much? The answer is, fear.
     This one innate entity has denied so many so much. People that wish for a Utopian past are afraid of the changes that threaten their power. A wish for an imaginary Utopian society, by the way, is a basic tenet of Fascism. If someone wants to go back to a former society, we must ask how far back we should go. Shall we go back to the 80's when people were dying of AIDS in droves and the Reagan administration ignored pleas for government funding for research? Perhaps a decade before when we had hostages in Iran, a secret war with Laos, bombings in Cambodia, and Watergate? Or the 60's so we can see the pictures from Kent State (1970) anew? Eisenhower's 50's brought the Interstate system and suburbia yet left the urban poor in neglected slums so white collar workers could have 2 cars and washing machines. The 40's provided us with the horrors of nuclear bombs and a World War. How bout the 30's when kids rode the rails so their parents had one less mouth to feed because a quarter of the nation was unemployed?
     Perhaps we should go back 86 years from today, October 29, 1929. The Great Crash. This occurred due to more than a decade of overproduction and speculation. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about time travel. I'd love to go back and see Bogie walking down the street in a trench coat and fedora. I'd love to sit in a Speakeasy and have a drink with an Irish cop. That all looks so fun...on a movie screen. Ever watch an old movie and see an African American as anything but a servant? 
     It is evident to me that the person who made this FB post wants to go back to an idealized, white-Christian America because that is what makes him feel safe. Safety is great but it doesn't let you go anywhere. The changes we are seeing in our society are exposing the cowards who proclaim to love this country. To love something is to nurture it and watch it grow into something of which one can be proud. Cast your fears aside and be amazed.

Take Our Country Back???

     Recently I saw a Facebook post that said, "Let's take our country back!" Not being very bright, I was immediately confused. I broke the sentence down and came up with the following: "Let's" is the contraction of Let Us. Who constitutes "us?" Further, there can only be an us is there is an opposing group labeled, them. Next is the word, "take." You can only take something you do not have. "Our" is the possessive for the country that belongs to the us group. Now, to take something "back" you had something you no longer possess and want to regain that something, in this case an entire country. In sum, Them took a country from Us, and now Us wants it back. Hmmm, quite a pickle.
     In order to resolve this, my feeble brain concluded that we must first identify us and them. The country in question, of course, is The United States. That is the simple part. My confusion arises when trying to discern who belongs to the us group. You see, once that group is identified, everyone else becomes them. The person who posted this inane command on Facebook is a white, Christian, heterosexual male. Although this is a strong lead as to who believes themselves to be the rightful "owners" of this country, I do not subscribe to the belief that; a) this man originated the post, nor b) all people fitting the above description feel as though they are the dominant, us. 
     I then switched my strategy to trying to uncover the identity of them. Since this group now has the country, it seemed much easier. That being said, I used what little deductive skills I possess to reach the following conclusion: Them has the country; Americans have the country; therefore, the them group consists of Americans. Huh, how about that? The opposing group (us) can only be made up of people other than Americans. Who are these people and why do they want to take my country away?
     Yes, I am a them! And I hope the people who support the above mentioned FB post understand that, "It is not in numbers but in unity, that our great strength lies." (Thomas Paine, Common Sense) Dividing a nation is not a solution in addressing her problems. We did that once and more than 628,000 Americans lost their lives in a vain attempt to assert supremacy. All of those who deem they belong to the us group are all to fond of (mis)using the tenets of the Founders; the one deemed greatest is George Washington. I humbly ask that they deeply consider his words, "it is of infinite [emphasis mine] moment that you should properly estimate the immense value of your national union."(Washington, "Farewell Address, 1796)

Happy New Year, Rump

     December 31 marks the end of a year for us all. For Karin Rumpza, it also marks the end of another year of life. For the sake of our friendship, I will not mention how many years of life she has had; however, next year the first digit will change. Let me tell you about my friend.

     The last name, Rumpza, has left her open to a variety of nick-names; Rump Roast, Rump Shaker,etc. I just call her Rump. I feel comfortable saying that the girl is a mess; the reason being that I am a bigger mess. Over the last dozen years or so, I have had a number of heartbreaks and upheavals in my life. With uncanny precision, the worst of the painful events in my life occurred when Rump was out of the country...God has a wicked sense of humor. I had other friends that were compassionate and comforting but it wasn't the same; I needed Rump. Those of you who know Rump must understand why. For those of you who don't, I'll tell you why.

     Rump meets upsets in her own life with great passion and when a friend is in need she commits that passion to the other person. With her humor and understanding (I almost wrote, "patience," Ha!) she adopts the pain and therefore lessens the suffering of her friend; in many cases, me. There is a special comfort she offers; I believe it is due to the deep and inherent goodness of her soul. But that's not all there is to Rump.

     She is funny, very funny. Much of her humor is unintentional. One early memory I have of Rump happened at work. Several of us ladies were sitting in the locker-room chatting and laughing. In all sincerity, Rump stood on a bench; with her arms spread wide and a room full of people looking up at her, she declared, "I hate being the center of attention."  Another episode took place when we were hiking the Superstition mountains; in Phoenix...in July. Rump disregarded my advice to wear a hat and bring lots of water. After a few hours of hiking she asked, "Is this a good time to tell you I'm out of water?" There is no good time to say those words. We both feared we were lost (and we were) and began to take shortcuts through the thorny brush. Being as coordinated as ever, I stumbled into a plant that broke off in my knee. I later learned this type of plant has poison in the tips. As we tramped and limped through the desert, Rump heard her first rattle snake. At this point I was having great difficulty walking. Good friend that she is, when Rump heard the snake, she pushed my from behind screaming, "Get out of my way!" She left me in the dust with one good leg to escape the diamondback. She did redeem herself, however when we finally sat and she pulled the tip of the plant from my knee. She saved me that day; and on so many others.

     I am writing this off the top of my head thereby making it impossible for the reader to truly appreciate Rump. I am writing for two reasons: First, because I didn't get her a gift. Rump, this is your present. Secondly, because I want people to know how important you are; not just to me but to the world. Rump (and Kari) worked at a refugee camp in Ghana for a month to help people who literally had nothing but the clothes on their backs. She volunteered in Haiti after the earthquake and helped people who had lost everything. She is an advocate and volunteer at the Welcome to America Project in Phoenix, helping to feed and clothe refugees who had to flee their homes in order to survive. Through her benevolent actions, she has instilled this sense of duty to humanity in others; myself included. Her kindness and generosity are surpassed only by her compassion. 

     Rump has her faults and over the years we have had a tiff or two, yet there is nothing she can do to diminish my opinion of her. From me to you, Rump: Thank you. You have helped and inspired me more than you know and from the bottom of my heart, I offer my gratitude and respect. I love you, my friend. Happy Birthday, Rump.