Everything seems broken . . .
In honor of Linda Hill’s One Liner Wednesday . . . no it’s not funny or inspirational – but it’s factual.
#1linerWeds badge by nearlywes.com
[NOTE: I really like Bob Dylan’s and especially Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s versions of these songs, but this version by Immaterial had that right touch of melancholy it seemed to deserve today.]
Just something I was thinking about . . .
I just saw the late night poll results from the Iowa caucuses, and I had to share! The Donald did not come out on top, as he expected. Bernie and Hillary are running neck in neck, so close that even at 99% of the precincts reporting, it’s still too close to call.
So the numbers for the Republicans went like this:
Cruz took 28% with 51,649 votes,
Trump took 24% with 45,416 votes,
and
Rubio came in at 23%, with 43,132 votes.
Of course, these numbers don’t really mean anything, and it’s still anyone’s race. And I have to say, Iowa doesn’t exactly represent the rest of the nation. I can’t wait to see what happens in New Hampshire!
I heard somebody on TV say, “The eyes of the world are watching us tonight.” I believe that is probably true.
On a personal note – Way to go, Bernie!!
Just something I was thinking about . . .
So I watched the debates this last week, both of them. Did you?
I missed one of the Democratic debates, and chose not to watch the December Republican debate, but what I have seen is that the overall tone of the Democratic debates have been far more civilized and respectful than the Republican debates. All that testosterone on one stage maybe, I don’t know, but the Republicans seem to talk less about the topics at hand – the problems in this country and HOW they would alleviate them – and more about themselves and each other.
Hillary Clinton was on Jimmy Fallon last week. He mentioned something about her watching the Republican debates, and taking a shot every time they said her name – she laughed and said she wouldn’t “make it past the first half hour.” I noticed they did say her name A LOT. Shit, I would’ve been drunk if I’d a been playing that game – really.
It was a good interview.
After watching the debates, I could say so much, but let me just mention a few random thoughts . . .
The Republican debate is almost always a debacle at worst, a circus at best – and this one was no exception. Donald Trump was all over Ted Cruz and they argued back and forth many times. The moderators completely lost control of the event. Marco Rubio referred to it as Court TV – I suspect it was worse.
Several times Trump mentioned that we must repeal and replace Obamacare. Replace it with what? He never said, and I don’t think they ever asked. Couldn’t believe one of the questions was is Hillary Clinton an enabler of sexual misconduct. WTF kind of question is that in this context and setting?
About half way in, there was talk between them about how they shouldn’t be tearing each other apart – great, I agree, but I don’t want to be part of that discussion. Them treating each other respectfully should’ve been a given – so not sure why we would waste precious time discussing that, either. OH wait, maybe because they don’t really have any answers, or answers that most of us would like, agree with, or understand in the context of our problems.
John Kasich mentioned the 50+ year old unemployment problem, but I’m not sure retraining us is necessarily the answer, though that could be helpful in some instances. Our jobs didn’t go away and we didn’t become incapable of doing them with the same vigor. The insurance companies don’t want to cover us.
Christie cracked me up when he said he is kicking President Obama out of the White House this fall. We all know this is Obama’s last term, he has to leave no matter which party wins. And contrary to Christie’s belief, Obama hasn’t “brainwashed” me against guns, nor do I feel he is trying to take them from me. No one will . . .
Rubio vehemently said criminals do not get guns from gun shows. I disagree, and I know how easy it would be for them to do it. I’ve seen exactly how it works. I can show him, too. He also called the EPA the Employee Prevention Agency. Of course, I bet he has never lived too near a toxic waste site, or an EPA Superfund site, though they are way more common than you think. I’m sure he hasn’t had his whole neighborhood bulldozed and perimeter fenced with security guards. I have, and all that entails. This is why we need health and safety regulation, because we are still finding and cleaning up the irresponsibility of the past.
I’m not sure any of them actually get it or understand it . . . the real issues, I mean.
NONE of them think Bernie Sanders is a viable candidate! Kasich even laughed about it, saying no one will vote for Bernie – he’s not an issue. That may sneak up and bite them in the ass.
The Democratic debate was lively. Sanders mentioned the heroin epidemic and how the pharmaceutical companies are also to blame. Well of course they are – after decades of addicting people to their Vicodin and Oxycontin and when the laws abruptly changed to make these drugs mostly unavailable to all the addicts they have grown to spike their profits. Shame on you . . . and I saw the heroin epidemic coming, but that’s a story for another day.
Sanders said we need to stand up to corrupt insurance and pharmaceutical companies – that it’s time to end Congress being owned by big money, and get back to Congress meeting the needs of the people. Clinton didn’t touch that too much.
It was enlightening to know that Clinton makes a large sum of money from Goldman Sachs for speaking events. O’Malley didn’t get much talk time – Hillary is definitely noticing Bernie now . . .
Obviously, these were some of the little things that caught my attention, and sometimes little things are telling. I figured you have already heard all about the major points. Oh yeah – Saturday Night Live had fun with the Republican debate this last Saturday as well. I tried to find a link, but none are posted yet. That’s the one thing I LOVE about election season – Saturday Night Live’s (and other comedians’) parodies!
Oh, and what about those New York values . . . {shaking my head, laughing!}
Just something I was thinking about . . .
Also part of Just Jot It January – check it out over on Linda G. Hill’s blog.
I am so tired of being “job free” – it sucks, is soul sucking, confidence stealing, and it’s got my head all screwed up. It seems as though life is kind of at a standstill for us, though we are fully aware of all the interconnected things going on around us that can (or do) affect us positively and negatively, and we can’t seem to escape this surreal nightmare.
My husband feels the same way, though he has been able to help one of our friends, who is a framer and builds houses, occasionally. But overall, lately we are about as motivated as sloths! We’ve been talking about it, and are consciously going to start working on it right away.
BUT what I really need, besides a job for me and my husband, is to take a road trip and get the hell out of dodge. I am sick of this place, these four walls, and this whole depressing unexpected time frame in my life and I am ready for a change and especially a change of scenery.
SO, this is what I need to see, and soon!!!! What about you – how you feeling??
I have been watching much of the political news and saw the last Republican debate. Now that was entertaining at various times throughout, as well as educational, enlightening, depressing and rife with platitudes. I heard Rick Perry, who I lovingly refer to as “Govna’ Goodhair” and that Wisconsin guy dropped out. (Okay, yes tonight I am too damn lazy to go look up his name and I can’t remember it off the top of my head 😉 ) That made me smile and I wasn’t surprised – both them dropping out and my indifference to looking up that guy’s name. Carly Fiorina is coming across as a real “Iron Lady,” but I think her business record will hurt her.
And The Donald, well, all I can say is this –
But, I think the further we go, it’ll be realized that he has no “real strategy” for anything, knows nothing about foreign policy and is full of insults, hot air, and himself. Great traits in a boxing or wrestling ring, but disastrous in a president.
Now Lindsey Graham just scares the crap out of me . . . I think he studies Revelations on a regular basis . . . and is living it out daily. And Ted Cruz, well he gives me the heebs every time he opens his mouth – he is a true hypocrite, among other things, in my book.
Looking forward to the next two debates, especially the first Democratic debate. I’m watching Bernie, and I like Elizabeth Warren, too, though I know she isn’t in the race. I had to go look up who else was running besides Hillary. The rest of them don’t seem to be viable, and I don’t like anyone who wants to loosen up copyright restrictions, so Lawrence Lessig is definitely out for me.
So many other things going on in the world as well, but it’s late. We can talk about them soon, as I am determined to write on a regular basis! I’ll be catching up with you all, as well! 🙂
(YEAH you know I had to go look it up, damn it 😉 – that guy I referred to earlier that dropped out was Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.)
Anyway, just some things I have been thinking about . . .
{Laughing} Not sure what to say about this picture that is going around on Facebook. It was even more interesting reading the comments {laughing again}. I have no idea who Jim Ballard is, other than he works at Tea Party Patriots – well that says a lot. Is it just me, or is this the stuff nightmares are made of? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have major issues with every person on this “dream ticket,” just most of them. Two of them, I don’t know anything about, yet. I’ve heard Dr. Ben Carson speak, and he seems to have some sensibility. But the top three in the photo – oh my lord, sounds like chaos to me . . .
What do you think about all of this? Do you think Donald Trump has any real staying power? I have always said we need someone in office who is not a politician, but I also concluded that thought with someone who understands what it’s like to struggle to pay their bills, you know the common person – not someone even further removed from reality. Is it just me, or does it seem like the only thing worse than a true politician is a one-percenter?
Just something I was thinking about . . .
It’s been a while since I’ve been able to spend any time with my WP family. I have missed your posts and writing my own, as well. So much has been happening in the world of late, honestly more than I can keep up with some days.
The Supreme Court has been quite busy. I must admit, I am happy with much of what they have done. What other people do in their own lives that doesn’t affect me shouldn’t be any of my concern, or anyone else’s. Same-sex marriage, the Affordable Care Act, and abortion rights in Texas, among others, were all championed by the justice system and reasonable thinking.
Don’t get me wrong, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) needs some work, especially in the states that refused to assist its citizens by setting up a state marketplace. But, by and large, it was the right thing to do. When I heard Ted Cruz signed his family up, I thought had you supported a state exchange in Texas, the prices would’ve been more reasonable – but Ted was against the ACA, vehemently if I remember correctly. Is that irony?
There’s been all kinds of racial incidents with the police. I was truly shocked and saddened by the church shooting in South Carolina. The victims families handled it with such grace and dignity, from what I saw, though I have truly tried to limit my intake of the news lately.
Then there’s the escaped convict incident – I was surprised when someone said to me, regarding the first escaped convict’s shooting death, “I hope he had a gun, you know since he was white and all.“ (Not touching this one . . .) I can say so much, but just can’t right now. He WAS an escaped convict and he did have a shotgun.
I keep hearing all over the place that jobs are up and unemployment is down. I can’t help but ask myself, “Where the hell are they getting these numbers? Where are they looking?” My husband is still unemployed, as are many others I know that are in my age group. And that’s just in my neck of the woods and what I hear from my contacts nationwide. I was working part-time, but my little part-time gig is about to come to a close in two weeks – no money coming in.
My daughter gave me a Starbucks gift card for Mother’s Day and I had one more coffee left on it and stopped in at my fav Starbucks, which is inside my grocery store, so I see the baristas frequently. The lady working that day is about my age and got laid off from her good job a year and a half ago. While we were chatting, she shared that they hired a new lady last week who’s real nice, has a Ph.D., but got laid off from a government contractor over a year ago and this is the only place she could get hired. She, of course, is in my age group, and is now making $7.56 an hour.
Does anyone realize what’s happening here . . . the age discrimination, much of it involving insurance coverage. The insurance companies HEAVILY influence hiring decisions, it’s not just the employers. I think we would be amazed at just what all the insurance companies have influence over!
Our age group has a huge effect on the economy with our traditional buying power. But many of us are living on our retirement savings 10-15 years before we are supposed to, and paying a penalty for it, though it is against our will and our better judgment – it’s done out of survival. Many were expecting to make up for lost years over the next decade and have nothing left to fall back on.
When cars are repossessed and houses are foreclosed on, and this group is now reduced to government aid to survive – more people now on what is often referred to as government “socialism” – this country’s backbone is going to begin to start to crack, splinter, and break. And if these 50+ year-olds are unfortunate enough to not be able to afford COBRA or the ACA, many will fall into the category where they don’t fall into the age group that can get Medicaid or Medicare. People in this situation and age group are SOL and better hope/pray that nothing serious happens, or they could be most majorly screwed . . .
Though I will admit, I have not done my homework regarding the actual statistics; I can’t help but believe this is the one of the first times in history where fifty-plus-year-olds have been singled out to be extinguished from the workplace. (If I am wrong, please educate me!) If this trend continues, I see some serious hurt for the future of this country – I’m not an economist, but common sense and history tells the story that what may come is unprecedented and could be catastrophic.
ON A PERSONAL NOTE: Regarding my gig . . . well my instincts proved to be correct. Definitely too good to be true. The guy I was working for isn’t too motivated, canceling every training session we had scheduled for really lame reasons like, “It’s been a rough day, I worked setting up your email, and I need a drink, so I’m outta here.” Or early one Saturday morning, “Sorry I cut out, my neighbor needed help and I said I would, not sure why ‘cause I’m usually not that neighborly.” You know that kind of stupid shit.
When it came to him selling policies to the appointments I made on these mostly 2-8 year-old leads, he canceled and we rescheduled a few for reasons that were not important. I had a list of about 35 people I had talked to that he needed to speak with for various reasons – high risk, specific questions not related to exact cost but involving health issues, etc. He finally got appointed to sell the high-risk policies he found were best and last Saturday he told me he was calling them all. When I showed up, he said he couldn’t call them because he had set up the online account to access what he needed to quote them prices, but forgot the password and wouldn’t be able to get it on a Saturday. Seriously . . .
Then when he told me a few days later he couldn’t afford to pay me any longer, but if I wanted I could still make calls and he would give me my commission – but he couldn’t afford to pay me for calling.Then he had the nerve to tell me that now he was really going to have to hustle and start working his book business. I’m thinking, dude, why haven’t you been doing that all along.
Long Term Care coverage is his specialty, but it is not cheap, typically. I’m working leads that are years old, and he had me listen to training tapes that were on cassettes and 20 years old – what does that tell you. During our discussion I reminded him that things have changed in the last 20 years – people don’t think the same, communicate the same, research purchases and purchase the same, and marketing and sales have changed considerably. Yeah, he didn’t want hear that – he’s four years younger than me and living in a bubble of some sort.
Anyway, now I have two avenues to explore – my established career, and my new inexperienced career. Maybe one of them will get me somewhere. It’s been two years – I need a break . . . a real one. I don’t consider any of this wasted time, as I have now learned many new things and have earned licenses and certifications in new areas.
Oh, and the fig tree is a monster producer. I have canned over 50 jars so far of various fig jams and preserves. It was fun and I think I have another two weeks or more. My kitchen is covered in figs in various stages of ripeness and jars everywhere – and I am growing weary!
Oh!! And what about that Bill Cosby – TV’s All American Dad and his fondness for Quaaludes, among other things?? Wow, so TV and real live aren’t the same?? (YES, I am laughing at that fucking piece of irony in the midst of all else . . .)
Anyway, just some things I was thinking about . . . (and my mind still reels, but this post is already wayyyy too long . . . but got something else coming soon . . .)
When we go to the grocery store to shop for our food, typically we have over 47,000 products to choose from. Do you have any idea where some of this food comes from, how it’s made, who’s controlling it, who’s making the profits, and who’s overseeing the safety? I’ve been hearing rumblings that were quite disturbing for years, but lately, it’s hard to get away from the “rumors” with so many different ways for people to communicate.
Regarding grocery store produce, since there are no seasons anymore, fruit is usually picked before it’s ripe, ripened later with ethylene gas. And just what is ethylene gas?
After doing some research, I have discovered that the way we eat, meaning the way our food is grown, has changed a lot in the last 50 years, more so than in other time frame of our history. I have tried to ensure I have done valid research, on this subject in particular, because it affects my family, my grandkids, me, and you and yours.
I am old enough to remember that when I was growing up autism was rare. I knew no one with it. I knew a lot of kids and I was the only one I knew with asthma, which my mother also had from the time she was a little girl. There was no ADD or ADHD, and a good percentage of children were not on prescription medication. It is no longer that way.
From early on, I wanted to raise a few livestock of my own, and have my own garden, and buy other essentials in their natural state from my neighbors. I almost made that dream happen. See, I was paying attention to what was going on long before I even realized it.
As I began to really pay attention to what I was serving my family, I noticed that in tracing food back to its origins, that most of it was not grown or raised on farms, but produced in factories, factories that from the outside look like farms, but are anything but when you begin to understand how they operate as large assembly lines and/or scientific experiments.
Just as some have said about our communication and media sources becoming too sanitized distributing the same messages via a very small group of owners with specific interests being dangerous (another topic for another day), so too is our food supply.
Much of the food found on the shelves of the average grocery store is made and controlled by a small group of multi-national corporations – from the seed to the end product. Technically, a handful of companies are controlling our food system in the United States – what we eat and how it’s produced.
Big pharma and corporate chemical companies, with their genetically modified experimental commodities, are threaded thick through this food tapestry. And you might be surprised at the number of people who work back and forth between these corporations and government regulatory agencies over the years – I know I was.
Though food is absolutely necessary to our survival, don’t ever kid yourself, IT IS BIG BUSINESS and it is not about sustaining the population and its health, it is about PROFIT, pure and simple.
Stay tuned if your interested, as I have more to say on this subject, just don’t want to make this post too long.
Anyway, just something I’ve been thinking about, for quite some time now . . .
So I keep seeing this picture on Facebook, and I’m not sure where exactly it came from or how “authentic” it is. But the first time I saw it, I just had one thought . . .
No mother should have to fear for any of their loved ones lives because someone else’s son robs a store, regardless of race.
Anyway, just something I was thinking about . . .
[Written for Linda Hill’s One-Liner Wednesday, though it’s neither funny or inspirational per say, so I didn’t exactly follow the rules this time.]
Image source: https://www.facebook.com/waltonandjohnson/photos/a.178779813472.122034.172224883472/10152617857393473/?type=1
Yep, it’s true, heard it on the news the other night. A company in Japan is being investigated for injuries caused when the automobile airbags they manufacture are exploding into the very people they are made to protect.
Japanese airbag manufacturer Takata Corporation originally discovered the issue back in 2004 and began to investigate, according to insider reports, but then shut that internal investigation down and destroyed all evidence collected. The airbags in question were made at the company’s Monclova Plant in Mexico. The issue and several recalls, involve defective inflator and propellant devices.
In 1998, Takata publicized the fact that they were using tetrazole, a new propellant developed as a “reliable and effective compound” for airbag inflation. By 2001, they had switched to an ammonium nitrate compound, which is among other things a cheaper alternative. Ammonium nitrate is highly sensitive to temperature changes and moisture. It also breaks down over time, which can result in violent combustion. Ammonium nitrate is used in fertilizer, in the manufacture of explosives, and in solid rocket fuel.
Still considered one of the worst accidents in Texas history, in 1947 a ship, the S.S. Grandcamp was taking on a load of ammonia nitrate, when it caught fire and exploded (killing close to 600 people. It had caught on fire and the fire department was trying put it out when it became unstable and exploded killing all twenty-six Texas City firemen. They all thought it was just fertilizer and had no idea of the danger. Wow, does that sound familiar – they had no idea of the danger.
My point here, Takata manufactured and sold these devices that have been installed in almost 8 million vehicles in the U.S. alone, according the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. These defective airbags explode releasing metal shrapnel pieces. My research showed that the other airbag manufacturers do not use this type of propellant. Pretty nasty stuff, especially when I already worry as close as I have to sit to the steering wheel that I’m going to be decapitated or have my chest crushed as it is . . .
I have to be honest, I had never given a thought to how my airbags worked, and I’ll bet most of you haven’t either – yet we use these unconsciously every day, with them pointed at our faces and chests.
If you haven’t checked your vehicle, this is your public service announcement – please do so here:
Just something I was thinking about . . .
[Still working on the novel for NaNoWriMo – but seriously behind. Close to 25,000 words. Whether I make it or not, I’m already much further than I have ever made it before, so . . . I’m cool, and not giving up yet, either. 🙂 ]
So my last post got me to thinking about Tupperware®. I love Tupperware® and have many pieces I bought years ago from a party I had. I even have a couple of very old pieces from my grandmas, back from the late 1940s and 1950s. After World War II, Earl Tupper modified his factory machines to mold raw polyethylene (developed for weapons use) into food containers – using a paint can as inspiration for the tight-fitting lids. Originally, Tupperware® was made in the Massachusetts’ plastics industrial complex.
I emailed them last week, using the “Contact Us” link on their website, inquiring about where their products are manufactured. Several emails went back and forth, and I must admit they were very prompt with their responses. I was told that Tupperware® products are made all over the world – Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, Portugal, France, Belgium, Greece, India, China, Korea, Japan and United States.
I was assured of their continued history of high quality and design and “all Tupperware® products meet all applicable laws and regulations for product safety in each country they are made.” I’m not sure what that means exactly. Do they mean that all countries manufacture products that meet all U.S. laws and regulations regarding health safety, or are they different in different countries? Pretty sure it was stated that way on their website, too.
Though their home office is in Orlando, Florida, their Customer Care Center is located in Mexico City. You know I asked, and I asked because I could tell from the way the email was composed. Again – that shit just pisses me off, though they were – again – prompt and most informative and polite. But their English writing skills weren’t great. Kind of scares me when big corporations don’t find good clear concise written communication important.
A Google search turned up a WP blog that stated “the Tupperware® factory in the United States is located in Hemmingway, South Carolina.” Debra Todd Jordan, a Tupperware® consultant, went on to say, “Each plant makes the items that are indigenous to their region.” So, if that’s correct, I can get on board with that – if nothing else saves on shipping and props up the economies using the products. Unfortunately, how those corporate taxes are handled I probably would not agree with.
Anyway, since I didn’t have my fingers in enough pies this week, I had to research this 😉 I am a glutton for punishment lately. Just thought I’d share what I found out. I haven’t bought any lately, but read in my research that now they are not marked with where they are made, just the Tupperware® mark. Where our medicines come from is next on my agenda – after . . .
Still working NaNoWriMo . . . still behind, but continuing to work it. I may not meet my goal, but damn it, I will be further along in this story than I have been. I posted a couple of snippets from the novel on my other blog, in the event you are interested in this type of reading. It is very different from this blog – that’s why I have more than one, my interests are varied, random, eclectic for sure. My novel is fiction, with a little romance thrown in, more a story of life and how it plays out sometimes. There’s a lot of dialog. If you check it out, please leave me some feedback. I value and respect all of your opinions as writers in general. Having said that – don’t make me cry now 😉
All of a sudden I have a bunch of people wanting apple butter and this week blackberries are on sale for 88-cents a six-ounce container, so I have a few orders I have to fill this week. Doesn’t make much money, but brings in a little cash and I enjoy doing it. (Though my hands aren’t as good as they used to be and when you make this shit – if you’re doing it right, you’re gonna get burned LOL – seriously! Looking forward to that blackberry jam, though!!)
Listening to this right now – I find this to be good writing music sometimes, depending on my mood . . . plus it’s raining and the wind’s kicking, and the windchimes are singing – n~i~c~e.
Also, trying to keep up with y’all, slowly but surely 😉 I’m definitely becoming a binge reader, seemly stalking sites 🙂
Just some things I was thinking about ☮☮☮
[POSTSCRIPT – OH NO, the video I linked to has been removed . . . that’s never happened to me before. I hope I didnt just get added to some LIST somewhere, ya know what I mean 😉 I’m going to look for another link, but in case I don’t find one, the music was the soundtrack to the movie “Rush” from 1992, mostly instrumentals by Eric Clapton. Soulful, contemplative music for sure!]
Just something I was thinking about . . . 