Thank you so much! The brightest people are almost always the college dropouts, since formal education tends to encourage conformity and zero critical thinking.
I am an 81 year old retired social worker, and, because of my incurable allergy to bureaucracies, I worked independently throughout most of my life. However. that independence left me without a pension. I live in a rent stabilized apartment in Queens, New York City,and the landlords (very greedy father and son) gives inadequate heat year after year, and the city does nothing about it. Like so many others, I cannot afford to move.
Yet there is enough empty "luxury" housing to shelter every homeless person in this city.
There was a little known study in 2014, done by "scholars' in Northwestern and Princeton University, in which the conclusion was that it makes absolutely no difference which political party is in power in the United States. It is the billionaire class (although the authors of the study refused to note that most of those billionaires are psychopaths) that gets its way 99 percent of the time. That should come as no surprise to any thinking person. However, I think that since then the billionaires, although few in number, have become even more greedy, evil and totally inhumane. After all, who benefits from war but the weapons manufactures, Raytheon, etc. They are literally and figuratively making a killing.
Mr. Jeffries, thank you so much for sharing your story with us. I find it truly inspiring.
Yes, the conservatives continue to worship at the altar of the "free" marketplace. Which isn't free. What kind of "competitive" system has a founder (John D. Rockefeller) whose credo was "Competition is a sin?" Thanks, Timmy!
DJ, I think the terms liberal and conservative are just vague collective nouns (aka generic terms). It's up to us to define them. Ideally they aren't opposing belief systems, but are complementary systems. I was raised as a 'saver', so I favor responsible fiscal policies, unfortunately TPTB have shifted conservatism to mean neoconism. Also I remember the good life -when there was no fluoride in our water, milk was unpasteurized, vaccines were rare, farms didn't use Roundup or Atrazine,
gardens must be organic, and schools kept small vs the 50 million dollar extravaganzas we get to pay for now.
The same thing happened to liberalism; it shifted into neocon statism and into bizarre clownworld anti-traditional fetishes. Both sides of the political spectrum seem to favor unlimited military spending, and warism instead of pacifism.
There needs to be a conscious balance between our conservative and liberal tendencies. What we have now is schizophrenic, since it is unconscious and contradictory; e.g. think of the current crop of environmentalists fighting "global warming" and to "save the wildlife" while at the same time supporting the military and war in Ukraine. I don't know how we save the environment and give the military
a near infinite amount of resources to burn up and to bomb... Remember the old cliche, "we had to destroy the village to save the village"?
Donald Jeffries: John D. Rockefeller was no free market capitalist but he did bring down the price of oil products for consumers. Big Business uses government to keep out competition. Try and start a business in the USA today. You will need to meet all kinds of government regulations, licenses, bonds, etc. These are barriers to new competitors to the Big Business Boys.
As for housing, get rid of ALL the zoning laws and housing regulations. In California all the laws passed in Sacramento add $10-20K to the price of a home or apartment building. This cost is passed on to consumers. The CEQA (environmental law) has been abused big time by local groups to stop housing.
I agree 100%. The best thing gov't could do is cancel just about every law written since 1930. It is funny how the more the banks are "regulated", the more corrupt and uncontrolled they become.
Maybe the best bank regulation ever would be to require that any depositor, at any time, could enter the safe and inspect its contents.
White Wolf: I read an article years ago, this was during the Savings & Loan fiasco, that said, "Every generation, a few bankers have to be put in prison to keep them honest." (Or at least, less dishonest.)
Astute observations, Susan. I'm sorry that you find yourself in the situation you do. As you know, there are millions who have it much worse. America has no moral compass left. Thanks!
I have always had an allergy to Bureaucracies too. Bureaucrats live in a fantasy world of their own construction, absolutely insulated from any reality. Moreover, if ever they solve a problem, they will find themselves out of a job. The function of bloated gov't is to keep themselves in business!
We live in Minnesota where Winters last 6 months a year.
In the bedrooms we have radiator style electric heaters and for my personal comfort I
use a Vornado electric heater in my "office" / three season porch.
The nice thing is you only use them when you are in the room to save cost.
I got addicted to electric heaters as a small kid growing up on a farm in a drafty 100 year old farmhouse. When my six other brothers were watching the t.v. I'd be sitting by an electric fake fireplace reading books while the blizzards were blowing. We milked cows so being in the barn was cosey too, the 40 cows created their own heat.
Dear Donald, it's nice you care so much about the victims of the system,as you say, solidarity is a must. We can't save or help everybody,I wish I could but I can't. But as you say, we can do everyday random acts of kindness. I believe we can give much more than money,we can give a smile to someone,we can give an ear to listen to somebody who feels bad or alone,we can use our hands to touch somebody's shoulder or back,to let them know we care,we can give free hugs. It's all about presence,to embody our Light and let it shine every single day.
That's a wonderful idea, Kiran. A smile can mean so much to those who are living those lives of quiet desperation. One of my favorites, H.L. Mencken, once said, "If, after I depart this vale, you ever remember me and have thought to please my ghost, forgive some sinner and wink your eye at some homely girl." I think that applies to all who need that kind of small positive gesture. Thanks!
Yes, we have been taught to measure everything in terms of money. But we should measure in terms of compassion- especially the compassion and the courage to correct the erring and the sinner.
Ever wonder what life would be like if there were No Jews. No Palestinians. No Russians. No Ukrainians. No white folks. No yellow folks. No black folks. What if we all accepted each other ( I'm not talking about the perverts who want to subvert your children) recognizing that we all have the same hopes and dreams, love for our families? How many people have been robbed of their homes, their families murdered because so many of us lack compassion and empathy? If we all don't soon learn how to love and get along there will be nothing to love or get along with.
What the World needs is Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. Peace is the tranquility of Order, which can only be found under God. People seek it everywhere else.
Given half a chance I think they would kill Him again. Most don't want salvation. They want money so they van continue to wallow in debauchery while they keep up their endless efforts to exterminate us.
Kiran: I agree. A kind word a smile and two good ears to listen to others is very important. Today a middle-aged woman from Sonic.net came by the house. Knocked on the door. I usually ignore salesmen but this time I went out on the front porch and talked to her for 10 minutes. We had a nice conversation. Only cost me ten minutes.
"A kind word never broke a tooth." Old Irish saying.
I forget which book it was in, but it struck me when the author mentioned that in the recent past the president of a company might live in the same town as the workers, but their house would only be slightly better. It might have a pool, or an extra bedroom or two, but there was the expectation that they were also part of the community.
The kids went to the same schools as the workers kids. It wasn’t so segregated by money. That just strikes me as these days elites seem to live on their own planet and they aren’t interested in the local community they work in.
They’ll go from town to town sucking out resources, then leave having got theirs. We see that with the lower end housing market where houses are either bought out by hedge funds and rented for steep prices or bought by investors looking to be an Airbnb super hosts.
There’s not much emphasis on community building, unless you are talking about one of the weirdo ‘oppressed’ groups. But even then, the language is tribal, Allies, my community - not our community.
Unless it’s about ‘undermining our democracy’. I thought the use of ‘our’ was especially interesting b/c it’s always about ‘me and mine’ with these groups.
Don’t really have a point, but just want to make a note of these things to others. It’s just sad and like you said - sinful.
My dad was of your generation and I wish I would have grown up in a previous time. It sounds so wonderful to be in a country that likes itself.
You're right, Sun. The professional athletes, for example, lived in average neighborhoods and had to work regular jobs in the offseason. There was not the same kind of massive gap between the haves and the have nots. Thanks!
Same here in Australia. Watch a Rugby League game from the early 80’s compared to today. Remember that Rugby League was established so poor players could get paid since Rugby Union remained upper class and amateur. They evolved into entirely different codes. The point being that League has become over regulated, overpaid overly professional and relatively boring with imported players where they used to be from the local area. Same for Australian Rules Football which is a different game altogether
The difference between then and now is that the companies were more local. My Father worked for Hamilton Watch. It had a nationwide market, but it was a local company ran by people who lived in the neighborhood. And some of them actually cared.
Today, everything is a franchise or a branch. The movers and shakers are in isolated gated communities far removed from the sheeple. And they act accordingly.
Agreed. I grew up in a town that had a local pharmaceutical company that was a major employer. The company still exists and is still a major employer, but it’s under a different name, and considered a regional office for a multinational ‘brand’. It changed the character of the town.
“If we can’t get our “representatives” to force a fairer distribution of the wealth...’
When they vote themselves pay hikes? They just added another one btw. The system is beyond corrupt. Christ has afforded me the means to help out a good number of people, from a gay man to a retired Navy Chief, & will continue to do so as much as I can. It’s really on us - not the govt where the whole thing quickly becomes a corrupt scheme for players/kickbacks - especially if we call ourselves Christians to step up to the plate.
But by the grace of God, we go. Each of us could suffer irreparable harm by the actions of a non-caring elitist. At one point I owned and operated a small business. The employees knew that success was a mutual responsibility and was shared. Everyone got free healthcare and an extra paycheck at Christmas. Taking care of those that take care of you is rewarded.
Many companies no longer realize that their dedicated employees are their greatest asset. For the big companies, employees are like toilet paper-a throwaway commodity.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, there is a problem with that. Unfortunately employee dedication and a willingness to put forth extra effort has faltered. Of course the past few years have impacted that as well. No easy answers.
I wish I could say the same. We had one employee to work Saturday mornings so we could have the weekend clear with the kids. We found out that he usually never came to work but still collected his pay. A second one, a full time employee robbed us blind for months, also ordered a lot of stock that she sold out the back door. Being soft and trusting can be risky in business
I am a human resource consultant for local small and mid-sized businesses. It's shocking how many of them, especially the small family run businesses who provide nice atmospheres and good pay, end up getting ripped off and scammed by an employee who takes advantage of their gracious and trusting natures. Very discouraging.
Thanks for the reply. We were also on the receiving end of a lot of shoplifting- some of them professionals who targeted high end items to order. My wife suffered severe illness from all the stress
Since communism proved to be a dud, every nation on Earth (except N. Korea) has a veiled form of fascism in which there’s a paper-thin distance between the upper levels of government and the biggest businesses. Congress serves the donor-class that swarms the Capital looking for sweetheart deals. Our votes don’t matter because the hearts of Members and Senators don’t beat in time with the masses. We don’t matter. Can this be changed? Only after collapse, which will probably happen before I’m laid in the grave. Pity. In 1959, America was the undisputed greatest country on Earth. We’ve forgotten to love God and our neighbor as ourselves.
In 1959, America was the Workers' Paradise built by the Military-Industrial complex. But yes, the masses had a heart, went to church, and at least knew what holiness looked like, even if they did not practice it. And, yes, there were lines that even the most hardened sinners knew not to cross. Those boundaries disappeared with "sex, drugs, and rock'n'roll'"
As Mr. Jeffries said, the difference in income between the worker and the owner was more appropriate, but in addition to the MIC, Americans were acquiring consumer goods at a breakneck pace. I recall my parents getting a dishwasher and blender when I was just a wee lad. Of course, your comments about the moral fiber of the nation are spot-on. We were never perfect, but we had a conscience and a bent towards good.
There are actually more poor whites than blacks in the U.S., both per capita and in total numbers, the truth of which the Ruling Class naturally obfuscates. The vast majority of Medal of Honor winners in combat come from poverty stricken Appalachia. Traditionally, most military "Lifers" come from the poor, rural south. When I was in the "Suck" (U.S. Navy), one of them told me this was because it was in the military that they got their first pair of real shoes and saw for the first time a flush toilet. It was great shakes to them. The post World War Two boom was largely because of the rise of Unions in the U.S. You can chart parallel lines on graph paper showing the American middle class and unions elevating together. However, the Ruling Class swine never sleep. With relentless pressure on Congress, they got the Right to Work laws and the Taft Hartley Act passed which flooded the work force with so much non union labor that the unions were eviscerated and rendered impotent. In their heyday, 1 in 3 American workers were in unions or about 34% and they were strong. Now it is under 12% and even that is misleading as a high percentage of those are "Sweetheart" or company controlled unions, weak as kittens. This is mainly why there exists so much working class destitution today. In the 90s undercover journalist Barbara Ehrenreich wrote, "Nickel and Dimed". She traveled the country working a variety of blue collar jobs and what she discovered appalled her. The incredible physical and mental demands employers placed on their workers for a pittance in pay and very little or no benefits. I've experienced this personally and had to use all of my willpower and restraint from killing abusive bosses with my bare hands and winding up in prison. Some of them were women, it wasn't just men. I don't care how long you work at a place, with exceedingly rare exception, your co-workers are not your friends though they pretend to be. Once your ass is out the door, they couldn't give a flying fuck about what happens to you. In this Kali Yuga, people don't say what they mean and don't mean what they say. In Scumerica you have a huge class of idle rich who produce and contribute nothing to the economy. The only way such a system can keep from toppling over is to have a large slave class at the base of the pyramid, which we have today with our impoverished working class and is exemplified by our prison system wherein under Unicor and similar government programs prisoners manufacture goods for a pay of 50 cents an hour. This has diabolically supplanted the antebellum South's plantation system and the North's industrial sweatshop mills of that era. "What is fame? What is glory? The grave awaits us all." (from the film, "Babette's Feast") Thank you, Don. This is brilliant, profound, depressing, and true.
As always, I value your thoughtful posts, Hereticdrummer. Barbara Ehrenreich is my Facebook friend, but has never responded to my messages. Naomi Wolf compared "Nickel and Dimed" to my "Survival of the Richest." Barbara should love my book, but I can't make her aware of it. In this regard, she mirrors most all of today's Left (with the exception of Naomi.) Thanks!
As I value your exemplary writings, Don, thank you. Tis a shame about Ehrenreich, perhaps she is envious of you as a rival and better writer than she is. The Leftists of today are so hypocritical, among other things. Keep landing those uppercuts and be well.
I don't know. She may be like so many others- aware of where they stand in the pecking order. So many hierarchies. I quoted from her book in mine, and certainly spoke favorably of her work. Thanks.
Ehrenreich died of a stroke on September 1st 2022...most likely from the Jonestown jab. I don't think she would have ever deigned to speak with you Donald...she was a typical establishment feminist liberal...beholden to the system and blaming men for everything. These establishment types must only place the blame on the globalist's "villains". I read Nickled and Dimed. Her book Bight-sided was good, because it blew apart the "create your own reality" psy-op with actual studies.
Ehrenreich (The name in German means, quite ironically- Mother of Our Hearth) was a creation of Pius XII and his evil encyclical "Sponsa Christi" where he was urging women to get out of the house and domestic life and into politics and the working world. It was from here that I trace the whole feminist movement.
When I was growing up my school was infested with nuns who were flaming feminists. They wanted apartments and day jobs and all the toys of suburbia. They wanted to give the world the "workers paradise". They absolutely despised womanhood and motherhood and all that women do- cooking and cleaning and making a house into a home.
They were the fitting ancestors of the "Transgenders".
A pecking order in classless, democratic America, surely you jest? Hahahaha!!!! She appears to be an ingrate. If that's the case, she's one of a large contingent. You're welcome, Don.
I don't want to be unfair to her. Maybe she just gets so many messages she missed mine. She might be unaware of my book. As a fellow blue collar worker used to tell me way back in the day, "It's not who you know, it's who knows you." Thanks!
Or the much cruder version, "It's not who you know, it's who you blow." Hahaha!!! Forgive me, I couldn't resist when you left that opening. I understand totally what you're saying. You're welcome and thanks again.
Perhaps it depends on what field you work in as to whether coworkers are real friends? My husband is still in touch with coworkers from 35 yrs ago. But corporate heads are another story - they'll fire you in a minute no matter how valuable you have been to them dollar wise. As we know - all scum rises to the top ;)
Perhaps, I did say there are exceptions. I based my comment on this from years of direct experience and personal observation. I would have been fine with a handshake and a, "Good Luck" minus the mendacious, "Oh, we must stay in touch." In truth only the hypocritical aspect of it grates me, otherwise, I find it amusing and could not care less.
I do think, HereticDrummer, that you are oversimplifying here. Yes, the Unions were powerful in their heyday, but the unions also exacerbated the "Worker/Management" warfare. The unions inculcated an "us versus them" mentality and saw the company as a cash cow to milk. It was the unions that priced the American Worker out of even the domestic market and induced companies to seek cheaper imports overseas. That was exactly what put my father's company, Hamilton Watch, out of business. Why would you buy a cheap American watch for $30 when you could get a cheap Japanese- later Chinese- watch for $7? Eventually, my dad's company just did distribution- all the production was done overseas in Chinese "sweatshops" (actually, labor camps) while the American consumer remained blissfully unaware. Furthermore, the Unions gave us the wonderful OSHA which strapped companies with costs making sure equipment was "safe". Disgruntled employees also used OSHA inspectors as a weapon against management.
My dad was more or less a part of management while I worked the lines, so I could see both sides of contention and had multiple perspectives. Ultimately, the Unions were just a tool for the Socialists and their Agitprop.
The unions got exactly what they deserved for their unbridled greed and lack of willingness to work with management. Yes, they did much good, especially early on. But the union leaders were often corrupt and out of touch with the working man.
You make some excellent points, White Wolf. I am well aware that the top echelon of the largest and most powerful unions matched their corporate adversaries in corruption and malfeasance. As far as an, "us versus them" mentality, the companies laid that down a long time prior. Corporate America and its bankster masters had planned for decades to de-industrialize the U.S., but first they had to emasculate the unions, which they did. Workplace protection against hazards due to employer negligence was ubiquitous and there are countless tragedies of employees killed or maimed because of it. Something had to be done to enforce compliance with regard to safety measures. Unfortunately, like all governmental creations, OSHA overreached and did harm as well as good. If the unions were a tool for the Socialists and their agitprop, concomitantly the capitalists were and are a tool for the oligarchic swine and the satanic money printers that rule this earth. As I've aforestated, ultimately at the highest levels everything coalesces into one indistinguishable blob of unbridled power and criminality. The bottom line is that from the worker's perspective, unions were vital to insure a life free from total abuse, exploitation, and destitution at the hands of the mega-capitalists and were forged in fire, pain. and bloodshed. To highlight my main contention, look at the pathetic state of American workers today sans unions. My father was a decorated combat veteran of World War Two and I can assure you that if it wasn't for his membership in what was a very powerful union at the time, the Atomic, Chemical, and Oil Workers of America, me, my five siblings, and my mother would have had a much, much, rougher time of it and believe me, like so many in our neighborhood, we were miles from easy street.
The gutting of America was done from several vectors- only one being the disenfranchising of the labor unions. The main culprit was taxes and regulations. Mom and Pop went under, but the chain stores only needed one auditor for their two hundred locations. Big gov't is the friend of Big Business. It is easier to run one slave pen than deal with dozens of upstart owners who have ways of working around the system.
America has been strip mined of its wealth by the usual suspects and its people transmuted into serfs on what is increasingly a world-wide plantation. One of the main objectives of the Covid-19 criminal hoax was to shut down and destroy small and medium sized businesses which are for the most part family owned. In this the monsters were largely successful.
Dang, if the My Pillow guy, Mike Lindell, could get rich selling terribly uncomfortable pillows, and that Sham Wow rag salesman could get rich selling his rags, then maybe
your watch company needed a much better advertising campaign. Obviously it's not easy to compete with slave labor, but that could have been the sales point; NO SLAVES, NOT ACCEPTABLE, IT'S OUR DUTY TO BUILD IN AMERICA AND TO BUY AMERICAN.
It's a good policy, buying local as much as possible too. Losing our jobs, our workforce, and our technical knowhow is not just tragic. We might as well shoot ourselves in the head while we're at it.
The main problem with Hamilton Watch is they had an identity crisis. They went into Grandfather Clocks. That was like trying to market T-bone Steaks at Burger King. They bought Texas Instruments and made calculators, but just did not keep up with the innovations. They were still selling bulky desk models where the competition had slimline LCDs. They bought a metals company in New England to try and control costs- and the industry went to plastic. The board members had zero imagination, zero prognostication, and zero patience. As it turned out, if they would have just persevered they could have themselves a stable niche market- not booming like the '60's, but the bills would get paid.
The big trouble with the unions was that they were infiltrated by the sharks. These shark were only interested in their own wellbeing. They became part of the elite. Their selfishness sold out their memberships.
The early unions were a necessity in raisin living standards for working people. Even non-union people benefited if only because of the threat of organized labour.
Now with corruption at the top of the unions workers have again been disenfranchised.
My pleasure. I am Gen Z but I sure get your feelings. I long for simpler, better times. I grew up in a very traditional home and my husband and I have followed suit. I love being at home with our 3 children and they have turned out to be such good young adults primarily just because of our presence with them (not necessarily that we’ve done everything well but rather that they’ve always known that we care enough to forego our own desires/ambitions to be around more for them).
Motherhood is the Greatest Vocation, the one sorely dissed and resented by the Feminazis. Your 401K plan is not going to comfort you on your deathbed, but well-raised children surely will. Yes, parenting is tough, especially in those early years. but perseverance reaps wonderful dividends!
If I may be permitted, following is an illustration of the lack of charitas in this world.
I decided to treat my self and my husband to pizza the other evening for dinner. I never used to consider this an expensive treat but now for two people, it amounts to nearly $50 here in Canada. As I have always appreciated the service that delivery drivers perform (their car, their gas expense) I tipped the woman generously. She nearly cried and told me that the prior evening she had 7 deliveries in a row with NO tip.
Humanity seems to be under the spell of a demonic possession. One that is consuming our hearts.
Nice tip, Gwyneth. I am 9th of 10 kids from Philly and our dad was a bartender who depended on tips. 5 of us went in the military by 18 years old. We went on to be rather successful by most measures and in part owe that to the generosity of tippers.
I do think that many people these days simply cannot afford to tip. The last time I got a pizza, about two years ago, it was absolute sticker shock. $30 for a pizza and a meatball sandwich.
Very well written and an enjoyable read. I’m 71 and may have exceeded $60,000 annual income once, possibly twice in my lifetime. My family never could afford a vacation. I agree with 99% of your article. The one percent being, I could never, ever, not be a conservative. (Sorry about the double negative)
The best vacations I ever had were at Grandma's house in Appalacia. High in the hills of Western Pennsylvania, the water pressure was so low that it took an hour to fill the bathtub, and if you wanted a hot bath you had to boil water on the stove. You only flushed the toilet after a dump, and the men would pee against a tree. Only one bathroom for 22 people, and always a line. My recreation was the Great Outdoors- woods and stream and field.
But my grandmother could make the most wonderful things with just flour, maple syrup, and the blackberries we just picked.
They can have their crummy beaches in North Carolina and their crummy resorts in the Great Smokies. Just give me my cabin, my fire, and my dog.
Yes. I too am homesick for my childhood. We had next to nothing but there was always love and the endless mountain trails we spent our life on hunting fishing or just adventuring. Now I have my cabin my fire and my dog but the bastards still won't leave me in peace.
I'm not really homesick for those days. They also left something to be desired. Seems like all my good years were on the eights- 68, 78, 88, 98, and 08. And my bad years were the Zeros. My only prospect is that 2028 comes before 2030.
Hmm... me thinks you might be encouraged if you were to meet a few more conservatives - at least the ones I know. Very compassionate.
As to the current illegals I don't believe they are as impoverished as you think. They are coming across with the latest iphone, name brand clothing and attitude. They receive thousands every month, plus housing and food. Plus money if they enroll in college. Much better taken care of than our own homeless. I live on the border - it's a mess. The open border is certainly going to equalize us-- equally poor we will be, having to ask the homeless how to survive as we suddenly become Zimbabwe -- except for the 1% or whoever is running this destruction.
In my area I'm afraid I can no longer go near any homeless. Dangerous and not in their right minds. Just yesterday at my local grocery store there was a guy practicing with a bull whip in the parking lot and hollering gibberish. My local thrift store had a stabbing behind them one wk and then a patron was attacked when walking out the front door the next wk. And no, I don't live in a sketchy town. Seems it will be soon tho.
The mayor is a psychiatrist and conservative - walks the streets and offers them lodging because there are beds available but they don't want them. It's very complicated.
The homeless of yesteryear are no more... the new ones are different. Seems they evolved along with the rest of society to be more violent, more unstable, more drugged. It's very very sad.
But I agree - we must always help wherever and however we can, even it means from more of a distance like serving meals at the rescue mission. They are human and made in the image of God just like the rest of us. Therefore we are compelled to treat them not as inferiors but as equals.
You make some good points, Sadie. Several people have questioned me about saying I could never be a conservative. This is not to castigate today's Right, since it compares favorably to today's "Woke" Left, which is often literally insane. I was a born radical, and I question just what there is about America 2.0 which is worth conserving. Preserve traditional values- absolutely, to whatever extent they still exist. Thanks!
Sadie, you are spot on about the illegals. For decades I had the sneaking hunch that they were mainly coming for the plastic consumer lifestyle. Then I had the unique opportunity to prove myself correct. I have driven through all the states of Mexico, and some parts of Central America...in extremely rural and isolated areas. I have spoken with huge numbers of folk, both here and south of the border who came illegally. The vast, vast majority come for consumerism...branded goods, and to partake of vile American pop-culture. These folks know American music, films and celebrities that I have never even heard of. In a trivia contest about pop-culture, they would whoop my ***.
I did meet a few souls who had returned home when they realized that they had given up a happy, simple, natural life in a beautiful land with a nice climate...for a terribly lonely and empty life in the US. Once smart phones hit the scene, every poor person in a third world country got their idea of American life from watching American videos. I remember being in Africa in 1999, and huge numbers of people had cell phones...which I didn't have until 2005. It does no good to explain to these people that the American dream died a long time ago...and that in America they will just be fighting for scrapes with poor Americans. It's like talking to a brick wall. They want "more stuff" too. And how are these Africans getting to Mexico? I read a report that they pay anywhere from $2,000 -$10,000. to African businesses that sell "refugee package tours".
The globalists are flooding the US with these people because it is plug-pulling time on the American Republic. Once they cut these "refugees" off from their UN debit cards, and free rent...it will be chaos...exactly what the globalists want. America is dead. You can put up the gravestone.
As Sadie noted, the illegals do seem to have the latest iPhones, etc. Clearly, they are getting help from somewhere (including free healthcare, which our poorest citizens can't get). Just one of many reasons to control the borders and start deporting. Thanks.
The "refugees" take flights to Latin American countries where they can easily get a visa. Once they make it through the Darien Gap, globalist-backed NGOs transport them to the American border.
I can tell you exactly how it worked before the refugee psy-op. A family would send one or two members to an American town where they had heard there was "mucho trabajo". These would establish themselves, and immediately go to work (multiple jobs) to bring more family members to America. Each family member represented a plus...more workers paying into the pot. Even children were put to work minding babies. They thought nothing of putting up even $5,000. to pay a coyote to cross a family member. Pretty soon the entire family was here. Some families bought multiple houses. Some homes were bought to rent rooms for single workers...a crash pad, if you will, for someone working two or three jobs. I have seen three bedrooms homes with ten people living there. Closets are turned into bedrooms. I once saw a storage unit on a deck turned into a sleeping pod.
With the take-down of America, I can tell you that this method that has worked for established illegals for decades, is falling apart. The planned housing shortage, to force Americans into tents, is finally hitting the illegals I know...and they are not happy. They complain that life is now just working to eat, and keep a roof over their heads. They say: "I didn't come here for this". I answer: "Welcome to the club, you would do much better to go back home, and then re-cross the border as a "refugee". Then you can get all that free stuff." ALL of this was PLANNED. The sooner one can wrap their heads around this fact, the sooner they can begin to make genuine emergency plans for themselves.
You've heard of Colony Ridge north of Houston? Set to house 200,000 illegals/refugees? Recently one central american guy killed a family there -Salvadoran I think - hard to keep up so I may be off on country. LE won't even go in - they let them settle their own disputes.
Here's another thought -- many of these guys come from countries where a driver's license isn't needed. How is that going to play out on the roads? I think I'm seeing it right here, right now. So many near misses.
Middle Easterners in a college class with me were getting $1700 each per semester to be in school - plus the $2200 (at the time) for rent. So the man of the house sent both women to school plus himself. Mind you, all they had to take was one class as long as it was business oriented.
Yes - all planned. What easier way to kill us off financially than to let in 7 million unskilled people and put them on the rolls.
Wow. That's as blatant as it gets, Sadie. The same Americans who ignore this kind of thing would go nuts if the government gave that kind of money to young citizens. Thanks!
The Imperialists are done with their Freemasonic Yankee Windup Toy. Like Bismarck's Germany, it is about to be consigned to the rubbish heap of Globalist foibles, to join the Spanish and British Empires.
It's a boondoggle in a snafu... how can you deport those you can't identify? Fake IDs have been a big business for decades and they are quite good.... this will likely be used as the "uber elite" excuse for why we need digital IDs.
Back in my very young days those who came north were truly those who wanted to work - and they were good workers. And not so long ago we had a wonderful relationship with the border - no fence, no papers, just wandering back and forth by both sides. Very laid back. Looking back it seems so idyllic....
Now, last week I read of the BP catching illegals with IEDs on them. I really do want to assume the good in every one I meet.... but it is requiring exceptional wisdom to discern when it is safe to engage and when it's not.
If Trump had simply issued an executive order, tying all government benefits to citizenship status, most would have instantly self-deported. Or have ICE actually do its job. Just show up every morning at Home Depot, or wherever the illegals gather for day work in various areas, and they will get the message. Again, self-deportation. Thanks.
I think that story about the IEDs is propaganda. We are being set up for the mother of all false flags...an attack on an American city blamed on "Islamic terrorists". It will make the false flag 9/11 look like child's play. The globalist's WW III has been planned since Albert Pike. The false flag in Israel was the lit fuse. We in the conspiracy world were all expecting an October surprise. After 20 plus bloody years of Americans in the Middle East...forced into a humiliating bug-out in August of 2021, they KNOW that only something bigger than 9/11 will make Americans scream for another useless war. I'm very curious how many will fall for it again. There is an awful lot of revisionist history about who was able to see through 9/11. I sure didn't know anyone besides myself. Now everyone is claiming they did, as well. I'm not buying it.
At this point, those who do not start making an effort to see through all the bullshit are going to have the blood of innocents on their hands. God Help those who are falling for the Latest Israeli False Flag, and supporting the "attack" on Gaza. I recently saw a video of Israeli "defense forces" lining up children against a pit and shooting them. What horrors!
The Globalists actually give these people free cell phones. And it is exactly as you say. They come to America for the (perceived) consummerist utopia. But it is a very empty life. So few people realize that it is family and friends that matter- not material frivolties.
Yes, serving meals at the Rescue mission is the best way to serve the "Homeless". Never give them just money, they will spend it on booze, drugs, and prostitutes.
ha ha -- we're all just a different kind of crazy :) ..this one spent 30 yrs as ER psych so he's got experience to be sure.... he's now running for congress lololol.... he'll be right back working in the asylum!
Great article, Don. Both sets of grandparents struggled and my own parents were not rich. My mother was a stay at home Mom, which I think is best, while Dad brought home the bacon. We didn't have much and I did not consider us to be lower class until attending that lovely Catholic grade school where your father's position was more important. It wasn't like that in high school, thankfully, but then I could work part time. I remember when people could retire at the age of 55, then it was 62, now its moving to work until you're in your 70s. They want you working as a slave until your last breath to feed The Beast(s). Yes, companies used to have good pension plans, and much better health insurance coverage for a very reasonable cost to the employee. We have so many homeless and struggling families barely able to feed their children, what is this "welfare" that we have been paying used for? Let me guess. I have helped a family member that needed money just recently, and it wasn't chump change. I've been saving extra for a future move to small town America, but I understand how my sibling feels having been there myself, and what the hec. I feel lucky that I can work from home part time for same employer, so this CV19 actually did me a favor in that respect since many employees are able to work remote (I am partially retired). I told my manager that I would have to work part time anyways, and its worked out, so far. People used to be able to "retire", but as we age, the Social Security isn't enough to survive on. Because I am a part timer, they do NOT give those employees raises. This year, I fought like hell to get one and I got it. I've never made $60k in my life, but what little I have, which is more than many, I appreciate and one has to learn to be frugal. Unbelievably, I'm at the best point financially. Who would have thought that at the age of 68. Hopefully, I can keep going, but seriously, I'd rather sit back and just enjoy my life. We'll see what God brings me. Be Blessed!
I detest "health insurance". It was the neighborhood doctor's best friend. Because we had "health insurance" my unsuspecting mother took us to the "family doctor" every time we coughed or sneezed or vomited and every time we got the same drill- undress for inspection, get a jab, and a prescription for the most horrible-tasting pill one could imagine. And then the doctor would overcharge the "deep pocket" of the insurance company. After awhile, if a person did not have insurance, the doctors were not interested. They were too busy "Herding cattle" in their waiting rooms where the vast majority had a cold or a stomach virus and all they really needed was lots of rest and, for the former, a bowl of chicken soup. Those doctors were liars, syncophants, and extensions of Big Pharma, and most of them knew it. All during the '70's I watched medical costs soar while the quality of the nurses plummeted.
Many people are finally starting to catch on, but it is too few, and far too late.
You're completely wrong. These days it's the Trump wing of the GOP who have compassion and caring for the great unwashed masses. The Dems are the party of the elite and, if you haven't noticed, the terrorists. It's not 1938 any more and hasn't been for quite some time.
I certainly am no fan of today's Democrats, Steve. I'm not sure either side has the kind of compassion that would result in tangible results for those in need. Thanks.
It is true that the Dems are the elites right now - and boy did that show with the Israel Gaza war. All of a sudden the Dems who pretend to be always for the underdog all of a sudden only cared for the white Jews in Israel. MSNBC, the so called left media outlet was told off by some "important" MSNBC Jews apparently that they gave too much coverage for the "animals" of Hamas.
But if you think that Trump care for the underdog you are also mistaken. Trump is a genius in fooling people - best political con. I voted for him but realized that all that looked like gold was just cheap imitation. And if you think the the MAGA crowd that has become a cult is compassionate - try again. Anyone who does not believe exactly as they do is trashed, thrown away like dirt and bullied by Trump and those in his orbit.
I never described myself as a liberal or conservative or libertarian or progressive etc, just like I have no clue if I am a boomer, gen x gen Y or what. At 85 I consider myself a human being.
Take heart everyone, things will get better in the coming Aquarian Age. We will have another 2000or so years to elevate to something a bit higher than greedy little material monsters.
Correction. It is the Useful Idiots that "have compassion and caring for the great unwashed masses". The political structure of the Trump Train is just another part of the Swamp.
There was a time in this country when 95 percent of the people had their own businesses. That changed as corporations took over and people became employees. As employees they were nothing more than tax-paying slaves and it continues to this day.
Private, independent businesses were systematically destroyed and that still happens to this day with very few seeing it as a problem.
As a victim of this evil system I understand full well how it works.
What we do in the private sector is supposed to be private. None of this filing of "tax returns" and being forced to pay taxes you don't owe, or the paying of "protection money/ insurance" to the mob that currently masquerades as government.
Because of the people's lack of righteousness (failure to recognise the criminal act of extortion as a crime) criminals have been able to put us in the position of being poor.
It is a criminal conspiracy. Always has been. These criminals laid out their plan by listing the ten elements of communism on 1848.
Since the people have not objected to communism they have given their implied consent.
Communism is the systemic theft/ control of everything by the rich. It is Satanic. It is why the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. It is done by secret societies AKA Freemasonry. It is interesting to note that a corporation in Spanish is known as a sociedad anonima. Evil-doers who hide behind good deeds are well camouflaged in deed.
Government was set up by the rich for the rich and as long as you remain ignorant to this fact you will, we all will, continue to be poor.
Great points, Anticriminals. So many books and films have exposed the rat race, scurrying daily to a pointless job that everyone hates, just to make enough money to keep some kind of roof over your head. But the rat race is more popular than ever. We ought to be able to come up with something better, but absent actual slavery, wage slavery is about the best the elite can hope for. Thanks!
Actual slavery or wage slavery? I believe that slavery is slavery; like a rose by another name. However, this goes beyond slavery. It is war, it is treason! Government is being used to wage war against us all!
Government is a Satanic religion that legislates its edicts. You are paying for your own destruction.
Government is to the people like crack is to a crackhead.
I would rather get paid $10,000 a year to do a job I liked rather than $50,000 a year to be part of a useless grind. Greed begets greed, and nothing say nihilism like the life of America since WW2. A car in the garage, a pool in the back yard, all the latest kitchen gadgets, and a soul as empty as the Sonoma desert.
And we experienced the heavy hand of government here in Australia (a supposedly democratic capitalist country) The gradual supplanting of free enterprise with government and corporation dominance. The Fabianist slow usurping of the nation into communism
An excellent, but grim post. I love it when you give your readers glimpses of your family's past. Once again Donald, we share an experience. My only childhood vacation was at age eight, as well. We could drive to Canada in a day. We were there less than a week. I wanted a pony more than anything in the world. I actually got one at age 12... my older sister's classmate gave me the pony because he wanted to get rid of it. I had him less than a year before he was traded away one day when I was at school. Never got to say goodbye. I realize now it was a minor miracle I was ever allowed to accept a free pony in the first place.
The upshot of these two experiences, is that I made travel the main priority of my life, and have been many places. I've also owned 11 horses since that pony...but I gave up everything else to make these things happen. Better late than never.
So many people I know are barely keeping a roof over their heads. I just talked to a friend today, who said his family was looking at eviction next month. He agreed with me that America 2.0 is finished.... probably completely gone by this time next year. How can you run a country when huge numbers of working folk are living in their cars or in tents? Getting involved in another Middle Eastern war (after 20 years of failure in the same area) will probably be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
I cannot say I was as deprived as either of you. We were not rich by any stretch of the imagination, but we always had heat, meat on the table, and gas in the car. There were times when my father had sleepless nights over fear of losing his job, but we never went over the edge. But I was deprived in other ways. My father was a bean-counting, brainwashed sheeple, and taught me all the sheeple ways. I only began to wake up as a teenager.
My grandma forced my father into the big city to get a well-paying job. But my father was never really happy. At one point, we had a nice suburban home, but life was incredibly empty there. Now, that whole area has burned to the ground, if only figuratively. All my old haunts are gone, replaced by Main Drag USA.
Thank you so much! The brightest people are almost always the college dropouts, since formal education tends to encourage conformity and zero critical thinking.
I am an 81 year old retired social worker, and, because of my incurable allergy to bureaucracies, I worked independently throughout most of my life. However. that independence left me without a pension. I live in a rent stabilized apartment in Queens, New York City,and the landlords (very greedy father and son) gives inadequate heat year after year, and the city does nothing about it. Like so many others, I cannot afford to move.
Yet there is enough empty "luxury" housing to shelter every homeless person in this city.
There was a little known study in 2014, done by "scholars' in Northwestern and Princeton University, in which the conclusion was that it makes absolutely no difference which political party is in power in the United States. It is the billionaire class (although the authors of the study refused to note that most of those billionaires are psychopaths) that gets its way 99 percent of the time. That should come as no surprise to any thinking person. However, I think that since then the billionaires, although few in number, have become even more greedy, evil and totally inhumane. After all, who benefits from war but the weapons manufactures, Raytheon, etc. They are literally and figuratively making a killing.
Mr. Jeffries, thank you so much for sharing your story with us. I find it truly inspiring.
Susan Lippman: I'm 71. We are expendable and no one cares about the elderly in the USA. Hell, they don't even care about the kids.
As for your greedy landlord father/son duo, not much you can do but shame them.
As for rent controls... Libertarians believe in the free market. The rent controls cause more problems than they solve but then where do you go?
Perhaps the State should offer us the solution given to Edward G. Robinson in the movie "Soylent Green". A nice peaceful death.
Yes, the conservatives continue to worship at the altar of the "free" marketplace. Which isn't free. What kind of "competitive" system has a founder (John D. Rockefeller) whose credo was "Competition is a sin?" Thanks, Timmy!
DJ, I think the terms liberal and conservative are just vague collective nouns (aka generic terms). It's up to us to define them. Ideally they aren't opposing belief systems, but are complementary systems. I was raised as a 'saver', so I favor responsible fiscal policies, unfortunately TPTB have shifted conservatism to mean neoconism. Also I remember the good life -when there was no fluoride in our water, milk was unpasteurized, vaccines were rare, farms didn't use Roundup or Atrazine,
gardens must be organic, and schools kept small vs the 50 million dollar extravaganzas we get to pay for now.
The same thing happened to liberalism; it shifted into neocon statism and into bizarre clownworld anti-traditional fetishes. Both sides of the political spectrum seem to favor unlimited military spending, and warism instead of pacifism.
There needs to be a conscious balance between our conservative and liberal tendencies. What we have now is schizophrenic, since it is unconscious and contradictory; e.g. think of the current crop of environmentalists fighting "global warming" and to "save the wildlife" while at the same time supporting the military and war in Ukraine. I don't know how we save the environment and give the military
a near infinite amount of resources to burn up and to bomb... Remember the old cliche, "we had to destroy the village to save the village"?
Great points, Scott. Thanks!
Donald Jeffries: John D. Rockefeller was no free market capitalist but he did bring down the price of oil products for consumers. Big Business uses government to keep out competition. Try and start a business in the USA today. You will need to meet all kinds of government regulations, licenses, bonds, etc. These are barriers to new competitors to the Big Business Boys.
As for housing, get rid of ALL the zoning laws and housing regulations. In California all the laws passed in Sacramento add $10-20K to the price of a home or apartment building. This cost is passed on to consumers. The CEQA (environmental law) has been abused big time by local groups to stop housing.
https://www.hklaw.com/en/insights/publications/2023/10/californias-2024-housing-laws-what-you-need-to-know
I agree 100%. The best thing gov't could do is cancel just about every law written since 1930. It is funny how the more the banks are "regulated", the more corrupt and uncontrolled they become.
Maybe the best bank regulation ever would be to require that any depositor, at any time, could enter the safe and inspect its contents.
White Wolf: I read an article years ago, this was during the Savings & Loan fiasco, that said, "Every generation, a few bankers have to be put in prison to keep them honest." (Or at least, less dishonest.)
Yup. It is always bankers, lawyers, and politicians. It is never pig farmers of carpenters.
I would be tickled pink if the State would just let me have my dog, my fire, and my cabin and leave me utterly alone.
Astute observations, Susan. I'm sorry that you find yourself in the situation you do. As you know, there are millions who have it much worse. America has no moral compass left. Thanks!
I have always had an allergy to Bureaucracies too. Bureaucrats live in a fantasy world of their own construction, absolutely insulated from any reality. Moreover, if ever they solve a problem, they will find themselves out of a job. The function of bloated gov't is to keep themselves in business!
Susan, do you have any portable electric heaters?
We live in Minnesota where Winters last 6 months a year.
In the bedrooms we have radiator style electric heaters and for my personal comfort I
use a Vornado electric heater in my "office" / three season porch.
The nice thing is you only use them when you are in the room to save cost.
I got addicted to electric heaters as a small kid growing up on a farm in a drafty 100 year old farmhouse. When my six other brothers were watching the t.v. I'd be sitting by an electric fake fireplace reading books while the blizzards were blowing. We milked cows so being in the barn was cosey too, the 40 cows created their own heat.
Dear Donald, it's nice you care so much about the victims of the system,as you say, solidarity is a must. We can't save or help everybody,I wish I could but I can't. But as you say, we can do everyday random acts of kindness. I believe we can give much more than money,we can give a smile to someone,we can give an ear to listen to somebody who feels bad or alone,we can use our hands to touch somebody's shoulder or back,to let them know we care,we can give free hugs. It's all about presence,to embody our Light and let it shine every single day.
That's a wonderful idea, Kiran. A smile can mean so much to those who are living those lives of quiet desperation. One of my favorites, H.L. Mencken, once said, "If, after I depart this vale, you ever remember me and have thought to please my ghost, forgive some sinner and wink your eye at some homely girl." I think that applies to all who need that kind of small positive gesture. Thanks!
To feel worthless is horrible. To acknowledge someone in a friendly way can help a lot (a few shekels doesn’t hurt either)
Yes, we have been taught to measure everything in terms of money. But we should measure in terms of compassion- especially the compassion and the courage to correct the erring and the sinner.
Ever wonder what life would be like if there were No Jews. No Palestinians. No Russians. No Ukrainians. No white folks. No yellow folks. No black folks. What if we all accepted each other ( I'm not talking about the perverts who want to subvert your children) recognizing that we all have the same hopes and dreams, love for our families? How many people have been robbed of their homes, their families murdered because so many of us lack compassion and empathy? If we all don't soon learn how to love and get along there will be nothing to love or get along with.
What the World needs is Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. Peace is the tranquility of Order, which can only be found under God. People seek it everywhere else.
Given half a chance I think they would kill Him again. Most don't want salvation. They want money so they van continue to wallow in debauchery while they keep up their endless efforts to exterminate us.
Kiran: I agree. A kind word a smile and two good ears to listen to others is very important. Today a middle-aged woman from Sonic.net came by the house. Knocked on the door. I usually ignore salesmen but this time I went out on the front porch and talked to her for 10 minutes. We had a nice conversation. Only cost me ten minutes.
"A kind word never broke a tooth." Old Irish saying.
I forget which book it was in, but it struck me when the author mentioned that in the recent past the president of a company might live in the same town as the workers, but their house would only be slightly better. It might have a pool, or an extra bedroom or two, but there was the expectation that they were also part of the community.
The kids went to the same schools as the workers kids. It wasn’t so segregated by money. That just strikes me as these days elites seem to live on their own planet and they aren’t interested in the local community they work in.
They’ll go from town to town sucking out resources, then leave having got theirs. We see that with the lower end housing market where houses are either bought out by hedge funds and rented for steep prices or bought by investors looking to be an Airbnb super hosts.
There’s not much emphasis on community building, unless you are talking about one of the weirdo ‘oppressed’ groups. But even then, the language is tribal, Allies, my community - not our community.
Unless it’s about ‘undermining our democracy’. I thought the use of ‘our’ was especially interesting b/c it’s always about ‘me and mine’ with these groups.
Don’t really have a point, but just want to make a note of these things to others. It’s just sad and like you said - sinful.
My dad was of your generation and I wish I would have grown up in a previous time. It sounds so wonderful to be in a country that likes itself.
You're right, Sun. The professional athletes, for example, lived in average neighborhoods and had to work regular jobs in the offseason. There was not the same kind of massive gap between the haves and the have nots. Thanks!
Same here in Australia. Watch a Rugby League game from the early 80’s compared to today. Remember that Rugby League was established so poor players could get paid since Rugby Union remained upper class and amateur. They evolved into entirely different codes. The point being that League has become over regulated, overpaid overly professional and relatively boring with imported players where they used to be from the local area. Same for Australian Rules Football which is a different game altogether
The difference between then and now is that the companies were more local. My Father worked for Hamilton Watch. It had a nationwide market, but it was a local company ran by people who lived in the neighborhood. And some of them actually cared.
Today, everything is a franchise or a branch. The movers and shakers are in isolated gated communities far removed from the sheeple. And they act accordingly.
Agreed. I grew up in a town that had a local pharmaceutical company that was a major employer. The company still exists and is still a major employer, but it’s under a different name, and considered a regional office for a multinational ‘brand’. It changed the character of the town.
And, of course, the brand cares only about money, and maybe perks- maybe. But the town can just go to Hell.
The “elites “ don’t just go from town to town anymore, they go from country to country (probably by private jet)
“If we can’t get our “representatives” to force a fairer distribution of the wealth...’
When they vote themselves pay hikes? They just added another one btw. The system is beyond corrupt. Christ has afforded me the means to help out a good number of people, from a gay man to a retired Navy Chief, & will continue to do so as much as I can. It’s really on us - not the govt where the whole thing quickly becomes a corrupt scheme for players/kickbacks - especially if we call ourselves Christians to step up to the plate.
Yes, that's one thing they are able to act expeditiously on, and with total nonpartisanship, Dutch. Thanks!
But by the grace of God, we go. Each of us could suffer irreparable harm by the actions of a non-caring elitist. At one point I owned and operated a small business. The employees knew that success was a mutual responsibility and was shared. Everyone got free healthcare and an extra paycheck at Christmas. Taking care of those that take care of you is rewarded.
Sounds like you would have been great to work for, Eric. Thanks!
Many companies no longer realize that their dedicated employees are their greatest asset. For the big companies, employees are like toilet paper-a throwaway commodity.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, there is a problem with that. Unfortunately employee dedication and a willingness to put forth extra effort has faltered. Of course the past few years have impacted that as well. No easy answers.
Tell me all about it. I used to work at a Steak House and getting good employees was tough, even in the '80's.
I wish I could say the same. We had one employee to work Saturday mornings so we could have the weekend clear with the kids. We found out that he usually never came to work but still collected his pay. A second one, a full time employee robbed us blind for months, also ordered a lot of stock that she sold out the back door. Being soft and trusting can be risky in business
I am a human resource consultant for local small and mid-sized businesses. It's shocking how many of them, especially the small family run businesses who provide nice atmospheres and good pay, end up getting ripped off and scammed by an employee who takes advantage of their gracious and trusting natures. Very discouraging.
Thanks for the reply. We were also on the receiving end of a lot of shoplifting- some of them professionals who targeted high end items to order. My wife suffered severe illness from all the stress
Since communism proved to be a dud, every nation on Earth (except N. Korea) has a veiled form of fascism in which there’s a paper-thin distance between the upper levels of government and the biggest businesses. Congress serves the donor-class that swarms the Capital looking for sweetheart deals. Our votes don’t matter because the hearts of Members and Senators don’t beat in time with the masses. We don’t matter. Can this be changed? Only after collapse, which will probably happen before I’m laid in the grave. Pity. In 1959, America was the undisputed greatest country on Earth. We’ve forgotten to love God and our neighbor as ourselves.
Good points, G. Alan. Thanks!
In 1959, America was the Workers' Paradise built by the Military-Industrial complex. But yes, the masses had a heart, went to church, and at least knew what holiness looked like, even if they did not practice it. And, yes, there were lines that even the most hardened sinners knew not to cross. Those boundaries disappeared with "sex, drugs, and rock'n'roll'"
As Mr. Jeffries said, the difference in income between the worker and the owner was more appropriate, but in addition to the MIC, Americans were acquiring consumer goods at a breakneck pace. I recall my parents getting a dishwasher and blender when I was just a wee lad. Of course, your comments about the moral fiber of the nation are spot-on. We were never perfect, but we had a conscience and a bent towards good.
We did not get a color TV until 1980.
Undisputed RICHEST country is what I think you mean
America led the world in industrial output, eg steel and automobiles, while Europe was still recovering from the devastation of EuroWar2.
Yes
. The industrial might and capacity of America is undeniable but the Fabianists and Cultural Marxists are now running the show
There are actually more poor whites than blacks in the U.S., both per capita and in total numbers, the truth of which the Ruling Class naturally obfuscates. The vast majority of Medal of Honor winners in combat come from poverty stricken Appalachia. Traditionally, most military "Lifers" come from the poor, rural south. When I was in the "Suck" (U.S. Navy), one of them told me this was because it was in the military that they got their first pair of real shoes and saw for the first time a flush toilet. It was great shakes to them. The post World War Two boom was largely because of the rise of Unions in the U.S. You can chart parallel lines on graph paper showing the American middle class and unions elevating together. However, the Ruling Class swine never sleep. With relentless pressure on Congress, they got the Right to Work laws and the Taft Hartley Act passed which flooded the work force with so much non union labor that the unions were eviscerated and rendered impotent. In their heyday, 1 in 3 American workers were in unions or about 34% and they were strong. Now it is under 12% and even that is misleading as a high percentage of those are "Sweetheart" or company controlled unions, weak as kittens. This is mainly why there exists so much working class destitution today. In the 90s undercover journalist Barbara Ehrenreich wrote, "Nickel and Dimed". She traveled the country working a variety of blue collar jobs and what she discovered appalled her. The incredible physical and mental demands employers placed on their workers for a pittance in pay and very little or no benefits. I've experienced this personally and had to use all of my willpower and restraint from killing abusive bosses with my bare hands and winding up in prison. Some of them were women, it wasn't just men. I don't care how long you work at a place, with exceedingly rare exception, your co-workers are not your friends though they pretend to be. Once your ass is out the door, they couldn't give a flying fuck about what happens to you. In this Kali Yuga, people don't say what they mean and don't mean what they say. In Scumerica you have a huge class of idle rich who produce and contribute nothing to the economy. The only way such a system can keep from toppling over is to have a large slave class at the base of the pyramid, which we have today with our impoverished working class and is exemplified by our prison system wherein under Unicor and similar government programs prisoners manufacture goods for a pay of 50 cents an hour. This has diabolically supplanted the antebellum South's plantation system and the North's industrial sweatshop mills of that era. "What is fame? What is glory? The grave awaits us all." (from the film, "Babette's Feast") Thank you, Don. This is brilliant, profound, depressing, and true.
As always, I value your thoughtful posts, Hereticdrummer. Barbara Ehrenreich is my Facebook friend, but has never responded to my messages. Naomi Wolf compared "Nickel and Dimed" to my "Survival of the Richest." Barbara should love my book, but I can't make her aware of it. In this regard, she mirrors most all of today's Left (with the exception of Naomi.) Thanks!
As I value your exemplary writings, Don, thank you. Tis a shame about Ehrenreich, perhaps she is envious of you as a rival and better writer than she is. The Leftists of today are so hypocritical, among other things. Keep landing those uppercuts and be well.
I don't know. She may be like so many others- aware of where they stand in the pecking order. So many hierarchies. I quoted from her book in mine, and certainly spoke favorably of her work. Thanks.
Ehrenreich died of a stroke on September 1st 2022...most likely from the Jonestown jab. I don't think she would have ever deigned to speak with you Donald...she was a typical establishment feminist liberal...beholden to the system and blaming men for everything. These establishment types must only place the blame on the globalist's "villains". I read Nickled and Dimed. Her book Bight-sided was good, because it blew apart the "create your own reality" psy-op with actual studies.
I didn't know that, Kris. Sorry to hear that, although you are probably right. I'm confident she was fully vaxxed. Thanks!
Points for the "Jonestown jab". How perfectly apt.
Ehrenreich (The name in German means, quite ironically- Mother of Our Hearth) was a creation of Pius XII and his evil encyclical "Sponsa Christi" where he was urging women to get out of the house and domestic life and into politics and the working world. It was from here that I trace the whole feminist movement.
When I was growing up my school was infested with nuns who were flaming feminists. They wanted apartments and day jobs and all the toys of suburbia. They wanted to give the world the "workers paradise". They absolutely despised womanhood and motherhood and all that women do- cooking and cleaning and making a house into a home.
They were the fitting ancestors of the "Transgenders".
A pecking order in classless, democratic America, surely you jest? Hahahaha!!!! She appears to be an ingrate. If that's the case, she's one of a large contingent. You're welcome, Don.
I don't want to be unfair to her. Maybe she just gets so many messages she missed mine. She might be unaware of my book. As a fellow blue collar worker used to tell me way back in the day, "It's not who you know, it's who knows you." Thanks!
Or the much cruder version, "It's not who you know, it's who you blow." Hahaha!!! Forgive me, I couldn't resist when you left that opening. I understand totally what you're saying. You're welcome and thanks again.
Perhaps it depends on what field you work in as to whether coworkers are real friends? My husband is still in touch with coworkers from 35 yrs ago. But corporate heads are another story - they'll fire you in a minute no matter how valuable you have been to them dollar wise. As we know - all scum rises to the top ;)
Perhaps, I did say there are exceptions. I based my comment on this from years of direct experience and personal observation. I would have been fine with a handshake and a, "Good Luck" minus the mendacious, "Oh, we must stay in touch." In truth only the hypocritical aspect of it grates me, otherwise, I find it amusing and could not care less.
I do think, HereticDrummer, that you are oversimplifying here. Yes, the Unions were powerful in their heyday, but the unions also exacerbated the "Worker/Management" warfare. The unions inculcated an "us versus them" mentality and saw the company as a cash cow to milk. It was the unions that priced the American Worker out of even the domestic market and induced companies to seek cheaper imports overseas. That was exactly what put my father's company, Hamilton Watch, out of business. Why would you buy a cheap American watch for $30 when you could get a cheap Japanese- later Chinese- watch for $7? Eventually, my dad's company just did distribution- all the production was done overseas in Chinese "sweatshops" (actually, labor camps) while the American consumer remained blissfully unaware. Furthermore, the Unions gave us the wonderful OSHA which strapped companies with costs making sure equipment was "safe". Disgruntled employees also used OSHA inspectors as a weapon against management.
My dad was more or less a part of management while I worked the lines, so I could see both sides of contention and had multiple perspectives. Ultimately, the Unions were just a tool for the Socialists and their Agitprop.
The unions got exactly what they deserved for their unbridled greed and lack of willingness to work with management. Yes, they did much good, especially early on. But the union leaders were often corrupt and out of touch with the working man.
You make some excellent points, White Wolf. I am well aware that the top echelon of the largest and most powerful unions matched their corporate adversaries in corruption and malfeasance. As far as an, "us versus them" mentality, the companies laid that down a long time prior. Corporate America and its bankster masters had planned for decades to de-industrialize the U.S., but first they had to emasculate the unions, which they did. Workplace protection against hazards due to employer negligence was ubiquitous and there are countless tragedies of employees killed or maimed because of it. Something had to be done to enforce compliance with regard to safety measures. Unfortunately, like all governmental creations, OSHA overreached and did harm as well as good. If the unions were a tool for the Socialists and their agitprop, concomitantly the capitalists were and are a tool for the oligarchic swine and the satanic money printers that rule this earth. As I've aforestated, ultimately at the highest levels everything coalesces into one indistinguishable blob of unbridled power and criminality. The bottom line is that from the worker's perspective, unions were vital to insure a life free from total abuse, exploitation, and destitution at the hands of the mega-capitalists and were forged in fire, pain. and bloodshed. To highlight my main contention, look at the pathetic state of American workers today sans unions. My father was a decorated combat veteran of World War Two and I can assure you that if it wasn't for his membership in what was a very powerful union at the time, the Atomic, Chemical, and Oil Workers of America, me, my five siblings, and my mother would have had a much, much, rougher time of it and believe me, like so many in our neighborhood, we were miles from easy street.
The gutting of America was done from several vectors- only one being the disenfranchising of the labor unions. The main culprit was taxes and regulations. Mom and Pop went under, but the chain stores only needed one auditor for their two hundred locations. Big gov't is the friend of Big Business. It is easier to run one slave pen than deal with dozens of upstart owners who have ways of working around the system.
America has been strip mined of its wealth by the usual suspects and its people transmuted into serfs on what is increasingly a world-wide plantation. One of the main objectives of the Covid-19 criminal hoax was to shut down and destroy small and medium sized businesses which are for the most part family owned. In this the monsters were largely successful.
Dang, if the My Pillow guy, Mike Lindell, could get rich selling terribly uncomfortable pillows, and that Sham Wow rag salesman could get rich selling his rags, then maybe
your watch company needed a much better advertising campaign. Obviously it's not easy to compete with slave labor, but that could have been the sales point; NO SLAVES, NOT ACCEPTABLE, IT'S OUR DUTY TO BUILD IN AMERICA AND TO BUY AMERICAN.
It's a good policy, buying local as much as possible too. Losing our jobs, our workforce, and our technical knowhow is not just tragic. We might as well shoot ourselves in the head while we're at it.
The main problem with Hamilton Watch is they had an identity crisis. They went into Grandfather Clocks. That was like trying to market T-bone Steaks at Burger King. They bought Texas Instruments and made calculators, but just did not keep up with the innovations. They were still selling bulky desk models where the competition had slimline LCDs. They bought a metals company in New England to try and control costs- and the industry went to plastic. The board members had zero imagination, zero prognostication, and zero patience. As it turned out, if they would have just persevered they could have themselves a stable niche market- not booming like the '60's, but the bills would get paid.
The big trouble with the unions was that they were infiltrated by the sharks. These shark were only interested in their own wellbeing. They became part of the elite. Their selfishness sold out their memberships.
The early unions were a necessity in raisin living standards for working people. Even non-union people benefited if only because of the threat of organized labour.
Now with corruption at the top of the unions workers have again been disenfranchised.
Beautifully said (albeit it painful to read but in a good and needed way). Thank you.
Thanks, Ellen!
My pleasure. I am Gen Z but I sure get your feelings. I long for simpler, better times. I grew up in a very traditional home and my husband and I have followed suit. I love being at home with our 3 children and they have turned out to be such good young adults primarily just because of our presence with them (not necessarily that we’ve done everything well but rather that they’ve always known that we care enough to forego our own desires/ambitions to be around more for them).
Gen Z? There is some hope! Thanks, Ellen!
Motherhood is the Greatest Vocation, the one sorely dissed and resented by the Feminazis. Your 401K plan is not going to comfort you on your deathbed, but well-raised children surely will. Yes, parenting is tough, especially in those early years. but perseverance reaps wonderful dividends!
From the Heart. Bless you.
If I may be permitted, following is an illustration of the lack of charitas in this world.
I decided to treat my self and my husband to pizza the other evening for dinner. I never used to consider this an expensive treat but now for two people, it amounts to nearly $50 here in Canada. As I have always appreciated the service that delivery drivers perform (their car, their gas expense) I tipped the woman generously. She nearly cried and told me that the prior evening she had 7 deliveries in a row with NO tip.
Humanity seems to be under the spell of a demonic possession. One that is consuming our hearts.
Yes, too many people are just shamelessly cheap. Thanks, Gwyneth!
Nice tip, Gwyneth. I am 9th of 10 kids from Philly and our dad was a bartender who depended on tips. 5 of us went in the military by 18 years old. We went on to be rather successful by most measures and in part owe that to the generosity of tippers.
For the labourer is worthy of his hire.
I do think that many people these days simply cannot afford to tip. The last time I got a pizza, about two years ago, it was absolute sticker shock. $30 for a pizza and a meatball sandwich.
Very well written and an enjoyable read. I’m 71 and may have exceeded $60,000 annual income once, possibly twice in my lifetime. My family never could afford a vacation. I agree with 99% of your article. The one percent being, I could never, ever, not be a conservative. (Sorry about the double negative)
I appreciate the kind words, Bookoodinkydow. Thanks!
The best vacations I ever had were at Grandma's house in Appalacia. High in the hills of Western Pennsylvania, the water pressure was so low that it took an hour to fill the bathtub, and if you wanted a hot bath you had to boil water on the stove. You only flushed the toilet after a dump, and the men would pee against a tree. Only one bathroom for 22 people, and always a line. My recreation was the Great Outdoors- woods and stream and field.
But my grandmother could make the most wonderful things with just flour, maple syrup, and the blackberries we just picked.
They can have their crummy beaches in North Carolina and their crummy resorts in the Great Smokies. Just give me my cabin, my fire, and my dog.
Yes. I too am homesick for my childhood. We had next to nothing but there was always love and the endless mountain trails we spent our life on hunting fishing or just adventuring. Now I have my cabin my fire and my dog but the bastards still won't leave me in peace.
I'm not really homesick for those days. They also left something to be desired. Seems like all my good years were on the eights- 68, 78, 88, 98, and 08. And my bad years were the Zeros. My only prospect is that 2028 comes before 2030.
Hmm... me thinks you might be encouraged if you were to meet a few more conservatives - at least the ones I know. Very compassionate.
As to the current illegals I don't believe they are as impoverished as you think. They are coming across with the latest iphone, name brand clothing and attitude. They receive thousands every month, plus housing and food. Plus money if they enroll in college. Much better taken care of than our own homeless. I live on the border - it's a mess. The open border is certainly going to equalize us-- equally poor we will be, having to ask the homeless how to survive as we suddenly become Zimbabwe -- except for the 1% or whoever is running this destruction.
In my area I'm afraid I can no longer go near any homeless. Dangerous and not in their right minds. Just yesterday at my local grocery store there was a guy practicing with a bull whip in the parking lot and hollering gibberish. My local thrift store had a stabbing behind them one wk and then a patron was attacked when walking out the front door the next wk. And no, I don't live in a sketchy town. Seems it will be soon tho.
The mayor is a psychiatrist and conservative - walks the streets and offers them lodging because there are beds available but they don't want them. It's very complicated.
The homeless of yesteryear are no more... the new ones are different. Seems they evolved along with the rest of society to be more violent, more unstable, more drugged. It's very very sad.
But I agree - we must always help wherever and however we can, even it means from more of a distance like serving meals at the rescue mission. They are human and made in the image of God just like the rest of us. Therefore we are compelled to treat them not as inferiors but as equals.
You make some good points, Sadie. Several people have questioned me about saying I could never be a conservative. This is not to castigate today's Right, since it compares favorably to today's "Woke" Left, which is often literally insane. I was a born radical, and I question just what there is about America 2.0 which is worth conserving. Preserve traditional values- absolutely, to whatever extent they still exist. Thanks!
Sadie, you are spot on about the illegals. For decades I had the sneaking hunch that they were mainly coming for the plastic consumer lifestyle. Then I had the unique opportunity to prove myself correct. I have driven through all the states of Mexico, and some parts of Central America...in extremely rural and isolated areas. I have spoken with huge numbers of folk, both here and south of the border who came illegally. The vast, vast majority come for consumerism...branded goods, and to partake of vile American pop-culture. These folks know American music, films and celebrities that I have never even heard of. In a trivia contest about pop-culture, they would whoop my ***.
I did meet a few souls who had returned home when they realized that they had given up a happy, simple, natural life in a beautiful land with a nice climate...for a terribly lonely and empty life in the US. Once smart phones hit the scene, every poor person in a third world country got their idea of American life from watching American videos. I remember being in Africa in 1999, and huge numbers of people had cell phones...which I didn't have until 2005. It does no good to explain to these people that the American dream died a long time ago...and that in America they will just be fighting for scrapes with poor Americans. It's like talking to a brick wall. They want "more stuff" too. And how are these Africans getting to Mexico? I read a report that they pay anywhere from $2,000 -$10,000. to African businesses that sell "refugee package tours".
The globalists are flooding the US with these people because it is plug-pulling time on the American Republic. Once they cut these "refugees" off from their UN debit cards, and free rent...it will be chaos...exactly what the globalists want. America is dead. You can put up the gravestone.
As Sadie noted, the illegals do seem to have the latest iPhones, etc. Clearly, they are getting help from somewhere (including free healthcare, which our poorest citizens can't get). Just one of many reasons to control the borders and start deporting. Thanks.
The "refugees" take flights to Latin American countries where they can easily get a visa. Once they make it through the Darien Gap, globalist-backed NGOs transport them to the American border.
I can tell you exactly how it worked before the refugee psy-op. A family would send one or two members to an American town where they had heard there was "mucho trabajo". These would establish themselves, and immediately go to work (multiple jobs) to bring more family members to America. Each family member represented a plus...more workers paying into the pot. Even children were put to work minding babies. They thought nothing of putting up even $5,000. to pay a coyote to cross a family member. Pretty soon the entire family was here. Some families bought multiple houses. Some homes were bought to rent rooms for single workers...a crash pad, if you will, for someone working two or three jobs. I have seen three bedrooms homes with ten people living there. Closets are turned into bedrooms. I once saw a storage unit on a deck turned into a sleeping pod.
With the take-down of America, I can tell you that this method that has worked for established illegals for decades, is falling apart. The planned housing shortage, to force Americans into tents, is finally hitting the illegals I know...and they are not happy. They complain that life is now just working to eat, and keep a roof over their heads. They say: "I didn't come here for this". I answer: "Welcome to the club, you would do much better to go back home, and then re-cross the border as a "refugee". Then you can get all that free stuff." ALL of this was PLANNED. The sooner one can wrap their heads around this fact, the sooner they can begin to make genuine emergency plans for themselves.
You've heard of Colony Ridge north of Houston? Set to house 200,000 illegals/refugees? Recently one central american guy killed a family there -Salvadoran I think - hard to keep up so I may be off on country. LE won't even go in - they let them settle their own disputes.
Here's another thought -- many of these guys come from countries where a driver's license isn't needed. How is that going to play out on the roads? I think I'm seeing it right here, right now. So many near misses.
Middle Easterners in a college class with me were getting $1700 each per semester to be in school - plus the $2200 (at the time) for rent. So the man of the house sent both women to school plus himself. Mind you, all they had to take was one class as long as it was business oriented.
Yes - all planned. What easier way to kill us off financially than to let in 7 million unskilled people and put them on the rolls.
Wow. That's as blatant as it gets, Sadie. The same Americans who ignore this kind of thing would go nuts if the government gave that kind of money to young citizens. Thanks!
The Imperialists are done with their Freemasonic Yankee Windup Toy. Like Bismarck's Germany, it is about to be consigned to the rubbish heap of Globalist foibles, to join the Spanish and British Empires.
I agree. Absolutely time to head for the hills.
It's a boondoggle in a snafu... how can you deport those you can't identify? Fake IDs have been a big business for decades and they are quite good.... this will likely be used as the "uber elite" excuse for why we need digital IDs.
Back in my very young days those who came north were truly those who wanted to work - and they were good workers. And not so long ago we had a wonderful relationship with the border - no fence, no papers, just wandering back and forth by both sides. Very laid back. Looking back it seems so idyllic....
Now, last week I read of the BP catching illegals with IEDs on them. I really do want to assume the good in every one I meet.... but it is requiring exceptional wisdom to discern when it is safe to engage and when it's not.
If Trump had simply issued an executive order, tying all government benefits to citizenship status, most would have instantly self-deported. Or have ICE actually do its job. Just show up every morning at Home Depot, or wherever the illegals gather for day work in various areas, and they will get the message. Again, self-deportation. Thanks.
I think that story about the IEDs is propaganda. We are being set up for the mother of all false flags...an attack on an American city blamed on "Islamic terrorists". It will make the false flag 9/11 look like child's play. The globalist's WW III has been planned since Albert Pike. The false flag in Israel was the lit fuse. We in the conspiracy world were all expecting an October surprise. After 20 plus bloody years of Americans in the Middle East...forced into a humiliating bug-out in August of 2021, they KNOW that only something bigger than 9/11 will make Americans scream for another useless war. I'm very curious how many will fall for it again. There is an awful lot of revisionist history about who was able to see through 9/11. I sure didn't know anyone besides myself. Now everyone is claiming they did, as well. I'm not buying it.
At this point, those who do not start making an effort to see through all the bullshit are going to have the blood of innocents on their hands. God Help those who are falling for the Latest Israeli False Flag, and supporting the "attack" on Gaza. I recently saw a video of Israeli "defense forces" lining up children against a pit and shooting them. What horrors!
The Globalists actually give these people free cell phones. And it is exactly as you say. They come to America for the (perceived) consummerist utopia. But it is a very empty life. So few people realize that it is family and friends that matter- not material frivolties.
Yes, serving meals at the Rescue mission is the best way to serve the "Homeless". Never give them just money, they will spend it on booze, drugs, and prostitutes.
Never trust a psychiatrist- they’re all crazy! Ha ha. A cursory leaf through their DSM will confirm that
ha ha -- we're all just a different kind of crazy :) ..this one spent 30 yrs as ER psych so he's got experience to be sure.... he's now running for congress lololol.... he'll be right back working in the asylum!
But a whole lot richer
Great article, Don. Both sets of grandparents struggled and my own parents were not rich. My mother was a stay at home Mom, which I think is best, while Dad brought home the bacon. We didn't have much and I did not consider us to be lower class until attending that lovely Catholic grade school where your father's position was more important. It wasn't like that in high school, thankfully, but then I could work part time. I remember when people could retire at the age of 55, then it was 62, now its moving to work until you're in your 70s. They want you working as a slave until your last breath to feed The Beast(s). Yes, companies used to have good pension plans, and much better health insurance coverage for a very reasonable cost to the employee. We have so many homeless and struggling families barely able to feed their children, what is this "welfare" that we have been paying used for? Let me guess. I have helped a family member that needed money just recently, and it wasn't chump change. I've been saving extra for a future move to small town America, but I understand how my sibling feels having been there myself, and what the hec. I feel lucky that I can work from home part time for same employer, so this CV19 actually did me a favor in that respect since many employees are able to work remote (I am partially retired). I told my manager that I would have to work part time anyways, and its worked out, so far. People used to be able to "retire", but as we age, the Social Security isn't enough to survive on. Because I am a part timer, they do NOT give those employees raises. This year, I fought like hell to get one and I got it. I've never made $60k in my life, but what little I have, which is more than many, I appreciate and one has to learn to be frugal. Unbelievably, I'm at the best point financially. Who would have thought that at the age of 68. Hopefully, I can keep going, but seriously, I'd rather sit back and just enjoy my life. We'll see what God brings me. Be Blessed!
I detest "health insurance". It was the neighborhood doctor's best friend. Because we had "health insurance" my unsuspecting mother took us to the "family doctor" every time we coughed or sneezed or vomited and every time we got the same drill- undress for inspection, get a jab, and a prescription for the most horrible-tasting pill one could imagine. And then the doctor would overcharge the "deep pocket" of the insurance company. After awhile, if a person did not have insurance, the doctors were not interested. They were too busy "Herding cattle" in their waiting rooms where the vast majority had a cold or a stomach virus and all they really needed was lots of rest and, for the former, a bowl of chicken soup. Those doctors were liars, syncophants, and extensions of Big Pharma, and most of them knew it. All during the '70's I watched medical costs soar while the quality of the nurses plummeted.
Many people are finally starting to catch on, but it is too few, and far too late.
I appreciate you sharing your experiences, Fran. Thanks!
You're completely wrong. These days it's the Trump wing of the GOP who have compassion and caring for the great unwashed masses. The Dems are the party of the elite and, if you haven't noticed, the terrorists. It's not 1938 any more and hasn't been for quite some time.
I certainly am no fan of today's Democrats, Steve. I'm not sure either side has the kind of compassion that would result in tangible results for those in need. Thanks.
It is true that the Dems are the elites right now - and boy did that show with the Israel Gaza war. All of a sudden the Dems who pretend to be always for the underdog all of a sudden only cared for the white Jews in Israel. MSNBC, the so called left media outlet was told off by some "important" MSNBC Jews apparently that they gave too much coverage for the "animals" of Hamas.
But if you think that Trump care for the underdog you are also mistaken. Trump is a genius in fooling people - best political con. I voted for him but realized that all that looked like gold was just cheap imitation. And if you think the the MAGA crowd that has become a cult is compassionate - try again. Anyone who does not believe exactly as they do is trashed, thrown away like dirt and bullied by Trump and those in his orbit.
I never described myself as a liberal or conservative or libertarian or progressive etc, just like I have no clue if I am a boomer, gen x gen Y or what. At 85 I consider myself a human being.
Take heart everyone, things will get better in the coming Aquarian Age. We will have another 2000or so years to elevate to something a bit higher than greedy little material monsters.
I agree, Inge. I don't think there is a champion of the underdog in public office today. Thanks.
This is why I have never joined any political party. I reserve the right to disagree or, for that matter to agree with whomever I please.
Correction. It is the Useful Idiots that "have compassion and caring for the great unwashed masses". The political structure of the Trump Train is just another part of the Swamp.
"That which you did to the least of these my brethren, ye did unto Me."
Among the four sins that cry out to Heaven are withholding a worker's wage. Underpaying workers is a way of withholding their wage.
God bless and keep the late Dorothy Day, a Catholic christian who took her religion seriously.
Yes, the IRS certainly does the devils work, and you know your theology!
There was a time in this country when 95 percent of the people had their own businesses. That changed as corporations took over and people became employees. As employees they were nothing more than tax-paying slaves and it continues to this day.
Private, independent businesses were systematically destroyed and that still happens to this day with very few seeing it as a problem.
As a victim of this evil system I understand full well how it works.
What we do in the private sector is supposed to be private. None of this filing of "tax returns" and being forced to pay taxes you don't owe, or the paying of "protection money/ insurance" to the mob that currently masquerades as government.
Because of the people's lack of righteousness (failure to recognise the criminal act of extortion as a crime) criminals have been able to put us in the position of being poor.
It is a criminal conspiracy. Always has been. These criminals laid out their plan by listing the ten elements of communism on 1848.
Since the people have not objected to communism they have given their implied consent.
Communism is the systemic theft/ control of everything by the rich. It is Satanic. It is why the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. It is done by secret societies AKA Freemasonry. It is interesting to note that a corporation in Spanish is known as a sociedad anonima. Evil-doers who hide behind good deeds are well camouflaged in deed.
Government was set up by the rich for the rich and as long as you remain ignorant to this fact you will, we all will, continue to be poor.
Great points, Anticriminals. So many books and films have exposed the rat race, scurrying daily to a pointless job that everyone hates, just to make enough money to keep some kind of roof over your head. But the rat race is more popular than ever. We ought to be able to come up with something better, but absent actual slavery, wage slavery is about the best the elite can hope for. Thanks!
Actual slavery or wage slavery? I believe that slavery is slavery; like a rose by another name. However, this goes beyond slavery. It is war, it is treason! Government is being used to wage war against us all!
Government is a Satanic religion that legislates its edicts. You are paying for your own destruction.
Government is to the people like crack is to a crackhead.
I would rather get paid $10,000 a year to do a job I liked rather than $50,000 a year to be part of a useless grind. Greed begets greed, and nothing say nihilism like the life of America since WW2. A car in the garage, a pool in the back yard, all the latest kitchen gadgets, and a soul as empty as the Sonoma desert.
Yes. Well said. What you describe is Capitalism which is where Capital is king as opposed to free enterprise which is where freedom is king
Capitalism and Communism are 2 sides of the same coin
But...communism could not exist without government to enforce it. Review the 10 elements of communism. All are enforced by government.
And we experienced the heavy hand of government here in Australia (a supposedly democratic capitalist country) The gradual supplanting of free enterprise with government and corporation dominance. The Fabianist slow usurping of the nation into communism
There was a time when 80% of American families ran farms before WW1. That was what made America strong and resiliant.
An excellent, but grim post. I love it when you give your readers glimpses of your family's past. Once again Donald, we share an experience. My only childhood vacation was at age eight, as well. We could drive to Canada in a day. We were there less than a week. I wanted a pony more than anything in the world. I actually got one at age 12... my older sister's classmate gave me the pony because he wanted to get rid of it. I had him less than a year before he was traded away one day when I was at school. Never got to say goodbye. I realize now it was a minor miracle I was ever allowed to accept a free pony in the first place.
The upshot of these two experiences, is that I made travel the main priority of my life, and have been many places. I've also owned 11 horses since that pony...but I gave up everything else to make these things happen. Better late than never.
So many people I know are barely keeping a roof over their heads. I just talked to a friend today, who said his family was looking at eviction next month. He agreed with me that America 2.0 is finished.... probably completely gone by this time next year. How can you run a country when huge numbers of working folk are living in their cars or in tents? Getting involved in another Middle Eastern war (after 20 years of failure in the same area) will probably be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
Kris, we really should have met somewhere along the way. Many things in common, and certainly kindred spirits. Thanks!
I cannot say I was as deprived as either of you. We were not rich by any stretch of the imagination, but we always had heat, meat on the table, and gas in the car. There were times when my father had sleepless nights over fear of losing his job, but we never went over the edge. But I was deprived in other ways. My father was a bean-counting, brainwashed sheeple, and taught me all the sheeple ways. I only began to wake up as a teenager.
My grandma forced my father into the big city to get a well-paying job. But my father was never really happy. At one point, we had a nice suburban home, but life was incredibly empty there. Now, that whole area has burned to the ground, if only figuratively. All my old haunts are gone, replaced by Main Drag USA.