What FromSoftware has taught me

In the world of gaming, the point of everything is to challenge the player. It’s not much fun when a game is so easy you rip right through it in less than a week, unless the story or narrative of the game is engaging, then maybe a lower difficulty may be forgiven, but for most gamers, the greater the challenge, the greater the game.

And no developer tests this theory more than FromSoftware. Famous for their incredibly challenging games such as Demon’s Souls, the Dark Souls series, and Bloodborne. Their games are infamous for their high difficulty level as well as for forcing the player to work for the story. They don’t spoon-feed the player the lore. You have to get in there and dig like an archeologist to really get in there. The mood of their games is generally dark bordering on horrific and if clinical depression were a video game, FromSoftare would have developed it.

I came late to the party with their games as my first entry into their dark, murky world was the still celebrated PS4 exclusive Bloodborne. A tale of Victorian horror and Eldritch terror which throws you into a fight against werewolves and extra-dimensional gods with nothing more than a hack saw and a blunderbuss. As you proceed through the increasingly horrible world you peel away the layers and discover not only a world but a game, that is deceptively intricate and complex. It’s no mere hack-n-slash gore game. Through your own skill and exploration, you find the deeper layers of the story and when you reach the end, there’s nothing to do but go through it again to find anything you may have missed.

After Bloodborne, I went on to Dark Souls III and Sekiro and soon found myself addicted to this sadistic game design. It’s brutal and more than a few times it leaves you with your heartbroken and jaw flat on the floor. To die just as a major boss is dying and when you return you find that your victory didn’t count is soul-shattering. That is where the genius of FromSoftware comes in.

These games trained me and taught me how to be patient and tenacious. I learned the core point of these games isn’t to progress through the story and finish it. They’re more about the journey of your character. With every battle, you improve your character point by point and you hone your weapons from weak playthings into powerful death dealers. The game lies in making your warrior stronger and facing the fear and tension of each new boss battle until you don’t even think about it.

This has crystallized in their newest game, Elden Ring. It takes all of these concepts and puts them in a truly open-world environment and pushes you further to explore every little bit of their massive world. At first, it’s all intimidating and you don’t know where to go, but after a while, you find the joy in just wandering around and discovering. You can go on hunts for weapons and armor and that usually leads you into places you never knew existed and the thrill of that discovery drives you on. There are times you see no path forward, but with a little curiosity, you will find something incredible and there is nothing more incredible than when you find you are becoming a force to be reckoned within this strange land. The rush you feel when you kill an enemy three times your size and when you discover the questlines of several NPCs throughout the game, you discover more layers and depth to this amazing game. Following the clues and fighting the fights, you conquer this world and it just makes you want more. You want to see how strong you can become and find weapons worthy of that strength.

I never thought I would love games like these because they are so damn hard and there are times I say to myself that I’ll never make it to the end, but I sit down and apply myself to it and with practice and planning, I find a way to success. It’s those small victories that prod me on to apply the same commitment to other aspects of my life outside of the game. Every failure leads to knowledge and knowledge is how the fight is truly won in the end.

State of Insanity

Covid is still ravaging this country and only a few states are enjoying declining case numbers. Many of the states with the highest cases per capita are in the South and are led by Republicans. They, and their followers, have been rallying against the vaccine despite the fact that trump has been credited for it. They protests vaccines. They protest masks. They don’t trust medical science enough to trust the vaccine, but when they get Covid, they DO trust medical science enough to go to the hospital to be treated. I guess they don’t like getting injected with chemicals until after they’re sick.

Now we have over-burdened hospitals and we’re even starting to run out of the medicines used to treat Covid patients. Tennessee has decided to prioritize the unvaccinated for treatment and some state leaders are criticizing Biden for taking some of their resources so that they can be distributed to other hospitals that need them as well. First, I say all hospitals should kick out all unvaccinated patients. Just rip them out of the beds and toss them onto the street. These people don’t give a damn about their health and this is what they wanted. They want their freedom? Fine. They can die for it. The fact that these selfish monsters who refused to safeguard themselves from a deadly virus are now filling our hospitals to capacity and forcing those hospitals to turn away other patients, some with non-Covid related illnesses, is disgusting and hypocritical. If they would just take the shots, they either wouldn’t get sick in the first place, or if they did get sick, it wouldn’t be as bad.

The reality is now that when they get the virus, they get pumped full of drugs, get tubes stuck down their throat and up their rear and are in constant pain as they lay in that bed alone for days and sometimes weeks. And after all of that, there is no promise they will survive. After all of that, they may still die. And two little jabs of a free vaccine could have prevented it all. Now they want their children to die because they push against mandates in schools. I get they treasure their freedom but this is not an issue of freedom and personal libert. It is a public health issue and they do not have the right to infect me or anyone else with this virus because my freedom to remain healthy is as valid as their freedom to kill themselves. If the disease were non-communicable then I would agree with them, but it’s not. It’s a deadly disease that spreads as easily as the common cold and it can kill. If that doesn’t scare you, then you’re an idiot. That is downright terrifying and what’s more terrifying is there could be a new variant coming down the road that is invincible to existing vaccines and medicines. The longer it spreads the more likely that will happen, if it hasn’t happened already. Your freedom ends where mine begins so if you don’t want to get vaccinated or wear a mask, fine. Just stay home then because you have no right to spread this virus, and no one can tell who has it by just looking. I’m not going to risk my life because you think you are special and won’t get sick. There are some people who have no symptoms of the virus but they can spread it just the same. Until you are ready to join human society and protect them and yourself by getting vaccinated, do us all a favor and stay isolated. I think of the people who suffered through the Spanish Flu pandemic all those years ago. If they could see us today. In the face of a global pandemic and refusing a proven and safe vaccine. What fools we must look like to them.

If you’re hesitant because you don’t like being told what to do and are just being contrary, swallow the foolish pride and get the shot. Whatever side effect the shot may give you is nothing compared to what Covid will do to you. Even if you survive you may have heart and lung issues for the rest of your life. This isn’t the flu. We have aisles of medicine at the supermarket for flu symptoms and relief, but nothing for Covid. The masks and vaccine are pretty much our only weapons right now. But for how much longer? How long before this thing reaches a point of no return? That day is coming, but it doesn’t have to. Embrace the science and get vaccinated before it’s too late.

The Case Against Fox News

So, four years over and let’s take stock. We’re in the midst of a pandemic. Economies are in jeopardy from coast to coast. A big chunk of the country’s citizens are entrenched in conspiracy theories and living in a world of alternative facts. There’s a long list of people to blame, but I think a good portion of the blame lands on Fox News.

A network claiming to be a reputable news source but instead trades in lies and the advancement of false claims from and administration that is now famous for its fiddling with facts is far more danergous than some would think and the motives for their actions are almost tragic.

We have a significant number of politicians in the GOP who are determined NOT to work with President Biden and I’m willing to wager many of them have been seen on Fox News or watch it with some frequency. Now it’s true that Fox News enjoys the protection of the 1st amendment, but even so, I feel news organizations should be more mindful of the influence the wield. Sadly, I think Fox News is well aware of their clout and that in turn possibly has shaded their coverage. The people working there aren’t journalists. Their shows are exactly news shows. For the most part, the shows and pundits on Fox push opinions, not facts. They seem to select the facts they share as much as the facts they choose to withhold. There are stories that never make the light of day while some stories are repeated over and over until you almost can’t stand the words.

The point here is that the tailored truths of Fox News are becoming toxic in a very real way. People watch this channel and walk away truly believing the misleading information they were given. Some of those people hold positions of power in our government and their belief in what they hear on Fox News influences their choices as policy-makers. What is going to happen when more than half of the GOP on the Senate and in Congress refuse to work with the President? It’s not going to be good for the people and Fox News continues to dig in and propel their narrative, flying in the face of all impartiality.

Sadly, while some at the big F may believe their hype, I theorize that there are many others who simply enjoy the power of their influence. Sean Hannity will no longer be a shadow policy-whisperer to the ex-pres and I am fairly certain he is not happy about that. He had almost presidential power because his words had the opportunity to steer the country and that’s not the job or role of a journalist. They report the news, they don’t make it up as they go.

The lies of Fox News are spreading further than even they thought they would and are beginning to truly hinder not only government, but society as well. More hard Right media outlets are coming out of the woodwork and are cementing a lot of toxic thinking in the country today and that is making it virtually impossible for there ever to be peaceable co-existence in the future. I believe it can happen, but for the country to take a step in that direction, we all must be willing to accept the truth of reality and not slip on our blinders when it’s convenient. Belief is not evidence and just because more than one person says something, it doesn’t mean it’s true. Truth won’t always agree with what you personally want and denying it doesn’t change anything. The truth is a stone, solid and real while lies contort and change to suit whatever you want to believe, or whatever someone else wants you to believe. Be it for power or money, a lie may seem harmless at first, but it grows stronger over time and only when it’s too late do you see how much damage it can really do.

I’m NOT with Stupid

So, trump supporters don’t like being called ‘stupid’. They don’t like being characterized as fools and idiots. Well, anyone who has backed trump for the past 4+ years and is getting stiffed, one way or another, such as Guilliani being denied payment for his legal fees or the senators and congressmen who feel ‘betrayed’ by trump’s totally un-presidential behavior, and are surprised by this then I’m sorry to say that you ARE stupid. How did none of these people see this coming? I mean, it was a clear as day. There was no other way any of this could have gone. If you had been paying attention you’d know this is who trump is. He’s a liar and a con man. There is a long list of past business partners he’s left holding the bag and with massive debt. He has left contractors adrift after they worked so hard for him and when the job was done, he just decided he didn’t want to pay them, and didn’t. What’s happening today is nothing new. It’s just on a larger scale now that he’s in a position of authority on the world stage. A place where someone like him can do so much damage.

The fact of trump is that at some point he will give you a raw deal and walk away. All these idiots who’ve been arrested and charged in the Capitol Riot, or rarther the trump Riot, are probably waiting for word that trump is going to be paying their legal fees as he had promised once. He said at a rally once that anyone arrested for violence in his name would enjoy his assistance with their legal fees. Where is he now? You think he’s coming to their rescue? No. He doesn’t give a fig about those people. They were just pawns to him and they sacrificed themselves on their own accord. trump will NOT be paying the legal fees. His lawyers will NOT be representing these people in court. They are on their own now, facing federal charges. It is also clear that the riot was not a spur of the moment thing. They came prepared. They had zip ties and guns. This was a pre-meditated assault on our government and the punishement for these crimes will be severe, especially since when these creeps go to court, trump won’t be around to help them.

If you don’t like being thought of as stupid because you simply support trump, I got bad news for you. Supporting trump, especially now, pretty much proves that you are indeed stupid. There’s simply no other way to put it.

Intent

The past couple days have been interesting to say the least, but through the debris of the political fallout of the attack on our capital, the right-wing media has gone from making sense for a brief second to turning back ot their usual nonsense. The one point they seem to be trying to make now is that there was an uneven reaction to the capital attack and the BLM protests of the past summer, but not in the way you would expect. While the security and police reaction to the BLM protests were strong and brutal, the security on the steps of out capital was barely there. You’d find better security at a Wal-Mart. It’s also especially baffling because the right-wing groups were planning this event out in the open for all to see. This wasn’t a spur of the moment thing. This was pre-meditated and everyone saw it coming; Well, almost everyone.

The right now argues that the BLM protests were more violent and to condemn the pro-trump mob is hypocritical. Where to begin. Let’s start with the fact that the BLM protests were 93% peaceful and the violence didn’t ramp up until right-wing groups confronted the protests. Let’s also not forget the violence of the past summer spiked when trump deployed his stormtroopers into the city.

Another stark difference is that the attack on the capital was called for by a sitting president and his lawyers. trump signaled the Proud Boys at one of the debates. His cryptic tweets about Jan. 6 could easily be seen as a call to action. Rudy Guilliani even called for a ‘trial by combat’ that very day! You cannot tell me that these words were spoken with no intention of egging on their followers. They knew damn well what they were doing and saying.

The BLM protests were more organized and the reason for them was to protest police brutality that has been claiming innocent lives for too long already. Those people had something the pro-trump group did not have: a reason for being there. You can deny police brutality if you like, but I’ve seen enough reports to see the obvious streak of violence against the black community at the hands of various police officials. It persists and it is getting more difficult to get justice for these crimes. I am not black myself, but I am angry about it as well. So many lives cut short for no reason other than hate and the idea that the police can get away with anything simply because they carry a badge and that such authority shall not be questioned; but it shall.

All year the right-wing media has tried to paint the BLM movement as a ‘terrorist’ group but they are just angry people who are tired of being trampled by the system; and that’s funny because that’s exactly how the right-wing media describe the pro-trump cult, but they aren’t angry about crimes committed against their community. They are angry because they didn’t get their way and are acting out like a swarm of spoiled children and I guess that’s fitting considering who they support. The king of spoiled children. The BLM protests were trying to make change and bring us closer to a more fair, equal society but were greeted with hostility because they dared to question the authority that some believe we should just accept. They are fighting a system so entrenched in racism that any move toward improvement is seen as an attack on the foundation of our society which only shows how tainted this ‘society’ really is. The pro-trumpers were just a drunk mob looking to destroy in some unhinged tantrum and they weren’t ‘patriots’. True patriots would never do what they did. Patriots would respect the mechanisms of democracy and accept trump’s loss with grace and dignity. I also don’t recall the BLM protestors occupying the national capital and vandalizing it. I saw pictures of trumpers peeing on the building and they stole from the offices. The security in the building even opened the doors to them. They took selfies with them. I can only imagine the carnage if this exact thing were attempted by BLM.

Consequences

So trump says that he wouldn’t be president if not for Obama’s tenure as president. This was one of his responses to Michelle Obama’s epic speech at the DNC the other night and I hesitantly admit he is right, in a sick sort of way.

Obama’s election to president seemed to inspire an entire generation and proved that there was no barrier that couldn’t be demolished. It delivered on the promise of this American dream we all have believed in for so long. America’s first African-American President and it was a shining moment for our history. Obama went on to oversee one of the most successful and productive administrations in history. He insured millions of people who never had insurance. He bolstered our image on the global stage, earning the respect of our allies and maintaining America’s leadership role. He saved the nations economy and pulled us out of the Great Recession and planted the seeds of a strong, sustainable economy.

On the flipside of this, his election lit other fires and unfortunately they weren’t good ones. His rise to president inflamed the racial hatred that laid quietly in the cracks of our society. People who still view people of other races as inferior to them were clearly feeling attacked and shifted into panic mode and the GOP was quick to capitalize on this fervor. One of the top-most voices in this racist choir was none other than donald trump. Leading the charge on the birtherism conspiracy and constantly trolling Obama for demands to produce his birth certifcate to prove his citizenship. Even after Obama released this, trump continued his crusade to paint Obama as an illegitamate president. This hate burned in him, and many others, and he took the opportunity. He fostered that hate and his base was forged. He gave a home to the racists and bigots of this country. He welcomed them to his campaign as if it were a welcoming cottage in a desolate wasteland and they followed. They saw him as the answer and in a way they were right. If Obama was the American Dream fulfilled, trump was the American Nightmare given form. Having inherited his fortune from his father, building a real estate empire famously through intimidation and other shady methods, and a long string of failed business endeavors with few successes, he proved that anyone could be president, no matter how inexperienced or uneducated. His administration has been fraught with scandal, incompetence, and illegal activity. He’s turned our government into a criminal enterprise and the current GOP leadership has allowed it. The list of cabinet members who have come to regret their involvement with trump grows with every passing day.

trump could never have reached the Oval Office if not for that hatred and rage that slept in the hearts of so many racist bigots that he nurtured and Obama gave them someone to focus that rage at. So, in a way, trump was right. He’s now saying he’s going to win and even suggested a third term, but in this he will not be right. We cannot allow that to happen. This country will not survive another term of trump. If you think that’s over-the-top, look around at the situation right now. See where we are. Do you really think another 4 years of this is going to end well? Vote for Biden, please. Even if he’s not your first choice he will at least offer some relief from the current chaos we live in now. He has experience and unlike trump has strategies and plans. He’ll give this country time to breathe and four years from now, we can re-evaluate if need be. trump is a death sentence. Plain and simple. VOTE!

Worst Case is Best Case

Being stuck at home for work has some benefits but it also has its drawbacks. One big drawback is my near constant exposure to Fox News and other Right Wing media due to those that I live with. It has been eductational in some respects. I see now more clearly that Fox News is carefully curated and arranged to illicit fear and anger in its audience. They use the same footage when they talk about the Portland riots. Every time. They have also been talking about these riots for over a month now, or so it seems, yet I understand they have been mostly peaceful. Fox News portrays it as a 24-hour a day free for all, but that’s not what other news outlest report and whenever they aren’t talking about that, they’re either defending trump or trashing Biden.

This is where my fascination is peaked. They talk about the dangers of a Biden presidency. They tell scary story about Liberal storm troopers who will come in the night and snatch you off the street; although it seems trump is getting us ready for that with his stormtroopers coming in the night and snatching us off the street. They also touch on what a great response trump has had with the coronavirus, rarely mentioning the months he spent ignoring it and even after it hit refusing responsibility; and in the same breath they trash Biden over his response which was nothing but that’s mostly because he’s not the President, yet.

A lot of Conservative pundits are quick to describe the horror of Biden’s administration with little to no evidence but I wonder, could Joe Biden possibly do anything that would make what’s going on now any worse? Could anyone? Historically high unemployment, a pandemic and a crumbling economy. It wasn’t like trump was doing that good a job before all this either. He broke the law. He was impeached. His administration has been a hot bed of scandal and criminal behavior. It’s less a cabinet and more of a mob family. He has proven he doesn’t understand his responsibilities, he doesn’t understand the law and he doesn’t understand the difference between right and wrong. He has no experience and these past 3+ years have not taught him anything. He has no plans for his second term. Just some vague concepts that only make sense in the mists of his adeled brain. Biden has proven experience. He understands the job and his role in it. Some say he’s too progressive while others say he is not and I really don’t care because he’s not trump.

The worst that Biden could do will still be a vast improvement over the best of what trump can do. Whatever the worst case scenario you may see with Biden, think about what another term with trum could do. Look at where we are now and ask yourself if you honestly believe trump could actually see us through it. If it were possible for him to accomplish that, why hasn’t he done it yet? A president who refuses to do his job unless he’s rewarded is no president at all. trump is the one who got us into this mess to begin with. He removed Obama’s pandemic task force, which was quite comprehenisve and probably would have spared us thousands of lives. He ignored the warnings of the virus writing it off as a hoax. He’s brought militiary black ops into our cities. He’s undermining the rule of law in this country. He’s even essentially taken control of the Senate because McConnell has been vocal that he will do whatever the president wants and that puts trump in the Executive Branch and the Legistlative Branch, which I would call a gross overreach of authority. There’s no where to go but down from here with trump and fighting over how progressive Biden is or isn’t is irrelevant. We need experieince and intelligence in the White House. We need a president who respects the law and this country. Another term of trump is death for this country.

Oh Goy-A

So a lot of stink has been made by calls for a boycott against Goya due to the President and CEO’s prais of trump at the White House recently. Rober Unanue said we (America, presumably) are lucky to have a ‘president’ like trump calling him a ‘builder’. He has also said the attempted boycott of his products is a suppression of speech. Actually, it is the most American thing that could be done. The concept that this nation’s citizens can openly criticize and disagree with the president and government is a cornerstone to this democracy. We are not forced to blindly pledge allegiance to whomever sits in the Oval Office. We have the ability, nay duty, to question leadership and when that leadership falls short, we have the right to make our displeasure known. If the president of a privately held company says something his customers don’t agree with, they have the right to boycott his products. It’s the only voice they have. He certainly won’t listen to their words. They are speaking with their wallets.

I would like to know, however, what leadership from this adminstration we are so lucky to have. Are we lucky to have a president who openly engages in corruption and deceitful behavior? Are we lucky to have a president who routinely lies? A president who puts pressure on allies for personal favors and one who alienates allies while cozying up to dictators and despots? The kind of president who locks children up in cages and pardons convicted felons? The kind of president who hides away in a bunker when things get tough? A president who works with foreign agents to gain politically? A president who downplays or out and out ignores warnings about a deadly virus and spreads blame around for his own failings and not once takes any responsibilty for his failed policies? A president who puts his own re-election odds above the lives of thousands of innocent Americans, many of whom are children? I could go on. The list of this president’s sins seems to never end. Impeached, rebuked by so many in his party. He was never a builder; never a leader. Not in the private sector and certainly not now. He spreads division, exploits the darkest parts of his base and fans the flames of hatred. All this can be seen in how he acts and what he does and the only way you don’t see it is if you choose not to see it, which so many choose to do it seems.

I get that perhaps Robert Unanue feels that you must respect the office if not the man, but how can you respect this president when he shows no respect for the very office he occupies. He doesn’t understand his powers. He doesn’t do his job. He listens to pundits and crazy conspiracy theorists over experts and educated professionals. He has the expertise of the world’s greatest minds at his fingertips yet he chooses to take his cues from the likes of Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity and they know this; which I think is kind of a violation of a journalist’s ethics to knowingly influence a sitting president. He has had so many chances to prove his leadership but has failed time and time again. He has defended white supremacists and pedophiles. He has taken great pains to keep a ‘hands off’ approach to his presidency. He pushes his duties off onto others and leaves others holding the bag. The buck never seems to stop here with this president. Instead he whines and complains about how unfair he is treated by those critical of him.The first time in our history a president has ever had such complaints. Most presidents just rise above such barbs and get to the job at hand. This one goes golfing. His golfing budget in his first term out-paces his predecessor’s budget over his 2 terms. He still profits personally from his businesses and uses his office to this end. He has turned the presidency into a criminal and corporate enterprise and it should be neither of those things. Government isn’t a business.

And now we are in the midst of the pandemic. Where is this leadership we are so lucky to have now? The president is attacking his own experts because they won’t agree with him and tell everyone how everything is peachy keen and we can re-open now. The fact is this nation has the highest case rates and deaths in the world right now. So many other countries have gotten a handle on COVID-19 and that’s because they took the hard road and did what had to be done and now they have flattened the curve, or gotten closer to it than we ever will. To this day the president still insists on spreading bad information about the disease; whether it’s claiming phony cures or just saying the virus is ‘harmless’. He latches onto anyone who will echo this but rarely does it come from any expert or medical professional. Most recently we have Chuck Woolery, a game show has-been, claiming the pandemic is a huge conspiracy, coordinated by the media and Democratic party, to thwart trump’s re-election. That is insane, just so you know. It’s crazy and you know it is because COVID-19 is a GLOBAL crisis not just here. If it was a conspiracy it is one hell of one that encompasses all the world’s governments, the CDC and countless others all for the sake of one small, petty man. It seems, if you believe him, everyone is after trump. Quite an ego on that one.

The fact is that there is no conspiracy against trump. Logistically it would be impossible for that to be true. When there are so many saying he is wrong and unfit for office, it may be time to consider they may be right. It seems though that trump’s allies are loyal, even when he turns on them. He has turned on and attacked everyone who has ever come to his defense. He attacks Fox News, his propaganda machine, he attacks his cabinet, he attacks his friends, he attacks his followers! How much further can he go? Is there anything he could do that would finally make even his most loyal supporters see him for who he really is?

This is why they want to boycott Goya. This president is not a builder. He is a divider and the Latino community has suffered its share of his incompetence and if a company that claims to support that community praises trump, they have the right to make their outrage known and the best way to do that is with their dollars. Even when the boycott and buy-cott frenzy dies down, this moment will hang over Goya brands for years to come. I wonder if the Right Wing loudmouths who object to the boycott will still be there by Goya’s side 5 or 6 years from now or maybe they’re just going to stick up for them now while the story is hot. The long-term customers may be lost forever however. Just a thought.

The Disease of Fox News

Everyone knows Fox News is anything but ‘fair and balanced’. They haven’t used that slogan for ages because even they knew it wasn’t true. Now they wrap themselves up in their plastic patriotism and go deeper in on their concept of ‘traditional’ values. They angrily shout that America is great and everything else is bad. Anyone who dares to question them or their president shall be labeled ‘enemy’ and will be dispatched as such. They filter out the inconvenient truths and leave only the sweet distilled lies. They offer only half the story and call it journalism. For that there should be an asterisk mark by the News in Fox News.

I am in the unfortunate position where I am exposed to the channel on a daily basis and I can’t simply turn it off, as much as I wish I could. I have noticed things about Fox News and much of this isn’t new to anyone I know. I just feel the need to join in with the others to share these observations.

First, there is no news on Fox News. It appears they have an endless schedule of opinion shows where the host lays out the bones of the story and then shares their opinion and then brings on a live guest who shares that same opinion. No differing viewpoints. No unique angles. Just what they think and that’s it. Any opposing statements are offered in pre-recorded snips from other sources. They don’t dare have two live guests who would conflict with one another.

The majority of their coverage these days is trump. It seems every show is all about trump and the hurdles he faces each day. They get pro-trump guests to further spin the lies and fabrications of the administration and then trash any dissenting voice they can. They bend over backwards and back again to rationalize the president’s foolish remarks and baffling behavior. Today, as a point, a re-election official was on claiming there really were 12,000 in attendance at the trump rally in Tulsa. I have seen pictures from the rally and based on that and the fact that the venue only has 19000 capacity, there is no way there were 12000 people there. The fire dept. in Tulsa stated that there were less that 6200 people there, and since I see no reason why the fire department would need to lie, I’ll go with their number because that is also what looks factual. I’d say the trump campaign thug needs to learn math. 12000 people in a 19000 capacity venue would mean that more than half the auditorium would have been full. That place was barely half full with huge block of seats empty and not many people walking around. Of course, Fox News goes silent. They also failed to report that 6 trump staffers tested positive for Covid-19 ahead of the rally. No face masks. No social distancing. They also said protesters scared trumpists away, but I fail to see how 120 peaceful protests could scare away so many of the kind of people who would go to a trump rally.

When Fox isn’t reporting on trump or bashing the civil unrest currently going on, they have shows where the host will just talk about things with the intent to anger viewers. One pundit went on about not being able to get liquor on an airline flight. He went on and on about it, yelling and getting upset. Clearly in a bid to rile up the viewers. The ‘news’ shows spread the lies and the opinion shows cement them and anger up the viewers. These two kinds of programs on Fox culminate in an angry person filled with a lot of bad information. Fox also makes sure they are the only source because they go after their rivals at CNN and MS-NBC calling them ‘fake news’ and constantly claimng they lie when the reality is that a fact checking poll proved that CNN and MS-NBC are more truthful than Fox. Fox was proven ot be untruthful nearly half the time with either misleading half-truths or flat out lies, or simply the omission of some information. And when they aren’t doing any of this, they’re showing funny animal videos. What journalism school did these people graduate from?

Fox News clearly carefully crafts and structures their information for their viewers in a very specific way and because of that Fox News isn’t news. Journalists are intended to be impartial and hold no sway over the news they report. CNN and MS-NBC, so far as I’ve seen, simply report the news as it happens with no spin or agenda. They have their opinion shows but usually they will have live guests from both sides of the argument in order to have a thoughtful debate on their topic. Fox has an agenda. It is widely known trump watches Fox. He speaks on the phone with Sean Hannity. Fox knows that their reporting has sometimes influenced public policy and I am sure that power is hard for them to resist, but that is not the function of a journalist. You don’t express your opinions with the intent to affect change in a world leader’s decisions in order to suit your own ends. You can if you want, but don’t call it news and don’t call yourself a journalist.

Fox News has now become more a propaganda machine for the GOP and it seems each day they become emboldened by trrump. Even when he denounces them in his tweets they still vie for his favor, almost begging him for him to love them again. I think it proves that not only has trump failed to make America “great again” but he can’t even improve Fox News.

Cutting Through The Crazy

I haven’t posted in a long time, not that anyone noticed, but I’m posting again because sometimes the meter in my head that measures the insanity of the world hits its maximum and a bell goes off.

This happened today when I heard two radio talk show hosts (not saying who but let’s say their names rhyme with Don and Ben) and what I heard tipped me over the edge. I’d like to clear somethings up about this Kavanaugh report that was completed by the FBI. First, it’s not been made public so anyone claiming to even know what’s in the report is lying. From what I’ve read from other sources, the GOP is not making the report findings public. It is available to senators, but not the public. Now, I know someone could say that some senator told them that the report said this or that, but as far as I am concerned those lying sacks can’t be trusted with a care package much less sensitive information like this. They could tell anyone anything and get away with it and I think it’s been very clear from the outset of this that the GOP will do and say anything to make all this go away.

Secondly, even if there is nothing incriminating in this report, it wouldn’t mean anything because the scope of this investigation was so limited. They didn’t interview Dr. Blasey-Ford. They didn’t interview Kavanaugh. They couldn’t interview any of all the many witnesses who were coming forward who could add more credibility to Dr. Blaey-Fords claims. Essentially, if there was any dirt to find, the FBI was restricted from finding it or reporting it. The investigation was basically pointless because it had no teeth. It was just an empty gesture so that some of the senators who are voting for Kavanaugh can rationalize that they did their due diligence and can vote with a clear conscience. Right.

Third, and maybe this point strays, but hear me out. Let’s forget the report. Let’s forget the fact that three women with similar accounts of the same man should be enough to warrant deeper investigation, let’s just think about Kavanaugh’s behavior at the hearing. He was belligerent, angry and I cannot see that man being impartial, especially after all of this. He’s going to have a lot of axes to grind and if he gets confirmed, he’s going to be able to inflict his petty revenge on his ‘enemies’. He is not impartial and he’s not fit to serve on the highest court in the land. The only reason the GOP is trying to cram him in is because a case is coming up and they know Kavanaugh’s ruling will let everyone who has gotten busted in the Mueller investigation go free, and this will also set the stage for Trump to get off scott free when he gets busted himself, and he will. All his pawns are falling around him so it’s only a matter of time before the king falls too.  They want him in because he’s going to vote for everything they want. He’ll overturn abortion rights, gay rights and I wouldn’t be surprised if they reinstate slavery just for the Hell of it. Some say many of these issues are settled law, but no law is ever really settled. Cases can always be reopened and redecided and Kavanaugh is a clear and present danger to all the progress that’s been made over the last fifty years.

The current GOP leadership is only interested in protecting their own interests and those of their donors. Every generation their self-serving tactics become less and less subtle. This has to stop. They have forgotten that they serve us. They are not our lords and masters.

Kavanaugh will more than likely be confirmed and it will be another bruise on our National face, but I suppose it’s appropriate. This is Trump’s America now. A land of hate and intolerance and ignorance. A nation that disdains science and embraces the illusion of a past that never really existed in the first place. While the world marches forward into the future, we will be burying our heads in the sand and hoping time swings around back to 1955. Good luck to us all.