December 18, 2019 – Politics and how educated we are becoming

         Everyone in America has had a refresher course in civics in the last six months as they are reviewing or learning words, phrases and ideas they have never heard or understood before.

         An easy way to what American’s are not certain of is to follow the “pending” words on Merriam-Webster’s M-W’s Word of the Day website at: mwwotd@wotd.m-w.com.

         The most recent comment that had me wonder how educated us Americans are becoming as we watch this almost three-year witch hunt play out was:

Not a scintilla of evidence.

Scintilla = a tiny trace or spark

 of a specified quality or feeling.

Example: “A scintilla of doubt.”

         I will just toss out dozens of phrases or words that have us all thinking, researching, and waiting for the next element of the pending Impeachment, to drop in our laps.

quid pro quo

bribe

CHS [confidential human sources] vs. spying

UCEs undercover employees

feckless

insidious

spying – or wearing a wire

lynching

redacted

whistle blower

you work at the pleasure of the President

emoluments

exonerate

Kangaroo court

purview

vindicate

exculpated

assumed

held in contempt

churlish

due process

hearsay

call transcript

perfect call

reticence

Sixth amendment - right to face your accuser

Burisma

dossier

Ukraine

Biden

demand

favor

obstruction

Three branches of government

perfect phone call

resistance

contempt of congress

partisan

presumed innocence vs. assumption

         And, I ask, “What the heck did he mean by that?” – Former National Security Advisor John Bolton’s “. . .whatever drug deal Sondland and Mulvaney were cooking up,” comment.

         I am the proud owner of Volume 1 and II of the Mueller report – Yes I have read it.  And, last week I pulled down the PDF file of the Office of the Inspector General’s report on FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane Investigation and had it printed out at Staples.  I am wading my way through the 476 pages with 535 footnotes.

         During this ‘historical’ time in the United States, you will fall under three camps.

1.    Don’t care – I haven’t the time or inclination.

2.    Care – but I am too busy to research it myself and I believe all the drivel the media is pumping out on the news channels I watch.

3.    Believe there is FAKE NEWS and will research it all myself – at the source – in order to make up my own mind.

         You are a member of the Elitists, or the Common man, or the head-in-the-sand.  Which media outlet do you watch and listen to? There is FOX news and then the rest, the Fake news media.

         Are you a deplorable and irredeemable, and more recently called “cult” or a member of the resistance?  You will have to decide.  It is your future, your finances, and possibly your livelihood.  It will come down to free market capitalism versus socialism. I suggest you do a little bit more than being passive, I suggest you read and question and research what is really happening in America today.

         As you might have guessed, I fall under camp 3.  I pulled down a copy of the Ukraine phone call transcript within hours of it being on the internet. Every American should at least read those five pages during this Impeachment of President Trump.

November 5, 2018 – President Trump  and “Where have you been?” 

         Yes, I am back.  I have literally taken it to heart that in order to be a better writer, I am embracing the mantra: You must read.  So, I’ve been reading, and reading, and reading. And, then I run out of time to write.

         I have to schedule my time better.

         And – drum roll please – I attended the Trump Rally in Charlotte, North Carolina on 10/26/18.  Yes, I got to see President Trump with my own eyes – at a distance of about five car lengths.  He sure can work a crowd.

         Yes – that was certainly a big check mark beside a bucket list item for me.  Years ago I went to a Train-stop rally in South Carolina for President George H. W. Bush- 41 – which was also awesome. 

         I survived the 45-degree drenching rain in a poncho waiting in line from 1:30 p.m. until 3:30 p.m. for a 7:00 p.m. rally. [They felt bad for us and let us in early.] The rain splashed the hems of my pants and I was sopping wet up to my knee caps.  [No I didn’t melt or dissolve . . .]

         The people in line in front of me and behind me were educated – not a bunch of rednecks as the liberal news media wants to portray. Everyone was polite and everyone wanted to talk Trump politics. The 5 women nearest me were college graduate, white women from the suburbs – also not what the “fake news” is dishing out. We also had young business millennials and retired veterans  -  all types of people – except I didn’t see any crazy people.

         We had the added bonus of college students coming along with their video smartphones interviewing us waiting in line for their class projects.  We sure told them what we thought.  The more questions we answered, the more they asked.  We covered every aspect of the platform for them and then some.

         Inside it was truly a Red-White-Blue Rally.  By the time President Trump arrived, all the seats were full.   Security was more than ample and they were circling like sharks among the people.

         One thing you can say about President Trump – he knows how to give a crowd a compliment.  He tossed out about 5 compliments making us happy we had braved the lousy weather. And a 8,600 person crowd is rather awesome to see and hear.

         And, here is a picture of me in my red/white/blue scarf.  It was a long day, but it was worth it to be among people that think and vote like I do. 

         Not only did I have to weather the rain, I had to weather the following snarky comments from so-called friends who are on the other side of the political aisle when I mentioned the rally to them:

         “I am going to the Trump Rally in Charlotte tomorrow!”

         “Why would you want to?” she answered.

         “I am at the Trump Rally in Charlotte – got  a few hours to kill waiting on his arrival,” I texted to a friend.

         He texted back:    “You are an educated woman, did someone hog tie you or kidnap you and force you to go?”

         So, you can see how divided the country is – even among the people I know.  

         If I have the chance to go again – I will go.   President Trump calls it like he sees it.  So what if he isn’t a wordsmith and doesn’t talk elegant.  He uses street language, the language of the common man.  I have just as many flaws as he has – which makes him REAL – not like the FAKE NEWS.