Inciting Racism

Another article read that can do nothing but incite problems.

The first article I saw when I opened up my Yahoo browser today was "Bill O'Reilly says 'the left wants power taken away from the white establishment'".

This is not what America is supposed to be!  The article was bad enough to incite anger, but the comments ... is this really how the far right feels?  That females, non-whites, non-Christians are a problem, that we should all bow down to the white male Christian?

I know many people who are on the right, and I've never heard such bologna from any of them.  Is this words that they are afraid to say?  I truly would hope not.

Guess what?  This country was built on the backs of immigrants, women, and minorities, all of whom have contributed to this country.  There should be no question that they deserve just as much of a say in what makes this country as anyone else.

In 2008, when the presidential race was Romney vs. Obama, I was excited.  Want to know why?  Because, I truly believed we had come so far as a country.  I believed that, for once, that the race was putting aside religion and race, and that we would be able to look at the actual policies and principals of the individuals.  At first, after the 2008 election, it looked like that was true.  But, as the years went on, I heard more about race and religious issues than I had ever heard in my adult life.  Now, it seems that race is becoming an even bigger issue, and it's one that makes me fearful for my friends and neighbors.  I will continue to raise my children that there people are people regardless of color of their skin or the house of worship they attend.  I will not succumb to this racist anger that is being perpetrated.

If this far right that is now to be in charge of this fine country of ours wants to accomplish anything, then the first thing that has to happen is address this part of their constituency.  To address the fact that yes, there is white privileged, and find ways to ensure that all people in this country are represented.  I truly hope that this is not how Mr. Trump feels.  I fear that it may be, but I still have hope that as he faces the responsibilities of being president and representative of such a diverse country that he will look and see the accomplishments of it, and will see the injustices that have been carried out.

The Christmas Tree - Put the Blame in the Right Place

I read the title, as I'm so sure so many other people did "Alabama official apologizes for chopping public park tree for Trump rally".  My first impression was one of those moments, where you immediately want to judge someone, and, that would be Mr. Trump.

But, this wasn't him.  Oh, I'm sure he would have wanted a "big" tree, the "biggest".  But, it wasn't Mr. Trump who took an old beautiful tree from public land and used.  It was the town's mayor's aide.  You could probably go farther down the totem pole, but that's who made the decision.

As much as I will be watching his decisions and what is going on, just as I watch other public officials.  This one, though, we can't and shouldn't blame on him.

It's a prime example of the slant that our media takes in so much.  The words were chosen to make an impact before even one word of the article was read.

It's a time for vigilance.  Read and check facts.  The title will draw you in, they need us the reader to open the article and be engaged.

So, as the year winds up, and the new year begins, we will be seeing more and more of this.  Keep your eyes and minds open.

ObamaCare - A Personal Note

Completing my annual healthcare.gov application. For those of you who are against ObamaCare, just remember. It's because of ObamaCare that many people in this country have insurance coverage. Not every job offers insurance. Not everyone can afford a plan on their own. Without insurance, if I were to get sick, I would become a much bigger burden on society than any amount of "subsidy" that I may receive for my healthcare plan.

Actually, let's get even a bit more personal. Without ObamaCare, I would be a danger to drive, I would become a drag on society, I would be practically blind. With ObamaCare, I was able to get the much needed surgery to restore my eyesight. It wasn't an elective procedure, I was quickly losing my sight. In less than a year, I had gone from 20/375 eyesight to over 20/1000 eyesight and it was continuing to decline rapidly.

No, I don't like the uptick on the premiums. Yes, I wish there was a better option. But, if you are going to yell and scream about how bad it is, or that people need to get a job, keep in mind, most of us have jobs. I have a job, it doesn't pay decent, but I have not been able to find another one in my field in this area.

I work. I pay taxes. I am a contributing member of society. I have ObamaCare. And, I am not a slacker.

Electoral College Number Crunch

Alright, I crunched my numbers... this whole electoral college thing has been bothering me. So, think of it this way.... Why does it take 3.75 people in Texas to have the vote power of one person in Wyoming. Yes, I did a whole chart of the entire country, and will be adding to it. It wouldn't have changed the outcome if our process was better proportioned with their value, or maybe it would have. I haven't finished all my computations yet.

My point is, my vote should not be lesser because I live in a more populous state. If all things were equal, Texas should have 142 electoral votes to Wyoming's 3 electoral votes. Both sides are being devalued by this system. I'm not saying abolish it, though I think it has had it's day. Yet, there is no way we are going to get a constitutional amendment to change it. Our votes cannot be so disproportionate. States need to rethink how these votes are cast.

Another issue, the electoral college is based on number of seats in Congress, which in turn is based on the census. So, if one state has a huge population growth in between censuses, they will not be accurately represented by Congress or the electoral college. As long as we stick with the electoral college, I see no way to change this aspect of it. And, that is a bag of worms, I don't think anyone wants to open up.

This is not being a snowflake or crying about not winning. This is being realistic. The electoral college was not set up to protect less populous states from the big bad city dwellers, who I believe that if we look at it would also be disproportionately minorities as compared to the lower population states ... another column to look at in my chart.

I want my vote to count. I don't want to think, "okay, it will take myself and 3.63 other people in Florida to vote for the same person to be equal to a vote by someone in Wyoming".

Or, how about this, if you want it structured as it is based on Congress, meaning there will not be a higher total than there is currently of electoral votes. Why don't we go on our congressional districts? Then, the two minimum of electoral votes for each state go to the popular vote for that state.

For instance, if the 2nd District of Florida (Tallahassee) had a popular vote for the Democrat, then their electoral vote should go to the Democrat. In the same light, if the 4th District of Florida (Jacksonville) had a popular vote for the Republican, then their electoral vote should go to the Republican. At the same time, if the total popular vote for Florida went for the Republican, then the 2 electoral votes for the state which are allocated based on our seats in the Senate would go to the Republican candidate. Each area then is represented by their constituency. No, I am still not saying it would have changed the final outcome, but at least people would know their vote actually counted. I, for one, feel my vote in this presidential election did not count because of the winner take all consensus of the electoral college.

Don't tempt me, I may also go figure this out as well.