Make America Great Again or Make America More Like Cuba

Is it bad form to dance in the streets and celebrate when an old Commie leader bites it?

I vote no:

Not when the deceased is a ruthless murderer who single-handedly destroyed a beautiful island country, enslaved its people, ruined it’s economy, and imprisoned thousands of sweet vintage rides.

I note that just yesterday there was a bit of discussion regarding America’s dis-information media that your government doesn’t want you to participate in. How ironic that one of the world’s most pre-eminent ministers of mis-dis-information dropped dead last night.

Indeed Fidel Castro has been implementing the Progressive economic re-development plan since 1957:

Cuba: practicing the Detroit model of urban development since 1957!

As I pointed out years ago in JOBS! JOBS! JOBS! Fidel Castro was a former winner of the “Most Dubious Caribbean Island Economic Recovery” award. It was bestowed for his exemplary work in establishing “Promise Zones” to provide “aid in cutting through red tape to get access to existing resources.” Here are some of the results of his program:

Promise Zone 1: helping entrepreneurs set up food carts in downtown Havana

Promise Zone 2: helping urban gardeners grow food in Havana - Are you paying attention, Detroit?

Promise Zone 3: avoiding First World traffic congestion by outlawing any vehicle made after 1959

As I pointed out at the time, America was nipping at Cuba’s heels: “with 92 million [edit: 93 million now!] people out of the labor participation pool, nearly a third of all Americans are now unproductive! That means we may well be on the way to becoming a ‘One-Third’ World Country too!

It might be useful for the snowflakes, who will no doubt be mourning the death of one of their last remaining idols, to be reminded what life under a benevolent Communist dictator looks like. The realities are not quite as romantic as the fantasy. If they, like Barack Obama, consider our Constitution to be a charter of negative liberties I wonder how they would describe Cuba’s actual charter of negative liberties. Here are just a few of the many negative liberties Cubans endure enjoy:

Cubans are not allowed to access the Internet from their homes or on their cellphones.

No cable TV.

No public demonstrations allowed. (What?! No drum circles? No window breaking and police car incinerations?)

Can’t live in Havana (without a permit). (Don’t worry, if you can’t demonstrate anyway why bother moving to Portland?)

No Political Parties allowed (except the Partido Comunista de Cuba)

No inviting a foreigner to spend the night without a permit. (What?! No sanctuary cities!? No sanctuary college campuses!?!)

Selling lobster and shrimps is not allowed. (What?! No free enterprise in this Communist paradise!!!!)

Imagine the tears the snowflakes will shed should they ever wake up to find out that this was their lot in life. That might even be worse than discovering that their candidate – who they meant to vote for if only they had remembered what day the election was – lost. You might think they’d be very grateful that their president-elect is somebody who wants to Make America Great Again instead of someone who wants to Make America More Like Cuba.

Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if Donald J. Trump doesn’t even make Cuba great again too. In his spare time.

Yes, I think this would look nice in Havana.

Linked By: Larwyn’s Linx on Doug Ross@Journal, and BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!

Cross-Posted on Patriot Action Network

The Truth – Their Truth, and Nothing But Their Truth

CNN's chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour has been awarded the Committee to Project Journalists' Burton Benjamin Memorial Award for "extraordinary and sustained achievement in the cause of press freedom." - CNN

I know we all enjoyed a wonderful spread yesterday butt do you know what’s more delicious than turkey and all the fixings? An outraged, self-righteous turkey preaching about the merits of “the other white meat.”

Specifically, Christiane Amanpour preaching to us, the deplorables, about the evil of tyrants and the value of truthiness. The following are excerpts from her “acceptance” speech. She seems less exercised by real 21st century tyrants than by Donald Trump’s tweets:

I never in a million years thought I would be up here on stage appealing for the freedom and safety of American journalists at home.

Ladies and gentlemen, I added the bits from candidate Trump as a reminder of the peril we face. I actually hoped that once President-elect, all that that would change, and I still do. But I was chilled when the first tweet after the election was about "professional protesters incited by the media.

But postcard from the world: This is how it goes with authoritarians like Sisi, Erdoğan, Putin, the Ayatollahs, Duterte, et al.

First the media is accused of inciting, then sympathizing, then associating -- until they suddenly find themselves accused of being full-fledged terrorists and subversives. Then they end up in handcuffs, in cages, in kangaroo courts, in prison – and then who knows?

Oddly enough however Christiane was completely copasetic with our current imperial presidency that completely side-stepped Constitutional constraints by the powers vested in Obama’s pen and a phone. Oh no, that was glorious extra-constitutional action employed to over-ride a “do nothing Congress.” And it was good.

Hey Goose! Meet Gander! Metaphorically speaking of course.

Of course none of that had anything to do with the media as they have been granted special privilege by our Bill of Rights. Only evil tyrants would dare breech that immutable constitutional right.

A great America requires a great and free and safe press. So this above all is an appeal to protect journalism itself.

Tell James Rosen about that. Apparently non-intimidation of investigative journalism is one of the ten things that are cool again now that Trump is the president-elect.

Recommit to robust fact-based reporting without fear nor favor -- on the issues. Don't stand for eing labeled crooked or lying or failing. Do stand up together -- for divided we will all fall…if ever there's a time to celebrate, honor, protect and mobilize for press freedom and basic good journalism, it's now.

No dear, that time would have been from 2007-present.

I admit I was shocked by the exceptionally high bar put before one candidate and the exceptionally low bar put before the other candidate.

She still doesn’t realize that the rest of the country views this glaringly asymmetrical treatment completely  opposite of the way she does.

We cannot continue the old paradigm -- let's say like over global warming -- where 99.9% of the empirical scientific evidence is given equal play with the tiny minority of deniers.

Isn’t that like the (media’s) old paradigm that only a tiny minority of deniers would vote for Brexit?

(Christiane Amanpour has a meltdown on Live TV over Brexit)

and, uh, Trump?

I think this is at the heart of Christiane’s – as well as the rest of her media buddies – problem:

I believe in being truthful, not neutral. And I believe we must stop banalizing the truth.

They don’t even believe they should be neutral anymore. They don’t think of themselves as “reporters” they are more important than that; they are advocates, torch bearers of truth. Their truth. And nothing but their truth. It is their god.

So the least the rest of us can do is shut up and go away.

Linked By: BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!

Cross-Posted on Patriot Action Network

Thanksgiving 2016

For each new morning with its light, For rest and shelter of the night, For health and food, for love and friends, For everything Thy goodness sends. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

This has been, to say the least, an interesting year – in the Chinese curse sense of the word. There have been moments of sadness and joy, despair and hope. Some of our MOTI family have suffered great personal losses -  spouses, parents, family members, and beloved companions - both the 2 and 4 legged variety. Some have lost, and found, jobs. Many have faced health issues and suffered through protracted rehab and recovery. Several have relocated across great distances to restart their lives. And we’ve all suffered through the stress of a truly unprecedented election. While Trump was not the first choice of many of us, here we are, two weeks after the election, universally supportive and hopeful that maybe - just maybe - he really will help us make America great again.

And so today we shall take a small pause in the action to remember and be thankful for all we have: for friends and family, the talents we’ve been given,  the opportunities we’ve been offered and the work we were able to do to take advantage of them.

I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank each of you who gather here to share, cajole, question, educate and entertain us all. You’ve made the past 8 years just fly by. Well okay, no; it’s actually seemed a lifetime, butt that’s not your fault. So thank you all, whether you were a charter member to the MOTI or have just recently joined the elite group of preeminent thinkers who gather here on a daily basis. May your Thanksgivings be filled with all the turkey, dressing, gravy and pie you could possibly want – plus leftovers for a late night snack.

In closing I would like to add my annual MOTUS Thanksgiving prayer:

In addition to all the other blessings

you have conferred on my reflective frame

I wish to thank you, Lord,

for the companionship of steadfast comrades

whose wit and wisdom and strength

help steer me through these tempestuous seas

of flattery and lies churned to fury by the ill will of demagogues.

And this year I thank you for sending us a warrior to restore steadiness to our Republic.

Amen.

I wish you all a peaceful, happy Thanksgiving – because there is always, always, always something to be thankful for.

I will be on kitchen detail most of the day so carry on, Pilgrims!

Linked By: Larwyn’s Linx on Doug Ross@Journal, and BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!

Cross-Posted on Patriot Action Network

The Goose Is Already Cooked

I would be remiss if I didn’t report on the Won’s last Presidential Medal of Freedom Awards show. The last, like the first, was all about Obama:

"Everybody on this stage has touched me in a very powerful, very personal way.These are folks who have helped make me who I am.”

How would you like to put that on your resume?

“I helped put the smug in Obama’s smile.”

Perhaps most striking about Tuesday’s ceremony is that nine of the 20 awards (45 percent) recognize actors, artists, or musicians — a category that represents only 17 percent of total Medal recipients to date…[ed. in case you’re counting- and who isn’t?] The ceremony was as diverse as it was star-studded – WaPo

Well of course it was; diversity is what this administration is best known for! Some of this year’s diverse recipients include people from the field of entertainment: Lorne Michaels, Tom Hanks, Robert Redford, Robert DeNiro, Ellen DeGeneres and Cicely Tyson, Bruce Springsteen and Diana Ross; sports: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan and big business: Bill and Melinda Gates. Gay , straight, black, white, male, female, smart and dumb – I think that checks almost all the boxes.

De Niro, Springsteen at 2016 Presidential Medal of Honors ceremony

If this feels like déjà vu it’s because many of these recipients have previously been recipients of the Obama White House prestigious Kennedy Center Honors. We’re diverse butt we’re not THAT diverse.

De Niro, Springsteen at 2009 Kennedy Center Honors ceremony at the White House

And as far as DeNiro is concerned, as you may recall he was not exactly a Donald Trump supporter, saying he was  "blatantly stupid," a "pig" and a "bullshit artist" who he’d like to punch in the face. He’s tempered his position somewhat saying “now he’s president-elect and I just want to see what he’s going to do." I guess that means he won’t be moving to Canada right away.

Anyway, stay tuned, today is official Turkey Pardon day. No, not Bill and Hillary, real turkeys – like Caramel and  Popcorn.

And now - on to the kitchen. Get that turkey thawed. Man the stove comrades! There are pies to bake, sweet potatoes to be topped with marshmallows, giblets to stew, dressing to made! Not to mention Jello molds to be filled and silverware to be polished. It’s shaping up to be a very, very busy day.

I wonder if there will be a document dump to get the holiday weekend off to a good start? Maybe not; maybe this goose is already cooked.

Linked By: iOTWReport, and  Larwyn’s Linx on Doug Ross@Journal, and BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!

Cross-Posted on Patriot Action Network

Public Relations, Out: Journalism, In Again

Trump: he’s definitely not your grandfather’s president.

He does his own YouTube videos rather than calling a press conference with “the dishonest press” and announces his first 100 day agenda - before he’s even inaugurated!

And every item on his to–do list seems designed to further irritate the already depressed non-supportive media.

Then he calls a meet the press soiree - just to yell at them for a change:

The meeting was characterized by the Times as antagonistic, and one in which Trump “described the television networks as dishonest in their reporting and shortsighted in missing the signs of his upset victory.” - NYT

“It was like a f–ing firing squad,” one source said of the encounter.

“Trump started with [CNN chief] Jeff Zucker and said ‘I hate your network, everyone at CNN is a liar and you should be ashamed,’ ” the source said.

“The meeting was a total disaster. The TV execs and anchors went in there thinking they would be discussing the access they would get to the Trump administration, but instead they got a Trump-style dressing down,” the source added – NYPost

Well actually they did discuss the access they would get to the Trump administration, and if they didn’t figure that out they’re probably not going to be getting much access to the Trump administration.

As usual it was the press that blabbed all over the place about the “off the record” meet-up. They can’t keep anything confidential unless it’s damaging to their candidate of choice. Maybe that’s why Trump cancelled his “off the record” meeting with the New York Times today.

Which brings me to this: the Donald Tweets – all by himself without benefit of a 10-person Tweeting Staff! And when he does he tweets things that the press deems “non-presidential.”

Can you believe it!? He disses the venerable New York Times when they diss him. That is so not-presidential!

Except when it’s done by our first historic black president:

“I’ve got one television station that is entirely devoted to attacking my administration…That’s a pretty big megaphone.“It’s a point of view that I think is ultimately destructive for the long-term growth of a country that has a vibrant middle class and is competitive in the world.” Barack Obama 2009

Well something killed the long-term growth of the vibrant middle class and made the U.S. non-competitive, butt I don’t think it was Fox News.

A White House official said in October that  it would treat Fox “the way we would treat an opponent,” singling the network out as being different from other news organizations. “As they are undertaking a war against Barack Obama and the White House, we don’t need to pretend that this is the way that legitimate news organizations behave.” NYT, 2010

 

"The media are a bunch of different medias. Some get on my nerves more than others," the president said during an appearance on "The Daily Show," his last with Jon Stewart as host.

Stewart had asked Obama whether the media was "inflammatory" and "focused on the wrong things."

"What I'm most concerned about is not that it's unfair or too tough on government ... but that it gets distracted to shiny objects and doesn't always focus on the big tough choices and decisions," Obama said. – Barack Obama, 2015

Ah, yes, you can bet that the extra-Constitutional fourth branch of government will be abandoning their public relations jobs for the next 4 years to once again pick up the yoke of “honest” journalism.

Linked By: BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!

Cross-Posted on Patriot Action Network

MAGA: It’s The Bomb!

Out with the old:

In with the new:

And that goes for school lunches too. (topic H/T Blonde Gator)

Out: kale tacos, mystery fish and tofu anything

Lady M’s healthy school lunch choices

In: all American burgers, fries

…and gravy! On everything!

The gravy fountain – better than chocolate!

So as we go about our annual  MOTI Heritage Thanksgiving Recipe Xchange™ please remember to include any recipes you feel would be especially useful for inclusion in The Donald’s new and improved MAGA school lunch program. Only rules: no kale, tofu, chia seeds or any other “superfood” (that’s right, I’m talking about you beets).

So post away; vintage recipes especially encouraged

although new and delicious are also welcome. My contribution falls under the later category and includes an ingredient that has been trendy since it’s discovery: bacon.

Bacon Bombs – from Jamie @ Love Bakes Good Cakes

Ingredients

• 2 cans (7.5 oz. each) refrigerated biscuits
• 4 oz. Mozzarella cheese, cut into 20 cubes
• 8 slices Wright® Brand Bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 4 tbsp. butter, melted
• 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• Pizza sauce, for dipping (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Separate biscuits. Place one cube of cheese in the center of each biscuit. Top with a heaping teaspoon of bacon. Carefully wrap the biscuit dough around the cheese and bacon and seal. Place seam side down about an inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake 10 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown and the cheese is melted.

3. While the biscuits bake, mix the butter, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder together and set aside.

4. Remove the biscuits from the oven and immediately brush with butter mixture. Serve warm with pizza sauce, if desired.

Can be enjoyed for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks.

Okay, get to work. We’ve got to MAGA!

Linked By: Larwyn’s Linx on Doug Ross@Journal, and BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!

Cross-Posted on Patriot Action Network

Time To Regroup: In the Bubble

Racist - /ˈrāsəst/

noun: racist; plural noun: racists

1. a person who believes that a particular race is superior to another.

adjective

1. having or showing the belief that a particular race is superior to another.

Two things: first, to paraphrase a progressive Hillary supporter motif, I can’t believe we still have to discuss this s**t. You know, after the historic first black presidency and all.

Minus the War on Women and Racism, Hillary didn’t really have a platform – yet it was Trump who was accused of not having “positions” on important issues.

Secondly, if you continually misuse words by pretending they mean something other than what they mean eventually those redefined words will come to mean, first, anything and finally, nothing. It’s similar to Crying Wolf:

“When honorable and decent men” like McCain and Romney “are reflexively dubbed racists simply for opposing Democratic policies, the result is a G.O.P. electorate that doesn’t listen to admonitions when the genuine article is in their midst.”

“Today,” he added, “they point and shout ‘racist’ into the void, but Democrats only have themselves to blame for the fact that so many on the right are no longer listening.”

Bannon: racist, sexist, homophobe, anti-semite, Islamophobe. Just like his boss.

The above is from a NYT article referenced in You Are Still Crying Wolf, an article recommended by Scott Adams for anyone who still thinks Trump is a racist, saying if we know people like that we should send them the link, calling it “breathtaking.”

And as you read the article bear in mind that it was written by a decidedly liberal author:

Trump made gains among blacks. He made gains among Latinos. He made gains among Asians. The only major racial group where he didn’t get a gain of greater than 5% was white people. I want to repeat that: the group where Trump’s message resonated least over what we would predict from a generic Republican was the white population.

Nor was there some surge in white turnout. I don’t think we have official numbers yet, but by eyeballing what data we have it looks very much like whites turned out in equal or lesser numbers this year than in 2012, 2008, and so on.

The media responded to all of this freely available data with articles like White Flight From Reality: Inside The Racist Panic That Fueled Donald Trump’s Victory and Make No Mistake: Donald Trump’s Win Represents A Racist “Whitelash”.

It’s actually become so bad that even Saturday Night Live is taking potshots. Seriously, SNL - it might be time for the Left to regroup.

Linked By: Larwyn’s Linx on Doug Ross@Journal, and BlogsLucianneLoves, and Free Republic, Thanks!

Cross-Posted on Patriot Action Network