Category Archives: Lifes Lessons

Lifes Lessons, Lifestyle, Philosophy

Governments and Gambling

So it used to be the case that gambling was considered sinful , aberrant, immoral, and an affront to family values. It was something done by the low lifes (degenerates) of society with an addiction. However; in the context of today’s new world order – for one – you can’t make a reference to a “low life” because you would be condemned via political correctness as being prejudicial in one way shape or form or simply insensitive to  another’s presumed plight as opposed to their self inflicted harmful behaviour. Secondly, in Alberta and in other jurisdictions in North America…resource royalty revenues have fallen so low that the gambling stream of revenue is now considered essential for sustaining exorbitant social programs and government budgets. Hence; it’s more culturally accepted than ever that we don’t condemn the gamblers for their devious ways in the context of keeping society afloat. Nowadays, what you’ll find in casinos are flowery programs for the addicted installed through regulation in order to soothe the cognitive impairment of the addicted. Governments apparently need them so we might as well placate them with niceties.

The question goes begging “who are we as a people if we must rely on people’s weak character exhibited through gambling in order to sustain government finances”? I suggest that it didn’t have to be this way if governments weren’t so weak with their fiscal discipline over decades. When one looks at the behaviour of governments over decades in absolute terms pertaining to the handling of your taxes….it didn’t have to be this way.  Alberta’s online gambling site was apparently just launched yesterday.       

Lifes Lessons, Philosophy, Politics

The Wake Up Call

Bob Woodward exclaimed to MSNBC on Thursday before revelations from the NY Times regarding Trump’s tax returns, “I don’t know Where (when) the wake-up call comes to the country” in response to Trump’s notion of not committing to a peaceful transfer of power.

It’s quite astonishing but as Woodward insinuates through his words, this pitiful man, Donald Trump, could still in fact be awarded the White House via the electorate despite his contemptuous, deceitful, patronizing, and immoral behaviour. I’m aghast and have refrained from writing on the Trump indiscretions as they regularly occur just because it’s become so banal and disheartening.

Among the latest news, we have the New York Times representing “years of tax avoidance” when characterizing Trump’s tax returns. It’s hard to imagine a man who flaunts such wealth as one who wouldn’t be left with some net income to pay tax but this is what’s been revealed by the Times.

At this point, the only nugget of conscionable defence one could muster in casting a vote for Trump would be the “either/ or” argument that the opposing political ideology is so unpalatable that Trump’s behaviour as characterized is tolerable in context.

If the United States of America returns this man to power in spite of everything they’ve learned about him through his words, his manner, his questionable relationships with Russians, his treatment of decorated military officers, his revolving door of staffers, his midnight tweets, his mocking of the disabled, his withholding of aid to Ukraine in exchange for political dirt, his payoffs of women, his bungling of COVID-19 while lying about it, his disrespectful reference to war captured veterans (McCain), his associations with the criminally indicted….all within the backdrop of a national debt advancing, race relations abysmal, and a quality of life in decline then the plight of man in the first world is deserving of whatever fate comes hither.      

Lifes Lessons

Smart Yet Wrong

Throughout social media we’ve had these colourful dialogue boxes espousing COVID-19 denial. The President of the United States with his manhood expressed so succinctly to Marco Rubio during the GOP nomination process wouldn’t be seen wearing a mask in contrast to the official recommendation of government officials’ position on them being an effective tool. Then there was this reference to “mind control”. Oh ya. The mask would be seen by some self esteem lacking individuals as a symbol of repression during a pandemic. Try squaring that logic.

Now we have these Republican governors out of Texas and Florida back tracking on their perverted sense of referencing civil liberties in the context of extinguishing a virus. Now in the face of overbearing case statistics, these chest beating Trump bimbos have needed to reverse course on their misplaced usage of libertarian ideology and actually implement recommended protocols. It’s really something to behold how political hay is being made out of a pandemic. The radical right needed even a pandemic to push its agenda of civil liberties.

Unless people return to an era of common sense and objectivity in tackling problems in real time proactively instead of reactively consequentially, I’m afraid that the quality of life for masses of people is going to continue to decline. Yes, I said “continue” because 2020 has materially impacted life quality negatively and either politicians learn from errors or continue to drive unproductive narratives based on ego rather than logic.      

Lifes Lessons, Politics

Globe Reporting Of Flynn’s Exoneration

In spite of the bit being brief, it was balance reporting. The Globe however neglects to mention that Michael Flynn was in the business of deploying his experience and contacts and an ex-military officer to consult / lobby foreign diplomats. Trump hired him during Trump’s campaign for the White House. What did Trump want from this man when he was campaigning for President? Kind of nice to know the context from which he confessed to lying to the American people. Of course, while this investigation of election meddling was going on, you had not only Flynn on the radar of investigators but Paul Mannafort, Roger Stone, Rick Gates, and Michael Cohen – all indicted. Here you have Trump claiming some kind of witch hunt when this was the company he was keeping.

The matter of deliberation specific to the lie as described by the Globe and Mail was in my opinion unrelated to the investigation of election meddling but must also be put in the context of Flynn pleading the fifth prior to a deal being struck for his cooperation. 

I suspect that Mr. Flynn was leveraging his experience as a decorated military man and didn’t quite know the character of the man who had retained him during a presidential campaign.  Flynn wasn’t doing himself any favours by apparently flirting with Russian women while on assignment and he apparently was administratively deficient in filing paper work associated with receiving pay from foreigners.    

Lifes Lessons

COVID BUNGLING

  1. Let ‘em fly. Maybe you shouldn’t have.
  2. Forget the masks. Oh. I guess we should be wearing them.
  3. Don’t let the cruise ships port. Oh. I guess we compromised their civil liberties.
  4. Marginally pay those long term care workers. Oh. I guess some of those exorbitant doctors salaries should have been budgeted there.
  5. Speak in monotones. Oh. A little passion for corrective measure would have helped.
  6. Ignore the problem and blame oversight on impeachment distraction. Head shaker.
  7. Forget the inventory of PPE. We have doctors to pay.
  8. Implement regulation and then fail to enforce. How many tickets have been issued?
  9. Cell phones as tracking devices. Who pays those cell phone bills?
  10. Codify financial lingo to disguise the effect. I.E. “purchase bonds” vs “print money”.