Month: November 2018

Being A Crook Can Be Lucrative

For those of you outside the San Diego County area or outside the western area of the state of New York area here is a bit of news.

  • Duncan Hunter Jr. / District 50 in California won his bid for re-election though he is facing federal indictment on campaign fraud. He, at one time, told the media that it wasn’t his fault because his wife handled the finances. Yes, he threw his wife under the bus. His wife is facing indictments also. Hunter is due back in court on December 3. During the campaign an ad came out inferring that his opponent was funded by the Muslim Brotherhood. Of course this was false.
  • Chris Collins / District 27 in New York won his bid for re-election though he has been charged of insider trading. The charges stem from accusations the Collins passed on information about a failed drug trial to his son so the his son could dump the stock and avoid massive losses. Collins was a board member of the Australian pharmaceutical company at the time.

So what does all this mean? Apparently it means the voters in these particular elections don’t care about the morals or ethics of their representatives. In the San Diego district, which is mostly rural and Republican, I can only surmise that the voters feared a candidate with the surname of Campa-Najjar. Being a San Diegan I have pretty good insight into the Hunter regime. Since 1981 Hunter or his father (Duncan Hunter Sr.) have held this seat.

I don’t have a lot of inside(r?) info on Chris Collins. The Republicans say they could not find a replacement candidate quick enough to get on the ballot. They wanted him out and still he won. He suspended his campaign in August only to start up again when the party failed to find a replacement.

For the sake of accuracy both men have pleaded innocent to the charges. But what happens if they are found guilty? Who takes over the seat? We’ll just have to wait and find out.

The Vote Is In…

Congratulations to all the people that did get out and vote. Good job. One of the largest, if not the largest, turnout in midterm history. From my point of view we didn’t get the blue wave that could have been. But we have started the process. From the close (oh so close) loss in Texas to the one in Florida the people came out and started turning the tide. We couldn’t really expect to completely turn the country blue now could we?

Let’s not stop here. We still deserve a seat at the table. All voters do. The voices now must be heard and also now must be listened to. At this time over 100 women have been voted into the house. This in itself is quite an achievement.

It looks like we now have our first Native American woman in Congress (New Mexico’s Deb Haaland). And also our first openly gay governor (Colorado’s Jared Polis). Kudos to our ability to look past differences and elect people who are right for the job. Sometime tomorrow we should have a complete accounting of how the leaders of our country have changed. From the state to federal level we will see a completely new landscape.

The Democrats now have control of the house. Oversight is back is style! But this isn’t about Democrats or Republicans. Tonight it’s about the people. Bringing people together, bringing everyone to the table. Making sure everyone has a chance to make a difference.

Once again, good job America. We have changed the course of our history. Now let’s make sure we continue to grow as citizens of this great country. Unity is now back in vogue! Divisiveness has been kicked to side.

Calm Down Rik

Anyone who has read my “rants” probably has figured out that I write in a stream of conscienceness. I don’t plan out my words. Yes sometimes I think about the subject before I start. But mostly I just get riled up and my fingers start thinking for themselves. Today, however, I have actually given quite a bit of thought to the subject. And l am not pissed off or riled up! Not that I wrote an outline or anything like that. But it is something that has been brewing in my head for a while. Now I just have to let my fingers do the talking.

Most people believe what their tribe believes. The group that surrounds people has to be alike in culture. Thoughts or beliefs that are anti to the tribe can result in feeling alone, left out, ostracized. People want to belong, they want to be part of the tribe. Anyone attempting to correct their beliefs is turned away and considered dangerous to the culture.

Arguing with someone who has strong-held beliefs can be frustrating if you believe they are wrong. The more one feels that their opinions are being discounted the stronger those opinions can become. No one wants to hear that they are wrong. And no one wants to bullied by those who cannot believe themselves to be wrong.

So let’s calm down and have civil arguments, proper debates and social gatherings where we can discuss and debate all sides of beliefs and opinions. Name calling and doomsday predictions will not bring sides to the table. We are a country of differences. That is what makes up our “American Culture”. We have hundreds, if not thousands, or sub-cultures within our borders but we all have common threads.

    We want to be heard
    We want to be believed
    We want to be free
    We want to count

I want to believe what I want to believe. I also want to listen to those who think differently. I need to know that I can be wrong and that I can change my mind when I find out. Others need to listen and know also.

There is nothing that can Make America Great Again more so than the acceptance of our differences and the commitment to understanding in what and why another believes. Politics, social hierarchies, financial class, none of these matter in the end. There will always be conservatives and liberals, upper class and lower class, rich and poor. That is what our country is made of. Muhammed Ali said it best “Different strokes for different folks”. (Truly it was Ali who is considered the first to use this phrase. Not Sly Stone.)

In just a few days we will hold, what is considered to be, one of the most important elections in our history. You all know where I stand. But now I am ready to listen to intelligent arguments. I hope that all of you out there will exercise your right to vote (only once) and that before voting you will search your conscience and make sure you are voting what you really believe and not just what your tribe says is right.

Let’s all calm down a bit.