In Defense and In Support of the Angels of Mercy Among Us

Let me set it up for you in this way from Rare. ...

"This past Sunday night, Miss America contestant and reigning Miss Colorado, Kelley Johnson went against the norm and performed an original monologue about her career in nursing. She told a story about an Alzheimer’s patient, Joe, who reminded her of why she chose to become a nurse. She told him she was “just a nurse” and had no control over his medications but he changed her outlook when he said she was more than just a nurse, she was his nurse and had completely changed his life because of her kindness and care during his treatment.

Cue the ladies of “The View.” On Monday, Michelle Collins mocked Miss Colorado saying, “she came in in a nurse’s uniform and basically read her emails out loud. And shockingly, she did not win.”

As if that wasn’t enough, Joy Behar added “why does she have the doctor’s stethoscope around her neck?”

"Nurse Hilary Helkenn took to Facebook on Monday to respond. She is an ER nurse with more than 20 years experience in Sacramento, CA and she wears her own stethoscope every day.

"See my stethoscope? It is a NURSE stethoscope too. I use it to listen to a child’s lungs, so I can quickly get them to the appropriate level of care, reassuring both child and parent. I also use it to listen to our elderly loved ones, who sometimes have aging hearts that go into abnormal rhythms. It is the NURSE that usually sees the patient first, and it is often the NURSE that notifies the doctor of what is going on."

So, NOW that the Dumb@$$÷$ of that piece of liberal garbage called "The View" and the equally dumb cackles who sat in the audience laughed uproariously at the rudest and dumbest @$$÷$ ever to appear on television, namely Michelle Collins and Joy Behar, $#!+ all over themselves,  NOW want to walk it back.

Guess again, you dumb $#!+$. You can't. You said it for the effect of insulting one person, but you insulted an entire occupation. And their families.

I know I am but one voice, but I have many family members and friends who work in a profession none of the rest of us, or you Joy Behar, have the guts to even try. To me, these women and men, from the orderlies to the CNA'S right up to the Nursing Supervisors and Nurse Practitioners are all Angels of Mercy.

I can tell you as one who has spent more than a few minutes with nurses over the last five years or so, with all my issues, these people are so under-appreciated by so many people, it is so sad to watch. Most are assigned twelve-hour days for three days each week, but I have witnessed where many spend three hours or more, AFTER THEIR SHIFTS ARE DONE, to complete the paperwork needed for the records and because of overwhelming regulations, AND NOT GET PAID FOR THAT TIME.

I asked my family and friends if this were the usual practice and to a person, the answer was a resounding YES.

I hope to God (yes I said His name, you idiot censors) Collins and Behar and the rest of the idiots on that show never have need of a nurse. Or need to spend time in a hospital to visit loved ones who need a nurse's help.

Your walk-back was insufficient for the grave insults you cast upon these dedicated professionals. You are thoughtless and quite frankly, mean-spirited and hateful.

Next time you are quick to be funny, remember this: better to keep your big fat trap shut and let us think you are stupid, than open it and remove all doubt.

Remember the Titans - Revisited

There was a movie released in 2000 starring Will Patton and the great Denzel Washington, which told a true story about how a high school in Alexandria, VA and its football team dealt with integration in 1971. It is truly one of my favorite movies.

The movie? Remember the Titans.

Coach Herman Boone (Washington) took over the team in 1971, during the peak of the desegregation movement of the schools throughout the South. It was a raucous, and sometimes violent, time in American History.  The coach faced resistance from the man he replaced, Coach Bill Yoast (Patton) and the many parents who still believed in the Jim Crow practice of "separate, but equal". Which it never was.

Coach Boone, as his first public act, made the decision to empty the buses headed for football camp because both the black players and white players loaded up by race. Instead, once the buses were empty, he had them reload by offensive players and defensive players. This was an anathema to the parents who remained to send off their boys.

There were other instances which occurred at camp and Coach Boone used great forethought to get the teammates to learn to get along, not as white players and black players, but as players who called themselves the Titans.

I realize this is a movie and cinematic license is taken to make a true story "truer and better" than the real story.

My point is this: this movie tells the story of a real time and place, and events which truly happened, not only in Alexandria, but in other parts of the South and the rest of the country. It is a historical fact that there was segregation in this country and it was evil. We talk negatively about apartheid in South Africa, but we were no better.

Some people, including me, believed in the message Dr King taught our country right up until he died. I still believe in his message. It is not about the color of our skin, but instead, it is about the content of our character. It is not a black issue or white issue. It is a people issue.

Let's bring it down to the basics. I am no better or different than say, Al Sharpton, except that his character is flawed by the measure of all decent people. Why can I say this?

I can say it because I look at the soul of my white neighbor, my black neighbor, my Hispanic neighbor and my Asian neighbor, and I see decent people who treat me with the same respect and decency as I treat them. I don't judge people by their skin color, or race, or heredity. I judge their character, not only towards me, but also towards others.

Sharpton, Louis Farrakkhan, and David Duke all judge by the surface they see, the skin color, and not the character of the person they are looking at. These men are pure, hateful racists, who cannot see beyond their hate. Just like Hitler couldn't.

I did not know of Coach Boone before 2000. But I can tell you that I know of him and Coach Yoast now. These men exemplify how we all need to learn to adapt, find the way to look past the surface of the person standing next to us. We are not white Americans or black Americans. We are Americans. That's all. No hyphen. No delineation. No adjective. Just Americans. And we need a Coach Boone and a Coach Yoast, or a Dr King, to remind us of that.

I will never forget the lesson of Dr King or of this movie, and instead, I will always Remember the Titans.

The Benefits of a Filibuster

I had a great opportunity to interview Derek Garnier, one of the founders, partners and designers of a terrific App called, appropriately, "Filibuster". It is a political App which allows the user to comment on political issues and discussions of the day, anonymously, without fear of reprisal from employers or others.

This is an important point because unlike Facebook or Twitter, the user can use an alias to participate in the discussion.

Here is an interesting statistical fact, which can be verified via Pew Research: "26% of Facebook users have hidden, defriended, blocked or unfollowed someone because they disagreed with a political post." (Pew Research study, October, 2014) In addition, there have been countless reports of people being fired from their jobs because their political posts were deemed to be "insensitive", "inflammatory", or "offensive".

Those of you who Follow me on Twitter or are Friends with me on Facebook know I am a man of many opinions. I know I get under the skin of many who do not agree with some of my viewpoints. And of course, as a retired banker, this App would be a mainstay for me if I were still working. Be assured, though, I will be utilizing this App, because it has so many other great features.

This App, when you provide your geographic location, will find your Representative, Assemblyman, State or Federal Senator, Governor, Mayor and even the President, so you can communicate directly with them. Or, if you prefer, you can include other politicians with whom you think are interesting or want to contact.

Your message can be shared globally with others who follow the same person or you can keep your opinion on a more private, one to one, level. You can obtain and opine on news stories which interest you.

You can rate those news stories, and with a click of a button, send the comments and cumulative ratings of all users to politicians of your choice, presumably those involved with a story or issue. You will also be able to participate in polls, quizzes and contests. Serious debate will be the norm, but much needed comic relief will be welcomed.

“Filibuster” is scheduled to be released on September 14 via Google Play and the App Store. The good news is that the App will be available for free. Always.

If you want to view the actual website, please visit http://getfilibuster.com. There, you can make contact, see the latest press releases and so much more. You can also "Like" Filibuster on Facebook at GetFilibuster.

I am looking forward to "Filibuster" and I hope I have convinced you to join me on this great App. Happy politicking and great debates are in our future.

Starting in just a few days, we can all Filibuster. No cloture required.

Liberty and Justice For All - Even When We Disagree

Let me first say that I am in favor of gay and lesbian marriage. I have written on this extensively and I have tried to define the differences between Civil Union, Marriage and Matrimony, which I first wrote about on March 27, 2013 as a response to a question by one of my Twitter followers.

At the end of the commentary, I agreed that same sex couples should be able to marry and enjoy all the benefits, legal, emotional and psychological, associated with marriage. And who are we to say they shouldn't?

This past June, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in favor of gay and lesbian marriage as a civil right which previously was denied.

However, I want to say this to my gay and lesbian friends: This does NOT give you the right to dictate to those who, on religious principles, oppose your agenda and beliefs. You DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT to take away someone else's civil rights.

This was NOT a ruling which allows you to BULLY those who are opposed to same sex marriage on religious principles. How soon you forgot how you did not like to be bullied.

I am not a very religious man. I have chosen, as is my right, to disavow organized religion and instead embrace a more philosophical and spiritual belief system, which encompasses many theological and secular bases.

But my first belief is in the Constitution of the United States. To me, this document is the Sacred Document. This encompasses our Basic Law that all Americans must abide. Included in this Document is our Bill of Rights, the original Ten Amendments, which further protects our Freedoms and our Liberties.

The First of the Amendments outlines and guarantees to each of us five freedoms which cannot be taken away under any circumstances, either by our government,

and its state and local subsidiaries, or by each other. These are our Freedom of Speech, Freedom OF Religion, Freedom of the Press, Freedom of Assembly and Freedom to Petition the Government to Redress Our Grievances.

Using the fifth freedom I cited, supporters of gay and lesbian marriage were successful in achieving a change in the laws of all the States, due to the discriminatory practice of prohibiting marriage between people of the same sex. I applaud your achievement.

But, this does NOT give you the right to bully those who disagree with you and force them to give up the second of the freedoms I cited, to wit, the Freedom OF Religion. If one chooses to be free FROM religion, that is a choice he or she makes outside the guarantee expressed in the Constitution. NO ONE, and no government entity, be it an agency, court, state legislature, etc, has the right to take away or force someone else to betray his or her religious freedom and liberty.

There are many people who can perform a same sex ceremony, bake a cake for a same sex couple, put together a flower arrangement for a same sex wedding, without forcing someone who feels it is a violation of their civil rights, as you felt the denial of marriage was a violation of yours. And any entity of ANY local, State or Federal agency, court or government is acting unconstitutionally when they rule against or imprison someone for standing up for his or her Civil Rights.

How dare you, State of Kentucky, put someone in prison because she stood up for her rights under our Sacred Document!! I am sure someone else in the entire county and state would be willing to issue marriage licenses for gay and lesbian marriages. How dare you make a statement by denying this one employee her rights!

I trust any fair-minded person will agree that imprisoning Kim Davis was wrong morally and ultimately unconstitutional. We need to flood the Supreme Court of the United States with letters to vacate the order to imprison Ms Davis and to remove her arrest from her record.

This is the American way. Liberty and Justice for All. Even if their individual beliefs are diametrically opposed to ours. They are still entitled to their Freedom and Liberty.

Our soldiers died to defend and preserve these concepts for all of us. Let us not forget this.

Labor Day, 2015

Labor Day signals the end of summer, even though there are about two or three weeks left, much like Memorial Day signals the advent of the season of HOT. Actually, while the Autumnal Equinox occurs on September 23, as of September 1, we already began Meteorological Autumn.

In addition, Labor Day heralds the start of a new school year, snow blowers on display at Home Depot and Halloween candy for sale just about everywhere. In fact, I saw candy on sale in a local grocery store on August 10th.

But Labor Day is also a solemn day where we recognize the achievements and tribulations of the American worker.

From the Department of Labor website:

"Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.”

LABOR DAY LEGISLATION

“Through the years the nation gave increasing emphasis to Labor Day. The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. From these, a movement developed to secure state legislation. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on February 21, 1887. During the year four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York — created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories."

Sadly, it seems we have forgotten the meaning of this day and instead, both union and non-union workers are expected to work in various retail, bank and other establishments. In most cases, they may be compensated with overtime or comparable time owed. But, in the end, this action truly does not recognize the American worker for his accomplishments.

I wish all of you a great holiday weekend, as you enjoy your days at the beach, or a park or in your backyard grilling up burgers and other summer delicacies. But at some point over the weekend, remember your fellow Americans for the work they do to serve all of us and our needs.

And let me say, I thank you, my fellow Americans, as you work hard in your fields to make our economy strong again and provide the goods and services all of us take for granted.

Police Lives Matter - No Matter Their Race

Yesterday, another police officer was shot and killed, this time in Chicagoland, the home city of the President of the United States. And where was he? Nowhere to be found once again.

He was so quick to the microphones to condemn the killer of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and Eric Garner and in the end, each alleged killer was found to be innocent of any wrong-doing. Quick to judge in those cases.

There seems to be a war on the police in this country and that is not good. No, it is not good at all. And when the President of the United States, whose primary responsibility is to make certain the laws are upheld, does not show support for law enforcement officers and says nothing when they are executed, that is an outrage.

His silence in the recent weeks when so many police officers have been executed in cold blood, seems to give tacit approval to those individuals who feel it is quite appropriate for their callous behavior since President Obama finds nothing wrong in it.

Of course he doesn't. To this writer and many of my friends, both black and white, Obama himself is a criminal on so many levels. He no longer has a sense of law and order for the citizens of our country and support for our police.

Perhaps it really is time to remove Obama from our most cherished office via impeachment. John Boehner, another schlub who has no idea what his responsibility is, needs to instruct the House Judiciary Committee to bring forth Articles of Impeachment against this Un-American impostor for his High Crimes and Misdemeanors against the Constitution of the United States and its people. If he doesn't, then it is up to the House Membership to call for Boehner's removal and elect a Speaker who understands his role under the Constitution.

Our police are targets because racists and criminals of this country have no respect left for the police. They are easy targets because there is no repercussions for the dastardly acts of these hateful bastards. And why is that? They know Obama will not call for their prosecution and instead, blame police in general for the wrong acts of a few. And this gives rise to more police officers to be shot and killed in cold blood.

Obama, in my view, is the biggest racist of all because he has allowed these actions to go unfettered. Hey, @$$hole. If Black Lives Matter, why is it ok to gun down BLACK police officers? Isn't that contrary to your dumb@$$ racist war-cry? I guess not, because they wear the same blue uniform as white, Latino and Asian officers.

How many more police officers must die before the criminals are finally stopped? When will the sonofabitch who lives in the People's House be removed from it because of his blatantly evil actions?

I get it. He hates cops. Too bad he no longer can hide it. His actions are speaking far louder than any empty words ever will again from his lips.

God save our Police. God save our country from any more harm from this criminal.

Trump/Cruz - A Win For the Constitution

This has been the Summer of Trump, which began really in June with his announcement to run for President as a Republican, and has continued unabated right up to today. He has been a focal lightening rod this year, as Sarah Palin was in 2008 and continues to be today.

Donald Trump is patriotic and cares for his family, as well. But he is blunt, direct and doesn’t care what we think of him.

The media was ready to crown Jeb Bush as the Republican nominee, much as they were ready to anoint Hillary Clinton. But then, The Donald decided he wasn't ready to sit by and let either event happen without throwing in his two cents (or billions of dollars) into the mix.

Donald Trump has shown that he doesn't care a wit about political correctness and is able to stand up to all comers who wish to try and shoot him down.

Most recently, he had Jorge Ramos thrown out of a press conference because this alleged reporter from Univision tried to take over Trump's spotlight. I guess that didn't work out too well for Senor Ramos. He was shown the door and when he was finally allowed back in, he came in with his tail between his legs, certainly reprimanded and contrite.

The next day, of course, he tried to spin a different story on the morning shows, with the various hosts sympathetic to his claims of abuse, but Americans and Latinos knew that he was full of $#!+. Donald put him firmly in his place, and he has, in spite of his own self-aggrandizement, become a gnat on the butt of the bull.

The other Republican candidates, except for Ted Cruz and Ben Carson, have become also-rans for the Republican nomination. And both these men, and Carly Fiorina,  have been smart and savvy enough to say nice things about Trump while the other fools are stepping all over themselves to make idiotic remarks about The Donald.

Back in May, I wrote a commentary called West/Fiorina - The Whys and Wherefores, where I discussed my reasons for a West/Fiorina ticket. Allen West has made it clear he does not want the job, and Carly, while having surpassed several other candidates, is not as strong as I thought she would have become.

Donald Trump, a man with a lot of nerve has hit a few in those people in both parties, both for and against him. I believe there are many more who are for much, if not all, of what he speaks to. He is NOT the racist or misogynist the liberal, Obama-@$$kissing media is trying their damnedest to portray him. And the majority of Americans, in spite of the LSM spin, get it.

Ted Cruz and Donald Trump will be making a joint appearance, tentatively scheduled for September 9 in DC, to hold a rally against the Iran deal. I think this will be the Republican ticket and they both know it.

I have much faith in a Trump/Cruz administration, which will restore sanity to our government. Trump is a leader and a smart CEO. Cruz is a real Constitutionalist. Together, they are the best and brightest out there.

We need both people now.