Random Musing

About climate change.  Lot of talk about that these days.  Some, including His Trumpness, say it's a hoax.  Science says it's the real deal.  I will always side with science.  If you have any science education at all, you can't deny that this planet has gone through many climate changes.  Change is just the nature of the universe.  We can't stop it, but we can plan for and adapt to it, and we have the means to do that.  That's what climate change advocates are trying to make the world understand.  Coastal populations need to prepare for rising sea levels due to warming and polar ice melt.  It's a sad fact that many species will be lost to a drastic change, but that too has happened many times.  Evolution will fill in the gaps, but there will be further loss as nature adapts to the changes.

By the way, here is my view of the world and all.  Humans may consider themselves the dominant life form on this planet, but we are not the most important.  The loss of just a few key species at the lower end of the food chain will impact us tremendously.  Warming seas will deplete krill and plankton which would affect fish and other oceanic species.  On land, coastal flooding would kill off terrestrial plants and animals.  The warmer and higher sea levels will affect the weather.  All these changes will affect our food supply and lifestyles.  We have to plan for this, and come up with solutions.  We can't just sit here and go oh pooh pooh.  (nerd note: that's a Buffy reference)

About Ancient Aliens.  Yeah, I'm going there again.  Not about aliens, but about ancient civilizations.  I've said before that I'm not necessarily buying the Ancient Alien Theory (AAT), but that something very important was going on in pre-history.  I began to think about what would survive if our current civilizations collapsed.  We're in the digital age now.  Would any of this survive the test of time?  Nope.  Paper certainly wouldn't, unless it could be preserved as some ancient scrolls were in perfectly arid conditions.  Iron and steel?  It would be iffy, I think.  Eventually most metals succumb to corrosion and erosion.  What would stand the test of time?  The same thing that survived ancient times...stone and gold.  What if there were civilizations in our distant past that arose to the technological level we are at now, and then collapsed (oooh, climate change?), and then we had to claw our way back to where we are now.   All our previous knowledge was lost to time, and had to be relearned.  All we had was whatever survived the collapse, and maybe that was whatever had been written in stone.  I think we need to preserve our knowledge in true hard copy....stone and gold.

About funerals.  Hey, I said this was going to be random stuff.  Humans desperate need to enter an imagined afterlife has created the most environmentally irresponsible funeral practices.  We destroy acres of valuable habitat or potential farm land to accommodate non-biodegradable containers to preserve (often chemically) a carcass that should be feeding the earth as nature intended.  Not to the mention the waste of water, oil, and gas that large expanses of cemetery turf grass creates.  Cremation is the best choice, in my opinion, and many ancient civilizations agreed.  I read a story once (Sci-Fi) that had such an elegant and responsible solution.  A body was buried upright in a vertical hole, and a tree was planted over it to honor the dead, and give back to the environment.  How beautiful and reverent of the nature of life and death.  I've read that there are organizations that can make something similar to this happen.  I'd much rather my remains feed a tree than serve no purpose at all.  Even cremation ashes give more back to the earth than a casket burial.  But religion is responsible for this gross irresponsibility and waste, and until we let go of that, we will continue to rape the earth for our superstitious beliefs.

tnt

Long time no write...again.

I've actually written several times (often drunk blogging), and in the light of sober day, didn't upload.

Not drunk blogging now, but I've got things to say.  I don't want to bother my social media friends with my opinion in their feeds.  Here, I can say it all at once and they can read it or not.  So here I go.

The election is getting close, and it's very scary.  For everybody.  Republicans can't in good conscience support their party's candidate, but they're stuck with him.  Democrats are only half-heartedly supporting theirs.  America will be screwed either way. 

There are a couple more candidates that are basically just side shows.  If only Bernie Sanders could have come back as an independent.  I believe he was the only popular choice that was a truly honest man who cared about this country.  Only he could take on the 2 options we are now stuck with, and I think he could set a precedent for an Independent President.  Imagine that for a minute.  ANYONE could become President, not just those with the money and power.  Our founding fathers wanted it that way, but big money made sure that can't happen.

I'll start with Hillary Clinton.  The lesser of the 2 evils.  I'm not sure why so many voters despise her.  Because she's a woman?  A career politician?  Not Bernie Sanders?  Married to an ex-President who was impeached because he lied about an extra-marital affair?  Something millions of people do every day.  This country is in desperate need of an experienced leader.  She already knows the inner workings of the government.  She understands foreign policy.  She understands foreign and domestic economics.  I think she is fully capable of running point for the security of this nation, and the well-being of its citizens.  We can't afford a President who has to learn it all on the fly, and isn't smart enough to grasp it.

I get that many Americans don't trust her.  Her opponents have spent a lot of their considerable campaign funds making sure of that.  Do they have valid points?  I don't know, but she has been exonerated of all of the charges, and apologized for any blunders.  It's interesting that no one is calling for Trump to release his emails.  What a read that would be!

I'm so tired of Republicans and the wealthy NRA going on about how Clinton will take away their guns.  Nobody is going to take away your fucking guns!  If you have the legal right to own and carry one, you can.  All we want is more oversight into who can.  The recently shot down proposed controls were perfectly reasonable and not infringing on anyone's right to a gun.  Granted, criminals will still get illegal guns, but common sense measures will make it harder for bad guys to get one legally.  That's all we ask.  How many more people, especially children, have to die for you to get that?  Republicans are so protective of the 2nd Amendment, but seem to be willing to ignore or even destroy the 1st.  The very one this country was founded on.  I want a President who respects and upholds the entire Constitution, not just the part they care about.

And now Donald Trump.  Oh boy.  I won't rehash all the things he has said and done.  Murica.  This derogatory term has been coined to refer to the kind of people who admire someone like Trump.  Muricans are the ones that will take hits in the nuts for internet fame.  The ones that will physically attack protesters at a rally.  The ones who are bigots.  The ones who think a man who demeans non-whites, women, and anyone who disagrees with him is the best thing for this country.  Murica is why Trump made it this far.  Not America.

It's not like R-voters didn't have viable options.  They had a goddamn herd of them!  I'm really glad Ted Cruz isn't what they ended up with, but I wouldn't have had an objection to most of them.  Hell, what was wrong with the last one standing...John Kasich?  Seemed like an honest, intelligent, dignified and sane guy.  He could have pulled the party out of the gutter, and probably even win.   But, nooo, Murica has spoken.

I can't think of a single reason Trump should be President.  He has the temperament, emotional maturity, and vocabulary of a 12 year old.  He and his Trumpers say it's because he's a businessman and not a politician.  It's very clear he's not a politician.  But you know what, the President needs to be a politician to deal with the rest of the world.  Businessman, yes, but a good one?  Not so much.  Sure he has lots of money and a vast business empire, but his business failings are equal to or more than his successes, and very likely kind of shady.  The recent reports that he may not be paying taxes due to a massive loss 18 years ago (also very possible that loss was shady) is a slap in the face of every struggling hard working American.  If he has nothing to hide, why won't he release his tax returns?  Any economic plan he has will benefit him and his rich cronies, not America.  You say you don't trust Clinton?  How the hell can you trust Trump?

One of his other platforms is immigration reform.  This from a man who's on his 3rd trophy wife, 2 of whom where immigrants, and there's reason to doubt the current one was a legal immigrant.  Oh yeah, and she has a thick foreign accent that sounds rather Russian.  I know she's not Russian, just saying.  Trump does seem to be enamored with Russia.  The First Lady has a role to play, and we want to respect and admire her.  I'm having a hard time imagining just what role this one would serve, and how we could respect presidential arm candy.

Trump's battle cry is "Make America great again", but what he really wants is to make Trump great again.  He seems to think he can just go in and throw his weight around to meet his campaign promises.  Maybe he thinks he'll be king.  He doesn't have a clue.

There's a theory, and I believe it, that Trump never really wanted to be President.  He just wanted to run, prove he could win, and then ride out the rest of his life and business dealings on that "success".  A publicity stunt and ego boost.  I and I think most intelligent and responsible Americans are terrified he'll win, and be the President mostly likely to be impeached.  Which means we'd end up with Pence who would shred the Constitution if given a chance, not to mention the turmoil an impeachment would create.  Make American great again?  No, set it back 200 years.  Either way,  Trump or Pence, we lose.

I said in the beginning of this post that we will be screwed no matter what happens in November.  Even though I hope (I'd pray if I prayed) Trump doesn't win, and I believe Clinton is the only sane choice, we'll still be fucked if she wins.  Why?  Because Republicans will fight her tooth and nail for the next 4 years, and we the people will bear the pain of those Republican tantrums.  Republicans, you let this despicable man hijack your party and election.  Accept your fumble, and make our government work for the people for a change.

tnt