Voters Feeling Anger and Disenfranchised Not Alert To Reasons Why

The roots of discord

The undercurrent of feeling in the U.S., one of anger and frustration, while justified and to a large extent welcome, does not necessarily funnel change in a positive direction.

In the case of Donald Trump, those individuals feeling disenfranchised do not seem to be alert to the reason for their suffering, and thus tend to support extremes in their rush to vent their anger, i.e., “Anything is better than what we have now.” Donald Trump is too much of a narcissist to carry through on his boastful promises.

Those in his party who are so surprised at how Trump could have come about even now refuse to admit what brought us to this point: the self-serving behavior of the far right, and their abandonment of any pretext of participation in the government they swore to uphold and defend. For the last seven-plus years, their emphasis has been totally focused on returning to power, and they have demonstrated a willingness to let the people suffer if the alternative was to show the opposition in a positive light. For example, since the 

Republicans took over the Senate in 2012, appointments of federal judges have been blocked, even though there is a backlog of cases begging to be resolved. The Scalia replacement situation is but another example.

That things are bad is a given. That an angry mob can make things better is highly doubtful. They would need to be better organized, better able to see the big picture and work to make meaningful changes, such as term limits — remove these permanent campaigners from our government. But so far, all I see are tough guys cheering wildly at either empty platitudes or language that encourages them to feel comfortable in their bigotry.

The anger is justified, but the solution is misdirected.

By: Noel J. Munson

Why would Americans want Donald Trump as our president?

He talks before he thinks. He shows his Tantrumps. He insults people. He incites violence. He belittles women.

Trump chooses his words poorly. He is turning the world against us. He's not thinking about people who invest in things like 401k's, which invest in stocks of companies around the world. We need to bring manufacturing back to America without insulting American companies the way Trump has done. After all, Trump is guilty of doing business in other countries.

He also has been profiling ethnic groups as if they all think the same. You know: all Mexicans are drug dealers and rapists and all Muslims are terrorists. He says Mexico will pay for his wall. Maybe they will but you don't embarrass a neighboring friendly country the way Trump has done in public.

He is also acting like he should be the GOP's choice even if he doesn't reach the magic delegate number to be the nominee at the convention.

Trump may have never learned how to control his feelings or his mouth. He probably has gotten his way all his life. He was born into money and went to private schools. This is not the way the average American grows up.

Trump is a dangerous choice for America.

“It's all about me!” egotism that is Donald Trump.

Scary prospect

I have lived under 13 U.S. presidents, beginning with Franklin Roosevelt. I don't recall any of them, including the candidates who ran unsuccessfully for this most important office, who had the, “It's all about me!” egotism that is Donald Trump.

We have to look to Europe to find a similar egomaniac — who likewise rode a wave of populism to office — to find examples of what type of leadership may result, should his campaign be successful.

By: John V.R. King

America’s populace is very mad at both political parties

Common sense tells me that America’s populace is very mad at both political parties, and tired of political wrangling.

The president cannot build a fence without approval of Congress. No other country will pay for it. No president is able to get much done without the approval of Congress.

You cannot dictate religious thoughts. You cannot dictate political beliefs.

We should be punishing the Americans who hire illegal workers. But we need some migrant laborers. It would be cheapest to control immigration through employers.

There is nothing to gain by separating families.

We should think more about “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” for everyone.

We should not believe everything we hear or read.

What A Political Year For President 2016 Is

A trying season

One thing for sure is that the primary season is way too long. The media circus is exhausting and ridiculous, and some of the candidates have sunk to new lows.

On the Democratic side: Hilary Clinton, as a former senator and secretary of state ,is very capable in domestic and foreign policy, but she is dogged by scandal both real and imagined; Bernie Sanders’ message resonates with voters who have seen their political and purchasing power diminished. He is also a seasoned senator.

On the Republican side we have seen the rise of Donald Trump, a bully who has tapped into the anger and frustration of the average citizen. He has made lofty promises with no plan or policy, and insulted everyone in sight. How this vulgar thrice-married casino owner is appealing to evangelicals boggles the mind.

Bernie Sanders an 86 percent slam-dunk

Who’s the winner?

Political myths can be fun as long as they are not taken too seriously. For example, we all “know” that Al Gore invented the Internet and that Sarah Palin could see Russia from the window of her home. Certainly these creations add some humor and color to our culture. However, there seems to be a myth floating around in this year’s presidential extravaganza that may be misleading voters. The myth: Hillary Clinton is the more “electable” Democratic candidate. You say, how can this be? Would the Clinton campaign really fabricate a myth?

You betcha! When our political scientists cleared a path through the fog of the campaign spin doctors, a more factual picture arose. Poll after poll beginning in October 2015 through March 1 of this year indicated otherwise — it is Bernie Sanders who has the edge against the Republicans in the general election. Here is an example of the head-to-head match-up poll from Quinnipiac University dated Feb. 18: Against Donald Trump, Sanders wins by six points; Clinton by only one.

Three Stooges - Moe (Donald Trump), Larry (Ted Cruz) and Curly-Joe (Marco Rubio)

Cue the stooges

As an aging baby boomer, I have been able to observe the last six decades of bizarre political behavior exhibited by our political leaders. During the Watergate hearings, all Americans were glued to their TVs listening to their president discussing his crimes and cover-ups.

William Jefferson Clinton proved beyond any doubt that having sex with a White House intern was the moral equivalent of not having sex with a White House intern.

Allegedly, President Lyndon Johnson would take his Secret Service contingent for a 100-mph drive through the back roads of the Johnson home territory in Texas. To add insult to injury, the Texan chief executive once peed on the shoes of his Secret Service bodyguard.

The most embarrassing of all acts of executive madness had to be the effort the other night by the three major Republican candidates to duplicate the comedy of the Three Stooges. Moe (Donald Trump), Larry (Ted Cruz) and Curly-Joe (Marco Rubio) put on a display that was masterful in its comic simplicity and humorous stupidity.

Rubio Move Out Of The Way In Florida

No go, Rubio

During his run for U.S. Senate, Marco Rubio covered the state of Florida like a one-man swarm of bees. He met with FairTax supporters on a number of occasions. He promised us his top three priorities were going to be term limits, the balanced budget amendment and passing the FairTax bill. When we confronted the senator after the election as to why he did not co-sponsor H.R. 25, the Fair Tax Act, he gave us a sophomoric excuse that was obviously as deeply thought out as the thickness of our president’s skin.

Trump Not a Role Model for American Children

It's simple why Donald Trump should not be President. He has shown himself to be a racist, bully, anti-feminine, bombastic and very insulting to others. Mr Trump brings out the worst side of people.
He in no way is of presidential stature and should take a few lessons from President Obama on how to be a class act.

Trump would be a worldwide embarrassment as president representing American values. He also is not a good role model for kids. Many schools have been pushing anti-bullying campaigns and Donald Trump acts all the time like a bully and gets away with it. Is this the man you want your children to look up too?

U.S. Barriers Add Hardships To Cuban People

Tear down walls

I just returned from a visit to Cuba. The following impressions come from what I heard from the people.

The barriers that the United States has erected for more than 50 years to bring about regime change have only resulted in hardships for the Cuban people. While they have a realistic fear of the power of the totalitarian Communist Party, they have found ways of getting around some of its restrictions:

n “There are leaks in what they try to block.” The people have also found escape through their art, music, dance, and love of family.

n “Life is larger than what we are taught in school.” The people will survive even if we continue our embargo on goods, our barriers to business activity, and our restrictions on travel. There is little chance that the people will ever rise up to overthrow the government.

n “We will never shed the blood of our beautiful children.” But they continue to be people of hope. There is a hunger for American ways.

Little Trump Bad For America

Trump the worst

Let Donald Trump’s claims speak for themselves:

n He used bravado and tough talk to convince everyone the U.S. Football League was wise to go up against the NFL. The owners listened, and lost. Don’t let this happen to America.

n He bought a fleet of planes and promised to have great success by converting them into luxurious planes. The promises were aplenty. Then Trump Airlines closed shop. Don’t let this happen to America.

n He proclaimed “Trump & tonic: would be widely known, and that Trump Vodka would set the standard for quality. Nope! Don’t let this happen to America.

n Donald and his son said that they know everything about financing. They claimed they would be the leading mortgage company in the country. Eight months later? Trump Mortgage was gone. Don’t let this happen to America.

Republican spectacle has now become a laughingstock to the entire world

After Super Tuesday, it looks as if the fight for the Republican nomination will be reduced to just two or three candidates. Since the spectacle has now become a laughingstock to the entire world, I would suggest a departure from the customary debate format to something more civilized.

In order to elevate the tone of the contest, remaining contenders should be given the choice of either mud wrestling, or competing in the arena with sword and trident. This way at least our potential future president will be spared the stigma of having arrived at the White House by excreting fewer bodily fluids than his opponents, the main talking point of the current debates.

By; Phil Hartley

I am fed up with the lies.

Obama's gains

It seems most days there are letters blasting President Obama and how he has ruined our country. Well, I am fed up with the lies. How has an unemployment rate that is cut in half “ruining America”? How are millions of people on health care for the first time “ruining America”? How about the millions of jobs saved here and around the world by bailing out the auto companies? 

Perhaps “made in America” means nothing to the Obama-bashers. President Obama has made every decision with the best interest of the citizens of this country. Unfortunately, he has been stonewalled by a political party whose agenda is not the country's recovery, but the “recovery” of the White House. Astonishingly, we are a working-class community, yet those who believe Obama has ruined America identify and endorse those whose allegiance is to big, private corporations, their CEOs who are billionaires, and those who are destroying our planet.