The Freedom to Spread Lies?

Next people will want the Freedom to yell "FIRE!!!" in a crowded venue... :-(

Oh well, I guess our society will get what it deserves...

FL Violates Disney's 1st Amendment

Freedom of Speech Rights.

"Florida’s best defense is to pretend they are punishing Disney for legitimate reasons

While existing law is crystal clear that the government may not sanction someone because it disagrees with their political views, First Amendment retaliation cases are often difficult to win because the plaintiff must prove that they were targeted because of their speech. As the Court explained in Hartman, such a plaintiff “must show a causal connection between a defendant’s retaliatory animus and subsequent injury in any sort of retaliation action.”

But in this case, the evidence that Florida targeted Disney because of its protected speech is overwhelming. DeSantis called upon Florida lawmakers to consider “termination” of Reedy Creek on Tuesday. On Wednesday, he sent a fundraising email to supporters where he denounced Disney for being “woke” and for criticizing him personally.

The email was explicit that DeSantis wants to punish Disney for its political views and because the governor believes that Disney is too close to the opposition party. “Disney and other woke corporations won’t get away with peddling their unchecked pressure campaigns any longer,” DeSantis said in his email. “If we want to keep the Democrat machine and their corporate lapdogs accountable, we have to stand together now.”

National Review Coverage

I really would like it if Mickey Mouse sue DeSantis and FL for violating his rights.  And I wonder what GOPers would say if a Liberal state did something similar? :-O

College Debt Crisis Solved !!!

Makes sense to me, not sure why tax payers should help people pay off their bad investment.

Remember that a good investment is when you spend money, take out a loan, invest years of your life and what you learn / can do is of enough value to an organization, people or society that you can afford to pay back your investment and hopefully make enough to live a better life.

Now if you chose to take out loans to learn something that is not valued enough and pays so poorly that you do not earn enough to pay them back.  It sounds like you made a VERY POOR INVESTMENT.

I think the DEMs had better make the changes they want quickly, because my guess is that they are going to be crushed in November at the polls.  I mean not even moderates will support bailing out liberal arts majors and making it easier for foreigners to cross the border. :-O

What About ME !!!

 Says the modern selfish American ... :-(

The Current State of America

 National Debt Out of Control, Social Security / Medicare Trust Funds Heading to $0 Balance, Climate Warming While Populations and Fossil Fuel Reliance Grows, etc.  And us Americans keep denying, blaming, distracting, etc.  Oh well our kids will get what us adults deserve, :-(

Work or Invest?

I was curious if people who inherited a business back in the 1980's would have been better off selling it and investing the money in the S&P... Based on this I assume there are many that may have been...  

Another use would be to help folks understand why people with no family wealth have a hard time keeping up.

Conservative Propaganda 101

Distributed via Email.  A fairly Far Right individual sent this to me thinking it was amusing.  Though of course I took it very differently than it was intended.  What amazes me after studying it some is how they mix a little truth, with some lies, false equivalencies, total irrational comparisons and confused causalities.  The scary thing is that they seem to think this makes sense or is funny. 😱 

I do agree with the words in blue though, I mean how did we come to a point where normal rational citizens are passing this along via email?

If you agree with any of these statements, please explain your rationale.  I would be happy to discuss them in great detail.

______________________________________________

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Critical things to think about in 2022

I never dreamed that I would have to face the prospect of not living in the United States of America, at least not the one I have known all my life.  I have never wished to live anywhere else.  This is my home and I was privileged to be born here.

But today I woke up and as I had my morning coffee, I realized that everything is changing for the worse.  No matter how I vote, no matter what I say, no matter how much I pray, something evil has invaded our nation, and our lives are never going to be the same. 

I have been confused by the hostility of family and friends.  I look at people I have known all my life--so hate-filled that they agree with opinions they would never express as their own.  I think that I may well have entered the Twilight Zone.  We have become a nation that has lost its collective mind!

You can't justify this insanity: 

1. If a guy pretends to be a woman, you are required to pretend with him. (Compliance required by the Government)
2. Somehow it’s un-American for the census to count how many Americans are in America. 
3. Russians influencing our elections are bad, but illegals voting in our elections are good.
4. It was cool for Joe Biden to "blackmail" the President of Ukraine.
5. Twenty is too young to drink a beer, but eighteen is old enough to vote.
6. People who have never owned slaves should pay slavery reparations to people who have never been slaves.
7. People who have never been to college should pay the debts of college students who took out huge loans for their degrees.
8. Immigrants with tuberculosis and polio are welcome, but you’d better be able to prove your dog is vaccinated.
9. Irish doctors and German engineers who want to immigrate to the US must go through a rigorous vetting process, but any illiterate gang member or terrorist who jumps the southern fence is welcome.
10. $5 billion for border security is too expensive, but $1.5 trillion for “free” health care is not.
11. If you cheat to get into college you go to prison, but if you cheat to get into the country you go to college for free.
12. If you cheat in an election nothing happens to you, but if you point out the mathematical errors of that election you are a conspiracy theorist & disdained.
13. People who say there is no such thing as gender are demanding a female President.
14. We see other countries going Socialist and collapsing, but it seems like a great plan for us.
15. Some people are held responsible for things that happened before they were born, and other people are not held responsible for what they are doing right now.
16. Criminals are caught-and-released to hurt more people, but stopping them is bad because it's a violation of their rights.
17. And pointing out all this hypocrisy somehow makes us "racists"?!
18. Nothing makes sense anymore - no values, no morals, and no civility.
19. People are dying of a Chinese virus, but it's racist to refer to it as Chinese even though it began in China.

We are clearly living in an upside-down world where right is wrong and wrong is right, where moral is immoral and immoral is moral, where good is evil and evil is good, where killing murderers is wrong but killing unborn babies is okay!

Wake up America, the great unsinkable ship Titanic America has hit an iceberg, it's taking on water, and is sinking fast. We Americans are drowning.  Speak up while you still have breath and a voice for soon you will have neither if you don't.

COVID Still Worse Than Flu

 Per the data.  

I had heard that some people were back to equating COVID to the Flu, so I thought that link would be timely.  I get it, I am tired of COVID also.  And yet people are still dying at the incredible rate ~527 / day.

So please do what you can to protect your elders and immuno-compromised family, friends, etc.  Get vaccinated, wear masks around them, stay home when you are sick, etc.  The newest COVID variant is a little different.

GOP Encourages Book Burning

Or at least the banning of 1000s of books.  It is surreal the the supposed party of "small government", "local government control" and "personal freedoms" is supporting fascism again.  Now if you doubt me, please read the Merriam Webster definition.

Fascism: a political philosophy, movement, or regime that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.

I mean the GOP is supporting laws to BAN what local school districts can teach, seemingly believing that if they ignore the topics it will cease to occur?  I mean imagine if you are a child with 2 Mom's or 2 Dad's, or if you are a child who likes to dress differently, etc...  It seems that the GOP wants to deny that LGBTQ people exist?  I think that boat sailed long ago.  The FL bill seems like a windfall for lawyers and a HUGE bureaucracy for the state and the districts.  And it will all cost the schools money that they need to teach the kids.  So much for America the Free...

And then we have the fascist states who want to limit what is in the libraries and available to its residents.  How do Conservatives rationalize banning books, it is like a bad dystopian novel.

The GOP seems to be becoming the party of small minds and censorship. :-(  Of course the irony is that while they try to censor science, relationships, history, etc...  They complain people are not allowed to publish blatant lies whenever and where ever they wish... :-O  Maybe Hiram and Ray Dalio are correct that we as a nation are screwed !!!

Ocean Rise and Building Risk?

Miami Dade County resource page.  About a year ago, Mom and Dad committed themselves to Hollywood Beach FL by buying the condo they had been renting.  So I just got back from visiting them and checking out the area.  It is very nice and only about a block off the Broad walk / Ocean. Though almost too warm and humid for a winter adapted guy like me. :-)

After touring down there I was curious how sea level rise would impact them.  I mean they had told me that during the King Tides some of the areas go under water already.  Thankfully it looks like their neighborhood appears to be pretty safe.  At least much better than many of the neighborhoods that are closer to Miami. 

It will be interesting to see how they adapt to deal with the looming problem.  It looked like the new sky scraper condos and hotels are bringing in a LOT of fill to raise their ground floor significantly.  My friend joked that maybe this will become the Venice of the USA...