Just Sayin

Supreme Court expansion is a bad idea. President Franklin Roosevelt, or FDR, tried it in 1937. Some of Roosevelt's more unconstitutional policies to help Americans during the Depression were struck down by the Supreme Court, or SCOTUS. So FDR decided to pass a law that made every SCOTUS Justice over a certain age, too old, and would have to be replaced by him. He could then appoint jurists who agreed with his policies.  The SCOTUS nomination process needs an update to come into the 21st Century. But expansion is not the solution. A better solution is a time limit as a SCOTUS Jurist. 20 years, then the jurist retires, and whoever is President in office gets to choose. Rotate the retirements to make sure every administration gets at least 1 SCOTUS choice, per administration. That is more fair and equitable for the people, and for justice.  

  This story us s little personal for me. I went to Sacramento to lobby lawmakers to not to pass this law. I have been, and continue to be against this law and all "assault weapons" bans in the United States including the 1994 Federal assault weapons ban; The Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act or Federal Assault Weapons Ban. California Attorney General at the time; John Van De Kamp, pushed through this legislation as a purely emotional reaction, one not based on the rule of law, to the Stockton School Shooting incident in January 1989.   My opposition has three elements. First of all, long rifles, that are legal, and used for hunting, and some that were and, and still are used in war, are the same firearm. All Fire arms are assault weapons, because they are an offensive. They are also a defensive weapon. That distinction being the user, The distinction between the prohibited weapons, and law abiding weapons, is a fallacy. Second, the...

  Tradition Lost From its inception in 1911 the Memorial Day Indianapolis 500-mile race, or “The 500” has had a non-race car pace the competitors, at the beginning, and during caution periods. These cars, driven sometimes by celebrities, former drivers and others, to pace the field, were for years’ cars that were new models, design or mechanical innovations, or just the most popular car. Sometimes they were from a particular manufacturer. Since nineteen ninety six. That tradition has gone away. The victim of advertising economics. In the twenty-five years since nineteen ninety six, General Motors, or GM, has provided the five pace car models from two marques. The twenty-five years before   nineteen ninety six the pace car was provided by three different manufacturers, and eight different Marques. Two of those marques are no longer in business. Apparently the business of tradition at Indy is not good business.   For a race that has so much rich tradition surrounding ...

  I was perusing YouTube, and came across the MLB 1979 All Star Game. I watched this game on TV, 14 at the time. This is my favorite, and the best All Start Game I have watched. So,Isat and watched it in its entirety, commercials included. Some of those commercials I had forgotten. The Chrysler Corporation commercials, the Polaroid commercials, with James Garner, and Mariette Hartley, and Indy Car racer Kevin Cogan with the SX-70 Camera. The Bell Telephone commercials, and all the catchy slogans.   Bell with their “the system is the solution.” Coke a Cola, and the catchy; “Have a Coke and Smile,” and “Coke is addsLife” memories. Some of my favorite players, played in this game. Fred Lynn hit a two run homer off of Steve Carlton, on a too high fastball with two out in the first inning. Nolan Ryan blew fastballs past everyone, including Garvey that was called a ball, and a walk that turned out to be the first run of the game. Tom Sever talking to Joe Garagiola about the Spli...

  Today Major League Baseball, or MLB, moved the All Star game from Atlanta Georgia. The reason thet gave, was that the Georgia Legislature passed stricter voter laws in the wake of the contested 2020 election. The new laws were intended to solve problems, either real, or perceived that were evident. Several Civil Rights Activists, and Organizations’ have contended that the new laws unfairly target minority voters disproportionately. Are the new laws really racist, unfair, and discriminatory? We as a sovereign nation have a right to set our own boundaries; when it comes to who votes, where they vote, and how the voting is administered. This administration is; the state, counties, local governments, and municipalities, authority. The new laws are not all that restrictive or discriminatory. Requiring someone to produce identification in order to vote, is no more discriminatory or racist than requiring identification to cash a check. In American society, identification must be pro...

I am, at times a hard, harsh, unforgiving, individual. In other words a hard case. Having been this way for some 48 of my 56 years, I have learned a thing or two about being that way. I learned if I were going to fight, no matter if the cause was right or wrong, then I had to accept the consequences whatever they were, no exceptions. To not whine about the consequences, because no one cares, and I brought it on myself. I learned that I would have to pay a cost in interpersonal relationships, meaning that some would not like, or tolerate my attitude. I did not care, and I was the way I had to be. I have always been responsible for the consequences of my words and actions, without exception. The fault was, is, and always will be mine. I hold people, especially politicians, to that same standard. The people who entered the Capitol illegally, during that January insurrection, and attempted coup, now have to face the consequences, of their words and actions. Losing jobs, being arrested, bei...

  A postmortem on the Trump trade policy. Donald Trump was touted as an economic genius. After all he has a degree from the most respected school of higher learning of economics in the U.S. The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, or Wharton for short. He has had a career in business, and high finance, with some gains, and some losses, both spectacular, and dismal. So when he was elected, we were lead to believe that with this experience and knowledge, and his quote exceptional negotiating skills, that our economy, and trade would boom to 4% or even 5% growth, during his administration. Well, let us look at the numbers, to see if any of that bears out.   To begin with we were promised a 4% or5% GDP growth. The GDP was 2.9% when Trump took office, and Unemployment was 4.8%, the unemployment rate in Feb 2020 was 3.5%. Down 1.3%. While the drop is good, it is not spectacular, nor is it near historical. Growth rate for the last quarter before Covid, was 3.5%, and fo...