THIS EDITION OF THE EQUAL OPPORTUNITY CRITIC IS DEDICATED TO TOM REGAN, A WONDERFUL FRIEND, A CONSERVATIVE AMERICAN WHO BELIVED IN THE RULE OF LAW AND THAT AMERICA NEEDS FIXING. TOM WAS A VETERAN AND TOM WAS FAMILY. HE WAS MY BROTHER-IN-LAW. MAY HE REST IN PEACE.

Note: I am very grateful to all those wonderful Americans who stepped up on election day and demanded that Donald Trump again be our President and Commander-in-Chief. We won!

I was asked recently why I felt America was broken and what can be done to get us back on track. It is a question I grapple with every day. So I guess a good place to start is to list what I believe is broken. Here is a sampling of the biggest parts of America that I think are broken: 

• Our nearly non-existent border
• Executive Branch overreach
• Lack of military readiness and intelligent leadership
• Massive DEI influences in our military
• CRT and DEI rampant in our schools
• Out-of-control Department of Education
• Defunded police departments across the country
• Tens of millions of illegal immigrants
• Idiotic foreign policy
• No American energy independence
• Resistance to intelligent voter ID requirements

I’ve learned that CEOs set the tone in corporations and direct the legions of employees to produce certain results. Think of Jack Welch in GE’s glory days, Steve Jobs at Apple, and Bob Iger at Disney (before he went off the rails). Keeping with the analogy, America is led(?) by the Biden-Harris team and their cabinet and executive departments. With such a terrible team leading us, it is no wonder we are struggling as a nation. I’ve read that over 100 million Americans are facing financial difficulty. While I love duct tape, it ain’t gonna help us now.

Age Is Not Necessarily a Bad Thing 

Compare and contrast the sheer ignorance of 34-year-old House member AOC and Founding Father Ben Franklin who at age 70 was the oldest signer of the Declaration of Independence. One is a national embarrassment, and one is a national treasure.

Move Along – Nothing to See Here, Folks 

I’m astonished at the sheer number of Americans who are basking in the glow of ignorance. It’s difficult to hide the fact that America has been on a decline since the inauguration of the Biden Administration. With media complicity, the government has spoon-fed our nation a host of lies that our neighbors accept as truth. The recent revelations that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is “truly sorry” for his complicity in government censorship of conservative narratives during the China COVID virus and associated lockdowns of most of America, come as no surprise. There’s nothing to see here, folks, so move along. Zuckerberg’s line is familiar. I have heard it countless times form Senators, Congresspeople, judges, governors, and mayors—I regret my actions, I did not think them through, I am truly sorry, it will never happen again. I’m still waiting to hear an old fashioned “Yea, I fucked up.”

MAGAs Are Not Closed-Minded Zealots 

I hear a constant refrain from the left describing MAGA zealots as people with extremist views and fascist leanings. I have found these remarks to be astonishing, well-crafted lies and half- truths. First, help me understand why anyone would not want America to be great (again). Unlike Michelle Obama sharing with the world her view that America was never great, I believe we are (were?) the freest country in the history of the world, owing its freedom and greatness to our remarkable Founding Fathers who risked all to codify a form of government that served the people and not the other way around. Many view MAGA folks as belligerent and in-your-face fanatics. To set the record straight, the MAGA folks I have met are 100% true-blue Americans who see today’s Marxist influences in government as a fast-spreading cancer seeking to kill over

200 years of American history and exceptionalism. They recite the Pledge of Allegiance with a hand held over their heart, they stand for the national anthem, and they respect the flag and our veterans. Does that sound like extremist agitators to you? I for one would feel secure having MAGA neighbors display their American flag seven days a week.

Right as Rain, Senator 

Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) was recently interviewed on Hannity and stated that San Francisco radical liberal Democrat Kamala Harris is AOC without the bartending experience. 

Senator Kennedy went on to say, “Bidenomics, paying more to live worse.” Spot on, Senator, and may I add that Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela’s dictator, wholeheartedly endorses Kamala Harris for El Presidente.

Highly Educated Ignorance 

I came across the phrase Highly Educated Ignorance in one of the dozens of books I read this year, and it stuck with me. I’m told that approximately 30% of House members and about 50% of Senators have law degrees. With all those hours spent obtaining their legal educations, somehow we still have jackasses serving in Congress, including Steny Hoyer, Hakeem Jeffries, Jerry Nadler, Eleanor Holms Norton, Jamie Raskin, Adam Schiff, Eric Swalwell, Rashida Tlaib, and dozens more.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines ignorance as “lack of knowledge, education, or awareness.” I prefer the term cluelessness. Obviously, these folks are educated. They all received their law school degrees. Yet their stupidity and foolishness have placed our nation in grave danger. The trouble is that many of them lack real-world experience outside of politics and law school. It is my fervent hope that these lawmakers are shown the exit on Election Day and take their rightful place as apprentices in a uranium reprocessing plant.

Arizona Will Arrest You for Exercising Your First Amendment Right to Free Speech 

Rebekah Massie, a 32-year-old mom, was arrested at a city council meeting after she criticized a city official. The city of Surprise, Arizona, has about 160,000 people and is 45 minutes from Phoenix. If you think you can exercise your First Amendment rights there, think again. The city has a regulation that prohibits its citizens from “lodging charges or complaints against any employee of the city or members of the body, at a podium at an official city meeting.” It seems that the mayor ordered the chief of police to take Massie into custody. Massie was allegedly charged with three crimes—trespassing, resisting arrest, and obstructing government operations.

She went to the council meeting to make a point and speak her mind. She left in handcuffs. My fervent hope is that her attorney will sue the city to hell and toss the council and mayor out on their asses. Criticizing the government is a right exercised every day by citizens and the media alike.

This is not Russia, this not North Korea, and when elected government servants forget their roles, they should be tossed to the street corner.

Who Am I Thinking Of ? 

• Born just outside of Boston, Massachusetts
• A direct descendant of someone who came over on the Mayflower
• Helped draft the Declaration of Independence
• Had a hand in appointing George Washington as commander of the Continental Army
• Served as America’s first vice president
• Served as second president of the United States
• The father of America’s sixth president

Hint: The answer is not Joe Biden.

Politicians Continue to Spin Real Estate and a Bountiful Economy, BUT…

If you pay any attention to the business page, you might have spied some really bad news.

A record number of deals to purchase homes were cancelled in July 2024. This record is nothing to shout about. In fact, 60,000 contracts to buy homes were ripped up due to fear and uncertainty about the economy, elections, interest rates, home prices, and the cost of dragons. Well, not so much the dragons, but you get my point. There is much concern about the political climate in America, and people are loathe to commit big money until they feel they are on stable ground. I don’t blame them. All in all, home sales in July were the lowest since 2012 according to Redfin. Go, Bidenomics!

Men Are Entitled to Be Men, Not Women

Diversity, equity, and inclusion will never make men women or women men. Paying Dr. Smith, Dr. Jones, or Dr. Schwartz to cut off someone’s testicles and fashion female parts does not mean that an annual prostate exam is no longer required. It does not mean that Jessica, born Harold Jeffery Adams, is entitled to play on a women’s soccer team or sport her junk in the women’s shower and locker room. Liberal Democratic laws cannot make us buy into this mass delusion. The Title IX sledgehammer wielded by Biden’s venomous Education Department was never intended to place men with male chromosomes on girls’ sports teams. Using newly created Department of Education regulations as legal weapons is discriminatory, un-American, and wrong. No matter how hard they try, surgeons, psychiatrists, and puberty-blocking drugs cannot change someone’s chromosomes.

A Sad Seattle Commentary

When Goodwill thrift stores begin to shut their doors permanently, you know something is seriously wrong. Two Goodwill stores in Washington state announced they are closing for good. The two locations are South Lake Union and the University District. Here is a quote from their spokesperson: “We were unable to maintain a secure and sustainable environment for both employees and shoppers.” Safety in the stores, property damage, and massive theft were the main reasons. You have to stoop pretty low to steal from a thrift store where the average price of a pair of pants is $3. I’m certain that high rental costs were a contributing factor.

Politicians Making Bad Decisions

The latest idiocy out of California—$150,000 mortgage assistance for illegal aliens who are first- time homebuyers. American citizens are NOT entitled to this freebie, nor are veterans, but the idiot Socialist liberals who run the California Legislature see no reason not to open the taxpayer spigot and splash yet more money on individuals who have no right to be in this country.

No, I’m not done with California yet. It seems the Legislature has passed a bill banning voter ID laws. How do you spell IMBECILES?

Yet another Difference between Congressional Democrats and Republicans

Folks in Congress are expected to know how to communicate. It’s a given. Yet I have noticed extreme differences in how each side chooses to communicate with others. Here is a sampling of what I have found:

Democrats                                                      Republicans

Slam                                                                Discuss

Blast                                                                Review

Shred                                                               Confer

Mock                                                               Debate

Smash                                                              Deliberate

Condemn                                                        Talk

Shame                                                             Chat

Rip                                                                  Consider

How Can Financial and Fiscal Insanity Be Our New Normal?

As many of you are aware, the stock market is having a banger of a year as everyone is salivating at the idea of the Fed cutting interest rates. If memory serves me, these are the same geniuses who proclaimed we would have seven interest rate cuts this year beginning in March. Well, as I write this, we are in the third quarter, and now I’m hearing of a potential rate cut in September. Meanwhile, the stock market continues to rally, and traders are soiling themselves in anticipation of a severe downturn if they don’t get all they had hoped for.

Insanity? Delusion? Take your pick. They are all reacting to government numbers, which as we have seen, are not always accurate. We have insane levels of debt that I doubt can ever be repaid. We have a radical, dangerous Democratic presidential candidate who must have flunked Econ 101 since her grasp of economics is comical. She wants to give away billions of dollars to every group who she hopes she can buy votes from and wants to raise taxes on everyone else. Rational economic decisions have gone out the window. What we are seeing is Socialist policy where the government will provide for all citizens’ needs at exorbitant costs. I see very dark clouds on the horizon, and I hope you all have sturdy umbrellas ready because I fear you will need them.

Who Says You Can’t Find a Gem in the Garbage?

As many of you know, I don’t hold the New York Post in high esteem. Yet from time to time I am delightfully surprised by what I find there. An opinion piece written by Miranda Devine, published on August 29, 2024, made me smile from ear to ear. Evidently, the United Nations is terrified of a (second) Donald Trump presidency. According to a senior official, word is that they are not sure the UN can survive a second term with President Trump. The opinion makes great reading. Make sure to find it on whatever device you use to access the Inner-Net. I think a whole lot has to do with the fact that the United States contributes the largest share to the UN budget (currently 22%). And, yes, they are deathly afraid of “those crazy MAGA people.”

P.S. I think the only people who want to make the UN great again are employees of the UN.

MUNGA: Make UN Great Again?????

My Dad and Superman Both Served in the U.S. Army Air Force

I have been a fan of Superman for better than 60 years, so I find it really cool that I still run across stuff I had no clue of. In a trivia contest, I assure you that I don’t stand a chance. But it seems my dad had something in common with the 1950s Superman TV show star George Reeves. Who knew? They both served in the U.S. Army Air Force. Did they ever have the chance to meet? Probably not, but that would have been cool. Note: In 1947, through an act of Congress, the Air Force was split off to a separate service from the Army. Apparently, the land- based generals just couldn’t agree with the fly-boy generals.

Slapping the American Voter upside the Head

I will borrow a term from the meteorologists on the Weather Channel when I say that America finds itself in a cone of uncertainty. The term is often used to describe the path of a tropical storm or hurricane, so I feel it is a fitting to description of the pickle America finds itself in today. We as a country may find ourselves decimated in the near future, not unlike Fort Meyers, Florida, during the last hurricane. Or we might escape the carnage and live on to heal our fractured country, like the phoenix rising majestically from the rubble, and accomplish truly magnificent things as foretold by our Founding Fathers.

The Democrats are seeking to increase their power and cause the country to become one where the central government wields all power and determines the course of citizens’ lives from cradle to grave. The Republicans, at least the ones I am familiar with, seek decentralization of power and returning autonomy back to the states. That’s what John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and all the magnificent men envisioned when they endorsed the resolution that created the United States Constitution.

Perhaps America needs a slap upside the head with a rolled up newspaper, or better yet, a swipe to the back of the head with a bag of silver dollars. When will our neighbors understand that America is at a tipping point, staring down at the abyss of Socialism and permanent disfigurement from the ideals set forth by our founders? Capitalism has brought this country to heights unimaginable by other countries. We were the envy of the world, but now our luster has faded, and we are the laughing stock of the world. Our neighbors see us as a country and government that cannot be trusted. I don’t blame them.

The world is not a safe space, and I fear our safety and good fortune will take a nosedive under the utter incompetence of Kamala Harris.

Has Anyone Noticed That America Is Crumbling before Our Eyes?

I went to high school in an old ghetto section of lower Manhattan, an area populated by many Eastern Europeans who escaped the carnage of World War II. YES, it was a melting pot in the truest sense of the word. And everyone lived and worked to make a better life for themselves and their families, favoring education so the new generation of legal Americans had the opportunity for a better life than their parents had. By the time I was there, it was a ghetto. Yes, there was crime, but there were also policemen walking the beat, keeping the peace. The rule of law prevailed. Today, much of what I grew up with has vanished from the American landscape.

The defunding of police departments has made our cities more dangerous. Ask someone living in Chicago, New York City, Minneapolis, Portland, or Seattle how safe they feel. If you caught any of the DNC spectacle in Chicago, you most likely caught the newscasters commenting on the skyrocketing crime in that city. Daily murders are a part of life there. While I do have relatives who live there, I will NEVER visit them.

On my last trip to Manhattan, I was astounded that there were more potholes than I remembered. Even with New York City’s Pothole Hotline, navigating the city streets is a nightmare. What was really interesting was that there were as many potholes on the sidewalks as there were on the streets. And with everyone walking around looking at their iPhones instead of where they were going, I was surprised I didn’t see more folks on crutches with broken legs or feet. I continue to be amazed at the dilapidated condition of city streets.

For more of The Equal Opportunity Critic, tune in to any of these podcasts where I have been interviewed:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FD-R8J867Zo&t=2488s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PO2pBo8pas&t=4s

https://www.youtube.com/live/yPzwt0gkz_c?si=VMs6NpHUxSCiKCoI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-41bH5heDy8&t=237s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0m0FsWobqkw

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