Quotes from two famous NATIONALISTS … THEN and NOW

ADOLPH HITLER: leader of the Nazi party1934 to his death in 1945

“If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently it will be believed”

“It is not truth that matters but victory.”

RICHARD SPENCER: White Nationalist & prominent leader in the White Supremacist march in Charlottesville, Va.  2017.

“ America, at the end of the day, belongs to the white men.”

“Trump has opened the door to nationalism in this country ...not American nationalism but the white race.  Once that door has fully swung open, you can't close it." 

Sandra Day O'connor puts country ahead of self

Sandra Day O'connor was the first female Justice of the Supreme Court, nominated by President Reagan in 1981 and serving with distinction until her retirement in 2006.  Just this week she sent an open letter to …"fellow Americans" stating that she has been diagnosed with the beginning stages of dementia and "while still able" wanted to share some thoughts.

Part of her letter read:  "Not long after I retired from the Supreme Court … I made a commitment to  myself, my family and my country that I would use whatever years I had left to advance civic learning and engagement.  I feel so strongly about the topic because I've seen first-hand how vital it is for all citizens to understand our Constitution and unique system of government."  

She went on to highlight what has served us best over time:  "Working collaboratively in communities and in government to solve problems, putting country and the common good above party and self-interest, and holding our key governmental institutions accountable."

After her retirement she founded icivics, a website dedicated to providing creative and effective teaching tools on the subject of civic engagement and geared to educating America's youth.  Let's all honor Sandra Day O'Connor in the way that she would cherish most … by advocating her ideas and truly adhering to them in our own lives.  

Fire and Ice ...

“FIRE and ICE” …by Robert Frost, (1874 - 1963)

"Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire, I hold with those who favor fire,
But, if I had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice is also great and would suffice.”

I’ve always been moved by this poem and doesn’t it seem to be particularly evocative today? Trump's  greed and  lust for power and exclusivity is exactly what I feel when I read these lines. It's telling me that our beloved country is being destroyed at the base and we’d better wake up !  We need to get back to our basics … when we lived world-wide with one another, sharing our lives and our resources, opening our minds to new ideas and possibilities instead of building walls to keep ourselves frozen in place.  


Power, isolation, … fire or ice ?   It matters little...they all suffice.

Trump on “60 Minutes”

I was very surprised to hear that Trump had agreed to an interview on "60 Minutes".  He must have surmised that his personal charisma would carry the day but this was not a rally, filled with his base.  This was prime time TV with the very adept Lesley Stahl asking the questions and I was interested to see how it would play out.

I found that it was vintage Trump … filled with his usual hubris and overblown images of his presidency.  He didn't even try to play to this "other" audience.  He was obviously winging it and these are a few of the ridiculous claims that he made.

*  asked about life in politics he said, " I used to say the toughest people are Manhattan real estate guys and blah, blah.  Now I say they are babies.  This is the most deceptive, vicious world full of lies, deceit and deception".  

The irony of that last statement is unbelievable !

*  pressed about Climate Change he stated, "You'd have to show me the scientists because they have a very big political agenda".  

*  on his mocking Kavanaugh accuser Dr. Ford at his Mississippi rally he said, "You know what?  I'm not going to get into it because we won.  It doesn't matter.  We won."

*  his answer after Lesley Stahl pointed out he'd declared his love for Kim Jong Un despite the man's cruel history of repression, starvation and reports of assassinations and slave labor.  "Sure I  know all these things." said Trump  "I mean I'm not a baby. I know these things."

To say that the interview was bizarre is being kind.  I found it down right ludicrous and, on the off chance that I may be accused of "fake journalism" I am happy to say that the entire "60 Minute" interview is on video for anyone to see.

He's come undone ...

Lindsey Graham and his good friend John McCain, December 2015. Lindsey stated then, “You know how you make America great again? Tell Donald Trump to go to hell” . He followed that with calling Trump “the world's biggest jackass” and continuing: “If we nominate Trump we will be destroyed” referring to the Republican Party's prospects in 2016

BUT … to the surprise of many, Trump WAS elected President and Lindsey quickly changed his tune . He has become Trumps new best friend and they spend hours playing golf where Graham has a chance to learn how to mimic the low down, swampy words and tactics of his new hero. He went from having a close relationship with the late John McCain (which, by association, afforded him an image of partisanship and sensibility) to manic displays of anger that reached a boiling point last week. Poor McCain must be turning over in his grave.

I am not taking sides on the “Dr. Ford and Brett Kavanagh drama”. I am simply stating Lindsey Graham's reaction to it all. He seemed to become unhinged during the hearings and the vitriol that spewed from his mouth was mind boggling. I thought it couldn't get any worse until it did !

After the Senate voted to confirm Kavanaugh  a jubilant Lindsey was asked if he thought that assault survivors would be more reluctant to come forward now. He didn't answer the question directly but said that he felt Justice Kavanaugh had been treated well by the Judicial Senate Committee and added, "I think the roles were reversed. The slut whore drunk was Kavanaugh". (a not so thinly veiled comment painting the “slut whore drunk”, by reversal, as being Dr. Ford.)

Such classy comments Lindsey. You've really shown your true colors. Those deep seeded hatreds that have been simmering under the surface are coming out. It makes me wonder what else is hidden in the deep recesses of your sick mind and what we will be blind-sided with next. God help us all !

Oct. 3, 1961 ... We become a family of 5

You see the little baby that I'm holding in this Christmas photo?   That's our third child … little Jody born on Oct. 3rd 1961.  Mark is the inquisitive one of the floor (our first child and a normal birth, long but uneventful).  Matt was a very different story … we almost didn't make it to the hospital before he was born and the cab driver kept yelling "Hold on".  The hospital staff literally had no time to prep me before he "popped out".   And then there was Jody ! 

Hers was a very different story and I relived it this past week when her birthday came around.  My pregnancy seemed normal until, at about 32 weeks, I started to bleed and we called the doctor. He advised me to go to the ER immediately and they, in turn, put me in the hospital for observation.  That decision was probably what saved our lives.  I was having a placenta previa birth (the placenta is actually being "born" before the baby and leaves the unborn nothing to feed on) and in those years that was almost always fatal .  

Everything was happening very fast but I do remember my husband kissing my cheek, telling me to "keep my chin up" and then promptly passing out.  For a minute the OR crew was flustered but they left him there on the floor for the nurses to handle and proceeded to rush me to the operating room where they performed an immediate caesarian and our little Jody was born. She weighed less than 5 lbs and had to stay in the hospital for 10 days but she and I are lucky to be alive.  

I remember that time so clearly and, even though that was 57 years ago it seems like yesterday in many ways.  She was a beautiful baby and is a beautiful woman.  (Hubby Brian looking good too!)

An "AMERICAN GOTHIC" ... 1930

The classic Grant Wood painting “The American Gothic” was exhibited for the first time in 1930 at The Art Institute of Chicago. It was awarded a prize of $300 and brought the artist instant fame.

The painting depicts a stoic Iowan farmer gazing unflinchingly at the viewer. His daughter, eyes averted, appears to have the weight of the world on her shoulders. It was painted during the Depression and many believe that the painting illustrates the strength and resolve that was needed at that time to simply survive. Others believe that Wood was satirizing the culture of the mid-west, an accusation that he denied.

“The American Gothic” has become a part of our popular culture and the couple has been the subject of many parodies...ranging from Mad magazine, Disney characters and even a picture of Paul Newman and his daughter (advertising their food stuffs).

Our “AMERICAN GOTHIC” … 1970

My family became part of this dubious group when we enacted our spoof in 1970. Granted (no pun, intended) we added three children to the scene but the basic idea was the same. The pitchfork, by the way, was for real!