Americans Are Stupid

 Well, it would appear that, barring some sort of miracle, the United States is about to prove beyond any doubt that Americans are just as stupid as the rest of the world has come to believe that we are. 

President Biden Withdraws from the Race

 Joe Biden has withdrawn from the race to be President of the United States, and for doing so he will go down in history as a True American Patriot. He put the good of the country over his own personal interests.

I personally believe Kamala Harris should be selected as the candidate for President in large part because in one stroke Donald Trump goes from leading in the polls to being, on average, down in the polls by three points. I also think Gretchen Whitmer should be chosen to be her running mate, and here's why: because every time some Republican starts talking about the attempted assassination, Mrs. Whitmer can stand up and say, "Hey, I get it. I was also targeted for kidnapping and murder by right-wing extremists." I say "also," and "right-wing extremists," because Thomas Crooks was a registered Republican. That is a fact. And the words "registered Republican" should become part of that kid's name. Any time, and I do mean any time, the name Thomas Crooks is mentioned, especially in the liberal media and by any Democrat in the House or the Senate, it should be preceded by the words, "registered Republican." And when some Republican says, "But he donated fifteen dollars to a liberal cause," the universal reply should be "So what."

So, good on you, Joe. You will be well remembered and highly praised for your difficult and courageous decision to put country first. And go Harris/Whitmer! 

Fourth of July? Meh... What's the Point?

 The balcony off my apartment where I live in Indianapolis offers a decent-ish view of the Fourth-of-July fireworks display the city puts on every year. I can usually see two-thirds of the show, the medium bursts and high bursts; the one-third that I cannot see, the low burst, is blocked by a building between me and where the fireworks are launched from. But that's okay. Its usually a pretty good show. I stand on my balcony and drink a beer and watch as Indianapolis celebrates our country's continued experiment in representative government. 

The fireworks we watch today are inspired by the bombardment of Fort McHenry that began on September 13th, 1814 (be honest now, how many of you thought this was a revolutionary war event?). This is, of course, the event witnessed by Francis Scott Key and memorialized in a poem he wrote the next day upon waking to see the American flag still flying above the fort the morning of September 14th. That poem was later set to music and became our National Anthem. The "rockets red glare," and the "bombs bursting in air" spoken of were produced by a British attack force of sixteen ships firing on Fort McHenry from the Patapsco River. This was part of the Battle of Baltimore and was one of the last actions of the War of 1812, sometimes known as the Second American War of Independence.

But enough history. My reason for starting this little missive was to say that this year I will not be watching the fireworks display because what they represent no longer has any meaning. The United States of North America has become a Monarchy as of Tuesday, July 2nd, 2024. And, not a Monarchy like in Great Britain today where their King may reign but he certainly doesn't rule. Not even like the monarchy of George III, who was King of England during the American Revolution. No, we have become a Monarchy a` la seventeenth century James II who was, arguably, the last British monarch to rule by fiat. 

The Supreme Court of the United States has seen fit to bestow upon the office of President nearly dictatorial power. The president has immunity for any act seen as an "official act." We have returned to that which we broke with. To quote Justice Sotomayor:

"Today's decision to grant former Presidents criminal immunity reshapes the institution of the Presidency. It makes a mockery of the principle, foundational to our Constitution and system of government, that no man is above the law." She went on to say, "The relationship between the President and the people he serves has shifted irrevocably. In every use of official power, the President is now a King above the law."

So this year I will not be watching the fireworks that are supposed to be a celebration of our break with Monarchy. We have come back around to being a Monarchy and that is not a cause for celebration. Instead, I will close my blinds, put sad music on my headphones and mourn the loss of my country because, make no mistake, American woke up Tuesday in a different country from the one they went to sleep in on Monday.

Now That We Live In A Monarchy

 The Supreme Court has just ruled that a President of the United States cannot be punished for "official acts." That being the case, President Biden should do the following:

1) Suspend all further elections, at least for the office of President, and declare himself to be "President-for-Life".

2) Proclaim that a successor of his choosing will be named President upon his death.

3) Disband the Supreme Court and replace it with Justices entirely of his own choosing.

4) Declare the Republican party to be an illegal entity. (Fun Fact, the U.S. Constitution nowhere dictates the existence of political parties. It allows for them but doesn't say they must exist.)

5) Arrest Donald Trump for the charge of Treason.

6) Declare that the right to interpret the Constitution of the United States is his alone. 

7) Proclaim all these to be "official acts".

There will be a lot of protest and rioting in the streets as a result of these official acts, so President Biden should invoke the Insurrection Act to crush dissent, as Jeffrey Clark suggested Donald Trump do, and jail MAGA protestors. It might be necessary to use the military to enforce these official acts, again as Donald Trump wanted to do, but that's no problem now that the President rules by fiat.

Of course I'm being sarcastic. I don't truly believe the President should do any of these things (well, okay, maybe number 5), but the fact is that Biden could potentially do any of these things and more, and simply by declaring them to be "official acts" avoid any prosecution. 

My point is this, should Donald Trump be returned to the White House, as he most likely will, he and his sycophants will establish the most authoritarian government they can get away with and call everything they do with that aim in mind official acts. 

The Death of al-Zawahri

 I subscribe to the New York Times online edition and am a frequent replier to articles. I use my own name, Stephen, and indicate that I live in Indianapolis, I am not ashamed of my opinions, nor do I try to hide who or where I am. Recently, the past two submissions of mine have gone "unpublished" so I thought I would post them here. In response to an article about the death of the terrorist, al-Zawahri, I wrote:

He's dead. I'm glad. I just wish we had been able to do it by means other than a drone strike. I understand why it was done that way in this case, what with the possibility of collateral damage and all, but I still wish we had been able to do it in the same way we took out bin-Laden. I like knowing that the last thing bin-Laden saw before exiting this life was a pissed-off American with a rifle. It makes me smile every time I think about it. I'm thinking about it right now, and I'm smiling. I just wish we could have given al-Zawahri the same send-off. Still, he's dead, and I'm glad.