Sheldon Adelson dies of broken heart

Sheldon Adelson, the global casino magnate with a penchant for collecting politicians, has gone to the great back-room in the sky.

These past four years were to have been the pinnacle of his political hobby. His boys, Doni and Bibi, held the top jobs in Israel and the US. It had cost him hundreds of millions in political donations, but finally, Sheldon had the clout to impact history, or so he thought.

Instead, nothing but headwinds, set-backs, scandals, and disappointments. Bibi with his three tries (number four coming up) at a majority. Trump with his... let's not even go there. Complete imbeciles, the both of them.

What heartache!

But at least they managed to move the embassy to Jerusalem.

Remember when we used to call the US president the "most powerful man in the world?"

That's been more or less bullshit since at least the time of JFK, but the Trump era should by now have put paid to such a quaint fantasy once and for all. Over the past four years it's become clear that this president's actual influence doesn't go much beyond whether to have KFC or McDonalds for lunch.

In the event that presidential whims coincide with the will of the ruling elite, things do indeed get done.  So if we're talking bombs on Muslims or giving away the store to Israel, there's no problem. Likewise with tax cuts for the billionaire class. 

Ending America's endless wars, or easing tensions with adversaries, is another kettle of fish entirely. Trump would make an announcement, and whoopsie, the opposite would happen! US troops out of Syria? Not so fast, Buckaroo... we gotta protect those Syrian oilfields!

By now it's beyond obvious that even anonymous "fact checkers" at Twitter and Facebook have more power than the POTUS. 

That should alarm anyone who claims to be for "freedom of speech." 

The America I once loved has sunk to incomprehensible levels of stupidity

When I was a kid, the US of A was a happening deal. 

I used to have a little GE radio at my bedside. It picked up radio stations in Chicago. WLS and WCFL, if I remember correctly. I can recall their jingles. It's amazing what kinda shit gets stuck in the deep memory channels of your mind.

In the America I once loved we sorta glossed over the SE Asia thing. Viet Nam never really happened, or Laos or Cambodia or Mai Lai. Instead, we focused on what new power-train combos might be available in the Dodge lineup come September.

Which was way more interesting. Who cares about war when you can get a hemi-cuda convertible right off the local Plymouth dealer's lot?

I suppose we were on the path to maximum stupidity even then. We just didn't see the warning signs.

While the (take your pick: ruling elite, overlords, oligarchs, Deep State, establishment, etc) extol us to celebrate our hunky-dory paradise of diversity and social justice,  the USA that once dazzled me has gone down the drain.

No nation on the planet sells more lethal weapons and stirs up more shit all over the globe so that more nations will buy their lethal weapons.

It's a veritable perpetual motion machine!

Be that as it may, America's purchase on moral superiority has clearly gone for a shit. You can't entirely pin this on Trump, because that's been the trajectory of US history for at least the last 70 years.

In the past, I recall a robust culture of resistance to the machinations of the ruling establishment.

Today, John Brennan is a hero of the anti-Trump resistance. The former CIA boss is a champion of "the left"

Incomprehensible!

More fun with covid stats

Here's a fun fact to ponder. At the peak of first wave back in the spring, Canada was reporting about 1700 new covid cases per day. As of right now, the seven day moving average of new cases is around 8800. That's a 500%+ increase in cases.

Deaths, meanwhile, peaked at 176 per day in the spring. The seven day moving average stands at 157 as of right now. That's an increase of what?

What does that tell us about the pandemic?

And no, I don't believe that can be attributed to any alleged learning curve in how to deal with the virus. When you look at the slap-dash way the "experts" have been fashioning policy, such a claim beggars belief.

Speaking of experts, isn't it funny how many of them seem to believe that the rules they make for us do not apply to themselves? Maybe they know something we don't?

Anyway, the die is cast. More and tighter lock-downs are on the way. We gotta wrestle this demon to the ground don't you know...

Fat chance. The only way to beat this thing is if we all stop breathing for a couple of weeks. Anything less is bound to fail.

As of 8 January, a total of 584 Canadians under 60 have died with COVID-19

Add the 60-70 cohort into the mix, and the death toll comes in at 1771. Keeping in mind that by the CDC's own estimates, only 6% of COVID-19 deaths occurred without co-morbidities, we can extrapolate that the virus has killed about 100 people under 70. That's in the entire country of 35 million, since the first death in a BC nursing home last March. (Stats here.)

Is our response to the pandemic commensurate with the threat it poses? The hundreds of billions squandered, a generation of children's lives scarred, all in the name of preserving the lives of a relative handful of seniors? 

Remember, this is a country that can't afford pharma-care, universal child care, dental care. We can't afford to address our housing crisis, nor are we capable of providing adequate health care, education, or potable water to First Nations.

But we can bankrupt the nation to prolong the lives of the elderly?

PM Fluffy puckers up for Biden

After four solid years of kissing Trump's ass while pretending he's not, Justin Trudeau is prepping for a new set of presidential buttocks to kiss. Yup, with twelve days to go in the Trump regime, and after the Orange Ogre has given up on his election challenges, our feisty PM has come out as a stalwart of the resistance!

Trump incited an attack on democracy! 

Usually, when you look at where the USA has worked to undermine democracy, you see a lot more than goobers in Viking helmets. Trump's domestic storm-troopers have a long way to go before they're in the big-leagues. They need to take some lessons from the goons America routinely sponsors in countries around the world, whenever electors in those countries make choices not approved by Washington. 

Coming from the democratically elected Prime Minister of Canada, who volunteered his country for leadership of the Trump regime's "Lima Group," empty prattle about our concern for "democracy" is just that; empty prattle signifying nothing other than continuing subservience to Washington.

Washington announces "Peace Summit" with Venezuela

A State Department spokesperson announced today that President Triden has agreed to a meeting with Venezuela's President Guaduro to discuss bilateral relations. The talks are to be held in Havana, Cuba, in early March.

Talks are expected to focus on Venezuela's boycott of US food and medicine, and Venezuela's seizure of US oil company Citgo. As well, the Presidents will discuss strategies to enhance democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.