CNN Decline Continues

Three more CNN journalists  have resigned after their story on Russian ties to Trump proved to be yet another lie by CNN in it's efforts to destroy Trump at any cost, even it's faltering reputation. CNN wrote an editor's note to the public saying that it has retracted the story, taken down online links to it, and accepted resignations from three men who wrote and edited the piece. It was another in a series of half truths or lies that has been published by CNN and many other former main stream, but now anti Trump rags,.
I'll spare you the details of the story because it was one big slander and lie intended to motivate its largely ignorant viewer ship to oppose anything the current president proposes. This is yet another time CNN has been caught in a "Trump" lie, and its viewer ship may finally have had enough of what used to be a respected TV news outlet but that is now a partner with the Democratic party to oppose everything and everyone the party does not want. There are few shouts of 'long live CNN' because as a major news source it may already be dead in this country. Only in foreign nations, where there is less access to real news that expose the lies of CNN, does CNN still have a sizable news channel ratings.
CNN is now facing great criticism over it's political coverage, even from some leftists who are tired of fake news and outright lies published simply because the networks has sold its soul to the left and the Democratic Party. As CNN became even more strident in its crusade to personally destroy Donald Trump viewers reacted by turning it off. One might call CNN's status as a death by suicide.
On average, fewer than a million people are tuning into CNN throughout the day. That is less than 1% of the adult population. The American people trust CNN, they don't like CNN, and they don't watch CNN. When journalists and their networks stop being fair, transparent and stop telling the truth in order to instead embrace ideology they become irrelevant. Right now, CNN is near irrelevancy. It's healthy that it is.

I think; Therefore I Exist

This is a day for me to confess ignorance. Oh, you already consider me to be ignorant. Gee, I didn't know that. I guess that last statement is proof that I am ignorant. Anyway, we are all ignorant, just about different subjects. Hmmmm I forgot where that quote came from. My ignorance is showing again in that I don't remember the name of the person who is credited with that line.

It might not be normal for an individual to not know he or she is ignorant. After all, the world is complicated and the human brain has too little time on earth to absorb knowledge of it all. Who has time to know  so much of importance, like which celebrity humans are supposed to admire. That e= mc2 business will have to wait for most of us because Hollywood or music divas are so much more important. I have learned that.

But to my confession. I was thinking about some of the things of which I am ignorant. Here's a few; why anyone wears a baseball hat backwards; the appeal of political correctness, how to open those square plastic containers they put bakery goods in;  why people watch TV series so much;  what an app is, or a cell phone for that matter; why soccer is popular; why so much literature written today is still at a high level today, but movies, TV and music stinks; why Islam is a "peaceful religion"; whether one has to follow any church rules to be Catholic; why I never seem to remember the size of AC filter I need for my unit or whether I forgot to turn out the light in the last room I left; why I should care about Brexit; if a politician has ever been caught telling the truth; why I hate dancing but enjoy going to my dentists for work on my teeth; why the public thinks Angelina Jolie is more important than a hospice worker, a priest or a teacher; why there are specially designed bathrooms for transsexuals and non binaries or any other imagined sex; how come we hate paying taxes for schools and roads but love to fork over money for a big screen TV or for a new car we don't need every couple of years; why round pizzas are put in square wood boxes; why it is so hard to unscrew the top from a jar; how come I have a bag of batteries but none of them fit the device that needs them;  why drivers with kids speed in school zones and non handicapped people park in handicap parking spaces;  why people go to a doctor but rarely ever follow the doctor's health care instructions; why they manufacture those spiral shaped light bulbs;  if I am supposed to be a sexist and hold a door open for a woman; why so many females think men are sexist; why I was usually a D or F student but never an E student; why so many cartoon characters have speech impediments; why I bother to vote when there is never a candidate who I have trust in; why I made this stupid list so long.

Sigh....at least I have proved my ignorance today. May you find solace in yours too.

The State Of College Campuses

The once pride of the United States, it's universities, are becoming an embarrassment.  Some are wondering whether sending a high school graduate to an American university is a worth while idea. Today's colleges and universities are mostly alt left sanctuaries that propagandize students in the politically correct ideology of the left.

Any student who defers from that will be branded as a heretic and chased out. In many universities today, the student who doesn't love Barrack Obama, transgender bathrooms or doesn't think white people are evil must be punished, not just for justice's sake, but also to send the message to anyone else on campus that should he or she stray off the leftist script, they too might find themselves investigated, harassed, ostracized, or even expelled. Sad to say but some universities here are run ISIS style.

The idea of a university should not be indoctrination or else. It used to be and should be a place to learn how to think for oneself, to challenge all orthodoxy and find an intellectual identity. It's less about learning how to make money through a profession, and never about being brainwashed in any ideology.  Four years of college studying the world's culture, its history and philosophy is the best thing that can happen to a person in his late teens or early 20s.

It opens new worlds, but it shouldn't be seen as preparation for a life of earning. It should be seen as a time and place where young people acquire information  and learn how to evaluate it so they can understand truth more easily and propaganda less. Instead, today's colleges and universities are "truth camps" and re education centers" for all those who are not politically correct.

Today there is a climate of intimidation and fear on campuses that has killed free speech and thought.  Pity the student who says he or she voted for Trump for president. That is equivalent to heresy in the Middle Ages.  Higher education should provide an environment to test new ideas, debate theories, encounter challenging information, and figure out what one believes. Campuses should be places where students are able to make mistakes without fear of retribution. If there is no tolerance, and college campuses today may be the least tolerant place this side of ISIS, it is impossible to exchange ideas and debate to find the truth.

The politically correct university of today is a world of land mines, where faculty, almost all of whom are leftists, and students have no idea what innocuous comment might be seen as an offense against P.C. truth.  On campus today, anything said in opposition to leftism is ruled "hate speech' and all those who say it are branded "racists" or "misogynists". In fact, the left version of race and gender answers every question for the left. Left leaning administrators, professors, and students are working overtime in their campaign of silencing dissent,. It's everything a college should not allow.

The Small Things Drive Us Crazy

The small things bug me sometimes. Not enough to make me crazy, but enough to make me shake my head and utter "why". The old saying that it's the little things in life that we notice most and control our mood, is probably true. If as you sit down early in the morning savoring the smell of the coffee you just brewed but have ever run out of  cream or milk for your coffee you'll know what I mean. It's not really that important, but it is unsettling. I seem to have quite a few of those little annoyances most days. Hmmmm Let me tell you about a few that happened today. You can compare notes later about your own "little things that bug you".

One thing that happened again today that happens to often is the inconsiderate driver in front. Doesn't it bug you when that driver slowly proceeds through a green light until the light changes to yellow? He then speeds through the light leaving you at another red light. As I sit at the red light I wonder what kind of person that one is. I would tell you, but I want to keep this clean.

Another thing that bugged me today was that I wanted to mow my lawn, but the grass was wet. I waited until the grass dried, but by then the sun was too hot for me to mow it. Thus, my lawn will wait for tomorrow, if it doesn't rain again. If I wake up tomorrow and the grass is wet again I may kill myself with the lawn mower so I won't have to go through this scenario again.

Another bug moment for me today was while I was at the grocery store. I had only 5 items, but the 10 item or fewer line was packed with idiots who can't read. They had full carts full of groceries but were in the fast line because they knew the checker would not make them exit. So the jerks with too many items to use the express lane and the jerk supermarket checker who won't enforce the 10 item or fewer rule both tormented me today.

One of those items was a watermelon. Does it bug you too that you often have to guess whether the melon you pick to buy is ripe and sweet because the melons are not cut and not available for sampling? I end up tossing the melon in the trash when it is not sweet, and there is no possibility of returning the melon to the store and getting a refund. Melons are like the human brain. What you have is yours. Refunds are not allowed. I got a bad melon today.

Another little thing that bugged me today was my car traversing potholes that were just created by a home builder. When houses are built today the construction equipment can be exceedingly heavy, beyond the legal weigh limit load,. But the builders use that heavy industrial equipment, which causes cracks and potholes in the road. I wonder why the local police don't ticket the builder to make him repair all the potholes he created.

That's just a small part of my day. No wonder I am going crazy!

Donuts

What's happening to my donuts! (I am showing outrage because as a card-carrying male, I know that donuts are sacred.) You know, the simple fried dough with a sugar glaze. National Donut Day was held the other day and a look at the donut case shows a lot of unfamiliar flavors. They are killing the donut with variations. The now sell donuts with additions like Sichuan peppercorn-laced icing, piping in foie gras, and  bacon on top. That's not a donut it's a stomach ache.
The top donut flavors according to donut shops are traditional one. Number one is the glazed yeast donut, number two is the chocolate glazed cake donut and number three is the cream filled chocolate iced donut. I am doubtful if it's possible to define what makes a good doughnuts, given all the varieties and flavor preferences out there There are glazed people and raised doughnuts people. There are  maple bar people (I hate those) and apple fritter people (my favorite donut). But beside all of that, I think a truly great doughnuts will have a few all encompassing traits.
First, it should be sweet. Donuts that are not sugar rushes are imitators. The aroma should be powerful, the interior soft and the exterior slightly crunchy. It frosted it must be frosted lightly. Too much frosting is like putting Ketchup on steak. It ruins it. The flavor is best when ti is distinctive. Bad donuts taste like other donuts. Good ones make you remember  and crave them.
The origin of donuts is unknown. Even the Smithsonian Museum says they are not sure who started to make today's style donuts. Most people credit the Dutch with staring it and the Americans with popularizing donuts. But every culture has either today's style donut or some variation. The best are made with wheat flour. The rest are dry imitations. Have your self a donut today. You deserve a piece of heaven.

A Victory For Reason Over Climate Hysteria

Bravo to President Trump for pulling the U.S. out of that awful, political "climate change" agreement President Obama promoted and engineered to win favor with his leftist constituency. The  2015 agreement among 196 nations said that, beginning in 2020, some nations would institute policies for,  "Holding the increase in global average temperature to well below 2 degrees C above pre industrial levels" They evidently are punking us by pretending that humans can change climate, or they realize how uninformed the citizenry is in this age of fake media and uninterested constituents. But then the plan is voluntary, meaning few countries will follow the agreement they pledged to try to achieve.

Now for the real reason that the phony climate change accord was implemented; right from the agreement itself. "To help developing countries switch from fossil fuels to greener sources of energy and adapt to the effects of climate change, the developed world will provide $100 billion a year." (too, the giveaway amount will increase every year of the agreement) Nice incentive for the underdeveloped world to agree since they get $100 billion each year for pretending to "save the planet" by the goal to reduce planet temperature by 2 degrees C. And where does the 100 billion come from? It's mostly from the suckers of the world, the U.S., Canada and Western Europe. The world's biggest polluter for example, China, has no responsibility at all in this agreement and can keep using its dirty coal until 2030. India number three in "carbon footprints, also can go on doing energy their own way and will be rewarded for it financially.

The agreement was little about climate and all about economics. U.S. taxpayers give billions to countries that pollute and U.S. companies sell those polluters gadgets and "clean" energy that is paid for with that tax funds that the gullible U.S. citizens give away. What a scam! If the industrial nations really believe that humans control climate and that we need to save planets, they would advocate for what environmentalists hate most, real clean fuel; that is, natural gas and nuclear generated power. It's clean and economically sensible. In fairness, the Paris Accord does encourage more natural gas usage, to the dismay of the crazy leftist environmentalist lobby. But, outside of the oil and gas companies that supply it, there is too little profit to be made off  the world's taxpayers to burn clean fuel that way. But to sell wind power, solar and the rest of what is way to inefficient and costly to be feasible.

The Paris Accord of 2015 is an economic transfer of wealth from the wealthy nations to the poorer ones. It has nothing to do with changing climate, which is something humans can't do anyway. It is imaginary in that it is not binding on any nation that signed it. Too, many signature nations do nothing but hold out their collective hands to receive the money the western nations hand them. Well, they did have to pretend they were "saving the planet" by taking those bribes.

 The whole climate change hysteria is sad, but the media and politicians see the public has been horns waggled into believe it. So you will see and read many pronouncements about how evil it is to not participate in the Paris Accord, how we humans are what changes climate. Perhaps before commenting on the subject you should read the Paris accord agreement (https://unfccc.int/files/essential_background/convention/application/pdf/english_paris_agreement.pdf) and do research on the genesis of the global warming religion to judge it from your own viewpoint. But few of the advocates of climate change theology would ever need to do that. their favorite Hollywood celebrity gives them all the information they need. That warms me more than any carbon fuel used today.

96 Year Old Memories

I was in a book store today and briefly chatted (I always chat with strangers who are willing) with a 96 year old man. What an interesting gentleman to speak with. It seems he is physically able to drive his own car and live without assistance. What was most remarkable about him was his mental acuity. The fellow was quick thinker, completely aware of past and present events in his like and in others. His memory was like that of a man 20 years old. Is the good gene effect that powerful in preserving the human mind? Perhaps.

We somehow stumbled into conversation about WW II., he telling me he joined the army in 1940, as W.W. II had begun. I suggested he record an oral history of what he experienced in the war. But he seemed to think he was not important or interesting enough to bother. What a shame.

When I asked him his role in the war he related that he spent many months in combat in Europe, though he was not involved in the D Day invasion of France. This man was a contemporary of my late father, who also participated in W.W. II (My father was a cryptographer in Northern Africa who was involved in breaking German General Rommel's code, which when the information was given to British Air Force, precipitated the bombing and destruction of Rommel's German Tank Panther regiments, who were in Africa securing oil needed by the German army). We talked about the war, his life in Oregon and assorted topics that come up when strangers chat.

That engaging man was a living history to me, a link to my own father. It's interesting how a chance encounter has me flashed back to my father, my memories of him so vividly brought forth now. I wonder if that 96 year old man has any family left, what he thinks of the world as it is as opposed to what it as in 1940. One thing younger generations do too much is to erase any connection to the past. They are so busy with the present that they forget the past. it is unfortunate because one can never understand today without an understanding and connection to the past.

Ninety six year old's like that gentleman are important to us all. But how many younger people realize or care about that?