ROBERT BATES CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF VIP PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT

Robert Bates, an Oklahoma volunteer deputy who shot and killed an unarmed black man, saying he meant to use his taser, was rewarded with a trip to the Bahamas. Let's back up first and mention that Bates, a 73-year-old insurance co. executive, allegedly bought his way into the Sheriff's Dept. job with a large contribution to his reelection campaign plus other amenities. It also helped that Bates and the Sheriff were close friends. His training has been questioned but some has now been substantiated, except the fact that he was not cleared to use the gun he shot 44-year-old Eric Harris with on April 2. But the coup de gráce was when Bates pleaded not guilty on Tuesday and asked the judge if he could go on a month's vacation to the Bahamas. Sure, the judge replied, as long as you're back for your next court appearance.

ECONOMY ON THE UPSWING-SO IS OBAMA

Working under almost insurmountable odds, Pres. Barack Obama has brought this country back from the brink with a significantly improved economy. A CNN/ORC poll found recently, "52% describe the U.S. economy as very or somewhat good, while 48% call it very or somewhat poor." These figures are a first for the Obama presidency but were a long time coming due to those odds. First, there has been a hateful Congress that opposed everything the President has done in the last almost seven years. A current example is the opposition of Loretta Lynch for Attorney General; it has taken 165 days and still counting. The other major odds he had to overcome is the massive damage done to the economy by Geo. W. Bush like the financial meltdown, two major wars, home market tanking, soaring oil prices, a shrinking dollar and more.

And what have Republicans accomplished during the Obama administration? Nothing, but confront and repel anything the President did. That's why the GOP Congress has an approval rating of 28%, disapproval of  67%.

MICHELE BACHMANN: WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT

This quote here says it all from one of the looniest people ever to crash the political scene. But she actually topped it exclaiming in a recent MSNBC article that the end is near--the Rapture to fundamentalists--and it is all Barack Obama's fault. Now the President has been blamed for just about everything from ruining the U.S. economy, which was clearly the fault of Geo. W. Bush, to playing footsie with Iran on the nuclear deal. But not causing the end of the world until batty Bachmann claimed the end is near, thanks to President Obama. Here's another of this screwball's quotes, "If we took away the minimum wage -- if conceivably it was gone -- we could potentially virtually wipe out unemployment completely because we would be able to offer jobs at whatever level." But my favorite is, "Our movement at its core is an intellectual movement," talking about the Tea Party. Now that's the laugh of the century.

IS IT ADAM AND EVE'S FAULT PEOPLE ARE GAY?

The Bible says: Lev. 18:22, "You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination." Also: Lev. 20:13, "If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltness is upon them." But Matthew Vines, the president and founder of The Reformation Project and the author of "God and the Gay Christian: The Biblical Case in Support of Same-Sex Relationships" says God created Adam and Eve and then they fell into sin. His claim is gay and lesbian sexual orientation is "a sign of the fall, a sign of human fallenness and brokenness." Further, "having a same-sex orientation is not in and of itself a sin, according to the traditional interpretation, acting upon it is, because the Bible is clear, both in what it negatively prohibits and in what it positively approves." A & E weren't supposed to fall from grace but they did and everything has been mixed up since.

More on this later.

MITCH MCCONNELL THE WISHFUL OBAMA SLAYER

Time to resurrect this clown's comment. Mitch McConnell said in 2010: "The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president." Flash-forward to April of 2015, Obama won a second term and the fruitcake Senator is still on attack. You would think McConnell would learn he's been outsmarted but, then, Republicans don't have this capacity. So what can I do now that I am Senate head again,he asks? Oh, there's Loretta Lynch who wants to be the first female black Attorney General. But President Obama also wants her for AG so no freaking way that is going to happen. And so the dysfunction of the Congress of the greatest country on earth continues under the control of conservatives.

GOD HAS DECIDED POLITICS STINK

While Hillary Clinton is making hay in New Hampshire, Ohio Gov. John Kasich says he will wait and see what the Lord wants. Although Kasich's meaning reflects his decision to run for the presidency, let's examine his exact words. “I’m trying to determine if this is what the Lord wants,” quoted from an MSNBC article. While somewhat self-centered, there is a point here worth examining. I think God could care less whether or not Kasich runs, or Hillary Clinton runs, or any of the number of other Democrats or Republicans in the race. Now, for all you fundamentalists, I am talking about a universal God, so you can either read on or butt out. I think God wants the world to back up and say, we fucked up but we're very sorry, and we won't do it again. And then...not do it again.

MY DAILY LUNACY FROM TEA PARTY EMAILS

I can hardly wait to get to my computer in the morning to open the hair-brained emails from the Tea Party. It is downright comical how these people talk down down to their denizens of warped ideology who haven't the slightest idea they are being hornswoggled. They are constantly asking for money, which should tip off even the dimmest of wits. But it doesn't. Here are some of their hilarious headlines:

• I’m about to reveal something shocking to you.
• We are in the gravest of situations.
• URGENT ALERT FOR TEA PARTY PATRIOTS...
• IT HAS BEGUN. Tea Party Uprising Is Spreading!
• Something serious has happened and I need your help. I really thought long and hard but I have to share it with you.
• I feel as if a jagged knife just ripped through my body and pierced my heart. This was like a punch to the gut that knocked the wind right out of me.

That last one sounds like it came right out of an Abbott and Costello comedy routine. and then they come up with the admonishments of armageddon: 

• Our military is crumbling.
• Obama has your guns and ammo in his crosshairs.
• They feature the clueless Donald Trump.
• They feature Ted Cruz the insurrectionist.

I used to comment on their website and the reactions I got were the greatest collection of illiteracy I have ever experienced. But the highlight of Tea Party accomplishment recently is the election of Joni Ernst to the Senate in Iowa. You have to wonder if we are at the end.

INSURRECTIONIST TED CRUZ AT ODDS WITH FELLOW REPUBLICANS

Ted Cruz says "that the Second Amendment 'includes a right to revolt against government tyranny.'” This Tea Party crackpot is determined to bring this country to its knees with his radical idealism. Adam Winkler, Second Amendment expert and UCLA law professor, says that those passionate over gun rights might espouse this idea but usually not a presidential candidate. It's one of the many reasons Ted Cruz shouldn't be a presidential candidate. In rebuttal, Lindsey Graham says “I think an informed electorate is probably a better check than, you know, guns in the streets.” At the very least, these people are scary. At worst, old crazy Cruz could just drum up enough halfwits to march on the U.S. Capitol. It's time to send all these fruitcakes to the pasture or farther.

THINK PROHIBITION WHEN YOU THINK MARIJUANA

Prohibition of booze didn't work and neither will the constraint of marijuana in the U.S. I don't know if weed has been around as long today as booze was in the '30s when Prohibition was rampant. I remember smoking a joint while still in high school--we called them reefers in those days--and that was over 65 years ago. Dr. Sanjay Gupta on CNN says "It's time for a medical marijuana revolution," but the American public--61% of it--wants it legalized for social use. There are studies that say pot will lead to the use of more dangerous drugs and there are those that declare this will happen only under special circumstances. It's easy to compare liquor with marijuana because the avenue to oblivion, found to be similar in both, tends to produce the same basic results. Nerve cells in the brain are affected and you end up with a high. I'm not going to get into the mechanics of how this works but you can do your own research here on alcohol and marijuana. The point is prohibitionists predicted that demon rum would ruin the country but, although it has taken a few casualties, we are still here and strong.

NRA MEMBERS WANT TRAINING FOR CONCEALED CARRY GUN OWNERS

Requiring firearms training for concealed carry gun owners would be a step in the right direct except the concealed carry law itself should be banned in the U.S. My point is based on one simple fact. In Arizona if you are not a felon and have a warm body you can buy a gun and take it almost anywhere. No training. Yes, these cowboys can walk into the gun shop, purchase a handgun, and then walk around the streets with it brandished in a holster or hidden in a pocket. They claim it is for their safety but what these gun nuts really want to do is play vigilante. There are studies saying concealed carry saves lives but they are years old and even with the decrease in gun violence over the years there are still over 11,000 firearms related gun deaths each year. The sheer number of guns in this country--300 million--makes the idea of letting someone roam the streets with a hidden weapon plain dumb. But as an example of the lack of training that is prevalent, at least in the state of Arizona, two CC greenhorns at the attack of former Rep. Gabby Giffords in Tucson in 2011 attempted to come to the rescue to stop Jared Lee Laughner and almost shot each other. Laughner was stopped by one of the bystanders.

WARREN BUFFETT SAYS SEXUAL ORIENTATION SHOULD BE PROTECTED BY LAW

IMB has warned Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal that he had better back off with this religious freedom crap. But Jindal is running for President and he figures that will cinch the vote of the religious right. But the Guardian said in 2014 that there is "a trend that’s been quietly gathering momentum for years: America is becoming less Christian." And then there is the comment in the IBM article by Warren Buffett that "sexual orientation should be protected by law." There are several signals here being sent by people from all over the spectrum and it would seem that Jindal's is the most out of date. The LGBT community claims some 12.4 million people, which I am sure is outnumbered by the religious right. The question is, how long will it take the pendulum to swing in favor of the freedom of all rights?

SAFEWAY ASKS SHOPPERS TO LEAVE GUNS AT HOME

CONGRATULATIONS! Safeway has done what the Kroger stores have refused to do: ask customers not to bring firearms into their stores. But Everytown for Gun Safety says that Safeway is already under attack by gun extremists so the food chain needs your support more than ever. Shoppers at Kroger and Fry's, owned by the huge chain, should head over to Safeway now and enjoy the low prices and discounted gas. If Kroger loses enough customers they will be forced to enact a no-guns policy. However, the reason these gun nuts can brandish their weapons in public like this is because of weak state laws re. the ownership and concealed and open carry of guns. Like Arizona, where all you need to own a gun and take it anywhere is a warm body. Think about it. The next time you are selecting your produce, that AR-15 standing next to you could be owned by another Seung-Hui Cho, or an Adam Lanza, or an Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, or a James E. Holmes, or...

HACKERS CRASHING AN AIRPLANE SURE BEATS IDENTITY THEFT

Hackers have been around for some time now doing what they do best; breaking into your personal data then selling it on the Internet underground within a couple of hours. I started posting on this over eight years ago in another blog, The Dunning Letter, until I put it on hiatus for Nasty Jack. If you want to take the time I have collected several sites on the subject here. It was a problem then and still is.

But when these same hackers acquire the ability to use new technology to bring down airplanes, that even beats having your bank account emptied by one of these scumbags. It could happen according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. The aircraft you need to worry about are the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the Airbus A350 and A380. It seems these advanced cockpits share the same wi-fi system as the passengers, thus, someone sitting in row 28 with a laptop could hack right in up front and put your flight in a tailspin. This guy could: commandeer the aircraft, put a virus into flight control computers, jeopardize the safety of the flight by taking control of computers or take over the warning systems or even navigation systems.

This is all scary stuff but the study does say pilots have some alternatives, although the article doesn't confirm they are fool proof. I suggest you read the complete piece, here.  

TULSA "FAUX" DEPUTY EPITOME OF FLAWED FIREARMS TRAINING

This guy is probably more qualified to carry a gun than many who do. Robert Bates, the 73-year-old insurance executive turned volunteer cop, supposedly had several hours of weapons training, a claim which is apparently in question now. Bates says he mistakenly pulled his gun, shooting and killing Eric Harris on April 2, declaring that he meant to use his Taser. What is known is that he donated $2,500 to the Sheriff's re-election campaign, plus the loan of vehicles and video equipment. The Tulsa World reported, "Some supervisors at the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office were told to forge Robert Bates' training records, and three who refused were reassigned to less desirable duties." If this is true, how many reckless cowboys are running around out there with the authority to shoot to kill?

More later on weapons training, or lack of, for private gun ownership.

DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CONTENDER NEEDS LGBT COMMUNITY

Hillary Clinton says she supports marriage equality and always has. The LGBT community numbers some 12.4 million people and as a whole they identify with the Democrats. In return Pres. Obama has staunchly supported the group by repealing "Don't Ask Don't Tell;" Ending the Legal Defense of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA); Signing historic hate crimes legislation; Expanding LGBT access to health coverage; Ensuring equality in the government workplace and more you can see here. I know Elizabeth Warren is a strong supporter for LGBTs and definitely has been in the past. Which does the 12.4 million believe? Or do they believe both? One thing we do know is that these folks have seen recent progress that hasn't happened in years. The one thing they cannot afford is losing what they have gained and that means voting for a Democrat.

HEAD OF NRA SAYS WE DON'T NEED ANOTHER TOKEN MINORITY FOR PRESIDENT

Are we now to assume that wacky Wayne LaPierre, head of the National Rifle Assn., is both racist and a chauvinist? His recent comments at the NRA convention in Nashville would infer both. Calling President Obama "demographically symbolic," saying we don't need another of these in the form of Hillary Clinton, places WW right out there with the current crop of conservative crackpots. Of course the gun nuts in the audience cheered him on as we would expect, but I wonder about those NRA members who were there that are more moderate in their beliefs, like favoring background checks for gun purchases? The New York News says he is the "Craziest Man on Earth," and every time he opens his mouth he proves it. It's time that 75% of the NRA membership realizes what a freak the man is and send him packing.

5 NEW STUDIES SAY CONSERVATIVES ARE DUMBER THAN LIBERALS

Liberals are always searching for the reasons that conservatives would do the stupid things they do these days. Five new studies attempt to explain their inadequacies. First, “Bright Minds and Dark Attitudes,” was done by Brock University claims that a low IQ as a child translates into the person being a racist and voting conservative. Two, Fairleigh Dickinson University asked people which news shows they watched, then queried them about current events and their source. Those watching Fox News had the lowest ranking, even lower than those that watched no news at all. Three, researchers at the University of Arkansas found that conservatives were likely to put little effort into their thinking. Four, Kent State University's “Abstract Reasoning as a Predictor of Attitudes Toward Gay Men,” found that, "those with low abstract reasoning ability have a tendency to be homophobic." Five, in the last study performing MRI brain scans on students at the University College in London, they were asked their political persuasion. Results: "liberal students had more gray matter, which would make them smarter."

A Progressive can only deduce that the above is why John Boehner and Mitch McConnell do the stupid things they do and why other Republican fruitcakes go around making the inane statements they do.

THE NRA WOULD LIE IF THE TRUTH WERE BETTER

How many times have we heard this crap from wacky Wayne LaPierre, head of the National Rifle Assn.? “They are coming to take your guns away!” I have been blogging it from the mouth of WW for over five years and Dean Obeidelah of the Daily Beast put it all in a neat package following the recent NRA convention in Nashville last weekend. The man is crazy, well that's my comment for WW, who, as the biggest gun nut of them all has made himself rich through keeping gun manufacturers' sales booming, who, in turn, line the pockets of WW and the NRA. The 70,000 poor souls that attended the Nashville get together on the other hand not only pay their annual dues but kick in extra bucks when the head gun nut scares hell out of them. Pathetic but Obeidelah sees no changes for the near future. Unfortunately I must agree.

ELIZABETH WARREN IS NOT RUNNING BUT...

Although Elizabeth Warren isn't running for President??? she is having a lot to say about what the next Prez should look like. She believes that Washington works well for the lobbyists and their benefactors but not for middle America. She would like to lower the interest rates on student loans and shore up Social Security, and she's still not saying NO to running, rather, she still wants to see who is getting in the race. I have posted on Elizabeth Warren's Progressive credentials before but there will be a need for those liberal followers out there who are not currently voting to get off their duffs in 2016 for her to win. Nate Silver has said Hillary is a sure bet for the nomination but that was then and who knows what's around the corner.

KANSAS DUPLICATES ARIZONA STUPID GUN LAWS

First Kansas Republican Gov. Sam Brownback gutted the state's education system with almost "$45 million in funding for public schools and higher education in his state by March." Now he has just signed a bill into law that "allows Kansas residents over the age of 21 to carry concealed weapons without any permit or training requirements." Do you realize what that means? If I have no criminal record, I can go buy a gun in Kansas that cannot be traced, and walk around the streets with it in my pocket, without the slightest idea of how to use it. In Iowa I could do it if I'm blind. In Arizona I could take it into a bar. ALL LEGAL. Is anyone ever going to realize just how farcical these laws are?

JOHN MCCAIN SECONDED BY LINDSEY GRAHAM UNDERMINES U.S. GOVERNMENT

John McCain and his bootlicker Lindsey Graham have been on a crusade to wreck just about anything Pres. Obama wants to do. The famous flip flopper on immigration is now siding with Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei on the Iran nuclear deal and effectively calling John Kerry a liar in what he presented as a prospective deal. Lindsey Graham says "Go John, Go John." McCain said, “I think you’re going to find out that they had never agreed to the things that John Kerry claimed that they had.” It's time for John McCain to go home to Phoenix and play with his wife's empty beer bottles. As far as Lindsey Graham is concerned, I guess he'll have to call John for direction.

RAND PAUL BLACKBALLED FROM 2015 NRA CONVENTION

APPARENTLY NOT. Poor baby was not invited to Wacky Wayne LaPierre's party at his National Rifle Assn. affair last weekend held in Nashville. Rand Paul and his staff claim it is due to his ties to the National Association for Gun Rights. I don't know which organization is worse. Others were left out like Lindsey Graham and Mike Huckabee but after some sucking up to the NRA, they were invited. It is pathetic when a U.S. Senator and former Governor have to kiss WW's ass to get an invite to his movable feast. However, Paul's snub is not because he isn't a firm believer in the 2nd Amendment. He is. But the gun control advocates have recently announced to new approach to their goals. Where Republican Governors and state legislatures control many states, thus, loose gun laws, the new efforts are aimed at state ballot measures. Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is bankrolling the movement. Watch for a ballot in your state.

DOES HILLARY CLINTON HAVE TO BE MORE PROGRESSIVE FOR 2016?

Hillary Clinton says, well, maybe just that much. Whether or not she decides to move further left, that bunch of loafing Progressives out there who have not been voting had better step up to the plate in 2016 and bring home the White House to Democrats again. Aljazeera America has chastised this voting group for its propensity for staying away from the polls if it doesn't get the exact candidate it wants. This is about as immature as it gets when you consider the results of losing this vote. We now have a Republican-controlled Congress. If you people in this category can look at the shenanigans of a John Boehner and Mitch Mitchell and not start getting in line for the 2016 voting polls right now I guess you never will. Don't know whether it's laziness, or whether it rained that day, maybe you were hungover or some other stupid excuse. How is it that the GOP can rally its people to turn out, conservative to moderate, but Progressives just stay home. If you can't understand what you're doing to this country, you have failed as a liberal.

HILLARY CLINTON DECIDES AND TOP POLLSTER SAYS SHE'S IN

Nate Silver, founder of the website 538 Politics, has taken his place among the political analysts of today due to his methods in computer modeling and the aggregation of polling results. His results stem from the fact that with all the crunching of numbers including demographics, he has a feel for the political scene. So with Hillary Clinton's announcement today that she is running for President, Silver believes she is "likely to win the nomination." She has 27 Democratic Senators endorsing her campaign, far more than any party nominee back to Ronald Reagan. He seals it with the fact these endorsements are coming from the left, center and right of the Democratic caucus. Solid support. Factors for the general election: (1 Obama's popularity when he exits, it is average now: (2 The economy, it's good for now; (3 "The Electoral College And The 'Emerging Democratic Majority,'” and the demographic trends that favor the party. If you're passionate about 2016 I suggest you start following 538 Politics now.

TED CRUZ 2ND AMENDMENT FUNDAMENTALS STEEPED IN OBSOLETE IDEOLOGY

The 2nd Amendment is a divisive part of the U.S. Constitution that should either be modified drastically or repealed. The National Rifle Assn. is in the last day of its 2015 convention in Nashville, TN, and their 70,000 members are there for just the opposite reason; to preserve its sanctity. At least in their eyes. Ted Cruz is trying to help but, as usual, he put his foot in his mouth again. For years opponents of the ritualistic interpretation of the 2nd Amendment by gun nuts have argued, this is not what those guys meant on that day, December 15, 1791. That was then. This is now. Things have changed. Wake up and enjoy modern times. But Cruz elected to dredge up former Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story who did support the 2nd with the enthusiasm of someone proud of his country at a time when vigilance was needed. But that was sometime between 1811 and 1845, hardly a contemporary view of our needs of today. And therein lies the problem of the gun rights movement. Their view of the 2nd Amendment is antiquated and until that changes the shootings and killings will continue.