Autism on the Rise, Polio Waiting in the Wings, and Our Next Stop is Leech Therapy

 I fully believe vaccines cause autism. It's another example of crimes against humanity. And innocent babies, children, and their families are the victims. 

Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-GA

Of course Ms Taylor Greene believes a lot of things. In the past she has blamed wildfires in California on Zionist controlled space lasers. More recently she told anyone who would listen that unknown persons were spying on her through her television set. She knew this she said, because a momentary glitch in her TV allowed her to see one of them at his lap top peering in at her. 

Despite the Congresswoman's vast scientific, technical, and medical knowledge there are many who disagree with her assessments.

An article in Scientific American also addresses autism and why the number of cases world wide, not just the United States is on the rise. First off, the publication notes, "There is no blood test, brain scan, or any other objective test that can diagnose autism---although researchers are actively trying to develop such tests.  Clinicians rely on observations of a person's behavior to diagnose the condition. In other words whether your kid has autism, or not is completely up to the doctor who sees him, or her. You know--the same sort of people MTG and others say are lying to us about the connection between vaccines and autism. 

Then Scientific American tells us what that diagnosis is based on. "The criteria are problems with social communication and interactions and restricted interests or repetitive behaviors. Both of these core features must be present in early development." 

Excuse me, but by those standards practically every kid in the world who hits puberty has it. I mean I'm no more of a medical expert than our little Marjie, or RFK Jr, but that sure sounds like what happens during that weird and awkward time when the hormones kick in.   

In conclusion, the magazine notes, "The rise in the rates (of autism) have sparked fear of an autism epidemic. But experts agree the bulk of that increase stems from a growing awareness of autism and changes to the condition's diagnostic criteria."

That's right you silly sons of bitches, it isn't the vaccines, it's the people diagnosing the fucking condition.  

In the previous century children were considered simply slow, or a little strange, or, more cruelly, just plain dumb. Now parents can tell friends and relatives, "No, it's not my child's fault he isn't doing well in school and he acts withdrawn and odd, he has autism. And it is because of those damn vaccines. That's what Marjorie Taylor Greene says anyway."

Unfortunately for the nation loons like MTG aren't the only ones out there going after vaccines.  Robert Kennedy Jr. will be in charge of the nation's healthcare in a shade over a month. To say he is a vaccine skeptic is to put it mildly. One of his advisors is a guy name Aaron Siri. He isn't a doctor either (none of these hacks are), but rather a lawyer. A while back he petitioned the federal government in an attempt to get rid of the polio vaccine.

Now, there is a reason there are scads of people born after the 1950's have never heard of polio. However, in post WWII America it was perhaps the most feared disease in the land. By the late 1940's and early 1950's it had reached pandemic proportions. Polio had spread so much that those of us who are a certain age can tell you we all knew someone who had it. In fact, practically every school had at least two, or three students roaming the halls on crutches, or in wheelchairs because of it. They were the lucky ones, the survivors.

A man named Jonas Salk developed the earliest vaccine for polio. It not only worked, it worked so well public school districts mandated their students must get inoculated in order to attend classes. In less than a decade a disease which had killed tens of thousands of children and adults and crippled an equal number was for all practical purposes eradicated.   

The other day when the news hit that Siri was RFK Jr's pal people went what can best be described as, ape shit. This was and is insanity taken to the nth degree. Even many republicans were appalled. So much so Bobby Jr had to tell the public not to worry, he was all for the polio vaccine. A statement which is akin to saying he is in favor of people breathing while they're alive. 

And that America is how far down the rabbit hole we have gone. The guy who is going to be in charge of the nation's health just had to reassure people he won't throw out a vaccine which has been effective for nearly three quarters of a century.

Welcome to the 21st century United States. We have freely elected a bunch of carnival barkers who are determined to convince us it isn't science; it's the deep state trying to kill us all. 

Ladies and gentlemen, at this rate our next stop will be the application of leeches.

`12-17-24

Luigi Mangione, America's Latest Celebrity Du Jour

 It appears America has a new folk here. Of course, we are a weird and violent lot. Which partially explains why we elected a convicted felon and known sexual predator as President. So, one can suppose it's understandable why the nation's newest celebrity du jour is currently sitting in a Pennsylvania prison awaiting extradition to New York on charges of murder. 

At first glance, or maybe several, Luigi Mangione hardly seems like the type of guy who morphs into a champion of the lower and middle classes. He is the son of privilege, Baltimore, MD royalty as it were. He attended a prestigious, private, all boys prep school before attending Donald Trump's alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated from both institutions with honors and received a degree in computer engineering from Penn. Since then he held a job, or two, but has lived in places like Honolulu and San Francisco, presumably on his parent's dime. Some time in there, or maybe even before, he started having back problems which reputedly put him in a lot of pain almost constantly.

Although the pain didn't deter him from spending time surfing in Hawaii, it apparently really pissed young Mr. Mangione off. Unlike normal people, he didn't start eating opioids like M&Ms on a daily basis. Instead, on the morning of December 4th Luigi Mangione opened fire on UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson who was entering a mid-town Manhattan hotel. When Mangione pulled the trigger of his 3-D printed weapon, Thompson was walking away from him. In other words, he shot the CEO--a husband and father of two--in the back.

Ah yes, quite the hero. 

At the scene police found three shell casings, each bearing a one-word message. Reports differ some, but most say the words were, "delay, depose, deny."  Even before his name became public it was clear had a cause and a message to send.  That message was equally clear. Fuck big heath care providers!

Indeed, Luigi Mangione might not be a Joe the plumber type, but he certainly hit one of Joe's exposed and raw nerves. No one, except health care provider employees, and perhaps their stockholders, like the corporations in control of American's health insurance. The commonly held opinion, which too many times is correct, being if it comes down to either your health care, or their bottom line, you will become expendable.  So, while Brian Thompson might have personally been a decent man the business he was running is not. For many, no matter if their grievances are real, or imagined, his murder was not a heinous crime, but rather cold-blooded payback, pure and simple.

As of yesterday, a web site collecting donations to help pay for Mangione's legal defense team had collected right at $50,000. Most of the contributions are under $100. Some are accompanied by messages, such as, "As someone who has lost abilities and opportunities due to medical issues I support Luigi 100%. People are stripped of voices and failed by systems that are meant to support us. From the bottom of my heart, thank you." Another read in part, "Karma comes in different ways, sometimes you have to speed up the process. You are not a villain. Keep your head up, kid." The same sort of stories and comments are currently popping up all over social media.   

Since this is the United States it didn't take long for any number of people to figure out there was and is a buck to be made off of the murder of Brian Thompson. All over the internet different sites and companies have begun hawking hoodies, tee-shirts, car decals, coffee mugs and other items which read things like, "Deny, Defend, Depose." Not an exact quote from the shell casings, but then you never know if someone already owns the rights to them--hey, stuff happens fast in this country. Some of the goods have a knockoff of the UnitedHealthcare logo and some of it has the words, "Free Luigi." Amazon had a variety of the merchandise for a while, but has since suspended their sales of it. Other sites are, presumably, doing a brisk business selling frustration, rage, and murderous hatred.

Reports today are that Luigi Mangione never had health insurance through UnitedHealthcare. Brian Thompson's company never, "delayed, deposed, or denied," him anything. The corporate CEO was assassinated because, well, United is really big and the odds are they actually have screwed somebody over lately. Or, as a WWII movie character once said, "There are no good Germans."

That's what someone will say. Right now there is ample evidence there are plenty of volunteer witnesses willing to testify just that.

CBS reports that when Mangione was taken into a Pennsylvania courthouse for his first appearance he shouted to the cameras that his arrest was, "an insult to the intelligence of the American people." 

Sorry pal, but you can't insult something that doesn't exist. As soon as one of those coffee mugs, or hoodies sold we proved it. 

sic vita est

12-13-24

Loyalty Oaths by Any Other Name as the Plan Comes Together

 I swear I will be faithful and obedient to the leader of the German Reich and people, Adolf Hitler, to observe the law and to conscientiously fulfill my official duties, so help me God.

The oath which was required of every German civil servant between the years 1934 and 1945. 

Those of us who have even a rudimentary knowledge of history--a statedly shrinking number in this country--know how well those 11 years turned out for Germany, not to mention European Jews. Of course there will be some out there who say, "There you go again, comparing Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler. You're just another liberal fear monger Even Bill Maher says Trump isn't a Nazi." 

Yeah, well, Maher might think that, but, then he also agrees with Bobby Kennedy Jr. when it comes to the medical establishment, so his opinion is sometimes, let's say, questionable. The New York Times is reporting that it has talked to at least nine different people who have interviewed for various jobs in the new Trump administration. All of them told the paper that once they got past the early stages of the process (You know, like can they speak English, read, write, use a phone without help) they were asked questions about the January 6th insurrection, their voting records, and the validity of the 2020 presidential election. All of them said that if the answers didn't agree exactly with what Trump has been bellyaching about the last four years, they didn't get the jobs.

In other words, anyone who said the events of January 6th and the violence who accompanied it were bad things plus those who even hinted Joe Biden really did win the 2020 election were all shown the door. No, it wasn't an actual oath, but it might as well have been one. That's right pal, it's either Trump Uber Alles, or hit the bricks.   

The Independent reports Charlie Kirk is the lead interrogator when it comes to candidates vying for national intelligence and  pentagon positions. Kirk's main qualification for the spot seems to be he is co-founder of Turning Point USA and a media personality. His lack of military and intelligence is apparently outweighed by his status as a MAGA, "influencer," and his complete fealty to the incoming, Leader. Such is the make up of Donald Trump's transition team. 

Back in March of this year Trump had posted on social media that  members of the January 6th Congressional committee which investigated the attempted coup, "should be prosecuted for their lies and, quite frankly, TREASON!" At the time Trump apologists tried to write off the post as, Trump just being Trump. Sunday on NBC he spoke about the committee again, saying, "Everybody on that committee...for what they did, yeah, honestly, they should go to jail." 

Well it would seem Trump is still, being Trump. Now, though, he has nominated just the woman and man for the job, Pam Bondi and Kash Patel. And thanks to people like Charlie Kirk and Don Jr. we know neither of them will be queasy when it comes to ignoring things like, free speech and the Constitution of the United States--their complete loyalty to him is assured.

Former GOP Congressman, Adam Kinzinger, who served on the committee was defiant, at least for now. He wrote, "Bring it on." Then added Trump was, "re-writing history and playing the victim." The only other republican on the committee, Liz Cheney accused Trump of an, "assault on the rule of law and the foundations of our republic." 

That's brave talk, especially since the American electorate just demonstrated they whole heartedly approve of Donald Trump's assaults the rule of law and foundations of our republic. Hell, they like it when he does. It's why they voted for the son of a bitch in the first place, for God's sake. 

Yes, Donald John Trump really is planning to go on an all-encompassing, "Revenge Tour, 2025."  Right now, as we approach that day, he is putting together his version of the fictional, "A-Team," to successfully pull it off. 

And as these words are being typed, Donald Trump must be down at Mar A Lago, thinking exactly what, the leader of the A-Team, Hannibal Smith, said to the cameras almost every episode. "I love it when a plan comes together." 

12-9-24 

You Are Who Dr. Gina Says You Are...No Matter What

 Now that the American electorate has embraced all its racial and ethnic phobias it hasn't taken long for the right wing media machine to exploit them. The latest example comes from one, Gina Louden, PhD. She goes by the moniker, Dr. Gina during her various media appearances. (I blame my old Jr. High classmate, Phil McGraw for all this Doctor/first name shit.) Louden's primary media residence is a far right cable TV network, Real America's Voice. where she hosts, "Dr. Gina Prime Time." 

The other day she let her audience in on what she thought of the recent movie release, "Wicked." It is a film adaptation of a successful Broadway musical and a prequel of sorts to the, "Wizard of Oz." It' also happens to be a box office smash which Gina Louden's career is not. (Oh, please. Will everyone who has ever heard of, "Dr. Gina Prime Time," or the network, "Real America's Voices," raise their hands now.)

Louden told her viewers, "I saw it, but I was very excited at the idea of seeing the interrelation of this. But I should have known it's Holly-weird. I should have known they'd try to make it woke in the ways they could think of. Let's just start with the fact that they have Ariana Grande, who is obviously Hispanic playing a ditzy blonde white really villain when it comes right down to it, for this particular movie. The racism and the racial appropriation, I just thought was offensive, frankly."  

First things first. Now we know why Gina Louden's gig is on a place called, "Real America's Voices." Eloquence is not her strong point. In fact, it appears the English language in any form isn't either. Be that as it is, she did touch on a pillar of America's modern racist theology. That white Americans are the victims in the age of wokism. That a vast cabal of liberal elites are out to obliterate white culture--whatever that might be. In other words, the fears and racism of white people are justified because The Others are out to get them. And while that list of Others is a really long one, suffice it to say we can generally boil it down to everyone who didn't vote for Donald J. Trump.

But we digress. It didn't take long for the responses to come flooding in. Many pointed out that, as the fans of Ariana Grande (full name, Ariana Grande-Butera) already knew, the singer/songwriter/actress isn't, "obviously Hispanic," at all. She was born in Boca Raton, FL and she, her parents, and her brother are all Italian-American. Her ancestors were Sicilian and Abruzzese. That puts her family a little over 1,700 miles away from Spain, the nearest, "Hispanic," outpost. 

Normally an oops would be appropriate, however it's highly doubtful Gina Loudon is interested in such details. Hell, she might have even known Ariana Grande is of Italian descent. What we do know for sure is Louden was convinced her audience didn't know. And that's what counts. Grande sounds Hispanic to the average tone-deaf American ear and those fuckers are pouring across the border willy=nilly. They are everywhere and they are, as Donald Trump says, poisoning the blood of the nation.

Plenty of people have spoken about Gina Louden's racial and ethnic stupidity. But, since she's MAGA through and through she will never acknowledge her mistake, at least not publicly. She will just move on to the next perceived grievance her audience wants to use as an excuse to revel in their racism. The yokels who watch her show will never see any news which shows how wrong Louden was and even if they did they'll just write it off as more woke lies.  

That's where the nation is at now. It doesn't matter if Ariana Grande is Italian, or not. What matters is what the Gina Loudens of the MAGA world say she is. 

No, it doesn't make any sense, but at this moment it is enough to make me thankful my last name ends in a consonant.  

12-3-24