Chaos versus Chasm

It is a dirty damn shame that we are faced with the choice we have for our upcoming presidential election.  Both national parties have conceded control of their organizations to elements, both collective and individual, that simply do not have the welfare of our nation and government foremost in their minds.  When the domestic and global need for sound, principled, and strong American leadership is so great…we must choose between TwiddleMe (Trump) and TweedleDumDum (Harris). 

 

As time goes on, it becomes more and more painfully apparent that Donald Trump is incapable of venturing outside of his egocentric universe.  This man has such a high opinion of himself that he instinctively filters out all advice and counsel that might come his way; regardless of its value and presentation.  In his mind, he obviously feels that offering himself for the presidency is a gift to the Republican Party and the American people.   He is not interested in being a man of the people.  He is not interested in being a statesman.  He is not interested in working with opposing parties in a fashion that results in sound and productive compromise.  For him, it is the ultimate gift to give himself over to running for public office.   As far as he is concerned, he will always be the smartest one in the room and he simply cannot fathom having someone give him directions that do not originate within his own mind.  He is the only politician I can think of who can come close to rivaling Obama for being a self-indulgent egomaniac.

 

Donald Trump will never be the leader of the Republican Party.  Oh, he may be the titular head of his organization due to the fact that he holds the highest political office; but he will never be the universally-supported, acclaimed leader of the Republicans for one simple reason: He will never put the Party ahead of Himself.  Trump has failed two major tests that would have disproven that statement.

 

His first colossal cave to self-importance is when he was confronted with losing his last presidential race.  Rather than focus his energies on the time before the outcome, he instead became serious after the outcome was determined.  By then, the ballot drop-boxes had been emptied and the cemetery ballots had been counted.  The horses had left the barn.   Rather than taking his lumps and learning from his errors, he continued his infantile election steal rant and helped the Republican Party lose Senate control in the post-election Georgia Senate races.  Senate control meant nothing to Trump; it was simply all about him.   Just imagine how much of the Biden Administration damage to America might have been prevented had the Republicans held the Senate at that moment.

 

His next exhibition of self-indulgence occurred in the September 10 debate with Harris.  Faced with the opportunity to deliver a serious coup de gras to his presidential opponent by demonstrating a small degree of self-control and humility; he instead gave in enthusiastically to the baited trap of once again re-litigating the last presidential election and glorifying the January 6 WDC protests.  Even though a small sacrifice of self-effacement might have easily tilted the election his way and exposed Harris for the bubblehead that she is, his monstrous ego could not tolerate even the hint of ridicule or question.  His self-image was more important to him than the critical task of removing the Democrats from the White House.  

 

Kamala Harris is an empty vessel.  I doubt that this woman has ever had an original thought or notion.  It does not take a blowing wind to change her mind; a gentle breeze will do just fine, thank you.  She is not bound by principle, or belief, or conviction, or even instinct.  She is not even a chameleon; because a chameleon actually controls their visible changes.  Harris is not a source of her shifts; she is the personification of someone or something else changing her existence.  She has found her perfect niche as vice-president to a man who seeks nothing from her and expects even less.  It suits her well to flit about in a meaningless public office frolic that is detached from responsibility, accountability, and substance.   If she is victorious in November, her presidency will likely be conducted in the same fashion.

 

This November, America will be faced with a ballot for president that simply does not offer a good choice.  How do you choose between the poor offerings put before you? 

 

If Trump is elected, he will govern per his own instincts.  Given the fact that he has already served one term as president, it is patently ludicrous to imagine that he will entertain anyone’s opinion other than his own in regards to leading our government.  He will have many good people to choose from to populate his administration…but how many will be willing to serve under his rule or be able to function in that environment?  If he is elected and enjoys a Republican Senate and House, will that Congressional leadership be sufficiently independent to serve as a governor on his lesser instincts?  Based on his prior term as president, we can only expect that his return to the White House would usher in four years of mostly-positive policy with a healthy mix of chaos blended in.  By and large, his policy instincts were sound.  By and large, he is still an arrogant ass.

 

If Harris is elected, she will be a marionette in the same vein as her mentor and predecessor Joe Biden.  She will be a useful idiot for the liberal progressives who now run this country.  She is an empty, bottomless, chasm of nothingness.  She has never accomplished anything of merit and seems not to be motivated by opportunities to accomplish anything of substance.  Is there anyone out there who honestly believes that Kamala Harris has anywhere near sufficient gumption to mitigate or overcome the radically-woken elements that have been calling the shots for President Joe Biden?  It is easy to see a president Harris approaching the presidency similar to the way she approached the vice-presidency.  She could allow other, more agenda-driven operators to steer her administration through a four-year period that would ultimately serve as a third sequel of Obama’s Hope and Change odyssey.   Obama had the vision and broke the ice with his ideology.  Biden took it a good leap forward with the implementation of that vision through extraordinary executive actions.  Given the opportunity with vacuous Kamala Harris as president, is it really so difficult to see where the next four years would take this country with essentially the same leadership in place that we’ve had for the last four?

 

As a conservative Independent, I personally believe that the potential upside to Trump greatly exceeds the relatively certain downside of Harris.  I get no joy from saying that; but it is what it is.  I am worried that the poor quality of our presidential timber is overshadowing a concern that should be of equal, if not greater importance.  That concern is…who will rule our Congress?  Whether it will be President Trump or President Harris…critical administration nominees and appointees (think SCOTUS) will still need to acquire Senate confirmation.  If nothing else, President Joe Biden has clearly demonstrated the catastrophic harm that can be done to our government in short order when it is seeded throughout with radical and incompetent ideologues.  Regardless of who wins the upcoming presidential race, a Republican Senate is absolutely critical to the health and well-being of our nation. 

 

And if you are willing to accept the fundamental need for a Republican Senate, then we should not be misled by the false promises of how a divided Congress might lead to Kumbaya bipartisanship and a new era of meaningful legislative action.  Given the gigantic divide between our two national parties and their leaders, a divided Congress will lead to nothing…actually, less than nothing is more likely.  Therefore, I will submit that the most critical choice in the upcoming election is not the Executive Branch decision, but rather the Legislative Branch decisions. 

 

Republican congressional control will serve as a mitigating force on a tempestuous Trump Administration.  It would also serve as a critical firewall to contain and limit the constitutional damage that would be generated from a Harris Administration.  So as entertaining, dismaying, disappointing, and depressing as our upcoming presidential contest might be; it would be wise indeed for all voters to think seriously about those down-ballot Senate and House races and how they might serve as an all-important stabilizing influence for the foreseeable future.  Now let’s move on to the news of the day.

 

All things “Upcoming Election”:

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/07/the-constitution-stands-in-their-way-so/

 

https://americanmind.org/salvo/make-america-an-asylum-of-liberty-again/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/04/the-structural-advantages-of-democrats/

 

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/presidential/3136925/battleground-ballots-2024-election-test-raft-new-voting-laws-michigan/

 

https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/elections/battle-over-ballot-drop-boxes-states-municipalities-seek-ban-them

 

https://thefederalist.com/2024/09/05/nv-county-official-forced-to-investigate-dirty-voter-rolls-in-recent-election-integrity-win/

 

https://www.tabletmag.com/feature/broken-ballots-american-voting

 

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/3141730/only-americans-should-decide-american-elections/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/05/the-media-lies-add-up/

 

All things “Harris/Walz”:

 

Economy…

 

https://committeetounleashprosperity.com/research/majority-of-biden-harris-appointees-have-zero-years-of-business-experience/

 

https://www.nationalreview.com/2024/09/the-tax-lady-cometh/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/03/how-harris-and-khan-are-planning-a-department-of-groceries/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/05/donald-trump-and-kamala-harris-too-its-still-the-economy/

 

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/finance-and-economy/3145057/economy-added-142000-jobs-in-august-the-key-facts-and-figures/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/10/team-harris-crazy-kill-the-messenger-rental-housing-price-control-lawsuit/

 

Foreign Policy…

 

https://victorhanson.com/the-biden-harris-world-is-afire/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/06/with-the-november-election-looming-biden-officials-are-suddenly-condemning-hamas/

 

https://nypost.com/2024/09/03/opinion/feckless-biden-and-kamala-have-thrown-israel-to-the-wolves-with-their-ignorance-and-betrayal/

 

https://www.nationalreview.com/2024/09/hamas-must-pay-for-murdering-an-american-hostage/

 

https://americanmind.org/salvo/bidens-catastrophic-exit-from-afghanistan/

 

“Open Borders” and Immigration…

 

https://thefederalist.com/2024/09/04/democrats-want-to-keep-the-u-s-border-wide-open-as-an-electoral-strategy/

 

https://anncoulter.substack.com/p/another-lie-biden-is-deporting-more

 

https://mrctv.org/blog/craig-bannister/nyc-police-blame-biden-harris-govt-policies-migrants-accounting-75-arrests

 

Harris/Walz in General…

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/06/the-2024-democrat-presidential-ticket-that-was-twenty-years-in-the-making/

 

https://americanmind.org/salvo/harris-and-walz-dont-think-much-of-voters/

 

https://freebeacon.com/columns/the-harris-mystique/

 

https://thefederalist.com/2024/09/06/harris-and-walz-avoiding-the-press-isnt-a-savvy-campaign-strategy-theyre-just-cowards/

 

https://reason.com/2024/09/03/when-bidens-bubble-wrap-burst/

 

https://jonathanturley.org/2024/09/04/that-has-to-stop-harris-denounces-unfettered-free-speech-in-2019-cnn-interview/

 

Yes Virginia…there is life beyond politics:

 

The international trade and foreign ownership dynamic is complex: https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/04/business/us-steel-nippon-steel-chances/index.html

 

Never forget how important education is to our future: https://www.jamesgmartin.center/2024/09/restore-the-science-section/

 

Parents…do you know who is teaching your children?

https://jonathanturley.org/2024/09/11/the-moment-where-american-democracy-doesnt-survive-brown-university-professor-runs-movement-trashing-the-constitution/

 

The top law enforcement individual and department in our government is a freaking joke; controlled and populated by a bunch of clowns…dangerous clowns: https://www.nationalreview.com/podcasts/the-mccarthy-report/sheer-gaslighting/

 

Inflation is insidious and hits the most vulnerable among us the hardest.  It is so difficult to find an article that discusses it seriously.  Here is one: https://reason.com/2024/09/07/how-inflation-breaks-our-brains/

 

A somewhat closer look at Republican VP nominee J.D. Vance: https://jewishworldreview.com/0924/zito090424.php

 

The Global Dynamic of Good vs. Evil

The most recent episode of barbaric evil perpetrated by Hamas on the American-Israeli hostages serves as a painful reminder that evil does exist in this world, it is both present and potent, and it will not go quietly into the good  night.  The hostage slayings will be addressed later in this piece, but for now…just a comment or two on evil.

 

In America today, it is not uncommon for our political factions to label each other as evil.  I think this is an unfortunate and exaggerated overstatement.  In fact, it is perhaps the case that the words evil and hate are the most misused and overused words in our daily vocabulary.  Both words fall easily off the tongue when we allow ourselves to get worked up over something we feel strongly about.  But to me, these words should represent the epitome, the last resort, the ultimate description of the things or actions we are labeling.  They should be reserved…held in abeyance for the most terrible things.

 

As are many boomers and old school advocates, I am perpetually offended by the common use of the f-bomb in our culture and society.  I am not a prude or an innocent; I am far too generous with my own obscenities.  But there are times when it seems to me that there is a specific number of f-bombs that must exist in an episode or movie and if that number is not reached upon completion of the production, then they simply go back through and sprinkle a few more to meet the quota.  I am convinced that as a whole, we as a people have become quite desensitized to many practices that simply do not reflect our better qualities and judgments.  And while older citizenry becomes desensitized, our younger citizenry is organically immersed into them and simply accept them as common behavior.  This is not a good thing.  We certainly do not want to become desensitized to evil and hate. 

 

The terms evil and hate should be reserved for things like the holocaust, the killing fields of Cambodia, the genocidal wars in Africa, serial killers, pedophiles, the treatment of the Uyghurs in China, the abomination that was…and is…the various forms of slavery throughout the world, the atrocities of the wars that are all too common across our globe, and…to bring it current…the actions of Hamas in the Middle East today. 

 

Donald Trump, Kamala Harris, and the parties they represent are terribly flawed individuals and their organizations purport and support some truly radical ideas; but as serious as these things are and as consequential as they might be, they should not rise to the extreme emotional level of evil and hate.  Now I must admit that some of the progressive, pro-choice positions on late-term abortions come mighty, mighty close to evil; but I will leave that discussion for another day. 

 

Hate is the fuel that feeds evil.  Hate is the thought that leads to the action.  Good and evil will always exist in this world.  The dynamic that drives this co-existence is the fact that they do not always exist in equal portions, at the same time, and in the same place.  Simply put, this means that in those instances where the advantage tips towards the power of evil, the disparate forces of good in the world must consolidate in order to defeat the evil or…evil will prevail.  Many times, it seems that the trigger that initiates that consolidation is difficult to pull.  Would the holocaust have been stymied had the Nazis not bombed England, brutalized the French, starved the Russians, unleashed the U-boats on American vessels...and brought them all into the conflict?   The trigger was pulled.  How did the genocide in Cambodia and Africa proceed without that trigger being pulled?  Have the nations in the world today reached the point where the only evil that must be repulsed is the evil that enters upon your own border…or your own home?

 

Territorial aggression by one country upon another may not, in and of itself, rise to the level of evil and hate; but history has shown us…and the present reminds us…that evil and hate are inextricably woven into the aspects of territorial aggression and war.  America would not exist today had not France and Spain given our ancestors the resources necessary to win their war for independence.  I will argue that the precious blood of American soldiers should not be spilled in Ukraine; but I will equally advocate that we should give the Ukrainians the resources they need to fight for their own liberty.  Is it expensive?  Hell yes…weapons of war cost lots and lots of money.  But look at the lives we lead today in our homeland and compare that to the daily struggle for simple survival that Ukrainian men, women, and children are facing every single day of their lives.   We worry about the price of gas, bread, and milk.  They wonder if they can even find some gas, bread, and milk.  We grudgingly ship missiles so Ukraine might defend itself, and then dictate where it can and cannot aim them.   Does this make any sense?  Can we not bear, as a nation, the costs to help preserve the ideals of freedom, liberty, and good in this world when the moments arise?  Have we lost the intestinal fortitude necessary to stand up and call out wrongs when we see them?

 

Israel is about 290 miles tall and about 85 miles wide.  Israel is smaller than the state of Massachusetts and about one-fifth the size of my home state Kentucky.   It is fighting for its very survival on three different fronts: Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah on the north, and the Houthis to the south.  The government of Israel is based on essentially the same ideology that is found in our Constitution.   I marvel at people who say Israel is occupying Gaza.  They do not want to be in Gaza.  They want Gaza to exist and simply leave them alone.  They are in Gaza because most of the people in Gaza want to kill them and wipe them from the face of the earth.  Hamas wants to butcher and maim Israelis.  They want to rape Israeli women and daughters.  And here is where the evil comes in…they also rape children, mothers, and grandmothers.  There is no place in Israel that is safe from the attacks of their enemies.  They are fighting for their very survival.  Do we support them?  Yes; half-heartedly.  We give them weapons and then try to dictate how they are used.  We try to steer their policies by withholding essential resources they need to survive.  We employ diplomatic blackmail.  The way the Biden/Harris Administration has treated Israel is a damn shame: https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/david-friedman-joe-biden-benjamin-netanyahu/2024/09/02/id/1178770/

 

I can only think of two words that would lead to a weaker foreign policy, less global respect, and more vacuous American leadership tomorrow than what we have today; those two words are: Kamala Harris.

 

At some point, a call must be made.  At some point, people must stand for something, lest they fall for anything.  At some point, tolerance must be reined in for the cause of principle.  If we as people cannot stand up and recognize the evil that Hamas is committing in the Middle East today, then we as people are not worthy of a future world where the good rules over the evil.  We will have failed the ultimate test.  There are times to rationalize and pragmatize.  There are times to use descriptors that are less volatile than evil and hate.  What we are witnessing in the Middle East today are not those times.  

 

Evil is insatiable.  Its ultimate goal is not victory in individual battles or wars; it seeks total dominion.  It seeks to eradicate any semblance of good.  We ignore the existence and actions of evil in our world at our own peril...and place the future of our children and our nation at risk. 

 

https://www.thefp.com/p/bari-weiss-dark-tunnels-and-moral

 

https://www.commentary.org/john-podhoretz/the-hostage-murders-and-the-new-threat/

 

 https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/joe-biden-hamas-murder/2024/09/01/id/1178689/

 

https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/kamala-harris-warned-israel-of-consequences-if-it-invaded-rafah-where-hamas-just-murdered-an-american-hostage/

 

Recent internet and artificial intelligence advancements represent amazing leaps in technology; but in many ways, they are double-edged swords.  As has been said before…with great power comes great responsibility.  The capabilities of technology seem to have outrun the moral capacity of users to utilize them.  Many of these abilities are easily susceptible to corruptive use.  And being a new frontier, there are many areas where existing law has simply not anticipated the need to regulate activities in these applications. 

 

The perils of censorship have suddenly become a concern that is present and threatening.  A very necessary, and emotional, debate is taking place about how these new-found wonders will be integrated into our culture and society.  Those debates need to be deliberate, transparent, wide-ranging, and substantive.  The discretionary parts of new law and new regulation do not need to be loosely-written and left to the devices of government.  Government is far too subject to corruption and it simply cannot be trusted to wield this extraordinary power over access to the private affairs of individuals.  Any legislation addressing these matters must be definitive and thorough; stating in plain language what is and is not permissible. 

 

https://jonathanturley.org/2024/08/28/zuckerbergs-censorship-admission-is-more-contrived-than-contrite/

 

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/08/zuckerbergs-mea-culpa.php

 

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/08/the-zuckerberg-letter.php

 

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/08/the-zuckerberg-letter-analyze-this.php

 

https://jonathanturley.org/2024/09/02/why-musks-lawsuit-against-media-matters-matters/#more-222970

 

There are two election battles seriously engaged at the present.  One is the contest between Trump and Harris; that one is sucking most of the oxygen out of the room.  The other one that is equally, if not more consequential, is the national battle for election integrity.  That battle is being fought on varied fronts, moving from state to state, and occasionally being addressed at the federal level in WDC.  As never before, these two issues are joined at the hip. 

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/08/27/morning-greatness-texas-clears-1-million-ineligible-voters-from-voter-rolls/

 

https://thefederalist.com/2024/09/02/left-wing-media-malign-ga-election-rules-in-bid-to-make-certification-nothing-more-than-a-rubber-stamp/

 

As I write this piece, it remains an open question as to whether or not there will be a single presidential debate.  While Trump is publicly stating his wishes for three such debates, the Harris team seems to be looking for an escape hatch from committing to even one debate.  The Biden Basement Campaign Sequel featuring Kamala Harris is playing out in real time and it will be quite interesting to see how far it can go and how successful it will ultimately be. 

 

https://www.nationalreview.com/2024/08/questions-for-kamala/

 

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/08/the-bash-paradox.php

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/01/the-committees-candidate-harriss-inconsistent-campaign/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/02/the-ultimate-duping-of-america/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/02/can-they-really-reinvent-kamala-harris-in-70-days/

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/08/29/new-rules-for-radicals-how-to-reinvent-kamala-harris/

 

https://www.nationalreview.com/the-weekend-jolt/why-a-platform-is-poison-for-kamala-harris/

 

Humor Alert!  No one does it better than the Bee: https://babylonbee.com/news/harris-team-asks-if-her-mic-can-just-be-muted-for-the-whole-debate

 

https://justthenews.com/nation/economy/pushback-vp-kamala-harris-tax-proposal-plan-grows-costs-are-counted

 

https://thefederalist.com/2024/08/30/if-donald-trumps-sex-life-is-fair-game-for-the-election-so-is-kamala-harris/

 

Why in the world the Democrats would want to even mention the word Afghanistan is beyond me.  Yet in their obsession to attack all things Trump, they have revived a story they should have avoided.  By instigating the Arlington Cemetery photo controversy, they have unwittingly resurrected for public scrutiny one of the greatest failures of the Biden/Harris Administration.

 

https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/the-biden-administrations-complete-failure-in-afghanistan/

 

https://nypost.com/2024/08/28/opinion/biden-showed-his-true-colors-tanning-at-the-beach-on-the-anniversary-of-his-afghanistan-withdrawal-horror/

 

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/3140754/kamala-harris-donald-trump-and-arlington-cemetery/

 

Nancy Pelosi has allowed her mask to slip a bit and demonstrated a rare moment of complete honesty…belatedly so, but true nonetheless: https://justthenews.com/government/congress/pelosi-expressed-regret-national-guard-wasnt-pre-positioned-protect-capitol-j6

 

Someday, someway, someone will bring some degree of accountability to the mainstream media for their reckless and irresponsible actions over the last couple of decades.  Could that someone be Sarah Palin?

 

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2024/09/the-daily-chart-blue-media-media-blues.php

 

https://www.nationalreview.com/news/appeals-court-grants-retrial-for-sarah-palins-libel-lawsuit-against-the-new-york-times/

 

https://www.jewishworldreview.com/0824/palin_WIN_nyt.php3

 

Lunacy continues to run rampant in the Biden/Harris Administration’s handling of climate and energy issues.  Here are a couple of interesting articles in that area.

 

https://amgreatness.com/2024/08/26/american-natural-gas-is-americas-clean-energy-standard/

 

https://reason.com/2024/08/27/plastics-are-better-for-the-climate/

 

Haven’t talked about it in a while, but there is no area of American life that needs a serious examination more than that of our educational system:  https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/what-went-wrong-with-american-higher-education/

 

I often mention the total disregard and outright disdain that many liberal, progressive Democrats hold for our Constitution.  Here is a perfect example: https://jonathanturley.org/2024/08/30/human-rights-campaign-president-calls-for-rejection-of-the-little-piece-of-paper-of-the-founders/#more-222859

 

As bad as Biden has been, I will still hold to my opinion that Obama was the worst American president in my lifetime…thus far.  No leader has squandered more good will and opportunity than Obama and he threw it all away on the wings of personal ego and vanity.  The eternal irony that will always attach to Obama is the fact that he, being the first black president, did so much to set back and poison racial relations in America.

 

https://freebeacon.com/author/stiles/democrats/barack-obamas-monument-to-himself-is-a-hideous-eyesore/

 

https://americanmind.org/salvo/is-it-okay-to-be-white/

 

When I first saw the headline for this article (speech), I was reluctant to link it.  After reading it, I lost that reservation.  Lest you think the article is racially-insensitive, I suggest you engage in the following exercise.  Read the article once more, only this time, invert the words white and black; that is to think “black” when you read “white”.  If you find one version acceptable while the other version is not, then what might be the logic that drives that type of thinking?  Isn’t it fair to say that true racial equality is quite simply the absence of racial identity?