I sure wish I knew what was happening to our country. So much slop that goes back and forth..who is lying, who is cheating, who is in charge.....a person doesn't know who to believe anymore.

Well, things are not looking good in the Far East.  Japan is now making noises about war.

As North Korea missile threat grows, Japan lawmakers argue for first strike options

https://www.yahoo.com/news/north-korea-missile-threat-grows-japan-lawmakers-argue-091140657--finance.html

North Korea is a prime example of how politicians and diplomats can let things fester for literally years until something has got to give.  I think back to not only Democrats but Republicans have screwed things up.  We have let a two-bit idiot dictator get away with literally murder and criminal acts.  Remember when the wanna-be carpenter Carter inserted himself into the mix some years back and Clinton just let him.

I make a prediction.  If the little dictator gets one of his missiles developed to where he can hit the West Coast, he will hit us with one of his Atomic weapons.  Iran and North Korea are in cahoots, and will do everything possible to do us harm.

And to top it all off, Obama's secret army is doing everything possible to bring Trump down.  God help us.

Where is your god when it comes to help?  Is he in charge as
was mentioned some time ago?

Evil men are at work in our republic.  A Democracy cannot long exist, especially when it is a Christian theocracy.  I no longer
feel equal and free.  I feel persecuted and left out.
All the demonstrations show how unpopular Trump's hate-filled
administration has become in just a short time.

Yeah, right Fran.  I can see how much you are persecuted by the believers.
And with George Soros and Obama's groups demonstrating at the drop of a dollar.  Get real.

Ray, Trust.....trust in what you truly believe it. God hears all prayers. When we don't get the answer we pray for, we don't give up. There are so many answers..."not now", "wait", and sometimes it is "No".

I'll dance, but not to your music.  That is the problem that most
of you do not see.  You keep insisting that we all dance to your
music--an old tune some 2,000 years old.

There are many new tunes from science--wake up.  There is'
a horrible new political tune now being played that all
Republicans refuse to dance to.

For all Democrats:

https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4351026/clinton-1995-immigration-sotu

Ike said "Beware of the industrial-military complex."  How right he
was.  See it happening in DC now with cuts to other areas.
Where is Trumpcare to replace Obamacare?  It leaves many
people at the mercy of the insurance industry and their premiums
most cannot afford.

Thank you GW Bush for opening Pandora's box in the Mideast

My son, who is self employed, will have to pay 10,000 in insurance this year under Trumpcare, even if he never has  to use it. This is the pits!
SCFSue

Sue, I wasn't aware any insurance but Obamacare was available.  When did the Republicans pass health care insurance?

Trumpcare is simply canceling out Obamacare and forcing people to
find their own insurance from the insurance industry at high premiums.

Evidently he never had a plan to replace Obamacare to begin with.

Did he even have a plan for the office to which he was elected?

Ray, How can you make any statement re: Trump's healthcare at this time. NO Bill has been passed. Right now it seems to be in the talking phase. Republicans should do as the democrats did. Vote then you can read the bill!!   

How close are we to war with North Korea.  Things are heating up to white hot in the region.  I am wondering if China is willing to let the little idiot dictator start a nuclear war?  And if he does, will Iran jump in on North Koreas side and blast Israel.

Hal, I do hope we do not enter any war. What does it ever solve ?

I know nothing about health care ...obamacare or otherwise. I have my own private insurance policy with a noted company, so should I be disturbed about all the hoorah in health insurance ?

June, I would keep an eye on your "private" company!

Diglady, I have United Health Care. Should I be concerned

Many of the biggies pulled out of the Arizona market and left people stranded.

June, war never solves anything--RIGHT.  Why were we in Vietnam?
Why Pres. Bush's war in Iraq stirring up the entire Middle East?

Had enough of Dictator Trump's government?  No transparency in the
budget as his cabinet is to keep MUM on this item of his presidency.

What about his business involvement with Russia and Turkey which is
under the control of his sons?  I thought he was to divest himself
of control of his business involvement.

When you have had enough of God's choice for president and the
move to a Christian theocracy from a secular republic, let me know.
Public education is at risk, in order to dumb down the children
instead of giving them a secular, scientific education.

RAY, 
Why were we in Vietnam? I have no idea. I had nothing to do with it.

Why Pres. Bush's war in Iraq stirring up the entire Middle East? Again, I have no idea. Do you?

Had enough of Dictator Trump's government?  No. Pres.  Trump has only just begun.

What about his business involvement with Russia and Turkey which is
under the control of his sons? His sons are not the President, any more that my sons are house wives.  

Christian theocracy. God is not a deity. He is God, Deity, if you prefer. Creator as I prefer. This is not "our" world, it is a creation of God that we have the privilege to abide in.

Chew on my reply Ray, I will be interested in what you think of my answers. I am content with me, are you content with you ?

Well the slimy Obama administration has been caught with their hand in the cookie jar.
I know we want see any of them punished nor more than likely will some of you, who read or watch only the main stream media, likely see this any where else.  Also, please note the reporting who wrote the article, the reporter who Obama and his gang wiretapped.

Potential 'smoking gun' showing Obama administration spied on Trump team, source says
By James Rosen

Republican congressional investigators expect a potential “smoking gun” establishing that the Obama administration spied on the Trump transition team, and possibly the president-elect himself, will be produced to the House Intelligence Committee this week, a source told Fox News.

Classified intelligence showing incidental collection of Trump team communications, purportedly seen by committee Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and described by him in vague terms at a bombshell Wednesday afternoon news conference, came from multiple sources, Capitol Hill sources told Fox News. The intelligence corroborated information about surveillance of the Trump team that was known to Nunes, sources said, even before President Trump accused his predecessor of having wiretappedhim in a series of now-infamous tweets posted on March 4.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/03/23/potential-smoking-gun-showing-obama-administration-spied-on-trump-team-source-says.html

Perhaps you should look at the "evidence" before jumping to conclusions.  Fox News is not the most reliable news source.

Sue

P.S. My local very conservative newspaper has a different slant on this "news" this morning. 

Read:  "they EXPECT a smoking gun"  and I keep asking show me
the evidence.  Guilt by innuendo--that is Fox News style.

Yes Ray, for goodness sakes, you would deny it even Obama admitted he did it.

Food for thought, received in my email......



    Conundrum. 

     
    Free people are not equal.  Equal people are not free.   (Think this one over and over…makes sense!)       
     
    "A gun is like a parachute.  If you need one, and don't have one, you'll probably never need one again."   
     
     
    The definition of the word Conundrum is:  something that is puzzling or confusing.   
     
    Here are 6 Conundrums of socialism in the United States of America:
     
     
    1 America is capitalist and greedy - yet half of the population is subsidized.       
     
    2 Half of the population is subsidized - yet they think they are victims.       
     
    3 They think they are victims - yet their representatives run the government.       
     
    4 Their representatives run the government - yet the poor keep getting poorer.       
     
    5 The poor keep getting poorer - yet they have things that people in other countries only dream about.       
     
    6 They have things that people in other countries only dream about - yet they want America to be more like those other countries.       
     
    Think about it! And that, my friends, pretty much sums up the USA in the 21st Century.   Makes you wonder who is doing the math.       
     
     
    These 3 short sentences tell you a lot about the direction of our current government and cultural environment:       
     
    1. We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners
            by the actions of a few lunatics.       
     
    Funny how that works. And here's another one worth considering…       
     
    2. Seems we constantly hear about how Social Security is going to run out of money.  But we never hear about welfare
    or food stamps running out of money!   What's interesting is the first group "worked for" their money, but the second didn't.       
     
    Think about it...and Last but not least:       
     
    3. Why are we cutting benefits for our veterans, no pay raises for our military and cutting our army to a level lower than
            before WWII,  but we are not stopping the payments or benefits to illegal aliens.   
     
     
     
    "If you do not take an interest in the affairs of your government, then you are doomed to live under the rule of fools."
            - Plato

     

Currently we are living under fools.  Hurrah for the Mar-a-lago Act.

Prez, let us see the White House logs and the Southern White House.
Let's see if their are any Russian visitors.

People are relying too much on the Press, which is insanely trying to out-do one another in scaring us half to death.

Dear June:

I must disagree with your assertion. People are NOT relying too much on the press. They are turning to the press to learn what is happening around the nation and in our government. This is normal and good. The citizenry should be knowledgeable of the actions of its politicians and of the wider world around them. Our forefathers intended a free press when they wrote its protections into the constitution.

And to ease your worries that the press is out to frighten us, they are trying, rather, to ferret out information that some would keep hidden, and inform us. The world is scary and dangerous, and who knows what will happen where next? No one. That fact alone may be mind-jarringly unsettling, but it is not a reason to hide from the truth and wish only to have "happy news" reported to us. The more we know, the better for us.

I hope you will take my remarks in the friendly spirit they are intended.

Periwinkle, I appreciate your thoughts on the press, though we may not agree, that's fine. That is how we learn from one another. 

In answer to post 414

This is not really a conundrum, just some thoughts put forward based on false premises

Still, let's look at the first two and analyze them.

Free people are not equal, and equal people are not free.

Well, that just doesn't make sense. But it's catchy enough to draw in the unwary.

Hal, if you will lay out your arguments point by point to prove the case, I will try to answer them.

A gun is like a parachute, if you need one and don't have one, you will never need one again. Alternatively, it could happen that if you get into a situation where you think you need a gun, and have one and use it, you'll wish you never had it in the first place.

For that matter, parachutes have been known to fail from time to time, and if that happens with yours, then you won't need one of them ever again either.

Back to the original thought: A gun is like a parachute. Really?

A gun is nothing like a parachute.       
       
A gun's sole purpose is to take a life. A parachute's sole purpose is to protect a life.

On to the six "conundrums" concerning poverty and socialism in the U.S. This list is a gimmick. It depends upon the readers' gullibility.  They must accept the premise that because the first half of the statement is true, the second half will also be true.
1. America is capitalistic and greedy. This is TRUE

Half the population is subsidized. This is FALSE.

More likely, not just half, but nearly all of the population is subsidized in one way or another. There are many, many things that government can do for us that we cannot necessarily do for ourselves. That is why we pay taxes - not just to fund politicians' salaries and pensions, but to provide Social Security, Disability, Unemployment and other needed services.

2. These people feel like they are victims. THEY DO? Who says? I know many people receiving benefits, but I don't know any who think themselves victims, even though some cannot find jobs paying over minimum wage, or have lost their health due to cancer, diabetes, injuries etc. and can't work at all. Instead, they are glad for the assistance received. Most people just keep on doing the best they can without blaming anyone else, and it is unfair on them to parrot these whoppers.

The WPA saved many a family during its day. And I remember paying a dime for lunch and receiving a cod-liver oil pill and a glass of orange juice each morning in Giffin Elementary School at the end of WWII. The result, we kids didn't get scurvy or rickets. Who do you think paid for that? Uncle Sam.

3. Yes, their representatives run the government. That is, if they are doing what they're supposed to be doing. Some don't, but manage to do very well for themselves. This set does not always do so well for their constituents, if they even think about them.

Then there are those terrific Congressmen who really care and are working to make our lives better and trying to make government function as it should. They'll get there but it may take a while and a change of political policies.

I don't know that the poor keep getting poorer. Instead, I would say that they are just having a hard time getting ahead. Not enough jobs for all the would-be workers. Hardly their fault.

True, even poor people in this country have things that other populations could never dream of. In many countries people live with no medical care, no sanitation, poor shelter and little income. Their governments do not work in their interests. Strongmen and dictators are not known to be overly concerned about the needs of their people.

To the next point, not even the most fervent food stamp recipient wants the United States to be more like Africa or Latin America. Who could be so stupid? Where did the writer of this email list get that idea? And why do you believe it?

What they actually want is for us to take note of the way Germany, Sweden, Denmark and a few other more enlightened countries use their tax resources to the great benefit of their citizens. Free education instead of student loan debt, a working health care system instead of medical debt or doing without.

It would also help if we had high-speed rail zipping between our cities, not antiquated rail lines rattling along. And will we ever stop fighting dumb wars on the credit card?

I have thought about this political email, and in all sincerity, decided it's garbage.

Please accept these thoughts in the spirit of friendly debate.