Attention spans

 I have ADD/ADHD that was diagnosed after I'd spent over 40 years of my life wondering why things just never seemed to get done on time (or done at all, for that matter) and why I remember things that are absolutely trivial while forgetting to mail a check in on time to avoid incurring a late fee or other result.

When the Covid pandemic became something other than a news item, I took notice. I'm 70, I have hypertension and I'm obese by some standards. I am, afaia, in reasonably decent health but deal with chronic pain and, "moderate to severe" osteoarthritis and other joint and spinal issues.

The thought of dying ANNOYS me, a lot. What scares me, though, is dying in a hospital, with lines running in and out of me, struggling to breathe and having no agency to change the situation.

To that end, I try to be reasonably prudent about being around other people--especially without any PPE. I ride buses and shop in relatively busy stores. I go out to have a beer and try to stay the prescribed safe distance (if there is such a thing, indoors) away from other patrons.

Then I go online and see a blurb about a bunch of people getting together to protest the crushing burden of thinking of others and putting a FUCKING lightweight mask on when in gathering places, especially if they're crowded.

A fair number of the people in the photos of such events eschew wearing a mask and are obviously gleeful about doing so, to own teh libz. Idiots.

If I'm still alive when this nonsense has run its course, I will be avoiding the people who made light of this situation or actively fought common sense, 'cuz FREEDUUUUUUUUUMB.

It strikes me that a lot of the people who are kvetching about this being an unwarranted medtech lynching will be the first in line for any monies or free medical care. Hypocrites.

What's in YOUR stocking?

Well, here it is almost the 25th of December and I haven't got anything to bring to the non-existent deities (several of which seem to share the same birthdate and backstory) on this holiest of days (at least since U.S. commercialism and the JEEZUZites kicked their joint venture into high gear). The average U.S. home has $8500 in credit card debt* (I'm doing waaaaaaay better than average--in the wrong direction) x 128M household for a running total of just shy of $1.09T.

The last 1127 days+/- have been, not so much a roller-coaster as a gut wrenching elevator outta control drop into the abyss of humanity's apparently endless supply of piss and vitriol for the less fortunate, the less able and the less JEEZUZy. The outpouring of christian love in the last several decades has kept teams of trauma surgeons, various LE entities and DA's busy with them trying to stem the flow of lavahotburnin'stoopitbatshitKKKrazze that seems to be the operant conditioning for far too many folks who say they share a religion of peace and love--and I'm not even talking about the jihaddists.

I may or may not have more later. I just wanted to see if I could even post anymore.

*   https://www.thebalance.com/average-credit-card-debt-u-s-statistics-3305919

Bread and Circuses



So, I turn on the radio this morning and hear the morning drive-team discussing the Kapernicke Nike ad/endorsement and peoples' reaction to it.

Here's the thing, for me.

If you disagree with his "troublemaking", because it's detracts from your enjoyment--you're a snowflake.

If you think he is doing something anti-USian because he's being critical of the idiotic policy of FORCING PEOPLE to be freedom-loving, flag-worshipping sheep--you don't understand what FREEDOM is.

If you think that he should be silenced--'cuz he's hurting your feelings--and just STFU--you're a racist, a fascist or both.

Stolen from myself--here:

http://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2018/08/26/pope-francis-couldnt-even-give-away-free
-tickets-to-the-papal-mass-in-ireland/#disqus_thread

FULL DISCLOSURE: I am a long time Red Sox fan--they, and every other Sprortertainment
and other place that charges money for people to watch shit should do the same thing that I ask
of the Yankees.

Watch a Yankee's home game and you will almost always see EMPTY seats behind home plate.

I'm told those seats go for up to $5K per. Whether that is true or not, they have to be
very expensive seats.

A Yankees fan I know told me that those seats are sold and technically occupied by persons who
are in the dining room BEHIND them or up on top of the grandstand where they are noshing
on lobster and such delicacies. I wonder if they have a vomitorium?

Also, too, OT:

Open note to the vets and others who come here.

Should there be a #TakeThemOutToTheBallgame for vets who might like to see a game but don't
have the means? There are ALWAYS seats somewhere in the park--regardless published attendance.

So bring some number, 20, 50 whatever who can get there (or be brought there by DAV vans
or other means). And if there are open seats in the luxe boxes--park 'em there.

I know it might mean that some plutocretins would be sitting next to a guy with the Edward
"An IED blew my fucking limbs off" Scissorhands or some fella with an unfortunately misshapen
skull due to something similar*, but like their idol,Trumpligulamygdala, they too, will have to make
some "sacrifices".

* One of my favorite things about the idea!

The Confusion Machine is Being Cranked up again:

The following comment is one I left here:

http://www.ginandtacos.com/2018/06/29/broken/#comments

-------------------------------------------------------

Bernard:

"admit Clinton Fucked up royally or that Bernie would have easily beaten Trump. by a landslide."

You're a lying sack of shit and a troll, do fuck off.

Also, too: Трахни свою мать.*

AllayouotherBernGarJillbroz:

"Now the GOP owns the Supreme Court. Because they get results and are willing to fight dirty to get them. Compared to the Moral Victories that Democratic leaders have been doling out for 25 years, I think most of us would prefer to have the Supreme Court."

But you either voted AGAINST that or just stayed home.

Don't fucking lecture people who WERE paying attention and knew that anything but Hillary winning was going to be a far worse shit show than whatever the fuck you were afraid of.

Show of hands, how many of YOU went out and banged on doors or stood on street corners holding signs in shitty weather or on your day off to help get your progressive candidates on a ballot for November.

Those who didn't participate and still want to bitch? Fuck you.

* Is being VladBroz greeting to their fellow sleeper cell agentz

______________________________________

I'm already seeing long, detailed posts about the perfidy of the DNC (they ARE assholes who would sell their mother's LIVING body for profit) and the uselessness of voting "D" in the upcoming general election.

If you know nothing else about politics in the U.S. you MUST know, by now, that skullfuckery is what the RNC together with whatever group of malefactors (NRA, FSB, PRNK, PRC intel and cash) (White supremacists, outright nazis and fundamentalist KKKristians--to name some, not all of their allies) they are currently using/being used by to get what they want in the short term and try to turn the U.S. in a Theistic Oligarchy in the long run is a goal. 

Pissing and moaning while doing something, great. Pissing and moaning while sitting on your asses, GTFO.

Poor Buddy the Wonderdog and his ongoing seizure problem.

UPDATE


Buddy is still with us. He is making a lot less noise although he is still doing some howling. He seems to be "present" and his appetite and grooming are both intact.

The Vet, as I suspected they would, gave me some pushback on ending Bud's life, they would like to do some tests...

End.



My hairy little roommate is in day 7 of the process of having seizures for some period of time (for 2-4 days,never know for sure when it will stop--or IF it will stop) and then almost constant pacing and fretting, He doesn't want to be held. He has NO sense of boundaries physical or social. He is effectively blind and deaf and he either whimpers, whines or howls pretty much 24/7. I recognize that it is very hard for him and I also recognize that it makes me nearly homicidal when I can't sleep and I know EXACTLY how to solve that problem. Piss, shit, hair, drool and the constant Roomba sort of apparently aimless wandering that makes him a serious tripping hazard. I've already stepped on him once, today (he was under the barstool and my foot). It is the constant high-frequency sound, interspersed or supplanted with the whines, whimpers and howls that make it almost impossible to get anything done. I have put off even calling the vet to discuss end-of-life procedures because I keep hoping that he will come back to himself. He seems to have no idea who I am for the last 5 days and that is, afaia, the longest this sort of thing has gone on. The neighbors have all heard me shouting at him--with only one window at the back of the house open about 4" (yes, I'm VERY loud, when I'm upset) and some of them think I'm even more an asshole than they already knew me to be. This cannot go on a lot longer, without one of us having to leave and I can't live in the street. If anyone has any genuine ideas about how to resolve the problem--I just yelled at him to stop howling. He was standing a foot and a half from my barstool, gazing up at me with absolutely no recognition of me in his manner or his eyes--without granting Bud a permanent release, I would welcome it. As well-intentioned as they might be any suggestions which involve money I don't have any of or patience, which I've never had any of, don't offer them and neither of us will feel bad. I am not looking for a way to weaselwalk out of responsibility, I'm trying to find out if there is something that I have not yet found on the toobz or elsewhere that is empirically based. Thanks.

So, Ol'Roy went down--at least as of the current results--who knows what perfidy the Alabama Elections Commission might get up to. One holds on to hope.

I would like to say in the spirit of conciliation...

Thank you, to the good people of Alabama who stood up to the shitstorm of GOP soft money, Trumpliguturdlican spokesslugs and the Pussygrabber-in-Chief.

Fuck the rest of you benighted, indignorant, racist, xenophobic, woman-hating, religidiots.

1 down, several hundred to go--at least!

Carry on.
**************************

The bit below is reposted from a comment I left on Gin and Tacos--about 5 minutes ago.

@jcdenton:

Socialist wing of the democratic party? I'm not hearing about  a group of dems wanting to STEER the DNC back to the course that they're supposed to be on. I'm hearing--not from you, but others here--, "Fuck the DNC and their rank and file stooges! Move over and let US run things!". That strategy, I assure you, will not be winning any major races 11 month from now*.

Getting wimpy, soft-on-oligarch dems back in charge is a STEP toward sanity.

Voting progressives into lower office and having them work their way up while building genuine structural elements and establishing funding apparatus that do not depend on massive "gray market" donations from corporate entities is a STEP.

Fielding candidates who don't court ANY single bloc of voters while ignoring/demonizing others is a STEP.

There are other STEPS that should/must be taken to wrest the power of governance from the hands of those who seek to use it ONLY for their own selfish and hateful agendas.

In order to take any of those steps, though, YOU--again, not meaning the "jcdenton 'YOU' "--must first put on your fucking shoes and then wear them out. YOU have to go to boring fucking meetings where self-importan shitheads drone on for long periods about the urgency of cutting taxes for the country club set while raising the price of an overtime parking ticket to $50 'cuz budgetary shortfalls--etc. YOU have to knock on doors and smile while trying to patiently explain to angry people why voting against their interestst got them into the fix that they are now in. YOU have to support, vocally, visibly and locally--YOUR candidate or the candidate that won who is, if not the best, at least better than the other candidate.

NO magic. Fucktons of hard, hard work. It's all NUMBERS. Neither YOU, nor I, nor anyone else wins anything with platitudes--ever.

As I said at the beginning of this screed, it's not directed at the jcdenton "YOU". You may, of course, take any bits that work for you and apply them. I will continue to do what I do which is work on the youngs I meet off of the intertoobz to see if I can get them to understand that informed participation and voting are not just rights but duties of citizenship.*

Thus endeth the rant.




*  democommie hears stirring drum roll, realizes it's only an old fart's fart and lights a candle!




*  I'll be fucking THRILLED to be wrong.