TheWiseOldFart

I saw the signs, but ignored them. I wanted to believe that the American people were beginning to move forward and join all developed nations, moving bravely into the 21 st century. I have been wrong before, but this one is both painful and frightening. Statistics are not something I trust, most of the time. The mainstream media is no longer interested in facts, their goal is to increase advertising revenue. However, some facts, produced from statistical analysis after the election, are undeniable. The results of the 2024 presidential election proved that there are more of them than us. The number of people who share Trump’s beliefs in racism, misogyny, anger, hatred, violence, and revenge, or in a single word, “fascism,” is greater than the number of people who believe in the principles of what it once meant to be an American. What does this mean? It’s simple and extremely sad: my America, the country I loved and respected throughout most of 78 years, ceased to exist nine years ago. ...

Trump has nominated a second-rate Fox News personality, Pete Hegseth, for Secretary of Defense. He has no experience and not a single qualification to have such an important and influential position in Trump’s illegitimate administration. These are the most important factors for denying Trump his first choice. However, Hegseth’s own mother offers another reason to reject the Fox failure: his lack of morals and character. A 2018 email from Penelope Hegseth accused her son of routinely mistreating women and displaying a lack of character. “You are an abuser of women – that is the ugly truth and I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around, and uses women for his own power and ego,” Penelope Hegseth wrote in the email obtained by the New York Times. Need I say more? I don’t believe additional words are necessary. Op-ed by James Turnage Please follow my blog Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/30/trump-defense-secretary-pick-pete-hegseth-mother...

The second Civil War began quietly in 1981. It escalated and reached its peak in 2017 with the inauguration of our 45 th and first illegitimate president, Donald John Trump. Real Americans lost the war on November 5, 2024. I remain uncertain that the election was fair. There are too many questions unanswered by our government and the mainstream media. We know that Putin was involved heavily in efforts to secure a victory for Trump, and with the inclusion of the richest man in the world, who shares egomania with Trump, I have reasons to believe the election was rigged by the best hackers in our universe However, legitimate or not, Trump’s agenda, known as Project 2025, is a 922-page fascist manifesto which will end the dreams of our Founding Fathers forever. With his selections for a cabinet and closest advisers, Trump confirms another big lie. During the 2024 campaign season, he lied to everyone, claiming that he knew nothing about the document. However, every idea, every plan in Proj...

I was born on July 7, 1946; an original baby boomer. My mother gave birth to me in Lewiston, Idaho. Just before my sixth birthday, my mother, father, little brother, John, my maternal grandparents, and my mother’s youngest brother moved to Los Angeles, because that’s where the jobs were. Several years later, my mother and father divorced. My mother rented a small apartment very near my grandparent’s home in West Los Angeles. My mother was a single parent, and therefore a working mom. My grandparents and my uncle were role models and helped raise my brother and me. We were a Catholic family. Besides going to church every Sunday, we went to “novena” on Wednesdays, and every celebration associated with Christmas and Easter. I went to ‘confession’ every week. From my grandfather I learned the most important things in my life: kindness, acceptance, respect for everyone in my life, a high moral standard, and a work ethic like no other. At the age of ten, I began an interest in politics. I di...

I continue to find it difficult to believe that Trump’s victory was legitimate. Several of the results and the reasons Trump was crushed in 2020 require answers to big questions. Add to this Trump’s relationship with Elon Musk, whose wealth offers him the ability hack into voting machines and other electronics and the big question becomes: “Was the 2024 election rigged for Trump as was the 2016 debacle?” Between Putin’s efforts and Musk’s wealth, it would have been easy for the best hackers in the world to rig the election. Let’s begin with some results in 2020 and the reported results in 2024. The Popular vote. In 2020 there was an historic voter turnout. When the final votes were counted, Trump lost the popular vote by more than seven million ballots. The official results in 2024 pointed to a Trump victory in the Popular vote. How could millions of voters have changed their minds about Trump during the last four years, considering his criminal convictions, treason on January 6, and h...

The scandal was exposed in March of 2016 by “Crew.” The Attorney General for the state of Florida was a woman by the name of Pam Bondi. She accepted a $25,000 donation from the Trump Foundation intended for her reelection campaign. The problem is, charitable foundations are not allowed to participate in any form of politics. Why would Trump steal money from his own charitable foundation and give it to a state official when he was living in New York City? You might remember the now defunct Trump University. It was deemed a fraud by a federal judge, and Trump was forced to pay restitution to the “students” he swindled. One of the states considering a deeper investigation into the fake university was Florida. The paperwork deciding whether or not the state would engage in an investigation would be in the hands of the state’s Attorney General, Pam Bondi. After receiving Trump’s illegal donation, she abandoned Florida’s efforts to dig deeper into Trump’s alleged efforts to steal money from ...

This title is a repeat and even more accurate than it was previously With the addition of Sebastian Gorka and other Neo-Nazis to his advisory staff, Trump is admitting that he is the leader of the subversive and traitorous Nazi movement in America. In just nine years the United States has become a country without laws, morals, or principles. In 2016 I believe that millions of men and women were unaware of who Donald Trump was. However, in 2024, there is no excuse for anyone who voted for the worst man in the world. It was an undeniable fact that Trump sought reelection for one reason: to once again prove that he is above the law. He committed the most egregious crimes possible and now will never be punished for his actions. This famous quote is no longer true. “No man is above the law and no man is below it: nor do we ask any man's permission when we ask him to obey it.” Theodore Roosevelt This one fact proves that the essence of what made America a respected nation which was on th...

  I reject organized religion. However, I believe the New Testament of the Bible should be read by every person on the planet. Whether you believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, or a prophet, His teachings about how to live a more spiritual life are perfect. What is most interesting about the New Testament is that the lessons to be learned are also contained in the Quran. The Prophet Mohammad and Jesus Christ could have been brothers. Unfortunately, the obese, old man who will be defecating in our White House next January is undoubtedly the “Anti-Christ.” His message to the men and women he refers to as “basement dwellers” contain the opposite meanings in the teachings of Mohammad and Jesus. He preaches fear, anger, hatred, vengeance, and violence, not love, compassion, and understanding. It is impossible for any man or woman to believe and follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and live a life of crime and debauchery. Trump had the full support of Evangelical leaders ...

To understand our nation’s up and down economy, we must look at the fiscal policies of every president since 1981. It was 43 years ago when Ronald Reagan became our country’s 40 th president. He revealed his fiscal policy which he called “supply side economics.” This misleading term led to a more accurate description known as “trickle-down economics.” Reagan originated the Republican Party’s current policy of focusing on the success of the super-rich. He claimed that if their huge corporations were profitable, in turn they would create jobs and the foundation of a capitalistic society, consumerism, would grow exponentially. Of course his policy failed miserably. Billionaires care about no one and nothing else other than increasing their already ludicrous personal wealth. When Reagan left office in 1989, unemployment was at 10 percent and rising, and the national debt reached an unfathomable one-trillion dollars. His successor, Republican George H.W. Bush continued Reagan’s policy of g...

Would you choose to work in a city where no one trusts one another; where success is measured by power and wealth; where doing the right thing is forbidden; where morality, integrity, and principles are not allowed to exist inside the city’s boundaries? If you are one of the men and women who spend most of their time in Washington, this is your life. It began in 1981, and was fulfilled in 2017: the government of the United States is the most corrupt and incompetent within the world of developed nations. Trump is making serious efforts to make it even worse. Not a single nominee named by Trump is qualified for his or her position. They have no experience or training in the agencies they will lead. Of even greater interest, is that each of these individuals has been suspected, accused, or indicted for crimes big and small. Trump’s administration was rightfully called the “Washington Mafia” between 2017 and 2021, and this group will be thought of as the “Washington Mafia 2.0.” I have been...

Since the recent election I listened to numerous “experts” blame Democrats for their huge losses. I am not a huge fan of either party. However, this is some of the most moronic bullshit I have ever heard. If voters did their job and vetted the candidates honestly instead of listening to the lies on the boob tube, they would learn that Democrats have accomplished many things for the majority. Republicans bow to billionaires. If voters were informed instead of brainwashed, they would realize that the mainstream media hides the truth about the political parties. Millionaires support Trump, and the media is therefore biased in his favor. I continue to have suspicions that this election, like the 2016 debacle, was rigged by Vladimir Putin Op-ed by James Turnage  

Did Russia hack our voting machines in the 2024 election? The results and many facts do not add up. Op-ed by James TurnageT  

When I was a very young man, my grandfather taught me that religion is a personal choice and not to be an issue in any conversation. He was a helluva lot smarter than every right-wing politician in America. He believed in the First Amendment: professional politicians do not. I was raised Catholic and considered entering the priesthood until I learned that Catholic priests are not allowed to marry. I didn’t understand. Other children I knew who were protestant or Jewish told me their ministers and rabbis had normal lives. I liked girls. By the time I was a sophomore in high school, I had begun to move away from all organized religion. I studied the effect of organized religion on its followers, and understood to some degree the need for many people to seek guidance. I view organized religion in two very different ways. First, I see it is a way for men to control other men and become very wealthy doing so. The other side is more of a sincere desire to help other people survive difficult ...

  One of the most American results of the 2024 election was the victory of Sarah McBride. The people of Delaware made history when they chose the first transgender woman to support them in the House of Representatives.S However, right-wing extremist and homophobe, Nancy Mace, from South Carolina, has introduced a bill which would prevent Ms. McBride from using the women’s restrooms in the Capitol Building. Once again, Trump’s “people” prove that my America no longer exists. Our nation has never been a great nation and likely never will be. How easily we forget the Declaration of Independence when it satisfies our personal and twisted beliefs. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.--That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the govern...

It may surprise some of you, but votes in the 2024 election are still being counted. This is not unusual. On Monday it was reported that Trump’s popular vote has dropped below 50 percent. Think about it. I said it in November of 2016, and I repeat my statement today: Trump will never be my president because he is not an American. In his own words he opposes every virtue which makes America a respected nation and its people the envy of most countries in the world. I have learned many things in my 78 years. First, everything changes. If the changes are progressive, everyone benefits. If they are regressive, most people suffer. America has not moved bravely into the 21 st century. Millions of our nation’s people continue to harbor racism, bigotry, and misogyny. If you believe in the principles included in “the American way of life,” your thoughts and beliefs are also progressive, or as today’s fake Republicans call us, “damn liberals.” In the world of developed nations, America is 15 th ...

It’s obvious that qualifications have nothing to do with Trump’s nominations for his White House staff. Just a few names offer irrefutable proof for my claims: Marco Rubio, Tulsi Gabbard, and Matt Gaetz. Three biased individuals who are incapable of free and intelligent thought. However, just a small examination of who he nominated reveals his reasons, and the fact that Trump knows nothing about governing our country. A number of his nominees are based on reciprocity. They helped him win specific states, like Rubio in Florida. Others share his extreme views of our nation’s future. At least two were Fox personalities. Fox has been his personal propaganda machine for nine years. Like Hitler, he could not have won without a functioning agency focused on brainwashing uninformed Americans. With the nomination of Matt Gaetz, it was an obvious display of gratitude for the American Nazi Party, calling themselves the Freedom Caucus. Felons and sexual predators flock together. Not a single nomin...

Rules are broken. The Constitution is a list of rules, promises, and guarantees. However, Trump violated the Constitution every day between 2017 and 2021 and congress nor the Supreme Court did anything to punish our nation’s biggest traitor. Recently exposed is Trump’s plan to employ Hitler’s use of Germany’s military to destroy the lives of an entire race of people he despises. Hitler waged a personal war against the Jewish people. Trump will use our nation’s military to complete his promise of Hispanic mass deportation and possible genocide almost immediately after January 20 th . They voted in large numbers for the orange buffoon and will now suffer for their stupidity. I have labeled Trump a fascist for more than a decade, and he continues to prove my allegations. It is now an undeniable fact the fascism arrived in the White House on January 20, 2017. It was in the form of an obese, old, white man who loved to hug the flag, sold bibles to enhance his personal wealth, and continues ...

We had nine years to learn about “the real Donald Trump.” It isn’t good, but millions of Americans don’t care. They obviously share his beliefs in white supremacy, homophobia, misogyny, anti-Semitism, and xenophobia, among other forms of bigotry. However, we didn’t know much about his latest billionaire ass kisser, Elon Musk. We already knew that Musk was a good automobile mechanic, but is void of common sense and compassion for anyone else but himself. Now,  with his close association with Trump, we have become aware that he is an idiot, and an egomaniac. The biggest difference between Musk and Trump is that Musk is a real billionaire. He used millions of dollars to buy votes for the orange buffoon, proving once again that for the super-rich there are no laws. [Whoever makes or offers to make an expenditure to any person, either to vote or withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any candidate; and Whoever solicits, accepts, or receives any such expenditure in consideration of...

I wonder how the citizens of Germany reacted to Nazis marching in the streets in 1933. I can tell you that they not only got used to it, by 1935 they cheered. This could very well happen in America with Trump as your illegitimate president. On Saturday afternoon, a group of men dressing black, armed with deadly weapons, and carrying flags displaying swastikas marched through the streets of Columbus Ohio. This is just the beginning. January 6, 2021, the 2024 campaign, and the results of the election offer irrefutable facts that Trump is the leader of the Neo-Nazi movement in America. Trump’s 922-page Project 2025 is a Nazi Manifesto given rebirth by Trump and about 100 loyalists from his previous failed four years between 2017 and 2021. Trump promised his people that the 2024 election would be the last in which they would be required to or allowed to vote again in a free and fair election. A vote for Trump was a clear vote in support of burning the Constitution and replacing democracy w...

Our 16 th President was a “seer.” In 1838 he predicted America in the 21 st century. [In a January 1838 speech to a group in Springfield, Illinois, Lincoln stated: "At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide."] On November 5 th , the American people made their choice, and the choice is clear: the majority prefer an end to democracy and the establishment of fascism in America. I doubt that 75 percent of the men and women who voted for Trump were aware of the truth, and were unaware of Trump’s plans for the destruction of our nation. America has the least informed citizens in the world. The truth is, none of this matters now. America’s people have surrendered their freedoms to Putin’s Puppet. The media and the most corrupt poli...

Having made poor choices for careers, my wife and I, ages 78 and 74, have no retirement other than Social Security. When we reached the age making us eligible for Medicare, we had to make a choice: pay for “part B,” or pay our mortgage. I never understood why, after working for more than 40 years, paying into Social Security and Medicare, why I had to pay premiums to have health insurance. Only in America. Last year my wife found something we could afford. It is a program designed for low-income Americans who have no health insurance, or in our case only Medicare part A. Let me warn you, this is a relatively long, but true story. I understand if you choose not to continue. I had to get this story off my chest. Beginning in 2020, the strength in my legs began to diminish, and the pain in my lower back escalated. I still don’t know if it was caused by Covid-19 or something else. In early August of this year, as I prepared for bed, I was unable to get off the toilet. For a couple of hours...

Trump has the right to celebrate several ‘firsts;’ firsts I am sure will never be repeated. Trump is the oldest man ever to be elected to the presidency. The truth is that during the 2024 campaign he displayed the fact that he is too old and mentally unfit for the office. Few Americans are informed citizens. One thing every American should be aware of is that the average age of all 330+ million Americans is 38.2 years of age. Anyone who is under the age of 55, and voted for Trump made a choice to be without representation in Washington. Trump is the first convicted felon to hold the title of President of the United States. He is awaiting sentencing on 34 felony counts. In 2023/2024, the orange con man was charged with 99 felony indictments, including insurrection and theft of government secrets in violation of the Espionage Act. Trump is the first president to lose a defamation of character case, which revealed the fact that he is a confirmed sexual predator. It was recently revealed t...

  What I have been reading over the last week cannot be real. It must be a farcical movie produced by the Farrelly or the Coen brothers. In this movie, the dumbest, most corrupt old, obese, white man in America became our country’s president. To add to the ridiculous overall theme, this moron selected men and women for his cabinet and closest advisors who are totally unfit for the positions offered to them, and in several situations opposed to the departments they will lead. If this is reality, this movie will produce more tears than laughter. Does anyone with average intelligence believe that “Little Marco Rubio” possesses any of the experience and skills necessary to hold the positions of Secretary of State? Rubio has been called the “laziest member of the Senate.” Not once has he displayed the ability to “think on his feet,” or the skills necessary to negotiate during the diplomaticl process. Then I read about Tulsi Gabbard. She has frequently been suspected of having a ...