TheWiseOldFart

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Social media and the internet in general changed everything in our world, and none of it for the better. There are far more lies and conspiracy theories contained in on-line media than facts. This is the primary reason America’s government has become the worst in the world. In 1996 Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes created the first 24-hour propaganda machine for right-wing extremists calling it “Fox News.” This added to the creation of misinformation. Today there are several “Fox wannabes,” each of them supporting the worst illegitimate president in history. The last time our nation had a government which did the right thing for our people most of the time was in the 1970’s. Legislators from both parties were forced to vote according to the wishes of the people or face defeat in their bids for reelection. Today, the men and women calling themselves “Republicans” ignore the needs and wishes of the people and vote in support of special interests whose lobbyists co

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Politicians believe that reelection and spinning the facts are more important than the truth. Their personal goals and ambitions take precedence over everything else. However, the most powerful man in the world is showing his courage and “telling it like it is,” regardless of retaliation from Fox News and other right-wing extremist broadcasts and publications. Kudos to President Biden. Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy sold his soul and his power to the fascist Freedom Caucus to win his position as the Speaker. They are now calling for a government shutdown. "Let's be clear: if the government shuts down, that means members of the Congress — members of the U.S. military are going to have to continue to work and not get paid," Mr. Biden said at a dinner hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus, or CBC, in Washington Saturday night. "A government shutdown can affect everything from food safety to cancer research to Head Start for children.&q

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Everyone asks themselves several questions during their lifetime. One of the most frequent is “what is my purpose in life?” For most of us that question is never answered directly. Some refuse to recognize the answer when it comes to them. And others find their own answer, whether or not it is legitimate. The reality is that each of us must seek our own answer, it is within all of us. If we listen closely to our own thoughts, we can solve the question for ourselves. Anastasiya Veli is Ukrainian and Orhan Veli is half Russian, and they have one thing in common: they have found their purpose. They decided to make a difference. As I write this, the couple has saved 11 refugees from Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Although Orhan is not from Ukraine, he is a refugee. His family fled from Azerbaijan when he was just 11 years old, and the Soviet union was breaking apart. "I was a kid without anything. My parents had nothing. And little by little we were able to kin

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   From FBI Director Christopher Wray: “Domestic terrorism is the greatest threat to the American people.” Everyone remembers the name Timothy McVeigh and the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995 where 168 innocents were murdered, 19 of them small children. The media reported stories about Ted Kaczynski, dubbed “The Unabomber,” for 17 years, beginning in 1978. However, domestic terrorism is much more common in our country than reported by the media. Large events receive the headlines, but mass shootings continue to happen more frequently than the number of days on the calendar. After the cowardly attacks on 9/11, Republican politicians misdirected the facts related to domestic terrorism and focused their attacks on all Muslims, insinuating that they were all enemies of the United States. The truth is that the greatest danger lies within our own people, and it is related to uncontrolled gun violence and the greed of those involved in their manufacture and sales

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart     If you are like me and my wife, you are a member of one-half of our country’s population and fear many things which could place us heavily in debt and even homeless. At ages 77 and 73, we could face a medical emergency at any moment, not one of which we have sufficient income to pay for the exorbitant cost of caring for such a devastating situation .    Fact: medical care in the United States is the most costly and least effective in the free world. Only the wealthy can afford the best doctors and the best hospitals. The average cost of a single night’s stay in a hospital is ludicrous.   “ Recent statistics show the price of a one-night hospital stay is around: $13,600 with Medicare; $9,800 with Medicaid; $10,900 with private insurance; and $9,300 without insurance .”   Millions of Americans remain without any healthcare. My wife and I have Medicare part "A,” but are unable to afford Medicare part “B.” No other nation in the world forces their senio

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart     You know their names: Moscow Mitch McConnell, Ted Cruz, Matt Gaetz, Jim Jordan, Lauren Boebert , Marjorie Taylor Greene. In first place is the worst Senate Majority Leader in History, followed by the worst Senator in History, and finally four of the worst members of the House in history. I have one more position and one more name to add: Kevin McCarthy, the worst Speaker of the House in history, even worse than Newt Gingrich and Dennis Hastert.   Let’s look at his beginning. He is the first Speaker of the House not to be elected on the first ballot. The sad truth is that he was not popular with any one group, and it required 15 votes for him to receive the gavel. He remains a staunch supporter of the worst man in American history, a traitor who attempted to overthrow his own government while still residing in the White House.   What America needs most are great leaders. Sadly, such a commodity does not exist in Washington i n 2023. Those who call themsel