TheWiseOldFart

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Where am I? What country am I living in? I know it’s not America, at least not the America in which I was raised or the America I remember 40-50 years ago. Never would a man or woman become or president if he or she was not an American. If where I’m living is the United States, why is our government allowing corporations to rape us financially. What’s with the growing interest in fascism? Why is our government ignoring the escalating danger of domestic terrorism. The only things I recognize from my younger years are pervasive racism, homophobia, anti-Semitism, and extreme sexism. Here are three headlines which made me shake my head and say to myself, “what the hell?” [FBI Whistleblower: Giuliani was made an Asset by Russian Intelligence Trump - Russian Spy Biden arrives in Florida to survey Idalia's toll from the sky and ground. DeSantis won't see him] The first is no surprise. Putin’s presence was constant in Trump’s world from June of 2015 when he de

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart     It was called “The $64,000 Question.” In 1950’s America, this was a primetime event. The possibility of win nin g that much money by winning a contest was phenomenal. However, when it was r e vealed that one contestant had been given the answers prior to the broadcast, it was over.   This is far from my regular story. However, I promise that ‘the truth lives here,’ and I feel required to expose another issue where corporate profits are considered more important than the truth.   For several years my wife and I had a morning routine. We watched “CBS This Morning,” which was followed by “Let’s Make a Deal.” The latter is a game show which continues today. It offered nice, but not exorbitant profits to contestants and was entertaining.    During a single broadcast, while my wife had left the room. I witnessed what can only be called “fraud.” The game played was not new. It offered a large number of squares, and beneath the numbers were prizes. If the contes

  Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Over the last two decades studies prove that the United States is far behind other developed nations in quality of life, including education. History proves that the opportunity to receive a college degree opens doors which remain closed to less educated Americans. I am not claiming that every young American should attend a college or university. However, anyone who wants to extend their and education, their knowledge, should have the ability, the right to attend an institute of higher learning. One of the primary reasons America is falling behind other nations in several areas of economic development lies in the fact that the prohibitive cost of higher education prevents some of our most gifted young men and women from continuing their education after high school. Everything in America is about money. If America is to survive the 21 st century, our government must reverse its present course and end its obsession with corporate profits. It’s past

  Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Let me begin with the end. Religious extremists are the reason for the issue of abortion becoming political. They are clearly more concerned about a one-inch fetus than the life of a full-grown woman. Placing that fact aside, let’s take a short look at reality. The human brain begins to develop in the uterus within the sixth or seventh week. However, it is not fully developed until the end of the second trimester. Why is this important? Christian extremists claim that life begins at conception, and seek to ban all abortions, regardless of how the pregnancy originated. Pro-lifers are also involved in the termination of life for those who are terminally ill and the prognosis of regaining normal life is minimal at best. Their argument is founded on the fact that the patient’s brain remains “alive,” not alive as we might consider it, but alive according to science. They oppose any form of “mercy killing.” Let me make this clear. Anti-abortion fanatics

  Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   In my youth I was taught one lesson above all others, to respect authority. In the 1950s this included my priest, the nuns, my mother, our nation’s leaders, the military, law enforcement, and virtually anyone older than I was. This may have been a reality in my youth, I’m not sure. However today, at age 77, I know I was taught some lessons which were not entirely accurate. First and foremost respect cannot be given freely, it must be earned. The 21 st century is the communication age, where information is instant, thanks to an array of communication satellites circling the earth, the truth is exposed, and cannot always be hidden as it was in the past. Therefore, nearly every individual or group on my previous list no longer has my respect. By the time I reached my junior year in high school I no longer believed in religion. I learned that every faith-based organization is founded on fairy tales, and religions were not founded by gods, but by morta

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   While speaking with reporters in Kentucky Wednesday, Moscow Mitch McConnell appeared to ‘freeze’ once again. He remained silent for about 30 seconds. Photos from the event appear to reveal Moscow Mitch as a very frail 81-year-old man. Questions about his health began some time ago when he displayed what appeared to be a purple discoloration on his hands, arms, and face. Recently, questions about his mental acuity have risen. Our government has a serious problem with age, created by the refusal from congress to establish term limits for itself. 19 of our nation’s 535 lawmakers are 80 or older. 54 of our country’s 100 Senators are over 65. The average age of all members of the House and Senate is 64. I strongly oppose agism: I am 77 years old. However, I find it unreasonable that our nation, whose average age is 38.2 years of age, is governed by men and women who should be at home in their rocking chairs with their grandchildren or great grandchildren sitting on

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Groucho Marx: “I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.” This was an observation from the early days of television. It was accurate. Over the next 70-80 years of television broadcasts, there have been a combination of great, good, interesting, bad, and recently with the obsession of “reality TV” an embarrassment to anyone who possesses average intelligence. I was raised on television. By that I mean that my mother was a single parent, my brother and I were latching key kids, and our only source of entertainment was initially a nine-inch television. This was the early 1950’s and there wasn’t much to see. However, as time passed and our nation became obsessed with the “boob tube,” the early age of television began and I was very happy. I remain obsessed today, but also extremely disappointed. As television expanded into numerous areas of entertainment, including sports, politics, cooking sh

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart     Barack Obama was a good pre s d ident who could have been great if he had not been forced to fight with Moscow Mitch McConnell’s creation known as “the party of no.” However, the truth is that our country has not been blessed with more than a handful of great presidents. The most recent outstanding American leader was murdered on November 22, 1963, during my senior year in high school.    Our nation’s legislative branch is both the most dysfunctional and the most corrupt in the world. The level of incompetence and in many cases self-importance and complete apathy towards the American people has reached beyond the imagination. There is no leadership on the right side of the aisle, and on the left, it is very limited and unimpressive. Corruption is everywhere. Those of us who write about Washington are aware of constant criminal activity, and an atmosphere of secrecy to prevent the American people from gaining knowledge of these facts. If you hear the words,