History has a way of repeating itself—not in the details, but in the echoes. As I watch the current administration deploy Marines and National Guard troops into American cities to confront protests over ICE raids and immigration policy, I can’t help but feel a chill. It’s not just the uniforms or the optics. It’s the precedent. And for me, that precedent begins not with Donald Trump—but with Abraham Lincoln.
Yes, Lincoln. The man most Americans revere as our greatest president. But I’ve long questioned that legacy. Lincoln, in my view, was a stubborn, hardheaded leader who plunged the nation into a war that cost over 650,000 lives. A war he believed would be over in months. A war he arguably provoked.
Let’s rewind to Fort Sumter. No one died in the initial bombardment. The only casualties came when a cannon exploded during the surrender ceremony—one Union soldier died. Yet Lincoln used that moment to summon 75,000 troops, escalating a regional standoff into a full-blown civil war. He suspended habeas corpus, jailed political opponents, and silenced dissent in border states like Maryland. All in the name of preserving the Union.
Fast forward to today. Trump, facing protests over immigration enforcement, has summoned federal troops into cities like Los Angeles—against the wishes of governors and mayors. He’s accepted a $400 million jet from Qatar, raising serious constitutional questions about foreign influence and the Emoluments Clause. He’s used executive power to reshape the judiciary, roll back civil rights protections, and stoke division at every turn.
And yet, like Lincoln, he claims to be saving the nation.
The parallels are uncomfortable. Both men faced divided nations. Both used federal power to suppress opposition. Both were hailed as heroes by some and tyrants by others. When John Wilkes Booth shot Lincoln, he shouted “Sic semper tyrannis”—thus always to tyrants. That wasn’t just a madman’s cry. It was a sentiment shared by many in the South who saw Lincoln not as a liberator, but as a despot.
Today, many Americans—especially those on the political left—see Trump in the same light. A man willing to tear the country apart to preserve his own power. A man who, like Lincoln, may be remembered not just for what he did, but for what he destroyed in the process.
This isn’t a defense of Booth, or of violence. It’s a plea for perspective. We must stop mythologizing our leaders and start scrutinizing them. Lincoln’s war may have ended slavery, but it also ended hundreds of thousands of lives. Trump’s war—if it comes—may not be fought with muskets and bayonets, but with executive orders, surveillance, and militarized streets.
History doesn’t repeat, but it rhymes. And right now, the tune sounds all too familiar.
Back in my day, on a TV program named 77 Sunset Strip, the parking lot attendant, Kookie Burns, used to say, “Baby, you’re the Ginchiest.” If you’re under 70, you might need to see this clip from Dick Clark’s American Bandstand to get an idea of his character.
Back then, ginchiest was Kookie’s beatnik word for somebody who was the absolute coolest person. Nowadays, we have somebody who is the exact opposite. Donald Trump is the GRINCHiest person.
When a reporter informed him that there would likely be a toy shortage this Christmas, if he kept the high tariff on China, Trump said that children would just get two dolls instead of 30, and they might cost a little more, but it wasn’t a big deal.
No toys for our little tots? No big deal? If a Democrat said that, the Fox “News” Nutwork would already be screaming about the heartless “War on Christmas” by pinko leftists. Now, since Trump said it, they don’t even bother to comment on his comment. If they ever have to say something, they will find a way to blame it on Biden. “If Biden didn’t force all the toy manufacturers to move to China….”
Donny Two Dolls doesn’t think anything about taking away somebody else’s toys, but he raced back from Italy immediately after the funeral of Pope Francis, so that he could get in a round of golf at his club in New Jersey before the sun went down. He sure won’t give up any of his toys, but he expects your kids to “take it like a man.” Beside, why are you wasting your money on toys when you can get your kids digital action pictures of Donald Trump for only $99.99.
I want to reply to all the people who commented on my most recent post, but I don’t have a “Reply” button. So, until I figure it out how to do that, I’ll just post this as a new post.
Most people commented along these lines…”when you look at the current scenario in the US where the rich are not only determined to get richer by the usual methods, but by re-directing financial support from those needing it into their coffers, it would be enormously hard for the rank and file worker bees to trust.”
I agree 100%. This will not be easy. The rich will make it very difficult, extremely difficult. It won’t happen until we reach a tipping point where the rich have almost everything, and the people have almost nothing. The thing is, I believe that day is rapidly approaching. With AI, Robots, and Drones, most workers can easily be replaced in the next decade or two. Unfortunately, the benefits of the technology will only go to the companies who own the AI, Robots, and Drones. They will not willingly share the wealth. We won’t get more leisure time, but they will get more money. They will have the money, BUT we have the many. We can change society by sheer force of numbers. We can make the future brighter. They know that, so they simply keep us divided. That is their strategy, and unfortunately, it is working. Someday, though, when we’re really downtrodden, out of necessity, we will put aside our petty differences. We will stop with the nonsense of white people versus people of color, middle class versus the poor, educated versus the uneducated, Democrat versus Republican versus Independent, and young versus old. We will unite and win, but it may come too late, especially when the rich will control all media, and they will not tell us the truth. We have to start now.
For those of you, too young to remember this. On November 18, 1956, during a reception at the Polish Embassy in Moscow, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev addressed Western diplomats amidst the tense atmosphere of the Cold War. The world was still reeling from the aftermath of World War II, and the ideological struggle between capitalism and communism was at its peak.
Khrushchev, known for his fiery rhetoric and bold proclamations, declared:
> “Мы вас похороним!” > (Pronounced: “My vas pokhoronim!”)
Translated literally, this means “We will bury you!” The statement sent shockwaves through Western nations, intensifying fears of Soviet aggression and the potential for nuclear conflict. We started building bomb shelters and holding air-raid drills.
The phrase, however, was a subject of misinterpretation due to cultural and linguistic differences. In Russian, the expression is a common idiom akin to saying “We will outlast you” or “We will be present at your funeral.” It’s not necessarily a direct threat of violence but rather a prediction of the eventual triumph of one system over another.
Khrushchev later clarified his remarks, stating:
> “I once said, ‘We will bury you,’ and I got into trouble. Of course, we will not bury you with a shovel. Your own working class will bury you.”
This reflects the Marxist belief in the inevitable collapse of capitalism due to its internal contradictions, leading to a proletarian revolution.
Khrushchev was a complex figure. He criticized Stalin’s brutal regime and introduced reforms to reduce oppression. He launched the Virgin Lands Campaign to boost food production. Under his leadership, the USSR launched Sputnik, the first artificial satellite, marking a significant achievement and initiating the space race with the United States.
Yet, his approach to diplomacy was often unorthodox. In 1960, he banged his shoe on a desk at the United Nations to emphasize a point. His decision to place nuclear missiles in Cuba led to a critical standoff with the United States in 1962, known as the Cuban Missile Crisis.
In November of 1956, Krushchev predicted that Russia would outlast the United States, because our people would overthrow our government. In November of 2024, 75 million Americans did just that when they elected Donald Trump, a pro-Russian Putin puppet, as President. Today, in the same U.N. building where Krushchev once banged his shoe on a desk to protest a U.N. decision, the United States turned its back on Ukraine and voted with Russia on a U.N. proposal. It took almost 7 decades for Krushchev’s prediction to come true, but our own working class has finally buried us. I just hope we can dig ourselves out.
My brother asked me how he could unsubscribe from my blog, as he is tired of hearing me rant about Donald Trump’s wickedness. You know what? I’m tired of it too, but somebody has to do it. My brother is a Conservative, so I responded to him with the words used by the most famous Conservative in American politics, the late Barry Goldwater, who in his 1964 Republican convention acceptance speech said, “I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!”
Those of you who are over 100 years old know how Hitler and the Nazis rose to power, but, with the help of AI, I’ll summarize it for the rest of you.
Hitler’s rise to power and the dismantling of democracy in Germany was a calculated and systematic process. Here are some key steps he took:
Appointment as Chancellor: On January 30, 1933, President Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor of Germany.
Reichstag Fire: On February 27, 1933, the Reichstag building (German parliament) was set on fire. Hitler used this event to claim that communists were plotting against the German government.
Reichstag Fire Decree: Following the fire, the Reichstag Fire Decree was passed, which suspended civil liberties such as freedom of speech, press, and assembly.
Enabling Act: On March 23, 1933, the Enabling Act was passed, giving Hitler the power to enact laws without the involvement of the Reichstag. This effectively gave him dictatorial powers.
Elimination of Political Opposition: Hitler banned all political parties except for the Nazi Party and its affiliates. Trade unions were also banned.
Control Over Institutions: The Nazi regime took control over the economy, media, army, and judiciary, consolidating power and eliminating any potential opposition.
To me, the Reichstag Fire Decree sounds a lot like the Patriot Act. The Enabling Act sounds a lot like Executive orders by the President. Control over Institutions – We have billionaires controlling the major media outlets, and the ones they don’t control are called “fake news.”
Comparing current events to the rise of Nazism can be a bit of a stretch, but it’s always good to stay informed and engaged in the political process. Democracy thrives when citizens are active participants. If you’re concerned about specific policies or trends, consider getting involved in advocacy, staying informed through diverse news sources, and participating in elections. Your voice matters.
The United States no longer has a robust system of checks and balances. Trump is the President. His MAGA followers control both houses of Congress and are afraid to contradict him and be primaried out of office. Trump appointed many of the Supreme Court Judges and they repaid him by saying that the President has immunity from crimes committed while in office. Two billionaires, Rupert Murdoch and Jeff Bezos, control much of the print media and Fox news. Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, and Mark Zuckerberg control social media, and were given front row seats at Trump’s inauguration. I see Democracy slipping away. Already there is a bill in Congress proposed by Rep. Andy Ogles to allow Donald Trump to have an unprecedented third term.
This proposal aims to amend the 22nd Amendment to allow a president to be elected for up to three terms. It’s a significant change and would require a constitutional amendment, which is a complex and challenging process. I think they will first try to make the constitutional amendment process easier. That might get the 2/3 vote required way more easily.
The key mechanisms Hitler and the Nazi Party used to systematically dismantle democracy in Germany’s Weimar Republic.
Exploitation of Democratic Weaknesses
The Weimar Republic’s constitution had Article 48, which gave the president emergency powers to rule by decree in times of crisis
The Nazis took advantage of proportional representation rules that created a fragmented parliament with many small parties, making stable coalition governments difficult
Economic instability and hyperinflation had weakened public faith in democratic institutions
Strategic Use of Violence and Intimidation
The SA (Brownshirts) used street violence to create chaos and intimidate political opponents
They disrupted meetings of other political parties and attacked their members
This violence was then used to justify “emergency measures” to restore order
Control of Information and Propaganda
Joseph Goebbels led a sophisticated propaganda campaign that:
Blamed Germany’s problems on specific groups (especially Jews and communists)
Presented Hitler as Germany’s savior
Used new technology like radio and film to spread Nazi messages
Independent newspapers were either shut down or brought under Nazi control
Legal and Constitutional Manipulation
The Reichstag Fire (which many historians believe the Nazis orchestrated) was used to pass the Reichstag Fire Decree
This decree suspended basic civil rights including:
Freedom of speech
Freedom of the press
Right to assembly
Privacy of postal and telephone communications
The Enabling Act effectively ended democracy by allowing Hitler to pass laws without parliamentary approval
Institutional Takeover
A process called Gleichschaltung (coordination) brought all aspects of society under Nazi control
State governments were stripped of authority
Trade unions were abolished and replaced with the Nazi-controlled German Labor Front
Professional organizations, youth groups, and cultural institutions were nazified
The civil service was purged of “unreliable” elements
Economic Control
Major businesses were pressured to support the regime
Jewish-owned businesses were systematically excluded from the economy
A massive rearmament program created jobs and economic dependency on the regime
Creation of a Police State
The Gestapo (secret state police) was established
A network of informants was created to report dissent
Concentration camps were established for political opponents
Elimination of Opposition
Other political parties were banned
Opposition leaders were arrested or forced into exile
The Night of the Long Knives eliminated potential rivals within the Nazi movement itself
Military Control
The army was forced to swear a personal oath of loyalty to Hitler
Military leadership was gradually replaced with Nazi loyalists
Social Engineering
Education was reformed to indoctrinate youth with Nazi ideology
The Hitler Youth organization was made mandatory
Women were pushed out of professional life
Racial laws were implemented to exclude “undesirable” groups
The effectiveness of these mechanisms lay in their gradual implementation and their appearance of legality. Each step seemed to respond to a crisis or need, making it harder for opponents to rally resistance. The process took advantage of existing democratic structures and turned them against democracy itself.
For almost a century, we have been saying, “It can’t happen here.” Re-read those 10 key mechanisms that Hitler employed and you will already see many modern equivalents, and Trump’s only been in office for a week. Just as Hitler had a plan, Trump has Project 2025.
Trump has already pardoned 1500 of his “Brown shirts,” though they have traded in their brown shirts for red baseball caps. The Supreme Court has already declared Trump immune from prosecution for any crimes he commits while in office. So, he’s immune and he can pardon any criminals who commit crimes for him. Many of Trump’s opponents have received death threats, and Trump has taken away their security details to make it easier for his thugs to harm the opposition.
Immigrants are the Trump equivalent to Hitler’s Jews. The deportations have already started and the detainment centers are on their way. Major businesses have already been pressured to support the regime, and their multi-million dollar contributions were rewarded with front-row seats to the Inauguration. FEMA funds for the California fires are being held back to punish the Democratic leadership in the State of California.
I’d love to go back to writing the fluff pieces and the funny articles that my brother likes, but the Barbarians are no longer at the gate. They tricked us into opening the gate, and we voted them in. Now, it may already be too late, but we have to try and stop them if we do not want to see government of the people, by the people, and for the people perish.
Trump won the election claiming that immigrants were drug smuggling, rapist, pet eating criminals, and he would get rid of all of them. Instead of putting criminals in jail, on his first day in office, he let 1500 J6 rioters out of jail, including violent criminals who assaulted police officers, leaders of terrorist organizations like the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, king-pin drug dealers, and child pornographers. I guess he’s hoping that these thugs will rally to his defense again when he needs to stage his next coup attempt.
Trump also won the election claiming that he would end the war in Ukraine on Day One. He didn’t, and now it’s Day 4.
Trump also won the election saying that he knows how to hire the best people, but he nominated some of the absolute worst possible people to his cabinet and to head the Department of Defense and other government offices. The only qualifications he seemed to care about were sycophantic loyalty to him and a Fox News employee I.D.
Now I hear that Donald J. Musk and Elon Trump are engaged in a jealous power struggle. How sweet. I hope nobody breaks up this fight.
To all those Americans who are worried and afraid of this administration, I offer hope.
Trump claims that God saved him in an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania. But, will that same God save him from attacks from within. History has shown us that sometimes the greatest attacks come from that direction. Trump hates real sharks, but he is now surrounding himself with a vicious hoard of deadly land sharks, that would make his buddy Hannibal Lecter nervous. He has hand-picked a group of advisors who have no moral compass, and many are heavily armed gun nuts. He hasn’t learned from history, because he is too stupid to even study history.
Philip II of Macedonia: He was assassinated by one of his bodyguards, Pausanias of Orestis, in 336 BC.
Xerxes I: The Persian king was killed by his Royal Guard commander, Artabanus, in 465 BCE.
Caligula: The Roman Emperor was assassinated by members of his own guard in 41 AD.
Laurent Kabila: The President of the Democratic Republic of Congo was shot by one of his bodyguards in 2001.
Salmaan Taseer: The Governor of Punjab, Pakistan, was killed by his bodyguard in 2011.
Indira Gandhi: The Prime Minister of India was assassinated by her own bodyguards on October 31, 1984. Her bodyguards, Satwant Singh and Beant Singh, were both Sikhs. This tragic event occurred in the aftermath of Operation Blue Star, a military operation ordered by Gandhi to remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
Trump has surrounded himself with predators who will do anything to feed their own narcissistic fever dreams. Alex Jones is a right-wing conspiracy theorist and talk show host known for his controversial views and clashes with various public figures, including Elon Musk. Steve Bannon is also going after Elon Musk. When they’re finished with him, or he is finished with them, there will eventually be a power struggle with Trump himself. Trump’s friends don’t always stay his friends. Just look at his fixer lawyer Michael Cohen. They hate each other now.
Cannibalism is present in the animal kingdom.
Praying Mantises: Female mantises sometimes eat their mates during or after mating.
Black Widows: The female black widow spider is notorious for eating the male after mating.
Lions: Occasionally, a new dominant male lion will kill and sometimes eat the cubs of the previous male.
Hamsters: In certain stressful conditions or if resources are scarce, mother hamsters might eat their young.
Sharks: Some shark species practice intrauterine cannibalism, where the larger embryos consume their smaller siblings within the womb.
Polar Bears: These bears sometimes resort to cannibalism, especially when food is scarce.
So, keep the faith that Trump’s evil oligarchy will not last. It’s survival of the nastiest in the Trump world, and they will eventually start eating their own. In the meanwhile, organize to flip the Congress in 2026, so that we can quickly fix whatever damage Trump causes. In the immortal words used by Abraham Lincoln, “This too shall pass.” As Trump surrounds himself with vipers, he should also be aware of the immortal words of the very mortal Caesar, “Et tu, Brute?”
Aristotle, in his work “Politics,” discussed various ways to address and potentially overthrow oligarchies. He believed that oligarchies were unstable forms of government because they often led to factional conflicts and corruption. He identified several causes of factional conflict, including:
Arrogant behavior of rulers.
Realization of potential profit from rebelling.
Fear of punishment from those in power.
Disproportionate growth of one class over another.
Corrupt election procedures.
Infighting and impoverishment within the ruling class.
Formation of an inner elite circle.
Aristotle suggested that gradual reform and constitutional change rather than violent upheaval should be the solution. He believed that positive change has to come from the middle class. They must:
Build alternative sources of power.
Form intentional coalitions.
Understand and exploit system weaknesses.
Develop political virtue
Cultivate strategic patience.
With the exception of #4, this is pretty much what the Republican Oligarchs have done in the last few decades, and we will have to hone those skills ourselves to overcome the Trump/Musk/Thiele Oligarchy that is taking over our democratic Republic.
Aristotle said that the signs that change is near are:
Public dissatisfaction, when the people stop believing that government is working for them.
Internal division within the ruling class.
Emergence of new leaders and voices.
In addition to it being Inauguration Day, this Monday is also Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. So, taking all of the above into consideration, I believe that the public will peacefully show their dissatisfaction with the Trump Presidency in the 2026 midterm elections. New leaders and voices will take office on January of 2027, and Trump will be impeached for the third and final time in March of 2027. I have a dream.
Remember when Trump changed the course of a mighty hurricane by using a Sharpie pen? Well, his Sharpie pen is still changing the world. The latest change was that the Gulf of Mexico is now the Gulf of America.
He’s not ready to stop there, though. In a recent press conference, President-elect, Donald Trump announced his intentions to acquire Canada, the Panama Canal, and Greenland. Remember back in 2003 when we were upset with the French for opposing our invasion of Iraq, and we reacted by swapping out the word “French” for the word “Freedom.” We had Freedom Fries, Freedom Bread, Freedom Dressing, Freedom Toast, Freedom Vanilla, Freedom Manicure, Freedom Doors, Freedom Onion Soup, Freedom Braids, Freedom Kissing, and Freedom Ticklers.
Now that Trump is preparing an invasion to acquire Canada as the 51st State, how long will it be before the far right starts texting things like Freedom Club Whisky, Freedom Dry ginger ale, Freedom Bacon, and Freedom Geese? Maybe, they’ll finally stop shooting Bud Lite cans with assault weapons and switch to blasting cases of Molson Canadian Ale, excuse me, Molson Freedom Ale.
To prepare myself for the world domination plans of the Orange Menace and his ultra rich creepy sidekick, Elon, I watched the movie Canadian Bacon, starring Alan Alda, John Candy, and Rhea Pearlman. In the movie, Alan Alda plays a President with a low approval rating who tries to start a Cold War with Canada to appease defense contractors and boost his ratings. John Candy plays the sheriff of Niagara Falls, who is swept up in the madness and invades Canada. Rhea Pearlman plays a wonderfully psycho Deputy Sheriff who blasts the hell out of the Toronto Tower. I sure hope they never show that movie to Donald Trump while he’s in the White House.
When Trump is finished with Canada, I guess he’ll start on Panama, and be texting about Freedom Hats, Freedom Jack, and Freedom Red. Then, Panamanians will be subject to the same slurs he now uses on other immigrants from the south, drug smuggling rapists who eat your pets. Freedom Red, Freedom Red. He’ll steal your woman, then he’ll rob your head, Freedom Red, Freedom Red.
I can’t think of anything with Greenland in the name except, well, Greenland, itself. Since those on the far right believe that Global Climate Change is a hoax and the Green New Deal is absolute poison to them, I guess they’ll just change the name of the country from Greenland to Oil-land, or more likely, Trumpland. Oil and minerals rights might be the reason that Trump wants it. Unless, of course, since it is halfway between the U.S. and Russia, he could be planning weekend getaways with his favorite dictator, Vladimir Putin. Suck it, Kim Jong Un.
Trump’s trying to sell his Greenland acquisition idea as a 21st century Louisiana Purchase. To me, it just seems like another con to divert America’s attention from the fact that he can’t lower the price of eggs and bacon and that his 25% tariff will probably even raise the cost of many items.
Many Canadians are worried about Trump’s plan to make it the 51st State, especially since Trudeau resigned as Prime Minister soon after Trump’s announcement. I would like to remind them that in 2024, there were about 240 million eligible voters in the U.S. Approximately 75 million voted for Trump. Approximately 72.5 million voted for Harris. Around 95 million eligible voters did not vote at all. Thus, around 68.8% of eligible voters did not vote for Trump. Trump may have an iron grip on his MAGA supporters but, I want to reassure our Canadian neighbors that the rest of us still live in the real world, and we will oppose him. “Oh Canada, we stand on guard for thee.”
Napoleon Bonaparte said: “Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich,” suggesting that religion serves as a societal control mechanism, providing the poor with a reason to accept their situation and not revolt against the wealthy.
I find this statement to be somewhat true, even if one of the first Bible stories is about Cain murdering his brother Abel, but I find it ironic that this line was spoken by Napoleon. He rose to prominence during the French Revolution. He was only a boy at the beginning, but he knew that it was a time when the poor were merrily sending the rich off to the Guillotine, and he was on the side of the people. Those mass murders, however, only proved to be a temporary band-aid for the serious problem of income inequality. We still face it today, and it’s only getting worse.
A recent story in the news reminds me of the TV show Leverage, which centers around a prominent Insurance investigator, Nate Ford, who is played by Timothy Hutton. Nate has saved his company millions of dollars by recovering stolen artwork. His son, Sam Ford, was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, and Nate fought tirelessly to get the insurance company to cover the experimental treatment his son needed. However, the company refused to pay for the treatment, and Sam tragically passed away. This devastating loss led Nate to leave his job, get divorced, and spiral into alcoholism.
Then, Nate decides that he will dedicate his life to helping others who are facing overwhelming odds. The show follows a five-person team of thieves, led by Ford, who use their skills to carry out heists to help ordinary people fight against the rich and powerful, to correct corporate and governmental injustices. It’s a modern-day Robin Hood story, except that his team does not murder anyone. Eliot Spencer, the muscle on his team, will beat up bad guys left and right, but he doesn’t kill anyone. They are not vigilantes like Batman. They only provide “Leverage.”
They’re not like Paul Kersey, the character played by Charles Bronson in the 1974 film Death Wish. Paul Kersey was an architect who became a vigilante after his wife was murdered and his daughter was raped during a home invasion. That film follows his journey as he takes the law into his own hands to fight crime in New York City.
New York City is a hot spot for real-life vigilantes. Bernhard Goetz, known as the “Subway Vigilante,” was famous back in 1984. The Guardian Angels founded by Curtis Sliwa still patrol neighborhoods of New York. In a recent case, Daniel Penny, a former Marine, was acquitted of murder in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway. And now, we have the intriguing December 2024 case of Luigi Mangione who is accused of killing Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, an insurance company. This is the case that reminds me of the show Leverage, even though the TV Leverage cast members never resorted to murdering anyone.
Mangione, who was not insured by UnitedHealthcare, targeted Thompson possibly because of the company’s size, record of denying claims, and his own painful back injury. This incident has reignited discussions about healthcare and insurance, much like the issues Nate Ford faced in “Leverage.”
Luigi, I assume will plead Not guilty, even though he has said, “I do apologize for any strife or traumas, but it had to be done. Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming.”
That reminds me of a terrific scene from the play Chicago. Cell Block Tango, where the six accused murderesses sing, “He had it coming.”
As of this moment, it looks like Luigi has quite a growing following, as almost everyone knows somebody who has been screwed over by an Insurance Company. It is highly likely that somebody will start a Go Fund Me page for him, and it is also likely that the good-looking man with the washboard abs will receive a few marriage proposals from his fans.
I, of course, do not promote murder, but I do feel that those who have been screwed over by the system do deserve some form of justice. As long as the top 1% own about 26% of the total wealth, and the bottom 50% of households own only 2.5% of the total wealth, income inequality will lead to problems similar to those that sparked the French to revolt against the Aristocracy back when Napoleon was just a boy.
The weekly massacres of school children in this country have done little to bring about reform in our nation’s gun-control laws. Will the murder of one CEO have any effect?
Back in 1962, the British had a TV show called, That Was the Week that Was, which starred David Frost, who also starred in the American spin-off of the show in 1964. It satirized the news of the week and influenced later comedic shows like Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live. It was a forerunner of fake-news programs like The Daily Show.
Well, now it’s December and this long year is finally about to end, so I thought I’d take a look back at 2024, and oh what a year it was. The U.S. Presidential election was held in 2024, but I’m going to ignore that here. I promised some friends that I would lay off politics for the rest of December, as an early Christmas present to them.
Politics may have dominated the news in 2024, but, fortunately for me, it wasn’t the only thing. Artificial Intelligence (AI) was the most talked about development in computing. Like politics, though, it also had people divided. AI had strong supporters who see it as a tool on par with the first use of fire and the invention of the wheel. It also had strong detractors who saw it as a weapon that would eventually eliminate humans from the planet, or make us slaves or pets to our robot overlords.
Originally, most AI programs available to the public just dealt with text. You could type a prompt into your computer and the AI would type back a response. Sometimes it was very accurate and at other times it was caught “hallucinating” an answer that it made up out of thin air, with no actual connection to reality (kinda like Fox News). Ooops, it’s not easy for me to go off politics cold turkey.
AI now gives us images, such as the one above, where I asked AI to show Old Man 2024 staggering at the finish line on New Year’s Day. I had to reword my description several times before the AI finally created an Old Man 2024 who didn’t look and dress like Santa Claus.
My AI photo problem was nothing compared to the Pandora’s Box of fake images that were generated by AI in 2024. Every scandal seemed to find itself accompanied by dozens of fake images that supposedly “proved” the false claims. I found it odd that AI’s photo creator doesn’t seem sure about the number of fingers people are supposed to have. In addition to everything else, AI’s training input must have included hundreds of thousands of pictures from cartoons.
Space was also a big tech topic of 2024, with various companies offering customers a taste of what it was like to be an astronaut by taking them on short flights into upper space. Elon Musk even started touting journeys to Mars. I can’t wait for the day when science can send Elon to Mars. (Ooops, I’m slipping.)
Combining big tech with AI, the concept of self-driving cars was another big topic in 2024. As usual, it had its proponents and detractors. The proponents celebrated its convenience. The detractors screamed that self-driving cars were not 100% perfected and could lead to traffic fatalities. Of course, the proponents showed data that even if a few cars did kill a few people, they were still a whole lot safer than human drivers, especially ones who had been drinking. I wondered if self-driving car companies would be held responsible for vehicular deaths since gun manufacturers are not responsible for gun deaths. I’m sure that Elon Musk’s new Department of Government Efficiency will figure that one out.
One item that made the news this year in Europe, but was ignored by American media was the reverse art theft at a German art museum. The “reverse museum heist” took place at the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, Germany. An employee, who was also an aspiring artist, decided to hang one of his own paintings in the museum’s modern art collection.
He managed to do this unnoticed because he was carrying tools for an installation project and had access to the gallery outside of opening hours. The painting, which was about 45 inches wide and 25 inches tall, hung on the wall for several hours before museum staff discovered it.
The museum staff decided to leave the painting up until closing time before taking it down. The employee was later fired and banned from visiting the museum. The German police are investigating him on charges of property damage because he drilled two small holes in the wall to hang his painting.
In January of this year, the airlines were also in the news, when an Alaska Airlines flight experienced a door flying off mid-flight. Remember that? I’ll bet they do. For the rest of their lives, too.
As this year comes to an end, the manhunt for the man who murdered an insurance company CEO, seems also to be ending with the apprehension of Luigi Mangione in a MacDonalds restaurant in Altoona, PA. One of the employees recognized him from his photo and called the cops. McDonalds, if the e-coli doesn’t get you, our employees will.
As usual, even this case had people on both sides of the fence. It seemed that people who had previous problems with their insurance companies saw a silver lining in the enormous black cloud. They (secretly, if not openly) hoped that the murder might lead to insurance companies lowering their rates and denying fewer claims. We really do need universal health care in the U.S. (Ooops, I don’t want to slip into politics again. So, I’ll let the late great Barry White do it for me.)
What intrigued me most about the CEO murder case, though, was the fact that a “ghost gun” was used. A “ghost gun” is a weapon that you can make at home using a 3-D printer. “Alexa, make me an untraceable gun.”
We’re worried about what AI can do…Heck, anything bad AI can do, we can already do better (or should that be worser?) I wonder how Congress will react to a do-it-yourself gun. Will they spring into action and outlaw the machine code that enables a 3-D printer to make such a weapon, or just blame “Tik Tok,” social media, and video games? I bet they just sit on their thumbs until somebody actually prints out an “assault ghost gun” at home and takes it to school, or to the Capital. (Ooops, I can’t seem to avoid that slippery slope into Politics.)
Don’t get me wrong. All the gun news wasn’t bad this year, though. We did all get to enjoy clip after clip of Australia’s Olympic answer to the Jamaican Bobsled Team, Rachael “Raygun” Gunn doing her now world-famous break-dancing routine. Here’s one more clip for you. I got a kick out of this short video that Terry Moore compiled for YouTube.
So, that was just a bit of the year that was. Last year, I didn’t make any New Year’s Resolutions, but this year I do have one. Stop making promises to not write about Politics and You-know-who, the orange guy, because that appears to be a harder resolution for me to keep than my usual failed-resolution of trying to lose 25 pounds.
earlthepearl137 