Hate in America
There are over 900 hate groups in the United States. Stay informed. Stay vigilant.
Check out this interactive map at the Southern Poverty Law Center.
0
4891
Is this the kind of disruption people voted for? Sure, some did. (During the campaign, Hillary referred to those folks as a basket of deplorables, and that was being kind.) Others voted for Trump because they were in pain or they felt like they had no voice or they just wanted to shake up the system. While I didn’t vote for Trump, I, too, thought Washington needed a big time jolt. But not like this. If you are still defending this president and his autocratic goons, then you are delusional. You are the problem. Please, take your head out of Sean Hannity’s propaganda-filled ass and get some real facts and fresh air.
0
Yesterday & Today
< 1973 and 2017 >
I miss having blond hair. Well, I miss having hair. I remember loving that book bag. I’d wear that shirt today, but not the socks or shoes. Oh, the things I wish I could tell that kid.
2+
Grace and Gross at the Grammys
The 59th Annual Grammys Awards are this weekend. Twenty-five years ago, I worked at the 34th Annual Grammys at Radio City Musical Hall. My friend, Christine, a fellow Montclair State alum, asked me, along with a bunch of other recent Communication Studies graduates, to volunteer as a talent escort and seat filler.
On February 25, 1992, we met at Radio City early, received an orientation, a tour of the hall, and our escort assignments. Some of us would escort performers. Some would escort presenters. Performers got dressing rooms. Presenters did not. I didn’t know if my nerves could manage a performer, which that year included Aretha Franklin, Paul Simon, Mariah Carey, Luther Vandross, Bonnie Raitt, LL Cool J, Seal, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and Johnny Mathis.
3+
Running Bear
1970s. My toddler and tween years. Weekend mornings. Mom and dad wore down the needle playing Solid Gold Rock ‘N’ Roll Volume 1, a compilation album. Johnny Preston’s Running Bear was one of my favorites.
1+
Believing in Chunky Soup?
I’ve been posting song memories since I started this blog thing in December. Inspiration has often come while listening to my iPod Classic. I love that 160gb device. It holds every song I own, 13k, with room left for another 15k. This is my third iPod since the iPod came out. And I don’t know what I’ll do when this one grinds to halt. (Apple discontinued the iPod a few years ago with some lame excuse about not being able to find the parts. Really? You’re Apple. You can find what whatever parts you want, wherever you want.)
I don’t want to stream music to my iPhone, eating up data, and getting interrupted by texts, emails, alerts, and calls. No thanks. I like my music separate from my work. Besides, I’ve crafted so many playlists and smart playlists that sync up seamlessly with iTunes over the years. For me, the system didn’t need fixing.
1+
Alternative Facts
FACT: Alternative facts are lies.
FACT: Alternative facts are opinions.
FACT: Alternative facts are as real as alternative lifestyles.
FACT: Alternative facts are the tools of propagandists.
FACT: Alternative facts are believed as truths by the brainwashed.
FACT: Alternative facts, the propagandists who spread them, and the mental midgets who believe them, are a clear and present danger.
1+
Just the Facts
Dear media,
Where were you in 2015 and 2016 have you been the last 30+ years?
Congratulations! You successfully enabled a man who now declares war on you.
And you deserve it.
You have no one but yourselves to blame for your eroded credibility. For far too long, you have chased sensationalism, the ratings dollar, and portrayed the news as entertainment. So you get what you deserve. It’s tempting to jump on the Trump administration’s media-bashing bandwagon, but we need you now more than ever. You are the only check left on a complete fascist and Orwellian takeover of America and democracy. Your rights—unlike women, LGBT, black, immigrant, voting, and many other rights—are enshrined in, and protected by, the Constitution, because, have no doubt, the current administration would strip you of those rights in a rushin’ Russian heartbeat. This is what they plan to do to me, my husband, son, sister, mother, and fellow marginalized brothers and sisters. So count yourselves lucky.
4+
twopointnine don’t count
When a candidate receives 2.9 million more votes and still ends up losing, something is seriously wrong with our election system. That’s 2.9 million voters who don’t matter. Their votes, representing more than the total population of eighteen individual states (based on 2010 census), and is more than the total vote in thirty-four states, may as well have been incinerated. We could void votes for Trump in eight states combined (Alaska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, West Virginia, and Nebraska) or in Ohio alone and still not reach 2.9 million. Imagine the outrage if his votes in any one of those states simply didn’t count.
4+