Political [yuck]

I hate to get more political than the small bits I put in the regular old blog entries (who are we kidding here - I kinda enjoy it but am afraid it will put readers off). Remember that I'm a libertarian, so I try to present this without bias. Well, I will admit to hating Hillary and everything she stands for but am trying to be fair on all sides.

The presidential debates are upon us, which all but the most politics-resistant humans (and dogs) have realized. Cats don't care either way. The first debate was shaky, the second was carried away by the Trump, often referred to as the Cheeto, the Trumpster, Make America Great and several other names that I won't bother to type.The Hillary (also known as the Criminal and the Saint) campaign is in a bit of a panic, which is very interesting.

The debates have been largely Content Free, with insults and blame being the order of the evening. I hear that they have been the most contentious ever. I refuse to watch them, as they're simply two people lying (they won't allow third parties in the debates) or massive finger-pointing. And let's face it, all a third party candidate has to do is stand there quietly and politely and become the Voice of Reason and they're in. Would you want that if you were one of the major parties?

It has become apparent that the press is squarely in Hillary's corner. They tend to misrepresent Trump's statements to make him look bad. In some circles, CNN is known as the Clinton News Network. They have been caught admitting their bias. MSNBC has been referred to as a Democratic Propaganda wing. There have been times where many outlets have used the same wordings for an event, as if they got their talking points from somewhere (I'll leave it to you to name it).

The Wikileaks documents have provided an important insight into the workings of Hillary's campaign, as well as the DNC itself. I urge you to check them out if you haven't already. Have no illusions that if there were a hack of the RNC, it would look largely the same.

I have said before that this election is historic in that one of the candidates is not owned by the Powers That Be (PTB). Guess which one.  Many maintain that the press is owned by Hillary but if you think about it for a second, Hillary is a bit of a puppet: all major news outlets are owned by six families, who control everything you see, hear, and read. This is why it's important to get your news from a number of sources, not including mainstream media (MSM). It's not Hillary - it's the PTB who are in a Petulant Frenzy over the candidate they don't own. Donald is a very serious threat to their power and the Dirty Tricks Squad is out in full operation, to an extent that dwarfs elections in the past. I feel for the man's life to some degree... look what happened to the Kennedys, who went against the PTB Plans<tm>.

Trump has a really solid base, which seems to feel that he will Make America Great Again (MAGA). It is theorized that many more people are voting Trump but are afraid to say anything for fear of retribution or having to listen to their friends' expressions of horror. As for MAGA, the people are borderline hypnotized and actually believe this. Let's face it, there is no human that will get into office that can MAGA. None at all.

As if Trump's supporters weren't weird enough, the Hillary people (lovingly referred to as Hillbots) are obviously the same people who elected Obama (hope and change). Twice. The Kool Aid is strong with these folks (not 100% of them, of course.. some are just terrified of Trump). Anyone with operating brain cells knows that installing an email server of your own for classified information is not only illegal, it's downright dangerous for the country, in that it can get hacked (which it did, by the Russians and Chinese, for which there's proof). The main reason for the server was to avoid Freedom of Information requests. The other reason was convenience. If one of us peons did this, even at your place of business, it's a fireable (and jailable) offense. The FBI declined to prosecute, probably due to collusion (and Comey's fear for his life). Because there was no prosecution, her followers claim she's perfectly innocent and will hear nothing else.

Hillary's health is another serious issue. It is a matter of record that she sustained head trauma. This was apparently so serious that she could not remember certain things she was questioned about by the FBI. She has collapsed and had tremors indicative of a neurological problem, possibly Parkinson's. All recent medical issues have been taken care of by private physicians, who are exempt from disclosure. There is even a medical technician/physician that is always by her side and carries some sort of rapid injection pen at all times. You'll pick him out as a large, imposing African American man, sometimes closer to her than her own Secret Service detail. When Hillary collapsed and had to be helped into a van, half of the team helped her, in what appeared to be practiced fashion, while the Secret Service got into a formation that blocked any view to what was happening. This is a pretty large concern for someone who would be president. It is also poo-pooed by the Hillbots. If Hillary had a seizure during a press conference, the followers would insist she was dancing.

I have one question for you: Do you want either of these people running the country?
I will not presume to tell you for whom to vote... I just want you to notice what's going on and make the best choice for the country and yourself.

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I Debate Your Position(s)

Reminder to change your Yahoo password. If you haven't, everybody else has it now.

• See that debate? Me either.  Useless pageantry. I can't stand the sound of two people lying. IIRC, Kennedy beat Nixon due to smoothness.
• There is a lot of arguing about who won the debate. Know who lost? The American people.

A very discrete, classy man was caught banging his girlfriend on a Greyhound bus. This is kind of the sort of thing one would expect from Greyhound, in addition to riding next to people who think they're Jesus or some other Major Religious Figure. Don't ask how I know. From the article, it's difficult to figure out whether the perceived offense is that he's having boom boom on a bus or that he didn't bother to pull her panties down. If the latter, I would argue that this is a much handier solution for a quickie on a public accommodation (or in someone's house where you shouldn't be). Of course this is all hearsay... I haven't been in this position. In fact, I haven't been in many positions, especially lately.

• The Bill Clinton Correlation: If it moves, nail it. If it doesn't move, nail it. And leave a stain to prove dominance.

Austrian customs officials found human intestines in a woman's luggage. She probably didn't know there were any laws against this sort of thing.

• In what must be a very important study, it was discovered that ants prefer morphine over sugar. As you'd expect, I'd go for sugar every time, as would the wife and dog.

If you us the Opera browser, the latest version includes a VPN.  This is a handy little security feature that will disguise your real IP address and location, as well as block tracking cookies. It can also allow you to get around some of the location-based blocking, such as the BBC allowing only UK to connect.

FINE PRINT: as the article explains, this is a VPN for the browser only. Anything else (email) you send through your connection will not go through the VPN. There's also the little matter of your data going through Opera's servers. I haven't been able to find anything on privacy policy or what/if they're examining anything. I did try it the other day and it works. Just don't go using it thinking you can hack away or Do Dirty Deeds while you're 'hidden'.

FINER PRINT: many browsers these days are based on Chrome (Iron, Chromium, Opera, and something new that begins with V). Chrome has a privacy issue, as it's Google code and it 'phones home'. Most people don't care, but naturally I do. Opera (and I believe the rest) are incredible memory hogs. They start ok then tend to suck up huge amounts of RAM over time. Ymmv but it IS a speedy little browser that accepts all Chrome extensions. I keep Firefox locked down and use Opera in a more open configuration.

• Here are 5 tools to help defend yourself online in terms of privacy. I use some different extensions but this is a great starting point. The EFF is a great resource.

Somehow reproductive scientists made a three-parent baby. What's next - group babies? Four parents and a dog? Giraffe babies bred specifically for basketball?

• Elon Musk, famous for being rich and having a very strange name and accent, announced that he wants to get humans to Mars, evenutally on a six month schedule. Mr Musk, I applaud you and have some suggestions on who to send.

Dancing with the Stars Live! is coming to a venue near me. I hope they have ambulances on hand to get help for the people slitting their own wrists.

• Dubai grounded all flights for half an hour because of unauthorized drone activity. Because it takes a special kind of idiot to fly a drone over an airport. I wonder if the special kind of idiot was us....

HEADLINE OF THE MONTH
An Australian man using a portable toilet on a building site was bitten by a venemous spider on his penis. For the second time. This dude might want to give up construction. Or Australia.

• A British conservationist is making a 4,500 mile paramotor flight following migrating swans. Apparently she has absolutely no life. Or she's married.

I have an adverse relationship with mornings.

• Once again, those wacky far-seeing fiscally responsible folks in Congress passed a spending bill. This last minute effort, as usual, will keep the government 'operating' until December. This is a new low, even for Congress. And, of course, another increase in spending up the debt.

Non-partisan political observation: the democrats are incredibly nervous about Trump and libertarians. They're bringing out the Big Guns - tv 'news', tv, newspapers, and even Mr+Mrs President. My theory is that this is good for the dems but in reality, it's being run by the Powers That Be, who are terrified of a candidate they don't own. Also, when they have to go after libertarians, things must be pretty bad for them. It's also interesting to note that things are roughly tied at this point: the 'standard' candidates can't pull off a lead. People must really be PISSED for this to happen. Regardless of candidates, this situation is good for America. People are waking up.

• Our friends over at Samsung are having a really bad year: as if exploding phones weren't bad enough, there is now a lawsuit over exploding washing machines. Perhaps all of their products should come with a fire extinguisher.

The gay pride rainbow flag has been launched into space 'to spread peace' (perhaps because it has done such a great job on the ground). Perhaps we'd be better served by launching ISIS into space.

• The latest threat facing our country is..... clowns. I am not kidding. Reports of threatening clowns are coming in from all over the country. They're getting arrested by the police. Clownphobics (coulrophobia) rejoice! I'm surprised the politicians aren't getting Tough On Clowns.

if we just change the date, it's Congress!