This is mostly from my brother John Otto:

By Steve Otto

For the last five or six years, we have never had more than 6 inches of snow. It was not always like that. When I move to Wichita, KS, when I was 13 years old, we often had more than a foot of snow. We often had large drifts of three feet or more. I had to be careful driving because I could get stuck in a snow drift. NO MORE. With climate change—global warming, whatever people want to call it, we don't get deep snow anymore. At least we haven't in many years.

I have read where cities creat bubbles of their own heat. I'm sure Wichitadoes that. All around this city, there are deep snows—but not here. Here we don't get much snow. The school kids haven't had a "snow day" off school in more than five years. They may not get one in the next five years.

There are still politicians as Donald Trump, who refuse to believe in global warming or climate change. I'd like to know how they explain the weather changes I have seen in my lifetime. I have read of people who are moving away from Western states because the increasing fires are making it hard for them to breath the air. They are moving away because they don't believe it will ever get better. And yet there are still politicians who try to tell us that these changes are a myth.

For those of us who see the changes and watch them happening before our eyes—there is no myth about it.

 

Yes...winter. But during the day it is so warm the streets melt all the snow.

From Inside Climate News:

Reporters from across the Midwest explore the climate risks and the strategies communities are using to adapt.

By Dan Gearino

November 11, 2019

Think of a Minnesotawith almost no ice fishing. A Missouri that is as hot and dry as Texas. River and lake communities where catastrophic flooding happens almost every year, rather than every few generations.

This, scientists warn, is the future of the Midwest if emissions continue at a high rate, threatening the very core of the region’s identity.

With extreme heat waves and flooding increasingly making that future feel more real, city leaders have started looking for ways to adapt.

......For the rest click here.

By Steve Otto

It  was Super Bowl Sunday again. That happens every year. There is little to nothing political about football. But Super Bowl has been turned into a tradition and its own holiday. It is a little like Black Friday. There is the game, and there is a half time extravaganza. Unlike such holidays as Thanksgiving, the Super Bowl is only as old as foot ball and I'm not sure it is even that old.

For this year we had Super Bowl LV.

According to Wikipedia:

"Since 2004, the game has been played on the first Sunday in February. It is the culmination of a regular season that begins in the late summer of the previous year.

The game was created as part of a 1966 merger agreement between the NFL and its rival the American Football League (AFL). It was agreed that the two champion teams would begin playing in an annual AFL–NFL World Championship Game until the merger was completed in 1970. The first game was played on January 15, 1967, after both leagues had completed their respective 1966 seasons. After the merger, each league was re-designated as a "conference", and the game has since been played between the conference champions to determine the NFL's league champion. The NFL restricts the use of its "Super Bowl" trademark, and it is frequently referred to as the "big game" or other generic terms by non-sponsoring corporations."

So it is no where as old as Thanksgiving. It is not as old as Christmas or New Year. However it is a big deal. This year Tampa Bay 31 beat Kansas City 9.

There are some plugs for our imperialist military, such as USAA (military insurance) has a special lounge at every Super Bowl for the military. Then there are Discount NFL Tickets for Military.

There are shows such as Air Force Bombers from Dakotas Will Do Super Bowl Flyover.  

Of course I am not happy with that. It is a celebration of imperialism which I oppose. However that is a small part of the Super Bowl. The biggest pro-capitalist part of this holiday are all the Super Bowl ads. The are mostly at half time and they are so built up that they make news every year. I have written several times how much I hate commercials and their deceptive nature.

There was no commercials when I visited Cuba two years ago. They were not on TV and I rarely saw ads everywhere like they have here. They do advertize a beer, Bucanero, that is everywhere. Ironically the beer is hard to find in bars and stores.

I didn't watch the game. I probably would have enjoyed the half time-show, but I didn't watch that either. If you watched it, that is fine, it's sports and entertainment. I have nothing against foot ball, I just don't find it interesting.

If you like football, watch it and have fun. And you can hate the military ties and commercials like I do, and enjoy at least most of the show.

This year no Budweiser ads.

 By Steve Otto

 As I watch the impeachment trial, over former president Donald Trump’s spectacle in Congress, back on January 6, a few things go through my mind. A lot of liberal Democrats are chomping at the bit to find Trump guilty. It is easy to jump on the anti-Trump bandwagon. But the problem is that I’m not really a liberal. I’m a democratic socialist and maybe even closer to a Marxist.

I was a high school kid in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Those were remarkable years. A cultural renaissance took place. Then there was a new left Marxist movement rising from one campus to the next. There were peaceful protests. There were also two Marxist leaning movements that took up guerrilla war fare, the Weather Underground and the Symbionese Liberation Army. Between outright insurrection and peaceful protests were those in the middle, such as the Yippies.The Yippies[1] and similar groups tried to cross both the hippy cultural movement and the new left. In the long run, they were not treated much different from the insurrectionists. There have been examples of the US government trying to send a message to those who would use any kind of violence, even vandalism, that such activity will be met with the most extreme punishment. Rebellion from the left would NOT be tolerated AT ALL!

But now, in Congress, we are seeing our government dishing out the same message to people on the right—some of them on the far-right, so the rightwing insurrection will not be tolerated AT ALL. These rebellious factions are on the right and far-right—so far to the right, we are just about dealing with fascism that is not all that different from the movements we saw in Spain and Italy before World War II. As with Europe, our USfascists have a charismatic leader, Donald Trump.

So while it is tempting to jump on the anti-Trump bandwagon, I can’t help fearing that doing so will some day come back to haunt some of us who have not always followed the pro-government rules. There were about 5 people killed. But considering the size of the insurrection, with a few thousand Trump supporters, most of the damage was just petty vandalism. They did hit some people and they broke some windows, but does the government really need to arrest EVERYONE was went into the Congress that day? We need to really think about what we are doing when the calls come out to round up the small time people—especially the misguided. 

By Steve Otto

When I started college, at Newman University, in Wichita,  had to take a course on ancient civilization. That might seem interesting but it was the ancient philosophers who had all the interesting ideas. I have to admit that I did not know that much about these ancient philosophers and their relationship to Karl Marx. Despite being a Democratic Socialist, many of us also consider ourselves to be Marxists at least theoretically.

Marx had written a dissertation on the difference between the philosophy of Democritus/ Δημόκριτος and Epicurus/ Ἐπίκουρος. In an introduction to his dissertation on the difference between The philosophy of Democritus and Epicurus he admits that these two philosophy, have never been given their full respect. He admitted that he had to chose one philosophy over the other because he was writing a dissertation. He said he had to chose one over  the other.

So I had read Marx's views on these ancient philosophers. I had also realized that these philosophers had developed important views on philosophy and life itself. Since that time I have found that many young Marxist find little they need in these ancient philosophies. In fact, not long ago a young Marxist wrote to me and said that modern Marxists have developed philosophy beyond the needs of the earlier philosophers that they no longer have any need for those ancient philosophies. But I'm not convinced of that. The earlier ancient philosophers laid the ground work for what we are trying to decide today.  

Now let 's fast  forward to an article I read recently, "Epic Battles in Practical Ethics: Stoicism vs Epicureanism."

It just so happens that the author's name was not on this article, so he/she/it was not someone I could find. Why it was not signed I don't know. But I haven't found the author's name yet.

Why it was not signed I don't know. But I haven't found the author yet.

Since reading the ancient texts of Epicurus I have considered that my religion, if there is such a thing. The author of this above article is clearly an enthusiast of stoicism.  According to Wikipedia:

Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium in Athens in the early 3rd century BC. It is a philosophy of personal ethics informed by its system of logic and its views on the natural world. According to its teachings, as social beings, the path to eudaimonia (happiness, or blessedness) is found in accepting the moment as it presents itself, by not allowing oneself to be controlled by the desire for pleasure or by the fear of pain, by using one's mind to understand the world and to do one's part in nature's plan, and by working together and treating others fairly and justly.

The Stoics are especially known for teaching that"virtue is the only good" for human beings, and those external things—such as health, wealth, and pleasure—are not good or bad in themselves (adiaphora), but have value as "material for virtue to act upon." Alongside Aristotelian ethics, the Stoic tradition forms one of the major founding approaches to virtue ethics.^[1] The Stoics also held that certain destructive emotions resulted from errors of judgment, and they believed people should aim to maintain a will (called prohairesis) that is "in accordance with nature." Because of this, the Stoics thought the best indication of an individual's philosophy was not what a person said but how a person behaved. To live a good life, one had to understand the rules of the natural order since they thought everything was rooted in nature.

I have rejected the Stoic world view, which I believe is close to the USconservative movement. In many ways people might find me a hedonist. And Epicurus, in my opinion, is simply not a hedonist. Aristippus is a good example of a hedonist. He took part in all kinds of pleasures. I have some hedonistic tendencies. But I have also insist on trying to access the need to try and make the world a better place. It was Marxwho said that “The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it.”

So perhaps I have a unique view of the philosopher's view of the world. While the author of that article clearly takes the side of the Stoics, I take the other side. So to some extent, the Marxist side does resemble Stoicism. And yet I have taken the Epicurean side. Right or wrong, I have taken a side and I do not regret that.

By Steve Otto

It is hard to live in a day and age where simply going to a local bar for a little company and entertainment is a lethal gamble. Many of us just sit at home and wait for this whole thing to end—and now some say the end my come as late as next year. Still other experts are saying things may get to normal as early as this Summer.

My wife has just died, so sitting at home alone is not much fun. Then again, I have not yet been hit by that virus. If I do get it, I could be the end of me. I would not like to be among those statistics. For those among the half million there will be no next year—no going back out and finding a new normal. For those folks it is game over.

Again there is little more to say about that. About 100 years ago we had the Spanish Flue. I wasn't born yet. So this is my first major epidemic and my fist taste of a major human die off. I have read about the Black Death and I know that was worse. However, for those who lost their lives in this pandemic, it doesn't really matter if earlier epidemics were worse. For them this epidemic was as bad as it can get.

From NPR (National Public Radio):

"More than 500,000 people have died from COVID-19 in the U.S.

This week President Biden is asking Americans to mark the 500,000 deaths with a moment of silence at sunset Monday. He's also ordered flags on all federal buildings lowered to half-staff for five days.

The disease has killed at least 100,000 people in the past five weeks and was the leading cause of death in the country in January, ahead of heart disease, cancer and other ailments, according to an analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation....

....... "The massive number and the loss of those people from our society has not been acknowledged," says Dr. Camara Phyllis Jones, an epidemiologist and past president of the American Public Health Association. "We cannot think these people are disposable and dispensable and that we can just get along very well without them. It's those kinds of blinders that sap the strength of the whole society."

"There's much that could be learned, much that would be added if we were to honor people's lives and to invest in people's lives,' she adds."

"The Biden administration will continue recognizing Venezuela’s opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the legitimate president of the country and won’t negotiate anytime soon with President Nicolás Maduro, keeping a policy approach for now similar to former president Donald Trump's, which had the support of many Venezuelans in the United States."

So no changes there. And that position is ridiculous, supporting a man who never won an election—none, not any kind of election. But there will be a few changes, according to Foreign Affairs:

"These maladies predated Trump, of course. President Barack Obama’s administration had to design international agreements such as theParisclimate accordand the Irannuclear dealin a way that would avoid the need for formal ratification, because the world knows that the U.S. Senate has been unable to approve a multilateral treaty for nearly 15 years, even one modeled directly on U.S.domestic law. But Trump’s “America first” populist nationalism has cut deeply into the foundation of American foreign policy, as his administration called into question long-standing alliances, embraced authoritarian rulers, denigrated allies, and withdrew the United States from a wide range of international agreements and organizations that it founded."

Then there are the maybes. According to the BBC:

"US President Joe Biden has talked by phone with King Salman of Saudi Arabiaas he seeks to put relations with America's old ally on a new footing.

He "affirmed the importance" the US"places on universal human rights and the rule of law", the White House said.

Mr Biden made the call after reading a forthcoming US report into the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The report is expected to implicate the king's son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He denies involvement.

Mr Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump, pursued closer ties with Saudi Arabia."

So he has shown concern, but no real action yet. Will he wimp out to the Saudis as all the presidents before him. If I were a betting man, I would put my money on yes. But I'm willing to see what happens.

As for that virus, I have avoided death so far. I hope to get vaccinated and I hope things get back to normal by next Summer. I have confidence in Biden when it comes to the virus and him doing the right thing.

On foreign affairs and other issues I have very little confidence that Biden will do the right things. But if he gets anything right it will be a step in the right direction—even if it is just a little step.

 COVID Memorial

 By Steve Otto

While reading my Sunday newspaper (The Wichita Eagle)[1] I came across this article: " Biden Agenda Faces test as relief bill heads to Senate."Here is what the article said:

"President Biden’s agenda is facing its most consequential test as Democrats prepare to maneuver his $1.9 trillion stimulus package through the evenly divided Senate, an effort that could strain the fragile alliance between progressives and centrists and the limits of his power in Congress.

An early-morning House vote to pass the sweeping pandemic aid measure only underscored the depth of partisan division over the proposal, which was opposed by every Republican."

A part of this $1.9 trillion stimulus package is about a plan to distribute expanded tax benefits aimed at helping impoverished families. There is also a proposal to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025.

Now I  realize that a lot of Republicans are business people and $millionaires and $billionaires. They like the money they have and the money they make. They make more when the rest of us make less. But a lot of working class people have voted to put these Republicans in office. Not all working class voters make more than $15 an hour. Many of  these working class Republicans are unemployed and need stimulus money. So how do these Republicans get into office and how do they stay there.

Let's just look at SOME of the arguments against this stimulus bill. This is from the Cato Institute:

1. The Federal Government Is Broke. The federal government faces a $1 trillion deficit this year and massive red ink down the road from Social Security and Medicare. Rather than increasing subsidies, policymakers should cut the roughly 800 current aid programs for the states. Most of these programs are inefficient and hugely bureaucratic.1 Federal spending on state activities is a failed experiment of the 1960s that should be cut, not expanded.

2. Spending Is the Problem. Rapid spending growth has pushed many state budgets into deficit, repeating the error committed before the last recession in 2001. Figure 1 shows that total state and local spending rose 7.6 percent in 2007 and 7.0 percent in 2008, based on data through the third quarter.2State policymakers should be cutting their budgets, not asking for federal help to spend more.

Then there is this from Bloomberg:

The issue is whether spending about $600 billion on a one-time tax credit that would be worth $8,000 to a family of four and reach more than 85 percent of taxpayers makes good economic sense. There is the possibility of some overheating, particularly if the economy’s potential supply remains constrained by Covid protection measures. I am all for a far more expansive approach to fiscal policy. But that does not mean indiscriminate support for universal giveaways.

Of course there may be other reasons some of these working class folks voted for these Republican leaders. But there is all of this concern over the money our government actually has vs. the money it can afford to give to people whose lives' may depend on it. The government is probably not going to fall anytime soon. But some working people may lose their homes, families and everything they have.

Of course there is always that common saying: "I have what I want and need. If you don't well....screw you!" And that appears to be a common sentiment among conservatives. There is that common catch phrase "free stuff." They criticize Democrats who want to give things to people and at times, supposedly, some of these people have done nothing to earn that "free stuff."

What fascinates me the most are those poor working class conservatives who almost seem to hate themselves. Why they have such self loathing I don't know. I met one of these people one  time and she almost seem to feel that she (yes it was a woman) and others like her, who have not done well under the system, deserve to be punished. Maybe she felt it was her fault that she has not done well under the system. She seemed to feel the old adage: If I can't make it here, it is my own fault. Again I am reminded of my own quotes: "Liberation is for the masses—not the dumb asses!" And it reminds me of "I hate victims who respect their executioners." - Jean-Paul Sartre.

So  those of us on the left—any left; liberal, Marxist, democratic socialist, all have that one thing in common—we don't hate ourselves.

Pix by Trump supporters call for “liberal genocide” and deportation of Jews at Arizona rally.

By Steven Otto

Today is International Women's Day and for a theme, this year, I have decided to write about our nations lack of women and other minorities on our currency. To date there have been a few women on our coins. But there have been no women on our paper money.

As for our paper money, women have been lacking and they still are.

So finally after all these years, the mint came out with the Susan B. Anthony Dollar, 1979. It was a nice coin with a nice design, however, it was just a little larger than a quarter dollar coin. They were easy to get mixed up. So that coin faded away with its unpopularity. That is not to say there are none of them around. There are millions still stock piled at the mint. That makes the coin valueless to a collector.

That brings us to the Sacagawea dollar, minted first minted in 2000. It was as different color than the old dollar coin—brass or gold color. While it was popular with some people, as myself, it was not popular enough to become regularly used money. It seems many people just won't handle a dollar coin if they can avoid it. The coin is a nice shape and it has many advantages over the dollar bill, such as lasting a lot longer. But people still won't spend it. This coin had a specific woman and that woman was a Native American Indian. So it was not only a step forward for women, but for minorities as well. As late as 2019 a few of these coins were still being minted for collectors.

That brings us to the Harriet Tubman $20. A few years ago there was a plan to mint $20 bills with Tubman, both a woman and a minority (black), on it. After Andrew Jackson, who is now on the $20 was a racist towards Indians. A black woman is long overdue to be put on our money. It is bad enough we haven't been able to get a woman elected president. We just now have a vice-president, Kamala Harris,who is both a minority and a woman.

Just recently President Joe Biden restarted the effort to put Tubman on the $20. According to Govexec:

"The White House will resume the Obama-era push to put Harriet Tubman’s image on the $20 bill, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday. 

“The Treasury Department is taking steps to resume efforts to put Harriet Tubman on the front of the new $20 notes,” Psaki said in response to a reporter’s question during the daily briefing. “It’s important that our … money reflects the history and diversity of our country and Harriet Tubman’s image gracing the new $20 note would certainly reflect that.” 

Naturally there are those fools and non-progressives who still want to drag their feet and stop this effort. According to Time:

"The Biden Administration announced its plan to return to an Obama-era initiative to put Harriet Tubman’s face on the U.S. $20 bill. Her image would replace Andrew Jackson, the notoriously racist President, known both for owning hundreds of slaves and for his brutal and genocidal policy of Indian removal. Based on current designs, a statue of Jackson would remain on the back of the bill, while Harriet Tubman would grace the front. Many Americans, across the racial spectrum, are excited about this tribute to Tubman. They view it as progress, as a necessary and long overdue disruption of the American Founding Fathers narrative. I do not.

I know in a country that worships at the altar of capitalism–an economic system made possible by the free Black labor procured through the Transatlantic slave trade–a Black woman’s face on our currency seems like the highest honor we could bestow. But what a stunning failure of imagination. Putting Tubman on legal tender, when slaves in the U.S. were treated as fungible commodities is a supreme form of disrespect. The imagery of her face changing hands as people exchange cash for goods and services evokes for me discomfiting scenes of enslaved persons being handed over as payment for white debt or for anything white slaveholders wanted. America certainly owes a debt to Black people, but this is not the way to repay it.

Our country to the South, Mexico, has had us beat for years on both women and Native American Indians. On their five centavo they have María Josefa Crescencia Ortíz Téllez–Girón, popularly known as Doña Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez or La Corregidora was an insurgent and supporter of the Mexican War of Independence, which fought for independence against Spain, in the early 19th century. And on the Mexican five peso coin they have had Cuauhtemoc, the Aztec warrior—a specific Native American Indian.

So let's support the effort, once again, to put a woman on our money.

And in the mean time, here are some nice quotes from important women.

 (The author, Steve Otto, has been a coin collector for nearly his entire adult life and then some.)

Here are a few relevant quotes:

Women are the real architects of society. -Cher

Always be a first-rate version of yourself instead of a second-rate version of somebody else. -Judy Garland

I am grateful to be a woman. I must have done something great in another life.- Maya Angelou

I have plowed and planted and gathered into barns, and no man could head me. And aren't I a woman?...

.....That little man in black there, he says women can't have as much rights as men 'cause Christ wasn't a woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him.

- Sojourner Truth

And a Song:

Woman Power - Yoko Ono

By Steve Otto

We are now into the 21st century and there are still many people both here in the US and in the United Kingdom (Mostly Britain and some related countries) who are still going gaga over members of the royal family. They act as if the royal family is  made up of story book princesses, princes, kings and queens. Many of our news pundits here in the US still go crazy over every little tidbit of information over the royal family.

These royal people are nothing more than ceremonial remnants of a different time. They are from the Middle ages and their families and their family's wealth are all the results of more than a thousand years of tyranny. In the beginning, the kings and queens of Europe had near absolute power. They could do what they wanted and they enforced their will with extreme forms of cruelty.

For example, how many people really understand what it meant to be "hung, drawn and quartered?"[1] Not only were people executed, they were often torture in some of the most gruesome ways. Giordano Bruno an Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, mathematician, poet, cosmological theorist, and hermetic occultist, was burned at the stake in 1600 for beliefs that differed from what the heads of Europe believed in.[2] His punishment was far from painless. In the early parts of the middle ages these kinds of punishment were quite common.

And the fortunes the royals made were simply from the taxation of the people. They basically just took what they wanted. In the early parts of the Middle ages farmers were treated as slaves, called serfs.

Prior to the establishment of the royal families of Europe, there was the Roman Empire, a system based on secular government, with some elected government positions. Before the Roman Empire, we had various examples of Greek City States, with such grand new ideas as democracy, oligarchy and tyrants. The tyrants were different from the royals in that they could not just hand over power to members of their families. They were all powerful, but not hereditary. So over all these examples Europeans had to chose from, they chose the divine right system, a system where leaders are chosen by God through their birth right.

It was one of the most ridiculous political ideas ever and yet it not only took hold, but members of this system still hold on to their positions of entitlement and wealth. They no longer have any political power, and yet members of the US and British press hang all over them and treat them as if they were still in power.

So why then is it so surprising that members of the royal family are racists? They are an obtuse institution that should have died out years ago. Many members of our own US founding fathers were acting directly against the royal family of England when they started the US Revolution.

On the monarchy, Thomas Paine (about1791) said:

"We have heard the Rights of Man called a levelling system; but the only system to which the word levelling is truly applicable, is the hereditary monarchical system. It is a system of mental levelling. It indiscriminately admits every species of character to the same authority. Vice and virtue, ignorance and wisdom, in short, every quality, good or bad, is put on the same level. Kings succeed each other, not as rationals, but as animals. It signifies not what their mental or moral characters are. Can we then be surprised at the abject state of the human mind in monarchical countries, when the government itself is formed on such an abject levelling system?—It has no fixed character. To-day it is one thing; to-morrow it is something else. It changes with the temper of every succeeding individual, and is subject to all the varieties of each. It is government through the medium of passions and accidents. It appears under all the various characters of childhood, decrepitude, dotage, a thing at nurse, in leading-strings, or in crutches. It reverses the wholesome order of nature. It occasionally puts children over men, and the conceits of non-age over wisdom and experience. In short, we cannot conceive a more ridiculous figure of government, than hereditary succession, in all its cases, presents."

So why after more than 200 years is this point of view being ignored in favor of story book prince and princess tales?

I have to admire Meghan and Harry for trying to distance themselves from the royal family in an effort to try and build a future for themselves. They have their own ambitions which are not found by just letting the royal family to GIVE them their job in life. And there is no surprise that Meghan contemplated suicide nor that she has had mental issues. That lifestyle could tax anyone's sanity. It is not surprising that Meghan and Harry claimed that family members treated Meghan's mental health in a very trivial way.

According to The New York Times:

"The royal family has yet to respond to accusations from the couple, including that one of its members questioned how dark their baby’s skin would be, and that palace officials refused requests from the Duchess of Sussex for medical help when she felt suicidal."

Along with the damning interview Meghan did with Oprah Winfrey, there are now allegations that she and Harry were asked some racist questions about their baby and there are explosive revelations whereas Meghan and Harry accuse the British royal family of failing to protect them.

For me, as a democratic socialist, none of this is surprising. The Royal family is an anachronism of the past. I look forward to the day when both feudalism and capitalism are gone and buried.

Top 10 Shocking Things We Learned from the Meghan & Harry Interview

By Steve Otto

We can finnally expect a stimulus check in the mail. I have heard from family members who really hate President Joe Biden, yet have supported the passing of the stimulus check. They are all looking forward to getting their check. Not all these anti-Biden family members are supporters of former President Donald Trump. The Trump supporters I know have pointed out that he has supported  a larger stimulus chech than either his own party or the Democrats. But that still does not mean they all like or liked him.

I’m not sure what motivated our past president to support the larger amound of money. He was often very hard to figure out. But I did notice the there were Republicans who, to this day, claim the stimulus package is to expensive. Who is it too expensive for? That is the real question. The taxes come from all of us working people. It is there money—it is our money that most of us paid taxes into. Almost everyone I know, reguardles of whether they like, liked or did not like Trump or Biden, want to get stimulus money. Why not. We all need it.

The pols show that most Americans support the stimulus package.

Just a Third Say It Spends Too Much:

”As the House of Representatives prepares to give final approval to the Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, a sizable majority of U.S. adults (70%) say they favor the legislation. Only about three-in-ten (28%) oppose the bill, which provides economic aid to businesses, individuals and state and local governments.

While congressional votes on the legislation have been deeply divided along partisan lines, 41% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents support the measure. The bill draws overwhelming support from Democrats and Democratic leaners (94% favor).

In assessing the proposed spending in the aid package, 41% of Americans view it as about right, while another 25% say it spends too little; only a third of Americans say the legislation spends too much money. Republicans are far more likely than Democrats to view the spending in the bill as excessive (61% of Republicans vs. 11% of Democrats).

The new national survey by Pew Research Center, conducted on the Center’s nationally representative American Trends Panel March 1-7, 2021, among 12,055 adults, finds that a majority of the public (57%) says the Biden administration made a good faith effort working with Republican congressional leaders on the coronavirus aid package.

Three-quarters of women say they favor the aid package, while a smaller majority of men (66%) say the same.

While overwhelming majorities of Black (91%), Hispanic (80%) and Asian American adults (76%) say they favor the economic package, that compares with a smaller majority of White adults (63%).”

So, as we can see by these statistics, just about everyone, except members of the Republican Party and then just members who are in US Congress, support the checks. So, wouldn’t it be nearly political suicide for Republicans to oppose such a popular bill?

Aaron Blake has raised that questionin the Washington Post:

“Republicans have seemingly found themselves on the very wrong side of some big legislative battles in recent years.

The tax cut package they pushed through in 2018, for instance, polled among the most unpopular bills passed — if not the most unpopular — in decades. Their 2017 effort to replace the Affordable Care Act was even more historically unpopular, with support falling as low as the teens in some polls (before Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona ended it with his thumbs-down).

And it would seem to be happening again, with Republican leaders pushing for their party to unite against President Biden’s hugely popular coronavirus stimulus bill. Some are characterizing this as a huge risk.

The reality is more complex.

Despite that, Republicans calculated that they could still oppose the package, by focusing on some of its more objectionable elements. And by the time 2010 rolled around, about 75 percent of Americans said half or more of the stimulus money had been wasted. In April of that year, 62 percent said the legislation had not created jobs, with just 51 percent of Democrats saying it had. And on Election Day, only about one-third of voters said the package actually helped, according to exit polls. Republicans won the House in a rout and gained six seats in the Senate, after running in many cases on their opposition to the bill.”

One big question that Blake ignores is why the Republicans must oppose this spending at all. If it is popular who are they tr byying to appease in opposing it? I have heard some conservatives say this bill is a disincentive for people to go back out and work. Seriously? This many people really DON’T want to go back to work. They just want free money? That doesn’t really make any sense.

Of course, they can oppose parts of this bill, including their stead fast opposition to raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Let’s face it. This is not about actually loosing money. Big corporations won’t lose much money just by raising the minimum wage. That issue is more about keeping poor people in their place. People on the bottom have to be kept there. By allowing the minimum wage to go up, the working poor have a little more choice as to where they work. These issues have always been about keeping poor people poor and powerless.

And let’s be realistic. The Republican Party caters to the wealthy industrialists. What the industrialists want the Republicans want.

The amazing thing is how many working people support the Republican Party and their positions. It is something like watching slaves who vote for their slave owners. It is like Native American Indians voting for George Custer or Jews voting for Hitler.

It doesn’t make any sense. But it happens.

And it is hard to imagine anyone, of any political party, really wanting to let working people lose everything they have by denying them the stimulus checks. They may lose their homes, their cars, their lives. But supporting the industrialists is what being a Republican is all about. And let’s not let all the Democrats off the hook. Some of them are no different. Many Democrats are in the back pocket of certain corporations. Their opposition to Medicare for all is proof of that. They want to protect the insurance industry. Many Americans go without health care so that corporate leaders can profit off the sick and dying.

So, let’s enjoy the stimulus checks while we can get them. Congress is not always so generous, so let’s get the money while we can.

St. Patrick's Day is a day for getting drunk on Green beer, for many people. But it doesn't have to be. It is also a time to reflect on the struggles of Irelandin the past and in Northern Ireland in the recent past. -Steve Otto

Black 47 - James Connolly

But the names of some personalities obviously need to go—such as Nathan B. Forrest

By Steve Otto

 Some arguments just don't die easy. One of those is the fact that many things in the South are named after confederates. They maybe generals or some kind of confederate politicians. But those names still persist. For me personally, I believe trying to remove every singe person, who served in the confederacy from names and statues may be a hopeless project. Some famous southerners may have spent some time in the military and then went on to do other things. Being a confederate soldier may have been a small part of their life. 

According to Yahoo News:

"In the debate over so-called cancel culture, conservatives like Fox News host Tucker Carlson warn that if monuments to Confederate soldiers are taken down, or schools named after those historical figures who participated in the institution of slavery are given new ones, the entire history of the country will be subject to erasure."

He may have some actual points here. I hate to agree with him at all, but rewriting the history of the south may not be the best thing for us to do. However, there are some Southern historical figures whose names do not belong anywhere and that includes any high schools.

As the Yahoo Newsstory continues:

"While many Americans agree with that slippery slope argument, and school boards in cities like San Franciscohave reconsidered plans to rename schools following a public backlash, memorials to questionable historical figures continue to fall, especially across the South. One such recent case, the renaming of NathanB.ForrestHigh School in Jacksonville, Fla., continues to resonate."

And just who is Nathan B. Forrest? Here is a short bit of biography of his:

"Nathan B. Forrestwas a a prominent Confederate Army general during the US Civil War and the first Grand Wizard of theKu Klux Klan from 1867 to 1869. Before the war, Forrest amassed substantial wealth as a cotton plantation owner, horse and cattle trader, real estate broker and slave trader. If there is one man who should never have his name on any building in the US it is him. He was a racist and a founder of one of the worst terrorist groups in US History."

So I agree with those who believe Forrest was an abomination of a human being and belongs on no monuments and his name belongs in no place of honor. He is no more honorable than Adolf Hitler.

On the other hand, there were the common foot soldiers of the confederacy and they are a different story.

Ithink a lot of progressive people over look a few things about the confederacy. Almost none of the non-officers of the confederacy owned any slaves. There was a law that stated that anyone who owned more than 3 slaves was exempt from military service. That law was designed to make sure slave owners could stay home and make sure that their slaves didn't escape. So who did fight? The army was made largely of poor working class people who could not avoid being drafted.[1]So not only were these people not slave owners, some didn't want to fight in the first place. Also, very few slave owners had fewer than 3 slaves. Some wealthy people had a crew of five slaves to run their house. They needed a cook, a maid and a butler to clean up. If they had children, the needed a slave or two to take care of the kids. They almost never had fewer than 3 slaves.

By Steve Otto

Leave it to the people of Florida to do things wrong. Every year kids from across the country come down to Miami Beach for fun and sun. The fun includes everything from heaving drinking to sexual naughtiness (see Girls Gone Wild).

It's a partiers dream come true--until this year.

This year we are still in a pandemic for that covid virus. Florida is a very conservative state overall. And we all know that conservatives, at least some of them, don't like the government forcing them to wear masks in public.

Florida does have its share of anti-mask protesters. Just a few months ago "Cindy Falco-DiCorrado, 62, of Boynton Beach,refused to cover her face inside an Einstein Bros. Bagels at 9795 Glades Road. She shouted at customers and employees about her right to stay mask-free and refused to leave the store, leading deputies to arrest her on a trespassing charge, according to a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office report."

But right now, the authorities in Miami Beach are not happy with the un-masked partiers trying to have fun in the streets of that part of Florida. According to Yahoo News:

"Miami Beach has declared a state of emergency in its entertainment district due to an influx of spring breakers who have inundated the city. A curfew will be in effect at 8 p.m. for 72 hours, starting Saturday, Miami Beach Interim City Manager Raul Aguila announced Saturday.

All restaurants, bars and businesses are required to be closed by 8 p.m.

"As we hit the peak – at the peak of spring break, we are quite simply overwhelmed in the entertainment district," Aguila said at a press conference Saturday. "Folks, this is not an easy decision to make, we are doing that to protect the public health and safety."

A number of things have fed into this event—this problem. One is that the pandemic has lasted now since last March and a lot of people are getting frayed nerves as we all have to put up with the isolation that has come with being forced to "stay home" for nearly every event and every holiday. It has been hard for all of us to deal with. Then there is the anti-mask crowed who have done everything possible to defy all the  attempts to close down businesses and they have defied the orders to wear a mask. They are standing up for what they think is there rights. There are also those who have called the pandemic a farce, a phony problem of a disease they claim does not really exist. These same people are encouraging people not to take the vaccine.

Another part of the problem is that young people do need to let off steam now and then. They need a break. They need to party. Maybe the problem was not to stop them from having a spring break party, maybe it would have been better to find a way for them to party and not cause trouble. It may have been possible to control the partying rather than just shutting it down.

Any way we look at it, for now, Spring Break in Miami Beach is a disaster. There is no social distancing and no mask wearing. We can prepare for more cases of Covid and more deaths.

This whole thing was probably a problem no matter what the police did. But it could have been handled better and the anti-mask, anti-vaccine conservatives have contributed to the pandemic. They have contributed to the deaths.

This is one spring break many will try and forget. But it won't be easy.

When: Tune in April 18, 7pm Central Standard Time.

Where: Global Learning Center of Wichita.

Who will be there?!:

Meredeth Turshen -

She is a professor emerita at the E. J. Bloustein School of planning and public policy, Rutgers University, and the author/editor of a dozen books on global health.

Annie Thébaud-Mony -

Is emerita director of research at the National Institute of Health and Medical Research of France and a specialist in the sociology of work; she has authored/ edited eight books on occupational health.

How do I take part in this event?!

Tune in with Zoom, https://wichitastate.zoom.us/j/96594517392?pwd=UINHQXJuUmtIT-jRBMUR6cVBQZ2gzQT09

Meeting ID 965 9451 7392

Password: 975121

With assistance for Zoom please contact us at glc.wichita@gmail.com

All of this is being done in connection with the Global Learning Center, a 501(c) non-profit organization since 1988 (EIN 48-10580552)

By Steve Otto

Today is April 1. There was a time when I used to try and come up with elaborate jokes to celebrate this day; "April Fools Day." Over the years I just don't seem to come up with great jokes to play on people. But not to worry. As with most years, there are those in the news who have made jokes of themselves. They really aren't that funny, but they have made jokes of themselves and their Party, the Republicans. For example here is the story of  Kansas Senate Majority Leader Gene Suellentrop who made a complete ass of himself,charged with driving under the influence and trying to elude law enforcement:

"The Kansas City Star reports that the payments can continue even though Kansas Senate Majority Leader Gene Suellentrop turned over the bulk of his duties before he was charged Friday in the March 16 incident in Topeka. But he has given no indication he plans to resign or give up his prestigious leadership position, meaning he continues to hold powers that can’t be delegated and remains influential."

Then there is  the story of Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who is under investigation by the Department of Justice for a sexual relationship he allegedly had with a 17-year-old girl. Again, this is not really funny. It should be an embarrassment to this legislator and his Party. It is not that I don't expect people to get into this kind of trouble. But the Republicans are the party that is pro-police; remember, "blue lives matter." They are also the pro-moralist party, the party that opposes immoral ideas, such as legal abortion and legal marijuana. Not all Republicans are like this, but enough of them are that such violations of the law, should be an embarrassment. In simple words, for a lot of people, these are unfortunate incidences where grown men got caught with their "pants down" as we like to say. But when you pontificate on morality and support stricter drunk driving laws and other law and order issues, getting caught breaking such laws is an embarrassment. In other words, they made the joke up, all I had to do is print it. I wish I could say this is funny, but it is more of a humiliation, for the Republican leaders, and all of the other people involved in these unfortunate circumstances.

So happy April Fools!

By Steve Otto

Once again I am writing about those who reject the one size fits all approach of the 12 step programs and other outfits that simply refuse to recognize the short comings of some programs for those who want to stop drinking. 

As stated by Demi Lovato, in her newly released documentary called “Dancing With The Devil,” : 

"I think the term that I best identify with is 'California sober'. I really don't feel comfortable explaining the parameters of my recovery to people, cause I don't want them to look at my parameters of safety and think that's what works for them because it might not."

For some of us, there are drugs that are far more safe than the use of alcohol. Few drugs cause the problems of alcohol. I have had liver problems and have been told that alcohol is terrible for my health, especially since I used to have hepatitis C. So there are concoctions I have developed, some are legal, such as kratom and others are not legal. And while Kratom is legal, the moral crusaders (here from the Mayo Clinic) are as adamant against this herb as those who run 12 step programs:  

" Kratom: Unsafe and ineffective

Users swear by kratom for mood enhancement and fatigue reduction, but safety issues and questions about its effectiveness abound.

Side effects and safety concerns

Although people who take kratom believe in its value, researchers who have studied kratom think its side effects and safety problems more than offset any potential benefits. Poison control centers in the United Statesreceived about 1,800 reports involving use of kratom from 2011 through 2017, including reports of death. About half of these exposures resulted in serious negative outcomes such as seizures and high blood pressure. Five of the seven infants who were reported to have been exposed to kratom went through withdrawal."

It  would be very surprising if the Mayo Clinic or any other "official health site" would endorse this product. And I am not surprised at all that health sites try to discourage Kratom's use:

" If you read health news or visit vitamin stores, you may have heard about kratom, a supplement that is sold as an energy booster, mood enhancer, pain reliever and antidote for opioid withdrawal. However, the truth about kratom is more complicated, and the safety problems related to its use are concerning."

We live in a country were those who advise us on health simply can't stand the idea that people can use mind altering chemicals without serious problems. As with the 12 step programs, the goal is sobriety and supporting life-style changes that push people into life long sobriety. The problem is that it is not what everyone else wants. I do occasionally use drugs that are supposed to be terrible and problematic no matter how they are used. My brother and I often discuss the fact that we are both elderly. I'm 66 years old and he is seven years younger than I. We both feel that our lives are our own and the practices we have regarding herbs, legal and non, are our affair and no one else's. If something works for me, it is really no one else's business.

As my younger brother said about using marijuana, "I refuse to cower and grovel over my use of pot, if I'm caught and prosecuted. I am an older man and I deserve some dignity." I totally agree with him.

We should not have to hide like little children because we have decided to use herbs that our government simply doesn't approve of. It is time that older people as myself are given the right to decide how we will live our lives.

Those who feel they are helped by 12 step programs are perfectly free to use those programs. If they work, fine. But don't force the rest of us to use those them if they don't work for us.    

Again, according to Lovato's article: 

"According to Urban Dictionary, when someone is “California Sober” the only drugs they use are marijuana and sometimes psychedelics. It’s becoming a growing trend for folks who want to drink less but still want to use other substances that may not give them the negative side effects of booze. CBD, medical, and recreational marijuana use is on the rise as more states pass laws that legalize its use. Folks tend to appreciate the benefits without the hangover effects of harder drugs and alcohol.

A semi-sober person from Colorado told Real Simple,“When I drink, even if it’s just a glass of wine or two with dinner, I definitely notice that my quality of sleep goes down. If I skip the booze and take a few hits of my cannabis vape pen instead, I sleep like a baby and wake up feeling refreshed.”

And of course there are those die hard alcoholic/ drug abolitionists who refuse to recognize a persons right to try partial sobriety:

"This is why people argue that you can’t call yourself sober if you are still drinking and drugging. As an alcoholic who has been in recovery for four years, I would agree. Attaching the word sober to anything other than, well, sober feels false.

Patrick Cronin, addiction specialist with Ark Behavioral Health, says that this lifestyle could be detrimental to Lovato’s and anyone’s sobriety if they are in recovery. Cronin told Distractify that when addicts choose to be California Sober, “they are absolutely risking relapsing on their drug of choice.” I understand this and see the risk, but I don’t completely agree with this statement for every person."

Over all, we need more articles like this one. This is a debate whose time has come and we have needed it for a long time. It is overdue. So let's hope this is not the last article on our right to "choose" partial sobriety or selective sobriety over the rigid 12 step programs ban on ALL versions of drug use. Some of us are using various drugs for self medication. For example, to prevent deep physical depression. I'm talking about the kind of depression that is entirely caused by chemicals in the person's body. It is not the kind of depression that can be talked out of. A person can no more be talked out of physical depression than a person with cancer can be "talked out of it." So we may chose to use substances that seem to work and that has value for us in itself. I have tried a lot of the chemicals that are prescribed for depression from psychiatrists and they simply don't work. So let me use something I know will work. 

People Are Going ‘California Sober’

By Amber Leventry

Demi Lovato recently discussed her sexuality (she’s “really queer” y’all and so am I so we are pretty much besties now) and plenty of other truths in her newly released documentary called “Dancing With The Devil,” which was released on YouTube on March 23rd. And because she’s amazing and famous, folks are now offering their opinions on what she shared and how she lives her life. Lovato has been open about her addictions, overdoses, and efforts to get and stay sober; she’s been an inspiration to many people. But when she recently described herself as “California Sober,” folks weren’t comfortable with the term or her use of it for her recovery plan.

For the rest   click here.

By Steve Otto

I'm watching TV and suddenly a news story comes on about the new "oversight board" board that Facebook has just put together. What it really is: a censorship board to decide what content it's users and followers can follow. Here is what their board does according to CNBC:

"The oversight board will govern appeals from Facebook and Instagram users and questions from Facebook itself, although it admitted it will have to pick and choose which content moderation cases to take due to the sheer volume of them.

The board will receive cases through a content management system that is linked to Facebook’s own platforms. They will then discuss the case as a group before issuing a final decision on whether the content should be allowed to stay up or not."

One thing they always bring up, and they did while talking to a conservative unhappy with Facebook censorship, is that Facebook is a private company. And that is a magic word, here in US capital land. They are not controlled or beholden to anyone. They are not controlled by or responsive to the public. They can't be held accountable. They are a mega corporation run by a faction of the 1 percent who own the United States and they own the people to a large degree. In other words a bunch of corporate fat cats now try to run our lives for us. They decide what we can and can not discourse in the public discourse. All this, thanks to their corporate watchdog, Facebook.

An example of their corporate dominance are my two blogs. One is for Democratic Socialist and the other a Marxist blog. Both are prohibited from posting any links to any articles. The reason is that they violate community standards. And what does that mean? They won't say. I have asked them and they won't respond to me. I've complained about this and they won't discuss it with me. There is no place to dispute their decisions. They are in fact, "GOD of the internet."

Facebook is one of the greatest dictatorships to develop since Nazi Germany. Anyone who thinks this is going to remain a free forum of ideas is fooling themselves. UScapitalism is not, and never has been a bastion of free speech. Facebook is just the latest example. We have it for a while, then someone has to clamp down on it to make sure nothing happens that will disturb the system.

Take for example, January 6 of this year. Many liberals, especially Democrats are unhappy that conservative groups were able to use Facebook to organize against the capital, based on the lie that President Donald Trump actually lost the election. For example Democrats made the following accusations about Facebook according to CNBC:

"House Democrats are demanding answers from Facebook on how it targeted ads for gun accessories next to misinformation about the election and news about the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

In a letter sent to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Monday, 23 lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee asked how Facebook makes sure weapons-related ads are not targeted in ways that could harm public safety. The lawmakers also asked whether companies who advertise on Facebook are notified when their ads are placed next to misinformation or violent content."

These Democrats are all hypocrites. Not long ago they all rallied in support of people doing similar things to the government of Hong Kong. Those protest have been violent, destructive and people have been hurt. Now that we have the same kind of protest here in the US, our leaders want to shut it down. "We don't want that kind of democracy in our own country." This country is all for democracy: WHEN IT IS IN SOME ELSE'S COUNTRY.

Facebook has some actual "human rights activists" on their censorship board:

"The members are a globally diverse group with lawyers, journalists, human rights advocates and other academics. Between them, they are said to have expertise in areas such as digital rights, religious freedom, conflicts between rights, content moderation, internet censorship and civil rights."

Any real human rights activist would never serve on such a board. It is a board to curb people's rights. What kind of activist would really do that? And journalists? The answer is "phony ones."

Facebook, the main media monopoly, will now control USdebate. It will control it absolutely and all powerfully. No power in this country can debate against the great media monopoly Facebook. We will now get a taste of REAL US democracy—just enough free speech to convince people they are free—then they clamp down on anyone who tries to rock the boat or change anything. It is as phony as a $3 bill.

By Steve Otto

A few dozen people met at RiversidePark yesterday for a vigil to honor those who have died from police killings. The crowd was mostly young people under 50, yet there were a few older folks, such as myself,[1]there. 

The weather was fine, with plenty of sun shine, although, just a little chilly. The event was mostly conducted by Aisha Duggins and Haley Simon. The only TV station I saw there was KAKE TV. Some of the information I used for this story come from KAKE TV.

One of the two MCs read a list of names of people who have died at the hands of police.

They include George Floyd, the subject of a court case against Police OfficerDerek Chauvin,[2]some of the more recent victims such as Daunte Wright. The Chauvin—Floyd court case begins wrapping up today.

“I just really wanted to show that I care about the lives that are being destroyed in front of us,” Haley Simon told a KAKE TV reporter.

There were plenty of candles handed out to make sure everyone in attendance had one. While this event was the only one in the WichitaKansasarea, other such vigils were held across the country. In Hollywood California Hundreds of people gathered for a candlelight vigil, Saturday, to demand justice for two people shot and killed by police in recent weeks: 20-year-old Daunte Wright and 13-year-old Adam Toledo.

A similar vigil was held in New Haven Connecticut to honor the victims of police brutality and violence. And not long ago in Belchertown Massachusetts,Black Lives Matter vigil was held.

So the Sunday Evening event was part of a nation wide effort by people, black, white and other colors, who are sick and tired of police shooting and killing unarmed people.