Month: July 2025

Elon Musk is the richest man alive. His net worth of 415 billion USD is greater than the GDP of 174 of 212 countries.

Elon Musk believes that his DNA is so desirable that he offers to give his semen away for free to any woman who wants it.

Elon Musk purchases Twitter, renames it X, uses the social media platform to share his gospel to the world, and somehow becomes a Svengali-like advisor to President-elect Trump.

Elon Musk revels in the rapturous attention of MAGA crowds, dancing and twirling around like a maniacal celebrity.

Money. Sex. Power. Fame.

Elon Musk is the epitome of someone who is being driven by the basest of instincts.

Elon Musk used to do great things.

Elon Musk co-founded PayPal and simplified financial transactions.

Elon Musk established Tesla and proved the feasibility of electric vehicles. 

Elon Musk re-imagined low-orbit space travel through SpaceX.

Elon Musk developed the Star Link network of communication satellites.

Elon Musk co-founded Neuralink to develop a computer-brain interface that may prove to be a medical breakthrough.

These are great things.

But now, he does nothing but glorify himself. Elon Musk has become a great disappointment. What a waste of intellect and imagination.

At the turn of the century, i.e., 1900, there was another man who was an industrialist and one of the richest men in the world. His name was Andrew Carnegie. Andrew Carnegie founded the Carnegie Steel Company, which later became part of the U.S. Steel Corporation. In 1889, at the age of 54, he wrote an article, “The Gospel of Wealth,” in which he stated that the rich should use their wealth to improve society. He supported progressive taxation and an inheritance tax, and by the end of his life had given away 90% of his wealth to philanthropic causes. 

Andrew Carnegie funded Carnegie Hall, the Peace Palace in the Hague, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, Carnegie Mellon University, the Carnegie Hero Fund, the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, the Carnegie Institute for Science, and the Carnegie Corporation of New York – a philanthropic organization.

Elon Musk will be 54 years old in June. He seems to be the antithesis of Andrew Carnegie. Elon Musk shows no sense of higher purpose, no empathy or understanding of the life experience of others, nor any interest in leaving this world a better place than how it was when he came into it. Elon Musk seems to believe that his business endeavors alone will ultimately be of such great benefit to humanity that he needs to do nothing more. 

Isn’t it ironic that Elon Musk’s idea of benefiting humanity begins with his own enrichment? 

This is clearly not what Andrew Carnegie had in mind when he wrote about the responsibility of the wealthy to make the world a better place.

But why single Elon Musk out? Every mega billionaire has a foundation, seemingly more as a virtue signal and a tax haven than as an actual philanthropic organization. For every mega yacht that burns more fuel in an hour than an average household uses in a month, there is a private jet that burns more fuel in an hour than an average vehicle uses in 10 years. Being excessively wealthy means never having to question your sense of entitlement.

The United States has over 800 billionaires, with a collective worth of over 6 trillion USD. Think about what so much wealth could do for our society if spent wisely. We need to expect more from those who control so much, not admire them simply because they have so much.

What might a wise use of such wealth be? How about creating 800 start-up non-profit manufacturing companies located in economically depressed areas of the country? This would provide opportunities for the disadvantaged among us to live a decent life, as well as reversing fifty years of manufacturing atrophy that has weakened this country. What better way to break the chains that bind us so tightly to Chinese manufacturing? 

In the end, of course, all of their wealth will mean nothing to them, these billionaires. Look at the Pharaohs, entombed with great treasure for their enjoyment in the afterlife. The Pharaohs are gone, mummified or turned to dust, yet their treasure remains behind in their tombs, displayed in museums, or stolen by thieves. 

Would it not be better to follow the example of Andrew Carnegie and leave behind a legacy of good works instead of leaving behind wealth that was accumulated over a lifetime but was ultimately wasted, its potential unrealized because of greed and thoughtlessness? 

Never before in the history of this country has so much economic wealth been concentrated in the hands of so few people. So too, it is becoming increasingly clear that these same people also wield grossly excessive political influence that is corruptive and corrosive to democratic principles and endangers the well-being of our democracy.

This is the very definition of an oligarchy, where a small group of people have control of a country or institution. 

People have a sense that this country is headed in the wrong direction, but they incorrectly identify the reasons for this, believing the problem to be party affiliation or extremist points of view. The unprecedented concentration of wealth and power is more to blame, because it restricts wealth generation by average Americans, and negates the value of their votes.

The figurative rape of America is an ongoing phenomenon that must be stopped, but how?

Revisions to tax laws that favor the wealthy, an end to the glorification of uncontrolled wealth acquisition, the requirement that the source of the dark money that overwhelms our political system be identified – these ideas would begin to address the gross economic inequities that currently exist and begin to illuminate how dark money from unknown sources has corrupted our political system. 

In addition, the absence of any sense of social responsibility within large corporations has become an accepted norm, a dehumanizing and ruinous evolution of our capitalist system that will prove self-destructive in the long term. We must have a return to conscientious capitalism.

The murder of a health insurance executive for being instrumental in denying necessary medical coverage to insured people, and thereby causing preventable deaths, may or may not prove to be a seminal moment for our society. 

Hopefully it will be, so this act of murder and this loss of life will have not been in vain.

This tragic event has clearly exposed how decisions are being made in corporations to increase profits without regard to the destructive effects these decisions have on individuals as well as on society as a whole.

There is a clear disconnect between the financial health of large corporations as measured by the performance of the stock market, and the economic – and in this particular case physical health – of the average American. The stock market surges to record levels, but the quality of life of the average American is unaffected, or even becomes worse.

This disconnect underscores how large corporations are able to benefit at the expense of society as a whole.

Large corporations are protected from their social abuses by favorable laws, clever lawyers, and friendly politicians. There is no incentive for corporations to have a social conscience. Those who make the profit-driven decisions that are harmful to our society are personally rewarded by obscenely high financial compensation, as are the members of corporate boards of directors.

Up until now, there was no downside to profit-driven decisions. But now it is clear that the rich and privileged are no longer off limits and untouchable. Unfortunately, their response has been one of indignant outrage and an increase in personal security, not a response of self-reflection and repentance. There is no acknowledgement of cause and effect.

Which brings us to capitalism as it exists in America. 

Unique to this country is how capitalism has somehow become equated with patriotism. Socialism has become a pejorative, a label used to dismiss people and ideas without the need for thoughtful consideration or discussion.

However, one thing is true – socialism is the basis for all societies. Roads, bridges, ports, airports, public water and sewer, regulated electricity and natural gas, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, police, fire departments – everyone benefits greatly from these socialistic publicly funded programs made possible through the taxes that we pay.

Another thing is also true – capitalism is the basis for all business, regardless of the size of the business. All businesses require some amount of capital, i.e. money, to even begin operation, and may require additional capital to expand or respond to changes in demand for its goods or services. 

Every business must make a profit to stay in business.  No profit, no business. Even businesses structured as non-profits must make a profit, limited though it may be.

Access to capital is critical to a robust and vibrant economy, as is the opportunity for businesses to make a profit. So, if capital is good, and profit is good, then what is the problem with capitalism?

The problem arises when the desire to make a profit becomes more important than the actual products and services being provided by the business. Profit is a natural byproduct of a well-run business. However, when making a profit becomes the primary focus of a business, then the actual products and services being provided become secondary. 

Small businesses are limited in the profit that can be made by competition and the laws of supply and demand. The quality of the products and services provided by a small business, and the relative cost of its products and services, are significant factors in establishing a business’s reputation. A poor reputation due to poor quality or excessively high prices can have a direct effect on whether or not a small business stays in business. 

Everything changes when a business becomes a corporation with stockholders, and this is when the need to focus on profitability becomes an overriding focus for all too many businesses. The requirement to satisfy stockholder demands for a greater and greater return on their capital investment has had a negative effect on many aspects of the American economy.

How so? The quality of products and services being provided has suffered. The financial focus on short-term profits measured quarterly has limited long-term product and service development, innovation, and improvement. Manufacturing has been off shored to reduce labor costs. Regulations intended to protect the environment, workers, and end users have been cleverly ignored. Legal barriers to competition and employee unionization have been established.

This single-minded focus on increasing shareholder value has had a profound, negative effect on our capitalist system. There is no social accountability for the decisions being made in corporate boardrooms. Many of these decisions end up having a damaging effect on the quality of life for millions of Americans, whether through unemployment, lower wages, polluted water, poisoned land, avoidable death, and other decision-based negative outcomes.

There are movements within the corporate world that attempt to bring a sense of responsibility to the way that corporations make decisions, such as B corporation certification, but they rely on voluntary commitment, which has proven to be quite rare.

The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative and the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiative are worthy stakeholder-based programs, but they are self-monitoring and do not bring with them the regulatory strength of law nor financial inducements that would encourage corporations to adopt them.

There needs to be a new type of corporation created that includes stakeholders as well as shareholders, codifying the goals of CSR and ESG, requiring that there be members on the Board of Directors representing the most critical stakeholders – the employees and the public – e.g., a workers representative, and an independent CSR/ESG representative whose responsibility would be to certify that the corporation is meeting socially responsible requirements.

In addition, there needs to be a substantial financial incentive for corporations to change their registration and their mindset to become an SS corporation (Shareholder-Stakeholder), most effectively done through taxation – e.g., a 10% corporate income tax rate for SS corporations, and a 40% corporate income tax rate for S corporations.

Under this new system, corporations could continue to avoid any pretense of social responsibility, but they would need to pay a much higher tax for the privilege.

What a refreshing change it would be if corporate board meetings did not focus on how to make the most profit, but instead focused on how to do the most good. 

As it has been said before, in four short years from now, the presidency of Donald J. Trump will be over. The country will end up being changed in ways that we cannot foresee. One thing can be said for certain, however – President-elect Donald J. Trump has already assumed office.

The Biden presidency is in limp mode, trying to protect itself, the country and its people from further damage until President Biden’s term is officially over. Kamala Harris has already become a footnote in history, a sad tale of a candidate who had the single-minded focus of a prosecutor and not the visionary purpose necessary to be president.

President-elect Trump seems to believe in the myth of his own making, that he was elected with an overwhelming mandate to radically change everything about the government. President Trump will soon find out that the revolutionary changes he seems intent on making will bring about resentment and resistance, not adoration and acceptance. 

President-elect Trump speaks of diplomacy, but when has he ever been diplomatic? Seizing the Panama Canal? Forcing the sale of Greenland? Referring to Canada as the 51^st state? Threatening our closest allies and trading partners with broadly based tariffs? There is no diplomacy in these statements, only arrogance and ignorance.

It appears that the Republican Party can be and has been dominated into submission, prepared at least for the short term to rubber stamp everything that President-elect Trump wants, but the world beyond our borders cannot be dominated in the same way. President-elect Trump is not engendering trust and respect anywhere with his words and actions – quite the opposite. Unfortunately, his heavy-handed, disrespectful approach will understandably be seen as a negative representation of the United States as a nation and as a people. 

At least under President Trump, the U.S. will be a country to be reckoned with instead of being a country to be disrespected as it has been under President Biden, which can be seen as an improvement.  

And, when it comes to domestic policy, there are a number of reasons to have concerns. Most of President-elect Trump’s appointments have either been billionaires or acolytes. 

A persuasive argument can be made that the only way to become a billionaire is by exploiting both the lower-to-middle class people of this country and all of the favorable tax laws and regulatory loopholes available only to the wealthy. To expect billionaires to make policy decisions that would favor the same lower-to-middle class people they have been exploiting – this is nothing more than wishful thinking. 

In addition, we should expect to see new tax breaks and reduced regulations that favor their business interests instead of the common interest.

So too, many of the acolytes who have been chosen by President-elect Trump to do his bidding have ties to Project 2025 or have similar ideologically based Old-Testament beliefs that will potentially punish believers and non-believers alike through policies that restrict dissent, limit freedom of speech and the press, reduce or eliminate socially beneficial assistance programs, and generally attempt to forcefully reshape this country into a more oppressive and punitive society.

It is being reported that many of the people who have been the most ardent supporters of and true believers in President-elect Trump are now fearful that the policies of his administration will take away critical assistance that they depend on to live day to day.

Instead of ushering in a new age of American dominance and greatness, the Trump administration may bring about a new age of American darkness and unease. Instead of building on the strengths of this country and its people, the Trump administration appears to be intent on destroying whatever it feels is making this country weak. Under the Trump administration, nothing and no one should feel safe from its ire, its retribution, its ideological fervor. 

Kamala Harris did a commendable job of highlighting the potential damage that a second Trump administration could do. She also did a remarkable job of highlighting the abject failure of the Democratic Party to put forth a cohesive, alternative vision for the future. 

It is entirely possible that the Trump administration will usher in a subsequent two-term Vance administration if the Democratic Party persists in its self-destructive tendencies, and this would likely be a continuation of dark times.

Four more years of a Trump administration is likely to involve an excessive overcorrection of many of the Biden administration’s efforts and initiatives. The Biden administration rejected Trump administration policies out of hand without any pretense of having conducted a thoughtful evaluation of their possible merits. The Trump administration will almost certainly do the same. This is the problem when administrations are based upon ideology and extremism, and not on common sense and moderation.

The second coming of Donald J. Trump is likely to be more disturbing, disruptive, and chaotic than the first. It is unlikely that the excessive influence of this country’s elite corporate and billionaire class will be addressed, nor will the increasing disparity of wealth that exists among our people. 

We may become a more secure nation, we may see overall economic improvement, but there will be no dramatic reduction in energy and food prices, no attempts to control the excesses of the health care system, and no improvements to the housing shortage. The aspects of life that are of most importance to the majority of the American people can be expected to be ignored by the Trump administration.

In the end, the rich will become richer, the poor will become poorer, and the hopeful expectations of the American people will change to dissatisfaction and disappointment. The mediocrity of Donald J. Trump will be enshrined in history. A hustler, not a builder, a self-promoter, not a leader, a charlatan, a clown, a grifter.

In four short years from now, the presidency of Donald J. Trump will be over. The country will end up being changed in ways that we cannot foresee. 

It is possible that the rich will be richer, the poor will be poorer, federal lands will be ravaged, the environment made less healthy, people’s rights to body autonomy and to civil protest further restricted, and the power of the states strengthened while the collective power of the federal government is diminished. 

It is also possible that we will look back on the second term of Donald J. Trump and conclude that, on the whole, he made things better for the people, made the country stronger, and regained the international respect for the United States that was lost during the past four years.

The cabinet and other high-level appointments that President-elect Trump has been making are rich in fealty and unconventional thinking, but lacking in gravatas and necessary experience. Some good may come of this, but choosing so many ideologically motivated and unqualified people will probably prove to be counterproductive.

President-elect Trump received 50% of the popular vote. This is no mandate, no overwhelming victory, no divine blessing by God. Half of the country voted for someone else. Of course, this fact really does not matter in the slightest as the Republicans will control all three branches of the Federal government. The Republicans believe that they have a mandate because they say they have a mandate, and they will try to act as if they have a mandate. 

As these things go, the Republicans could very well do enough stupid things in the next two years that they will lose either the Senate or the House, or even both, in the 2026 elections. Many of the changes to government programs being proposed will be extremely disruptive and may harm a lot of people. 

However, this loss of Republican control presumes that the Democrats rediscover their roots as the party of the working people, the poor and the middle class, and stop their obsession with woke extremism. 

For the record, the definition of wokeness is to be sensitive to social issues and conditions. 

Nowhere in the definition of wokeness is there a requirement to address historical social injustices by penalizing some groups of people, and then rewarding others.  Although this is termed equity, the true definition of equity is being fair and impartial in the way people are treated, and not the current, bastardized definition that is just the opposite. 

Nor is there a dictate in the definition of wokeness to mainstream every new way of thinking no matter how illogical it may be, or how much it contradicts what most people believe and feel. Wokeness should be humanizing and affirmative, not threatening and divisive. Wokeness can and should coexist with common sense.

Regardless of the developments over the next four years, the most important development will be to determine how this country responds to the new world order, and this has nothing to do with Trump or wokeness.

The time of U.S. dominance is over. The United States can no longer unilaterally keep the world peace through military might and economic power. The economic and military development of China, and the aggressive nature of China’s actions globally, has changed everything. 

China has a population four times the size of the United States. This means four times the workers, four times the commercial and industrial output. In addition, China has a unified government and a population conditioned to act in accordance with its government’s directives.

The lack of manufacturing capacity and expertise in the United States is pervasive throughout the economy. Our unwillingness to hold our corporations accountable to the interests of our country has allowed these corporations to eliminate domestic production in favor of less expensive production in other countries. Until recently, this meant China. The resulting increase in corporate profits has benefited very few, but the resulting damage to our economy has had a negative effect on many.

It will be a humbling experience for the United States over the next decade as China becomes the dominant world power. It does not matter what the Republicans or the Democrats say or do, we are the underdog in this geopolitical battle for influence and prestige and control. 

The longer we indulge ourselves with partisan bickering, deep-fried Oreos, and all the other mind-numbing cultural and political nonsense that occupies our collective, limited attention span, the worse our situation becomes.  The United States needs a come-to-Jesus meeting, a head-snapping slap in the face, an ice-cold shower – something that wakes us up and underscores the gravity of the moment. This is the truth to the people speech that a true leader would give. 

Unfortunately, it is clear that President-elect Trump does not have a grasp on the true nature of the ongoing shift in geopolitical power. This is a profound and historic change, but Donald J. Trump is not exactly a student of history or military strategy.

According to AI, China’s history is a rich tapestry of dynasties, cultural achievements and philosophies that spans thousands of years. In this regard, China has much to offer the world.

However, a new Chinese dynasty is emerging, one that has nothing to do with culture and philosophy. Like all other dynasties and empires of the past – Chinese, Mongolian, Persian, Ottoman, Egyptian, Roman, British, American – this new Chinese dynasty is destined to overreach and overpower, creating resentment among those it has decided to dominate and control. 

Like all other dynasties and empires of the past, this new Chinese dynasty will eventually fail. History has shown that no empire lasts forever. Until that happens, however, many innocent people will suffer, and many will die, if the Chinese dynasty pursues its current path of aggression, domination, and subrogation. 

In contrast, the American empire was created by necessity, not by purposeful intent, and in this regard is unique among all previous empires.

Right now, the world is focused on the negative aspects of the American empire – the innocent people killed, and the ignorant treatment of other cultures displayed in the course of trying to create a more peaceful world.

However, the overwhelming history of the American empire is something much more positive. The American empire championed freedom, trade, peace, and prosperity for all of the world’s people. For the most part, nothing that the American empire did was intended to enrich itself. 

History will reflect the sacrifices made by the United States as it opened its markets to the world, gave trillions of dollars in foreign aid to developing countries, and sacrificed tens of thousands of its people in the course of its peace-keeping efforts.

This is the history of the American empire that must be told now, the history of the empire that brought hope to the world. 

What will the new Chinese dynasty bring to the world? If President-elect Trump can cause the world to reflect on this question and what it bodes for its collective future, then there may still be a chance to convince China to moderate its aggression and instead use its resources, creativity, and energy to assist in addressing the world’s collective challenges.

This would be a Donald J. Trump legacy worth remembering.

It is the day after Judgement Day. Donald Trump will be President once again. His followers are joyful, some even going so far as to say that it is God’s will. His opponents are crushed and fearful, not understanding how this could have happened.

In the months to come before Inauguration Day, many words will be spoken. The reasons for the Republican victory and the Democratic defeat will be analyzed and debated ad nauseum. Hopefully President-elect Donald Trump will moderate some of his extremist rhetoric and provide a more moderate vision for this country going forward.

The seeds of this resounding defeat for Kamala Harris and the Democratic party as a whole were sown decades ago when the Democratic party began to embrace identity-celebrity-partisan politics instead of common sense-working class values. To make matters worse, the Democratic leadership forgot about the importance of developing their younger party members and encouraging them to develop their own voices. The seeds of this defeat took hold and grew, finally blooming in all their noxious glory this last election cycle.

This change in Democratic Party focus was apparent when Bill Clinton blew his saxophone on the Arsenio Hall Show. It was apparent when Hillary Clinton made her presidential candidacy all about her and how she would break through the proverbial glass ceiling. It was apparent in the refusal of Democrats to work with the Trump administration to address important issues such as immigration reform and securing the southern border. 

It was apparent in the weakness of the slate of Democratic presidential candidates running for nomination in 2020. It was apparent in the DEI hire of Kamala Harris to be Joe Biden’s running mate. It was apparent in the DEI appointments of Tom Perez and subsequently Jaime Harrison as the chairmen of the Democratic National Committee. It was apparent in the rise of the Squad and its disproportionate influence. 

It was apparent in the embrace of transgender rights, the concept of white privilege, and the perceived need for slavery-based reparations. It was apparent in the push to defund the police and to appease rioters and looters. 

It was apparent in the selection of Kamala Harris as the replacement nominee for Joe Biden, and the selection of the unvetted Tim Walz as Kamala Harris’s running mate. It was apparent in the manic, celebrity-filled last-ditch effort by the Harris campaign to reach new supporters. And it was evident in the delusional thinking by the Harris campaign that victory was in hand.

What is now apparent is that the Democratic Party has lost its way. Its woke, DEI, celebrity-filled message does not resonate with a majority of the American people. In point of fact, the message of the Democratic Party has been rejected by the American people.

The problem is that this rejection is one that the leadership of the Democratic Party simply does not want to acknowledge, let alone accept. This rejection means that the entire basis of the Democratic Party as it has developed over decades has proven to be a failure. 

It remains to be seen if Democrats will have a voice in the Trump government. It is doubtful, because the Republicans are likely to seize this opportunity to exert their dominance, revel in it, enforce it, and simply refuse to allow Democrats to be part of anything of substance.

To the victors belong the spoils, and the Democrats have lost, so they will get nothing. Any promises that Donald Trump has made that he will bring the country together will soon be forgotten. Once again, the losing party will be left out in the cold.

What does this mean? It means that the Democratic Party needs to become tougher, more pragmatic, and refocus itself away from its ideological woke/trans/DEI basis and return to its traditional and transformational core values. 

This would include insuring equal opportunity for all, balancing individual rights with the common good, advocating for a fairer distribution of this country’s wealth, protecting the environment, monitoring the safety of food and medicines, providing assistance to the very poor and the very old and the very infirm, controlling the excesses of capitalism, promoting small businesses, supporting research and innovation, respecting the rule of law and the need to enforce them, and ensuring a strong national defense that includes strengthening international alliances.

Unfortunately, any substantive change in the Democratic Party such as what has been discussed here will take time. There are entrenched special interests and individuals that stand to lose money and power if the status que is changed. Greed and ego are strong motivations, so they will fight to preserve the current system.

It was not too long ago that the Republican Party had lost its way, and its future was in doubt. For better or for worse, Donald Trump has brought focus and direction back to the Republican Party.

There is no such savior on the horizon for the Democratic Party, only more Don Quixotes. The Democratic Party needs to rediscover its own voice, which used to be the voice of the people, and start from there.

It should be clear by now that China sees the U.S. as nothing more than a paper tiger. That is to say, one who claims or appears to be powerful and fierce but is actually ineffectual and unable to withstand challenge. It may be more accurate to say that the U.S. is a wounded tiger, still with teeth and claws, but listless and weak of spirit, snarling half-heartedly but seemingly tired of the hunt. 

While the U.S. has spent the last 30 years indulging itself in self-destructive partisan battles, China has spent the last 30 years strategizing to become the preeminent world power and achieve global domination. The leadership of Xi Jinping has accelerated this effort. At the very least, China has stalemated the U.S. and has begun to threaten our interests and influence around the world. At worst, China has insidiously attacked the U.S. within our own borders and is using the free and open nature of our society against us.

And yet, despite the very real threat and challenge that China represents, we still keep fighting among ourselves as if we are the enemy. And, in a very real sense, we are – we are our own worst enemy. 

We take our greatness for granted, and in the process have lost our edge. Instead of working together and supporting one another to become stronger as a country, we have let corporate and individual greed and imagined grievances subvert what once made us a great nation. We see the world through glasses tinted red, white and blue, and thus are unable to see clearly, with an objective and honest point of view, what the true reality of the world is. 

We are still the richest nation on earth, but we are fat in body and mind, self-absorbed, filled with entitled expectations, acceptant of great disparity in wealth across our society, easily manipulated by politicians, partisan commentators, and celebrity billionaires alike, and addicted to social media and any and all other external stimulus. We have too few explorers, adventurers, and independent thinkers, and too many followers, fanatics, and acolytes. 

History shows that all great empires fail from within, and the U.S. is no exception. Our culture and our character often seem shallow and weak.

In contrast, China exhibits a focus of intent that should put the rest of the world on notice.

China has single-mindedly overtaken the U.S. militarily, building ships and missiles and aircraft and bases of operation at a rate that we cannot match. Chinese military ships patrol off the coast of Alaska and have begun to patrol the Arctic Ocean.

China has supplanted the U.S. throughout the world as a source of funding through its Belt and Roads initiative. 

China dominates the world’s manufacturing capacity. China effectively controls mineral rights to many chemicals and minerals vital to the world’s economy. 

China bullies, intimidates and dominates all countries in its South China Sea sphere of influence. China constantly lies about its intentions and chooses to ignore the rights and interests of all other countries in the world, basically doing whatever it wants, wherever it wants, whenever it wants. 

China intimidates Chinese immigrants in our own country. China buys farmland adjacent to our military bases. China owns more and more companies that were formerly owned by Americans.  China influences our young people with propaganda disseminated through Tik-Tok.

China infected the entire world with the Covid-19 virus. This may have been an accidental, premature release of a biological weapon, a possibility that would explain the refusal of China to be forthright about the origin of the virus.

In the face of all of these developments, the U.S. seems unable to respond in any meaningful way. We seem to be intimidated and confused by the Chinese ascension, frozen into inaction like helpless prey instead of responding with aggressive self-protection.   

The 75-year duration of U.S. influence in the world has benefited many, many countries through a rules-based system that respected the sovereignty of nations and encouraged self-determination and freedom.

Does anyone seriously believe that a similar period of Chinese influence and domination would benefit any country other than China? Has there been any period in Chinese history where benevolence characterized its behavior towards other nations, let alone towards its own people?

It does seem clear that China is destined to enjoy a period of domination in the world. The history of China is one of conquest and domination, so this current development should not be surprising. 

It may take decades, but China will eventually find that exerting control over the entire world is expensive, exhausting, and ultimately unsustainable. History has repeatedly shown this to be the case. China’s domination will eventually run its course and its empire will collapse upon itself like all others before it.

In the meantime, however, the U.S. and its allies need to accept this reality and do what is necessary to strengthen alliances in order to preserve our own freedoms. In addition, the non-aligned nations of the world need to be mindful of becoming too entangled with China lest they lose their independence and self-determination.

Of vital importance for the U.S. is that we rapidly acknowledge the change in geopolitical power that has occurred and begin to act accordingly. Our position as the sole, dominant world power is over. It was inevitable that the U.S. would once again have to share the world with another superpower. 

The previous cold war with the Soviet Union should provide many lessons for the U.S. as we enter into a new cold war with China. The U.S. coexisted with the Soviet Union for decades and had to compete geopolitically, always being aware of the strategic implications of its actions. It will be extremely self-destructive for the U.S. if it continues to refuse to acknowledge this new reality and begin to think and act strategically to address it.

As a society and as a country, the mindset of Americans must evolve if we are to continue to enjoy our way of life and standard of living as China continues to exert its dominance. 

We need to begin by electing serious, reasonable, and pragmatic politicians that reject partisanship in favor of discussion and debate. The current state of inaction by the legislative branch of our federal government is pathetic and shameful. Too much control has been given to those who hold views so extreme as to make any consensus impossible to achieve. 

In addition, we need to protect ourselves by controlling our borders.  One aspect of this is to prevent uncontrolled illegal immigration and the flow of drugs and other contraband into our country. Another aspect is to restrict activity by foreign adversaries within our country, such as ownership of land and property, infrastructure, and strategic businesses, as well as the policing and intimidation of our people by foreign agents.

Still another aspect of controlling our borders is limiting access to our economy to protect domestic production of goods and services from predatory destruction by state-sponsored entities, and developing alternative supply chains that limit our exposure to economic blackmail and extortion.

We must not allow the ideals that we have as a free society to be subverted by our adversaries and used against us. We have the right and the responsibility to protect our strategic interests against enemies and adversaries both foreign and domestic. Questioning financial transactions, limiting technology transfer, and preventing intellectual theft are not infringements on our personal freedoms – they are acts of self-preservation. 

It is important that we study how China has been able to develop itself so quickly into a modern society. There are important lessons to be learned from their accomplishments. China appears to have focused its efforts on creating bridges, buildings, trains, automobiles, power generation systems, even entire cityscapes in a manner that highlights cutting-edge design, aesthetics, and advanced technologies.

In contrast, our society seems to have been focused on creating wealth for a very few through cheapening the products we make and limiting how much people are paid to make them. Instead of glorifying those who take pride in accumulating excessive wealth, it would be far better to glorify those who take pride in designing and manufacturing products that are well-designed, exceptional in performance, and never break. 

There was a time when products made in the U.S. were the world’s standard of excellence. This is clearly not a benchmark for us anymore. This willingness to accept the mediocre instead of aspiring to achieve excellence seems to have permeated much of our society. Sometimes it seems that we no longer have a sense of pride, only a sense of entitlement.

If it is truly important for the U.S. to remain at the forefront of the world, we must begin to act like it matters. It is as if we have been sleepwalking and daydreaming for decades, while the world has changed around us in ways that we have chosen to ignore. It is up to every generation to achieve the potential that this country makes possible. There is no resting on the laurels of the past. 

There is still time for the U.S. to re-stake its claim to greatness, but we must accept that China has emphatically staked its own claim. China is out-performing us economically, militarily, and strategically. China’s challenge is a profound test of our collective character, and it is by no means certain that we can overcome our internal divisiveness, self-absorption and individual greed to be able to meet it.

In the meantime, we need to begin to do what China has been so successful in doing – learning to attack its strengths, steal its technology, and subvert its government. 

The Republicans love to say that there is a double standard of justice in this country. 

Poor, poor Donald J. Trump. Victimized by a partisan judicial system that has coordinated its timing of the various civil trials, and state and federal criminal trials involving Donald J. Trump to ensure that he would be mired in legal matters and unable to successfully campaign for reelection.

The fact is that this concept of a politically based double standard of justice never existed before Donald J. Trump.  There is no evidence that any other Republican has been victimized by the alleged partisan weaponization of the Justice Department.

This is because this concept of a double standard of justice is a singularity that applies only to Donald J. Trump. 

Therefore, whether or not there is a double standard of justice can only be debated with respect to Donald J. Trump, he and he alone. Without Donald J. Trump, there is no alleged double standard of justice.

So, did Donald J. Trump’s actions actually warrant the charges that have been brought against him? Let’s consider the cases one by one.

E. Jean Carroll vs. Donald J. Trump

If there is one case where Donald J. Trump deserves sympathy it would be this one. 

It seems clear that something happened between E. Jean Carroll and Donald J. Trump in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room over 25 years ago. 

Photographs show that E. Jean Carroll and Donald J. Trump had some minimal social contact prior to the alleged dressing room encounter. This contact was probably more significant to her than to him.  Donald J. Trump stated that he had no recollection of meeting E. Jean Carroll at that earlier time, which is believable.

Back in the day, however, E. Jean Carroll was an attractive woman, and it is hard to believe that she would not have been Donald J. Trump’s type.  

Whether or not the alleged dressing room encounter was consensual or not is clearly one of those he said/she said situations. Donald J. Trump has a history of making comments and acting in a manner that was insulting and demeaning towards women, which made it easy for the jury to believe that he was a sexual predator, and that is probably why the jury chose to believe her instead of him. 

Given the quirkiness of E. Jean Carroll that has come to light since the verdict was handed down, it is fair to question whether her recollection of events that happened over 25 years ago is accurate.

According to published reports, E. Jean Carroll is a strange woman given to bizarre behavior and has expressed opinions about rape that are not commonly held by the public at large, i.e., that every sexual act between a man and a woman is rape.

In addition, her complaint that Donald J. Trump’s continued denial of guilt has somehow damaged her reputation is highly questionable, as relatively few people knew of her prior to her allegations, so what and how her reputation has been damaged is a fair question to ask. She initiated this entire case by publishing a book that accused Donald J. Trump of rape, and now she is set to receive the most incredible payday of her career.

It is easy for many to conclude that Donald J. Trump is a disgusting pig when it comes to women, given his history of comments and actions. But this does not justify an $88 ,000,000 award to a 78-year-old woman for something that may or may not have happened over 25 years ago. This is a woman who seems to have deep psychological issues with men and sex. 

Who knows what really happened in that dressing room? Neither Donald J. Trump’s wholesale denial or E. Jean Carroll’s claims of rape and sexual abuse ring true.

The financial award is grossly excessive and will more than likely be significantly reduced upon appeal, but this entire case was made possible by Donald J. Trump’s history of misogynistic treatment of women and the opportunistic actions of one of them. Politics does not seem to have had anything to do with it. 

Stormy Daniels/New York City vs. Donald J. Trump

This is another legal case against Donald J. Trump that stretches the limits of credulity and appears to be based upon tenuous legal theory rather than common sense. It is also a case that Donald J. Trump has brought upon himself by his decision to have a one-night stand in a Las Vegas hotel room with a porn star while his wife was recovering from giving birth to his fifth child.

This case required that misdemeanors be upgraded to felonies through legal sleight-of-hand in order to circumvent the applicable statute of limitations. This case was brought by a New York City district attorney for what appears to many to be motivated by personal political ambition and not any actual injury to the public.

Again, Donald J. Trump insists that nothing ever happened between him and Stormy Daniels despite evidence to the contrary, which exhibits an impressive level of denial and wishful thinking. There is no conceivable reason why Donald J. Trump would have paid Stormy Daniels $135,000 in hush money for nothing.

Even so, whether Donald J. Trump paid Stormy Daniels hush money in order to avoid his wife Melania’s wrath, or to avoid yet another public display of his immoral behavior that could have lost him the presidential election – these payments were not against the law. 

This case against Donald J. Trump seems to be an exercise in the abuse and manipulation of our judicial system by a local district attorney who should be censored for his behavior and voted out of office. Donald J. Trump should be sentenced to humiliation served.

 New York State vs. The Trump Organization

This case against the Trump Organization has nothing to do with Donald J. Trump the presidential candidate, but instead appears to have everything to do with a state attorney general out to make her reputation as the woman who brought down Trump.

Even now that the case has concluded and a huge financial penalty has been levied against the Trump Organization, it is still unclear who was victimized in this case. It is understood that the Trump Organization systematically overvalued properties to obtain larger loans, and systematically undervalued properties to pay lesser taxes.

It seems like this should be a crime of some sort, having two sets of property values, similar to having two sets of financial records. But this does not appear to be the basis of the civil penalty. Instead, there seems to have been some sort of convoluted evaluation of additional profit made possible because of the larger loans obtained due to the overvaluation of properties. 

The banks who made the loans were apparently paid in full, principal and interest. The Trump Organization was able to leverage the larger loans in some way so as to make itself more money. No victims here.

Were the victims the people of the State of New York who lost out on taxes that would have been much higher if the same property valuations had been used as the tax basis that were used to obtain the loans? Probably, but it is difficult to follow the reasoning used to compute the civil penalty, which on the face of it seems punitive and excessive.

The apparent fact that Donald J. Trump manipulated, i.e., cheated the system to his financial advantage should come to no surprise to anyone. This is, after all, the man whose companies declared bankruptcy five times, dumping substantial debt on those who had believed in Donald J. Trump’s smoke and mirrors. 

Fulton County, Georgia vs. Donald J. Trump

Finally, we arrive at a legal indictment that involves the actions of Donald J. Trump as President of the United States and not does not involve his personal immorality or his unethical business practices. 

It has been alleged that Donald J. Trump engaged in a conspiracy with a number of acolytes to interfere with the presidential election proceedings and to change the outcome of the presidential election in Georgia from Biden to Trump, thereby allowing Donald J. Trump to win the election and retain the presidency. 

Again, it is a local district attorney who is at the center of this case. She seems to be acting in a righteous and imperious manner, and has apparently gotten herself in over her head by trying to address this case as a grand criminal conspiracy. The fact that she had an affair with an independent attorney retained by Fulton County who was involved with this case has served to taint the legal validity of the indictment. 

However, the indictment of Donald J. Trump still stands. The efforts of Donald J. Trump’s legal team to paint Donald J. Trump’s actions as legitimate presidential actions taken to safeguard our democracy are unpersuasive, to be overly generous. In addition, their efforts to use the unbelievably stupid personal behavior of the district attorney as evidence that Donald J. Trump cannot receive a fair trial and as justification that all charges should be dismissed are without legal merit. 

It seems apparent that Donald J. Trump’s alleged actions have been nothing more than a blatant attempt to prevent the legitimate results of the election in Georgia from being ratified through veiled threats and other forms of intimidation. There is nothing presidential about Donald J. Trump’s abuse of power. Donald J. Trump’s actions are an insult to the office of the presidency. 

U.S. (Mara Lago Documents Case) vs. Donald J. Trump

This is the first of two cases where the alleged actions of Donald J. Trump are most egregious and disturbing.

The presence of boxes and boxes of presidential and non-presidential documents stored in multiple locations in Donald J. Trump’s residence in Mara Lago is irrefutable. The fact that many of these documents were marked as “Classified” or “Top Secret” because they contained information related to national security and strategic interests of the United States is irrefutable. 

The fact that Donald J. Trump and associates removed these documents from the White House instead of sending them to the National Archives is irrefutable. The fact that Donald J. Trump shared a “Top Secret” document with a friend/business associate on at least one occasion, apparently in an ego-driven manner, is irrefutable.

There is evidence to show that Donald J. Trump refused to return all of the presidential documents in his possession to the National Archives when legally requested to do so, ultimately resulting in an armed raid by the FBI of Donald J. Trump’s Mara Lago residence to obtain these documents. There is evidence to show that Donald J. Trump and associates made efforts to conceal these documents from the FBI during its search of his residence.

There is evidence to show that Donald J. Trump knowingly and purposefully violated Federal law in the removal and retention of these documents and made efforts to conceal these documents from discovery.

Donald J. Trump’s statement that he had the power and authority to declassify documents in his mind without the need of protocol or records thereof is in and of itself a ridiculous claim.  

Fortunately for Donald J. Trump, this legal case is being presided over by a Federal judge whom he appointed, who was advised by colleagues to recuse herself from the case due to concerns regarding her apparent conflict of interest and refused, who has limited experience on the bench, and finally, who by all appearances has made repeated efforts to delay this trial until after the Presidential election under the guise of having to consider a never-ending series of motions brought by Donald J. Trump’s legal counsel. 

Ultimately, this Federal judge decided to dismiss this case entirely on the basis that the Special Prosecutor was improperly and illegally appointed by the Justice Department. This belated and highly questionable dismissal of the case based upon a dubious legal technicality may very well be overruled by the U.S. Court of Appeals, and the case may yet go forward. 

In any event, a compelling argument can be made that this Federal judge has been acting as an agent of Donald J. Trump, grossly misusing her judicial authority to ensure that Donald J. Trump will never stand trial for his alleged crimes. 

If this Federal judge receives an official rebuke, censure, or removal from the bench due to her blatantly biased actions, she will simply become yet another victim of Donald J. Trump, another acolyte who sacrificed career and reputation to protect a false idol. 

U.S. (Election Interference) vs. Donald J. Trump

This final legal case is the most important case of all, as it involves the very basis of our democracy, which is the peaceful transition of power. 

This case highlights the way in which democracies around the world have devolved into quasi-totalitarian governments run by leaders who have chosen to abuse their elected positions for personal gain. It is proving to be very difficult for the people in these democracies to regain their right to self-determination. 

Their experience should be a cautionary tale for all Americans who have been complacent and complicit in Donald J. Trump’s efforts to retain power following the 2020 presidential election, but many Americans still refuse to acknowledge the threat that Donald J. Trump’s behavior represented at that time, a threat that may very well influence the upcoming 2024 presidential election. 

It is troubling how many people support Donald J. Trump’s accusations of voter corruption, election tampering, his veiled threats to elected officials, and his complicity in the January 6^th riot/insurrection that nearly resulted in the assignation of then Vice-President Pence, Speaker of the House Pelosi, and other elected leaders.

Following the 2020 presidential election, there was an extraordinary number of legal challenges to the results of the election. Even though none of these legal challenges, not a single one, were deemed to have legal merit, many Americans continue to believe that the election was somehow stolen from Donald J. Trump. 

Following the election, Donald J. Trump made repeated claims of election wrongdoing, primarily in the swing states that he needed to carry to win the election. He accused election officials, Democratic politicians as a whole, some Republican politicians, and many judges of bias and error and disloyalty. 

Political pressure was brought to bear on elected officials in Arizona and Georgia to somehow find additional votes and to prepare alternative slates of electors that would be favorable to Donald J. Trump.

Political pressure was brought to bear on Vice-President Pence to reject certified slates of electors during the election ratification proceeding, which would have been in blatant disregard of the limitations to his Constitutional authority. Vice-President Pence resisted this pressure in order to preserve the integrity of our democracy, to the detriment of his political future.

On the day of the ratification of the presidential election, Donald J. Trump coordinated a rally on the Ellipse, where he gave a speech attacking the election results. He called on his followers to march peacefully to the Capital and to protest the theft of the election. Once he saw that his followers had begun to march, Donald J. Trump returned to the White House where he watched the results of his speech unfold.

It is unlikely that Donald J. Trump expected that his followers would turn into a mob and engage in a riot and insurrection that resulted in the Capital building being breached and the election ratification proceeding disrupted for hours. However, first-hand accounts suggest that Donald J. Trump reacted favorably to the insurrection and resisted suggestions that he address this situation by calling for his followers to cease and desist.

The actions of Donald J. Trump are unprecedented in the history of the United States. Never before has there been such widespread rejection of the results of a free and fair election. Never before has there been such a violent mob that attempted to prevent the peaceful transfer of power. 

If Donald J. Trump did not intend to make one final attempt to prevent the peaceful transfer of power, why would he have chosen this date, this place, and this time to hold a rally where he would insist that the election had been stolen from him? 

There appears to be ample cause to warrant an indictment and hold a trial to examine the evidence that Donald J. Trump intended to interfere, in a multitude of ways, with the peaceful transfer of power.

Again, the Federal judicial system has acted to subvert this legal proceeding. The Supreme Court rendered an opinion that the President has immunity for any and all acts that could conceivably be considered to be acts carried out in the normal course of presidential duties. Donald J. Trump argues that everything he did was done in the normal course of his presidential duties. This presumably includes attempting to subvert the Constitution and incite a riot.

In Conclusion

All of the legal cases that have been brought against Donald J. Trump have one thing in common. It has been his actions and his actions alone that have resulted in these legal cases. 

There has never been a public figure before Donald J. Trump that has allegedly behaved so badly in so many different ways. Whether it has been his self-serving arrogance, his personal immorality, his unethical business behavior, or his rejection of political norms and decorum, Donald J. Trump has created a world for himself where many people hate, fear, and despise him. He is a lightening rod for people who want to even the score or see justice done.

This attempt by Donald J. Trump to dismiss all of his legal cases as a witch hunt lead by the Democratic Party has been somewhat successful, but none of these cases would have been brought if Donald J. Trump had not made it a life-long practice to behave so badly, with such disregard for and such willingness to abuse so many other people.

So, to answer the original question, is there a double standard of justice in this country that has resulted in Donald J. Trump being treated unfairly?

No, if anything, there is a double standard of justice that has benefited Donald J. Trump. 

The unrelenting deluge of motions brought by Donald J. Trump’s legal team has prevented the most important legal cases from moving to trial before the election and has deprived the voting citizens from knowing if Donald J. Trump did anything wrong. The decisions by a Federal judge and the Supreme Court regarding these cases appear to have been intended to help Donald J. Trump by limiting the extent to which his actions can be used as evidence, or to avoid trial altogether. 

In time, this may very well be seen as an extraordinary abuse of judicial authority and a gross manipulation of the justice system, but for now, it all serves as one more example of the corrupt soul that is Donald J. Trump.

The Republican Party continues full-bore with their Donald Trump obsession, and this may prove to be its downfall. 

The Republicans are in the middle of their convention, and are in a feverish delirium because Donald Trump has, by the grace of God, survived an assassination attempt and has appeared before them on the convention floor, only days after, the anointed one, the man above all other men who will lead them to victory in November.

Unfortunately for the Republicans, their reality will set in once the convention is over.

Donald Trump has a slogan but no substance. Make America Great Again is a brilliant slogan, but what does it mean? Donald Trump has successfully branded the Republican Party as his own, but the Trump brand has been tarnished over the past years. That which was once thought to be gold has been revealed to only be a thin plating that has begun to peel away, revealing the base metal beneath.

They say that Donald Trump is a flawed man, but that he loves this country and that he will address all that is wrong with this country and make it right.

The problem is that calling Donald Trump a flawed man is a gross understatement of his true character. This man is immoral – he has cheated on all three of his wives. This man is unethical – he has declared bankruptcy five times, leaving others to pay off or write off his debts. This man has betrayed so many people with whom he has ever been associated, from construction subcontractors to cabinet officials to accountants to lawyers to investors to advisors. So many of his former associates have been disbarred or jailed. 

They say that Donald Trump loves this country. Then why did he choose JD Vance as his vice president? JD Vance may be a good man, but he has not proven himself to be in any way qualified to be President of the United States, let alone acting as leader of the Free World. JD Vance has been a U.S. senator for less than two years. He seems barely old enough to meet the age requirement to be President. 

JD Vance may have been a marine, but he was a combat correspondent, not a fighting man. JD Vance may have grown up poor and abused when he was younger, but then he was raised by his grandparents and by all accounts his life was much improved. Like many of our politicians, he obtained his law degree from Yale University. He became a venture capitalist, wrote a best-selling book about his early life, and then became a politician. JD Vance has never lived a blue-collar life.

JD Vance is not exactly privileged, like his good friend Don Jr. He may develop into more of a statesman and less of a politician if given the chance, but only time will tell. It is too soon for JD Vance to be elevated to the position that Donald Trump has raised him, and it represents a tangible danger to this country, even more so than does Kamala Harris, the Democratic Vice-President.

Of more concern is the extremely successful way that Donald Trump has been able to politicize the federal court system. This can be seen in the manner in which he has created a conservative majority in the Supreme Court that is determined to change the essence of this country away from that of being a unified nation that governs in the best interests of its citizens into a state-centric confederation that is vulnerable to corruption, facilitates corporate malfeasance, and eliminates controls over individuals, organizations, businesses that have existed for years to protect our land, our resources, and our people from abuse and injustice.

From allowing unlimited dark money to flow into our politics, to expanding the 2^nd Amendment far beyond its original intent, to giving state governments the right to control women’s reproductive choices, to restricting the ability of federal agencies to regulate interstate commerce and protect our environment, this Supreme Court has blatantly favored the interests of religious zealots, the very wealthy, and large corporations at the expense of the American people.

In addition, Federal judges appointed by Donald Trump have purposely made rulings that reflect a reactionary political agenda that, at least for a time, forces this agenda onto the American people throughout the entire country.

This politicization of the federal court system has blatantly benefited Donald Trump through the actions of a Federal judge in Florida who was appointed by him, who refused to recuse herself from his documents case despite this apparent conflict of interest, who has used procedural considerations as justification to delay his case indefinitely, and who has finally dismissed his case on a highly questionable technicality put forth and supported by at least one reactionary Supreme Court justice.

Of most concern, however, is the 900-page manifesto created by the Heritage Foundation and known as Project 2025, and to a lesser extent, the Agenda 47 of Donald Trump.

To be fair, I have only read Wikipedia summaries of both documents, not the entire documents themselves. However, what I have read so far is very disturbing.

Project 2025 is intended to restructure the federal government, primarily but not exclusively, the executive branch, in order to allow a newly elected President Trump free rein to do as he sees fit. Project 2025 provides a blueprint for Donald Trump to follow. The CEO of the Heritage Foundation has stated that this represents nothing less than a second American Revolution, which will be peaceful if Democrats do not stand in the way. 

Project 2025 is a blueprint to create a Christian fascist theocracy lead by Donald Trump and facilitated by conservative extremists. It is an organized wish list of all the extreme positions that have been discussed by reactionary Christian conservatives for decades. More tax breaks for the rich and for businesses, minimal regulation of business activity, empowerment of individual states to enact further restrictions of personal freedoms, weakening of the Federal government’s ability to protect our land and our citizens from exploitation and corruption, criminalization of protest and dissent, withdrawal from international alliances and the limitation or even abandonment of our treaty obligations – these are some of the objectives of Project 2025.

President Biden has been controlled by the more extreme members of the Democratic Party who have pushed an agenda of diversity, equity, and inclusion, of reparations, of unregulated borders, of tolerance of anti-social behavior, and an absence of the common sense and moderation that are critical components of a sound democracy. President Biden denies that this is so, but the actions of his administration starting from the day he assumed office is proof of this extremist philosophy and does not reflect his earlier beliefs.

Given the extremist nature of Project 2025, the concern must be that Donald Trump will be controlled by the more extreme members of the Republican Party who are advocating for a revolutionary change to our country. Given his history, Donald Trump is susceptible to flattery and has never seemed too concerned about details or ramifications. He may find the idea of leading a second American revolution to be something that proves irresistible to his ego. Common sense and moderation are as much foreign concepts to Donald Trump as they are to Joe Biden.

JD Vance as vice-president, the politization of the Supreme Court, Project 2025 – these are frightening issues that independent voters would normally be concerned about.

However, unless the Democratic Party can provide independent voters with a common sense, moderate candidate who is lucid and not beholden to the party’s extremists, Donald Trump will most certainly become our next president. 

We can only hope that 2028 will bring back some sanity to our country.

The Democratic Party has not cared about the American people in a long time. Neither has the Republican Party, but right now the Democratic Party still has a chance to redeem itself before the November election. The Republican Party needs to get beyond their obsession with their very flawed, convicted felon of a party leader before its redemption is possible.

The Democratic Party has gone all in on this woke, DEI nonsense. The majority of the American people don’t believe in it as it currently exists. The majority of the American people are not impressed by the diversity in the Biden Administration’s cabinet and administration as a whole, because the people who hold these important positions appear to have been chosen because they represent diversity, equity, and inclusion instead of being chosen because they were the best and most qualified candidates. 

And this is the problem with the whole woke, DEI mindset. It values appearance over substance. The Democratic Party desperately needs some tough love to get past this way of thinking.

The Democratic Party is in danger of going down the rabbit hole, chasing after Joe Biden as he is being pulled along by his wife and convicted felon son. Joe Biden should be spending the rest of his life on Rehoboth Beach in Delaware playing with his grandchildren and travelling the world, not acting under the delusion that he is somehow going to be elected to a second term as President.

Originally, Joe Biden was going to be a transitional one-term president which made sense, but now we see that even this limited presidency may have been expecting too much of the man.

Kamala Harris was a woke, DEI choice as vice-president, and up to this point has proven herself unable to rise to the occasion and be worthy of becoming elected president on her own merits.

The American people don’t want either one of them. But they also don’t want Donald Trump, who is almost certainly going to be elected to a second term, essentially by default.

This is an opportunity for the Democratic Party to change course and return to what made them the party of the working-class people. No more Joe Biden, no more Kamala Harris, no more woke DEI nonsense, no more Hollywood. Back to the basics of tough love.

The Democrats need a strong presidential/vice-presidential ticket to succeed. The popular alternatives to Joe Biden just don’t cut it. They are too weak, too soft, too nice, too inexperienced, too slick. None of them appear to have a clear vision for this country, and none of them seem to be prepared to be a strong leader. 

That’s been the problem of the Democratic Party for a long time. Very few Democrats inspire confidence in the strength of their character. And now, more than ever, character matters.

My proposal for the new Democratic ticket includes two white men, both veterans, both married to women. Most importantly, they both have significant experience in Congress specializing in Foreign Relations and Defense. This is an expertise that is critical at this time of international uncertainty, an expertise that none of the popular woke DEI Democrats possess.

I give you Senator Jack Reed for President, and Representative Seth Moulton for Vice-President.

Who are these people, you might ask? No one has been talking about them. They are not part of the woke, DEI crowd. Of course, just by being white men married to women pretty much excludes them from being considered where DEI is concerned.

And that is the point. The Democratic Party needs to be represented by qualified, experienced people that understand reality and know how to work with other people that do not necessarily share backgrounds or political allegiances with them.

Senator Jack Reed is 74 years old, a graduate of the West Point Military Academy, a former Army officer, and has served in the House of Representatives and the Senate since 1991. He is currently Chairman of the Armed Services Committee.

Representative Seth Moulton is 45 years old, a graduate of Harvard University, a former Marine, and has served in the House of Representatives since 2015. He is currently Ranking Member of the Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Strategic Forces.

I understand that many people in the Democratic Party believe in the principles behind diversity, equity, and inclusion, and for the most part so do I. However, this is not the time to put the ideals of DEI ahead of the need to have the strongest possible ticket. 

The Democratic Party has a responsibility to the American people to put forth candidates for President and Vice-President that have widespread appeal and have a legitimate chance of being elected in November. The Biden – Harris ticket is a certain loser. Polling has been confirming this for over a year.

It is long past time for the Democratic Party to embrace the moderate voices in the party that represent the values and common sense of the American people instead of always taking extreme or contrary positions that have limited appeal. 

Americans seem to be a pretty tolerant and accepting people. I think that we understand the need for diversity, equity, and inclusion in our society, but we also believe that excellence in performance is of significantly more importance.

The Democratic Party needs to believe in tough love, the ability to make reasoned decisions based on facts and not emotions, while at the same time having empathy and acceptance for those who differ from us in ways that ultimately are not very important.

There are serious questions about Donald Trump’s mental and emotional stability, his stated intention to continue to dismantle the so-called administrative state, his stated interest in removing experienced civil service personnel unless they pledge fealty to him, his proven willingness to install federal judges based upon their ideology instead of their judicial abilities, his stated inclination to withdraw this country from NATO and our other alliances, and his delusional belief that his personal charisma can take the place of diplomacy and strategic planning. 

Donald Trump is an effective and persuasive communicator who is skilled at manipulating the truth. He is the unparalleled master of the artful lie. The Democratic Party cannot defeat him with candidates who are not tough-minded and grounded in facts and reality, but are themselves manipulators of the truth, because Donald Trump will make them look like fools.

That is why the Democratic Party needs to get beyond its woke, DEI ideology and nominate the toughest, most experienced, no-nonsense moderate candidates that they can if they are serious about retaining any political influence in the near future and protecting the American people from the excesses of the extreme right.

The Democratic Party has to retire Joe Biden before Donald Trump fires him.

Consider the state of the world today. 

A prosperous and productive world order is being threatened by dictators, fanatics, and regimes. Our planet is experiencing plastic pollution, unpredictable climate change, and an unstable magnetic field. Untold species of plants and animals are dying off due to human activity. Billions of people are suffering from hunger, lack of potable water, extreme temperatures, and catastrophic natural occurrences.

Where cooperation among peoples is required more than ever before, we find ourselves overwhelmed by competition and conquest, brazen and unprovoked acts of violence and intimidation, and so far, an inability to stop our descent into chaos, madness, and self-destruction.

What the world needs now is a new age of enlightenment. 

No one speaks about how much better things could be if we began to work together to address the very real threats to our world that will sooner or later have a very negative effect on us all. 

What do we have instead? 

Politicians who act like celebrities, and celebrities who pretend to be politicians. 

Billionaires who opine on issues they know nothing about as if wealth and ego are substitutes for expertise. 

Internet influencers who make self-absorption into a profitable yet toxic art form. 

Commentators and video personalities who offer instantaneous and inane analysis on issues of the day without benefit of thoughtfulness or perspective. 

Educators who embrace and promote ideologically based social and political theories that are purposefully disruptive and intellectually hollow. 

International corporations that exploit the poor and the desperate to obtain cheap labor and natural resources in ways that increase human suffering and ecological destruction. 

Collectively, so much of what we see, what we hear, and what we do is without conscience, without concern for ramifications, without any lasting substance or meaning. 

This is not to say that every moment of every day must be spent in some sort of mindfulness-filled existence. But it is to say that we need to be much more aware of the greater and long-lasting potential that cooperation offers all of us instead of the limited and transitory results that confrontation brings to a few.

Right now, we are living at a time when a dark power exists in three countries in the world. We all know what countries these are – Russia, China, and Iran. North Korea exists in its own self-imposed world of delusion and paranoia, impenetrable even by the dark power. 

No one can argue that the actions these countries have been taking over the past decade have altruistic motivations intended to improve the human condition. Rather, their actions are motivated by the oldest and most basic of human impulses – greed, jealousy, the desire for power, the insatiable need to dominate others, a preference to destroy instead of to create. 

Whatever you choose to call it – evil, Satan, chaos – it is a seductive and alluring power full of both promises and intimidation that many are afraid to acknowledge, let alone confront. And yet, our collective history shows time and time again that this dark power cannot be appeased. 

It can only be confronted and driven back into the dark corners of our collective soul, where it will seethe with dark thoughts and bide its time until we forget that it even existed, and then it will rise again. Such is human nature.

It is frightening to face such evil, and it is unclear how to stop it. It is easier to allow ourselves to be distracted by political differences, personal ambitions, and material comforts. It is easier to rationalize inaction because to take action would be too hard and require that we make sacrifices and take risks. It is easier to deny that threats exist to the extent that they do so that we can continue on with our lives as they are.

But there will come a day of reckoning when something happens that will bring this evil, Satanic, chaotic dark power before us in a way that cannot be ignored or denied or explained away. The longer we avoid this confrontation the worse the outcome will be for all of us.

This is why we must speak loudly and often about the collective problems that we face worldwide. This is why we must speak about how our collective ingenuity has allowed us to solve problems in the past and to make things better. 

We have experienced great advances in technology and medicine and agriculture that have improved the lives of billions of people. We have seen how the flow of capital investment into poor countries has improved their standard of living. We have all benefited from worldwide commerce and free trade among nations. 

To the extent that cooperation continues, we can all look forward to a better existence. 

Unfortunately, conflict and the threat of conflict limits our ability to cooperate. So much wealth worldwide is being spent to support aggression or to defend against it. If this wealth were available to address the collective problems of the world, much more progress would then be possible. 

This is the point that must be stated repeatedly by the world’s leaders – we must cooperate together regardless of whatever differences – real and perceived – that we have. We must speak loudly and often of what is possible, of what is being done, and then of what has been achieved. We must make sure that all can see and experience the benefits that come from having a more cooperative world.

This enlightened understanding of what it means to be a civilized people must begin with the world’s leaders. 

In the meantime, the world’s leaders must not ignore their collective responsibility to condemn the evil that is being done by those who would dominate through fear and intimidation in the name of religion or to regain the glory of empires past. 

For those countries not immediately involved, there will always be the temptation to play both sides of this conflict and practice opportunistic neutrality. There will always be those countries who choose to wait until the end to declare their allegiance to the victors. 

Such is the corruptive effect that the presence of evil has on the world. It clouds the minds of the weak and fearful, telling them that their inaction and indecision is reflective of their wisdom, that evil is a profitable and virtuous choice, that it is better to accept the dark forces than to resist them.

There is an insanity in those leaders who would contemplate, let alone cause, the indiscriminate destruction of a country and the resulting deaths of tens of thousands of innocent men, women and children. There is an insanity in those countries who would condone such destruction and death, and then willingly justify such horror as retribution for past injustices or as a necessary measure to redress lost empires. 

These countries and their leaders must be confronted, their intentions exposed, and their success in achieving their objectives denied, lest they continue spreading their darkness by subrogating more and more of the world’s people. 

Enlightenment requires that we see the world as it is, and deal with it as we must.