SOCIAL MEDIA MUSINGS: BOOK 7

© 2024 George Waas. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 12/15/2023

ISBN: 979-8-8230-1932-3 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-8230-1933-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023924131

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Ron DeSantis Can’t Get His Party’s Faithful To Listen To Him. What Else Is New For The Republican Party? They Are Deaf To Criticism When It Comes To Trump.

A Slip Of The Tongue, And The Real Motives Of Republican Investigations Are Revealed.

News Reporting Is Not Press Release Reporting; Get The Facts, All The Facts, And Write The Story That Informs. Get Back To Basic Journalism.

Frustration!

Republicans Only Fool Those Who Will Be Fooled.

The Nixon And Trump Scandals: History Repeats Itself, With A Dangerous Difference.

The Republicans’ Hypocrisy And Rule Of Law Frauds.

House Republicans And Their Impeachment Hubris. The Days Of A Once-Proud Political Party Are Over.

Supreme Court Justice Alioto Thinks The Justices Are In A League Of Their Own. Think Again.

Congress Is Investigating UFOs And Possible Alien Life. It Needs To Start With Itself.

The Disgrace That Is Sen. Rand Paul.

Donald Trump: Corrupt, Disgraced, Thrice Indicted, And Trying To Blame The Grand Jurors.

The Broken Record That Is Donald Trump’s Defense.

Donald Trump’s Juvenile Game Fools Only Fools. The Day Of Reckoning Draws Closer And Closer.

Ron DeSantis Attacks The Georgia Criminal Justice System Instead Of The Alleged Crimes Committed By Donald Trump And His Cronies. For Shame.

Donald Trump’s Criminal Cases Shouldn’t Be Prejudged. But Still…

Rabid Republican Right Wing Extremists Threaten Georgia Grand Jurors For Daring To Indict Donald Trump. Party Leaders Remain Silent. This Is Not The Rule Of Law.

The MAGAS Don’t Like To Be Called Nasty Names. But Are Those Names Appropriate?

Republicans As Spin Masters, Converting Words And Weaponizing Them.

Donald Trump’s Loyal Supporters And The Ostrich Effect.

A Twelve-Point Reality Check.

A Former President’s Criminal MUG Shot!

The Historic Republican Party Is No More; It Is Now The Party Of Authoritarianism, Having Abandoned Democracy.

Why Weren’t Hillary Clinton And Al Gore Indicted For Contesting Their Election Results? You Can’t Make This Up.

Donald Trump Deserves Only What Is Accorded Any Criminal Defendant. He’s Not Entitled To Any Special Treatment Or Privilege.

About That Loss Of Power During Storms.

Making Fun Of Joe Biden Serves No Useful Purpose; Seeing That Mitch McConnell Gets Medical Attention Does.

Florida Is Recovering From A Major Hurricane. President Biden Hoped To Meet With Governor DeSantis; DeSantis Won’t Meet With Biden Because The Governor Puts Presidential Politics Above State Recovery Efforts.

Today’s Republican Party In A Capsule, And A Litany Of Bad Choices.

Efforts To Equate Radical Leftists With Right Wing Extremism Are Both Fallacious And Dangerous.

Republican Presidential Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy Says Donald Trump Is Only Guilty Of Bad Judgment, Not A Crime. This Ludicrous Opinion Should Promptly Disqualify Him From Office.

Neo-Nazi Demonstrations Must Be Met With Strong Education Of The Evil They Represent. Equating Liberalism Of The 1930S And Beyond With Today’s Conservative Grip On The Republican Party Is Wrong-Headed And Dangerous.

Three Headlines That Underscore The Great Divide.

We Ignore Defiance, Denial, Resistence And Hatred At Our Peril.

A Welfare Reality Check.

The Florida Supreme Court Stands Ready To Jettison Abortion Rights From The State’s Privacy Constitutional Amendment. There Are Other Rights That Are In The CONSERVATIVES’ Line Of Sight.

What If Donald Trump’s Own Statements Cause Adverse Pre-Trial Publicity That Would Otherwise Deny A Defendant The Right To A Fair Trial?

Historian And Author Heather Cox Richardson Writes About The Profound Threat To American Democracy, And The Actions Being Taken By Presidential Centers To Address It.

Russian Dictator Calls American Democracy Rotten. Just Another Attempt To Rig Our System.

Housed Speaker Puppet McCarthy Launces Impeachment Investigation Into President Biden. For This Fire-Aim-Ready Approach, Republicans Should Be Careful What They Wish For.

Watergate, Trump And Beyond. Are We A Better People?

Biden Should Not Run In 2024. There Are Good Reasons—Except One.

Ron DeSantis And His Anti-Vaxxers. It Is Public Health Or Anti-Science Ideology?

America Needs A National Attitude Adjustment. How Do We Do This? The Devil’s In The Details.

Four Great Myths Of The Republican Party.

His Fraudulancy Donald Trump, And What The Republican Party Game Plan Really Is.

A Profound History Lesson. This One From Germany.

Some Thoughts About Hamas’ Attack On Israel.

The Hamas-Israel War: A Perspective.

The Republican Party Is In Chaos Trying To Elect A Speaker; Kevin McCarthy Blames The Democrats. This Doesn’t Pass The Laugh Test, Except With The Party’s True Believers.

Republican Party And The Twilight Zone

Increasing The Size Of The Supreme Court, And Getting Rid Of The Filibuster—Two Democratic Proposals That Will Go Nowhere.

The Republican Party Is The Party Of Lincoln: And The Non-Thinkers Actually Believe It

Authoritarianism: Planting The Seeds

We Know What The Republican Party Stands For; What’s Next?

The Authoritarian’s Playbook—A Brief Summary

We Have Been Warned.

Where Is The Evil Of Socialism?

Indoctrinaton And Brainwashing

Take Your Soma; You’ll Feel Better, Be Distracted, And Won’t Ask Annoying Questions.

Sacrificing Wisdom For Gratification.

The Importance Of Humor In A Divided America.

A Republican’s Appropriate Take On His Own Party. And This Republican Party Bears No Resemblance To The GOP.

An Explosion Kills Hundreds In A Gaza Hospital. The House Of Representatives Still Can’t Elect A Speaker. Some Perspectives On Both.

On The Subject Of Bad Manners, Bad Behavior And Lawlessness.

A Two-State Solution For The Middle East?

And The Republican Soap Opera That Is The House Speaker Election Continues.

Donald Trump’s Defiance Of Court-Imposed Gag Orders Sends A Dangerous Message Affecting The Vitality Of Our Criminal Justice System.

The United States Constitution Provides For A Democratic Republic. It Also Contains The Seeds For The Unimaginable.

The Republican Party’s Problems With The House Speakership And Trump’s Criminal Cases May Be A Silver Lining.

The Rise And Fall Of The Trump Empire

House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Worldview Is Shaped By The Bible. Which Parts Does He Follow, And Which Parts Does He Ignore?

History Informs Of The Conflagration Resulting From A Megalomaniac Leading Blind Cult Worshippers. The Warning Must Be Heeded To Avoid A Repeat.

The Politics Of Gun Laws.

The Republican Party Is Moving Toward Isolationism. It Was A National Disaster The Last Time This Happened, And History Repeats Itself.

‘Tis A Sad State Of Affairs.

The Search For Common Ground.

Finding That Elusive Common Ground.

Another Congressional Dimwit On Climate Change.

Recent Polls: Do Voters Really Know What They Want?

Will The Republicans Ever Learn?

The Republican Message Is Clear: It’s Time To End Pure Democracy.

Look Familiar?

Love Eventually Triumps Over Hate. We Are In Dire Need Of That Love Now.

Donald Trump: By His Own Words, Unpresidential And Dangerous.

Republicans’ Rule Of Law Is The Law Of The Jungle.

You Can’t Fight In Here. This Is The War Room!

The Fault Lies Not In Our Stars, But In Ourselves

State Judge Rules Donald Trump Engaged In An Insurrection And Is Not Protected By The First Amendment; However, He Can Remain On The Ballot.

Why Is Donald Trump So Popular Among Republicans?

Should Donald Trump’s Criminal Trials Be Televised? Some Observations.

The Last President.

Concern For Human Life: Donald Trump And The Middle East.

Ah, The Critics.

Trump Promises To Expand The Military’s Role To Quell Violence In Democratic Cities. He Won’t Stop There.

The Sad, Tragic And Disgusting Case Of Rep. George Santos.

Toward A Two-State Solution For Israelis And Palestinians. It’s Good That The Politicians Are Talking About It; But Rather Than Talk The Talk, It’s Time To Walk The Walk.

House Republicans Are Ratcheting Up Talks On Impeaching Joe Biden. Here’s An Overheard Conversation.

The Expulsion Of Rep. George Santos. The House Speaker Has Reservations. They Are Unfounded.

How About A Just Say No! Campaign For The 2024 Elections?

It’s A Disease.

Freedom Of The Press Is At Risk. And The Public Suffers.

A Snapshot Of A Divided Government?

The JFK Assassination. It’s Time For All Records To Be Released.

Another Example Of What The Republican Party Means By Rule Of Law.

Goodbye Kevin McCarthy.. Don’t Let The Door Hit You On The Way Out.

The Wacky Constitutional Theories Of Republican Party Extremists.

INTRODUCTION

In 2022, I wrote a book titled Social Media Musings. In the introduction, I said I am the product of two professions driven by inquiry and skepticism, journalism and law.

I noted that both professions are founded upon logic, rational thinking, critical analysis, and sound judgment. So, when I see something that doesn’t make sense, defies logic, is irrational, or otherwise off-the-wall, I ask questions and search for answers.

I also confessed that I am a Facebook junkie, although not necessarily enamored with social media. There is certainly far too much misinformation, flat-out wrong information, etc., being spread on social media. And we know that a lie travels around the globe while the truth is putting on its shoes. Bad information to the pliant minds of the gullible is a dangerous mix.

In my first book, I said that, for the most part, I kept my opinions to myself, or shared them with family and friends, until the January 6, 2021, attack on our nation’s capital. Since then, taking to heart the note on the Facebook page that says, What’s on your mind, I’ve posted my thoughts and opinions about various situations on a variety of subjects. Many of my posts are quite lengthy, solely because of the importance I place on fact, analysis, reason, logic, critical thinking, and sound judgment.

One of the great retorts to opinions some don’t like is keep your opinions to yourself. Invariably, however, those who greeted me with this putdown have no problem letting me have their opinions. Opinion are just that; they can be accepted or rejected by others as a matter of course. However, I firmly believe it helps to have a factual foundation for opinions; too often, opinion is based solely on belief. Facts can be presented and disputed; arguing a person’s unsupported belief is a waste of time. There is entirely too much belief without foundation, and we’re paying the price for it.

In any event, I constantly remind myself of Facebook’s offer to write what’s on my mind; and that’s what matters to me. If someone doesn’t want or care for my opinions, they don’t have to pay attention. Usually, they don’t anyway. Opinion based on fact can be checked; opinion based on belief is a path that can be dangerous because people tend to cling to their beliefs even when the facts point in the opposite direction.

I decided to ignore the retort and proceeded to include in my book, in chronological order from January 6, 2021, to February 2022, my posts on a variety of subjects, mostly—but certainly not all— on politics. Since that book was published in March 2022, I continued to post of Facebook, hoping to continue a national dialogue on issues of great public importance. This resulted in Book 2, which was also published in 2022. But I didn’t stop there. I also published Book 3 that same year. But I didn’t stop there. I published Book 4 a few months later. After publishing Book 5, I vowed that would be my final book on social media musings, and that I would still continue posting on Facebook but not include them in future publications—unless I changed my mind. Considering the outrageous things that continue to plague our nation, I changed my mind. I added Book 6. I realize that writing and posting on Facebook is now a hobby. After spending more than 50 years in the two professions that require intensive writing, I simply enjoy the great creative challenge of writing. I now plan to write and post and publish for as long as I am able. I have now added this one, Book 7.

I hope that by this time, it is obvious that social commentary makes up the overarching theme of my posts. The purpose of social commentary is to provide discussion, including analysis, on social, cultural, political, and economic issues that affect all of us. A major theme of social commentary is to implement or promote change by informing the general public about a given problem and appealing to people’s sense of reason and justice. There is yet a more personal reason for my many posts; in light of events over the past few years, I am deeply concerned about the future—in the near term for my wife and me; in the long term for my children, grandchildren and generations to follow.

Many of my posts are a call for change; and from what we’ve experienced over the past few years, we need change. A change in attitude; a change in how we talk to each other and a change in how we relate to one another.

You don’t have to be a famous entertainer or athlete to engage in social commentary. All too often, we equate fame and notoriety with intelligence and depth of thought. Having a social conscience and being able to express it intelligently doesn’t depend on fame or notoriety. In fact, there are many whose opinions are influential solely because of fame or notoriety; the reality is they haven’t a clue what they’re talking about. Further, as the 2022 election campaigns played out, there were several candidates who repeatedly demonstrated ignorance and stupidity, yet garnered millions of votes. Ignorance and stupidity must never become fashionable or acceptable. Enlightenment must always trump darkness. As we move toward the 2024 presidential election, and with what extremists promise the next administration will look like and seek to accomplish, social commentary and public engagement is even more essential that is was just a few years ago.

What allows a person to offer meaningful social commentary is being sufficiently educated to comment rationally and reasonably on relationships among people and between people and their government.

At the heart of any social commentary lies an agreeable set of facts. Without agreement on observable, tangible facts, discourse and commentary become virtually impossible. It is toward that end that these musings are primarily directed.

This is Book 7 of my series on social media musings on Facebook.

RON DESANTIS CAN’T GET HIS PARTY’S FAITHFUL TO LISTEN TO HIM. WHAT ELSE IS NEW FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY? THEY ARE DEAF TO CRITICISM WHEN IT COMES TO TRUMP.

It’s July 2023, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is having big trouble connecting with Republican voters.

Here’s what lies at the core of his problem. If the Democrats can’t get the MAGA voters and the few remaining party moderates who remain silent, to distance themselves from a twice-impeached, twice-indicted Donald Trump, who can legitimately expect DeSantis to reach those deeply committed voters?

DeSantis has to hope millions of Republicans will finally listen; listen to him when it comes to Trump; and switch their alliances to Trump. So far, this isn’t happening. And further criminal indictments will only embolden Trump and his MAGAs.

DeSantis, seeing the writing on the wall, is trying to pitch Trump as a moderate. Good luck with that. Then, he says the nomination process is a marathon, not a sprint. Good luck with that one, too. Trump has already shown he can dispose of party opposition simply by doing what he does best: playing the victim, arousing anger at his enemies, and stoking that hard right base to listen to him and no one else.

He hasn’t yet gone full frontal on Trump’s criminal acts. But to go there risks angering Trump’s base; Republicans who fear his ability to primary them; and others too timid to call out Trump for what he is. Chris Christie is trying this tack; it’s clearly not working. Mike Pence is caught in the middle, which is where he’ll stay unless and until he shows some backbone. Nikki Haley has tried moving further right like DeSantis. That’s not working, either.

For DeSantis to have a real shot at the nomination, he must do what everyone else in the Republican Party has failed to do: get the voters to listen to all of Trump failings and doubt his electability and performance in office. So far, they show no sign of doing just that.

A SLIP OF THE TONGUE, AND THE REAL MOTIVES OF REPUBLICAN INVESTIGATIONS ARE REVEALED.

Occasionally, Republican leaders commit a major slip of the tongue and tell the truth. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer seemed to suggest the GOP investigation into President Biden’s family members and their finances is really about helping Trump win in 2024. It has nothing to do with gathering facts; it’s all about lowering Biden’s poll numbers to help boost Trump’s return to the White House.

To prove everything done by the House Republicans is to lower Biden’s poll numbers, after cocaine was found in the White House, Comer said the presence of illegal drugs in the White House is unacceptable and a shameful moment in the White House’s history.

But it’s certainly no shameful moment in the White House’s History for Trump to lie about an election, foment a riot at the Capitol to illegally keep him in office, and then steal highly classified records and strew them carelessly around his estate. It’s not shameful for Comer and his fellow lackeys to support a twice-impeached, twice (so far) indicted former president who has demonstrated repeatedly that he has no conscience, no compassion except for his ardent loyalists, and no moral code except for actions that advance him.

Nope, none of this is a problem for Trump’s lackeys.

This shameful moment" statement was blurted out without so much as inquiring how this drug happened to find its way into the White House. How long had it been there? Might it have been brought in by a visitor or tourist? Legitimate questions, but, again according to Comer, none of this matters. All that matters is anything that causes Biden’s poll number to drop.

That Biden’s poll numbers are low only shows that Comer’s statement reflecting the Republican plan, is working…at least in July 2023. Whether he and his kind can fool enough of the people one more time next year remains to be seen.

NEWS REPORTING IS NOT PRESS RELEASE REPORTING; GET THE FACTS, ALL THE FACTS, AND WRITE THE STORY THAT INFORMS. GET BACK TO BASIC JOURNALISM.

Here is an example of a word that now seems to dominate crime reporting. An article in the local newspaper reported that a person was shot in the leg, and a press release from law enforcement that said there was no danger to the public, and it is unclear what actually happened. That’s it. Instead of the names of victims and perpetrators, and details of the crime, we see this word that tells the reader nothing. That word is unclear. This is the word of choice that has become an excuse for the absence of detail, and the absence of good news reporting.

Who was shot in the leg? How is the victim doing? Who shot the victim? Why was the victim shot? Was it random? Over an argument? If so, over what? What kind of weapon was used? These are basic questions to ask. Our minds are focused on mass shootings these days. These concerns need to be addressed if relevant. Ask the obvious questions. Reporting crime stories today call for greater detail, not less.

I thought it was a reporter’s job to make the story clear by asking targeted questions and reporting the answers, including the source. If the answers are evasive, let the public know that. There seems to be too much reliance on handouts and statements rather than the inquisitiveness that should be a reporter’s hallmark. I know there are laws, like Marcy’s Law in Florida, that are supposed to protect the victims of crime but are considered a barrier to in-depth crime reporting. But there is a First Amendment, and the absolute necessity of an informed public for the well-being of a Democratic society. As I was repeatedly told as both a journalism student and reporter, get the facts; get all the facts; then write a story that informs the reader. Sounds like a good idea today.

This story was written by someone who is either not a crime reporter, or a reporter who, for whatever reason, didn’t do the job.

FRUSTRATION!

My Comcast email server is down. Everything else works fine; I can access all of my other sites. Each time I try accessing my email, I get variations of Server Temporarily Unavailable or Server Unreachable. Funny, it was reachable earlier today.

I checked on Facebook with other homeowners in my subdivision and there doesn’t appear to be a global problem. I tried accessing the company’s help system. The first site took me to a place where I would have to pay for help. Since I’m already paying Comcast, that was no customer service as far as I’m concerned.

I then went to a second site for Comcast Xfinity. This is where the frustration peaked. To demonstrate the problem, the following Q and A shows that all I got were circular prompts from the company’s algorithms. Here are the prompts and my responses:

Comcast: Hello! I’m Xfinity Assistant, here to help you find answers as quickly as possible. If we can’t resolve your issue together, no worries! I’ll connect you to a live agent.

After you sign in, I’ll be able to assist you better.

Me: I can’t sign in. This is what I’m getting. HTTP ERROR 503 Service Unavailable

Comcast: No problem. Do you need help recovering your Xfinity ID or resetting your Xfinity ID password?

Me: No. It won’t let me in. I can’t access my email.

Comcast: How can I help?

Me: I can’t access my email. I get this instead This page can’t be found No webpage was found for the web address:

Comcast: How can I help?

Me: I NEED A LIVE TECHNICIAN, NOT AN ALGORITHM.

Comcast: To connect you with an agent, I need you to sign in with your