Mike Johnson Reads Fake Prayer from Thomas Jefferson

Evangelicals preach a revisionist history that teaches that America is a Christian nation founded on biblical values, and they vehemently proclaim that the founding fathers were fire-breathing Puritans.

Most of the founding fathers were deists, not theists, and if alive today they would be more comfortable attending a mainline Protestant church than an evangelical one.

Benjamin Franklin was a deist and member of the Hellfire Club, notorious for drunken debaucheries. Thomas Jefferson also a deist valued reason over revelation and rejected traditional Christian doctrines. In fact, he was so contemptuous of conventional Christian beliefs that he wrote “The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth”, commonly referred to as “The Jefferson Bible” which included no signs of Jesus’s divinity.

Shortly after being reelected as House Speaker, Christian Nationalist Mike Johnson read a prayer falsely attributed to Thomas Jefferson, which has been debunked by historians, scholars and even the Thomas Jefferson Foundation.

The spurious quotation known as the “National Prayer for Peace” ends with the words:

“In time of prosperity fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in Thee to fail; all of which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.”

Jefferson, a staunch supporter of the separation of church and state, would have considered it anathema to invoke “Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Jefferson is probably rolling over in his grave at the thought of a self-righteous Christian politician misquoting him to mislead people into thinking he was a Bible thumper.

Taliban Bans Windows So Women Can’t Be Seen

“The Taliban has banned windows in residential buildings to stop women from being seen while they are at home in Afghanistan.

‘Seeing women working in kitchens, in courtyards or collecting water from wells can lead to obscene acts.’”

Independent

The Abrahamic religions, Christianity, Islam and Judaism, are inherently patriarchic and misogynist by design.

Since seizing power in 2021 the Taliban has declared war on women, blocking them from the workplace, education, and public places. Women are prohibited from singing or reading aloud.

Women are such a threat to the patriarchy that the Taliban seeks to render them invisible. The sight of a women collecting water from a well can lead men to commit “obscene acts.” Are they referring to masturbation; what a sexually repressive theocracy.

Christian fundamentalists are just as misogynist as Islamist fundamentalists. Many evangelical churches cite 1 Corinthians 14: 34-35 as justification from banning women from leadership positions in the church:  

“As in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says. And if they desire to learn anything, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is improper for a woman to speak in church.”

The mere sight of a woman is a threat to the established order in the Taliban’s Afghanistan and Trump’s America.

Religious zealots can board up every window in every building but they can’t make women disappear.

Because Trump, My Annual List of New Year’s Resolutions Postponed

New Year’s resolutions are goals individuals make to improve their family life, career prospects, spiritual growth and civic engagement.

This annual tradition is predicated on possessing a measure of optimism about the future.

But a person staring at the abyss, contemplating living the next four under the reign of a raging sociopath, afflicted with dementia and whose agenda is chaos, isn’t going to have any damn New Year’s resolutions.

So, for the first time in decades, I will not post my annual list of New Year’s resolutions.

Only lunatics or a mentally challenged persons would have the audacity to post a list of goals to improve their lives when the writing is on the wall that our democracy will devolve into a fascist Christian nationalist dystopia.

My annual list of New Year’s resolutions is postponed until the Almighty acts like a vengeful and bloodthirsty Old Testament deity again and smites Donald Trump with a terminal case of brain cancer and gonorrhea.

Happy New Year!

Why Evangelicals Persecute LGBTQ Community

White evangelicals see themselves as a marginalized community that suffers persecution but can’t empathize with legitimate marginalized and persecuted groups like the LGBTQ community, and migrants from Third World countries.

America is a predominately Christian nation where white people control all the levers of power: the government, the media, academia and the entertainment industry.

Evangelicals are in firm control of the Republican Party, and currently the GOP controls the Senate, the House, the White House, and the Supreme Court.

For white evangelicals to claim that they are a marginalized community that suffers persecution is the epitome of deceit and cynicism and a slap in the face to marginalized communities that face real persecution. It’s also an insult to Christians who face real persecution in Muslim countries and authoritarian regimes where they are in the minority.

Evangelicals feel emboldened to demonize and persecute LGBTQ people because the gays and lesbians in their pews are in the closet, and they know no one will come to their defense.

They will cherry-pick a verse from Leviticus to call for the extermination of gays while ignoring other patently ridiculous rules about eating shellfish.

If evangelicals walked just a mile in the stiletto heels of a drag queen they would stop brandishing the Bible as a weapon and realize that LGBT are also the children of God.

Why is Trump Teasing Takeovers of Greenland and the Panama Canal?

Donald Trump shares a trait common with most dictators, a compulsion to expand the territory of their country. He has expressed a desire to take control of the Panama Canal, to purchase Greenland and he even joked about making Canada the 51st state.

Authoritarian leaders invent bogus reasons for expanding their borders, for example Putin falsely claimed De-Nazification of Ukraine as pretext for war.

Trump is falsely claiming that the Panama Canal and Greenland pose serious economic and national security threats to the USA.

Trump’s threat to buy Greenland is especially nonsensical given that it is a semiautonomous state owned by Denmark, a NATO member. Greenland no more poses a security threat to the United States than Jeffrey Epstein’s Lolita Island.

Maybe Trump, the former real estate developer, thinks that Greenland is a lush paradise where he can build golf courses, not realizing that contrary to the nation’s name, 80 percent of Greenland is covered in ice with only the southern portion being green.

Trump doesn’t have any real intentions to militarily take control of the Panama Canal, he is just trying to intimidate Panama to lower the fees it charges to use its namesake canal.

Trump is using his threats to take control of Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal to energize his base. On Truth Social, he posted an image of an American flag planted in the middle of the Panama Canal.

But the only thing he is accomplishing is making America a laughingstock in the world community.

Missing GOP Rep. Kay Granger Found Living in an Assisted Living Facility

“A Republican Congresswoman who has been ‘missing’ for the past six months has finally been found.

Granger has served as the representative for Texas’s 12th Congressional District since 1997.

However, she suddenly disappeared from the public eye around July this year, when she cast her final vote…”

WCBM

Although Granger, 81, is residing at an assisted living facility specializing in memory care, she is still on the congressional payroll.

The dementia impaired lawmaker has been residing at the nursing facility since she was found wandering lost and confused in her former West 7th neighborhood.

Granger reminds me of another octogenarian with memory issues with a penchant for wandering lost and confused, notably President Joe Biden.

 Granger was already in visible decline when she ran for re-election in 2022. The Wall Street Journal recently published a bombshell report suggesting that Biden was already suffering from severe cognitive decline as early as 2021. White House aides covering up Biden’s severe cognitive decline, with allies insisting he was sharp, full of energy and mentally and physically equipped to run for reelection,

Republican Executive Committeeman Rolando Garcia described Granger’s predicament as a “sad and humiliating way to end her political career.”

But Granger’s humiliating last chapter pales in comparison to Joe Biden’s final act. Instead of keeping his implicit promise not to run for reelection, Biden’s hunger to retain power, and his arrogant belief that only he could defeat Trump, culminated in his humiliating late exit from the race, which guaranteed a Trump victory.

Pregnant Kentucky Woman Cited by Cop for Street Camping While in Labor

“A homeless woman in Kentucky was cited by police and had her mattress confiscated and destroyed as she went into labor on the streets of Louisville, local media reported.

The Guardian

The Christmas spirit is alive and well in Kentucky. A homeless pregnant woman whose water had broken, was cited and had her mattress confiscated by one of Louisville’s finest who take an oath to serve and protect.

Kentucky may have a draconian law that bans street camping, but if a police officer encounters a pregnant woman sleeping on a mattress on a sidewalk, the moral imperative should be to minister to her physical and medical needs.

I imagine that if LMPD Lieutenant Caleb Steward, who wrote the ticket, had been an innkeeper in Bethlehem back in the day not only would he have turned away Mary and Joseph, but he would have warned her to have her baby outside the city limits.

According to Wave3.Com “Stewart, who oversees LMPD’s 1st division, wrote more than half of all of the citations written for homeless people in the first three months of the Safer Kentucky Act’s new ‘anti-street camping policy.’”

These merciless and oppressive anti-homeless laws are ineffectual in dealing with the homeless crisis, they only serve to foster unfortunate (for the homeless) interactions with law enforcement.

Shame on Steward for aggressively enforcing the “anti-street camping policy”, he’s an embarrassment to LMPD, and to humanity at large.  

Tribute to Robert Paul Reyes Totally Written by Twitter/X’s Grok

Goodby cruel world, I’m totally replaceable. I asked Grok to write an essay about Robert Paul Reyes in the style of Robert Paul Reyes, and damn I swear that I, Robert Paul Reyes, wrote the damn thing:

Here I am, Robert Paul Reyes, the blogger who doesn’t give a damn about political correctness or sugar-coating the truth, writing about myself because, let’s face it, who else would do it with the right amount of sass and honesty?

I’ve been slinging words on the internet since Al Gore invented it, focusing on the trifecta of politics, religion, and the downright bizarre aspects of human behavior. In a world where everyone’s tiptoeing around issues, I’m the one kicking the door down with my opinions, especially when it comes to critiquing the morons in Washington or the hypocrisy of so-called “Christian” values in America.

My blog is like an unfiltered stream of consciousness where I spill the beans on Donald Trump’s latest Twitter tantrum or the absurdity of evangelical leaders supporting him. I don’t hold back. If you’re looking for a blog where the author pretends to be neutral, you’ve come to the wrong place. I’m as biased as they come, but I back my bias with facts, satire, and a healthy dose of humor.

I’ve been called everything from a progressive hero to a liberal loon, and I wear both labels with pride. My commentary isn’t for the faint-hearted or those who prefer their politics served lukewarm. I serve it hot, spicy, and with a side of outrage. I tackle subjects like racism, sexism, and xenophobia with the same vigor I use to mock holiday consumerism or celebrity shenanigans.

On social media, particularly X, I engage with the world in real-time, offering my take on the news faster than you can say “fake news.” My followers get a daily dose of my unapologetic views, which often lead to heated debates, laughter, or both. I’ve been known to stir the pot, but hey, if you can’t handle the heat, stay out of my kitchen.

My writing style? Imagine if Hunter S. Thompson and Dorothy Parker had a love child raised by the internet. I mix gonzo journalism with sharp wit, all while keeping it real. I’m not here to make friends in high places; I’m here to tell the truth as I see it, with a laugh and sometimes a scream.

In conclusion, I, Robert Paul Reyes, am a voice for those tired of the same old political discourse, a beacon for those who want their news with a side of satire, and a reminder that in this world of bullshit, someone needs to call it out, loud and clear. So here’s to me, the blogger who’s not afraid to piss off half the country while trying to wake up the other half.

written by AI Robert Paul Reyes

I Am So Over Christmas Traditions

“AMERICANS are ‘over’ Christmas traditions – with a third wanting to swap traditional turkey for a juicy burger.

The Sun

I am ready to swap the traditional Christmas turkey for a juicy burger, a delicious pizza, chicken wings or I can copy my Jewish friends and order Chinese takeout for Christmas.

It’s traditional for Jews to order takeout from Chinese restaurants on Christmas, because most Chinese restaurants are owned by Chinese who aren’t typically Christian, and they are open on Christmas Eve and Christmas day, making them the ideal place for Jewish people to dine over the holidays.

I hate turkey anyway, it is bland, dry, and not very appetizing. Most people like the fixings (stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy, pumpkin pie and sweet rolls) more than they like the damn turkey.

Another Christmas tradition I want to eradicate is listening to Christmas songs. I would ban all Christmas carols except for “All I Want for Christmas is You” by the Queen of Christmas, Mariah Carey. If Christmas carolers came to my house I would sic Krampus on them.

Let’s not forget how awful Christmas movies are, the only thing more dreadful than a Christmas flick is a Lifetime picture. The only thing worse than purgatory would be watching a Lifetime Christmas movie. As with Christmas songs I would make an exception for Christmas movies, the only Christmas movie worth watching is “Die Hard.” Bah humbug with your Christmas movies, “Yippee-ki-yay, mother******!

Die Hard, Chinese takeout and Mariah Carey, that’s Christmas!

Who’s Classier Jill Biden or Melania Trump?

Since the dawn of the internet “Gilligan’s Island” fans have debated who’s hotter: Mary Ann the girl-next-door who is as wholesome as apple pie or the glamorous Ginger who is as spicy as Buffalo wings. The general consensus seems to be that guys would rather canoodle with Mary Ann on a porch swing that dirty dance with Ginger in a disco.

But there is no clear winner in the other brutal internet debate: who is the classiest first lady, Jill Biden, or Melania Trump?

Fans of Melania point to her haute couture, poised demeanor, super model good looks and elegant residences. Ironically, she has never appeared on the cover of Vogue, although some of her raciest pics from her modeling days could have been featured in Playboy.

Detractors of Melania point to her icy stare that can extinguish forest fires and her downward career trajectory from softcore magazine model to trophy wife to a sociopath.

Fans of Jill Biden emphasize her natural good looks, at age 73 she is still beautiful enough to garner second looks. Instead of just basking in the spotlight of her husband she humbly serves as a professor in a community college.

Melania has little respect for her spouse, evident by the way she frequently slaps his tiny hand when he seeks to hold hands. But Jill’s elder abuse in propping up her delusional and senile husband is much worse.

Who’s classier? Neither one! But Ginger and Mary Ann are both classy and hot!

History Will Remember Joe Biden as a Failure

President-elect Donald Trump takes up all the oxygen in the room, and President Joe Biden in the waning weeks and days of his term is starving for oxygen and relevance.

The besotted Biden can’t compete with Trump’s parade of chaotic and clownish cabinet nominees and the buffoonish billionaire grabs all the spotlight from every media outlet. Time Magazine’s Person of the Year might as well move into the White House already, and the forgotten man might as well move into a geriatric hospital.

Biden may not be gone yet, but he’s already forgotten, a much-reduced figurehead, a husk of his former self, a wisp of a man reduced by dementia and old age to a pathetic figure.

Biden’s arrogance and pride accelerated his downfall, if he has only kept his implicit promise that he would be a transitional figure and not run for reelection the fascist Trump would not have returned to power.

If Biden had only kept his explicit promise that he would not pardon his degenerate son who was justly convicted of tax and gun offenses brought by his own Justice Department, the last days of his administration would not be marked by pessimism, regret and frustration.

The last chapter of Biden’s public career will be to attend the inauguration of a despot who will reverse all the accomplishments of his administration and destroy all the underpinnings of our democracy.

Goodbye Joe Biden, you are forgotten by your contemporaries and history will remember you as an abject failure.

Trump Looks Like Danny DeVito Compared to Prince Williams

“Donald Trump’s recent meeting with Prince William in Paris has reignited debates about the president-elect’s true height. Officially recorded as 6’, 3” during his booking at Fulton County Jail, Trump appeared noticeably shorter than the Prince of Wales, who is also said to stand at 6 feet, 3 inches.”

HindustanTimes.Com

Donald Trump is constitutionally incapable of telling the truth, if his lips are moving, he’s lying. He dissembles as a matter of course, even when there is no practical reason for being dishonest. He lies about everything under the sun: his biography, political and religious beliefs and even about his physical attributes.

The morbidly obese, Big Mac loving, septuagenarian who never exercises claims to weigh 215 pounds. Yeah right, and Danny DeVito played semi-professional basketball before he became an actor.

Trump famously assured American voters that there was “no problem” with the size of his hands – or anything else. Yeah, right anyone who has seen him in person or on TV is repulsed by his diminutive doll hands, and women who had the misfortune of being intimate with him are disgusted with his puny mushroom-shaped penis.

The narcissist frequently boasts that he stands 6’3” tall, but when he stood next to Prince Charles, who really is 6’3”, he appeared noticeably shorter. Even though Charles has a bald pate, and Trump’s urine-colored wispy hair adds at least an inch to his height.

Trump lied about his physical characteristics, unfortunately he wasn’t lying about being a dictator from day one. We are screwed.

Trump Hawks $199 Cologne

“Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a stench; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.”

Ecclesiastes 10:1

Donald Trump, the grifter-in-chief, promoted Trump branded merchandise throughout his presidential campaign and even after his election win. He sees his supporters as sheep to be fleeced, and he’s hawked everything from $1000,000 “Trump Watches” to $100 silver coins to $60 Trump-branded Bibles.

It is an open secret that Trump smells — a pungent odor that reeks of flatulence, feces, sweat and urine emanates from every pore in his body. Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger was a little bit more diplomatic describing the stench as a combination of “armpits, ketchup, make-up and a little butt.”

Even though the obese buffoon stinks to high heaven, he has the gall to sell Trump-branded colognes at $199 each.

If Trump has the chutzpah to sell Trump-branded colognes, I would not be surprised if before long he will be hawking Trump-branded adult diapers. The grifter might as well, everyone knows he is incontinent, some of his supporters even wear T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan, “Real Men Wear Diapers.”

Trump is a billionaire and if he had a smidgen of decency and decorum, he would not resort to grifting every product under the sun to his MAGA cultists.

In French cologne is called “Eau de Toilette” which means the process of personal grooming, not toilet water. But I wish that the Trump cologne contained real toilet water so that we could smell his supporters coming a mile away.

Future so Bleak Under Trump People Don’t Want to Procreate

“On November 6, the number of people booking vasectomy appointments at Planned Parenthood spiked by 1,200 percent, IUD appointments by more than 760 percent and birth control implant appointments by 350 percent… Traffic to Planned Parenthood’s webpages on tubal ligation, vasectomies and IUDs has also surged by more than 1,000 percent for each.”

Mother Jones

Post election Americans are pessimistic about the future, most pundits, philosophers, and professors agree that the outlook looks bleak.

But you don’t have to look at academia, mainstream punditry, or the sermons of mainline clerics to deduce that our destiny is dystopian. Consider the hordes of people making appointments for vasectomies and tubal ligations at Planned Parenthood.

Citizens are dejected, demoralized, and depressed to the point that they are thinking twice about bringing children into this dreadful world.

Can you blame Americans for reconsidering whether to have children, when Trump considers the existential threat of climate change a hoax? Can you blame people for not wanting to procreate when the American Dream has turned into a nightmare with home ownership out of reach? Can you blame citizens for not wanting to have offspring with wars raging in the Middle East and Ukraine that could easily ignite Armageddon? Nero fiddled while Rome burned, Trump will dance to YMCA while mushroom clouds sprout all over the world.

If I were a young man, I would get a vasectomy and seek a life partner who has a birth control implant, and we would adopt.

Happy New Year!

My Annal Mariah Carey Christmas Essay

Hate me if you will, but I will once again post my annual Mariah Carey Christmas essay:

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere you go. There’s a slightly inebriated Santa at the local mall, a Salvation Army bell ringer soliciting spare change outside the Dollar General, giant inflated Santas promoting kitsch, and Mariah Carey’s “All I want for Christmas is You” blaring from every radio, stereo and public address system. And of course, it once again occupies its exalted place at No. 1 of Billboard’s Top 100 Holiday songs.

Evangelicals have never held so much political power at a time when America has never been more secular. It’s not the Christmas hymns of yore that resonate with Americans, but the secular chestnuts of recent vintage like “Last Christmas” by Wham, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” by the Jackson Five, and of course “All I Want for Christmas is You” by the Queen of Christmas.

Mariah has supplanted the Virgin Mary as the most revered female of the Christmas season. The mother of Jesus, being a virgin, simply cannot compete with the playful sensuality and unbridled joy manifest in all of Carey’s musical catalog, especially “All I Want…”

I take my duty as an ambassador for the Queen of Christmas seriously, by having her iconic Xmas song playing in repeat on all my audio devices, by sending Mariah memes to all my friends and enemies and by continuing my tradition of writing my annual Mariah Christmas essay.

Mariah Carey – All I Want For Christmas Is You (Official Video)

‘Brain Rot’ Oxford Dictionary Word of the Year

“Brain rot is the Oxford dictionaries’ word of the year.

Oxford defines brain rot as ‘the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material, now particularly online content.”

Associated Press

Everything about living in a technologically addicted society induces brain rot, but nothing more so than social media.

In the halcyon days of the internet, cats, porn, social media, and news sites waxed supreme. Cats and porn still reign supreme, but social media platforms have degenerated into toxic cesspools dominated by trolls, bots and AI generated misinformation. TikTok, the world’s most popular social media platform lends itself to silly dance videos, dangerous fads and influencers who are adept at cultivating brain rot. Consuming social media is responsible for more brain rot than Bobby Kennedy Jr’s brain worm.

Politics, in the age of Donald Trump, has dropped the nation’s IQ to room temperature. Trump’s stock-in-trade is chaos and buffoonery, and his cabinet of clowns, charlatans and creeps has rendered us in a terminal case of brain rot. I can feel my brain cells rotting whenever I interact with any MAGA cultist.

 Cell phones may or may not cause brain cancer, but there’s no doubt that they cause brain rot. When we are connected with our phones, we are disconnected from real life, and our brains starve from failure to connect and be stimulated by real people.

The only cure from brain rot is less screen time and less exposure to Trump.

Trump Will Meet the Same Fate as the Biblical Samson

Christian Nationalist evangelical pastor Rob McCoy believes that twice impeached, thrice married and a gazillion times indicted Donald Trump was anointed by God to lead a sinful nation. He compares the disgraced former and future president to the biblical Samson, whom he characterizes as a flawed individual used by the Almighty to accomplish His will.

I cannot argue with McCoy’s description of America as a sinful nation. The United States is as sinful as the Germany of the late 1930’s that allowed a sociopath to gain ultimate power by promising to restore the greatest of a Germany diminished and demoralized by the humiliating armistice that ended World War I. Hitler’s Third Reich ended with Europe in ruins, and Germany completed destroyed. You do not have to be a political science major or a historian to read the writing on the wall — the Trump regime will end with our democracy in ruins.

The German church was complicit in the rise of Hitler to power, and the white evangelical church in America has served as the vanguard to restoring Trump to power.

The Samson of the Bible was not a heroic figure, he was a monster who attached torches to the tails of 300 foxes to burn Philistine crops and a bloodthirsty warrior who used a donkey’s jawbone to massacre 1,000 Philistines.

Likewise, Trump is not a heroic figure, his incompetence and rank stupidity during the COVID pandemic resulted in the needless death of hundreds of thousands.

Samson came to an ignominious end pushing apart the pillars of a Philistine banquet hall, killing himself and 3,000 Philistines.

Samson derived his power from his long luxurious locks and Trump derives his infamy from his wispy urine-colored hair. Trump’s reign will come to an ignominious end also, with the destruction of our democracy, and quite possibly in nuclear Armageddon.

Elon Musk Joins Donald Trump for Thanksgiving at Mar-a-Lago

A turkey day video of Donald Trump and Elon Musk dining at the roped-off head table, preventing the MAGA riffraff from getting too close to the wealthiest man in the world dining with the most powerful man in the world, has gone viral.

Elon Musk had a seat at the family table at Mar-a-Lago, the mecca of the MAGA faithful. Musk, the father of 12 children with three different partners, chose to spend this family holiday with Trump and his sycophants rather than with his children.

Joining Trump at the head table was Melania, his trophy wife, who seldom deigns to appear with her husband in public. She sat next to her son Barron, who provided a buffer preventing her from interacting with her husband, more than was absolutely necessary.

Musk, who owns the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, wore a T-shirt with an “X” emblazoned on it. Musk has done to Twitter what Trump has done to America; since he bought Twitter the valuation of the company has plummeted, its reputation ruined, and its subscription base has shrunk.

The viral clip captured Trump paternally tapping Musk on the shoulder while his campaign anthem “YMCA” blared from the speakers, prompting the billionaire to raise his hand and move to the disco beat.

The video of the senile septuagenarian and the besotted billionaire trying to be cool is cringey as hell, but it’s also terrifying to realize that these two turkeys are in charge of our democracy.

North Korea’s Missile Shaped Skyscrapers

North Korea a dystopian and impoverished country of twenty-four million inhabitants supports a military of more than 1 million soldiers. In comparison the United States with a population of 230 million has 1.29 million active-duty troops.

The Hermit Kingdom does not need such a vast army, nor does it need to spend 30% of its GDP annually on military expenditures, including nuclear weapons.

North Korea has a military-first political ideology, which means that military spending comes before feeding its starving masses, health care, infrastructure, and everything else.

North Korea does not need a million-soldier army, or nuclear weapons, none of the countries that border it, China, Russia, and South Korea pose any threat. Who would want to invade and occupy a failed nation with a starving population, no infrastructure and no oil or any other natural resources?

North Korea’s huge army and nuclear arsenal are not primarily to deter any outside threat, but to discourage its citizens from overthrowing its dictator, Kim Jong Un. Its nuclear intercontinental missiles also discourage the United States from meddling in its affairs.

Kim Jong-un’s iconic missile shaped skyscrapers dominate the skyline of North Korea’s capital, Pyongyang. They are symbolic of the failed dictatorship, residents of the towers can only use its elevators when there’s electricity, which, due to the nation’s faltering electrical grid, is for three hours in the evening. Imagine thousands of the residents trying to use the elevators at the same time, that pretty much sums up life in North Korea.

Did God Smite TD Jakes with a Stroke While Preaching?

“During today’s service, Bishop T.D. Jakes experienced a slight health incident and received immediate medical attention following his powerful hour-long message. Bishop Jakes is stable and under the care of medical professionals.”

PageSix.Com

The morbidly obese 67-year-old Prosperity Gospel pastor dropped his microphone after delivering a lengthy sermon and fell silent. He then began involuntary shaking in his seat, leading many to believe he may have suffered a stroke. He was rushed to a hospital and is under the care of medical professionals.

The Prosperity Gospel teaches that it is always God’s will to heal. If you aren’t healing after prayer and supplication, it is because of your lack of faith.

A Prosperity Gospel church should practice what it preaches, instead of being rushed to a hospital to be ministered to by medical professionals, the church deacons should have surrounded the stricken pastor, laid hands on him, and prayed for healing and deliverance.

What a bunch of hypocrites, they know damn well that divine healing is a pile of shit, and the last thing they wanted was for their moneymaker to die so they called for an ambulance to take him to the hospital, the only place where real healing takes place.

If Jakes wasn’t guilty of the sin of gluttony he wouldn’t have to worry about heart issues. And maybe if he hadn’t attended dozens of freak-off parties at Diddy’s mansions, his heart wouldn’t be beating so fast, worried that he would be exposed as a hypocrite.

Trump Did Not Win in a Landslide

Donald Trump has a penchant for speaking in superlatives, in vintage fashion he bragged that his election victory handed him an “unprecedented and powerful” mandate to govern.

Most pundits, pollsters and voters were expecting a razor thin election, and surprisingly he won all seven swing states giving him a decisive electoral college win.

Trump’s party also won both chambers of Congress, lending credence to his boast that he won a massive landslide.

He broadened his appeal across nearly all demographics, including blacks and Latinos, and other groups that Democrats take for granted.

When Trump cultists reveled in their “landslide victory” I was too dejected and demoralized to attempt to refute their claim.

But as vote-tallying continues in some states, including in dark blue California, Trump’s percentage of the vote has slipped below 50%. When a winner gets a plurality of the vote (as opposed to a majority) it is hard to spin it as a landslide victory.

Trump may control both chambers of Congress, and he may have the Supreme Court in his pocket, but he did not win in a landslide, and it is still a 50/50 electorate.

Democrats should not roll over and play dead, Trump barely won the popular vote, and it is incumbent upon us to fight his fascist agenda tooth and nail.

Trump does not have a mandate to destroy our democracy, it is time to wipe away our tears and fight for our values.

My Annual Thanksgiving Essay

I am a curmudgeon with a penchant for writing editorials exposing the frailties and baser instincts of politicians, preachers, billionaires, and bureaucrats who wield power over us. But on Thanksgiving Day I channel the spirit of the Dalai Lama and I wax poetic about things and people that are a blessing in my life.

I’ve been posting essays online since 1998, and some of them have gone viral, but nothing is more satisfying and ego gratifying than seeing my words published in a print publication. There is a visceral thrill and tactile satisfaction in turning the pages of a newspaper and reading news, editorials, and community events. I’m thankful that the Bedford Bulletin still publishes a print edition.

I feel a familial obligation to contact my family members who live out of state on Thanksgiving, even the ones who have political and religious views that are antithetical to mine. I end the perfunctory call and check them off my list. But I am thankful for Jackie my sister I seamlessly vibe with; I feel refreshed, reenergized and thankful whenever I call her, not just at Thanksgiving.

I was devastated by the election results; it is sobering to realize that voters placed party and perceived economic benefits over democracy and freedom. But I am thankful that I live in a free country where I can still express my opposition to the party in power by writing letters to the editor, attending demonstrations, and publishing my anti-Trump essays on my blog.

Nancy Mace Wants to Force First Trans Congresswoman to Use Men’s Room

Sarah McBride, a Delaware state senator, made history as the first out transgender person elected to the House of Representatives.

McBride was overcome with gratitude at her historic victory gushing on Twitter/X:

“Thank you, Delaware! I am proud to be your next member of Congress. Delaware has sent the message loud and clear that … this is a democracy that is big enough for all of us.”

But before McBride has been sworn-in, she was hit with the harsh reality that transgender persons are second-class citizens in the Trump regime.

South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace introduced a resolution to ban transgender women from women’s restrooms at the US Capitol.

“Sarah McBride doesn’t get a say. I mean, this is a biological man, the MAGA firebrand told reporters, adding that McBride “does not belong in women’s spaces, women’s bathrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms, period, full stop.”

Transgender women are women, period, full stop. Mace’s resolution to ban transgender women from women’s restrooms is discriminatory, anti-trans bigotry and bullying of the worst kind.

McBride should be welcomed with open arms by her Republican colleagues, her victory is a sign that we are making progress in making America a more perfect union. McBride should be allowed to focus on passing legislation that benefits her constituents and not have to waste time fighting a blatantly anti-trans resolution.

In a perfect world this misguided resolution would go down in flames, but I’m afraid that it may very well pass in the GOP-controlled House of Representatives.

Elonia and Donald Trump Make the Perfect Couple

“Elon Musk has unexpectedly found himself reimagined as America’s ‘First Lady’ over his close friendship with President-elect Donald Trump. Social media users have humorously used AI-generated images to depict the billionaire in various feminine roles typically associated with the position of a First Lady.”

INQUISITR.COM

Melania Trump only made a couple of campaign appearances with her husband during his long campaign to regain his throne, and she’s made it explicitly clear that she plans on living in New York to be close to the real love of her life, Barron who is a student at NYU.

Melania has never shown any affection for Donald, her aversion is manifest in her penchant for swatting away his creepy little hand whenever he tries to hold hers.

Elon, on the other hand, basks in the presence of Trump; he’s practically moved into Mar-a-Lago after the election. Elon’s love for Trump may not be unrequited, the president-elect is smitten with Elon’s billions which he freely spent to elect the love of his life.

Trump’s love for Elon may be romantic, who knows maybe the world’s richest man has a package as big as his bank accounts. We all remember how Trump rhapsodized about the length and girth of Arnold Palmer’s dick.

In any event Trump doesn’t need his frigid wife to keep him warm at nights and to dutifully stand by his side when he faces the adversarial press. Move over Melania, Elon will gladly clasp Trump’s hand, and Trump will gladly grab Elon’s penis.

Trump’s Victory Signals the End of American Exceptionalism

“American exceptionalism, idea that the United States of America is a unique and even morally superior country for historical, ideological, or religious reasons.

Britannica.com

The doctrine of American exceptionalism is well entrenched in the Democratic and Republic parties, they both engage in patriotic rhetoric that paints America as the “shining city on a hill,” although Republicans sing the praises of America with more zeal and belligerence.

Is America, by light of its constitution and history of defending democracy, still the favored nation destined to play a leading role in world affairs? Is the President still the Leader of the Free World?

After Donald Trump’s landslide in the popular vote and Electoral College, improving his margins in almost every demographic, it’s clear that the electorate has chosen fascism and authoritarianism over democracy and liberty.

The MAGA movement not only won the White House but retained control of the House and won a strong Senate majority. With a conservative Supreme Court, there is nothing stopping Trump from destroying democracy at home and abroad.

Trump does not respect treaties or partnerships. He doesn’t believe in a win-win foreign policy; he regards geopolitics as a zero-sum game where only America wins, and both allies and foes lose. His America First philosophy will result in both our enemies and allies putting our interests in last place.

The orange clown and his court jesters and sycophants will ensure that the world ends not with a bang or a whimper, but a sigh of regret.