Instead of the News

Epstein files...Russiagate...runaway Texas Democrats...California crises...New York City communists...tariffs...wars, wars, "all over the place," as President Trump might say.

Are you as weary of the news as I am?

I find that I'm weaning myself away from straight news podcasts. Maybe I'm a tender soul (doubtful), but I just can't take it anymore. I probably was listening to too many shows in the first place, so this is a positive step.

But I needed to find some filler to keep me company while I'm driving, doing yardwork, folding laundry, cleaning the house, cooking, etc. Occasionally, depending on her topics, I'll tune in for The Nerve with Maureen Callahan. She delivers extensive celebrity gossip with quite tangy panache. If I get a couple of giggles from one of Maureen's podcasts--and I usually do--it's a win.

I've already recommended Battle Ready with Fr. Dan Reehil. He gets a few listens from me each week, always edifying. Also in the Catholic category, I recently discovered Beyond Saint hosted by Ira DeWitt. Depending upon her guest or topic, I'll dip in and always find it interesting.

This week I really scored when I found The Plot Thickens, a Hollywood podcast that goes in-depth on various stars, shows, and movies. The current season is immersed in the story of filming the Elizabeth Taylor/Richard Burton film Cleopatra, but for me that will have to wait. Being an I Love Lucy fanatic, I dove right into Season 3, which covers Lucille Ball's entire life story in juicy detail. I'm halfway through the episodes, and I'm enjoying every second

Enjoyment rarely ensues from listening to or watching the news. In today's hyper-connected world, we can't avoid hearing the news; we will be informed whether we want to be or not. But we don't need to dwell on it. I'm liking my new varied podcast lineup more by the minute. If you're a pod fan and haven't already done so, I recommend branching out. There's plenty to listen to instead of the news. As an added bonus, I usually end up learning something besides which politician flung a four-letter word today.

Butler

I've been reading, watching, and listening to Salena Zito for several years. I follow her because she is an old-school reporter who actually drives around the country on backroads and talks to people. She doesn't talk to celebrities; Salena talks to real people. Working people such as farmers, waiters, barbers, steel workers, and small business owners are the subjects of her columns and commentaries.

Because I knew that Salena Zito was a few feet from President Trump when he was shot in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July last year, I awaited the publication of her book, Butler: The Untold Story of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump and the Fight for America's Heartland with great impatience. The book is an immediate success, with a debut in the top slot of the New York Times bestseller list. 

When she predicted Donald Trump would win the 2024 election, I tended to believe her. Salena is a western Pennsylvania native who never left her roots. She has what she describes in the book as "a sense of place." This grassroots understanding, which she has called a "Midwest power," gives her a direct connection to the pulse of the country, its citizens, communities, and voters, that few reporters today possess or even comprehend.

I got my copy of Butler earlier this week and finished reading it today. It is hard to put down and educational in the best sense of the word. Salena Zito has an easy, comfortable writing style, and she imparts her observations and wisdom with simple facts stated plainly but not in a critical manner. That expressive finesse is no small achievement. If you want to obtain crucial insights into Middle America as well as a dramatic eyewitness account of the first assassination attempt on Donald Trump, I recommend Butler by Salena Zito most highly.

Flirting with Danger

"The difference between a welfare state and a totalitarian state is a matter of time." ~ Ayn Rand

What's going on in the primary elections is quite concerning, with major American cities such as New York City and Minneapolis considering socialist (read communist) mayoral candidates. This flirtation with tyranny is perilous to our way of life. Unfortunately, there is a regrettable lack of historical knowledge among the voting population today. Universities do not teach our national history or the story of Western civilization--at least, not in a positive way.

Critical thinking skills are in short supply, also. We have had it so good for so long in the United States. No one seems to see the harm in experimenting with our constitutional republic.

The people who escaped the horrors of communism have either passed away or are ignored. There is no way of explaining how bad it can get. As the wise saying goes, you can vote your way into socialism, but you'll have to shoot your way out of it.

I hope we won't have to learn that grim lesson the hard way.

Pots vs. Kettles

"Freedom of religion? Not in Donald Trump’s America. People now have to choose between their faith and their freedom."

~ Gavin Newsom, California governor

Oh, Governor. You are hilarious.

Aren't you the one who kept the bars open during the Covid pandemic but ordered all the churches closed? Nice priorities. Yet now you're suddenly worried about "choosing between faith and freedom." You're quite the dirty pot yelling at the kettle, Gavin. As if you care about either faith or freedom--not to mention honesty.

Also, the Catholic Diocese of Los Angeles is granting a dispensation to all parishioners who fear the federal authorities. Illegal immigrant Catholics don't need to go to Mass on Sundays, for fear that ICE agents might storm the churches and haul them off. I hadn't heard that Catholic churches on Sunday are a prime target for federal agents, but go ahead and make your point, Bishop Rojas. Too bad you weren't concerned about breaking the law when your diocese was assisting in those secret night flights resettling illegals all across the US. 

President Trump's administration is enforcing the law, which so many supposedly law-abiding leaders seem to have a real problem with--oaths of office notwithstanding. So, the pots will continue to object to the kettle's authority. But, as a dedicated tea drinker, I know that the kettle can out-whistle a pot any day of the week. It's time for tea.

Celebrating Independence Day

"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."

~ John Adams

Evil, Uncovered

"This was a total ambush. These firefighters didn't stand a chance."

~ Kootenai County Sheriff, Bob Norris

I've discovered that it's quite difficult to find news about the sniper murders of Idaho firefighters, and I'm wondering why that is. Politics does not come close in importance to the atrocity that took place on an Idaho mountain this past Sunday afternoon. I shouldn't need to hunt down information about the deliberate murder of firefighters responding to an emergency, but I do. There just isn't much news coverage.

The murdered men were public servants who had dedicated their lives to helping, saving, and protecting others. Firefighters are unarmed and don't wear body armor. When on a call, they have about 60 lbs. of gear to handle in the midst of life-threatening circumstances. Firefighters on scene act as one, focused on a single purpose--do the job. 

There was a third firefighter, Engineer Dave Tysdal, who was shot and is recovering in the hospital following life-saving surgeries. If firefighters and other first responders now have to think about being shot dead by a sniper, in addition to all the other crucial concerns they must consider at a fire scene, then this country has much bigger problems that politics.

Battalion Chief Frank J. Harwood, Kootenai County Fire & Rescue
Battalion Chief John Morrison, Coeur d'Alene Fire Department
Died in the line of duty, shot by a sniper ~ Rest in Peace

 

Engineer Dave Tysdal
Coeur d'Alene Fire Department
Recovering following two surgeries

Judicial Lightweight

The Supreme Court seems to be doing its job and preventing the country from descending into total chaos, at least for the moment. This is despite one justice in particular who seems woefully ill versed in the law, Ketanji Brown Jackson.

It's rare to see such an acerbic takedown of a fellow justice in a formal written Supreme Court opinion, but Justice Amy Comey Barrett goes there as she presents the Court's majority decision on nationwide injunctions against President Trump.

Justice Brown Jackson appears to be out of her league on the nation's highest court. It's more than a bit frightening to have her involved in deciding cases of national importance, but we can hope that the commonsense majority will hold--for now.

A Thought for the Moment

Thank you to the US military and to our Commander-In-Chief, President Donald Trump, for the successful strike on Iranian nuclear facilities. 



 

The Bard Says It Best

There is a tide in the affairs of men,
Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
Is bound in shallows and in miseries.
On such a full sea are we now afloat,
And we must take the current when it serves,
Or lose our ventures.

~ Julius Caesar 4:3 by Willliam Shakespeare

As usual when dealing with human truth and consequences, Shakespeare has the best pearls of wisdom for our contemplation during the tension of current events in the Middle East.

The United States is indeed caught up in a tide of momentous implications for the future, of our own country and of the entire the world. President Trump faces the most consequential decision of his life. Whatever his decision may be, all of our lives will be marked by it, "to the last syllable of recorded time." May boldness be his friend.

War, Again

 The war is not meant to be won, it is meant to be continuous.

~ George Orwell, 1984

War. It seems to be our inescapable human fate.

Current events in Israel and Iran have seemed inevitable for a long time, and now we are living with the violent results of that collision course. For America, this is a television war--so far. There is no predicting where or how far the conflict will go, but that's not the point. The point is, it's on. 

I understand why Israel took the action that it did. As President Trump has so often emphasized, Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb. It became obvious that the price of stopping Iran is war. Again.

There's a Christmas carol that was written during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, Do You Hear What I Hear? The song was an appeal for world peace. Although unseasonable, more than 60 years later it is appropriate to our moment. As the last stanza puts it:

Bing Crosby's 1963 recording of Do You Hear What I Hear?