Are you weary of the bombastic, often specious, statements made by public figures of all shapes and sizes? I certainly am! …and my wife has grown equally weary of my vociferous proclamations pointing out said behavior, so I’ve decided to go ahead and express my disdain the old-fashioned way – by writing about it.
I seem to encounter hapless souls who fall into one of three general categories of ignorance: 1) the bloviating doofus – rarely at a loss for words, yet incapable of expressing themselves coherently. 2) the vacuous pontificator – angry about something; subscribes to the ‘ready, fire, aim’ approach to public discourse. 3) the self-righteous miscreant – [loudly] voices misguided skepticism and/or suspicion of, well, anything and everything that doesn’t align with their world view.
Occasionally, I will award emoticons, as follows:
- ☹︎ = the bloviating doofus
- ☹︎☹︎ = the vacuous pontificator
- ☹︎☹︎☹︎ = the self-righteous miscreant
Yup, I’m back crafting yet another blog, albeit covering a wider array of topics, but will resume heaping my disdain on blowhards of all shapes and sizes promulgating undisciplined and/or less-than-rigorously thought through points of view, (read “uninformed opinions”), whenever and wherever I happen upon them. So, to the bloviating doofuses, vacuous pontificators and self-righteous miscreants out there – beware – you’ve been warned…
The prior few paragraphs were extracted from the “About” page on a blog I started a decade ago to protest – loudly – the illicit acts being committed by an unfathomably corrupt administration, the inexhaustible hubris of Silicon Valley CEOs, and the so-called “fourth-estate’s” apparent inability/unwillingness to hold any of these culprits to account. Sadly, much of what I – and countless others – feared would happen, did happen, so I thought I’d dig up a handful of those exceedingly prescient posts and share them, again, here.
N.B. Other than cleaning up errant HTML tags, correcting misspellings, refreshing stale links, and addressing truly egregious grammatical errors, the following three posts are presented here in their original form.
Not My President
Originally posted elsewhere on Friday, November 11, 2016
Let me be clear – very, very clear – I did not cast a vote for Donald J. Trump. Donald J. Trump is not my president. He will never be my president. I will spend an inordinate amount of time during the next four years doing what I can to expose this charlatan – this con man – for what he truly is; a liar, a tax cheat, a sexual predator, a misogynist, a racist, a xenophobe, a swindler of Biblical proportions.
The bloviating sycophants surrounding this narcissistic piece of sh*t aren’t any better either. Clinton’s assertion Trump followers are “…a basket of deplorables…” certainly applies to the list of names being circulated as potential cabinet appointees too. Adultery? Check. Past Indictments? Check. Mental Illness? Check. …and that’s just this week’s list!
Journalists continue to begrudgingly normalize the [now] President-elect. I’m sure you’ve seen it too – the wide-eyed exclamations, half-hidden smirks, shrugs, darting glances to counterparts sitting a few feet away – despite the fact Donald J. Trump is anything but normal. No, not normal, not normal at all! Stop this behavior! Stop it now! Do NOT acquiesce. Resist. We all need to resist! If you are a journalist – especially if you are a journalist – you have an obligation to the general public to scrutinize/challenge/question/delve-deeply into each and every ridiculous utterance from Donald J. Trump, his appointees, advisors and hapless hangers-on for the next four years.
Yeah. Four years. Every day. All day. Nonstop scrutiny. Nonstop questioning. Nonstop digging, digging, digging… Hey, ‘dems ‘da breaks folks – the price for your time in front of the camera, those column-inches of press you covet, the myriad of online followers/fans, or the byline shouting your name – if you don’t like it, please turn in your press pass and move to Canada. …or to Mexico. …or to California. …or maybe Portland.
C’mon New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, PBS Newshour, The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Politico, Washington Post, etc., etc., etc., the press/media is not a herd of cattle meant to be penned up and used as props for the sideshow, (thank you Seth Stevenson), so don’t start behaving like docile creatures when it matters most, OK? Dig.
Just over 47% of those choosing to cast a ballot, (ah, yes, a topic for an upcoming post), bought the bullsh*t being doled out by Donald J. Trump. Just over 47% of those choosing to cast a ballot thought Hillary R. Clinton represented a path forward.
The “protest” vote – which is the only way I can characterize ballots cast in favor of Johnson or Stein – siphoned off single-digit millions of votes, likely doing more damage to Clinton than to Trump, and once again proving there are plenty of citizens out there willing to jump right off a f*cking cliff because they’re “principled”. Nope. Sorry, but I don’t buy the “protest vote” argument, not at all. These people are idiots, principled, but idiots nonetheless. I wonder how well that principled approach will be serving the ‘granola crunchers’ and ‘preppers’ two years from now… We’ll see, won’t we?
…but I digress. Back to the 47%. No doubt we’re confronting a nation that’s divided – quite literally – about the correct path to pursue. I get that. Sixty million red votes, sixty million blue votes and the net difference between the two is measured in the hundreds of thousands, (as of Friday morning). I contend there’s no mandate favoring either Democrats or Republicans, despite the lopsided Electoral College map, the disproportionate number of Republican victories reflected in those “down ballot” congressional and/or gubernatorial race results plus the simple fact the nation will be governed by a Republican President, a Republican-controlled Senate and a Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Sure, the skeptics are going to point to the sea of red reflected on any number of election results infographics, and tell me I’m deluded. What? No mandate? You’ve got to be kidding! Of course there was a clear mandate called for by the electorate! Don’t you see it? No sir, I do not.
N.B. 1) 60.4M (47.7%) votes cast for Clinton vs. 60.0M (47.4%) votes cast for Trump. [As of November 11th] 2) 48 Senate seats held by Democrats/Independents and 51 Senate seats held by Republicans. 3) …had the “blue wall” held – and, make no mistake, it most assuredly did not – we’d be looking at a 25 state vs. 25 state “red vs. blue” split. As it stands presently, it’s a 21 state vs. 29 state “red vs. blue” split, (based on the popular vote tally).
I’m going to discount, (heavily), the ridiculously gerrymandered maps influencing both U.S. House of Representative and gubernatorial election outcomes frequently pointed to as absolute proof – yes, proof positive – Republican values are what the nation wants/needs/demands. Nope. Sorry, but I don’t buy it. Show me a comprehensive redistricting plan, (read “it’s time to reverse a half a century of gerrymandering”), and the subsequent election results after it’s been implemented and we’ll talk… [but]…’til then, no.
So, gentle reader, what was it we heard from the electorate on Tuesday? Simple – it was a tortured howl/scream/shriek for change. Nothing more. Howling. Screaming. Shrieking. …for change. That’s it. Apparently, the prospect of continuing down a path initially forged by [twice-elected] President Barack H. Obama didn’t appeal to about half of the electorate. Hmmm, I wonder why?
Theories abound. My personal favorite? We truly believe, as Americans, each and every citizen is entitled to …something. …anything. …everything. …nothing. What? You blame a collective sense of entitlement! Surely sir, you jest! No sir, I do not.
As Americans, we are culturally incapable of being satisfied by the status quo, no matter how good, (or bad), the status quo is [for the vast majority of Americans]. As Americans, we [collectively] yearn for “…things to be better [than they are]…” or “…things to be different [than they are]…” without understanding – and I’m talking about true understanding here – why we, as Americans, lean toward this feeling of unease.
The myth goes something like this: we’re a nation of strivers – a country of talented, capable, hard-working citizens who, if they apply that God-given talent, leverage those wonderful capabilities and engage in honest work, well, things will just fall into place.
Uh, no. To desperately cling to some ridiculous belief that raw talent abounds, that we’re all inherently capable just because we’re Americans and – almost laughably – that hard work invariably “…pays off…” spells doom. Alas, we stumble perpetually toward discontent. Here’s the math:
Sense of Entitlement x Your Personal Reality ÷ Status Quo = Nationwide Discontent
We are a nation of discontents, (with profuse apologies to Robert J. Samuelson), and we – as a nation – seem to have expressed that discontent on Tuesday, November 8th, 2016 without carefully considering the long-term consequences of our actions before we cast our ballots…
…and yes, gentle reader, there will be profound – truly profound – consequences in the days, weeks, months, and years to come. Be careful what you wish for…
All Zucked Up!
Originally posted elsewhere on Thursday, March 22, 2018
First, let’s dispense with the legalistic equivocating…
“The claim that this is a data breach is completely false…no systems were infiltrated, and no passwords or sensitive pieces of information were stolen or hacked.”
Yup, that little gem was extracted straight from Facebook’s news page on March 17th. I beg to differ with the technocratic brain trust hunkered down in Menlo Park – splitting hairs over the definition of “breach” was a complete waste of time. However, I do like Merriam-Webster’s definition, particularly the first usage example, “a breach of trust“, because it sums up the situation perfectly. C’mon, you do know Facebook has consistently exhibited a complete and utter disdain for the so-called “dumb f*cks”, (Mr. Zuckerberg’s words, not mine), who have chosen to surrender their digital lives to his stupid company, right?
As reported in the Guardian on Saturday, the Observer disclosed what whistleblower, Christopher Wylie, described as a concerted effort to harvest millions of Facebook profiles and then build psycho-graphic models of those people targeting what Wylie referred to as “…their inner demons.” In the past several days, we’ve seen undercover footage of Alexander Nix, the now-suspended CEO of Cambridge Analytica, bragging about the absurd amount of influence his company had with the Trump campaign, claiming:
“We did all the research, all the data, all the analytics, all the targeting. We ran all the digital campaign, the television campaign and our data informed all the strategy.”
Sure, this sociopath from England can’t speak proper English, but setting that aside, the implications of what he was caught on camera/tape saying are chilling, to say the least. OK, so let’s recap: heartless technologists – one, crusading politicians – zero… ☹︎ Sticking with what’s being reported by the Guardian, let’s now turn to the CEO’s tardy, non-committal, half-hearted attempt at accepting responsibility for the entire company being asleep at the wheel:
“I’m really sorry that this happened.”
Yeah, definitely fell on his sword with that one, huh? Oh, did I mention he apologized for the “breach of trust“? Yeah, said that too… So Facebook attorneys, security geeks, and public relations ‘droids chafe at the use of “breach”, but a handful of days later, ole’ Marky-Mark says he’s sorry for said breach [of trust].
And according to the same Guardian article:
“Facebook’s chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, shared Zuckerberg’s post and added her own comment: ‘We know that this was a major violation of people’s trust, and I deeply regret that we didn’t do enough to deal with it.’ “
Oooh, impressive – way to lean in Sheryl, way to lean in… E.J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post, (paywall), opinion writer, thinks we should be outraged about the Facebook/Cambridge Analytica scandal, noting:
“Zuckerberg’s statement Wednesday afternoon acknowledging ‘mistakes’ and pledging to ‘work through this’ largely repeated what we already know. He’ll have to do much more.”
Agreed. Much more… Much, much more… I’ll leave you with what New York Times, (paywall), technology writer, Nellie Bowles, quoted in [her] story about a former colleague who, on Wednesday, suggested it might be time to #deletefacebook:
“Employees may feel the freedom to rebel because of Silicon Valley’s success, both technologically and financially. The technology platforms have become more powerful – and the fortunes much larger – than the programmers ever expected. So while the industry’s power disturbs them, the wealth allows them to speak out without fear of retribution…”
True, but let’s not overlook the simple fact these rather public displays of righteous indignation are invariably launched after the check clears! Said differently, while you’re shoveling billions into your pockets, you’ll put up with just about anything…
Blaming Boomers…
Originally posted on elsewhere Wednesday, December 20, 2017
I happened to run across an article published on the website Vox earlier today, with the cutesy title “How the baby boomers – not millennials – screwed America“, penned by one Sean Illing, containing an interview with Bruce Gibney, who attempts to make the case in the ridiculously-titled screed “A Generation of Sociopaths: How the Baby Boomers Betrayed America“. …sorry for the run-on sentence, but I just had to get that out!
Illing makes his bias known by extracting this pearl from Gibney and using it as his tagline:
“The boomers inherited a rich, dynamic country and have gradually bankrupted it.”
In the spirit of full-disclosure, I’ll admit to belonging to the much-maligned generation of “boomers”, albeit I’m what’s referred to as a “trailing boomer” – a moniker carrying with it the implication I barely got in. Dunno, but after reading Gibney’s description of the socioeconomic havoc wreaked by my age-based cohort, maybe I’ll start calling myself a “leading X’er” instead! Speaking of Generation ‘X’, are they even mentioned in this interview? Yes. Once. At the end. Hmmmm…
How does one skip an entire generation, (1965 – 1984), now known as Generation ‘X’, when assigning blame for the litany of ills so aptly described by Mr. Gibney? Easy, especially when you happen to be a f*cking member of that generation – a generation now casting furtive glances around the room instead of staring straight into their snowflake’s, er, ah, uh I meant their children’s faces, (yup, those darned millennials), and explaining why mommy and daddy were apparently neutralized as a potentially-potent voting block from the mid-1990’s onward…
OK, OK, back to the article. Our dear writer, Mr. Illing, chafes at the millennial cliché:
“We’re spoiled, entitled, and hopelessly glued to our smartphones. We demand participation trophies, can’t find jobs, and live with our parents until we’re 30.”
I guess I’d chafe too, but let’s face it, we all know people – lots of people – who fit this description. Exceptions don’t warrant a cliché, but the general rule sure as heck does!
“…boomers, according to Gibney, have committed “generational plunder,” pillaging the nation’s economy, repeatedly cutting their own taxes, financing two wars with deficits, ignoring climate change, presiding over the death of America’s manufacturing core, and leaving future generations to clean up the mess they created.”
Well, let’s unpack this, shall we? No hard evidence regarding tax cuts or plundering is given, other than a vague generalization about the government’s addiction to grotesque levels of borrowing used to finance wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. To be clear, I’m not – repeat, not – a fan of deficit spending, nor was I one of those flag-waving idiots who bought the whole “…weapons of mass destruction…” line of bullsh*t proffered by then President George W. Bush almost two decades ago. Now, with that out of the way, let’s move on to another of Gibney’s whines:
“Our public education system has steadily degraded as well, forcing middle-class students to bury themselves in debt in order to get a college education.”
What? Conflating the poor quality of public education systems with Tyler’s decision to take on a six-figure loan to attend UCLA to pursue a degree in English literature? Nope, not going to swallow that one either, nope, not at all… Sure, the quality of public schooling isn’t what it was – and I’m as deeply disturbed by those declines as Mr. Gibney is, but how does one link chronically under-performing public school systems with Aiden’s/Meridith’s/Austin’s inability to comprehend the compounding effect of interest or to be able to perform a simple return on investment calculation when deciding whether or not to pursue a bachelor’s degree with limited earning potential? Hey, wait a minute… Did I just prove Gibney’s point? Nooooooo! Of course, we get the expected dose of ‘crumbling infrastructure’ and ‘climate change skeptic’ complaints thrown at us too:
“…we can think of the climate as an asset, which has degraded over time thanks to the inaction and cowardice of the boomer generation.”
Wow, this guy must be really p*ssed off about those triple-digit temperatures in San Francisco back in June! Inaction? Cowardice? Let’s pause for just a minute and talk about the perceived proliferation of electric cars, solar arrays, wind farms, light rail and let’s not forget the simple fact a barrel of oil was above $140 not that many years ago. …pardon me while I go fill up my SUV.
Gibney’s whinging continues:
“…dealing with these problems has simply been irrelevant to the largest political class in the country – the boomers.”
…then Mr. Illing lobs this chestnut over the plate:
“So what’s your explanation for the awfulness of the boomers? What made them this way?”
Gibney points his bat at the outfield fence, and whammy, it’s outta the park!
“I think the major factor is that the boomers grew up in a time of uninterrupted prosperity. And so they simply took it for granted. They assumed the economy would just grow three percent a year forever and that wages would go up every year and that there would always be a good job for everyone who wanted it.”
Yeah, right, and I’m sure we’d all like to live happily ever after too… Fact check – between 1965 and 1985 there were four periods of recession, (recall this is the time frame when “leading boomers” would age from their early 20’s to their early 40’s), according to Gibney’s own GDP source cited in the article. So much for the uninterrupted prosperity theory.
Between 1965 and 2015 the average rise in real GDP was 2.96%, which is frighteningly close to the 3% figure Gibney cites. Sure, there were years with negative growth rates, and years with growth rates higher than 3%, but the fact remains that over a fifty – yes fifty – year period, (right up until the present), the average growth rate was a hair below that magic 3% figure. So much for the bad assumption made regarding the GDP growth theory.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, wage growth averaged just over 6% between 1960 and today, with the steepest decrease occurring in March 2009, during – not surprisingly – the so-called ‘Great Recession’. In fact, there were only two periods of decrease – one between 2000 – 2002 and the other between 2008 and 2010. So much for the long-term wage stagnation theory.
Ooops, three strikes and you’re out Mr. Gibney!
Urged on by Mr. Illing, Gibney uses broad brushstrokes to paint us nasty boomers as feckless, entitled, live-for-today, know-nothings. I beg to differ. The microprocessor was invented on our watch. The jet engine was perfected on our watch. Men went to the moon on our watch. Internet protocols were invented on our watch. Oral contraception was invented on our watch. Survival rates for various forms of cancer skyrocketed on our watch.
Selfish behavior or selfless endeavors? You decide. Illing needs to chill out about living in his parent’s basement and Gibney needs to “…get bogged down in an ocean of numbers and data…” before his next interview.
My point? No single age-based slice of the citizenry is to blame – if you subscribe to Gibney’s specious claims – for virtually everything that’s wrong with the country today. We’ve all – and I do mean all – had a hand in it.
Rather, we find ourselves in this admittedly dire situation due to selfish behavior traced to multiple age-based demographic slices – the last of those born into the so-called Greatest Generation, most certainly the Baby Boomers and yes, even those darned ‘X’ers! All three cohorts have had a hand to play in the systematic pillaging of America so aptly described by Mr. Gibney.