The Wall: Belief "Trumps" Reason

Since Donald Trump did not attempt to get Congress to fund "The Wall" when his party controlled both houses of Congress, it seems likely he doesn't give a damn about the wall.* His problem is that his GOP base does. He promised them a wall that would be paid for by Mexico and they believed him. Obviously, Mexico is not interested in wasting money for a wall, so now Trump has waited until the Democrats control the House of Representatives to ask Americans to pay for his glorious wall. Of course, he knows the Democrats, just like Mexico, are not interested in wasting money on a third-century concept. But he can now tell his base that it's the Democrats' fault the wall will not be constructed.

But the problem is the GOP base still believes that a glorious wall is a solution to all of our problems. This past week, amid all the noise about Jeff Bezos, the National Enquirer, and Virginia politicians who wore blackface 30 years ago,  the House of Representatives was holding a hearing on gun violence. During a discussion about easily accessible guns, ammo and automatic weapons, a GOP member from Florida, Matt Gaetz, dismissed considerations like background checks and suggested "...a wall, barrier on the southern border may have..." prevented gun-related murders.  Really? Americans are being killed by guns every day because we lack a wall? Clearly, Mr. Gaetz has been drinking the NRA kool-aid as well as taking their money.

The problem is that a large segment of Trump's base/cult has convinced themselves that not only is the "Wall" of great importance, but also look upon it as the solution to many of our problems. The fact that this line of thought makes no sense is not important. We are not talking about reason, we are talking about belief. If one believes, one is not concerned about facts, science or rational arguments. Belief does not require proof.

Therefore, our country has reached a point where a president can repeatedly lie and one of his assistants can refer to his lies as "alternative facts." He can characterize whatever is happening on our southern border any way he chooses and his followers will believe him. If he suggests that the lack of a big, beautiful wall is a threat to our security, they will believe him. In fact, like Mr. Gaetz, they will see the wall as a solution to gun violence, the opioid crisis, the scarcity of meaningful, middle-class jobs, the recent measles outbreak, and perhaps even the recent Polar Vortex.

The fact that illegal border crossings are at an all-time low should, therefore, mean that gun violence, the opioid crisis, the lack middle-class jobs, and the measles outbreak, should be at an all-time low. That they are not would seem to be one indication that the wall is not the solution, right? Wrong.  Such reasoning means nothing to the Trump cultists. Belief "trumps" reason in their world-view.

Why? Why do people choose belief over facts? There may be many psychological reasons, but I presume the main reason is fear. They see the asylum seekers, not as human being fleeing violence and seeking a chance to raise their families in peace and security, but as an army of desperados intent upon destroying American society. The President has gone to great lengths to fuel his followers' fears. He continually refers to asylum seekers as criminals and rapists. His propaganda network, Fox, refers to them as "dirty." The message is simple: be fearful of these brown people trying to become Americans, they are a danger to you, the true Americans. And, one who is fearful will believe almost anything that they perceive as eliminating their fear.

Democracies like ours are susceptible to demagogues like Donald Trump, but the hope in the United States has always been that an educated electorate will recognize absurdity when it sees it. The fallacy of that is that it does not acknowledge people's fears and their willingness to believe rather than think logically. (It's worth noting that demagogues fear an educated electorate and tend to attack educational and journalism institutions.)

The "wall" is about so much more than the wall, and thus the debate has closed down the US Government for the longest period of time in our history.

*Of course, the idea of having his name on the wall is irresistible to Donnie. Ask any junior-high kid about that.

Wastin' Away in Ohio

If you're from Ohio, you know that your state is home to some great art museums in Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Toledo. You also are aware of the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, and the Wright-Patterson Air Museum near Dayton You may even be aware of COSI (Center for Science and Industry) in Columbus and Toledo, but many Buckeyes are not aware of the other many and various museums that call Ohio home.

Toledo Museum of Art

Even if you are living a full,  busy and eventful life, you might want to carve out some time to attend Ohio's major museums of art and possibly some of the other above-mentioned museums and halls of fame.

On the other hand, you may choose to pass on some of the lesser-known Ohio museums. I guess what I'm saying is: if you have half of a day to waste, maybe you should forget about some of these and instead get out the Monopoly board and teach the young-uns the basics of ruthless capitalism.

On the other hand, if you are retired but not too tired, if you're looking for reasons to get out of the house, and if you can't afford to take a real trip to St. Petersburg, you may want to gas up the Ford, pack a lunch, and take a day trip to one of these Ohio museums.

Here they are in no particular order:

The National Construction Equipment Museum located in Bowling Green. This, of course, is an outdoor museum, and I suspect you and your spouse could eat your lunch in the cab of a road grader. Who is going to object?  After all, you'll be the only ones there.

If that's too much excitement for you, there is the Pencil Sharpener Museum in Logan. If you go, take all those little pencils you stole from various golf courses and get those babies sharpened, not to put too fine a point on it. (Give me a break, sometimes I can't help myself.)

Those of us feeling particularly pious may want to visit the Museum of Divine Statues in Lakewood. I think that when Catholics remodeled their churches after Vatican II, someone gathered up these statues and took them to Lakewood. Joan of Arc being consumed by flames. Jesus with his heart on the outside of his tunic. St. Patrick chasing snakes. Save your lunch for later in the day.

If the Missus and you own a motorcycle, you may want to consider a trip to Pickerington's Motorcycle Hall of Fame. You can check out the Harley hogs, Indians, and Victorys of yesteryear as well as a variety of newer Japanese two-wheelers. Speaking of two-wheelers, the Bicycle Museum of America in New Bremen features all the neat bicycles that your parents refused to buy for you when you were too young to appreciate the value of a dollar.

If you happen to be in Hilliard with time on your hands, you should reevaluate your life or visit the Early Television Foundation and Museum. Presumably, they have working models of TVs from the 1920s. For kids who watched test patterns (you know who you are), you might enjoy a grainy screenshot of Howdy Doody and creepy Buffalo Bob.

In Cincinnati, one can attend the American Sign Museum which is a shrine to American advertising. I think what happened was, back in the day, Ladybird Johnson launched a campaign to beautify our highways, and somebody took down all of these signs and bestowed them upon Cincinnati. Therefore, Mail Pouch, Howard Johnson's and Phillips 66 will live on.

If you happen to be near Case Western Reserve, attending the History of Contraception is a possibility. Please don't take the children. It's not a good idea to show our offspring all the things human beings have done over the years to not have children.

More child appropriate is the Carousel Museum in Sandusky or the Lego Museum in Bellaire. And, in Cleveland, you can take them to the house (now a museum sans Ralphie) in which the movie, Toy Story, was filmed.

There are more, but if you have attended all of these, you may have a problem. Perhaps you should stay home and self medicate or go to the Senior Center and cheat in a game of Rummy.

The Uneven Playing Field of Ohio Schools

In a democracy, "the land of opportunity" implies equal opportunity. Every citizen should have an equal chance to succeed. 

We all know that such talk is a utopian idea that will never occur in our flawed country. If for no other reason than geography or skin color, Americans will not have equal opportunities. However, the lack of equal opportunities does not prevent some of us from succeeding, even against seemingly insurmountable odds.

For example. success was possible for many of our immigrant grandparents or great-grandparents because of public education. They may have been living on starvation diets, but they had a future if they were able to acquire an education.


Unfortunately, in Ohio and other states, public education is not equal and fails to provide equal opportunities. To illustrate that point, I offer the following letter written by Jim O'Connor, a Princeton high school teacher, entitled "A Tale of Two Districts."


"Years ago, Ohio’s General Assembly borrowed the idea from other states that the best way to evaluate public school districts is to categorically compare them by letter grade. The goal, as stated in the Ohio Department of Education Report Card website, is to “ensure equitable outcomes and high expectations for all of Ohio’s students.”

One would think that equitable outcomes imply a level playing field in terms of financial inputs. After all, equality is the flip side of the equitable coin. However, when you scroll down to the bottom of each district’s Report Card, the amount spent per pupil says otherwise. The difference in funding between wealthy and modest/low-income school districts is striking.

The tale of these two school districts in the same county (Hamilton) sheds light on what Jonathan Kozol called, nearly thirty years ago, the “savage inequalities” of school funding. The two districts are Indian Hill and North College Hill.

Indian Hill

Take a look at the data and make your own conclusions. In 2016-17, Indian Hill spent $12,189 per student (1929 students). NCH spent $6,629 per student (1,590 students). IH student body: 91% White or Asian and 7 % Free or Reduced Lunch (at or near poverty). NCH student body: 92% Black or Bi-racial, 81% Free or Reduced Lunch.

Savage inequalities, indeed! Because of an unconstitutional over-reliance on local property taxes, NCH can only spend 55% of what Indian Hill spends on each student. For IH, this means better-paid teachers, more electives and counselors, less staff turnover and smaller class sizes. For NCH, the opposite is true.

Despite this “Have and Have Not” funding system, the state of Ohio uses the same measuring sticks for each district. The Report Cards are mostly the result of standardized tests. Yet, there is nothing standardized about the allocation of resources to fairly educate ALL of Ohio students.

The Indian Hill-type districts will continue to receive awards and platitudes while the North College Hill-types will continue to receive condemnation and punishment.

The state leaders of Ohio are not fulfilling their constitutional mandate of a “thorough and efficient” education system. It is thorough for White, wealthy districts; it is not for Black and/or low-income districts. Ensuring equitable outcomes can only be achieved, and fairly compared, by the equitable inputs of resources and funding for each and every district.

On May 17, 1954, Justice Earl Warren stated in the Brown v. Board of Education case,  “in the field of public education the doctrine of 'separate but equal' has no place,” as segregated schools are “inherently unequal.” They were then and they still are today."

Mueller: Christmas Witch Hunter

The Christmas season is upon us, and it's time to make a list of what to get for the famous and infamous. Even those who seemingly have everything one could possibly want are in need of something. In no particular order, my 2018 list:

World Leaders:
Vladimir Putin, a human soul.
Donald Trump, a year's supply of antipsychotic drugs.
Kim Jong Un, a new barber.

Political types:
Betsy DeVos, Secretary of Education, a case of Smart Water.
Lindsey Graham, Putin sycophant, a set of Russian nesting eggs.
Rudy Guliani, a dictionary with the definition of truth.
Ohio senator, Rob Portman, a spine implant.
Paul Manafort, a "Get Out of Jail" card.
Robert Mueller, a "Witch Hunter" cap.
Donald Trump, a witch's hat.

Newsmakers:
Parkland shooting survivors: sensible gun legislation.
Meghan Markle, peace among the Royals.
Baron Trump, an anchor baby certificate.
Melanie Trump, lessons on how to smile.
Ivanka Trump, a few more Chinese patents.

Athletes:
Hue Jackson, a permanent home (retirement home) in Cincinnati.
Aaron Rodgers, a new Green Bay Packer team.
Phil Mikelson, a new book, "Putting a Moving Ball"
Justify, triple crown winner, a giant vault to hold his stud fees.
Serena Williams, a certificate for an anger management class.

As for the rest of you, refurbished chia pets and a "Merry Christmas."

The Other Woman in the House

There are two women in our house. My dear wife, Sandy, does all the important things, cooking gourmet meals and telling me that the glasses I can't find are pushed up on my forehead.

The other woman is quite petite, and not very shapely. Her name is Alexa, and what she has going for her is she knows a lot of shit.
If you're interested, she can tell you the temperature in Wasilla, Alaska, the home of Sarah Palin. And more importantly, she can tell you that it is impossible to see Russia from Wasilla. And in case you want to know, she can tell you that on December 6, Mars is 97.4 million miles from earth. She can also tell you things you should know but have forgotten  -- there are 16 fluid ounces in a pint.

In addition, Alexa can do things -- turn your TV or lamps on or off. She can wake you up at 6 AM by playing Eva Cassidy or any other music you choose. Since Alexa is an Amazon product, she can buy almost anything you want, and it will be delivered to your door after your credit card takes a hit.

But Alexa can be discretely obtuse. When asked how babies are made, she replies "through the process of reproduction." Duh! Methinks that does not answer the question. Apparently, the AI world of Alexa is not familiar with sex,  Alexa is just like the girl I dated a long time ago. She knows her history, literature, current events, geometry,  physics, chemistry, meteorology,  but not so much about human anatomy.

And in spite of her soothing voice, There are many things Alexa doesn't get. For example, she thinks:
- Trump is the strong suit in a game of euchre.
- Atlantis is located in the Bahamas,
- Bloody Mary is a queen and not a cocktail.
- George Washington is a university and not the first US president, or vice versa.
- an autonomous car is made by a no-name company.
- Donald Trump is 6 foot 3inches tall and weighs 239 lbs. because that's what the White House said.

There are also, many things Alexa can't do:
- make the sun shine on a cloudy day.
- eliminate homelessness, poverty, and greed.
- improve my tennis game.
- stop school massacres.
- repair a leaky faucet.
- re-establish the rule of law in Washington D.C. and state capitals.
- clean my gutters.
- eliminate gerrymandering.
- wash my car.
- make the President take his meds.
- make Brussel sprouts palatable.

In spite of her limitations, I must admit that Alexa is more knowledgeable than I am; and in spite of a rather lack-luster appearance, she is nice to have around. She always answers me, and never gives me the "really?" response.

A Big, Very Big One

Dictators, in particular, are fond of erecting large, flattering statues of themselves. It seems they need to see a physical structure to reinforce the notion of their fleeting greatness.  They also tend to have large military parades to reassure themselves of their power. And then when their moment in history disappears, their statues come tumbling down ala Saddam Hussein.

In light of that, I was fascinated to learn of the new statue of Sadar Patel in Gujarat, India. Rather than a figure of imposing power, this represents a man in quite ordinary clothing, shoes with toes missing, an unflattering middle-aged girth. Sadar was a key figure in India's freedom movement in the 1940's and a popular deputy prime minister.

This statue, known as the Statue of Unity, is a record 597 feet tall.

In comparison, the Statue of Liberty is a mere 305 feet.


My fear is that Donald Trump will hear of this statue and will want to build one of himself, only larger of course. He is into building things with his name attached. After all, he is the one who after the World Trade Towers collapsed on 9/11 proudly remarked that Trump Tower was now the tallest in NYC. He is, also, the man who admires dictators, whether Kim Jong-un or Vladimir Putin, and their military parades.

How could he resist building a "big, a very big" statue of himself? And, of course, Mexico will pay for it!

Or perhaps, he will redo Mount Rushmore.



Or maybe a classic nude.

No, that's just disgusting.

How Would St. Francis Vote?

St. Francis

Today, election day, 2018, I was fortunate to come upon "The Franciscan Benediction," and it spoke to my condition, discomfort with our leaders spewing forth multiple self-serving lies, anger with the political use of fear  and hate, tears for those suffering from the abuse of power and wealth, and finally foolishness for not doing my part in the cause of social justice.





Let's hope that today Christians will embrace their discomfort, anger, tears, and foolishness, and at the very least, go out and vote.

The Minority Menace

At the present time, the Republican Party controls the presidency, the Senate, the House of Representatives, and a majority of the 50 governorships. Therefore, one would be tempted to conclude that since the USA is nominally a democratic nation, the Republican Party is the majority party; and of course, that is an erroneous conclusion.

More Americans identify themselves as Democrats than Republicans. President Trump is a minority president. He received 46.1% of the votes cast in 2016, fewer votes than his opponent, Hillary Clinton. In the Senate, although the GOP is in control, they were elected by only 46% of the popular vote. The GOP controls the House of Representatives as a result of gerrymandered congressional districts, allowing a popular minority to garner a majority of the seats. And then, the Supreme Court, whose members serve for life, has a Republican majority because of a two minority presidents (George W. Bush and Donald Trump).

In addition, those who govern in the US do not represent the population. The majority of our country is not composed of old, white, wealthy males.

Thus, it's no surprise that many consider the United States to be a marginal democracy. Each person's vote does not count the same. The will of the largest number of  US voters is irrelevant in our system of government.

Our Founding Fathers were squeamish about true democracy and created undemocratic constructs like the Electoral College and the US Senate. Because of the Electoral College, we have minority presidents like Donald Trump. Because of the structure of the US Senate, we have a situation in which a vote in Montana counts many times more than a vote in Illinois. But if one happens to be a US citizen in Puerto Rico, forget it. You have no senator; thus, no voice.

And, on top of that, they created a Supreme Court, an institution immune to the will of the people. And, as we have seen in the case of Brett Kavanaugh, although only 41% of the citizens approved of him, he was placed on the Court for life because of a few votes in the Senate.

2000 Supreme Court

The minorities reached new levels of power in the 2000 Presidential election, which was decided by ONE vote in the Supreme Court. Although more voters voted for Al Gore, George W. Bush became the next president because 5 of the 9 Supreme Courts Justices voted for him. The will of the majority of voters counted for nothing. One vote was more valuable than that of the rest of us.

Framers of constitutions frequently worry that the rights of the minority will be trampled by that of the majority. Is it not ironic then that in the US minorities can control the seats of power to the detriment of the majorities?

It appears, all things considered, if the will of the US people is to be served, an overwhelming majority is required, and even then the majority's power will be limited.

The past two years have demonstrated the menace of minority power. At any time in our history, a president like Donald Trump, even if elected by the Electoral Colege, would have been impeached. But since the GOP is in power in Congress, and is eager to maintain power, they are protecting the president and hoping that the Supreme Court with two Trump appointees will do the same.

Sadly, "promoting the general Welfare" as stated in the Consitution is not likely to occur under minority rule. Minorities, almost by definition, focus on their own welfare, not the common good.

The Concise Advise Column

A staple of American daily newspapers has been and continues to be is the "advise column." I'm not sure the advice they offer is sound, but I do know they provide many readers entertainment. Perhaps we all tend to revel in others' problems, and secretly breathe a sigh of relief, saying "Thank God, my life is not that screwed up." Possibly, the readers are also fans of TV shows like "Dr. Phil." Viewers can find relief in the fact that others have much more serious problems than their own.


In fact, some of us actually enjoy the pain of others, and Germans have a great word for such feelings, schadenfreude. A young woman smiles when she learns that her ex-boyfriend has been fired from his job. A Michigan football fan enjoys the chaos surrounding Urban Meyer at Ohio State. Although we may not be proud of ourselves, we have all secretly partaken in such pleasures.

Whatever the reason, entertainment or schadenfreude, advice columns continue to be popular. Since studies show that many subscribers would rather do without the editorial page than the advice column, the know-it-alls who write the columns will be with us for some time.

I, in fact, would like to be one of the know-it-alls. Although my knowledge is quite limited, my hubris is such that I think I could offer good advice.

For example, my advice for some questions I have seen recently is quite incisive.

Q: Should I tell my boyfriend he has body odor?
A. Hell no. Find another boyfriend.

Q: Why doesn't my son's girlfriend come around?
A. Obviously, he told her that you are a bitch.

Q: My daughter's teacher asked her to spend the night. Should  I allow her?
A. The fact that you had to ask that question tells me your daughter needs a new mother.

Q: My obnoxious brother-in-law wants me to introduce him to my best friend. She deserves better. What should I do?
A. Tell your brother-in-law she is a lesbian with homicidal tendencies.

Q: My male boss annoys me by standing within my personal space. What can I do?
A. Tell him to back off because you're disgusted by his nose hair.

Q: I just learned that my brother-in-law is a rapist. What to do?. 
A: Nominate him for the Supreme Court or a high-level position in the Trump administration.

Q: My mother-in-law has an annoying habit of dropping in at our house unannounced any time of the day or evening. How do I put a stop to this?
A. Always lock the door, and post a sign that reads: "Sex in Progress. Call ahead."

Q: My wife no longer speaks to me. Worried in DeKalb.
A. I wish I knew the reason. Many husbands would pay big to get your secret.

Q: Should I quit my day job to write a book?
A: Not unless you want to starve.

Q: How old is too old to wear a miniskirt?
A: Seven.

Q: Our new neighbor, a single female, is always flirting with my husband. What should I do?
A: Tell her your husband is suffering from a sexually-transmitted disease.

Q: My husband fantasizes about Jennifer Garner.* Does he have a problem?
A: Not at all. He has good taste.

Most advice columnists answer these questions at great length with an abundance of psycho-babble. The best answers are the concise ones. For example, it's quite clear, in fact, way too clear that females, seven years old or older, should not wear miniskirts. End of discussion!

*For the sake of full disclosure I used Jennifer Garner's name so I could include her photo






, 

Deus Vult etc.

Recently I was following a pickup truck that was flying a Confederate flag and concluded that the driver had racist leanings. In 2018 those who go to the trouble of purchasing and displaying that flag do so because they want to make a statement, a not so subtle statement that whites are superior to blacks. As I came closer, I noticed the owner had a Trump bumper sticker. No surprise there. But then I noticed a Latin phrase in Old English script. That was a surprise. Is this white supremacist fluent in Latin? Possible.

On the other hand, what did she mean with the phrase, "Deus Vult"? Simply translated it means "God wills," or "God wills it." By itself, it means very little without an explanation of what it is that God wills. Does God will that little boys urinate on "Chevy"? That was the subject of a decal next to Deus Vult.

Once home I did a bit of searching and found that "Deus Vult" is an insider reference used by white supremacists to express their Islamophobia. Members of the alt-right, a phrase used to include racists, xenophobes, and other hate groups, apparently chose this phrase as a dog whistle to each other during the 2016 election.

Why? Apparently, the phrase is a piece of Crusader iconography. It was the battle cry of Pope Urban II's first crusade. In that context it means God wills the destruction of Muslims. Thus the alt-right uses it to justify their Islamophobia. In fact, vandals have used it to deface mosques and other structures.

The use of code words or political "dog whistles" is typical of hate groups. Realizing their hatred is not shared by the general public, they rely on insider signs to identify each other.

Most recently, it has become popular to consider the hand signal which in the past meant "okay" to be a "white power" sign used by Donald Trump's base supporters.  A Coast Guard employee on the hurricane duty checked to see that he was in view of the TV camera, flashed the sign and then pretended to scratch his face. He was relieved of his duty.

A few weeks earlier, at the Brett Kavanaugh hearings in the Senate, many maintain that Zina Bash, Kavanaugh's former law clerk,  flashed the same symbol while sitting behind the nominee. The video went viral and was considered by many to as a message to white supremacists.

The alt-right has many other signs and codes.

The numbers, 1488 or 14/88,  appear frequently in neo-Nazi propaganda. It refers to two racist concepts.  First, 88 represents two H's (8th letter of the alphabet) for HH (Heil Hitler). "14" refers to the "Fourteen Words" of white supremacist David Lane. His 14 words are: "We must secure the future of our existence and a future for white children." Others say it refers to the 14 words: "Because the beauty of the White Aryan woman must not perish from the earth." Either way, the words speak to the hearts of white supremacists.*

Another code of the alt-right is to enclose someone's name in triple parentheses. They use the parentheses to identify (star) Jewish journalists. However, this code is no longer very effective because Twitter has eliminated its use and many other journalists have used the parentheses to make such identification meaningless.


There are many more political dog whistles of the various hate groups, but one of the most pernicious is the reference to "helicopters" or "helicopter rides." The reference is to the practice of removing political opponents by taking them for a helicopter ride over the ocean and then throwing them out. When these hate groups suggest someone should be taken for a helicopter ride, they are suggesting a modern alternative to lynching.
Hate groups feel the use of code words and signs gives the "insiders" an added sense of belonging, but the fact remains, these people are consumed and driven by their fear of the "other."

*Many consider the hand signal to be a hoax; others consider it to be meaningless since it such a popular gesture which was used to mean "okay."