Some Guinness - Glass of Beer

Right now I'm having a very nice glass of Guinness Stout. Yesterday we were at Whole Foods getting stocked up and I saw a nice display of Guinness beers which I couldn't resist. I grabbed a four pack of the Guinness Draught Stout in cans which are prominently labeled "Best enjoyed poured into a glass" which of course I always do. I really do like a Guinness every now and then. Becky commented that the last time she had a Guinness was in Dublin at the St. James Gate brewery up in the skyroom.

So right now I'm sipping it while sitting at my laptop writing about various things. Some posts on Bluesky about music and movies, pondering Gene Hackman, about America joining the Axis of Evil, and so much more but while listening to some great music in my headphones.

Barbeque Chicken Pizza

Today Becky and I went food shopping at Whole Foods which is always a nice and interesting experience. They do have an amazing selections of food. Well, we got some of their frozen pizza which is always very good and this time we got their barbeque chicken pizza. We've had it before and it is always delicious.

We got a lot of foods because tomorrow is that Friday Blackout so we can't do any shopping especially with anything trumpy. 

So this evening we had that pizza and Becky made a salad to go with it. Very much enjoyed this dinner.

Early Santana - Kitchen Listening

It's always fun to listen to some early Santana albums from my collection. Today I played the first three albums and then a live album that was recorded in 1968.

All of the music in this set was from 1968 to 1971.  You just can't go wrong with Santana and I love all of the different periods of their long career.

The sequence.

• Santana, 1969
• Abraxas, 1970
• Santana III, 1971
• Live at the Fillmore 1968, 1997

Posted on Bluesky.

Washington Square Memoirs - Kitchen Listening

Washington Square Memoirs: The Great Urban Folk Boom 1950 - 1970. A 3 disc compilation released in 2007. 

Lots of great music from great artists in the collection from that particular time and place in music history. Runs for almost four hours.

I played this wonderful set of music while reading the autobiography of Dave Van Ronk. 

Posted on Bluesky.

Love Is The Drug - Songs 1975 FV

It's that time again... love is the drug and I need to score more songs from albums in my collection released in 1975. Getting a little funky too.

Photo of Roxy Music touring in 1975.

Love is the Drug - Songs 1975

1. Love Is The Drug - Roxy Music
2. Black Friday - Steely Dan
3. All In The Name Of Rock 'N' Roll - Rod Stewart
4. Feel Like Makin' Love - Bad Company
5. Fascination - David Bowie
6. Heartbeat - War
7. Love Slip Upon Ya - The Meters
8. Mothership Connection (Star Child) - Parliament
9. Can't Hide Love - Earth, Wind & Fire
10. Sweet Thing - Rufus
11. Sara Smile - Hall & Oates
12. Backstreets - Bruce Springsteen
13. Island Girl - Elton John
14. Monday Morning - Fleetwood Mac
15. Play On Love - Jefferson Starship
16. Sister Golden Hair - America
17. My Little Town - Simon & Garfunkel
18. Simple Twist Of Fate - Bob Dylan
19. Edith And The Kingpin - Joni Mitchell
20. After The Thrill Is Gone - Eagles
21. Rainy Day People - Gordon Lightfoot
22. One Day Without You - John Martyn

Roberta Flack RIP - Kitchen Listening

Robert Flack RIP. I was very sad to hear her passing yesterday. She was 88 years old.

I've always had a fondness for her singing and used a few of her songs prominently in some of my mixes over the years.

I was playing a group of her albums today from the 1970's. Kitchen listening before, during and after dinner.

The albums in my collection I played today were:

• First Take, 1969
• Chapter Two, 1970
• Quiet Fire, 1971
• Killing Me Softly, 1973

Posted on Bluesky.

Another Edgar Rice Burroughs Book

I've just finished reading one more Edgar Rice Burroughs book yesterday. The Lost Continent. It was a stand-alone novel written in 1916 and was also published under the title Beyond Thirty. In the book the lost continent was Europe and Asia. North and South America became isolated because of the Great War and over 200 years passed without any interaction between the Western and Eastern hemispheres... thus the lost continent. Then a group of Americans accidently travel to Europe and discover the ruins of a lost civilization. 

It was not part of one of his popular series that he is so well known for. I actually thought the book was a little so-so. I've read so many better stories by him over the years. Maybe I was expecting too much. But I did read it in three days.

According to my GoodReads list this is the 33rd book I've read from this author. He wrote about 80 books.

What is a Cult?

I came across this amusing and interesting post about the cult we see every day in America with social media and a network TV station devoted to it.

A **cult** is typically defined as a social group that is characterized by its extreme beliefs, practices, and devotion to a charismatic leader or ideology. Cults often diverge significantly from mainstream religious, spiritual, or societal norms. They frequently exhibit the following characteristics:

1. **Authoritarian Leadership**: Cults are often led by a single, charismatic leader who demands absolute loyalty and obedience from followers.

2. **Isolation**: Many cults encourage or enforce isolation from the outside world, including family, friends, and society, to strengthen group cohesion and loyalty.

3. **Control**: They exert control over members' lives, including their thoughts, behaviors, and emotions. This can manifest through indoctrination, coercion, and manipulation.

4. **Us vs. Them Mentality**: Cults often create an "in-group" and "out-group" dynamic, leading members to perceive outsiders as enemies or threats.

5. **Fear and Intimidation**: Cults may use fear, threats, or even physical violence to maintain control and loyalty.

6. **Exclusivity**: Members may feel that only they possess truth or enlightenment, and that others are misguided or lost.

7. **Exploitation**: Cults may exploit members financially, emotionally, or sexually.

Signs You Might Be in a Cult

It can be challenging to recognize that you are in a cult, especially when deeply involved. Here are some warning signs:

- **Dependency**: You feel a strong reliance on the group or leader for guidance, support, and direction in your life.

- **Doubt Suppression**: You feel discouraged or punished for questioning group beliefs or practices.

- **Lack of Personal Freedom**: You're not allowed to make personal decisions or express your opinions independently.

- **Emotional Manipulation**: You frequently experience guilt, shame, or fear as a means of controlling behavior.

- **Secrecy**: There may be a culture of secrecy or confidentiality about the group’s beliefs, practices, or inner workings.
- **Changing Relationships**: Your relationships with family and friends outside the group have changed or deteriorated.

- **Intense Commitment**: You find yourself sacrificing personal and professional goals or relationships for the group's demands.

How to Get Out of a Cult

Leaving a cult can be a difficult and emotionally taxing process. Here are steps to consider:

1. **Acknowledge Your Situation**: The first step is recognizing that you may be in a cult and that it is harmful to you. This acknowledgment can be the most challenging part.

2. **Seek Support**: Reach out to trusted friends, family members, or professionals who are not associated with the group. If possible, find support groups for former cult members.

3. **Educate Yourself**: Research about cults and their dynamics. Understanding common techniques used in cults can help you see your situation more clearly.

4. **Exit Strategy**: Plan your exit carefully. Consider your safety, emotional well-being, and logistics (where you will go, how you will support yourself, etc.).

5. **Establish Independence**: Work towards regaining your autonomy. This may include finding housing, employment, and re-establishing connections with supportive people.

6. **Therapy and Counseling**: Consider professional help to process your experiences and feelings and to aid in your recovery.

7. **Create a Support Network**: Surround yourself with new friends and communities that promote healthy relationships and support your independence.

Final Thoughts

Exiting a cult can be a complex journey that often requires support and time for healing. It’s essential to take care of yourself emotionally and physically during this transition. Remember, you are not alone, and there are resources and people willing to help you navigate this challenging situation.

Tchaikovsky: Pathetique

Last night we went to see the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra at Kleinhans Music Hall play three of Tachaikovsky's greatest masterworks. The concert included his Suite from the opera The Sleeping Beauty, his Variations on a Rococo Theme for Cello and closed after intermission with his Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Pathetique.

We had four tickets from the Bairds so we took Dave and Donna with us.

It was a wonderful very crowd pleasing performance. There was also a piece featuring a very outstanding Polish cello player Marcin Zdunik. 

Dinner at JT's w/ D&D

Becky and I went out for dinner last night with Dave and Donna before heading over to Kleinhams for a night of Tchaikovsky with the Buffalo Philmarmonic.

Dave picked us up and we had reservations at JT's Urban Italian Restaurant on Elmwood near Bidwell. Becky and I have been going there a lot recently. The first time we went was with Dave and Donna for a Sunday brunch last summer. We had a nice table and a very fine dinner. Becky had the Chicken Cutlet Milanese and Donna had a slightly different variations with parmesan alla vodka. Dave and I both had exactly the same thing... Rigatoni Bolognese. My favorite dish there. I had a large glass of their Tuscan Blend red wine.

The waitress was very entertaining and service from everyone involved was wonderful as usual. We were there from 5:30 until about 6:45. Perfect amount of time to relax, enjoy ourselves and get to the concert on time.

Gene Hackman RIP

I was sad to hear of the passing of actor Gene Hackman this week and even more so when I learned he was 95 years old. I really didn't know he was still around. He apparently retired in 2004 and moved from Hollywood to Santa Fe, New Mexico where he spent the last twenty years with his wife and writing novels. There were lots of stories about him on the news programs over the past few days.

Just recently we watched one of my favorite movies, The Bird Cage, where he played the right wing conservative senator father of the bride-to-be of the son of the gay couple. I loved when the senator leaves the gay club dressed in drag at the end of the movie.

He certainly was in a lot of good movies. I was recently updated my film lists on the online app Letterboxd and of course I checked on the movies of Gene Hackman. He was in 118 films. These are some of my favorites in no particular order.

• The Conversation, 1974
• The French Connection, 1971
• Bonnie & Clyde, 1967
• Unforgiven, 1992
• Superman, 1978
• The Bird Cage, 1996
• Young Frankenstein, 1974
• The Royal Tenenbaums, 2001
• Reds, 1981
• Get Shorty, 1995
• Hoosiers, 1986
• Enemy of the State, 1998

And so many more

Code Blue - MAGA Dystopia Book

Code Blue: Inside America's Medical Industrial Complex by Mike McGee, 2019. I read this scary thought provoking book during the summer of 2020 when we were all locked down from covid and trump was ineffectively botching the response to the pandemic.

I posted the book today on Bluesky and FB as part of my series Book Challenge - MAGA Dystopia. It was also interesting looking back on this now that trump has installed a former heroin addict and vaccine denier with no medical or government experience as head of the US Department of Health and Human Services. That would be RFKjr, the guy with the worm in his brain. 

Code Blue is a phrase used to alert medical professionals in a hospital of an urgent medical emergency requiring immediate attention. We have that now throughout our government and the entire nation. Drugs are 10 times more expensive in America than throughout the world and ranks 50th in heath care among major developed countries. This damning book goes into critical detail concerning Big Pharma, the insurance companies, AMA, hospitals and all things medical related who collude to maximize profits. Everything we need to know about the Medical Industrial Complex from an author expert in this field.

Now we can only frighteningly imagine what the muskrat, the worm brain and orange turd are doing to our healthcare system.

The author argues persuasively and urgently for the necessity of a single-payer, multi-plan insurance arena of the kind enjoyed by every other major developed nation. We need serious health care reform now more than ever.

Her Wonderful Chicken

That wonderful chicken cutlet again but this time with peas and carrots along with some very nice red potatoes with butter. Very tasty.

The Unexpected President - Bio

The Unexpected President: The Life and Times of Chester A. Arthur by Scott Greenberger, 2017. I just finished reading this today and it really was a fascinating and somewhat inspiring book to read at this time of chaos and threats to our democracy but it was also a look at some nasty American history that continues to have negative effects today.

Chester Arthur was a one term president who took the office following the assassination of President James Garfield four months into his term. Arthur was his Vice President. History has looked askance at President Arthur and he has been historically ranked as a mediocre or average president and has been described as one of the least memorable presidents in US history.

I had recently read something interesting about the presidency of Chester Arthur and it made me want to learn more about the man and his time as president. I saw that this book was available and had received good reviews. What made me look at him differently was his signing into law the Civil Service Reform Act which was a very important change to the way politicians had traditionally appointed members of the government as rewards for party loyalty and not on any kind of merit. Arthur changed all that even though he was part of that machine politics patronage of the conservative New York Republican Party. Federal officeholders controlled the jobs of thousands of government employees based on party loyalty. He got rid of the spoils system even though Arthur himself was a very important part of that corrupt system.

President Garfield had been shot by a frustrated office seeker which led to the presidency of Chester Arthur.

Lots of Ice

There is lots of ice buildup everywhere. Giant ice cycles on the roof and thick ice along the walkway alongside our house. I've gone through a 50 lb bag of rock salt over the past couple of weeks and I'm glad I bought two of them.

Part of the problem was that we were not able to get our roof gutters cleaned out before winter really set in. We were scheduled but it just didn't happen because of the weather in early December which is when we usually have the gutters cleaned. This winter the clogged gutters made for more ice buildup than usual and a lot of the melting runoff refroze into serious ice sheets. Lucky I had all of that rock salt.

Senator Murphy's Report

From US Senator Chris Murphy (D - CT) 2/19/25

Report from the Senate Floor:

Last night in the Senate, something really important happened. Republicans forced us to debate their billionaire bailout budget framework. We started voting at 6 PM because they knew doing it in the dark of night would minimize media coverage. And they do not want the American people to see how blatant their handover of our government to the billionaire class is.

So I want to explain what happened last night and what we did to fight back. The apex of Republicans’ plan to turn over our government to their wealthy cronies is a giant tax cut for billionaires and corporations. And they plan to pay for it with cuts to programs that working people rely on. Popular and necessary programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP, are all being targeted.

In order to pass the tax cut, Republicans have to go through a series of procedural steps. Last night, they took the first step which requires them to pass an outline of their plan, but with it, any senator can offer as many amendments as we want. So my Democratic colleagues and I did just that.

Now, we knew that Republicans would largely unanimously oppose them, but we had two objectives here. One, Republicans were forced to put their opinion on record — many for the first time — on the most corrupt parts of Trump and Musk’s agenda. Two, as I’ve been saying, I am going to make every process and procedure as slow and painful as possible for as long as my colleagues choose to ignore the constitutional crisis happening before our eyes.

So what did we propose? We proposed no tax cuts for anyone who makes a billion dollars a year. We made them vote on whether or not Elon Musk and DOGE should have limitless access to Americans’ personal data. We made them vote on whether to protect IVF and require insurers to cover it. Every single amendment Democrats proposed was shot down. On almost every single amendment, Republicans universally opposed it. Every Republican voted against our proposal to prevent more tax cuts for billionaires. The corruption and theft is happening in the open here.

The whole game for Republicans is taking your money and giving it to the wealthiest corporations and billionaires — even if it means kicking your parents out of a nursing home or turning off Medicaid for the poorest children. They know what they are doing is deeply unpopular. They are offering a tax cut to the most wealthy that is 850 times larger than what they are offering working people. Oh and by the way, any tax cuts for working people are going to be washed out by higher costs for basic necessities, like health care and food. It’s a fundamental injustice.

Thanks to your pressure and support, many of my Democratic colleagues have joined my effort to do everything we can to make sure they cannot destroy democracy and steal your money in the dark of the night. We are being loud about what is happening. I’m going to continue to grind the gears of Congress down as much as possible to make it that much harder and slower to get away with this corruption. That’s why the votes lasted until nearly 5 AM.

This is a five-alarm fire. I don’t think we have two years to plan and fight back. I think we have months. It’s still in our power to stop the destruction of our democracy with mass mobilization and effective opposition from elected officials. So we can’t miss any opportunity to take advantage of opportunities to put Republicans on the record and shine a light on what is happening.

And you have a role to play in this as well. I need you to amplify what’s happening, support the leaders who are fighting for you to make sure they can continue speaking truth to power against Musk and Trump’s billionaire cronies, and show up at rallies and town halls. Use every tool at your disposal to send a message loud and clear about how you expect my colleagues to lead and fight in this moment.

Every best wish,

US Senator Chris Murphy (D - CT)


The Press Release:
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Wednesday spoke on the U.S. Senate floor to call out Republican’s latest tax and spending plan for benefitting billionaires and corporations at the expense of seniors and working families. Murphy slammed Trump for using the government as a cash machine for his family and billionaire friends, gutting oversight, handing out policy favors, and now pushing a tax plan that delivers massive breaks to the ultra-wealthy—paid for by slashing programs that millions of Americans rely on like Medicare and Medicaid.

“The heart of this Republican economic proposal is a massive tax cut for the very, very wealthy and for corporations. And this time, not borrowed to be paid back later by middle class taxpayers, this time paid for by immediate cuts to some of the programs that regular, ordinary Americans, many frail seniors, depend on, like the Medicaid program,” Murphy said.

Murphy slammed Trump for letting Elon Musk hijack the government to enrich himself: “Since Elon Musk, the richest man in the universe, has taken control of the government with Donald Trump, the value of his business has gone up by 30%. Tesla’s stock has gone up by 30%. Of course it has. Because Elon Musk is now able to get inside the government to arrange things to benefit his companies. For instance, the NLRB is gone. They fired the Democrat on the board, it is unable to muster a quorum. It’s not coincidental that the NLRB had several open investigations of Tesla. Our foreign policy has been monetized to support people like Elon Musk. News just broke yesterday that Vietnam is really worried about Trump's tariff policy, and so the way that they're going to try to get some help from the Trump administration is to give some help to Elon Musk's businesses. They are going to give Elon Musk a Starlink contract, and they believe that by doing that, they’ll be able to get some help from the Trump administration on tariffs. So, Elon Musk and the billionaires are able to operationalize and monetize our foreign policy.”

On Trump also cashing in on the presidency, Murphy said: “Trump is doing very well too. He made $100 million off of a meme coin–a meme coin, where we have no idea, as Americans, who's buying it. It is very likely foreign actors trying to influence the administration, who can secretly buy the meme coin and then whisper to Donald Trump that we got your back when you needed it. $40 million from Amazon for a new documentary of the First Lady, legal settlements from ABC News, Meta, and X, all–shockingly–settled with cash payments to the Trump family after the election.”

Murphy called out the GOP tax plan for funneling billions to the rich while working families get next to nothing: “If you're in the top 1%, your average tax cut is about $70,000. That's a lot of money. That's a lot of money. But if you're making $30,000 a year–and there's a whole bunch of people in this country that are making $30,000 a year, especially when Republicans refuse to support the minimum wage going above $7.25 an hour – if you make $30,000 a year, you are going to get about $130. $70,000 if you're doing really, really well. $130 for everybody else. That doesn’t make any sense. Why do people making $600,000 a year need $70,000 while only a hundred bucks goes to everybody else?”

He debunked Republicans’ claim that the extending the 2017 tax cuts will help working people: “It's a scam. Trickle-down economics is a scam. When you put this much money into the hands of the wealthy, it does not trickle down to everybody else. When you give corporations those enormous tax cuts, it does not trickle down to everybody else. It stays in the pockets of the wealthy. The corporations use it in order to do stock buybacks, in order to inflate CEO salaries. It just separates the rich from the poor. It is a scam. It is a scam.”

On how Republicans plan to pay for this giveaway to billionaires, Murphy said: “The cut that they're contemplating in the House of Representatives is a cut to Medicaid. Now, they're also thinking about cuts to Medicare, your parents’ primary health insurance. They're contemplating cuts to the Affordable Care Act, that's the program that insures 20 million working Americans. But they’re really zeroed in on Medicaid, and they're contemplating such devastating cuts to Medicaid that it would eviscerate the program.”

He concluded: “The whole thing just feels like a scam to people: the favors being given to billionaires that are inside the government, the tax cut that benefits the very, very wealthy at the expense of everybody else, the cutting of services that help regular people in order to finance the tax cut. And whether it ends up being one bill or two bills, the centerpiece is still the centerpiece. The transfer of resources and wealth from regular people, from the middle class, from poor people, to the very, very wealthy, the millionaire and billionaire class, the corporations.”

A full transcript of his remarks can be found below:

MURPHY: “Thank you, Mr. President. I’m down here on the floor this afternoon with my colleague Senator Kaine from Virginia, and the Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, Senator Wyden, to talk about the spending and tax bill that is coming before the Congress, driven by Republicans and the Trump administration.

“Whether it's one bill or two bills, it doesn't really matter. It is the centerpiece of Donald Trump's economic agenda. And it's really important to talk about the impacts that this spending and tax package will have on the American public.

“While there will be some new spending for defense and some new spending on immigration policy, the heart of this spending and tax package will be familiar to many Americans, because they remember it from 2017, during the first Trump administration.

“The heart of this Republican economic proposal is a massive tax cut for the very, very wealthy and for corporations. And this time, not borrowed to be paid back later by middle class taxpayers, this time paid for by immediate cuts to some of the programs that regular, ordinary Americans, many frail seniors, depend on, like the Medicaid program.

“Just for a little bit of context, it does appear to a lot of Americans that this whole thing feels a bit like a scam, that this is a government that is being handed over to the billionaire class in order to operationalize government to make money for the very, very wealthy, and for the rest of us to pay the price. The cost of gas is going up, the cost of groceries continues to go up. And meanwhile Donald Trump and his billionaire crowd are doing better than ever.

“Just a couple of examples. Since Elon Musk, the richest man in the universe, has taken control of the government with Donald Trump, the value of his business has gone up by 30%. Tesla’s stock has gone up by 30%. Of course it has. Because Elon Musk is now able to get inside the government to arrange things to benefit his companies.

“For instance, the NLRB is gone. They fired the Democrat on the board, it is unable to muster a quorum. It’s not coincidental that the NLRB had several open investigations of Tesla.

“Our foreign policy has been monetized to support people like Elon Musk. News just broke yesterday that Vietnam is really worried about Trump's tariff policy, and so the way that they're going to try to get some help from the Trump administration is to give some help to Elon Musk's businesses. They are going to give Elon Musk a Starlink contract, and they believe that by doing that, they’ll be able to get some help from the Trump administration on tariffs. So Elon Musk and the billionaires are able to operationalize and monetize our foreign policy.

“And of course, Elon Musk has access to the data, especially the data inside Treasury, that's going to help him gain an advantage on his competitors, whether he’s trying to set up a new tax payment system or he’s trying to set up a new universal payment capacity on Twitter.

“So it's not shocking that the value of Musk's business has gone way up, because he now controls the federal government in a way that can benefit his business.

“But Trump is doing very well too. He made $100 million off of a meme coin–a meme coin, where we have no idea, as Americans, who's buying it. It is very likely foreign actors trying to influence the administration, who can secretly buy the meme coin and then whisper to Donald Trump that we got your back when you needed it. $40 million from Amazon for a new documentary of the First Lady, legal settlements from ABC News, Meta, and X, all–shockingly–settled with cash payments to the Trump family after the election.

“And, the monetization of foreign policy for Donald Trump, just like the monetization of foreign policy for Elon Musk. News this week that the PGA and the Saudis were meeting with the President to try to settle their disputes. Not coincidental to the fact that Donald Trump is in business with one of those golf leagues.

“So it just appears to many Americans this administration puts the billionaires, the corporations, those that are loyal and friendly to Donald Trump first, and all the rest of us second.

“The apex of this effort to turn our government–and government policy–over to the billionaires is this tax cut. Again, this tax and spending package has a lot of elements to it, but the centerpiece is a tax cut that is 852 times bigger for the top 1% of earners in this country than for low-income families. That's a number that's a little hard to get your head wrapped around so I just wanted to put it on this chart. That's what 852 times looks like.

“The rates go down for folks that make more than $600,000 a year, but they don't move for folks that make under $600,000 a year. They're not trying to hide what's going on here: rates are coming down if you make a whole ton of money. Rates are staying the same if you're middle income or lower income.

“Another way to tell the story is that if you're in the top 1%, your average tax cut is about $70,000. That's a lot of money. That's a lot of money. But if you're making $30,000 a year – and there's a whole bunch of people in this country that are making $30,000 a year, especially when Republicans refuse to support the minimum wage going above $7.25 an hour – if you make $30,000 a year, you are going to get about $130. $70,000 if you're doing really, really well. $130 for everybody else. That doesn’t make any sense. Why do people making $600,000 a year need $70,000 while only a hundred bucks goes to everybody else?

“The corporations are in the mix here too. They came to Congress in 2007 and said ‘we need a lower tax rate.’ And then Trump and his Republican allies gave them a tax rate even lower than they asked. “And they made this claim that all this extra money going to the corporations was going to be passed down to workers. They had a specific claim that it was going to result in $4,000 more in income to every American. Because that's how trickle-down economics works in the brains of Republicans. You give a whole bunch of money to corporations, and they’re going to be generous and they’re going to give that money to workers in extra income.

“Well, we now have eight years of experience since that first tax cut that they are looking to reauthorize. We know what happened. The studies show that it wasn't $4,000 of extra income; it wasn't $3,000; it wasn’t $2,000; it wasn’t $1,000; it wasn't $500; it wasn’t $400. It wasn’t even $200. It was zero. The tax cut resulted in an increase in salary – to those people that worked for those corporations that got the big tax cut – a salary increase of zero. It's a scam. Trickle-down economics is a scam. When you put this much money into the hands of the wealthy, it does not trickle down to everybody else. When you give corporations those enormous tax cuts, it does not trickle down to everybody else. It stays in the pockets of the wealthy. The corporations use it in order to do stock buybacks, in order to inflate CEO salaries. It just separates the rich from the poor. It is a scam. It is a scam.

“Now, the last thing I'll say before turning it over to Senator Kaine is that this version of the giant billionaire and corporate tax cut is so much worse than the first version. It still is a tax cut for the wealthy that's 852 times bigger than for folks at the bottom of the income scale. But whereas in 2017 it was all borrowed–and that's bad because that money has to be recouped somehow, that means that everybody eventually is going to either pay higher interest rates or have their taxes raised, or their services cut to service all that debt–trillions of dollars worth of debt–this time Republicans are contemplating not borrowing the money, but instead just taking it from poor people and middle class people. Just taking it from them to give it to the billionaires and the corporations.

“The cut that they're contemplating in the House of Representatives is a cut to Medicaid. Now, they're also thinking about cuts to Medicare, your parents’ primary health insurance. They're contemplating cuts to the Affordable Care Act, that's the program that insures 20 million working Americans. But they’re really zeroed in on Medicaid, and they're contemplating such devastating cuts to Medicaid that it would eviscerate the program. And maybe you can say well, Medicaid, it’s for poor people and that's not me.

“Well, listen, I think we have an obligation to try to make sure that everybody in this country, even poor children, have access to health care. But Medicaid also pays for your parents’ or your neighbors' nursing home costs. If you cut the amount of money that they're talking about out of the Medicaid program, you're literally talking about nursing homes shutting down and seniors being out on the street. That's not hyperbole. That's what happens if you make these massive cuts to Medicaid. And so what they're talking about this year is not just running up a credit card bill in order to fund the tax cuts for the wealthy. They're literally talking about putting seniors out on the street in order to fund a tax cut for the wealthy.

“The whole thing just feels like a scam: the favors being given to billionaires that are inside the government, the tax cut that benefits the very, very wealthy at the expense of everybody else, the cutting of services that help regular people in order to finance the tax cut. And whether it ends up being one bill or two bills, the centerpiece is still the centerpiece: the transfer of resources and wealth from regular people, from the middle class, from poor people, to the very, very wealthy, the millionaire and billionaire class, the corporations.

“And so, we're going to tell this story–here on the Senate floor, all over the country–while this bill moves its way through the process, either as one bill or two bills. Because regardless of the process, the story is still the same: a scam. To take money from regular people to make the lives of the rich and powerful even more lavish. I yield the floor.”

Jerry Butler RIP - Kitchen Listening

The Iceman Jerry Butler passed away yesterday. I always loved his songs going back to his early days in The Impressions. He was the epitome of 60's Chicago soul. I'm listening to him in the kitchen now as I write this. 

I only have two Jerry Butler albums but he really didn't record a lot and he was mostly a singles artist but there are several good compilations available. I really like the Rhino compilation The Best of Jerry Butler from 1987 that has all of his hits including when he was with The Impressions.

Later I got the Philadelphia Sessions released in 2001 which is basically two albums; The Iceman Cometh from 1968 and Ice on Ice from 1969 along with some other tracks from the era from several other albums. 

Music Everywhere

I really like having music everywhere in my life and everywhere around the house. My favorite and most consistent place to play music is in the kitchen. Music is always on when we are preparing meals, when eating meals and when cleaning up after meals. For many years now since I retired I also spend a lot of time sitting at the kitchen table working on my laptop while sitting in a nice office chair. We have always had good speakers in the kitchen which are attached to the stereo in the front room. I have two music laptops that hold my entire collection on the hard drive and one of them is attached to the stereo in the front room which then plays in the kitchen. I also now have a couple of portable Bluetooth speakers to play music from that laptop throughout the house but I may need to upgrade the system to make that work better. That laptop is also connected to Spotify. We no longer have the large speakers in the living room but use one of the Bluetooth speakers instead. The portable speakers also have the capability to play music from an MP3 player or from a flash drive.

I can also take and use the portable speakers down in the basement when I'm riding the exercise bike or upstairs to the 2nd floor when reading in my chair by the front window. What I call my perch. Sometimes I take one out on the front porch too.

Up on the 3rd floor we still have the stereo with the turntable and a cd player but I'm seriously considering moving the record player down to the front room so I can play vinyl for some kitchen listening.

The last place is also another favorite music listening spot and that is in the backyard sunroom. There is a small but nice sounding stereo in the room that can play CDs, an MP3 player or a flash drive. I sit out there at least three seasons and in the winter when the sun warms up the room. I have a portable heater too. I can also take one of those portable speakers out to the way back of the yard and listen back there too.

So I have plenty of options.

Strange Magic - Songs 1975 FV

It's 1975 and what do you want from life because everyone's gone to the movies where the real man would show me the way and the magic man would use strange magic over my head to drift away with no more looking back. Don't you just know it that there goes another love song with sweet emotion and good lovin' gone bad and cool blue stole my heart from camellia the slip kid from wayside old days in Philadelphia freedom. Well, we were born to run because life is a minestrone and I got you babe.

Another in my series of mixes of songs in my collection from albums released in 1975. 

Photo of Electric Light Orchestra on tour in 1975.

Strange Magic - Songs 1975 

1. Strange Magic - Electric Light Orchestra
2. Everyone's Gone To The Movies - Steely Dan
3. Magic Man - Heart
4. Over My Head - Fleetwood Mac
5. Camellia - Hall & Oates
6. Cool Blue Stole My Heart - Joan Armatrading
7. Real Man - Todd Rundgren
8. Show Me The Way - Peter Frampton
9. There Goes Another Love Song - The Outlaws
10. Good Lovin' Gone Bad - Bad Company
11. Sweet Emotion - Aerosmith
12. Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen
13. Old Days - Chicago
14. Don't You Just Know It - Dr. Feelgood
15. I Got You Babe - The Dictators
16. Drift Away - Rod Stewart
17. No More Looking Back - The Kinks
18. Slip Kid - The Who
19. Life Is A Minestrone - 10cc
20. What Do You Want From Life? - The Tubes
21. Wayside - Artful Dodger
22. Philadelphia Freedom - Elton John

Passive Aggressive Pils - Glass of Beer

Passive Aggressive Pils. Tnat's quite the name for a beer. This was one of the beers that Dave brought over in that holiday survival pack. I had a few left in the basement beer shelf. Very tasty.

I've been going back and looking at that blues book too.

I wrote about that Family Drama Flying Dog pack here.

Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Show

Becky and I watched the Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Show on Peacock. Actually we watched two of them. First the show was a live concert on Friday night. Then we watched a part of the big 3 hour anniversary show on Sunday night.  

The shows are streaming on Peacock and last night we watched another hour of the big anniversary show. We can go on Peacock and watch any portion of both shows any time we want. There are just a few moments here and there that we haven't seen yet but we will at some point.

There were lots of great skits and performances. Some were clips of classic scenes and others were new skits sometimes based on old ones and updated. There were many wonderful concert performances.

World Without Mind - MAGA Dystopia Book

World Without Mind: The Existential Threat of Big Tech by Franklin Foer, 2017.

I read this eye opener in February 2019.

This is a brilliant and informative polemic on the misinformation and monopolist aims of the big tech oligarchs that continue to negatively influence the democracy of America. Now even more so as the oligarchs align themselves with the MAGA dystopian regime. The author identifies important problems and suggest some reasonable solutions. However, the main takeaway of the book and the bottom line is that anything from Big Tech that is free is not really free... there is a cost.

Today this book is posted on Bluesky and FB as Democracy Book Challenge. Day 30 of the MAGA Dystopia.

No Concert Tonight

We had a Buffalo Chamber Music concert scheduled for tonight featuring the Balourdet Quartet but we decided to skip it for several reasons. The weather was bad. The snow had stopped but there was ice everywhere and the temperatures were single digits and maybe getting up to 12 degrees. It was dangerous to walk anyway and driving was bad too. We are also getting over bad colds and did not want to go out into a crowd again. My back was sore from all of the snow shoveling and ice chopping. Becky had a little stomach problem. And perhaps the biggest reason was that we had tickets for the Philharmonic this Saturday and we invited Dave and Donna to go with us. We also have reservations for dinner that night at JT's on Elmwood Ave. We don't want to mix that or take a chance of getting sick tonight from the crowded Mary Seaton Room with all the flu going around.

So we decided to stay home. We still have two more concerts scheduled in March and April.

Targeted - MAGA Dystopia Book

Democracy Book Challenge. Day 29 of the MAGA Dystopia. Targeted: The Cambridge Analytica Whistleblower’s Inside Story of How Big Data, Trump, Facebook Broke Democracy and How It Could Happen Again by Brittany Kaiser, 2019. When I finished reading Mindf*ck in November 2019 I went right back to the online NYPL and downloaded this e-book which I then read in December. Nice to know Steve Bannon went to prison but right in the book title it says How It Could Happen Again and it did. Only this time the orange turd got help from a billionaire muskrat... in exchange for what? At the same time I was getting into all this stuff I was also reading an exciting Jason Matthew's spy novel... The Kremlin's Candidate.

Posted on Bluesky.

Body Wash

Got some body wash. Lots of it. Ocean Breeze too. Becky went online to Amazon to buy some body wash and saw that it was a very good price if you bought in quantity. Like a six pack. Now we got a lot of body wash that I have stored under the sink for future use.

Our National Parks

I woke up this morning to the news that the nazi muskrat and his nasty little orange cockroach have gutted our National Parks. Of course they see our parks as prime real estate to sell off access to the highest bidding corporate scavengers. They have fired hundreds of park employees that they will need to close because there will not be enough to safely maintain the national parks.

There are not enough employees to staff the visitor centers. Not enough park rangers.

Summer Burger

This looks like a summer burger but on a cold icy evening it sure tasted good and I was very happy to have it for dinner. Especially after chopping ice and shoveling piles of frozen snow.

Looking forward to Spring and some summer burgers on the grill.

Mindf*ck - MAGA Dystopia Book

Democracy Book Challenge. Day 28 of the MAGA Dystopia. Mindf*uck: Cambridge Analytica and the Plot to Break America by Christopher Wylie, 2019. Interesting and scary to read in detail of the weaponized data manipulation used to elect trump the first time when he had Steve Bannon doing a lot of his dirty work. This time he has the rich muskrat and a slew of maggats. I read this book in November 2019. At the same time I was reading an exciting Jason Matthew's spy novel... The Kremlin's Candidate.

Posted on Bluesky.

Chicken & Rice

Delicious chicken and rice along with a nice tomato salad. This is something we have a lot and it's always good.

I really like Becky's tomato salad too.

Bernie - MAGA Dystopia Book

Democracy Book Challenge. Day 27 of the MAGA Dystopia. Bernie Sanders Guide to Political Revolution by Bernie Sanders, 2017. I read this inspiring and informative book in the Fall of 2017. I think I need to read it again. We all should. Go Bernie!

Posted on Bluesky.

Best of Chess Soul - Vinyl Spins

Vinyl Spins. Soul: The Best of Chess Checker Cadet - Various Artists, 1984. I got this wonderful soul compilation album in the mid 80's as good material for spinning records at that dive bar on Grant Street. This has some of my favorite old 45 singles soul songs. Songs from this album in high rotation at that bar was Hold On by The Radiants, Fontella Bass's Rescue Me and Jackie Ross doing Take Me For A Little While. And of course those Ramsey Lewis songs. Well, I did play almost everything here.

Posted on Bluesky.

Philly Parade for Eagles

Today the city of Philadelphia celebrated the Eagles victory and Super Bowl championship over the Chiefs which a huge parade through the city from down by the stadium in South Philly up Broad Street through Center City and to the steps of the Art Museum where there was an amazing crowd.

The entire all day parade was televised on a channel on our Sling TV streaming service. It was a local Philly channel Fox 29. I watched it for awhile. It was also constantly being shown long snippets of it all day on the various news channels. It was a big deal.

Katie told us on Monday that the kids had off from school because of the parade. Actually everything in the Philadelphia area was closed to celebrate the Eagles.

I only went to one city celebration of a sports team winning a championship and that was for the Flyers winning the Stanley Cup the first time in 1974. We went downtown for the parade and party and it was crazy. Even the drive down there was intense. We went down in Bean's Volkswagon bug. Me, George and John. Someone else too but I don't remember who.

Fight Trump - MAGA Dystopia Book

Democracy Book Challenge. Day 26 of the MAGA Dystopia. The Resistance Handbook: 45 Ways to Fight Trump by Markos Moulitsas, 2017. A critical and practical guide to combating the misinformation and hate of trumpism the first time. Essential reading back then and now much more so. I read this book in April 2019 and found it very inspiring. I should take a look at it again. 45 ways to Fight Trump is a good start.

Posted on Bluesky.

Johnny Burnette and the Rock 'n' Roll Trio - Vinyl Spins

Vinyl Spins. Johnny Burnette and the Rock 'n' Roll Trio, 1957. I picked up an updated edition of this classic rockabilly record in the early 80's because a few patrons at the dive bar I was spinning records would love it. They did. Me too.

Sadly Johnny Burnette died at the age of 30 but the train kept a rollin'.

Posted on Bluesky.

The Book of Jazz

The first book about jazz that I read. The Book of Jazz: A Guide to the Entire Field by Leonard Feather, 1957. I read the 1976 edition in the summer of 1977. I was exploring jazz and getting a lot of albums during those mid to late 1970's. I spent a lot of time at the record bins at 3rd Street Jazz in Philly at the time.

At that time in the 70's Leonard Feather was well known as a jazz critic and journalist. He had written several well known books about jazz and would go on to write a few more in the 1980's. He was 80 years old when he passed away in 1994. 

The other day I went up on the 3rd floor and got this book from the book shelf. I've been enjoying reading parts of it here and there downstairs in my chair.

Here is the original book cover from the 1957 edition. It was called a guide to the entire field.

Posted on Bluesky.