I don’t stay up to watch Colbert, but I occasionally look at his opening segment the following day.

Those who appreciate cleverness will admire what the writers did with the news story about a recently arrested insurrectionist who had played Judas in a national tour of “Jesus Christ Superstar.”

I would like to shake the hand of whoever replaced, “Jesus Christ, Superstar, Do you think you’re what they say you are?” with:

“Stop the steal, votes aren’t real, we’re getting played like a glockenspiel.”

When was the last time you heard someone rhyme the word glockenspiel?

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Is there a single decent human being who wouldn’t love to have a bear cub hugging his leg?

Assuaging others’ misery is one of the very best feelings available to humankind.

Sadly, it seems to have fallen out of fashion in American culture, but it’s something that is so native to our being that it’s bound to make a comeback.

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The guy has a point.  Those with fanatical views tend to be consistent in their fanaticism.

Note that very little of this existed five years ago.  Now we have millions of people who believe, from the BBCthe completely unfounded theory that says that President Trump is waging a secret war against elite Satan-worshipping pedophiles in government, business and the media.  QAnon believers have speculated that this fight will lead to a day of reckoning where prominent people such as former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton will be arrested and executed.

I’m not a sociologist, but it seems that our rapidly collapsing educational system lies at the core here.  People who read are unlikely to be flat-Earthers, or fight to “stop the steal.”

It’s hard to remain optimistic here, because we’re falling ever deeper into the abyss of ignorance.

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Identifying the single most destructive act that Donald Trump committed in his tenure in office would be impossible; there is a good case to be made for dozens of different atrocities.  Having said that, let’s not count out Trump’s taking a wrecking ball to the U.S. Post Office, presumably to slow down mail-in ballots.

According to this piece from NPR, this appears to be coming to an end.

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This is the point I was making with my wife on our morning walk today.

Yes, there are many different kinds of pressure being put on the integrity of our election processes: corruption, voter suppression, gerrymandering, and my personal favorite, the president’s trying to overturn the election results by pressuring state election officials and lying to the morons who form the core of his base.

Yet, there are so many Americans who will not stand for this that it’s hard to imagine that we’ll wind up like Turkey or the Philippines in a few years.

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Think there’s nothing funny about political corruption? Here’s a wonderful video to promote the documentary “Big Deal,” which covers corruption and the damage it does to democracy.

Very well done.

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Question: What industry was more represented at the UN’s Climate Summit than any country?  How many lobbyists from this industry were in attendance?

Answer: Can be found at Clean Energy Answers.

Relevance: These people are not folding their tents.

 

 

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From Wikipedia: The SPLC  it is known for its legal cases against white supremacist groups, its classification of hate groups and other extremist organizations, and for promoting tolerance education programs.

From the Southern Poverty Law Center: As we celebrate #GivingTueseday today, we are so grateful for your support for our shared mission to counter the racist violence and anti-democratic rhetoric that is increasingly infecting our nation.

This year alone the SPLC tracked over 800 hate and extremism groups across the nation –– a feat that would not have been possible without our dedicated supporters and donors.  Please consider making your dollar-for-dollar matched gift to support the SPLC’s important work for decades to come.
The scourge of white nationalism is more prominent in our culture now than it’s been since the early to mid 20th Century.  It’s a function of poor education and a desperate working class looking for an outlet for their anger.  Of course, they’ve been whipped into a frenzy by the former president and his overtly racist staff.
Trump has “left the building,” but the fever of hatred hasn’t subsided.
Here’s the link for those interested in donating.
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The pandemic has made us question so many things about our world, one of which is workers’ wages.  People aren’t returning to work as expected, largely because what they’re being paid doesn’t justify their putting their health at risk.

FWIW, I had many hundreds of employees over the 25-year period of time I ran my marketing agency, and I was happy to pay them all very well. Profits derive from excellence, and it’s ridiculous to expect underpaid people to provide anything resembling excellent work.

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There are hundreds of different cost items that are associated with climate change. Road signage may not be a super-significant one, but, as suggested here, it’s quite real.

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