Trump's Administration Takes Dubious Shape

HONKY TONK NO 9

When You’re Strange

Seven Days (CD Bootleg)

Rout 66

Motorpsycho Nitemare

Live With Me

I Looked At You

Hot Stuff

Honkey Tomk Woman

Hello, I Love You

Give Me Shelter
Dance Little Sister

Catfish

Can’t You Hear Me Knocking

Abandoned Love

This is after lunch here and as you can see the Powers that Be have come up with another album, which would be the Ninth CD.   I refer to the Dylan, Doors, and Stones 8 CD compilation we referred to in the last post.  The front photo features a honkeytonk with drinks on the table and wooden tables and chairs, with a goat’s head mounted on the wall and notably there are no songs from “Goat’s Head Soup” on this compilation.  And they deliberately made it fourteen songs (not 13) because 14 is more of a Satanic number if you're into Tarot cards than thirteen.  ("Little Sister" almost got left out)  We have continued the Z to A tradition continuing on from the other 8 CD’s.   The song listings are on the inside flap of the CD so you buy it sight unseen.   On the back of dark print on a white background is a newspaper format with old style Western letters of “The Evening Herald News” and then news articles about Donald Trump’s cabinet appointments.  Included in the front cover photo are Mal Evans in his old body avatar and Steward Sutcliffe in the “new and improved” avatar - - with Buck Dharma’s face that he’s been using all these years.  Of course the photo is in color.   [An official release date has not yet been set for this Federation album but it's generally believed to be Friday] We tried mostly to stick to our same criteria for picking songs- - except for HTW of course.  On the Stones selections there are two songs after 1972.  As I look over the song roster there is a bias tword the early part of the alphabet.   There was discussion about moving the “One Taco Short” album to an all music selections format.  That was voted down.   OK you have it. 

Incidents of bullying and racial bigotry in the schools as low as the fourth grade are skyrocketing.  Swastikas are showing up everywhere and kids are referring to grabbing little girls by the pussy.  They say Mike Pence has all his anti gay people in the administration.  They are still hatching plans to overturn so called "Marriage quality".   Flag burning vaulted back into the news yesterday when Trump said people who burn the flag should be either stripped of their US citizenship or else spend a year in jail.  Both have been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1990.  Today even Mitch Mc Connell said the flag burning issue was 'settled law'.   Perhaps people on our side should do a You Tube video of "Fire" by Hendrix with flag burning going on all over the place.  Either that or use it as bumper videos for a Free Speech program.  There are rumors in Indiana if your period is more than two weeks late you have to have a funeral for the menstral discharge.  So much for accepting settled law.  In the future I"ll have to do a whole profile on this entire upcoming Administration.   This will by far be the wealthiest administration in US history because just one member of it is ten times wealthier than the entire Bush W administration.  So much for having people in touch with the common people.  

Trump has a Goldman Sachs guy as secretary of the Treasury, which flatly contradicts what he said he’d do in the campaign.  Instead of draining the swamp he’s re-stocking it with fresh crocodiles.  He has far right appointments as Secretary of Commercy and Ben Carson missed out on Health and Human services.  Trump’s administration will be taking on a strongly pro energy development meaning pro pollution.   OPEC may be playing into Trump’s hands by jacking up oil prices so that domestic producers will get more for their product when it comes on line without flooding the market.  It will make additional exploration profitable. 

President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday morning that he will leave his “great business in total in order to fully focus on running the country” in the White House.  But his cryptic announcement, delivered in an early-morning Twitter flurry, is already stoking doubt among ethics experts, who fear the Manhattan mogul may be unwilling to follow past precedent to assure Americans that he won’t mingle business with governing as president.  “I will be holding a major news conference in New York City with my children on December 15 to discuss the fact that I will be leaving my great business in total in order to fully focus on running the country in order to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump wrote.  In subsequent tweets, however, Trump signaled that his concerns are more political than substantive, writing: “While I am not mandated to do this under the law, I feel it is visually important, as president, to in no way have a conflict of interest with my various businesses.”  “Hence, legal documents are being crafted which take me completely out of business operations. The presidency is a far more important task!” he continued.  Trump promised throughout the presidential campaign to hand over control of his business empire to his adult children if he were to win the White House, but that has done little to assuage widespread concern that he could use his Oval Office perch to benefit his personal bottom line — or that decisions he makes as president could come at the expense of the national interest.  Norm Eisen, the former top White House ethics lawyer for President Barack Obama, said Trump’s Wednesday announcement raises more questions for him about the stakes of the new arrangement and continues to leave open the   “Although it is, of course, important that he have no involvement in Trump business operations, in order to avoid conflicts, he must also exit the ownership of his businesses through using a blind trust or equivalent. Otherwise, he will have a personal financial interest in his businesses that will sometimes conflict with the public interest, and constantly raise questions,” Eisen said in an email.   Candidates have historically pledged to place their assets into a blind trust should they win the presidency, but Trump’s plan to hand control to his children would fall short of that threshold. He did not clarify in Wednesday morning's announcement what, if any, other steps he would take to ensure that no conflicts of interest would occur.

Seven Ways Trump Tries to Control the Media

Robert Reich

Democracy depends on a free and independent press, which is why all tyrants try to squelch it. They use seven techniques that, worryingly, President-elect Donald Trump already employs.


1. Berate the media. Earlier this month, Trump summoned two-dozen TV news anchors and executives to the Trump Tower to berate them for their reporting about him during the election. For 20 minutes he railed at what he called their “outrageous” and “dishonest” coverage. According to an attendee, “Trump kept saying, ‘we’re in a room of liars, the deceitful dishonest media who got it all wrong,’” and he called CNN a “network of liars.” He accused NBC of using unflattering pictures of him, demanding to know why they didn’t use “nicer” pictures.

Another person who attended the meeting said Trump “truly doesn’t seem to understand the First Amendment. He thinks we are supposed to say what he says and that’s it.”


OPINION

2. Blacklist critical media. During the campaign, Trump blacklisted news outlets whose coverage he didn’t approve of. In June he pulled The Washington Post’s credentials. “Based on the incredibly inaccurate coverage and reporting of the record setting Trump campaign, we are hereby revoking the press credentials of the phony and dishonest Washington Post,” read a post on Trump’s Facebook page.

After the election, Trump agreed to meet with the New York Times and then suddenly cancelled the meeting when he didn’t like the terms, tweeting “Perhaps a new meeting will be set up with the @nytimes. In the meantime they continue to cover me inaccurately and with a nasty tone!” (He then reversed himself again and met with the Times.)

3. Turn the public against the media. Trump refers to journalists as “lying,” “dishonest,” “disgusting” and “scum.” Referring to the journalists at his rallies, Trump said, “I hate some of these people,” adding (presumably in response to allegations of Vladimir Putin’s treatment of dissident journalists) “but I’d never kill ‘em.”

He questions the press’s motives, claiming, for example, that The Washington Post wrote negative things about him because its publisher, Jeffrey Bezos, a founder of Amazon, “thinks I would go after him for antitrust.” When the New York Times wrote that his transition team was in disarray, Trump tweeted that the newspaper was “just upset that they looked like fools in their coverage of me” during the presidential campaign.

4. Condemn satirical or critical comments. Trump continues to condemn the coverage he’s received from NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” In response to Alex Baldwin’s recent portrayal of him as overwhelmed by the prospect of being president, Trump tweeted that it was a “totally one-sided, biased show – nothing funny at all. Equal time for us?”

When Brandon Victor Dixon, the actor who plays Aaron Burr in the Broadway musical “Hamilton,” read from the stage a message to Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who was in the audience – expressing fears about the pending Trump administration for the “diverse group of men and women of different colors, creeds and orientations” on the cast – Trump responded angrily. He tweeted that Pence had been “harassed,” and insisted that the cast and producers of the show, “which I hear is highly overrated,” apologize.

5. Threaten the media directly. Trump said he plans to change libel laws in the United States so that he can have an easier time suing news organizations. “One of the things I’m going to do if I win … I’m going to open up our libel laws so when they write purposely negative and horrible and false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money.”

During the campaign, Trump specifically threatened to sue the Times for libel in response to an article that featured two women accusing him of touching them inappropriately years ago. Trump claimed the allegations were false, and his lawyer demanded that the newspaper retract the story and issue an apology. Trump also threatened legal action after the Times published and wrote about part of his 1995 tax return.

6. Limit media access. Trump hasn’t had a news conference since July. He has blocked the media from traveling with him, or even knowing whom he’s meeting with. His phone call with Vladimir Putin, which occurred shortly after the election, was first reported by the Kremlin.

This is highly unusual. In 2000, President-elect George W. Bush called a press conference three days after the Supreme Court determined the outcome of the election. In 2008, President-elect Obama also meet with the press three days after being elected.

7. Bypass the media and communicate with the public directly. The American public learns what Trump thinks through his tweets. Shortly after the election, Trump released a video message outlining some of the executive actions he plans to take on his first day in office.

Aids say Trump has also expressed interest in continuing to hold the large rallies that became a staple of his candidacy. They say he likes the instant gratification and adulation that the cheering crowds provide.

The word “media” comes from “intermediate” between newsmakers and the public. Responsible media hold the powerful accountable by asking them hard questions and reporting on what they do. Apparently Trump wants to eliminate such intermediaries.

Historically, these seven techniques have been used by demagogues to erode the freedom and independence of the press. Even before he’s sworn in, Trump seems intent on doing exactly this.

Robert B. Reich was Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton.

Some of these seven ways in which Trump attempts to control the media are overtly threatening such as to constantly call them ill-intended liars, or to threaten the media directly and perhaps more importantly- limit access of the Media to what you are doing as President.  There are rumors Trump will not hold daily White House press briefing, which have been held since at least the days of Kennedy.  Shawn Hannity is an out and out liar, when he’s not grotesquely distorting and mis-interpreting facts.   Shawn claimed for example that Hillary and the democrats are “speer-heading the drive to overturn the results of the election.  This is untrue.  Main stream democrats were quite prepared to accept the results of this skewed election until these computer statisticians came up on a non partisan basis the fact that probabilities were statistically high that funny business was going on in these three key states of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.  They are starting with a recount in Wisconsin and no news has developed in this area in the past few days.  People think it’s strange that democrats have won the past six out of seven electoral contests and yet Republicans control congress, governorship and legislative state houses.  The whole system is biased against the democrats in ways I have gone into in the past.   California does not have the weight in the Electoral College per vote as a state like Wyoming has, for example.  If Donald Trump has lost on election eve- - - Trump would have never shut up about the system being rigged and indeed he STILL says the system is rigged because of 1.8 million dead people voting or something.   Either that or it’s illegal aliens voting or something, which is nonsense.   Certainly these seven ways of media pressure and control alludes to possible creeping Fascism.  This is the biggest thing people are afraid of.  Trump’s cabinet appointments have all been hard right, or maybe that’s “Hard Reich”.  Any hopes for a softening or consiliation being a minority elected president are now out the window.  I hope Judy is happy.  When I next talk to her I’m going to indicate my broad discontent-ment with the cabinet appointments so far.  The Democrats are so desperate for ANY decent appointment they can at least live with- - - that yesterday Bill Press was saying that he hopes Mitt Romney gets in as Secretary of State.  It’s a better pick than either David Petrayus or Rudolph Giuliani.   I imagine we’ll hear about Secretaries of State and Defense before the week is out.  Meanwhile all the democrats have to look forward to are the 2018 congressional elections- - and that’s a slim hope indeed. 

This is Wednesday November 30, 2016 and the 49^th anniversary of the release of Magical Mystery Tour, on a Thursday.  This morning I woke up early and it was cold and I tried to get warm but as the book of Kings says, “I gat no heat”.  [I decided I might as well get up.] So I decided to take a longer hot shower than usual to get good and warmed up.   Ron gave me a cigarette as I was headed back in the building from an unsuccessful outing.  Then while I was smoking it he gave me most of another he had just lit.  I decided to save that one for an hour or so later.   Free Speech TV still has their slightly altered screen format with all of the symbols that disappear except for the numbered human figure.  Also the “Live” indicator at the end ot the DVR timeline isn’t there now.   I went down after six to wait in the med line but then someone pooped in the elevator and April nominated herself to clean it up.  I went back up stairs and then Denise returned the laundry.  I started putting everything away still warm from the dryer.  Everything was there.   You people wondering about that 8 CD massive album of Dylan, Doors, and Stones will be interested to know I’ve consulted with the Powers that Be and no changes will be made.  That’s the way it came out in January 2012 and that’s the way it is staying.  Rene came by to change Bill’s bed.  [It's a skin condition thing.]  He asked whether it was a computer or a TV.   I said computer.   After I left with the picture frozen Rene obviously clicked the arrow because the thing was going when I came back an hour later.  We had oatmeal for breakfast, which was thankfully thick and hot.  Later we got our toast, butter and jelly, and eggs- - from Patty, who was helping out again.  I got a full cup of black coffee from Josie and after I had drunk that I successfully went to the kitchen to pour myself another full cup from the pot.  Just a minute or so ago Bill gave me three brown cigarettes I’ll be sure and smoke wisely.  I haven’t posted a blog since Saturday.  I think all the lack of heat in here has frozen my brain.  The sun in the window is already heating things up in here.  Bill said Augustine would get to the heat later. 

Last night I was cold.  Cigarettes were pretty impossible to come by.  But I finally got a whole brown one from Larry at the other end.  After that I dozed off just a little watching TV.  I took inventory of the laundry and made out a list on a fresh slip of paper.  It was ABC network news, Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune.  I got my medication from Sarah in a faster moving line this night.   [NCIS wasn't on so I twired the dial and finally settled on "The Flash".]  I went to bed about five to nine or something since it was so cold and I had no coffee.  I haven’t had any dreams the past few nights.  Stephanie is talking about “The seven things Trump uses to control the media”, which is the plural of medium.   Did you know “fora” is the plural of “forum”?  The word got red-lined by Word.   People apparently “tire” of success, like having the best economy we’ve had since early 2008.  It seems people wanted “change”.  I don’t know where people ever got the notion that even a bad “change” was still a good thing.  

Long-time Cuban Dictator Fidel Castro Dies

Fidel Castro is dead.  He died last night at age ninety and was semi alert till the end occasionally appearing in public.  The Cuban population in Miami is celebrating.  Castro was born in 1926 and was raised with Western culture and education, as so many of these world dictators such as Assad Ho Chi Min seem to be.   He was the last “true believer” in classic communism.  He “kept the faith” when everybody else in the world has long since given it up.  Trump issued a brief tweet “Castro is Dead!”.   It seems as of now that Trump will reverse Obama’s openings to Cuba he’s done in the past few years.  New voters are now aware that Castro brought us to the brink of Nuclear War in 1962.   Mario Hernandez around here appeared to not know Castro had died.  He is one of those old time patriotic Cubans saying "Viva, America" and all that stuff.  

There is all this bragging about how in Europe you can be on a fast train going 250 mph just as smooth as can be and have a long stemmed glass of port wine on your table and it won’t even jiggle.  We hear how advanced airports are in other parts of the world.   US airports seem to be in disarray.  Now there is talk on Hardball about how Trump could issue bonds at low interest rates and pay for the thing no sweat.  There are jokes about “fly over country” now being “come-over country” where all of the Trump states of the prairie are bypassed.  They are saying in the old days when you traveled by train across the land it was better for both commerce and culture.  Now Trump is saying that he could do a perfect job of executing his duties as Presidents and also run his business perfectly with no conflict of interest under the law.  I never knew the law was that permissive but I’ve heard from multiple sources that this is indeed the case.

Hillary Clinton’s popular lead has grown from 1.5 million to 1.7 million and now has passed the two million voter mark.  Jill Stein has raised several million dollars to fund the voter recount in Wisconsin at least, which I now hear is underway.   Michigan is still not “certified” and Trump’s official electoral vote count is stuck at 290.   I have not heard any direct remarks from Hillary herself of any of her democratic team saying that there needs to be a voter recount in Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin.  It’s only stated that people from Michigan State U have stated that there is a “strong statistical probability based on vote tally analyses, that there has been tinkering with the electronic ballots.  At least if we do a recount we can all relax that Trump won fair and square.  

Yesterday it was Moe Kelly.   He’s the only host who was live today.  He talked about Hillary supporters at noon and at one he turned his sights on all of the areas where Donald Trump has backed down (reversed) his political promises.  While Moe was running down a list of these position reversals of Trump I was going "nya- nya" to the radio in sheer glee that the right wing had been stymied.  These reversals include Hillary prosecution, whyich has been spoken about extensively by Trump with cheer leading of "Lock her up!" by the crouds at the Republican convention and behind.  Trump often elaborated on how when he was president he'd appoint a special prosecutor to get HIllary.  Global Warming is another area where Trump seems to have backed off of his former position of "It's all a UN conspiracy" or socialist conspiracy like people like Hannity and Judy say.  Now Trump says that it's possible that Global Warming is indeed man-made.  Then we have the returning of eleven million aliens to Mexico.   The figure was prunned down to three million and maybe less and it would be only those who have comitted crimes.  I get the feeling that The Will will not be built at all.  "Well, maybe just a fence", Trump says now.  There was a reversal on torture after talking with that general guy who told him in an extensive private conversation in a possible interview spot for Secretary of Defense - that water-boarding doesn't work and that a few cigarettes and a six pack of beer is more effective and don't discount the reality of "gaining the trust" of the prisoner.   And also a pull back on Obama Care is more than likely.   Trump wants to preserve being kicked off a policy either by a pre existing condition or else running up against a "lifetime limit" because your particular disease like cancer, is costing the insurance company just too much.   Also Trump wants children of parents through their mid twenties to remain on their parents' policies.  This is a particularly "socialistic ploy" according to those such as Ted Cruz who talk about "once they get a taste of the "sugar" they are addicted, and so the children will become "part of the system" at an early age.   There is also talk of some sort of datent with the New York Times" and Trump had flattering words for the NY Times as a newspaper.  

I turned on Mark Stein, who in many ways is the perfect EIB substitute.  (E I B stands for Ever Increasing Bullshit)  That guy is an idiot.  When he’s not being hopelessly sarcastic he’s out and out lying.  He kept talking about this foreign flutist who was to be hired on for a two hour recording session and had to fill out a hundred pages of paper work just to do that, whereas all he needed to do was to cross the Rio Grande and he would be guarenteed arrest free treatment for at least fifteen years while his case was being appealed.  This guy has diaria of the mouth and says literally anything whether it makes sense or not- - to feed the lust of his audience.  Stein spoke sarcastically of saying that liberals all want a recount, when it isn't true.  The day after the election nobody questioned the validity of the vote and only now are a few people talking about how a hundred thousand shifted votes in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan could have shifted the election, while four million votes in California and New York were just wasted   Stein is very skilled in giving fact free analises of anything he discusses.   He speaks in this polished London accent.  He's like George Martin on steroids!  He gives Britishers a bad name!  I think he fakes the accent.  

A Day in the Life

This is Wednesday November 23, 2016 and last night it was medication with Ida. I took inventory of the laundry. I made out a list on a fresh slip of paper. I did one of the sloppiest jobs ever of cutting up a typewriter sheet into quarters. That pack is a lot thinner now. It was ABC network news and Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune followed by NCIS. I got up at 5:15 but couldn’t take a shower because the towel was in the laundry. I was cold outside even with a jacket. Maybe it was just me or else inadequate blankets. Cigarettes were hard to come by. I looked at the medication line twice with April and it was just too long. Denise returned the laundry basket at ten to seven. Everything was there. I turned on Democracy Now and then Stephanie Miller. I went to the store a little after seven and spent my last dollar on a cup of coffee I took into the dining room. This breakfast proved to be a record setter in terms of delay of meals is concerned. We had oatmeal for the second day in a row and already things were showing indications of being really slow. I only got a half a bowl and worried it would be another day of shrunken portions. We had scrambled egg and not much of that. We had toast and butter but no jelly. I entered the dining room at ten after seven and left it about 8:25. We didn’t get our main plate till 8:10 and didn’t get our coffee till 8:20. Pretty much a record.

Then I got in line with the cigarette people. I was curious whether I’d gotten the pink lifeline envelope in the mail because it was already late. It always arrived before Thanksgiving. It wassn’t there but I did get a notice from the phone company dated November 11th stating that my application to end auto bank account deduction. That was a load off my mind. I called Judy and told her and also mentioned the life line thing. I gave Judy a number to call because she said she could do it better. But she was on the phone a long time with people and called me back in frustration that she couldn’t get confirmation on anything. I rummaged through my files and came up with a pink envelope from way earlier this year, from February 2916, and it said that the thing went into effect February 24th 2016, which would mean I’m covered for another three months. I hope that’s true. I also told Sarah about the sink again. This time she called Augustine and eventually Augustine made his way to this room and unclogged the sink and adjusted something underneath the sink so the drain stopper was open properly. I wanted to get Nora to give me a thicker bed spread. I saw a bed spread that looked a whole lot like the one I used to own and mentioned it to Nora. She babbled something and said “I’m changing the linen” and so I left and this was after ten. I didn’t go for refreshments. I think I had Rush Limbaugh on sometime in the morning. You guessed it. She didn’t put on a new bedspread.

We had a fairly decent lunch. It was rather salty pork with actual soy sauce and pasta that was half way decent I sort of mixed together. We had carrots with that. In the morning I ate the green apple Bill gave me. I also used the last of the old instant coffee early morning. This noon we had grapes for dessert. I think I had Gary and Shannon on. Phyllis Green agreed to lend me four dollars but I didn’t spend it and still haven’t. I watched over half of Days of our Lives and then went down to check on my ride to the dentist. There was a lot of scurrying around in the office and me and Patty were being ignored. Eventually Sarah heard what I was saying and told Federico and Federico ended up taking me to the dentist. I didn’t have any cigarettes with me. The getting of the permanent crown took a little longer. But my ride was waiting for me because Federico just went to Burger King and then circled back and waited in the office. They took more X rays. Dr Bui stated that she would not use permanent cement because she still suspects I might need a root canal. That was a real come-down. She wants to see me again in three months so I have to worry about the crown falling out all that time. I have an appointment for mid February. Back here I decided to use my debit card and buy a small jar of instant coffee. They were out of the five dollar jars. I also got cigarettes and a red cigarette lighter. Phyllis wants me to not lend out cigarettes to others, which makes sense. I haven’t used any of Phyllis’s four dollars yet. I haven’t decided how I’ll spend that.

This is after dinner. Donald Trump’s restored Hollywood star is featured on Eye Witness news. Bill complains of it being cold in here now. When I hit the open menu the whole thing came in black. It finally straightened out. Bill had Eye Witness news on at the three o clock hour. Dinner was a real delayed affair. We had hamburgers and cut up boiled potato. They had advertised French fries. You could already observe it getting dark outside with a cloud bank. We didn’t leave the dining room till ten to five. There were no seconds and I checked the counter twice. Jeff was also turned down. We had chocolate pudding for dessert. Donald Trump has appointed Nicky Haley to Ambassador to the UN and some other woman as Secretary of Education. Neither was a Trump supporter during the primary campaign. Nicky Haley supported Rubio and made that major TV speech against Trump in prime time. The other lady supported Kasich. Trump was interviewing for Secretary of Defense and apparently hasn’t chosen anyone yet. However Trump talked to someone who talked him out of water-boarding.