The “Yes We Caine” Mutiny

The GOP no longer functions as a political party. Weak on national security, big deficit spenders, they stand for nothing but guns, God and money. The consolidation of racist status quo dependent deplorables and self avowed “God before country” Raptureheads hellbent on a new world order under a single tent. The entire Republican Party little more than a caravan of criminals and corrupt enablers. The American Taliban rises.

Our traditional checks and balances are no match for the unconventional threat we face. Our Democratic leadership ill prepared to hold to an account an Executive that has no care for tradition, precedent or the rule of law. As a nation we need to accept a basic premise. The fight to save our Republic must not wait until November 2020. The constitutional crisis is here. The battle begins now.

It is time to call all hands to deck and seize back control of America’s future. To preserve the American dream requires we, the people return to our patriotic roots. Take to the harbors and throw the tea overboard. Throw on your life vests and refuse to take a backseat in our political future. Prepare not just to march on Washington, but to sit and sleep there too. Take matters into our hands and start a “Yes We Caine” mutiny to rid our Republic of an unhinged captain.

A peaceful resistance requires sacrifice. To move forward the dreams of our ancestors we must demand answers. We must recapture the audacity of hope and hold those who wish to trample on our ideals to account. The spirit of the American people has been a beacon of hope and freedom throughout the world for over two centuries. Our diversity our greatest strength, the backbone of our success. Take comfort in our history, trust in the experiment in individual freedoms.

Progress knows but one direction and never includes a return to the past. It’s time we move forward.

The “Yes We Can” Mutiny

Can’t stop a Nazi with a law book” – Herman Wouk, The Caine Mutiny

Traditional checks and balances do not work when up against unprecedented threats. History and science teach this lesson repeatedly. Denial and time is no way to cure a cancer. To sit and wait on the outcome of an impeachment inquiry or a national election to remove this caravan of criminals and corrupt enablers as foolish a plan.

It’s not America’s immigrations laws that place our nation at risk. It’s this administrations callous and wanton ignorance of history that poses a clear and present danger to our national security. It’s the lack of empathy in our foreign policy the open betrayal of a loyal ally that breeds hostility, births sleeper cells and lone wolf fanatics desperate for revenge. It’s the fickleness and swiftness in which we ripped up the Iran deal, pull out of trade deals and abandon the military fields that erodes trust in our America exceptionalism and extinguishes Lady Liberty’s torch.

The damage this administration is doing to this country cannot be overstated. It’s more than Kurdish blood that will spill as the result of Demonic Donald’s latest betrayal. More than the reconstitution of ISIS that threatens national security. If American loyalties can be swayed so easily and years of diplomacy be overturned with each change of administration then why would any nation dare align with us in the future? Why would any tribe or ethnic group make a strategic partnership in our fight against the next terror group. Combine this with our eagerness to pull out of other hard negotiated treaties and truces and it will take decades for America to regain the trust of the international community.

There are 40,000 Kurds who live in America, 15,000 in Nashville alone. Many of whom were refugees of prior battles. Immigrants to our nation under kinder, wiser administrations who sought to flee the ravages of war and poverty for a better life. Imagine as they now stare at their screens and scroll their social media timelines in search of relatives and survivors. The anger they too must feel. The thirst for vengeance that leads to irrational behavior.

We as a nation may no longer afford to be passive. We cannot continue to ignore the damage being done to our reputation and pretend it does not define us all. We, the people, are responsible for the actions and behaviors we observe each day and fail to condone.

The impeachment inquiry and prospective 2020 Blue Wave are nice but ineffective in the larger constitutional battle upon us. They fail to neutralize the immediate damage and risk of catastrophe that awaits our republic. They may be palliative measures to soothe the masses, but they also bide time for the ruling Executive. Affords the opportunity to spread disease and harden defense. To produce a manufactured counter narrative and use his past television experience to craft a set of alternative facts that will marginalize, belittle, conflate, de-legitimize and, if necessary, squash any threat.

America must learn from the ongoing Hong Kong and Indonesia protests and the recent successes in South Korea, Ecuador and Puerto Rico. Understand that to force change you must commit to it. One off protests and elections are not enough. If we believe our will is not being followed and the government is no longer acting for the people then we must drive that narrative in ways that are impossible to ignore. We must take to the streets daily.

If we are to insist that we are a nation in which all men, regardless of race, gender, religion or national origin are free and equal. If we believe in the Bill of Rights that put the great American experiment in motion, that guaranteed certain freedoms for all Americans and bestowed inalienable rights on all mankind. Then we must act to defend it when we see it being trampled upon by a despot.

We must take to the harbor and throw the tea overboard. Refuse to take a backseat in our politics. Not just march on Washington, but sit and sleep there too.

Fish Filet

As the “Mooch” says, “the fish stinks from the head.” So let’s wrap this impeachment inquiry up and start there. The time for impeachment is long past.

Donald Trump is inherently unfit to lead a democratic republic. This isn’t a hot take. It’s no secret he serves only himself and the almighty dollar. That his morality bends to justify whatever decision, in that moment, will advance his own self interest. Yet those are just symptoms of what makes him uniquely unfit to hold public office.

The fact is Donald Trump has never worked for anyone other than himself. He has no concept of what it means to work for the common good. His whole life spent negotiating solely for himself. Motivated only by unbridled greed and the need to appease a small group of loyal investors with a healthy return on investments.

The very office of the Presidency. That it serves, “we, the people.” That its closest advisors, the Cabinet, swear an oath to the Constitution, not a person. These are foreign concepts to our Comrade in Chief. He is hardwired to think of his role as a leader in binary terms. His whole worldview rooted In a transactional us verse them paradigm. Every deal unique but each having a winner and loser.

The concept of transparency is anathema to the art of the deal where information is power. Intimidation and braggadocio assets. Lies, deceit and misrepresentation the keys to victory; transparency a weakness. Truth has no business in real estate or casinos, only the appearance of truth matters.

This is the ethos our dear leader lives by. There is no such thing as public service in his world. Rules, traditions, and precedent matters not as the man himself cannot be changed. It’s time to drain this cesspool of criminals and corrupt enablers and filet the entirety of the Raptureheads, Russia enabled military hawks and racist status dependent deplorables that comprise the entirety of today’s GOP.

“We, the people” know Trump plays Russian roulette with our republic and poses a clear and present danger to the American dream. Let’s once and for all decapitate this piranha and remove him from office so we can once and for all make America great again. Sanitize this country of the stench that emanates from this golden calf and all he touches. Render his legacy “moot” and reclaim the words of Lady Liberty

Kurdish Surprise

Who cares if he is the Commander in Chief. We should not be willing to play Russian roulette with the lives of the men and women of our armed forces, let alone our collective national security. The decision to cede Syria to Turkey and abandon our Kurdish allies is just the latest in a string of foreign policy decisions designed to create a new world order of international superpowers. Each policy decision places our nation at heightened risk for a terrorist attack or hostile foreign action. Since assuming the office of Presidency we have witnessed Trump deliberately and recklessly systematically destabilize old alliances through brazen threats, irrational retractions, troop withdrawals, nonsensical diplomacy and goading insults.

The man now in charge of our very precious national security, entrusted to safeguard the collective us, is actively stripping away our freedoms and alienating us from allies and foes alike. His foreign policy demeans the office he holds and is at odds with the freedoms he swore to protect. It consists of no central doctrine or policy and is conveyed by slogan, threats, propaganda and alternative fact. The effect has been to weaken America’s standing in the world and dim our light as a beacon of hope and freedom for the world’s oppressed.

To openly alienate proven allies and appease known hostile nations and dictators is not normal. Rather, when you view decisions collectively they seem to be the ante in the art of the deal. Trump holds no real values or morals and is motivated solely by money, power and adoration. So long as it advances his own self interests it appears Trump is willing to make any fake promise, cut any deal or betray any ally.

The chickens will come home to roost and history will not reflect kindly on anyone who takes part in advancing his agenda. The more serious question isn’t whether Trump and/or his surrogates colluded with Russia but why Putin actively sought his election in the first place. What was in it for him?

It doesn’t take extreme vetting to realize that the man who lost the popular mandate by nearly 3,000,000 votes but claims to be the one and true voice of the people is the greatest and most immediate threat to our national security and the American dream.

That the man who was supported in the race for President by Russia and Vladimir Putin, a former KGB agent who never previously had America’s best interests at heart…

Who in 2008, desperate and bankrupt, sold a dilapidated Palm Beach estate, one that had sat unoccupied for two years, for a $100 million windfall to a Russian oligarch and one of Putin’s most trusted advisors…

Whose closest advisors have openly advocated for the wholesale destruction of America as we know it…

Who believes facts and science have alternatives….

Who let the Head of the NSA serve unfettered for 19 days knowing he may have been compromised by Russia, had lied to the VP and was an imminent potential national security threat.

Who to this day treats the independent journalist and the leaker as the criminal and “enemy of the American people” and General Flynn, Manafort, Stone and his crooked family members as the victims.

To allow such a man to go on implementing his agenda unchecked is insanity. Tack on that the man’s ties to Russia are undeniable. That so many willfully close their eyes to the truth does not make it any less a reality. Until we know that our so called President was elected by and is working for the American people how in good conscience can we allow him sole authority to make decisions that may literally lead to mass genocide and place us closet to the brink of a nuclear war? To allow him to make major foreign policy decisions is beyond appeasement, it is assisted suicide.

Unconventional threats call for unconventional responses. We must be proactive in the battles ahead. We don’t have the luxury of being wrong about this. We must take temporary measures to proactively safeguard this nation from the real possibility that a sitting President is working at the behest of a foreign enemy.

Impeach Now

The constitutional crisis is here. The state of our union is in disarray. The majority of her citizens shell shocked and befuddled. Our democracy is under seige while politicians across both sides of the aisle engage in a dangerous game of political chicken. An ever escalating game of Russian roulette from which democracy will be the unwitting victim.

Traditional checks and balances as likely to neutralize the growing risk as thoughts and prayers the remedy to prevent school massacres. Time is not on democracy’s side. How is this not obvious by now? The longer you wait to confront the rising authoritarian the more power it consolidates. Procrastination and denial is not a cure for cancer. To survive requires an aggressive team that will go in and remove the growth and then burn everything it touched to ensure it never returns.

The time to impeach a clear and present danger was yesterday. In the real world, not only can citizens be arrested based on heresay and circumstantial evidence, but they may be held without bail. There is no reason for House to delay an impeachment vote any longer. There is beyond probable cause to believe this so called President unfit to hold office and guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors. Move this on to the Senate and the kangaroo court trial phase of this process. Force this corrupt caravan of criminal enablers to publicly declare their loyalty and paint a scarlet letter on their sleeves for history to judge. Let karma cast its judgment on this cesspool of Raptureheads, Russia enabled military hawks, and racist status quo dependent dinosaurs.

Turn to the next act in this saga where we, the people, take center stage. Serve as the final bastion in the fight for individual freedom and quest to preserve the American dream. Allow the disjointed resistance to consolidate in defense of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. A common goal, a common enemy to unite us in resistance.

Crawl out of your ratholes and peek out of your turtle shells. We are the majority, and we’re ready for you

24

The clock is ticking. The future of American democracy hangs in the balance as the tension ratchets up by the hour. Jack Bauer best be on his way if the American dream is going to survive this next round of Russian roulette. The chess pieces are in motion and the seconds pass as the so called President of the United States tweets of an active coup.

A clear and present danger is on the loose and par for the course, the opposition is on vacation. Democratic leaders sent back to their districts to lay the groundwork for the battle ahead. The rest of us left defenseless to fight the battle at hand. How many times must this cycle play out? At what point will a real opposition step forward. One that accurately identifies the risk at hand. Who understands that traditional checks and balances do not work against an unconventional threat.

The worst approach to mitigate an unprecedented threat is to wait it out. The time to impeach Deranged Donald was yesterday. Time and again history will prove that appeasement and rule of law do not protect against crazy and corruption. You need to force the rising threat to play defense, not allow them to dictate the rules of the game. This isn’t difficult to grasp!

We mock Dubya for ignoring reports which warned of an impending terrorist strike yet since the time President Obama was informed that a potential President of the United States was under active counterintelligence investigation by the FBI for his dealings with Russia the entire Democratic establishment has settled on a wait and see approach.

Newsflash: Donald Trump is determined to remain as President of the United States and will declare martial law in response to an active “coup”, dissolve Congress for their attack on our democracy, suspend freedom of the “corrupt and dishonest” press and go to whatever means necessary to ensure he is never impeached. Never allow the shield of Presidential immunity be stripped from his title to make himself vulnerable to arrest for crimes, financial or otherwise.

It is bad enough that we ceded power to an illegitimately elected President. That we gave up the role of Commander in Chief to a known national security threat. At least then most believed the risk posed by a Trump administration to be a minimal, a few lean years and then a restoration of order. Now, however, there is no denying what is at stake. The identity of a nation. Our shared beliefs and values suddenly up for debate. The reality is this isn’t a political fight, it’s a moral one.

Tune out the misinformation. Ignore the false equivalents. You’re not living in a bubble. You’re not misunderstanding the desires and needs of most Americans. Make no mistake, we are the majority. Trust your eyes. Trust facts. Trust intuition.

Tick, tick, tick

The Big Picture

Trump continues to act with the knowledge that he is not only Commander in Chief of the most powerful military in world history, but he may also have half the military might of the world behind him as a fail safe. He knowingly uses whatever means necessary and proactively uses all the powers of his office, regardless of optics, to squash any attempt to legally remove him from office. He ignores subpoenas, responds to document requests with sharpied graphs and selective memory transcribed non-transcripts of taped phone calls, and otherwise obstructs and avoids any actual attempt to hold him to account for his heinous acts.

It’s clear from his tweets, words and behavior that the Don truly believes himself above the law. He does not behave as one bound by tradition, precedent or rule of law. In fact from the time he took the public stage he has acted and behaved as one who knows the fix is in. Remember despite being double digits down in the polls he made clear that he would contest the results of the election if he was not the winner.

To Trump’s credit he’s been quite transparent all along. Review his twitter feed from a different perspective and it almost reads as if it is both a self confession to treason and a whistle blower report (the good kind). In many conversations from “Russia, if you’re listening” right up to his present day public echo of “China if you’re listening,” Trump openly flaunts his treasonous behavior for all to see. It’s what makes his threats of Civil War and cries of a coup, and accusations of treason so dangerous.

When you see the completed puzzle you realize that these are not random pieces, projections or the rants and raves of a lunatic. Trump’s words are more than empty threats and part of a greater design. They are the culmination of the best laid plans. Years of careful planning and coordinated efforts by those who do not hold America’s best interests at heart. Enemies both foreign and domestic whose agendas and values do not thrive in a representative republic such as that envisioned by our founding fathers. The consolidation of God before country Raptureheads, Russia enabled military hawks and the racist status quo dependent deplorables all under the GOP big tent. Donald Trump nothing more than a golden calf to shepherd the message; a Trojan horse in which to deliver the troops and a Midas god to deliver the gold to his puppeteers.

Continue to play the scenarios out and they only grow more horrifying. It’s not hard to see how a new world order emerges. A global oligarchy controlled by a fascist few. An international caste system of haves and have nots in which the world’s most valuable natural resources are controlled by the world’s most powerful nations led by white supremacists, missionaries and colonists. The many working for the few. A permanent military state in which any remaining illusion of individual freedoms would be just that.

When viewed through this prism almost all of Trump’s forreign policy decisions suddenly make sense. The wag the dog drama, escalated rhetoric, and ensuing peace agreements with traditional hostile nations a fait accompli. Russia (Iran) and China (N Korea) in control of their rogue pawns as they formalize their growing international influence through negotiations. Traditional allies pushed aside to make room at the table.

All roads lead to Jerusalem.

In Jesus’ name.

Amen

The Stochastic President

Trump made his fortune as a CEO and reality show producer. Effective messaging and storytelling are two areas he actually does well. This attempt to divide America is no accident. Trump knows an indictment awaits his return to civilian life. His best hope to avoid prosecution is to hide behind the shield of executive immunity. To use the resources of the 1%, the blind faith of the Raptureheads and the insecurity driven hate filled strength of the deplorables to silence public dissent and suppress any efforts to otherwise remove him from office.

He seeks their approval and blindly advances their agenda with no questions asked. After all what’s a few dog whistles, conspiracy theory shout outs, executive orders and race baiting tweets in exchange for a loyalty oath from the majority of this nation’s gun owners and private militias.

Trump is clearly scared Schiffless at the moment. His rants and raves at today’s presser were unsettling for sure. Even a domesticated dog’s behavior grows unpredictable when they sense the end is near. This isn’t a political fight, it’s a moral one. Brace yourself for the storms to come

The Case of the Ukrainian Whistleblowers

There’s no real mystery to this Ukraine story. It has all the nuance of a classic Scooby Doo episode. Right down to the unmasked bumbling villain.

Donald Trump is a transactional leader. He has no real agenda beyond his own self interests and approaches each situation as if there is a winner and loser. He cares not for the collective well being or long term impacts on our country or citizenry. For him it is all about being on the winning side and immediate gratification. Past alliances, traditions, procedures, laws, or precedent be damned! Whatever chips necessary to close the transaction and come out on top is what the art of the deal demands he include.

Trump does not think or act like a public servant. Traditional checks and balances are ineffective against an unconventional threat such as he. The only way to hold him to account is to starve him of the attention he seeks and take him out of the game. To change the rules of the game and draw a playing field that effectively neuters him.

To defeat Trump you must place him in a defensive position and cut off his access to the two things that sustain him and keeps him afloat, unlimited resources and a devoted audience. The necessity of an impeachment inquiry is to do just this. Regardless of what the Senate may do, House Democrats must seize the daily narrative away from this merry bannon of criminals and corrupt enablers and force them to spend all resources and efforts in defense of their freedom.

Make no mistake, it’s not impeachment that scares the bejeezus out of Deranged Donald. It’s the loss of his freedom and the knowledge that the Trump family brand will be permanently and irreparably destroyed that makes him so desperate to stay in power. He’ll do anything to ensure that remains the case. Cling to the shield of the presidency like a an orange moth to a cocoon.

If not for that meddling whistleblower, he may have gotten away with it too

Follow the Leader

Trump’s latest abhorrent tweetstorm in which he accuses Adam Schiff of treason, seeks to confront the whistleblower and encourages a second Civil War with cries of Witchhunt and accusations of coups proves once again that he’s unfit to be elementary school President, let alone the so called leader of the free world. If our Comrade in Chief wants to talk about “enemies of the state,” or protect against a clear and present danger I suggest he take a hard look in the mirror.

Analyze those essential attributes that the greatest leaders share. Compare his own actions against past leaders to examine how he stacks up in history. Is Trump destined to be a cautionary tale of how absolute power corrupts absolutely or does he behave and exemplify the behaviors of those champions of freedom? The wisest of kings, leaders and community organizers who acted with singular purpose and are remembered for contributions that advanced human civilization and individual freedoms. Make no mistake. Such leaders share easily identifiable behaviors from which to compare your own leadership style;

They safeguard open communications and transparency. They do not obstruct investigation or silence and threaten whistle blowers and leakers. They protect anonymity by offering hotlines and access to independent arbiters.

They emphasize collaboration and inclusiveness. They do not fear diversity. They embrace it.

They welcome opposition. They do not suppress feedback or dissenting opinions. They listen and learn from them.

They build a shared vision of the future. They do not think perception is reality. They rely on facts, science and logic to shape perception to match reality.

They own their actions. They do not finger point, blame predecessors or deny accountability for their decisions. They understand that once empowered the buck stops with them. Period.

They problem solve. They do not act a prisoner of circumstance or play the victim. They innovate and experiment with new paradigms to limit or remove obstacles.

They prioritize knowing their people. They do not view empathy as a weakness. They know it to be a virtue.

They extend kindness. They do not bully. They nurture.

They encourage teamwork. They do not ostracize, belittle, or build walls. They promote commonalities, break barriers and build bridges.

They lead with hope. They do not rule by negativity and fear. They grow consensus through transparency and communication.

They create opportunity for all. They do not close doors or instill artificial barriers to entry. They rely on objective measures to reward and promote all those who merit consideration.

In the course of history there have been countless examples of leaders who chose to rule otherwise. Who ruled through fear mongering, authoritarian accountability and slogans. Who preyed on the weakness of the disenfranchised to promote their own agenda. Who gave voice to the extremes.

But riddle me this. Has such a leader ever been on the right side of history? Have they ever progressed our collective interests? Brought us closer to that more perfect union our founders dreamed of?

The answer is obvioua