Category: Randomness

Joe really oughta keep these to himself, but he what the hay…

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #2,228

yeah I know you did not ask!

If you have been watching any TV lately you may have noticed there are a plethora of ads promoting how much various companies care about us in these troubling times.  They are touting how they have been here for us, are here for us now, will be there for us after the crisis has passed.

If they really care about us and this country they can do two things right now that would have a huge impact on the quality of life in this country.

First, they can stop advertising on Fox News.  This network’s goal is to push America to the absolute lowest common denominator.  They seem to be succeeding extraordinarily well at this. Fox News is without question a propaganda machine that does not have the best interest of this country at heart.

Secondly, the companies and the executives of these corporations should stop immediately giving money to the GOP.  I cannot figure out if the goal of the GOP is the elimination of our democracy or the creation of a Corpocracy,  Well…actually it is both.

Barring these corporations suddenly finding a moral compass, perhaps we should stop doing business with any company that advertises on Fox News.

Yeah, I know, I’m dreaming again.

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #9,683

yeah I know you did not ask!

Okay… Drum roll please. We have a guest randomizer  from the greater Chicago area.  And now without further ado…

First of all;  I saw the price of gas was $1.499/ gal a couple of days ago. I filled up on March 11th when the price up here was $2.099. My car is still in the driveway with a full tank of gas, I’ve been in self-quarantine working on my house for 3 months, and I have no need to go fill up on the cheapest gas in 20 years. We all know the price will escalate soon, about the time I start driving again. That’s just rude.

Second of all: I saw the news yesterday that over 3.2 million people filed for unemployment last week. Of course our Sec of the Treasury doesn’t think it matters, but the “Markets” shot up over 1,300. It was the cap to the biggest 3 day rally since 1931. I vaguely remember this happening before so it begs the question; Why is it that when unemployment rises, so do the “Markets”?

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #4,230

yeah I know you did not ask!

Am I the only that finds it ironic that Republicans across the nation and in Washington, the PRO-LIFE party, are willing to sacrifice 1,000s of lives in their attempt to maintain the economic health of the US of A.

I suppose that most of those will be senior citizens makes it alright.  And these are the same folks that have been pushing the person-hood of unborn fetuses. A living, breathing person with a network of friends and families is expendable, and the other is not…until they are born.

The other irony in all this is that the religious right has embraced the Republican Party and Donald Trump with both arms and gone “all in” on their bet.  The Christianity I learned about was a religion of compassion and caring. That concepts seems to have gone missing from both Trump and the Religious Right.

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #6,139

yeah I know you did not ask!

I’ve been wondering about my fellow citizens for quite some time now.  This “wonderment” stems from so many them adamantly supporting the incompetent monster currently residing in the White House.

This discomfort with my paisanos has increased a couple magnitudes when I read that their response to this health care crisis is to stock up on toilet paper. I personally get enough junk mail every day that would have kept my grandmother happy in her outhouse for a month.

It increased even further when I started reading about lines at gun stores to purchase guns and ammunition. I saw an interview of man complaining about  shelves empty of his favorite ammo.

Sounds like they are scared to death and shitting their britches.

If there was ever a time when we should be rowing together it is now.  This is not the Zombie Apocalypse…no matter what my cousin says!

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #5,119

yeah I know you did not ask!

In the middle of a global health crisis, in the middle of a pandemic, we are also having a crisis of leadership…no matter what Fox News and the MAGAs say.

For the most part the leadership in this country at all levels of government are politicians.  A few cities and counties will employ professional managers, but they always report up to a politician.

So  what are the qualifications to become a politician and by default a leader.  Very little.  You have to have an ability to run your mouth, act like you know what the solution is, and perhaps have a little charisma.  I can think of very few other fields of endeavor in our society that require so little of their practitioners.

Then on the other hand I think of the Winston Churchill quote:

‘Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.…’

But I do think we should be electing folks to lead us that can do more than talk, obfuscate, and line their own pockets.  I am not sure how you would implement some sort of basic screening but there must be a way.  High on my list would a sanity test and a test of empathy.

We deserve better.

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Social Distancing

My daughter, who works for the Oregon Department of Health, admonished my elderly butt to practice social distancing during this coronavirus pandemic.

Taking her words of wisdom directly into my heart, I sat down and ate one of favorite lunches, a sardine and onion sandwich.

Now my wife is mad at my daughter.  Perhaps I should not have tried to kiss my wife so soon after my repast.

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #8,913

yeah I know you did not ask!

I personally am not feeling safe with the party of science deniers managing a medical/health crisis.

I feel like I am watching a train wreck about to happen in slow motion. The train engineer is stepping on the gas after denying there was another train coming his way on the same track.

I feel like the real national emergency is the Gospodin Trump administration’s ignorance, incompetence  and greed.

We absolutely must vote these bozos out of office.

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #8,193

yeah I know you did not ask!

For various reasons of recent personal experiences I have been thinking about wealth inequality again, here and abroad.   I have stated my stance on this several ways, but I have come up with what for me was a new twist.

I really do not resent anyone being extraordinary rich.  What I do resent is the mass of people that are suffering from crushing poverty.

While the first part of the equation will argue with you about it, the two are tied are together.  You cannot have the one without the other.

I’m not sure what the answer is, but what we are doing now here and abroad is not working.   We need to make sure everyone has a piece of pie before we are passing out seconds and… or millionths to selected individuals.