The Grumpy Old Fart Customer

The package arrives and is left on your front porch.  You step out to retrieve it and the first thing you do when you pick it up is to inspect it.  Because visible damage to the outside of your delivered goods surely means that the ordered goods inside have been compromised.  If there is no damage on the outside, we are good right (yea, yea, I know, fragile products could still be damaged)?  Generally speaking, if the packaging looks good, then the treasures inside should be the same. 

Boy, have I got a story for you.  We receive heater and AC filters every 30 days.  This works as a great reminder of when I need to change the filters on our environmental control unit.  Every package that arrives from our product supplier is shipped in a cardboard container that would survive a freight train collision.  Our recent package arrived in pristine condition, not so much as a scratch on it.  And it nearly took one hour of fighting multiple layers of box and tape to get it open.  The package was hermetically sealed and was not intended to be opened for a millennium.

Once I managed to penetrate the fortress-like composition of the packaging, what I found left me totally flummoxed.  The filter inside of the box was tightly tucked into its corrugated slot and neatly wrapped in a plastic bag, however, upon inspection, one corner of the filter had been mutilated.  The damage was significant, the entire corner of the filter was bent and torn.  The effectiveness of the filter was diminished as dirty air will flow easily around the damaged filter. 

So, what I want to know is how the filter got damaged, when the packaging was absolutely in mint condition.  There wasn’t so much as a scratch on the outside of the box, yet its contents had significant damage.  This leaves me with only one conclusion—the filter was damaged before it was packaged.

Ok, chew on that for a minute.  Someone at a packaging plant, somewhere in the US (the claim is that they are manufactured in this country), inspected a damaged product and shipped it anyway.  Or it passed the inspection, then was damaged by whoever put the filter in the shipping container.  Perhaps it was loaded by a machine, and the device missed the recessed window in the package, I can buy that.  But doesn’t someone inspect the package afterward?

I have had several situations where a package is damaged, and the product inside maybe was or maybe wasn’t harmed.  This situation is new to me, the package is good, but the contents are damaged—maybe it was the Havana Syndrome.  I am quite sure that Russia had to be involved somehow, after all, they are responsible for everything that is wrong in the world.  I just can’t understand how anyone would let that product go out the door.

This could be another situation where the employees are paid shyte and really could give a furry rat’s ass less about the quality of the product that departs the facility.  Irrespective of the reason why this happened, it seems to be happening on an ever-increasing basis.  Products coming out of production or shipping facilities are being shipped damaged before they are placed in heavy-duty packaging.  The quality of the products we receive for our hard-earned money has been on a steady decline since the crash of 08-09.  This isn’t the first problem I have had recently and certainly, shipping companies share in the blame.

This case is crazy, filters are made of pressed paper, which is somewhat flexible and nearly impossible to damage in a solid container.  Even if the container has been tossed around, there would be no damage to a paper product.  It wasn’t like the package had tire tread marks on it, in fact, there wasn’t a scratch or blemish to be found.  I am one who believes that shipping employees use packages as beachballs.  But this package showed no sign of mishandling.  Even if it had been mishandled the ruggedness of that box would withstand their best efforts.

As we continue down this road of inflation, job stagnation, and salary decline, we face an uphill battle in receiving quality products.  Our hard-earned money will continue to bring us only mediocrity.  Maybe I will live long enough to see people get better pay, healthcare, and more tolerable work conditions.  With this should come better quality—I believe.  As always, this is just my opinion.

The Grumpy Old Fart Customer

The Grumpy Old Fart Customer 2022 All Rights Reserved

Driving cars, it is a staple of life in America.  Being allowed to drive is one of our greatest privileges.  Since freedom of speech is dying, driving may now be the biggest privilege that we have. It remains the best option for seeing our country and all of its vast wonders.  The automobile is as American as apple pie or burgers, hotdogs, and such shit.

I recently decided to hop in a car and drive approximately 40 miles to my favorite bookstore.  It was a cruelly hot Saturday with temperatures in the triple digits.  My air conditioner was running full tilt.  The trip was uneventful until the gas gauge revealed the reality, I am out of fuel.  I pulled into one of the local, corporate-owned filling stations (seems that is all that is out there anymore) to refresh my tank.  After inserting the fill hose into the filler neck, I selected cash on the pump’s video screen.  You know—cash.  Those green pieces of paper that once were accepted by businesses everywhere.

As I stood there waiting for gas to flow into my empty tank nothing happened.  Finally, a cash register person comes out and in a very snarky, stern voice informs me that I must pre-pay before I can pump gas.  But when I noted that there was no sign or message on the pump indicating that I had to pre-pay, the young lady scoffed at me.  In a voice that seemed puzzled by all of this she asked, “don’t you have an APP?”.   Um no, but I have cash.  The young woman looked at me as if I had just asked her for a kidney.

“Well,” she replied, I guess you can use cash, but you have to pay first. Ok, I get it, no one is trusted anymore.  I guess drive-offs have become so common that you have to give them your payment before you can have the product.  Ok, I can live with that however, the young lady attendant still seemed reluctant to have to deal with a cash pre-payment.  Was it because she can not make the correct change?  I think the computer register does that for them, doesn’t it?

I went to the counter, presented my cash, and with a frustrated sigh, the young woman snatched the cash from my hand like my dog snatches her beef stick, nearly taking off my fingers.  Now, I made it easy for her as I asked for $20 of gas and handed her a twenty.  This meant that she didn’t have to count out change for me—easy peasy!  As I exited the building, I was not thanked, told to have a nice day, or for that matter invited back.

I sometimes wonder what the elimination of cash in this country will lead to. Electronic payment devices are easily ripped off these days, especially when you travel.  In addition, our government seems hell-bent to remove cash from our system—why?  This will leave us with only electronic cash cards, apps, and other electronic gizmos to do our shopping.  Every transaction you do will be monitored by the government.  Privacy, what privacy?

All of these payment devices are reliant on the power grid and the internet.  Gone are the days when you can just flip ole neighbor Fred a 5 spot for half of the investment in a cold 12 pack.  No longer can you stuff a $20 bill in graduation cards for the grandkids.  But instead, you will have to have your card out and available for the grandchildren to scan with their goddamn cell phone readers.  Talk about taking any semblance of ease or personal touch out of these events.  When you visit the grandchildren, you will have to prompt them to get their electronic devices to give them their Christmas cash.  The feel of crisp new dollar bills recently obtained from the bank will vanish like the dinosaurs.   

But I digress back to the young women who seemed puzzled by the concept of a cash payment.  The population has been slowly groomed for a cashless world, apps (mainly cell phones) have indoctrinated the younger generation through a slow-moving form of hypnosis.  First, they created apps with games then slowly they progressed into every aspect of human life.  I’ll bet there is an APP for wiping your ass, well at least one that shows you how, since parenting is extinct.

I used to laugh at all the Hollywood flicks that showed machines taking over the world.  Now, I believe those who wrote future machine fiction are geniuses.  It is absolutely unbelievable that the movie Idiocracy is no longer a sci-fi comedy but rather a documentary.  This is our world today, where you no longer have to have any thinking skills, a machine will do it for you.  Machines will make the concept of “lemmings to the sea”, a reality.  At the command of their new masters, everyone will walk lockstep right off of the edge of the cliff.

Imagine the office football pool which will now require some form of mobile payment system or cash transfer service.  To put your one-dollar bet down will require a fee that will exceed the amount that you are betting.  Perhaps we can go old school and underground with shekels that will assume the role of funny money. All of this leads me to believe that the machines will rise up and Americans will fold like a cheap lawn chairs.  What will they do in TV series and movies when someone pulls cash out of their pocket, remove it from the money clip and count out the crisp new dollar bills?  Maybe they will develop a card with sound effects.

All I am saying here is that our freedoms are dying in many ways and the removal of cash from our society is just one way of being enslaved by the fascist, corporate bastards that run this country.  As always this is just my opinion!

The Grumpy Old Fart Customer

The Grumpy Old Fart Customer 2022 All Rights Reserved

With the endless stream of prescription drug advertisements bombarding our televisions every day and night, it is difficult not to notice some of them.  Well, here is one that caught my attention, a commercial that leads off by showing a carrot that is bent at about a 20-degree angle at its end. It piqued my curiosity a little as there could be no doubt about what part of the body the carrot represented. I was certain that the carrot was not meant to portray a nose unless Cyrano de Bergerac is back in town. 

So, there is this affliction called Pyrone’s disease and it causes the male (you know) unit to bend somewhat precariously upward (maybe downward too, I am not sure).  I am going to be serious here for a moment, this condition sounds painful.  This is no laughing matter and just the thought of it causes tender trepidation.  But leave it to a corporate pharmaceutical company to try and turn this problem into a fairy tale.

 First of all, the use of fucking vegetables, a man stands and examines a cucumber (wishful thinking), then the announcer states that no two men are built alike while several shapes and sizes of peppers, cucumbers, and bananas adorn the screen with phallic wonderment. Image the poor bastard who has the mini pepper.  Is this supposed to represent his secret garden?  It does give a whole new meaning to being a vegetarian.

Then there is another commercial, this time with a pile of carrots prominently displaying a bent carrot on top of the heap.  An actress portraying the wife looks at the man next to her as if to say, “you are not using that on me” and walks away.  The dumbfounded husband picks up the bent carrot with a puzzled look of “that’s what mine looks like”?  The poor man’s only enjoyment tonight will be carrots in his salad.

Then comes the part explaining how the drug works.  First, they explain the side effects which include “penile fracturing”, wholly shit, that can’t be worth the benefit!  Then you couple the treatment with “daily penile stretching and straitening”, who the fuck does this, a physical therapist?  With my luck, I would draw the PT who looks like an old Soviet dock worker. Or is this self-treatment and they send you a magazine with each prescription.  Man, that has to be a blast having the pharmacist ask which porn mag you want as they hand you your pills.  However, and adding insult to injury (quite literally) the drug is administered by injection at the site.  Piss sakes (pun intended)!

There are alternatives to help cure this problem including a traction device.  So, now you can put your penis in traction!  How do you go out into public with this device?  Do you tie a sling around it to conceal the traction device?  You would have to wear dress-length shirts for sure.  I guess you could put your crotch in a cast and have it signed by your friends. 

Look, this is a very serious condition that has to be painful.  And it must certainly be noted here that women go through a lot of conditions with their lady parts and sometimes the ads for those problems are just as ridiculous.  I have a sense of humor as good as anyone’s but sometimes the scripts written for drug commercials appear to reflect the dumbing down of America.  We are so uncomfortable talking about penile and other personal parts that we have to go out to the garden to find a suitable vegetable to illustrate the point. Using this logic, having the birds and bees talk with your kids could get pretty silly as you would have to use Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head as props. 

I feel that multi-billion-dollar drug companies are trying to exploit a personal issue through absurd flippancy.  Instead of using professionals to explain a serious issue, they try to turn the situation into a sitcom TV show with vegetables as props.  I am just wondering, is there a happy ending to this whole story? Uh-maybe.  As always, this is just my opinion.

The Grumpy Old Fart Customer

The Grumpy Old Fart Customer 2022 All rights Reserved

Finally, a woman of color has been nominated to serve on the SCOTUS. It only took 233 years to accomplish this but by golly, it has happened. Now we finally have the chance to have a Supreme Court that truly looks like America! But this nomination process has uncovered a nasty truth in America — racism and homophobia. It would seem that there are some white, male, ass wipe GOP senators who are out to prove my theory. I guess it is not enough that the nominee is highly educated, well-spoken, very sophisticated, not to mention a beautiful woman.

Aren’t those the qualifications that conservative white men expect when vetting someone for confirmation? You know, the things that make her appear to be — not black? Hell, that was the process when they finally nominated a black man to SCOTUS. If you close your eyes and listen to him, he sounds white (however, it helped that he was also Republican). Surely, having met most of the standards would enable this latest nominee to be a slam dunk.

Ah, but the old white guard found a couple of lines of questioning that they could hang their hats on, first, the lady judge’s adjudication of sex offenses to minors, and second her support of Critical Race Theory (CRT). I can explain the CRT issue very quickly here. In this country, we are scared to death to teach our children (especially white) about other cultures. We have many different cultures in this nation, but it is the expectation (again of old white men) that every culture here should be homogenized into one smooth functioning praxis that never objects to the beliefs of their white masters. You know — America!

Regarding the child porn issue, let me be very clear that I find any situation where children are abused whether it’s porn, prostitution, physical abuse, or any violation of an underaged person to be the most repugnant and sickening act on earth. Having said this, I have also read numerous articles by psychologists and psychiatrists who have evidence of some brain maladies in those who perpetrate such crimes. It is a sickness that must be dealt with swiftly and effectively but also with some human reasoning. As a side note, I would also point out that mental health services and care have almost been eliminated in this country by (you guessed it) — Republicans.

This brings me to my question for these “concerned” GOP senators (many of which believe they are experts in child porn — hmmm?), why are you, such hypocrites? You question an obviously qualified judicial nominee about her pedophilia sentencing history, yet you do not question those in your own party that has committed similar offenses. What do I mean by this? Let me give you an example. There is this dashing young, white GOP senator from Florida who recently decided that it is ok to date an underaged 17-year-old woman (aka a child). In fact, he even took her across state lines. If I remember correctly, that is a Federal crime.

Oh sure, you say he was tricked by a Swarmy, high-priced pimp who willingly fell on his own sword in this matter when confronted. I mean how could this senator, who by the way, is one of the biggest supporters of the Orange (former) POTUS, no stranger to “underaged women” himself, possibly know this was a child (being very facetious here)?

There is a photo that looks like it is straight out of a school yearbook, of the young girl at the time of this deviant act. She looked so young one would wonder how a well-educated man (attorney) wouldn’t inquire about her age. And I will come clean here, I was not educated in one of the most expensive, east coast law schools. I am just a poor, flyover-country guy who had to pay for his own education, yet this all seems to be suspicious to me.

I digress, shouldn’t the question be asked of these elitist, white GOP senators of why this dashing young Republican has not been impeached? Or perhaps why the Senate Majority Leader (a stodgy old white slaver) refuses to investigate the fine, upstanding Senator who resembles a model for an Arian Master Race magazine? According to articles on this subject, the young girl was an intern working in Washington. I am not certain of the circumstances of her employment, but surely her age was documented somewhere.

Now to be fair, I understand that there have been old white Democrats who have been involved in similar incidents. Just keeping it real here. However, in this instance, it is GOP members that are the hypocrites as they seem to believe that pedophilia has a different definition and set of rules for them. I guess they feel it is ok to challenge those they oppose on this subject while turning a blind eye to those they favor.

In addition to questioning the nominee’s history of adjudication, the right-wingers also wanted to draw out her stance on gender identity. A question, “can you provide a definition for the word woman” was asked by a female GOP senator who sounded like an old white guy politician. To ask that question in a hall of constitutional governance is beyond fucking silly. The question also shows the obvious homophobic disposition of Republicans and their fear of future LGBTQ cases that could be presented to the SCOTUS.

The ridicule and absurdity continued later that evening on a conservative cable news network when one of its hosts dedicated his show to attacking the judicial nominee. The alleged comedian condemned the candidate because he say’s “she does not know how to define what a woman is”. The show’s panel all laughed in agreement with this narrow-minded nimrod. Some of the idiots on his show even admitted to flunking biology in school — explains a lot! I would recommend to the panel that they do some neurobiology research on orientation and identity.

I believe there are some questions that the qualified nominee could ask her right-wing detractors for example, “how do you define child versus underaged women”? Or perhaps, can orientation and preference be determined biologically during neurodevelopment? They can’t answer that one because most of them flunked biology. But again, this lady nominee is way too classy to lower herself into the level of dog shyte that now defines the Republican Party. I do believe that she would be justified in asking these questions of the white GOP standard-bearers.

So, while the dashing young Senator gets away with a despicable act and crime, the GOP has the unmitigated gall to question the nominee’s verdict history. The Grand Old Party might be better suited to cleaning up the history in their own house. Maybe the nominee could ask the lady GOP Senator how she would define hypocrisy.

I will come clean again, I want this highly refined lady on the Supreme Court, because she is another barrier to the dismantling of Roe v Wade. The Republicans seem hell-bent on taking away the rights of a woman to choose things regarding their bodies. If they get their way, they will eliminate abortion and legal rights, thus setting us back to the stone age. Maybe, while the GOP is at it, they can repeal the Civil Rights Act because people of color shouldn’t have legal rights, like voting. Oh, wait they are already doing that through redistricting.

Look, all I am saying here is that it really seems to be hypocritical to question a judge about their adjudication and sentencing of pedophiles when you won’t even investigate another member of your political party for the same crime. Then to try to blindside the nominee with a gotcha question regarding gender definitions in the hopes of discrediting any of her decisions regarding LGBTQ or preventing her confirmation is simply asinine.

It is time that all of our institutions reflect America by the representation of all colors, creeds, and cultures. Isn’t multiculturalism what makes America great? Maybe white right-wing republicans and their complicit conservative media can learn the value of other cultures. Here’s to the first African American Woman Supreme Court Justice, welcome Your Honor! As always, this is just my opinion.

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen 2022 All Rights Reserved

The late-night lineup of corporate shill shit birds never seems to fail at saying something stupid.  However, a few nights ago, one of them even surprised me.  This particular halfwit (won’t mention the name, bet you can figure it out), proclaimed his willingness to pay $15 per gallon of gas to clear his conscious.  Clear it of what?  Maybe he is ashamed that he has not paid enough for gas over the last few years.  Maybe it is his effort to raise the pay of gas station attendants, oh wait they went the way of the dinosaur years ago.  Perhaps this person feels so guilty about how much money he earns, he is giving it back to the billionaire oligarchs that fund him.

The truth is, this was a totally misguided, imbecilic comment by someone who is so out of touch with the average human that he believes everyone to be in his wage class or status.  This elitist clown went on to say that he will not have to worry about the price of gas because he drives an electric car.  The price tag on some of those cars is more than $100,000, which I am sure is affordable for the fast-food worker looking for $15.00 per hour.  Of course, there are affordable lease programs out there, right?  Maybe everyone could just borrow the money from their parents since banks aren’t interested.

Has anyone followed the news regarding the environmental disaster that has been caused by the mining of lithium?  Some reports contain the stories of millions of fish, mammals, and plant life species that have been destroyed by the toxins released by the mining and processing of lithium.  We had hoped that electric cars would be our salvation, but alas, there seems to always be a downside in the manufacturing of any planet-saving device.  Maybe we need to consider less driving and move away from being such a gluttonous society, which could lower fuel costs and help to stop us from poisoning the environment.

I get that the elitist nitwit wanted to make a statement about the invasion of Ukraine.  I am totally against war myself and find that act (as any war) to be reprehensible.  But to come out in support of $15 a gallon gas is a smack in the face of those who have to drive 60 miles a day just to get to their $9 per hour, 3 jobs, gig deal.  The usual response to this situation is “they should just move closer to their job”.  They would move closer if they could but usually, areas that have the jobs also have higher real estate prices that they can afford.  Our economy is already close to tanking, if the gas prices hit $15 it will careen off the side of a cliff.

With regard to the nimrod’s conscience, what was bothering him?  Maybe it is the fact that there are no good actors involved in this Ukraine situation.  While Russia executed the despicable act, what about the role played by the US and NATO?  For years the US and NATO have tried their very best to annex all territory around Russia.

 Despite the fact that there are signed agreements (Minsk +Minsk II) that outline the territories occupied by both Russia and Ukraine the US and NATO continue to ignore those agreements and proceed with their act of transgression.  It must also be noted that the Neo-Nazi groups that make up a portion of the Ukraine military continue their attacks in the Donbas region killing ethnic Russians.  Maybe this is what is gnawing on the elitist comedian’s conscience and driving his wishes for $15 a gallon gas prices. War is never good and those who carry it out as well as those who instigate it must be equally punished.  

Another thing that this mental midget probably doesn’t realize is that our gas prices were rising before the Russian invasion and would have reached the current price level anyway.  We import only 3% of our oil from Russia so a major price impact was not in the cards.  It should also be noted that because of that low level of oil usage our sanctions are having little effect on Moscow.  So, his belief in punishing Moscow for not using their oil is at best misplaced.  Maybe he should use his punch lines to promote peace talks.    

It must also be noted that the current level of national gas prices (Approx. $4.32 per gallon) averages out to 3-5% of the take-home pay of most gig workers.  Imagine increasing that by three times to about 10%, some other expenses will have to be sacrificed.  Maybe rent home energy, phone or maybe food.  I am sure that a comedian with a net worth of over $50 million would not have to make such choices.

What is most distressing to me is that some people take the comments that these so-called comedians blather every night as news.  In many cases, there are people who have little time between jobs, family, and other responsibilities and rely solely on late shows for some semblance of news.  This would be the stupid leading the blind.

It is possible that late-night shows are only viewed by the 9% (the group just below the 1% of the wealthiest) and these people are less affected by something as disastrous as inflationary costs.  I however believe that many lower wealth class folks view these shows, you know, the lower 50%.  It just seems to me that these poser comedians might want to get reconnected to those who can’t afford membership in their country clubs and pop culture.  As always, this is just my opinion.

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen 2022 All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer:  The following blog in no way pledges support for Russia, its president, or any supporter of its regime.  The blog also does not support the US and its constant efforts to create profitable wars and or force other countries to become members of NATO or any other war-mongering organization.

Let me say this most emphatically; I AM AGAINST WAR OF ANY KIND!  War
should be avoided using any and all peaceful means.  Let me also say that
if the Russian president fell off the face of the earth, I would not shed a
tear.  However, while we are on the topic of falling off the face of the
earth, there are many other leaders for which the sentiment applies.  This
list includes many European and US leaders.  There, I am now a candidate
for banning, and I have voiced an opinion that could label me a
traitor.  

It seems like we have had this discussion a lot lately, you know, blocking
those who have a different opinion.  Closing them out of the world of
ideas and discussions.  Shutting down any and all who do not conform to
the mainstream view or as I like to call it: your opinion crafted by fascists
who specialize in thought control.  With narratives that blossom in
conference rooms and are approved by war profiteers, the train of thought in
America has been derailed (pun intended).  It is bad enough that the truth
is getting difficult to find, when we do find it, it is covered up with shyte
and hidden from view.

Normally, I don’t drop names in my blogs, instead, I plump for a nickname or
enough background info that my reader will either know or research whom I am
referring to.  Today I am dropping a name, Caitlin Johnstone. 
Caitlin is an Australian writer, author, blogger, journalist, columnist and
according to those who know her, one of the kindest, most sincere individuals that
you will ever know.  After reading her writing for five years I tend to
believe that what her acquaintances say is the truth.  In addition to all
of these other things, Caitlin has a better grasp on everything that is the
Empire-United States, than most Americans do.  She does not hesitate to
make her feelings known about our evil empire, another quality that I admire.

The reason why I bring Caitlin into this conversation is that she and many
other free thinkers are under fire for publishing their articles and materials
on platforms owned by Russian organizations or affiliates.  Of course, the
Russian president has carried out a despicable act (what war isn’t), but how
does that give us the right to shut down any of the thoughts or opinions from
people other than the Russian leader?  I would like to remind my fellow
Americans of a president and his Secretary of State who crafted an illegal war
by lying about “weapons of mass destruction” then went on to destroy a
sovereign nation, killing hundreds of thousands of people (mostly civilians).

When this happened was the world shocked or dismayed?  Was anyone in
the US blocked from offering their opinions online or elsewhere?  I don’t
remember anyone trying to block my world views or opinions.  I was harshly
criticized by my fellow country citizens for opposing the war, some even going
as far as labeling me a traitor, but no one was blocked.  We in America
seemed to have a very short memory of history and are absolute hypocrites when
it comes to heinous and illegal acts and who should be punished.  Our
government, mainstream media, and PR firms in the United States have spent
billions twisting the truth about our alleged enemies and our beloved
empire.  It has become essential for us to hear the opinions of outside
writers and news sources.  In many cases, the truth has only been told by
those who exist outside of our corporate-owned propagandist media. 

In addition to Cailin Johnstone being criticized for where she publishes her
articles, she has also been widely criticized for her willingness to have
conversations with people of opposing viewpoints.  Isn’t that what
negotiation is all about?  Let’s get real here for a moment. There will
always be someone who has a differing ideology or viewpoint on any topic, they
are not going away.  It remains critical that we understand other views
and are willing to debate them in an arena of ideas.  Just simply calling
people with differing ideas stupid is short-sighted and narrow-minded. 
Writing, unless directly threatening, endangering someone or something should
always be given its space, no matter the opinion.

Writers of all postulations must be given a forum.  To agree or
disagree is left to those of us with the patience to indulge their opinions and
make our own.  To block any forums, even those of countries whose leaders
may be unhinged, is not justifiable.  Keep in mind my friends we have had
a few unhinged leaders ourselves.  If you find someone’s writing, not to
your liking then don’t read them.  It is ok to disagree with anyone that
you don’t share the same opinion or disagree with their findings.  But
shutting down forums and platforms reeks of the Nazi’s playbook. 

To Caitlin Johnstone, I say, “keep up the good work kid!”. They can try to
block us all they want but we will not be silenced!  To those in the US
that would block any Russian platforms, this is an idea that is ridiculous and
should cease immediately. the expression “fog of war” has existed all
much as long as war itself, it is difficult to find truth or accurate data in
any war situation. With that in mind we must keep all channels of news and
discussion open.  Keep speech free all over the world, always encourage
the ideas and thoughts of others to be exchanged.  As always this is just
my opinion (please don’t block me or have me removed).

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen 2022 All Rights Reserved

By now you have probably come to realize that if you say something that runs contrary to the narrative of the establishment in the US you will be canceled and silenced.  Having a different opinion than those who are supposedly smarter than you is now considered impermissible.  In fact, having an opposing view in some cases can label you as dangerous.  Those of us who have different opinions can now be characterized as heterodox, we are not part of the orthodoxy (whatever the hell that actually is).  It doesn’t matter if the viewpoints that we try to share are factual or not—we must be canceled and silenced.

As if the fuckery couldn’t get any more ridiculous, here we are.  We have finally reached “ideocracy”.   You know, the moment when stupidity reigns supreme over any sense of sensibility.  The mainstream media in the US has become a joke, whose predisposition for lying has become antithetical to any truth.  Celebrities are stuck in the time warp of “Camelot the Sequel” period from the early 1990s (for those of you who are too young to remember this, it was the president who was compared to Kennedy).  Politicians are nothing more than corrupt puppets waiting for their corporate, monetary rations.  The nation has become more divided than ever. The whole thing reminds me of the final moments of the Titanic as it slipped beneath the waves with screaming people clinging to its doomed hull.

It has become a total shit show.  The truth has become rarer than jadeite.  A government figure stands at a podium and tells you that Russia is planning a bombing of the US or its allies, yet, when asked for proof, they coldly look into the camera and say, “you dare question your government, if we say it is true then it is true”.  Wouldn’t that qualify as misinformation and shouldn’t the source be silenced.   In a moment of curiosity, a conservative politician had the unmitigated gall to write a letter to Rip Van POTUS (our president) asking why we want war with the Russians.  A fair question (as far as I am concerned), however, he was ostracized by the Press Secretary, who went as far as to suggest that he be banned from all social media, canceled, silenced, and even be labeled a traitor. 

Meanwhile, mainstream media continues to push lies as truth and when called to the carpet they claim to be experts on everything.  Proof of this manifested itself in just one incident of a female journalist of “the most trusted name in news”, sniffing a backpack, looking for traces of serin gas during the false flag event in Douma, Syria.  This idiotic episode became sheer comedy when a chemist noted that even traces of sarin gas can be debilitating if not fatal.  Why wasn’t this “journalist” plucked from the network and silenced for misinformation?  Strange what we are told is good information over that which is considered misinformation.  The deep state has succeeded in controlling narratives, society, and everything in between. 

After all, that is the new establishment-controlled group that is making the rules, we call them the “cancel culture”.  A group of neoliberals who are rapacious in their march to stop anyone who disagrees with them.  Having a wide range of opinions or viewpoints has always been the strength of what we consider a democracy.  The arena of ideas is a concept that keeps a country moving in a positive.  I will be the first to admit that there have been times when I felt that some ideas were stupid.  Hell, I went through the entire four years of the Orange POTUS administration feeling that way.

Recently some washed-up musicians threatened to pull their old, obscure music off of a podcast platform where they probably don’t sell 10 copies a month (optimistically), in order to force the platform to remove a popular podcaster.  This particular social star has a daily estimated number of 7-10 million listeners so from an economic standpoint—idiotic!  But the even more serious issue here is the effort to silence other opinions in the name of our newest norm, misinformation.  This is the new word used by the Deep State and its newly recruited safe-room alter-ego known as the Cancel Culture.

At the heart of this current controversy is the dreaded Covid-19 virus and its different variants.  An existential threat for sure, especially when it first hit our shores.  In the US alone nearly 1 million people have perished from the virus.  This pandemic has changed the course of our country forever.  It has also served to divide us as much as any other issue that plagues (no pun intended) our nation.  Let me be clear, I am vaccinated, stay six feet from most others, wear a mask, and will continue the process for the foreseeable future as I have seen evidence of the success of those efforts with my own eyes.  My life partner is a medical information person and has her finger solidly on the pulse of the pandemic.  Hell, when it comes right down to it, I do my best to keep a safe distance from most people during the flu season, let alone a pandemic.

The podcaster, who is under siege by scores of geriatric musicians, has had many guests on his podcast, each with their own opinions about many subjects.  I have had disagreements with some of his guests but overall, I find his podcast refreshing because it does air other views.  When we try to silence differing views and those that we disagree with, we put ourselves on a very dangerous, slippery slope.  An arena of different ideas is critical to understanding and fixing issues in any circumstance.  Imagine if we had never opened our minds to the possibility of the world being round, many non-believers of a round world wanted detractors sentenced to death.  The world would be a really small place had everyone stayed where they were.

The superstar podcaster stepped into some serious shyte by interviewing some scientists and doctors who disagree with the currently prevailing belief regarding vaccinations.  A couple of his guests flat out disagree about the effectiveness and safety of the vaccines currently being used.  There are many doctors out there who have weighed in with their support of the safety of the vaccines and there are some who disagree with their effectiveness and safety.  I don’t agree with the anti-vaxxers, but I am respectful of their opinion.  I examine as much data as possible and try to make an informed decision.   

There is plenty to debate on the matter of Covid, however, I digress and want to move on to a matter just as serious.  I understand that the podcast platform in question here is privately owned and not really subject to the intricacies of the US constitution.  Private companies have a right of refusal to serve any customer that they wish.  However, in this particular case Rip Van POTUS and the US government have put skin in the game.  Through his mouthpiece (press secretary) POTUS suggested that “more can be done” to stop the misinformation being distributed by the podcaster.  The podcaster platform has agreed to warning labels and linking to a Covid info sight.  But those moves do not seem to satisfy the White House’s needs for opinion control.

What does “should do more” mean in this instance?  Maybe shutting down the podcast completely forcing it onto some underground, dark web platform.  Maybe it is banning this podcaster from any provider on the internet.  My question is if these measures succeed and the podcast is shut down, where will this end?  Now that the US government has assumed a position against the podcast, they will be able to shut down virtually anyone who disagrees with them. POTUS has overstepped some boundaries here. There is an outcry to make the internet and any company, especially social media sites, public domain and subject to the laws of the US Constitution.

Many of those people who want this change are the same people who want this podcast taken down.  The day will come when the government and corporations finally violate the bounds of freedom, and we will want to challenge and protest their overreach.  But the control over speech that we will have surrendered will come back to bite us in our arses.  The platforms once free to the world will be controlled by totalitarianism, they will shut us down in an instant.  No opposing thoughts will be aired anywhere.  Your beliefs and opinions are stymied by oppressors who want you under their control.

Sound ridiculous to you?  You might want to consider reading Mein Kampf, a book which itself has been considered dangerous and has been banned in the past, yet it teaches us what hatred and control of people can do.  Maybe look at the Nazis manifesto and pay close attention to the part regarding book banning and burning (oh wait – currently happening in Tennessee and Mississippi) and control of propaganda censorship. In centuries past many philosophers had developed theories that cost them their lives as heretics.  I am an admitted socialist, my beliefs are diametrically different than conservatives and for that matter many so-called liberals, I am not a fan of the Republican or Democrat parties. Much of the conservative materials out there could easily be considered diatribe against my beliefs, however, I still read some of it. 

Another question here would be aren’t Americans smart enough to make their own decisions?  I can hear the liberal arrogance on this subject dripping out like a tapped maple tree to accuse the people who agree with this podcaster are too stupid to tie their own shoes.  Anyone who would believe anything from this podcast has to be an idiot right?  Really?  If that is the case, then why do so many of the so-called smart liberals crave self-driving cars?  Are they incapable of driving a car themselves or just lazy?  They can’t parallel park and for fuck sakes since they can’t be bothered while texting it is a true blessing to have sensors to stop the car before it hits a vehicle ahead of them.  The vehicles can help keep you in your own lane, I guess all of that practice was for nothing.  Also, while we are on the subject, be sure to watch all of the videos out there of self-driving cars engulfed in flames after slamming into a tree.  So, intelligent class when you call people stupid, should you be looking in the mirror?

So, we are now in this world of “Cancel Culture”, where a few people decide for all of us what is acceptable information versus what is not.  The arena of ideas has been closed, barricaded, or maybe burned down.  We no longer want to discuss or debate issues with differing ideas but rather listen to a few individuals who have labeled themselves as an expert or authority on a subject or topic.  We are expected to accept everything our government says as truth in spite of the fact that they sent us into a deadly war with no evidence or proof of the existence of WMDs. 

Whether you agree or disagree or even feel that someone with different ideas is stupid, you cannot have them silenced.  How many times have different ideas entered into a conversation in a business or family meeting?  Often, the ideas, even if not helpful can trigger other thoughts that could help solve the problem.  Our business world thrives on thinking outside of the box.  However, if those thoughts are not allowed to be brought up then you are doomed to live the rest of your life inside of the dreaded box.  And quite simply we will lose the right to speak our minds.

To advocate complete censorship or suppression of information is akin to the same fascism that many washed-up celebrities claim to be against.  Another example of this is the daughter of “Camelot-the Sequel” president.  She recently referred to some independent writers as “grifters”.  I find this quite hilarious as you can look up the word grifter in the dictionary and images of her mother and father are shown next to the definition.  This would be analogous to two pots calling the kettle black.  Her mother and father spent their entire presidency spewing lies and apocryphal myths.  And yet they were not canceled.   

Social media and podcast platforms now pose a real threat to the “Deep State’s” effort to control all narratives.  So, I guess by default, old, washed-up entertainers from the Camelot sequel era must pick up the ball and run with it.  All the supporters of the “Slick Willy” administration have always believed themselves to be smarter than everyone else.  Yet this effort to silence anyone who disagrees with them actually proves the opposite—they are idiots.  When we stop allowing a different angle on any of the issues to be heard, then we are truly on the road to some form of totalitarianism. 

After writing this piece and offering my opinion I will be classified as a “useful idiot” for the right-wing in this nation.  However, I would like to reiterate that I am a far-left-leaning person who stopped being a Liberal Democrat when the second coming of Camelot arrived.  I burned my Democrat voting card as the party stopped being for the people and became a money grifter (there’s that word again) machine.   My far-left beliefs sometimes put me at odds with the podcaster in question here.  But sometimes he and agree totally on issues as well.  I consider him a fair-minded person who is willing to listen to differing ideas, we should offer him the same courtesy. 

I know that the previous paragraphs were a little rough and maybe even a little flippant, so I want to get serious here for a moment.  The right to your opinion has long been a bedrock of US society.  When we stole this real estate from those who occupied it before us, we were going to build a new nation based on freedom and liberty.  Now we find some of our fellow citizens trying to remove one of our key freedoms, which is the right to free speech and your own opinion.  I am totally against any kind of threatening language or menacing dialogue towards any person or persons.  But a differing opinion is a part of the freedom and liberty proposition.

Moving forward we must be mindful of the freedoms that we still enjoy (although they seem to be disappearing every day) and preserve our core principles.  People have the right to stop doing business with anyone they please.  But what they don’t have the right to do is prevent others from using a business that they feel is off-track or wrong.  That within itself is a matter of opinion that they are free to express themselves.  However, denying someone else their opinion is not the right of a few who feel empowered by their history or social power (however outdated it might be). As always, this is just my opinion (so please don’t try to block me).

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen 2022 All Rights Reserved

Every December 31^st the champagne corks pop, party blowers blare and auld lang syne is slurred from the drunken lips of revelers worldwide.  It is time to start a new year, a chance to be a better person, country, and world.  Promises are made through resolutions that fade sooner than the millions of hangovers that occur on January 1.  “This year will be better”, we will all proclaim in a moment of jauntiness, usually inspired by the alcohol-induced amnesia of reality.  Yes, we will start anew and this time we will do it better.  Or will we?

Will we make a serious, scientific, nonpolitical effort to reduce carbon emissions and slow down the crazy-ass changes to our environment in 2022?   Or will it be business as usual for the oil companies whose profits seem never-ending?  With all the magnificent technological breakthroughs we have seen, isn’t there just one that could reduce the use of fossil fuels by say 30 percent?  Maybe we should use fossil burners less or would that impinge on our beloved freedoms?  Forget about leaving a better world for our grandchildren, after all, who gives a shyte, it will be their problem to solve.

A major sex offender’s handler of underaged girls has been rightfully convicted and deservedly faces decades behind bars.  But wait, where is the list of high-profile sex offenders and pedophiles that is out there?  The list probably includes two former presidents.  In 2022 will the rich and powerful walk away again from crimes that are of the most despicable and heinous in nature?  We are talking about our children (often referred to as underaged women) being sexually assaulted by these bastards of money and power like amorous reprobates and perverts.  Or will pedophilia be legal and acceptable for those who wield unending power?  Do we remain in the days of kingdoms and monarchies where underaged women (children) are brought to the kings at their discretion and pleasure?

It seems that we are getting close to the extradition of a man whose only crime was publishing the truth.  I guess 2022 will be the year when the military-industrial complex will be able to protect their war chest from those who expose the use of weapons against the innocent.  Wars crimes in our country are constantly justified as the protection of American freedom and security.  Let me get this straight, our freedom depends on the murder of innocent men, women, and children?  What it comes down to is the fact that our war-mongering military leaders believe war crimes are necessary and must be hidden from US citizens.  And for those who pass themselves off as the media, be warned the conviction of this man will end the 4^th Estate and the quest for truth.  Keep this in mind as Great Britain acquiesces and follows the US commands like a trained puppy and extradites a man who is only guilt is telling the truth.

Will this new year bring us politicians who will no longer use insider information to broker huge stock gains for themselves?  The dried-up old prune who is currently the speaker of the house tried to justify insider trading by saying “we are a free-market economy”.   Well, it seems obvious that the free-market economy means something different for those of us who are not in power.  Insider trading is a crime that is punishable by imprisonment.  This double standard is obnoxious and more than demonstrates that laws are different for the rich and powerful.  Meanwhile, the serfs have laws that keep them dumb and poor.

I wonder if 2022 will help us to understand that an epidemic that can kill hundreds of thousands if not millions of people should be fought with our cooperation?  Sometimes we have to do things that are not comfortable to us to help save fellow citizens.  When something becomes a “clear and present danger” to our society we need to work together to stop it.  Instead of burning orthodoxy to the ground before we even fully understand what we are dealing with, we need to have complete and truthful information.  This, of course, would require better leadership from our government and the medical officials.  Instead of allowing a criminal to have complete charge of the medical information, maybe we could have a group of well-vetted independent medical advisors to help us solve the issue.  Once again, I do not feel optimistic about this, but it is my hope that sense and sensibility will prevail, and science will become science again.

While we are on the subject of the pandemic, will 2022 see us put the one single person who is responsible for the Covid mess in prison?  This person is the US chief medical officer who lied about the appropriation of funds to a Chinese lab for the sake of “gain of function”.  Then, quite coincidentally, the virus escapes the lab and completely destroys what is left of our already failing society.  Several documents proving this guilt had surfaced but somehow were disappeared. Our government blames China for this mess, maybe they are complicit but so is the US my dear friends.  The truth is everything centers around one key figure.

In 2021 we swore in a President (Rip Van POTUS) who promised to be a “unifier” of the nation.  Will 2022 see him keep his promise or will he continue to stumble over his own dick as he struggles to stay awake at the podium?  Let me be very clear I supported the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and the end of all the useless wars that we are involved in.  What I didn’t agree with was trying to sneak out of the country like a thief in the night, which was an obvious failure, was he involved in that decision?  This president has a majority of the House and the Senate votes but cannot craft and pass a bill that helps the citizens of the United States.  Maybe 2022 will be the year that ole Rip gets it right and brings the nation together (not holding my breath).

Surely 2022 will be the year that we destroy all corporations and in their place build cooperatives where everyone can make a decent living.  The new world of employment will rid itself of the dictatorship of the old corporate guard and replace it with egalitarian management where everyone is involved in decisions.  What excitement there will be when everyone gets the chance to be boss for a week or maybe even a month.  We would all have a say in what direction our cooperatives will go. 

While we are on the subject of cooperatives, perhaps, we could increase our manufacturing capabilities here at home and get off of the global stage. Through a network of coop manufacturing, food production, healthcare, and all other products and services we could build a better economy, one that functions for everyone instead of the upper 1%.  The bottleneck that occurred in the Port of Los Angeles this year was clear evidence of our dependence on China and Southeast Asia for many of our simple manufactured goods.  You might recall in 2020 we did not have the manufacturing capacity to build medical masks (for Covid) we had to rely on other nations that couldn’t meet our needs.  What if we could create a new economy where we build most if not all of our needs right here at home.  No more bottlenecks or shortages. 

I have high hopes that 2022 will see the country get Universal Healthcare.  I am of course being facetious, as long as huge profits are available to big pharma, insurance companies, and other corporate bloodsuckers nothing will change on that front.  Like an allegorical fairy tale, the so-called knights promise to slay the dragon (current healthcare system) and replace it with a unicorn (single-payer system), but the dragon remains more powerful and stayed than the faux knights.  Imagine a situation where every US citizen could stop fearing illness and having to file for bankruptcy for a cure.

What if 2022 was the year that all of our troops came home to defend our home shores?  Wow, that would be great, no more killing to force our hegemony on the rest of the world.  We could be known as a peaceful nation and not the evil empire trying to impel every other nation to bow before us.  We could use the savings from a reduced military budget (over $940 billion in 2021) to give skills to returning soldiers through education, enabling them to work in our newly formed cooperative workshops and farms.  While we are at it maybe we could actually be respected and admired instead of being viewed as the dominant world power.  The current budget of $750 billion ($940 billion actually spent) would go a long way in solving hunger and education.

Could 2022 be the year where we get our heads out of our collective arses and maybe mimic the education systems of successful nations?  We could benchmark the programs that have been successful in math and science, two areas where we are failing.  If we do not step up to the level of other nations our children and grandchildren will not stand a chance.  We need to extract politics from these programs and focus on the core curriculums that prepare students to make a difference in their world.  Also, if I am elected, I will involve parents in the process (don’t run out to the polls, I am not running for anything).

I know, 2022 will be the year that gun violence stops.  I certainly agree that new gun legislation is necessary for the US, I mean who the fuck needs a military-grade weapon other than the military of course?  Are the deer getting crafty and require many rounds to bring them down? Or perhaps all game animals are now sporting armor that requires large piercing ammo to put them on the dinner table.  I suppose having 50 uninterrupted rounds will enable duck hunters to bring down the whole flock, what a bonanza.  Military-grade and any of the bump-stock enhanced weapons should be on the extinct list for the average citizen.  However, let me also say that the deep-rooted cause of these shootings is societal problems.  I say it again, if we build an egalitarian society for all people, we can solve many of the societal problems that plague us.

In the new year, we will stop producing and using large quantities of plastic, right?  Or will we continue to create billions of tons of polymer products and by extension build new islands in our oceans.  There are already Texas-size swaths of plastic in our seas and dotting the landscape.  Because recycling programs are almost extinct in our country and no other nation wants to buy the shit from us anymore, the situation is growing dire.  If we continue down this path, I see a day when foot tours from New York to London will be possible.

It is my belief that 2022 will be the year that we stop blaming Russia for everything that plagues us in our malfeasant government (once again being facetious).  Whether it is elections where the Democrat candidates lose or are allegedly hacked (which usually exposes the lies that they constantly hide from the public).  And most recently, the accusations of Russia’s imminent attack on Ukraine.  Russia has no desire to be in a full-scale war, they want more to be involved in doing business in Europe.  The US destabilized that region by ousting a democratically elected president via a political coup.  The current presidential administration has reappointed one of the officials who lead the coup and has once again assigned her to that region as an undersecretary.  It is the US whose business is war!

2022 will most certainly be the year where athletes and sports owners will dedicate some of the hundreds of millions of their earnings to nurses and teachers.  Or perhaps to the millions of Americans who live paycheck to paycheck.  You know, the masses who are struggling to put a meal on the table and can’t afford healthcare.  Conservative economists will point out that world-class athletes bring in more revenue than teachers and nurses.  Perhaps a valid point but let’s examine the value of teachers and nurses   20 years from now, by then most athletes will be retired and will have no benefit to the millions who watch them now.

Then there is the really big change for me that will happen in 2022 we will finally have a third political party to challenge the corrupt uniparty (urban word) of neoconservatives and neoliberals. Our two-party system has morphed into one aligned evil like a caterpillar turning into a snake.  Many other nations have found that having multiple political parties function better than just two, especially when those two parties become a monarch partnership.  The “Peoples Party” has been organized and offers some different ideas that would bring a wider variety to the political landscape.  Unfortunately, the Democrat party (you remember them, the party of the people) has blocked the newly formed party from being able to be on the ballot in many states.  It is time for more choices.  I know some of you will say, “but there already are other choices”, yes but they are generally on the fringe.  The People’s Party is more aligned with the good things that the Democrat party used to be about.  

Could 2022 be the year that the media, intel community, Wall Street and our government come clean with the American public about everything?  Maybe release all unredacted documents about the Kennedy assassination.  What are they afraid to tell us anyway?  Even if someone else besides Oswald is guilty, there is virtually no one left to convict, most of them are dead.  And there was the bullshit proclaimed by the CIA that it could harm US security, is Nikita Khrushchev still alive and waiting to exact his revenge?  The truth shall set you free!

2022 will be the turning point for food, it will actually be healthy and affordable.  This one is laughable, head to your grocery store, pick up a frozen pizza and just before you put it in the oven, take a moment and read the label on the back.  There are more fucking chemicals used on your pizza than an embalmer uses to preserve a body for family viewing.  Check all of your other food packages and you find poisons that the Geneva Convention banned back in the 1800s.  Let’s build those cooperatives and produce more food locally and cook it at home.

And hopefully, this is the year when we stop using the term “woke” to describe everyone who has suddenly become aware that there is a lot of lousy shit happening in our world.  I hate the expression as it invokes connotations that we have just been awakened to find the world is a mess.  We have been awake the whole time, we have simply walked through all of this bull shyte with blinders on.  Everyone refuses to believe that this immorality and corruption really exists.  Get fucking serious here, it does, so stop claiming that you have just “woke” to discover things are a little less savory than you had hoped!

There is so much more that I could have brought up here, but you get the gist of the matter.  It is time for us to start making changes for the people in our nation, the assholes who are in charge are not going to do it.  We need to start in our communities, at the grassroots level.  It will take a long time, we didn’t get into this mess overnight.  Little changes can make a big difference, and we are running out of time to make them.  Maybe 2022 will be a better year and all of these issues will be made right. Sure, and I just saw a pig fly by my window.  As always, this is just my opinion.  Happy New Year!

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen 2022 All Rights Reserved

Yes, that time of year is upon us again, the yuletide, lights, families, and of course one of the oldest of traditions, the Christmas tree.  But something is amiss this year, there are fewer presents under that tree.  Oh, the humanity!  Traditionally, by this point in December, there are so many presents under the tree that people trip over them.  The cat’s spot to curl up under the tree has been commandeered by all the retail delights covered with colorful wrap.

Alas, this year will be a little different as Santa has run into a bit of a snafu.  Since late 2020 there has been a bottleneck of ships coming into America’s ports (mainly California).  Most of the ships have containers loaded with products made in China and Southeast Asia.  You know, our Christmas presents.  The delay in the port of Los Angeles accelerated in the fall of 2020 and has not eased (that will teach you for trying to avoid the Christmas rush).  Anxious times for many who believed they had accomplished their annual travails early.

There are a couple of issues here that must be examined.  First of all, the bottleneck of things coming in from overseas is not limited to Christmas gifts.  Most of our so-called “razor blade” items or disposable products are no longer manufactured here in the US.  Most of the electronic chips (manufactured in China) that virtually run everything from cell phones to refrigerators to automobiles have been delayed for several months.  In the auto industry, the shortage is so dire that the production of many models has ceased until the new chips arrive.   The shortage of chips has also led to the increased cost to consumers as fewer products are being produced (you know that supply/demand thing).

The other issue here, one that should be equally disturbing, is the necessity of numerous, expensive gifts under the tree.  The commercialization of Christmas has been happening in this country since the 1950s.  Televisions are completely flooded by Christmas advertisements touting all the best upper-middle-class gifts for Christmas.  If you watch closely, every household in the holiday commercials is owned by the upper-middle class, near wealthy lawyers or bank officers.  Rarely have I seen commercials touting gifts for a family living in a rundown mobile home park.  If the ad was about a poor family car for Christmas it would have featured a slimy, leisure suit-wearing man offering you a deal even if you are unemployed.

Many corporate retail behemoths place all of their bets on the holiday seasons for the year’s profits.  Heaven and Hell help us if we fail to have a profitable holiday season.  Few gifts today have any warmth or charm that was not designed in a boardroom and produced in a child labor camp in Southeast Asia.  Once upon a time, holiday gifts were purchased in cozy shops that offered free hot chocolate.  Today we buy gifts in a large hangar-like building where the only thing being handed out is the newest variant of Covid.  You can, however, brew your own hot chocolate while shopping at home, online.

Gone are the handcrafted gifts that were built with love and pride in a small workshop somewhere in a wooded community that would show up on a holiday card.  While gifts have always been a part of the Christmas holiday dating back to the days of the Roman Empire those gifts were handmade or grown.  I can only imagine just how cheap frankincense and myrrh are today on the mega online corporate retail sites.  To be fair, you can still order handmade crafts from overseas, but fuck knows if you will get them by Memorial Day. 

There is also the issue of trying to outdo yourself every year with the selection of a special or unique gift.  Hell, the holidays are the equivalent of a tourist trap, where you get off a ship or a plane and are bombarded by gift vendors.  Who knew that one day of the year could create a dilemma that can last for months?  The mental torture that some go through only to end up calling the gift recipient for ideas.  The one I love the most is the request for a list of gift ideas that is returned with the request for better gift ideas.  Really, like I don’t know what the hell I want.      

I know that I am being flippant here, we are all aware of the hellish homage that holiday gift-buying has become.  Let me see if I can put this all into perspective.  First, the shipping bottleneck has certainly demonstrated the need to build more stuff on our own shores.  However, that is an argument for another day. Next, we are all trapped in this retail matrix of hell that has taken a season of peace and joy and turned it into a war of gluttony and materialism.  You know that things have gone south when one day of the week is renamed “black”.  When the world becomes a monolith society of mindless drones who follow the annual command to go out and recklessly spend their precious dollars on things that no one wants or wears.

Shouldn’t the holidays be a time of love and friendship where the best gift is health and peace?  Maybe it’s a time we just share eggnog (preferably spiked) and toast the health and well-being of loved ones and friends.  Hand-crafted or grown gifts are still acceptable and have every bit the sentiment and meaning as high tech, forced labor devices.  Weep not for the gifts that didn’t arrive and are not under the Christmas tree, but rather cherish the gifts that can be given anytime without purchase—peace, life, and love!  Happy Holidays and as always, this is just my opinion.

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen

The Grumpy Old Fart Citizen 2021 All rights Reserved