‘Strange days, indeed” sang John Lennon in what would be his last musical statement in 1980. Yoko Ono said after Lennon’s murder that “John felt the world had lost its course.” We’ve circled the sun 43 times since, and his prophetic words seem to resonate even more today. These are, indeed, strange days. I thought…
Author: gary1164
I'm an advertising executive and former actor/producer
I Have A Truth Ache
Republican candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy, has released his “10 Commandments “ of Truth that will surely appeal to conservative voters. Ramaswamy’s TRUTH: Here we go… 1)God is real. To whomever so wishes to believe. The Constitution protects that, as well as the belief that God is not real or no more than a figment of organized…
A League Of His Own; the Trump Legacy
A popular comment among Republicans I know is: “I don’t like Trump as a person and I don’t like the way he talks, but he did great things for our country.” It’s a way of absolving themselves from aligning with a horrible human being and still feel good about supporting that horrible human being. So, the question…
Christians, Deists, and Atheists, Oh My!
200 years is a long time to keep anything going. Consider the world 200 years ago and you won’t find much that resembles the world today; not in the United States, anyway. 200 years ago the War of 1812 rocked our newly won sovereignty to its core as residual resentments between our Union and Britain…
Which Way Do We Go?
A school board outside of St Louis revoked an anti-racism resolution that had been created after the George Floyd murder to address discrimination in a mostly white school district. The school board, three years later, is now led by new conservative members. Here’s what the resolution pledged to the community: “We will speak firmly against…
“What so proudly we hail”
Our flag has been getting a lot of attention. From flag waving to burning to being displayed alongside a Progress Pride flag. Republican Senator, Roger Marshall, of Kansas has filed legislation that would prohibit the LGBTQ Pride flag from federal buildings after Republicans condemned the White House for displaying it between two American flags. A…
My Mother’s Touch
Celebrations of mothers trace back to ancient Greek and Roman society. They honored the mother goddesses Rhea and Cybele. The tradition was carried on by early Christians as “Mothering Sunday” when the faithful returned to their “mother church” for a special service. This transformed into a more secular holiday where children would present their mothers…
Criticism Culture (a defense of Pauly Shore)
During the recent Oscar telecast, host, Jimmy Kimmel made a joke about actor/comedian, Pauly Shore. Kimmel quipped to the audience: “Thirty-one years ago, in 1992, Brendan Fraser and Ke Huy Quan were in a movie together, ‘Encino Man.’ Two actors from ‘Encino Man’ are nominated for Oscars. What an incredible night it must be for the two of you and…
A City upon a Hill
There has been a refrain gaining traction for several years among Republicans (conservatives if that feels better) and it is defining liberal ideals as forces destroying America. Republican rhetoric in every corner is heckling any progressive trends. Republicans view “woke” and “cancel” culture as the agents corroding values they hold sacred. They hold that their…
The Dismantling Of Public Education
Once upon a time, Iowa ranked at or near the top in student achievement. Today, some assessments rank us in the middle and falling. Iowa GOP legislators believe it is public schools and teachers who are to blame for not holding themselves and students to higher standards. If we use just a modicum of logic,…