Deceptive Mailing by the Bush Auto Group Nissian Dealership in Pennsylvania

Car salesmen have always had an unsavory reputation. Sometimes they are more fraudulent then others.
I received a letter on Monday By the Bush Auto Group with a fantastic offer. The only problem was it was good only on the previous Saturday.

But what the hey? I was willing to give it shot to see if they would honor the letter's offers. I had no illusions in this regard. But I wanted to know what excuses they would use to alibi not paying the promised "Above market Reimbursement allowance" and the "additional $4,600." 

Last time I did this I was sure they were going to give me a great deal. But they showed me the fine print, and I cam home with a Wawa Shorti hoagie coupon.

The letter clearly states they would give me $12,300 for my 11 year old Altima, and $8,000 off on a new car and zero dollars down and zero percent interest.

From the small print on the back page. The ++ Refers to the Kelly Blue book value with a deduction of 20 cents a mile for every 10,000 miles per year. My car is 11 years old, and 105,000 miles. No problem there.

The + over the + reads, "May receive $4,620 more than the estimated Kelly Blue Book Fair Market trade-in value. But on the front, it clearly states "You Will Receive An Additional $4,620" So I have every reason to expect $12,300 as a trade in.

Then there is the line, "Plus, I Will Give You $8,000+ this Saturday. The + on the back de-references to "... Up to $8,000 of the MSRP of select new Nissan models..."

All told, about $20,000 and a Target gift card ;)

I knew this wasn't going to go my way, but I wanted go through the experience for when I do need a new car.

The first one the $8,000, that only applied to Nissan Armada's. We didn't get down to reasonable sedans. And truth to tell, that one is a legit base on the small print.

Now the $7,710. I was told that only applied to vehicles with "Sport" or "Pro" trim packages. It does not say that in the letter I received, but it did say it on the template on the desk of Chris Gassert. In pencil. I wish I had taken a picture of it. But this is what it looked like:

His note was in pencil, and where my name and car is a bracketed key words.

"My letter does not say that!"

"We have lawyers that wrote this, so it is solid", was the reply.

I don't think so Chris. Considering the template was on your desk.

He also told me he wasn't going to give me $12,000 for my Altima that was worth $4,000. Condition unknown.

"I did not write this letter! You did! Knowing full well it was 11 years old. This is just fraud!"

"And you knew it's condition, your maintenance department has been taking care of it for 11 years."

And he stated they would not honor the $4,600, because it was Monday. I pointed out that it only arrived in my mail box on Monday, and they didn't mail them out soon enough to get there earlier than Saturday. 

Things went down hill after that.

They are not going to win

I am a student of history.  And it gives me perspective of things that happened before.

The causes of inflation after a pandemic?  This is a well documented phenomenon of the Black plague and the Spanish flu.

The conquering of Iraq leading to 20 years of grief.  Everyone saw that one coming.

Parallels to the fall of Rome or the Weimar Republic to our current situation?  All too clear.

While the current administration is running with Hitler's playbook that led to the rise of Nazi Germany, there are some major differences.

The Weimar Republic was only 14 years old when Hitler was elected.  First it was a young republic.  It was severely damaged by war, plague, and economic collapse.  With few institutions that could stand in the way of fascism.

The US on the other hand has institutions that are older than the country, like Harvard.  The fascists currently in the federal government were hoping for the a win by blitzkrieg.  And just like the Germans found out, you need a strong base to operate from.  Germany had built up the largest industrial base in Europe.  However, it was not larger than the Commonwealth, by a significant amount.  Add the Russians, which had a smaller economic base, but were really, really good, or ruthless, take you pick, at optimizing what they needed to produce war materials, and let everything else be damned.

As a side note, Russia could only do that because the US sent them enough food to feed the country for 3 years, and 425,000 trucks so the Soviets could focus exclusively on tank production. 

In the US, resistance is building up.  The nonvoters in the last election are seeing that their lack of a decision, was a decision.  Some of the more moderate fanatics that voted for the pedophile-protector-in-chief have been discouraged.

The resistance is basically taking it's cue's from Martin Luther King.  Peaceful protests.  Maintain engagement.  Show them our numbers and that we are not going away.  Most of all, play this game BY THE RULES.  Why?  Morally, it IS because we are better than them.  Practically, because we know we are going to win.  

There's no throne, there is no version of this where this administration comes out on top... Either by impeachment, or death, or forced retirement, that sick and evil man will be gone.  And the without his vile presence, his government enabler's power will fade.

Their side is not playing by the rules.  Constantly breaking every one.  With the full consent of the republican controlled congress.  The Republicans are placing party before country, and are seeing the deal they made with the devil for what it is, but most cannot force themselves to admit it.

So they will continue to break the rules.  ICE has killed 33 that we know of in the last year.  ICE murdered Keith Porter, an American Citizen, on New Years Eve.  But that didn't seem to be visible enough, so the assassinated a white woman in a suburban setting, in broad daylight, videoed from 4 different angles.  Then followed up by assassinating a VA nurse.  While he was on the ground, held down by ICE agents.

Their murderers are still at large. 

As far as we know, ICE is responsible for well over 100 people since the pedophile in the oval office took charge.   

To be clear, this was just to provoke a response.  They are now waiting for the next traffic stop by ICE to be met with deadly force.  Or the next time ICE goes to knock a door down, and are greeted with a dozen bullets through the door.  This to give them an excuse to lock the country down.  At this point, it is going to happen.  

They think they want this to go violent.  But they really don't.  Members of ICE need to understand, that we are still playing by the rules.  We are playing nice.  What happens when the "Blue" states mobilize their national guard to disarm ICE.  Who are you going to bet on?  Experienced combat veterans, armed with tanks and other armored fighting vehicles?  Organized to fight in combat?  Or a pack of ICE agents trained only in intimidation?  12,000 out of 22,000 having only received their ill fitting Kevlar vests in the last 8 months?  

And what about the "Red" state national guard?  Surely they would...  No. Texas is not going to ship their boys to Illinois for a ground war.   Because, at best, that is a one on one situation.  And Illinois also has a very well armed citizenry.  Guns are not the exclusive prerogative of southern states.  And the "Blue" states are not going to invade the south, again.  

I have been to a number of protests, and by the honking of the horns, I am estimating that the true supporters of the most corrupt administration ever in our country, is about 1 in 16.  

ICE will murder more people before this is done.  But they are not going to win.  

 

A Measles Update

Measles Update

I'm sending this to my email list that normally is about gaming.  Mainly because most of us are of a certain age, and like me, may not be sure if they ever received a measles vaccine.

And no, I am not going to be putting out regular missives like with Covid.  The sky is not falling here.

If you are not sure you are vaccinated, you can ask your doctor for a "blood titer test", specifically Measles IgG antibody test.  This will tell you if you are immune or not.  You can proceed from there. You really do not want this.  

From what my doctor told me, the early vaccines in the early 60's may not have the life long persistence expected.  The more effective vaccine was released in 1968.

A Penn Medicine office near me was shut down because of an infected patient. Penn Medicine is now offering the test to everyone they see.

In my case, I simply did not know.  I know my mother had measles in 1962, when she was pregnant with my sister.   So I was exposed, but I do not recall if I had them or not.  The military gave me a number of injections in 1975, but I do not know if measles was among them.  I did hear there was a measles outbreak in boot camp a couple weeks later.  So again, I do not know.

But I will know in a few days.

 

Protest Experiences

Having been to a number of protests by now, I want to share some of the experiences.

Have a check list. Mine is here:  https://phil-bythenumbers.blogspot.com/2026/01/protest-preparations.html

All in all, the company is pleasant. I'll shift positions about every 20 minutes or so and have different people to talk to.

Getting feed back from the drive-bys is good and gives a good measure of where you stand. The anti-administration to supporter ration is about 16-1. There is the occasional bird flipping, motor revving, unimaginative F##k you, and the strange, "get a job!" Strange in that it is a fairly common retort. Enough where there must be a common source in their propaganda. Strange in that the protests are on Saturday, and obviously they are not working either...

197 against the current administration, 12 for.  A 16-1 ratio.

At 16-1. That means 6.25% of the drive bys are for the illegal acts of the corrupt-leader-in-chief. You know what 6.25% is on a bell curve? A very vocal minority, approaching the lunatic fringe.

Some post protest comments about a bunch of old people on the lines. And there some much older than me. Now think about it. How bad must the situation be to get a 75 year old out in the rain and cold to protest? Look to your elders folks, they know their mind. And they are not doing it for themselves, but for you.

The birth of an Urban Legend:

I have been to a number of locations. With a group of 300 in Swathmore, Pa, we were being harassed by initially 3 cars with loud engines and way over done with the pedophile-in-chief's paraphernalia. They went through the intersection several times before two cars got bord and drove away. The largest truck made a couple of passes and then decided to park catty-corner to our group. Putting up a sign, "Honk if you love T###p". There was some grumbling and anger from our corner, but cooler heads were prevailing.


My opinion was we needed him. The number of honks he received was minimal, see 50-1 above.
I told someone I think I'll go over there and give him a bottle of water. It was hot, and it would not due to have him pass out from heat stroke.

6 months later, another location. I had related this story a number of times. And someone this morning told me the same story, only it happened in Pottsgrove. How many times has this story been repeated now? Who knows? But it is interesting to witness an urban legend being made.

Protest Preparations

Let someone know where you are.
Hat
First aid kit
Dress for weather

Protest list
Name Tag
Sunblock
water
swim goggles
n95 mask
Cash

Hearing Aids
List with emergency contacts
484 ### ####
610 ### ####
Hotel/car location

writing implement
disable bio-metrics on phone.
reading glasses
snack bars
pills

ACLU Lawyer list
intake@acludc.org
202-601-4269
(202) 457-0800

Public Defender
(202) 824-2463

Tariff Caused Bankruptcies in 2025

Tariffs were a contributing factor to a significant surge in U.S. corporate bankruptcies in 2025, which reached their highest level since 2010. Over 717 companies filed for bankruptcy through November 2025, a 14% increase from 2024, with many citing tariffs as a primary cause.

 

In contrast to previous patterns that were dominated by retail bankruptcies, this year’s impacted industries were primarily industrial, manufacturing and transportation.  

First Brand, a 2.5 billion dollar company that provides parts to the auto industry.

iRobot, maker of Rhomba.  Now owned by a Chinese company, Picea.

Spirit Airlines.

Wolfspeed, a 7.5 billion dollar company that makes semiconductors.

Ligado Networks.  A telecommunications and satellite company.  But with 7.5 billion dollars of debt, this one may have been in the works regardless.

2U, valued at 1.2 billion, builds and supports educational programs.

Tyson foods shuttering a beef processing plant in Nebraska.  This was caused by other countries no longer accepting American beef due to tariffs on their products.

Osage and Justice, both beef processing, also  "exited", cattle operations.

 

 

 

Infra-Man

True story. I saw Infra-man in the theater in 1977. Freshly out of Navy radar school, laughed my ass off at the blueprints.

Years go by. I saw a copy of the movie on VHS tape in a discount bin.

After watching it with more jaded eyes, it was still a riot.
My wife, however, was seriously reconsidering her life choices.

Decades go by.

I'm at "Blobfest". Phoenixville, Pa, honors the making of the movie, "The Blob", by closing main street in front of the movie theater the Blob attacks. There is a lot of kitchy stands put up, cos-players, and...
a young man sporting an Infra-man tee shirt????
40 years after this one shot wonder and someone made a fresh tee shirt?
We talked....
I could see his girl friend's eyes glaze over and with the thought, "Oh my god, he found a friend."

Another decade goes by.

I'm at a gaming event, "OttoDotCon", Née "The Weekend", where the evening is spent "MST3000ing" a truly bad movie.
One of the choices was Infra-man!
Totally worthy of MST3000.
If anything, the movie has improved with age.

The movie can be seen on YouTube here.

 

Coronavirus, End of Year 2025

It's been more than a year since my last "state of the Covid."  Because, well, it was largely samo-samo.  Variants come into being, prosper, fade.  Some surges in the numbers, which I have long stopped tracking, followed by retreats.  

 

France has completed phase 4 studies on Covid-19 vaccines.  One of the many advantages of universal health care is that there is a very large database to work with.  In this case, some 29 million individuals, ages 18 to 59, for a period of 4 years.  23 million were vaccinated by the mRNA Moderna and Pfizer.

 

Short form.  Vaccinated individuals had a 74% lower risk of death from severe COVID-19.

 

There was noticed a slight increase for Myocarditis. However, that is also a symptom of Covid.  And getting Myocarditis through Covid is much more devastating with the virus running rampant through your system than from the vaccine just boosting your immune system.

 

And vaccinated individuals consistently had a lower risk of death, regardless of the cause. Mortality was 29% lower within 6 months following COVID-19 vaccination.  Including oddly. boosting the overall survival rates some cancer patients when given before their treatments. 

 

As to why the this may be could be partially due a to "healthy-vaccine" effect.   Where healthier individuals opt for vaccination.  The reverse of this is "frailty-related" bias, where those in poorer health may avoid it.

 

See the Jama article here... 

Today is Dec 8

Today is Dec 8.  On this day, my sister and me are the same age.

But she has been in an urn some 18 years now.  Her life destroyed by cocaine and alcohol.   To her children, she served as an example how drugs have consequences beyond the immediate victim.

Of her children, she would be proud. From adversity, each one has blazed their own path into the world—razing a little hell along the way. Each has carved out a life marked by resilience, courage, and success.

Tracy Lynn Gardocki, 1977

They are innovators, dreamers, and doers. They have built careers, families, and legacies that speak to the strength instilled in them. And while their journeys were not without hardship, they carried forward the lessons of perseverance and the spirit of independence that defined their upbringing.

 Yes, she would be proud, as are we all.

 

The Oath to the Constitution

I noticed nearly silence by the many republican supporters over the issues of the last 8 weeks.  Like on the topic of the Republican controlled house of representatives taking an 6 week vacation in order to to keep the Epstein files from being voted on.  

The administration insisting that it was the D's, and not the R's that was holding up food aid, wasn't getting any traction. 

That the Democrats were showing up for work in congress throughout the shutdown.  Crickets. 

The release of  some Epstein emails that proved that DJT lied yet again about his relationship being broken off with Epstein.  There was shock, but no one was standing up and supporting him.

That he knew what was going on the island is almost a certainty, still quiet.

That DJT's banner waver in congress, MTG,  is resigning in disgust, and now needs extra security.  Whimpers.

But 6 lawmakers urging military members to "refuse illegal orders". And social media just explodes.

Many of the shouting is from veterans.  A lot of them who have been quiet during the big reveals as this administration continues to torture and fleece the country with their incompetence and malfeasance, suddenly found their voices.

Their claims that these lawmakers are committing treason and sedition fall flat in the face of the culture of the US Military.  The US Military is almost unique in the world.  We swore an oath to the Constitution of the US.  Not the president, the Constitution.  It reads, "I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God." 

Yes, it does say obey orders of the officers and regulations up to the President.   But the overriding part of the oath is ..."support and defend the Constitution"... 

Before someone tries to legalize the wiggle room here.  This plaque is mounted at West Point.  Where future Army officers  see it for 4 years:

 

The priority is LAW over ORDERS.

10's of millions have sworn the oath.  That there is a duty to disobey ILLEGAL orders was taught in boot camp, to millions of soldiers and sailors.  

65% of veterans voted for the DJT.  See here...  Why?  I think it was down to they were not going to vote for a black woman.  And were willing to accept the crap faux news was putting out.  About the migrants that were NOT taking their jobs, or the few dozen trans athletes in collegiate sports.  That was just an excuse they were telling themselves to justify voting for the white man, who demonstrated his incompetence in the first term, causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans.  And leading an insurrection against the Republic.

Which was a violation of his oath as well.  It was obvious to everyone.  

The last 10 months have shown them what a deal with the devil they had made.  Many of them are working their way, whether they realize it or not, through 7 steps to acceptance.  Shock and denial, those we have seen a lot of in the last 10 months.  Now many are on step 3, Anger.  They know, that by supporting this con-man, that he was guilty of sedition and treason.

What Mark Kelly and 5 other law makers, 4 of which are veterans as well, was hold up a mirror to them. And they are ashamed.    

 

 

 

Priorities for a Democratically controlled congress

Last edited Jan 1, 2026.  This will be updated when priorities are identified. 

This has been referred to as "Project 2028", we will see if the name sticks. 

Once they are back in charge the Democrats face the challenge as to what to do.  If you look to the UK or example, their conservatives,  their MAGA equivalent, were voted out last year, only to have the labor party struggle as to what to do next, and have come up with priorities that are silly, and not helpful at all.

For America, the priorities need to be:
Overturn Citizens United.  
    Corporations ARE NOT PEOPLE!  This is the highest priority as the flood of money will defeat all the other priorities.

Universal Health Care
    Oddly enough, with the Republicans killing the Obamacare subsidies, this may make this  doable, unifying those that can no longer access health insurance.  This needs to include abortion rights.

Impeach Donald Trump until it takes

     Pick one item.  Treason, impeach.  When the Senate votes to acquit, pick another.  Like violating 9 of the first 10 amendments. When the Senate votes to acquit, pick another.  Like the emoluments clause.   When the Senate votes to acquit, pick another. Committing fraud, like selling "Swiss Watches",  When the Senate votes to acquit, pick another. Defying the Supreme Court.   When the Senate votes to acquit, pick another. The list is endless. And he is adding to that list almost daily.  Just yesterday, agreeing to sell to the Saudi's F35 jets in exchange for continued business dealings with the desert kingdom.  By picking just one impeachable item and focusing on it, the trials are very short.  Make the Senate justify their votes.  With their reelection prospects dimming each time.

    Is this going to be expensive and a waste of time and money?  Yes.  Worth it, equally yes!  If he is allowed to flaunt the rules without penalty, then we are done as a country.  And that never ends well.  And if he is busy defending himself every other week in Congress, that is less time he is destroying the country.

Pass the Equal Rights Amendment.  Including codifying a Woman's rights to her own body.

Fix the immigration system.  Lets put that word "illegal" to bed for good.  Our current system allows for a fixed number of immigrants per country.  So Luxembourg (total number of actual applicants is about zero) is allowed the same number of immigrants as Mexico.  One existing exception is Ireland, which is allowed double the number.  Because Teddy Kennedy wrote the law way back when. 

Adjust the Tax brackets.  Introduce new brackets for over 10 million a year, and above.

Raise the exception for Social Security tax from $160,000 to something in the millions.
      
Pass the 3 of 6 of these items, and the Democrats can be assured the presidency in 2028.  Fail, and the Republican controlled media will eat them alive.  

Other items:

Statehood for Puerto Rico.
    We stole it from Spain over a century ago.  Puerto Rico has a population of over 3 million and less representation than than 21 states.  It is well past time they get their own senators.

 Defund ICE.
    We have to assume this organization is so corrupted as to be unsalvageable.

Defund Trump's pet construction projects.  The Arc-de-Trumpf and the ballroom. 

Defund foreign aid to Argentina.  40 Billion?  For what?

Put teeth in the Emoluments clause.  

Ban Stock Trading to members of Congress, and to the President, Vice President. the Cabinet and their staffs. 

Set an age or term limits to the Supreme Court.

Raise Federal minimum wage, and index it to the inflation rate.

Delegitimize Private Prisons.  Companies like GEO Group have caused widespread harm — including wrongful deaths, medical neglect, and exploitation.

Reinstate Veterans wrongfully dismissed by this administration. Every service member that left or forced from the service between 2025 and 2028 should receive a letter offering reinstatement.  This should include no loss in rank or seniority.  Indeed, their time out of service, 1-4 years should be added to time served, they had suffered enough for the honor of our country.

All non-citizens serving in the military should also be offered citizenship immediately.  Not some ambiguous "fast track." 

 

 

     

Declaring War on Harvard

The latest inanity by our dictator-wannabe.  

The legal eagles representing the i'm-a-genius-i-just-passed-my-cognitive-test-in-chief have decided to to go to war with that bastion of free thought, Harvard University. It is a power play where they want to bring the FULL FORCE OF THE GOVERNMENT to intimidate the lesser entities.  Going for a surrender without a fight.  It worked against some high priced legal firms.  It worked against some smaller universities.

But this is Harvard.  Harvard said, "bring it."

They decided to strip Harvard of it's federal grants.  

Harvard derisively snorted.

They threatened to revoke  Harvard's permissions to educate foreign students.  Harvard raised an single eyebrow.

Lets put this in perspective.  Harvard is, quite literally, older than the country.  By some 150 years.  

There were Harvard graduates at the first Tea Party.  

Harvard alum's signatures are on the Declaration of Independence.  

8 presidents, including 2 recent, are Harvard alums.  

 

They have bookshelves older than the country.

Google "Famous Harvard Graduates," and you get 4 PAGES is just Nobel Laureates.  3 pages of Supreme Court Justices, though admittedly most in other countries.  Pages of other notable LEGAL figures.  And frankly so many journalists, writers, film personalities that you will wear your finger out scrolling through them.

The Turnip in the Oval Office always believes he is operating from a position of strength.  And sadly, this is true most of the time.  And when he is rebuked, his tactic is always to double down.  

Harvard told him to buzz off when he wanted them to trash what he claims are DEI policies.  

So he doubled down with the threat to rescind 2 billion dollars in various grants.  Harvard has $55 billion in endowments.   There are living Nobel laureates in economics from Harvard.  I'm sure they will get by.

Revoking Harvard's permissions to educate foreign students?  Think that one through.  Do you actually want MORE Harvard lawyers that are US Citizens to stand against your tyranny?

And then there is the legal battles this will bring.  Again, the cry-baby-chief believes he has unlimited resources to tear down all the institutions he doesn't like.  And the last hundred days has largely proven him correct.  Can he beat Harvard in a knock down drag them out fight?  Maybe.  But only by taking the his focus, which is not his strong suit, from everywhere else.  Without the fear of reprisal, Congress might just reach down and find a pair.  Vance might pull the 25th amendment on his butt.

Harvard's legal pool is vast.  How many grade 'A' lawyers?  Possibly all of them. On staff, others pro-bono, or, well, see $55 billion endowment above.   How many interns to do research?  The legal students at Harvard would salivate for the opportunity to put "United States vs Harvard" on their Curriculum Vitae.

 

And regarding all those journalists, actors, writers? They can pillory and shame his fear inspired supporters far better than me.

 

If anything the last 100 days has shown us, is the bestist-he-can-find-in-chief's staff is,  at best, shown itself to be a C minus in competency.  

Constitutional Crisis

What is a Constitutional Crisis? One definition is, "A conflict in the function of a government that the political constitution or other fundamental governing law is perceived to be unable to resolve."

Previous Constitutional Crises

1828 - 1833 The Nullification Crisis. Regarded a prelude to the Civil War.

Result: South Carolina agreed to a compromise tariff in 1833

1841 Succession of John Tyler after the death of Harrison.

Result: 25th amendment

1861 Succession crisis.

Result: Civil War

1876 Disputed election results in three states.

Result: A compromise where Rutherford B. Hayes is elected, and federal occupation of the south ending.

1952 Steel Strike. Harry Truman nationalized the steel industry.

Result: Supreme Court annulled Trumans order holding that presidential actions must proceed from constitutional or legislative authority. 

Truman threatened a second nationalization. But a compromise was reached.

1972 Watergate.

Result. Nixon resigned at the insistence of the Republican party. Basically they told him he would be impeached. At that time the Republican party had honor, and served country before party.

And here we are now. The Supreme Court has made a unanimous decision for the administration to return one Kilmar Ábrego García, who has been recognized as being sent to the Cecot prison in El Salvador in error. This fact of the case is accepted as true by the administration. 

Our dear leader has refused to do so. Our congress has not acted on this case.

What are our choices now? The Supreme Court can hold our dictator-wannabe in contempt. But getting that enforced is problematic.

Congress can pass legislation condoning the administrations actions. But will face the ire of voters next election cycle. Because this is in violation of several amendments of the Bill of Rights.

Congress can vote to enforce the decision of the Supreme Court. This may be it's only course to save the republican party.

Some other face saving compromise can be made.

Congress or the VP can depose the president under the 25th amendment. While Vance is unlikely to try and get the majority of the principal officers of the executive departments, he could get a majority of congress, which is all he needs. This they may do so if they really feel the pressure. The last time there was this much anger, the Republicans were out of power in the congress for over 50 years.

Or the 6'3", 245 pound passer of the cognitive exam can dismiss congress and become a dictator in truth, and not in just name.

Or Civil War.

SAVE Act

The republicans behind the SAVE act would have you believe that this is about securing our election system.  Which is protecting a system that has, despite a myriad of investigations, shown minimal fraud. Like single digits, not percentages, votes.   
When it passes, it means we all have to absolutely prove we are citizens.  And what is wrong with that?  We have done similar things before.  See the Poll Tax or Jim Crow laws on elections https://www.history.com/articles/jim-crow-laws-black-vote.  These laws were designed to suppress the vote of undesirables.  IE Blacks.  And this is what the SAVE act is designed to do.  Except that while Jim Crow were state and local laws, SAVE will be national.
Why is SAVE being put forth?  Because the Republicans know that with all the mismanagement, treason and thievery that this administration is doing, with their full and willing consent, that they are going to be routed from the field next election cycle.  Now they could mitigate that loss by acting responsibly from here on out, but that is ridiculous.  So plan B is to reduce the electorate opposition to the point where their dedicated 39% of the voters can squeak them by in 2026.
Who does SAVE affect?
Everyone will need at least a Passport or birth certificate to vote.
Married Women.  Even the birth certificate is not enough.  You have to provide the marriage certificate to show the name change.  Divorced and remarried?  You have to show a chain of certificates to prove a chain between your current name and birth certificate.  
NOTE HERE, REAL ID's, which was considered the penultimate ID of the land, is NOT GOOD ENOUGH for the SAVE Act.
Native American Tribal ID's are NOT GOOD ENOUGH for the SAVE Act.
Military ID's are NOT GOOD ENOUGH for the SAVE Act.
If you move, and 1 in 7 Americans move every year, and do not present the applicable documentation to reregister, you will not be allowed to vote.
Many Americans will not be able to access the additional documents needed here.  This is what the bill is designed to do.  Not to protect the election process, but to create the attitude of "fuck it, I'm just one vote, what does it matter?"  It will generate millions of "fuck its."
Oh, voting by mail, what will be out the window.  Because even though it was the Republicans that pushed for vote by mail, in order to raise their number of rural voters, it is the Democrats that dominate the mail voting, by about 2-1.  
Enough to where election day results were considered the "red mirage."  FYI, this phrase was coined in 2013.  Long before the serial-liar-in-chief complained about it.

So what are the results?  If enacted today, at least 146 million Americans could not vote under the SAVE act.  It would cause a radical suppression of the vote by women, minorities, and the poor.
It will also suppress the vote in southern states.  But there the R's have enough of a voter advantage that they do not care.  It will shift the votes to the D column in the northern states.  
 
But the real effect is that it will give even more reason for our elected officials to ignore our voice.  Because that voice will not count as much anymore.

Too many comparisons between Hitler and Trump

Too many comparisons between Hitler and Trump

 

Hitler incited an insurrection, check.
Hitler was tried, convicted, but given a light sentence, check.

Hitler claimed he was being persecuted, check.
Hitler ran on a platform against the elites, degenerates, and the education system was indoctrinating children, check.
Hitler was duly elected, check.
Hitler put rich men in in charge as his economic advisors, check.
Hitler blamed the Jews for all of Germany's problems. Trump blames immigrants and DEI. Check.
Hitler had concentration camps set up. Trump wants to expand Guantanamo Bay from 850 to 30,000 for deportees. Check.
Hitler pardoned 8,000 Nazi's on day one. Trump waited a full day before pardoning his insurrectionists. Close enough, Check.
Hitler removed the birthright citizenship rights of Jews.  Trump is working on that.
Hitler began a campaign to intimidate the media to keep them silent.  Trump is suing CBS for 20 billion dollars, check.
Hitler began annexing territory needed for Germanys security. Sudetenland, Austria, western Poland. That took him several years to get there. But Trump has already threatened to annex Panama, and Greenland for security purposes, and Palestine for reasons... No there is not reason here.
Dismissed Generals and Admirals that were not loyal enough. Check.
Hitler ignored any science that questioned his views on eugenics. Trump just ignores any science.  Check.
Hitler promised to make Germany great again. Check.
Hitler demonized Jews, Slavs, homosexuals, gypsies, Jehovah Witnesses, dwarves. Trump is demonizing gays, trans, immigrants, the FBI, and any social service, check.
Nazi's passed out cheap, one frequency only, radios to their followers, so they could get the Nazi party's spin on what was happening. And of course all the other newspapers and radio broadcasts were just fake news.  Check.
Hitler had the backing of all the major German industries. And so seems Trump.
And that is the problem. Our checks and balances are broken. Does the congressional Republicans hate Trump. A lot of them, possibly most of them, yes.
But they are either fearful of retribution from their base, or from him.
One difference. Hitler wasn't personally greedy. His minions took the opportunity to loot and plunder, but he lived a frugal life. While Trump has done everything to enrich himself and family.
Another difference. Hitler outlined what he would do, and then did it. Trump is following someone else's plan. While just throwing out topic-du-jour as his mind deteriorates.


Another bill submitted to congress by Earl Carter, Georgia(R), the “Red, White, and Blueland Act of 2025”.
It reads,  "Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, or other record of the United States to Greenland shall be deemed to be a reference to “Red, White, and Blueland”."

Already naming Greenland before they have annexed it from Denmark, an ally of some 80+ years.
As one red hat commented to me on an earlier post, Wow can’t even make this 💩 up yep I’m Nazi through and through."

This is universally regarded as a bad thing.

47 and McCarthyism

 47 and McCarthyism

In the last 3 weeks we have experienced many parallels to the rise of Hitler's Nazi Germany. But the MAGA Hats will just say that is "Trump Derangement Syndrome." Which is not a real thing, and is used to dismiss any counter points as ignore-able. Because heaven help them if any of it was real!

So lets go with a much more recent time when federal government employees were persecuted and dismissed without valid reasons.

McCarthyism is regarded as the darkest moment of American politics of the last century. People were hounded and persecuted sometimes to death based on a lie.

It was only after much damage was done and a free press was McCarthy finally deposed from his pinnacle of power.

In 1950, the Senator stood before congress and declared with piece of paper in his hand that he had declared was a list of 205 card carrying communist in the Department of State.

The piece of paper was later revealed to be blank. He had no names. There was zero evidence. And people were ruined and died.

It took over 4 years for this to play out before the Senate had the guts to censure him.

Now we are experiencing the same thing. The Serial-Liar-in-Chiefs sycophants are parading item after item of the abusive, as defined by them, spending of USAID. But is any of it true?

WE DON"T KNOW.

Because the Everyone-Is-Lying-But-Me-in-Chief has ordered all the government websites that could shed accurate information shut down. So easily disproved items, can't. But some of the free press can dig into their records and find inconsistencies. Which are beginning to show up.

But those whose minds are have been captured by the radical right entertainment network have been getting a steady stream of USAID expenditures that are either cherry picked, or deliberately described to trigger their righteous indignation. And frankly, seeing some of the items, I'd be triggered too.

But is any of it true? Possibly. Is it all true, certainly not.

Looking at some of the "reveals" last week, and comparing them to this week. There are inconsistencies. Some of the numbers have grown dramatically. I remember last week that a grant by USAID funded an Irish LGBTQ concert at $20,000. Now it's being presented as costing $70,000. And, in truth, it was NEVER funded by USAID. But another government agency.

And of course, Ivanka's grant by the USAID doesn't ever show up on the list.

Today I got a video of a presentation of a Senate committee being presented with accusations of government transgender animal experiments totaling at least 241 million dollars. Google that and you see last week an article where it was 2 million, then later in the week it was 10 million. Two days ago it was now 241 million. Because why present a small number when a bigger number will get people so good and mad, they won't see straight. Refer to "The Big Lie" in Mein Kampf. But that would be TDS.

Is it true? WE DON"T KNOW. All the information by the federal government relevant to this is no longer allowed to be communicated, by web site or by personnel, by the Executive order titled, "Restoring Freedom of Speech and Ending Federal Censorship”

So until Trump annexes Palestine, think McCarthyism, not Hitler. After that, all bets are off.

Is The Tariff Damage Permanent?

We all witness an amazing act of malfeasance by the Tariff-in-Chief.  Like a monkey playing with the most complex machine on the planet, the US Economy, we have witnessed Felon-47 flip switches and turn dials seemingly at random.  The administration did publish the formula, devised by Ron Varo, the imaginary friend of Peter Navarro.  But the numbers on the chart displayed by the our deranged leader bear little resemblance to what the formula published by the Office of the United States Trade Representative should have generated.  See my previous blog post on that.

As of 4/11/2025, what is the current status of the tariffs?  The original 10% across the board tariffs are still in effect.  There are exceptions.  Books, pharmaceuticals, items currently in transit, Canada and Mexico.  And of course Chinese tariffs are now at 125%.  

Then suddenly, they were gone.  On a ninety day "pause."  Except pharmaceuticals, which he threatened increased tariffs on the day after.  To hear him boast, 50 countries came to him begging to negotiate.  Then because that number wasn't good enough, it was 75 countries.  None of which he would name.  Because, they would call him on the lie.  

But they are not gone.  The baseline is still there.  And as much as he has promised a pause, his word has zero worth.  The maga-hats may say that is just Trump-Derangement-Syndrome.  But you don't have to believe me.  The whole world now has TDS.  Why is that?  

But the topic here is the question, is the damage to the US economy caused by the orange ape flipping switches, with the full consent of the Congress, permanent?  Effectively yes.  Long term damage has been done.  Damage that will be with us for at least the decade past this presidency's demise.  

A major indicator is the stock market.  Since the economic buffoon's inauguration, the stock market has lost over $9 trillion.  Those that do not understand this can think, well, it is just a correction, and it will go back up.  Thinking this is just game being played by stock portfolio managers and rich people.  How does it affect you and me?  Ask your self this, "where did the money go?"  Using round numbers.  Say the stock market was worth $1,000.  And you sold your share at $50, and the over all market dropped to say, $950. You now have $50.  What do you do with it.  If you are just playing a game, you could wait till the market dropped lower and buy back in.  Sell high, buy low.

And to some extent, that is happening.  That part we don't need to worry about, except for the insider traders that the entire administration and republican members of congress seemed to be engaged in.  The real problem is the world is looking at the idiots in charge of the US and start looking elsewhere to place their dollars.  Trillions of dollars just flowed out of the US and will be flowing into the European stocks and bonds.  That is money that would be furthering investment in the US, and will now be investing into our chief competitors.   

Want proof?  Look at the dollar.  Before tariffs, the Euro bough 1.08 dollars  On April 11, it was 1.126 dollars.  About a 4% decline in the dollar, in 10 days.  Why is that.  Supply and demand.  Dollars are bought and sold in a world wide auction system.  We have more dollars chasing fewer euros.  So the value of the dollar goes down.

Effectively, this is an additional 4% tariff on all foreign goods.  Without the exceptions for books and pharmaceuticals.  

Then there is interest on the bonds.  Every so often, the US Treasury holds a bond auction.  Since our credit is the best in the world, the world buys our bonds paying low interest rates.  But not any more.  We haven't defaulted on the bonds, but every investor in the world is not going to trust to hold our debt.  Right now, we are paying $1 trillion in debt interest.  About 2.8%.  Lets raise that to 3.8%.  Now the debt service goes up to $1.36 trillion.  

Elon Musk is making claims that DOGE will save us $150 billion a year.  Assuming that is correct, and based on DOGE's gross errors so far, it is not.  We will still be needing another 200 billion for next year.  

Also, these interest rates will bubble through the economy, making homes and cars harder to buy.  

The Treasury secretary declared that the tariff policies would improve the business climate, and they were also pursuing a policy of a strong dollar.  

A lack of stability is anathema to businesses.  They will be running away as fast as they can.  And the mishandling of the dollar will lead to its weakness.

So is this damage permanent.  Maybe not.  But it is going to be with us for a very long time.