@NancySinatra I was saddened when hearing news of your father’s death. Will never forget the playing of his “Softly as I Leave You.” So tender. We never stop missing our parents, I believe. Forever loved. I don’t know you, of course, but sending you a hug.❤️
@TizzyEnt Thank you for caring about your neighbor. Revived memories of my brother Rich’s death. He lived in MD; the rest of us sibs in MN. He was sick w/a ‘bad cold.’ He stopped responding to our calls. Worried after a few days, we called an ex-inlaw to check. He’d died. Gut-wrenching.
LOVE THIS! ❤️❤️❤️💯
I DON'T THINK PISSED REALLY COVERS IT ! ! !
Alan Simpson, the Senator from Wyoming calls senior citizens the Greediest Generation as he compared "Social Security " to a Milk Cow with 310 million teats. Here's a response in a letter from PATTY MYERS in Montana ... I think she is a little ticked off! She also tells it like it is!
"Hey Alan, let's get a few things straight!!!
1. As a career politician, you have been on the public dole (tit) for FIFTY YEARS.
2. I have been paying Social Security taxes for 48 YEARS (since I was 15 years old. I am now 63).
3. My Social Security payments, and those of millions of other Americans, were safely tucked away in an interest bearing account for decades until you political pukes decided to raid the account and give OUR money to a bunch of zero losers in return for votes, thus bankrupting the system and turning Social Security into a Ponzi scheme that would make Bernie Madoff proud.
4. Recently, just like Lucy & Charlie Brown, you and "your ilk" pulled the proverbial football away from millions of American seniors nearing retirement and moved the goalposts for full retirement from age 65 to age, 67. NOW, you and your "shill commission" are proposing to move the goalposts YET AGAIN.
5. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying into Medicare from Day One, and now "you morons" propose to change the rules of the game. Why? Because "you idiots" mismanaged other parts of the economy to such an extent that you need to steal our money from Medicare to pay the bills.
6. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying income taxes our entire lives, and now you propose to increase our taxes yet again. Why? Because you "incompetent bxxxxds" spent our money so profligately that you just kept on spending even after you ran out of money. Now, you come to the American taxpayers and say you need more to pay off YOUR debt.
To add insult to injury, you label us "greedy" for calling "bxxxxxxt" to your incompetence.
Well, Captain Bxxxxxxit, I have a few questions for YOU:
1. How much money have you earned from the American taxpayers during your pathetic 50-year political career?
2. At what age did you retire from your pathetic political career, and how much are you receiving in annual retirement benefits from the American taxpayers?
3. How much do you pay for YOUR government provided health insurance?
4. What cuts in YOUR retirement and healthcare benefits are you proposing in your disgusting deficit reduction proposal, or as usual, have you exempted yourself and your political cronies?
It is you, Captain Bxxxxxxt, and your political co-conspirators called Congress who are the "greedy" ones. It is you and your fellow nutcase thieves who have bankrupted America and stolen the American dream from millions of loyal, patriotic taxpayers.
And for what? Votes and your job and retirement security at our expense, you lunk-headed, leech.
That's right, sir. You and yours have bankrupted America for the sole purpose of advancing your pathetic, political careers. You know it, we know it, and you know that we know it.
And you can take that to the bank, you miserable son of a bxxxxx.
P.S. And stop calling Social Security benefits "entitlements". WHAT AN INSULT!!!!
I have been paying in to the SS system for 45 years “It's my money”-give it back to me the way the system was designed and stop patting yourself on the back like you are being generous by doling out these monthly checks .
EVERYONE!! If you agree with what a Montana citizen, Patty Myers, says, please PASS IT ON!!!!
ASSHOLE!⏬⏬⏬⏬⏬⏬⏬⏬⏬
.@realDonaldTrump Mr. President the response of @fema with thousands of @NationalGuard@SCNationalGuard@NCNationalGuard Search and Rescue teams all over, hundreds of electricity and communications trucks and teams repairing, water and food distributions by many orgs.. etc has been one of the best ever! Only 6 days and while things are hard for many, they are supported by all…You remember Puerto Rico in 2017? They were forgotten….Now all over 5 states on the ground is no politics, just people helping people, Country above party….We The People! Please just join us…
Don't wait – check your state's voter registration deadline today and make sure you're registered and ready to vote. And then share this with your friends and family so everyone's ready to vote early or by Election Day. https://t.co/jKW0RyeBXC
📌Blockbuster story in today's @washingtonpost
"To protect older Americans’ life savings, President Biden pledged in October to crack down on financial advisers who recommend investments just because they pay higher commissions. Then the insurance industry got to work."
THREAD
Peeling back the layers of Trump’s Project 2025, let’s be sure folks understand the financial consequences ahead if Trump is elected, and if you make less than $150K/year, or have student loans, or benefit from Medicaid in rural communities & beyond, it ain’t good.
MAKE SURE PEOPLE KNOW THIS
How the #Project2025 plan affects our pocketbooks…
Walmart profits jumped to $15 billion in 2023.
Did it substantially increase wages or lower prices? No.
It spent $9B on dividends and buybacks — with most of the benefits going to the children of Walmart's founder, who together own 46% of the company's stock.
Textbook greed.
When Ken Burns asked every living president to recite the Gettysburg Address in 2013, Pres. Carter shared this story about Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and the Camp David Accords. (2023) @UNUMKenBurns
Being President of the United States is not performance art.
Nor is it one-liners.
An American President needs vision ,compassion,morality,
concern,honesty,civility.
Fundamental decency.
All of these golden qualities with the ability to lead the United States back to normality of these qualities.
To achieve for the good.
Respect for the smallest and most needy and strength to stand up to powers that threaten them here and abroad.
Our future is the Biden path.
Vote for Biden/Harris.
#voteBlue
@BidenHQ
@JoeBiden
#TrumpIsUnfitForOffice
Wow.
This video is truly eye-opening.
Take a couple minutes to watch this.
A mind-boggling visual representation of wealth inequality in America.
This sh*t ain’t workin’, folks. #TaxBillionaires#UnionsForAll
The last few weeks I've been intermittently oscillating between anger, sorrow, and worry over the pending election.
And most of that isn't even over the MAGAs. They're going to do what they're going to do. And their minds can't be changed.
What bothers me is people suggesting they're not going to vote for Biden, even though they know that Trump is a terrible person, President, alternative, and human being. The people who detest him as much as I do are willing to let him take office "because the Dems should have chosen someone better" or some such nonsense.
It is the most "cut off the nose to spite the face" thing in all of human history.
But if you say that, you're the bad guy. How DARE you LECTURE us?!?!
So I'm not lecturing you. I'm just telling you some things.
When Biden had a Congress he could work with, they passed
The Inflation Reduction Act: The single largest investment in climate and energy in American history,
American Rescue Plan Act: Lowered health insurance premiums and provide 100% federal COBRA subsidy. Allowed 1 million Americans to gain coverage.
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act: Invests $1 trillion to fix our nation's infrastructure while creating over 2 million jobs over the next decade
Postal Service Reform Act: Contains financial reforms intended to improve the Postal Service's financial sustainability, and operational reforms intended to increase efficiency, accountability, and transparency.
Bipartisan Safer Communities Act: Makes changes to gun control, mental health, and school safety. The law includes over $13 billion in federal funding for programs to improve public safety. The most significant gun-control legislation in 30 years.
CHIPS and Science Act: Provides $50 billion to revitalize the U.S. semiconductor industry and strengthen the country's economic and national security
Honoring Our PACT Act: Expands VA health care and benefits for veterans who have been exposed to toxic substances like burn pits and Agent Orange
Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act: Reforms and modernizes the outdated 1887 Electoral Count Act to ensure that electoral votes tallied by Congress accurately reflect each state's public vote for President.
Respect for Marriage Act: RFMA officially repealed The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and requires the federal government to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages, codifying parts of Obergefell, the 2013 ruling in United States v. Windsor, and the 1967 ruling in Loving v. Virginia.
Under Joe Biden's leadership the US has led the world economically in recovering from Covid.
Unemployment has been below 4% for the last 27 months, the lowest in over 50 years, and the longest since we've had primarily two-income households.
Underemployment (those who are settling for lesser jobs) is at 7%, the lowest number recorded since they've started tracking it in 1990.
And yes, international inflation has impacted the US (just as it has impacted every country in the world,) but among advanced nations, it currently has the 2nd lowest core inflation.
Wage growth is up to, even more than inflation. As of February, the average worker was making 6% more than they were pre-pandemic after adjusting for inflation.
Overall, personal income increased $122.0 billion (0.5 percent at a monthly rate) in March.
Disposable personal income (DPI)—personal income less personal current taxes—increased $104.0 billion (0.5 percent).
Personal saving was $671.0 billion and the personal saving rate—personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income—was 3.2 percent in March.
And for once, the most income growth is going to the poorest Americans. Here is the wage growth since pre-pandemic levels.
Low-wage (10th percentile): 12.1%
Lower-middle-wage (avg 20th–40th): 5.0%
Middle-wage (avg 40th–60th): 3.0%
Upper-middle-wage (avg 60th–80th): 2.0%
High-wage (90th percentile): 0.9%
Nationally, the GDP has grown from 20.93 trillion to 27.36 trillion in 2023. That's an increase of over 30% since Biden took office.
And, for whatever it's worth, the Dow is up over 25% under Biden.
So please, stop telling me Biden is terrible for the economy.
And while we're at it, show some consistency. If you're going to blame Biden for all the inflation, give him all the credit for jobs recovered. If you're going to give Trump a pass for the jobs lost because of Covid, give Biden a pass for inflation caused because of Covid.
And while we're at it, the jobs that were lost during Covid (mostly the hospitality jobs) are the last ones coming back. But that's another axe to grind.
He has also repaired NATO to defend Ukraine, and helped add Finland and Sweden.
And for all the talk about the "wars" under Biden, America isn't at war--as we were under Trump. And no, America is not fighting "proxy wars." A proxy war is instigated by the major power.
Ukraine did not invade Russia. Russia invaded Ukraine. Hamaas attacked Israel.
Those aren't proxy wars. You may agree or disagree with funding them, but they aren't proxy wars, so stop calling them proxy wars.
But I digress.
The point is shit happens elsewhere in the world. There were 151 different wars and conflicts while Trump was President, but we didn't blame him for them. There sure wasn't "world peace."
In fact, more people globally, and more US servicemen died in conflicts under Trump than under Biden.
And Trump ordered nearly 20,000 drone strikes in just 4 years. Biden has ordered fewer than 500. So no, Trump is not the dove people say he is.
So yes, Biden has accomplished a lot. And we'll get to Gaza, but first let's talk about not what Trump "did" but what he promises to do.
These aren't darkly hidden campaign conspiracy theories. These are campaign promises available in interviews and published on the Interwebs.
Trump wants to replace over 10,000 federal employees with ideologically motivated "applicants." There is LITERALLY an application online with Project 2025. That's not some rumor.
He wants to SELL climate policy to the Oil Industry for $1 billion in campaign contributions. How's that going to work for climate change?
He wants to "round up" over 10 million undocumented workers and put them in internment camps. Again, campaign promise he made in an interview. Not something I'm making up.
He is happy to let red states force women to register their pregnancies.
What about trans rights? Gay rights? Do you think those are safe? What if Mike Johnson is still Speaker and Ted Cruz is the Senate Majority Leader? Those are very real possibilities if Trump wins.
Do you think a MAGA Senate is going to keep the filibuster in place? Do you doubt for a second that Thomas and Alito wouldn't resign so that Trump could appoint two more conservatives? How do you feel about a Trump-majority court?
Now on Gaza. Do you really believe that Joe Biden wants to "genocide" Palestinians? You can argue he hasn't done enough to hinder Israel's attacks, and I won't begrudge you that. But do you really believe Trump wouldn't be infinitely worse?
And I really do feel that people need to recognize that Biden is in a precarious position here. If he is too hard on Israel, he loses the election. If he's not hard enough on Israel, he loses the election. Either way Bibi (not Israel) wins.
You've already got Republicans trying to conflate him threatening to withhold support with Trump and Ukraine (which they were apparently OK with, but whatever).
Trump has promised (again, a promise) to "spill a gallon of blood for every drop they (the Palestinians) spill.
Then there's RFK Jr. The man who can't even host a dinner party for a brain worm. What does he offer? You say you don't want to vote for the lesser of two evils?
How is he less evil than Joe Biden? Honestly.
If you're going to vote FOR him, then please elaborate on why. I don't even know what his platform is beyond his last name and his pro-Polio stance.
My point is:
1. Joe Biden has actually been a pretty damned good President if you actually look at it.
2. Donald Trump will literally ruin 10s of millions of lives.
So if you're going to pretend that it's all the same, then fine. Go ahead. Watch the country burn to the ground so you can be pompous about it.
But don't bitch about it and blame the Democrats for running an incumbent President with the most successful first-term record in 50 years.
I fact-checked all the data in this post as I wrote it. But if you see an actual error, feel free to point it out and I will include it. But only if it's actually an error.