Dear Bernie

Its time to go! Yes it is!


I love your positions. I love your fight and your spirit. I love the way you have called our attention to the injustices we face in our country: inequality, the stranglehold of Wall Street......Nobody will be able to ignore these problems ever again.


But you have now done your thing; you have awakened our national consciousness. It is time to get on with it and do everything you can to prevent a Trump win.


As you and I both know, Trump is a dangerous man. Not only is he a narcissistic demagogue with heinous, bigoted and inconsistent policy positions (if you want to call pronouncements about deporting immigrants "policy positions"), but he is irrational and truly frightening.


Years ago people analyzed Nixon (see the old book Nixon Agonistes) and thought that many of his pronouncemnets were rhe result of paranoia. But compared to Trump, Nixon was secure! All we hear from Trump is how people are against him and "not nice" to him. More and more is coming out on the fraudulent activities of Trump Univesity. Trump's response is to attack the judge on ethnic grounds and to accuse him of bias.


Trump changes what he says (give Japan nuclear weapons, don't give Japan nuclear weapons) more rapidly than the phases of the moon change. And he is so thin-skinned and reactive to even the slightest insults that many of us are truly frightened for world peace.


So Bernie, Hillary Clinton is the clear Democratic Party nominee. And as we all know she is smart, experienced and highly rational.


If you don't see this, you are less smart than I think you are.


And she needs your support to help her win and defeat her very scary, very irrational, and totally absurd opponent. But not only does Hillary need your support, I need your support, and the American people need your support. I truly believe that if you get behind Hillary, we can defeat Trump.


It is imperative that Trump be defeated.


And at this point in the contest, every criticism of Hillary that you put forth is only fuel for the fire that Trump is igniting....You know, of course, he is quoting you and I hate to think that your statements would be the reason for his victory.


So,,,,I beg you. Get out now. Defeat Trump. And then, continue to fight the good fight.

The Blame Game

THE BLAME GAME Because a young child ended up in a gorilla’s enclosure, in a zoo, the gorilla was shot and killed. Tragic and terribly sad. A handsome young gorilla, a rare and fine example of his species, who did not seem to be doing anything wrong, is dead. So sad....... though, like others, we need to point out that the child is, thankfully, alive and well. A tragic and sad event, but who’s to blame? Many point to the child’s mother and think it is her fault for not watching her child closely enough, for letting him find a way into the gorilla’s compound. She is called incompetent, is said to be an example of inept parenting, and, some have even called for her to be investigated for possible child neglect. Her behavior is said to be the cause of the gorilla’s death. Others, equally adamant, condemn the zoo staff, arguing that they should have used a tranquilizer and not a gun. Still others point to the zoo structure and say it should be constructed in a way which prevents humans from getting through. Some (I hate to say this) are even blaming the child and saying he should be responsible for his actions (a 4 year old, really????). Seeking an explanation for a tragic event can have a good result. It may enable one to take corrective actions that prevent a repeat tragedy. Building higher fences or barriers with smaller openings might prevent children from squeezing into dangerous animal compounds. Maybe more personnel are needed as guards. But, in this tragic gorilla incident, most of the comments are not constructive. They are not tributes to the wonders of the gorilla, the care he has received and fact that urban dwellers are able to see and appreciate a being such as this. They are simply rants about how somebody or other did something wrong. Why? Why do so many of us feel the need to elevate ourselves by criticizing others? Please, lets stop playing the “Blame Game” and start having useful conversations.