kanesrealm

According to some polling, yes polls again, millennials are being drawn to support Gary Johnson. This is supposed to be because their guy, Bernie Sanders didn't get the Democratic nomination. That makes absolutely no sense. Bernie Sanders and Gary Johnson could not be further apart on the issues. Putting aside Johnson's funny and somewhat goofy personality which is endearing, the only thing he shares with Sanders is a belief that marijuana should be legalized nationally. We're told through that polling that this young millennial generation is the most engaged, compassionate, inclusive and caring Americans to ever come along and they are motivated by serious issues and want to get things done. Logically, Johnson should not be their choice. Johnson doesn't believe in any kind of free college or reducing existing college debt, nor does he believe in Government guaranteed college loans. He doesn't believe in doing anything about climate change except for admitting it e...

As regular readers know I've previously stated my lukewarm feelings about social media in general. I didn't bother to ever join Facebook because I thought it was a waste of time, for me. Other than connecting with family members, which I guess some people are into, though I can't imagine why. If I want to talk to my family, I don't, I'll call them. You're probably all members of Facebook so you know the basics. You have a homepage, your house in the cyber world. There you are free to post and share whatever you want or are you? On September 25, 2016 I shared a post from The Godless and Irreligious, a Facebook site, which was a meme depicting Christians burning people at the stake like Islamic fundementalists. This meme drew a vile and disrespectful attack on me on my own homepage by one of my Facebook "friends" who had never before communicated anything to me. I responded to his attack with a respectful response he certainly didn't deserve. He ha...

I suppose Edward Snowden has never really left the news but with the recent release of the Oliver Stone film Snowden the topic is once again abuzz. The question which gets put to the crucible always comes back to is he a traitor or a hero? In my opinion he is neither. I do not believe that he was motivated by the calculus of a traitor, which is to either enrich themselves or deliberately betray their country. He is also not a hero because a hero acts in defense of others without concern for the consequences to themselves. His release of secret information confirmed what many had long been warning about. Before he ever took his action many in Congress were criticizing the Bush Administrations data collection practices. To Bush's credit he said point blank if you don't like it, do something about it, pass laws strictly outlining what can and cannot be done. Congress did not act and the Executive Branch continued it's programs. What has happened since as a result of Snowde...

Wells Fargo C.E.O. and Chairman John Stumpf once again appeared before a House Committee today concerning the ongoing scandal surrouding the company's fraudulent opening of two million additional accounts without the permission of it's customers. The company has terminated 5,300 employees since 2011 for engaging in this behavior which was motivated by the internal mandates that every customer have at least eight accounts. The majority of those fired were low level employees, including whistleblowers. Those low level employees are in the compensation range of $12 to $15 an hour. Anyone that believes these employees created the problem on their own are deluding themselves. The people who had the most to gain from these actions were Branch Managers and above, particularly those above right up to John Stumpf. Watching this hearing reveals a number of things wrong with the culture of banking in general but which will get lost in the news and never change. Stumpf was asked why he r...

Last night was the first of the three Presidential debates. You can listen to the analysts of your choice but reality cannot be escaped. If you want a competent, coherent and well prepared person to be President of the United States the choice is crystal clear, vote for Hillary Clinton. If you want a spoiled, petulant, incoherent five year old who wants to kick over all the ant hills and employ chaos as a substitute for policy, vote for Donald Trump. Clinton won the debate by every logical measurement of a debate but it doesn't matter in the long run. Trump's performance was horrible but his supporters won't care because they want chaos, they think they're going to get salvation but it is chaos that Trump will unleash if he wins. Trump has been complaining that there was something wrong with his mic, there was nothing wrong with his mic. He says he could have gone after Hillary and her husband's private lives but he didn't because Chelsea Clinton was sitting i...

Kathleen Townsend Kennedy made a comment this past week that President George H.W. Bush was voting for Hillary Clinton. She apparently learned this after speaking directly with Bush. She should not have publicly disclosed it. She has no right to speak for someone else and reveal a confidence. Quite rightly the Bushes said that the former President's vote is private and he would never publicly announce it. Chances are he probably is going to vote for Clinton because he believes she is the best qualified person to lead the nation. I voted for George H.W. Bush because I knew the totality of his life and believed him to be an honorable person who believed in public service above party pettiness. He was arguably one of the most prepared persons to ever seek the office. He proved my belief by doing two significant things. He brought together the largest international coalition since World War II to launch Desert Storm. He had a strategy and a goal that he stuck to, to liberate Kuwait a...

This is what keeps me motivated to offer commentaries on this blog and to never cease to be astonished at the political world. No sooner did I hit publish on my previous post about Ted Cruz thinking of endorsing Trump, he did it and laid out six reasons why you should vote for Trump. Well not vote for Trump so much as vote against Clinton. No surprise there. So there you have it the headline is Cruz Caves and ends his Presidential prospects. On the other hand the American electorate has a very short memory!!

Rumors are flying that Ted Cruz may be about to endorse Donald Trump. The same Cruz that said that he was not in the business of endorsing anyone who attacks his wife and father. The same Cruz that delivered a long speech at the Republican Convention and did not endorse Trump or even say his name. There are two possible reasons for this. One is that Trump is offering Cruz something big for his endorsement or Cruz is afraid he will be punished in 2020 by the Republican Party in light of R.N.C. Chairman Reince Preibus threat to all Republicans who continue to not endorse the Presidential nominee. I seriously doubt that Cruz is afraid of Preibus so it's probably a bag of goodies from Trump. If Cruz caves and endorses, his so called brand is finished. Cruz has said in recent weeks that he is committed to defeating Clinton, his endorsement of Trump will do nothing to help Trump. Most of Cruz supporters are already going to vote for Trump, the few hold outs will not be swayed by Cruz c...

I'm about to reveal a state secret,shhh, Donald Trump is an idiot. In the wake of the terrorist incidents over the weekend Trump is, as usual, babbling about things he knows nothing about. He suggests that somehow these attacks are because of our current leadership. He says in one breath we have to support our law enforcement then turns around and basically says they're not doing their job. Here's a quick review, the mad knifer in Minnesota was shot dead by an off duty police officer, no citizens died. The bomber in New Jersey and New York was apprehended in under 48 hours, no citizens died. There is no way to prevent every terrorist attack, even under the leadership of Trump, in fact the exact same scenario would have played out under him. Trump talks about profiling and here is where he displays amazing ignorance and muddies the water. When he says we don't profile because we're afraid of offending someone he is making a false statement. We absolutely profile. P...

I read something in what I'll call another forum and I found it somewhat disconcerting. Not the words themselves but the unintended meaning behind them. It was about our current Presidential election and how we just need to accept the results of the election and not hate the other guy's vote. I agree with the hate part, people of goodwill can disagree and remain respectful and friends. When the political system functions correctly that's what happens. But it's not about simply accepting something as though it doesn't matter. By the very meaning of the word every election is about change. Every election matters. There is no such thing as an election that you can just sit out because everything will be just fine. Donald Trump did not inject poison into our political process he has legitimized it from the first day he announced his candidacy. He is a mirror for the worst elements of our human nature. He has brought incivility and the political fringe into the mainstr...

It's like hitting your head against a wall. You've read it here before and I'll keep repeating it, I'm not one of these people who sits around bemoaning the good old days and talking about when America was a better place to live, because that's all bullshit. But we have in Donald Trump one of the most disgusting and vile national political candidates to seek the Presidency in modern times. As I write this Trump is holding a rally at which he is once again saying that Hillary Clinton wants to take away your guns, to take away your Second Amendment rights, she doesn't and she can't. This is a standard political fantasy tactic but what sets Trump apart is he says all her bodyguards should be taken away and then quote, "see what happens to her." That comment is unacceptable, vitriolic and an incitement of violence. First of all he's an idiot. Hillary Clinton is protected by the Secret Service and has been since she was First Lady and will continu...

Donald Trump fooled the national media yet again. Yesterday Robert Costa of The Washington Post asked Donald Trump directly during an interview aboard Trump's plane, "was President Obama born in the U.S.?" Trump refused to answer. This created a shit storm and by late last night a spokesman for the Trump-Pence Campaign issued a statement that said Obama was born in the U.S. but it didn't come out of Trump's own mouth. This morning the Trump Campaign announced a press conference at his new hotel where there would be a big announcement about the birther issue. The media salivated and got in line. What they got was Trump on stage promoting his new hotel surrounded by retired military officers and other supporters as he gave a commercial for the hotel, then had the military officers bash Clinton one by one and say how much we need Trump. This went on and on. Finally Trump told lies. He said Hillary Clinton started the birther movement and he ended it, the President ...

For me that is. This election is working my last nerve. Additional medical records were released to the press today by Hillary Clinton. She has now provided more records than either Barack Obama or Mitt Romney. Aside from sinusitis and allergies she's fine and fit to serve as President. We also know as a result of these disclosures that she is mentally healthy which is more than I can say for myself. What we still don't know is anything about Donald Trump's health records, you might be thinking he divulged something on the Dr. Oz show, he didn't. Nothing was released to the press for review. Also consider the ridiculous concept of appearing on a daytime talk show that exists for the purpose of entertainment to allegedly reveal your medical records as a  candidate for the highest office in the land. Mockery and sham are just two words that come to mind. Originally it was announced that a disclosure would occur but even Oz himself was tamping down expectations with a l...

Trump running mate and current Indiana Governor Mike Pence is having trouble with words, which is nothing new. But his recent stumble with regards to David Duke is easy to have avoided. CNN's Wolf Blitzer tried to get Pence to say Duke is deplorable and he wouldn't. If it was because he knew it was the incorrect word to use it would be refreshing but it's not. The Trump Campaign is using the word deplorable to attack Clinton over her recent comments, so it's a political maneuver, not an understanding of definitions. I just recently posted a commentary concerning the word deplorable and what it actually means. Language is made up of words and words have a meaning. Unfortunately at a certain age most adults seem to just never consult a dictionary again in their lifetimes. Even those with a solid formal education do this. None of us know the exact meaning of every word in the English language, I certainly don't and I love words. My dictionaries are always at my finger...

Former Chairman of the Democratic National Committee Don Fowler who served from 1995 to 1997 said in an interview today that the Party needed to form a contingency plan in the event Hillary Clinton cannot complete her presidential run. He said a plan needed to be in place by six o'clock tonight. Fowler said he expected Clinton to make a full recovery but added the Party needed to be prepared. Overreact much Don? The "plan" going forward is simple, Hillary Clinton campaigns, wins the Presidency, serves two terms, lives into her nineties. You can really feel the writer in me. Or not. The contingency seems obvious, not that one is required, Bernie Sanders is the runner up and would wear the crown and assume the duties should Clinton be unable to complete her service. Anyone other than Sanders would be rejected by most Democrats, I just hope he doesn't catch a cold. The overblown reactions to Clinton's pneumonia and dizzy spells are proof of why she wouldn't w...

Hillary Clinton coughed, alert the media. Hillary Clinton got dizzy by her car and had to be helped in, alert the media. Hillary Clinton has pneumonia, it's Armageddon, alert the media. Allow Dr. Kane to offer the real diagnosis, Hillary Clinton is suffering from a nasty case of unconscious sexism. Yes, I just said that and the evidence is clear in the media's hysterical coverage of her health. She is a woman and as all ignorant people know, they are the weaker sex and she is 68 years old so it goes without saying she's falling apart. Not like that big virile super healthy 70 year old super man Donald Trump. Enough of the silliness, now the gloves come off. Here's my message to David Axelrod and his Twitter spasm and I'm going to use more than 140 characters. For context here's his Tweet in full, "Antibiotics can take care of pneumonia. What's the cure for an unhealthy penchant for privacy that repeatedly creates unnecessary problems?" My response,...

Hillary Clinton has stirred some controversy among those who are easily stirred and don't own a dictionary. In a recent speech she said she would put half of Donald Trump's supporters in the "basket of deplorables". She has apologized for using the word because politicians are required to be extra sensitive, well most politicians, this standard does not apply to Donald Trump. But I'm not a politician and I will go much further than Clinton and say that 100% of Trump's supporters are deplorable. Do not rely on the media to tell you how bad the use of the word is. Do not rely on what you think the meaning is. Deplorable is lamentable, wretched and sad. Wretched is sunk in dejection and profoundly unhappy. There are no better words to describe the average Trump supporter. They believe that government is the enemy and run by idiots. They take no responsibility for their role in who runs the government. They believe in the saviour doctrine and have annointed Trum...

If you are a sincere person of faith believing in god and your religion I have no problem with you as an individual. In my lifetime, thus far, my friends have been Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Christian but never set foot in a church, spiritual but thoroughly confused and only one admitted atheist. One of my closest friends was an Orthodox Priest who died at the age of 57 of a variety of catastrophic diseases. He passed away over sixteen years ago and I still regularly think of him. At his funeral his wife told me that he considered me his best friend. We never talked about religion or God, that's not what he wanted. He needed a refuge from the pettiness of Church life and the bullshit his lay council subjected him to. We smoked, drank, ate, stretched our intellects and bitched about the then destruction of the Batman movie franchise. He was intelligent, perceptive and spoke four languages, including Russian and I assure you he knew that I was not simply a lapsed Catholic b...

There are two topics you are never supposed to talk about, politics and religion. Sadly, it's absolutely true. If you want to start an argument or damage your personal relationships just open up these topics. Especially religion. This taboo subject can and does cause strife. So let's open it up. Nothing will get you the stinkface faster than saying you're an atheist. First we'll get some general housekeeping out of the way. An atheist doesn't believe in god the singular or gods the plural. An agnostic believes that humans cannot know God or anything beyond material phenomenon. It should be pointed out that most agnostics adhere to a very loose version of this philosophy, simply saying they don't know whether there is a God or not. A deist believes in a personal God based on reason and that God created the world subject to natural laws and takes no interest in it. Then there's everybody else, the faithful if you will. The three so called Great Religions of ...

El Trumpadore the Magnificent journied forth to the land of Mexico, spawning place of all those "rapists and murderers" Trump says are ravaging the United States. He went there to meet with the Mexican President, who strangely invited him and Hillary Clinton. Trump and Pena Nieto met behind closed doors, then closed with a Presidential photo op, both standing at podiums and making brief statements. The supposed understanding is there would be no press questions, Trump then took questions while Pena Nieto looked like he wanted to yell, what the fuck. Trump said they didn't discuss who would pay for the wall, but Pena Nieto and his Foreign Minister both say that's not true, Pena Nieto firmly told Trump Mexico will never pay for it. Gee, I just don't know who to believe. Last night Trump gave his long awaited immigration policy speech. He said he loved Pena Nieto and the people of Mexico, then said they will be paying for the wall, they just don't know it. He ...