SOUNDING OFF

 For the last 10 days I've been suffering from the worst cold of my life, brought down from "up north" by my son! He and his wife stopped by on their way to a Caribbean cruise (staying with his sister about 10 miles from my house; with her girls off in college, she has room). But, unfortunately, my son brought a horrific bug with him. Thankfully, it was not so debilitating for him as it was for me—totally unprepared for Connecticut germs (and so much older). He and his wife had a great time on umpteen different islands on a Princess line ship. 

Since I do not have any of my son's glorious pics, here are a few random ones from the Reale family trip in 2018, which, surprisingly included Cuba. Since I move slowly, I stayed on the boat and let the family roam freely (Only "tours" were recommended, but since my son-in-law is bilingual—if with a decided Argentinian accent—the family did Havana on their own and had a grand time.)

 

Family in Key West, our first stop before Havana

 While in Key West, we toured the Atocha Museum, which houses the greatest collection of shipwreck treasure ever found in this hemisphere (I believe that is correct - it's been a while).

 

Gold Necklace

 

Unworked gold

Havana Harbor

 

Fortress guarding Havana Harbor

 

The delight of every cruise - towel animals

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This morning, after coffee, I sat down to write some scathing one-liners to post to Facebook over the next few weeks. 

Example:  Government by Executive Order is Dictatorship. 

But I discovered my words were pouring out, turning into paragraphs, evidently demanding to be a blog topic instead of a cryptic Facebook post. So, even though my brain is not at its best . . .

 

Our founding fathers, from Thomas Jefferson to George Washington, are turning over in their graves. Forgotten:  the Constitution was designed for balance in government. Three branches—Executive, Legislative, Judicial—designed to keep checks on each other.

Currently, this is not happening. The Legislative (Senate & Congress) have gone belly-up, only a few voices crying in the wilderness. As for the Judicial, I heartily applaud the judges who have stood by the Constitution, even under duress. But it's possible all these outrageous Executive Orders might not have happened if the Supreme Court—with THREE judges appointed by Trump—had not granted him carte blanche to do as he pleased. 

Basically, the Executive branch now rules, shattering the best intentions of The Constitution of the United States of America. Including the famous words from the Declaration of Independence:  "All men are created equal" (attributed to input from both Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin).

As I watched the noon news today (Sunday, 4/3) I discovered my thoughts were being tossed around on both CNN and MSNBC, the commentators begging legislators to get off their duffs and take back their role in governing the country.

Flat out Fact:  Donald Trump is the worst mistake American voters ever made. (And there have been a doozy or two in the past.) The problem is that he is merely the evil puppet fronting a consortium of oligarchs who have become so powerful they are making their play to take over the U S of A. The whole kit and kaboodle, including poor little you and me. And due to utter terror of their financial power, not only is our Federal Legislature rolling over and playing dead; so are Big Business, Major Law Firms, Banks, Sycophants & Weakling of every flavor, etc., etc.  Example: among their methods—not only flaunting and manipulating the Constitution but seizing on ancient and obscure laws to justify unlawful behavior, such as ignoring due process.

Sad Grace Note:  I was optimistic enough to think we could survive another four years of Trump. Now I'm beginning to wonder. 

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Thanks for stopping by,

Grace (Blair Bancroft)