You can't make this S**T up!

 

By the time you read this, two weeks will have passed since I wrote this entry.  Normally, this wouldn't be much of a concern, but one of these news items will likely add even more fuel to a scandal hitting the press.  The other of these items affects something more precious to me: the separation of church and state.

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I'll start out by talking about the most important of these issues: the proposed IRS settlement regarding the Johnson amendment and churches' political speech rights.  For the past 70 years, churches have been allowed to exercise their free speech rights to advocate for certain causes, but NOT endorse political candidates or parties.  This has helped maintain the separation of church and state.  Now, with the Orange Snowflake in charge, I expect to see preachers and their churches abuse their churches' tax free status and directly meddle in politics. The effects of this change may take months, if not years to have an effect on the American body politic. But it has the potential to cause great harm to minority religious groups to practice their own faiths.   

We've seen what happened in a country when religious leaders got unchecked control of Iran.  Forty years ago, Iran was a prosperous, modern, and moderately free (if one didn't offend the Shah) nation.  Now, religious police patrol the streets, and the people have to do their best to live within a religious authoritarian state.  Do we want that here?

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Yet, the thing that may be the most consequential in the short term is the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.  The Daily Beast reported that the FBI has the Epstein prison tape with no missing minute.  There was another report (I can't find the source) that someone in an orange jumpsuit was near Epstein's cell on the night he allegedly committed suicide.  Hmmm.  Could this be a rub out?  The Orange Snowflake acknowledged that Virginia Giuffre was stolen from his employ at Mar-a-Largo by Epstein. My first question is: Why did the snowflake hire an under aged female to be employed at Mar-a-Lago's spa? Then, I ask: What was going on at Mar-a-Lago.  According to an article in Vanity Fair, the snowflake and Epstein had a "Calendar Girl" party  where they were the only 2 males present.  Even MAGA loyalists want answers now!

No matter how much the snowflake tries to deflect things, I think this scandal has legs.  It's one thing when the snowflake abuses the power of his office and accepts a $400,000,000 bribe from the Qatari government.  But when it comes to the combination of possible adolescent child abuse coupled with lies from the snowflake saying that he'd release all the files on Epstein, it's something else.  MAGA is upset, as this is one betrayal they can not deal with.

The snowflake can't have it both ways.  If he is innocent, why not release all of the files.  The worst that can be said about him in that case would be that he once associated with the wrong person and cut off contact when he felt Epstein had crossed the line.  But if he is guilty, then MAGA rightfully is upset, as the snowflake is as much a part of the swamp that he claimed he wanted to drain.  This will likely stay in the news for weeks to come.  I certainly hope that this is the case! 

What does anger and hatred get us?

I read the following in a Facebook post the other day, and it is just as valid now as when it was originally posted:

Feminist News

The question was posed, "Why do people continue supporting Trump no matter what he does?" A lady named Bev answered it this way:

“You all don't get it. I live in Trump country, in the Ozarks in southern Missouri, one of the last places where the KKK still has a relatively strong established presence. They don't give a shit what he does. He's just something to rally around and hate liberals, that's it, period. He absolutely realizes that and plays it up. They love it. He knows they love it. The fact that people act like it's anything other than that proves to them that liberals are idiots, all the more reason for high fives all around.

If you keep getting caught up in "why do they not realize this problem" and "how can they still back Trump after this scandal," then you do not understand what the underlying motivating factor of his support is. It's fuck liberals, that's pretty much it.

Have you noticed he can do pretty much anything imaginable, and they'll explain some way that rationalizes it that makes zero logical sense? Because they're not even keeping track of any coherent narrative, it's irrelevant. Fuck liberals is the only relevant thing.

Trust me; I know firsthand what I'm talking about.

That's why they just laugh at it all because you all don't even realize they truly don't give a fuck about whatever the conversation is about. It's just a side mission story that doesn't matter anyway. That's all just trivial details - the economy, health care, whatever.

Fuck liberals.

Look at the issue with not wearing the masks. I can tell you what that's about. It's about exposing fear. They're playing chicken with nature, and whoever flinches just moved down their internal pecking order, one step closer to being a liberal.
You've got to understand the one core value that they hold above all others is hatred for what they consider weakness because that's what they believe strength is, hatred of weakness. And I mean passionate, sadistic hatred. And I'm not exaggerating. Believe me. Sadistic, passionate hatred, and that's what proves they're strong, their passionate hatred for weakness. Sometimes they will lump vulnerability in with weakness. They do that because people tend to start humbling themselves when they're in some compromising or overwhelming circumstance, and to them, that's an obvious sign of weakness.

Kindness = weakness. Honesty = weakness. Compromise = weakness.

They consider their very existence to be superior in every way to anyone who doesn't hate weakness as much as they do. They consider liberals to be weak people that are inferior, almost a different species, and the fact that liberals are so weak is why they have to unite in large numbers, which they find disgusting, but it's that disgust that is a true expression of their natural superiority.

Go ahead and try to have a logical, rational conversation with them. Just keep in mind what I said here and be forewarned.”

So, what does this mean for the rest of us?  Do we give in to our hatred and anger and become just like these losers?  Or, do we find ways of disconnecting ourselves from them in all ways and let them stew by themselves in their own anger?  I feel sorry for these cult members, but I won't forgive them.  They have choices they can make, and they keep making bad ones.  The best I can do is to put myself in positions where they can do as little harm to me as possible, for as long as possible.  But what do I suggest for civilized people as a whole?

I suggest total disengagement.  Advocate policies that protect our communities from their hatred, even if it hurts them in the long run.  Let them destroy their states as long as we can protect ourselves from them and their politicians.  Boycott their states, as the Canadians are boycotting America.  If it's easy to avoid doing business with firms such as Hobby Lobby and Chick Fil A, do so.  But this will not always be possible.  Many of the biggest firms are managed by people who benefit from targeting the weakest in our society.  So do business with them as little as possible.  

Right now, I have friends in Texas who I will not visit until their state recovers its sanity.  Since that isn't happening soon, all I can do is meet with them over a Zoom link.  It's not good, but it's better than visiting them as an unauthentic self to avoid persecution in that state.

 

 

Our Viper Holiday (420 Day) falls on Easter Sunday this year.

 

Those of you who know me know that I am moderate in my vices.  Although I have partaken in Snoop Dogg's favorite "Medicine", I am far from being a Viper like Snoop and Willie Nelson.  With maybe a couple of exceptions, the last time I partook of the the wonderful herb was in 1983.  Yet, I have always been a strong advocate for its legalization, and am glad that I can get it legally (according to New York State) in a convenient dispensary near me.

One year, the Transgender Day of Remembrance fell on Easter Sunday, and then the GOP hypocrites condemned President Biden for recognizing the Transgender community.  These are the same jerks who tried to deny the American public the right to enjoy the mind altering substance of their choice while smoking their "Tea" in private.  There is something they don't like about other people having the same freedoms that they want to reserve for themselves.

I can't say too much for the intelligence of the average MAGAloon.  Like many people, they aren't able to articulate why they support the conservative movement in this country, nor can they justify their beliefs with objective evidence.  I'll admit that the person in the above linked discussion is likely an uneducated person who follows their political and religious leaders without question.  Even when I was in therapy, my therapist would argue against the legalization of cannabis while smoking it in private.  Like many in the conservative movement, there is a blatant inconsistency in his reasoning that offended me; and I was glad to end my therapy sessions when he retired.

Although I doubt that I will partake of any cannabis on Easter, I will be glad that we are no longer putting people in jail in my state for enjoying their smoke of choice.  Hopefully, it will soon be legal in all 50 states, so that no one need worry about being arrested for illegal possession if they cross state lines.

I have to resist temptation these days.

 

In this uncertain age, I am easily tempted to write more about the crap that is going on in Washington, DC, and what is happening in my life as a transgender person.  It's all too easy to write about the breakdown in the administration of Law and Order, as evidenced by the actions of the Orange Snowflake, his cabinet, "his" congress, and his MAGA supporters.  These people are eager to make us transgender people the first of many whipping girls for the crimes being committed by his regime.  Yet, given how boring a non-op transgender person's life can be, I could easily go on for hours writing about politics, something I don't intend for this blog to be about.

Like many women, I enjoy shopping for, and buying new clothes.  My late wife would be amazed to see how many dresses I have fit in to what was her side of the closet. She'd probably tease me a little and then choose a dress for me to wear out - except when celebrating our wedding anniversary.  It's been almost 30 years since she passed away, and I still miss her presence.  No, I'm not putting her on a pedestal.  She had serious faults.  But I liked her as a person, and I miss the things that attracted me to her.

If I felt that I looked good in female clothing other than dresses, I'd have loaded up my closet with these garments.  Assuming that I lose a dress size or two, I will likely build a more varied feminine wardrobe which includes nicer tops, skirts, and trouser like garments. My ideal life would be to be able to go out in anything from my closet or dresser and only be seen as a woman and not a trans-woman. And this would include being able to travel, present my documents, and have no one hassle me on account of any gender marker on my documents.

This leads me back to politics.  The GOP doesn't give a damn about how it treats transgender people. The GOP congress has written rules for the capitol building which prevents a representative from Delaware from relieving herself in the facilities meant for women.  Should Sarah McBride suffer the indignity of being forced to use the men's room for her bio-breaks?  No.  But this is what the GOP thinks is important right now.

Months ago, my congressional representative, Mike Lawler, NY-17, said that he'd oppose any attempt to harm social security.  Yet, once the "DOGE" department started to decapitate Social Security, all we heard was crickets - he won't oppose anything being done to harm his constituents.  You can guess who is not getting my vote when next he runs.  Strangely enough, he may be looking to run for governor next year.  I hope we have someone strong running against him, with all the financial resources needed to retire him before he can cause even more damage to my district.

My goal is to be able to live as Marian full time and to be able to travel as Marian whenever I want.  Although I'll talk to people who support the GOP, I won't trust them to do the right thing when it counts. So, I'll have to do what I can within the law to stop them from taking away my human rights....

President's Day - a look back

 

In the picture above, we could literally look up to images of four great presidents carved into a mountain.  All of these men had major flaws.  Yet, we consider all of them important enough to commemorate in stone - something none of them would have asked for or wanted.  

Today, we have a malignant narcissist in the office of President.  Every chance he gets, he attends a sporting event for a photo-op, where he now gets booed more than he gets cheered.  At the Super Bowl, his minions arranged for an Air Force flyover.  One catch - the game was being held in a domed stadium. At the Daytona 500, he had the nerve to have "The Beast" do a lap around the course.  At least, Nascar fans skew more to the right, and he got some cheers.  I expect that his handlers will fine tune where he makes his next appearances, as they don't want to be subject to his anger if he realizes that he is not loved by all Americans.

What I find galling is that the Orange Snowflake's minions are trying to put him into the pantheon of great presidents.  One congresscritter has proposed making his birthday a national holiday.  None of the presidents on Mount Rushmore would have had the nerve to ask for that.  Even worse, another MAGA personality has suggested carving his face next to the other four presidents.  Although neither of these offensive things are likely to happen, it's galling that people would even propose this while the man is alive - before history has has a generation to judge this man's accomplishments.

The other day, a friend posted something to Facebook.  A MAGA troll responded to her with misinformation, and I had to get involved.  The troll cited the "Twittersphere" as a source for his "information" for his reply. He supplied me with a government posting taken out of context, and I replied with the context of that government posting.  He never said what could cause him to change his mind about the leader of his cult - he had drunk the Kool-Aid, and is beyond rescue.

I feel sad that America has come to this.  Hopefully, we'll see a change for the better soon. 

I can hardly believe it! 34 counts - all guilty!!!!

 

I wish I could have been in the courtroom to see the verdict delivered.  For some, it's a happy day because Trump got his comeuppance. For others, it's a sad day because their cult leader has been chastised.  To me, it's a good day because: (1) The justice system finally prevailed against Trump after all of these years, and (2) karma has "bitch slapped" a bully - the latter being something that made me happy.

Sadly, this is only the conclusion of act one.  We're likely to see a long intermission between act two (the Georgia case), act three (the January 6th case), and act four (the Mar a Lago case).  Although sentencing should take place on July eleventh, I doubt that Trump will be made to serve his sentence until after the election - if we're lucky.

America is so divided these days, in part because of Trump, that objective facts no longer exist for members of his cult.  Lunatics are making death threats against people who dare to do their jobs in our polarized political climate.  The 12 jurors + 6 alternate jurors may be free to talk with the press, but they have been instructed not to do so for their own safety.  Heck, even the jury that convicted Al Capone didn't have to worry about repercussions from his mob.  But this jury has to worry about repercussions from MAGA loons for years.  This is not right.

So now, we have to see what both the appeals process brings and what happens when the US Supreme Court makes its rulings in regard to the January 6th case and the Georgia case.  (I have no hope for a good result in the Mar a Lago case, due to the corrupt judge in charge of the case.  Even though I don't expect any progress on the 3 remaining cases before Election Day, I hope to see progress before it's too late....

By the time you read this, the first trial will be over.

 

By the time you read this, the first of the 4 Trump trials will be over and done with.  Will he be acquitted?  I hope not, as he is a danger to the Trans community.  Will there be a hung jury?  Possibly, but I hope not.  I'd hate to see this same case go to trial again.  Will he be convicted?  I hope so.  But I'm afraid that Trump will be out on bail while the verdict is appealed.  And if he loses on his appeals, will he spend any time in prison?

There are a lot of Trump trolls out there, who defend him with all the zealotry of typical cult members.  They can and will not see objective reality, as they have bought into his myth that "I alone, can fix things."  If this were true, why didn't the job get done done during his one term in office?  Trump is a con artist, a grifter who has bamboozled millions of people.  And the rest of the GOP are afraid of what his supporters will do.

You'll notice that the three great Abrahamic faiths all believe in the same god, even though he is worshiped differently in each of them.  All say to love thy neighbor and to treat strangers as you'd treat family.  And yet, all have been corrupted to have factions who will fight and kill to see that their version of god wins out.  To me, faith is the ability to test one's beliefs and act according to those tenets in spite of our natural instincts.  Cultism demands of individuals an unquestioned acceptance of dogma, and a willingness to fight to have that dogma rule everyone's behavior.  Doesn't MAGA sound like a cult to you?

As I wrote this entry, I watched Robert DeNiro hold a rally near where the Trump trial was being held. He rightfully noted that authoritarians gain their power by the use of fear - free people know not to worry about that fear and see the danger inherent in that fear.  Is it any wonder that the most used tactic of MAGA is to shout people down who don't agree with them?  They are like lambs being led to the slaughterhouse.  But it's hard to feel pity for them, as they willingly joined a cult, and are no longer receptive to arguments based on reality.  They are a danger to people like me, and all we can do is to see that their cult leader does some serious prison time, so that the cult leader comes out "tenderized" by the experience.

Sadly, if he is convicted, he will still get protection from the US Secret Service - even in a prison cell.  If it were up to me, he'd get a multi-cultural education from the Red, Blue, Letters and Numbers fraternal organizations,  (For those not familiar with the slang, Reds - Bloods, Blues - Crips, Numbers - MS-13, and Letters - Singaloa.)  The one thing I'd hate to see is him being protected by the Aryan Brotherhood, as I'd like to see him be the forced recipient of some masculine "love" from one of the aforementioned groups.

At least, the case will go to the jury tomorrow, and we'll likely to have had a verdict by the end of May......

Posting a Bond

 

By now, out 45th president will have gotten a surety bond to pay the civil penalty for misrepresenting the value of his assets, or New York's Attorney General will have started the process to collect over $400,000,000 from him.  March 25th will have been a very interesting news date to say the least.

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I have gotten to the point where I can only skim the news, as there is so much misinformation coming from #45 and the GOP.  Even my own congress critter (who I have no respect for, as he has broken his campaign promises) has had to echo the lies being spewed by the GOP.  The public is weary of this nonsense, but is powerless to stop it until Election Day.  If #45 (and the GOP) loses again, we will likely be rid of this threat to democracy.

But this doesn't mean we are out of harms way....

The MAGA movement will likely metastasize, and a similar cancer in the body politic will come near the levers of power.  Anyone in the LGBTIQ community will be at risk, as the GOP's ranks have been contaminated by Fundamentalist White Christian Nationalists.   They won't rest until we are back in the closet.  But I'm not interested in going back in the closet.  I enjoy life now.  Being able to interact with the world as Marian is much more rewarding than being closeted as Mario.

So, each time #45 suffers a setback, I will cheer.  The man is evil, and destroys everything he touches.  Let's hope that's brought to justice before Election Day....

Sometimes, I don't have much to say. Sometimes, I have a lot.

 

Lately, I have been thinking of politics much more than usual. Given that Trump is going Senile and no one is standing in his way to get the GOP nomination, I'm a little concerned about what would happen if he has control over the "Football" again.

The former president is a narcissist who needs to be loved by everyone with whom he comes into contact. He has no loyalty to friends and family, nor does he have any loyalty to the country.  But he has a following of lemming like supporters.  This afternoon, while I was driving home, I stopped into a pizzeria. Sitting down at a table was the owner, a man who wore a MAGA baseball cap.  There was no way that I wanted to have a political discussion with this person.  So I took my pizza and walked to a table in the back to eat it.

Of course, RQS can say that I am a motor mouth.  And she'd be right.  I can go on for hours about some subjects, and have done so often.  But this time, I knew enough to keep my mouth shut and walk away.  I only wonder if this person really understood that he was getting conned by a master con man.

I'm surprised that I never heard about this man before

 

The other day, I attended a meetup at a local brewpub where a weekly trivia night was being held.  Given that I am transgender, I was very surprised that I didn't know about this man, NYPD Detective Ori Harbor.

Mr. Harbor is the first openly transgender detective in the NYC Police Department.  I guess that my ignorance was caused by two things: (1) I rarely watch the old-line broadcast networks anymore, and (2) I often take it for granted that the LGBT community gets to participate fully in social life in this area.  

I will admit that I live in a news bubble that skews to the left these days.  But then, the American right wing has gone so far off the rails with its form of Christian White Nationalism. As a result, I discard much of what they have to say because their media of choice uses fear to keep people in line and to keep its plutocratic leaders in power.  

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A while back, I started saying that the one thing a MAGA supporter fears most are law abiding black men with guns, as they can't be intimidated (as a group) by threats of violence.  I'm glad that I have to amend this slightly, as I can include the LGBT community in the group that can't be intimidated.  With groups such as the Pink Pistols out there, I have growing faith that we can survive this wave of hatred and oppression that MAGA stands for.

 

And now for a word from our sponsor....

 

As I write this, Donald Trump is still the presumptive GOP nominee for the 2024 presidential election.  By the time you read this, the US Supreme court will likely have ruled on Colorado's judgement that he participated in an insurrection against the government of the United States, and is ineligible to be on the state's GOP primary ballot. I support Colorado's court action, as the closest to the White House that Trump ever should be is as a protestor in Lafayette Park. Sadly, the violence his words provoke in the lunatics that support him has already started: The justices on Colorado's court are already getting death threats. 

But what does this mean to the average transgender person?

The MAGA mob is like a large group of bovines being stampeded.  They want to live in their ideal world: the America of the 1950's , a fantasy which would be a dystopia for us.  The LGBT community would be persecuted, the black community would again suffer under Jim Crow (separate and unequal), and all other non-white and non-Christian peoples would be silenced.  And even if this happened, things would get worse.  Governments under strongman regimes eventually fail - and usually disastrous for the people who live under those regimes.

Political pundits are saying that the US Supreme Court should duck the issue and overrule the Colorado Supreme Court in the narrowest of ways, allowing Trump to be on the primary ballot and preserving the armistice between the MAGA mob and civilized Americans. I think this would be a big mistake, as the MAGA mob is intimidating the "sane" members of the GOP, forcing them to leave their party.  Instead, the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) should take the issue head on and rule against Trump, saying that the 14th amendment is self effecting.  If a state says that Trump is an insurrectionist, then he is ineligible to be on the ballot and ineligible to serve in any public office.  This would give the non-MAGA GOP members cover to nominate people other than those from the MAGA mob to public office AND give the party a chance to be a national party again, instead of one that has support mostly in rural areas.

If SCOTUS were to rule in favor of the traditional GOP loyalists that brought this suit, I expect no less than a 5-4 ruling in favor of keeping Trump off the ballot.  (I have my doubts on Justice Thomas and the 3 Trump nominated members.)  I will be very surprised if it is a 9-0 ruling.  The Colorado court's ruling was written in a way that justices Kavanaugh and Roberts would be hamstrung in trying to overturn their ruling. 

However, I expect that SCOTUS will duck the issue and hope that they don't have to rule on this issue again.  They may feel that given the political polarization we have today, that it may be wiser to let the people make their decision at the ballot box.  But this would be the wrong decision to make, as the constitution prohibits Trump, and the ex-Confederate officers before him from holding office.  If he wants relief, it may only be given by congress, where 33 &1/3% is elected to the Senate and 100% is elected to the House on election day.  Since the new congress takes office before the president, they could rehabilitate Trump if elected, but unable to take office on January 20th.  But then, MAGA people do not believe in elections that do not deliver the results they want....

 

With 4 indictments, you get egg roll.

 

As I started writing this entry, our ex-president has just had his 4th criminal indictment.  My friends know how happy I am to see this, as this man has no empathy for his fellow human being.  Like the late, great Dame Edna, they'd both say that "it's all about me."  Unlike Dame Edna, the ex-president is a malicious and corrupt grifter.

If one is a "Conservative" by today's standards, one dispenses with the rule of law and order when their side breaks the law.  In the case of our former president, most GOP politicians defend our 45th president because they are afraid of his supporters.  The ex-president is the leader of a cult, and he is an expert at leading it.  The "sane" members of the GOP fear this cult, and go out of their ways to avoid its ire.

Unfortunately, the names of the Grand Jurors who indicted the ex-president and his henchmen on RICO charges are public record.  This means that it is likely that they will be "punished" for indicting the leader of the cult.  This is a shame.  All jurors (Grand and Trial) should not have their names published in the public record.  Sadly, in Georgia, Grand Jurors' names and addresses are on the public record, and in this case, puts these people at risk.  Don't be surprised if some cult member attacks one of the 23 grand jurors on the case at some time in the near future.

And now the "fun" begins.

I expect to see the prosecuting attorneys all fighting to get their cases on the docket in ways that the individual trials don't conflict with each other.  The Federal trials will not be on TV.  But Georgia's might be.  We need for the public to see everything, so that there is no chance to say the ex-president and his cronies were railroaded.  We need for people to see that justice was fair, and based on all credible evidence.  Hopefully, something will allow this to happen.

But what happens before, during, and after a fair trial?

Many people who are part of the MAGA cult have given up on classic American principles.  They feel that the elite live under different rules than the rest of us do, and they are right to some degree.  Clinton lied under oath when referring to Monica Lewinsky, and no one from the Democratic party stood up to say that a felony was committed and that he should be disciplined (or impeached, then removed from office).  Because his wife stood by him, she got one of two choice US Senate nominations and easily won the vacant seat.  People in this class were told that globalization would bring them more and better work, and instead were put on the dole in states where no new work was to be found.  Can you blame them for supporting a cult leader, when he says the very things the masses want to hear - even if easily proven untrue?

Since many in this cult no longer believe that we have the rule of law, nor do they believe that we have fair elections, they feel that it is OK to use violence to achieve their ends - nothing else has worked for them.  What will happen to the jurors who indicted their leader?  I'm afraid to find out the answer to that question. I'm even more afraid of what will happen during the trial, and after a possible conviction.  Could you imagine what would happen if this man and his henchmen are sent to prison - as they likely deserve?

I'm afraid for America.  Very afraid.... 

 

 

 

PS: MAGA Lunatics have published the names and addresses of the Grand Jurors, so that they can extract their revenge.  Let's hope that they can stay safe from harm.

A quick word of warning.

 

I'm not going to say too much today.  At the time I wrote this, our former president is using our transgender community as the target for MAGA hatred.  This disgusts me, as I don't like to see any group targeted for others' hate.  But, as they used to say in a kids' game: "Tag, you're it."

Unlike most LGB people, it's hard for many of us to go stealth.  Most of us can only hope to blend in as adults.  For children, it is even worse, as many are now unable to get the medical and psychological treatment they need for gender issues - governments have made these treatments illegal.

We have a war to fight.  But how to best do so?  I'd love to hear your feelings on this issue of vital importance to us.