Tag: diesel prices

The Trump Double Standards File

It’s another week of surreal comparisons and Trump thinking.

And it’s only Monday!

Trump believes there’s one rule for him while another one for everyone else. That’s the bedrock foundation of Trump Double Standards.

Trump frequently mocks other people, shouts at them, insults them, and calls them names. Yet he becomes so HUUUGELY UPSET whenever someone writes the truth about him.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

That was Trump this week, September, 2026.

Trump went on about fake news…”something that has grown like Cancer in our beloved United States of America.”

Wow, it’s almost like he’s talking about himself. Trump is the cancer not just on our nation, but on intelligence, decency, and humanity.

What Trump doesn’t understand — REFUSES to comprehend — is that actions speak louder than words. By threatening reporters, warning that he’s going to pull FCC licenses, banning news organizations from the White House, demanding that comedians or reporters be fired because he doesn’t like what is being said about them, and suing news organizations again and again, Trump proves he totally for fake news and against free speech.

That is Trump’s record forever and ever.

That, plus lying, breaking promises, grifting, and destroying national monuments and trying to aggrandize himself, will be the Trump Legacy.

I also believe that Trump lies quite deliberately and goes on these rants to distract people from his many failures and prop himself up as a ‘strong man’. He weaves a destruction of chaos, pathos, and confusion. It’s all part of Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!

That’s why he tore down the White House East Wing, screwed up the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, attacked Iran, has fishing boats destroyed and their occupants killed, is threatening to demolish the Kennedy Center, keeps demanding that he be given the Nobel Peace Prize, demanding he be added to Mount Rushmore, and pretends he isn’t in the Epstein files. Trump wants us to forget about rising gas and diesel prices (now at $7 per gallon in places), the rising cost of food, climate change, and increasing personal bankruptcies. Trump wants us not to think about the plight of the farmers, the ongoing rural hospital crisis, AI and data centers construction, or the measles outbreaks (3,471 cases in the US, the worse since 1991).

Trump wants to distract us from all the other things Trump is doing.

After I wrote about Trump’s plan to militarize the arch he’s building to memorialize him, Nan pointed out one of the follies of arming it and then bragging that he wants to militarize it.

“What I find rather fascinating is Trump’s pompous bragging about how this new arch will be “war-ready.” Obviously he doesn’t have a clue that this very bragging is what will motivate enemies to target the structure should they at any time decide to strike the U.S.”

That’s all very true. Trump’s plan also highlights his shallow thinking. He’s fixated on drones now because of the Ukraine-Russia war (the one he said he’d end on day 1) and the Iran war Trump started seven months ago (the one he said was already over or close to winning over twenty times). Drones are playing prominently in those wars.

In establishing a target like the arch, though, Trump is overlooking a multitude of other weapons capable of taking out that arch. Trump should know about them because we just sold some to Israel, and we’ve been using them in Iran.

But that’s Trump, three steps behind, and mad as hell about it.

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Thursday’s Theme Music – Seeing Through It

Ashland, southern Oregon. Thursday, September 17, 2026.

Sunny today, but cloudy. 66 F for the moment. 100% chance of thunderstorms, the weather seers tell me, with a high of 78 F.

Mom is back home in the assisted living facility. Suffering laryngitis and diarrhea. Resting in bed, she said, because she feels very tired. Mom has three appointments coming up. She has three medical appointments coming up in September.

I have a new appointment next week. Changing PCPs because my current PCP is leaving to go into private practice, focusing on peptide therapy. I meet my new PCP next week. Hope she turns out to be as good as my last one. Will lightning strike twice?

As expected, Trump launched some more Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! this week.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

I’m not a lawyer but I’ve watched some TV. You’d think that if evidence came out about this plot that any law-abiding, intelligent individual would ensure the authorities had it so that due process could take place and law and order maintained.

No. Not Trump. Instead of doing that, Trump went on social media to bray about it. Which tells us that it’s more fact news. Just another distraction. More Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!

No surprise that Trump launched a fresh distraction. War in Iran is going into seven months. That’s completely contrary to how long Trump said it would take, all after promising, “No new wars.” Stories are emerging that the United States suffered more damage than previously revealed.

Prices are creeping up. The Fed increased interest rates, contrary to what Trump wanted.

Trumpapalooza was affected by low attendance and low energy. Trump is at odds with recent CEOs that AI growth needs to slow down and perhaps be regulated.

As icing on Trump’s very bad month, part of Trump’s very bad year, his administration displayed Space Force uniforms which are being heavily mocked for their fascist look.

Finally, Trump claimed Ukraine and Russia said they wouldn’t attack diesel facilities any longer. Both nations denied any deal such as Trump suggested and continued their attacks.

That leads us to ask — again — why did Trump make that public claim? Did US intel get it wrong or did Trump hear someone wrong? Perhaps Russia and Ukraine lied to Trump and said they would, to make him appear weak and out of touch.

Or perhaps, truthfully, Trump just pretended this is what happened in order to make it seem like he’s relevant.

These positions and calamities have led to declining support for Trump and his policies. Of course, something from Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! was needed.

We’ve seen enough of Trump to see through his deceptions.

I ended up with Bob Dylan singing “Masters of War” in my morning mental music stream. I think the 1963 release accurately reflects how Trump behaves, hiding, making claims, while destroying our world.

Sample Lyrics

You that hide behind walls
You that hide behind desks
I just want you to know
I can see through your masks

You that never done nothin’
But build to destroy
You play with my world
Like it’s your little toy

You put a gun in my hand
And you hide from my eyes
And you turn and run farther
When the fast bullets fly

Like Judas of old
You lie and deceive

A world war can be won
You want me to believe

But I see through your eyes
And I see through your brain
Like I see through the water
That runs down my drain

May your spirit carry you through these times to happier places and a more comfortable and secure life.

Cheers

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Trump — Narrow and Backward

Let’s begin with your Trump Quote of the Day:

This was from the Dallas 2026 midterm conventions. Trump insisted that the convention be made about him. That way, the midterm will be about Trump, because Trump thinks he’s the greatest.

And those of him applauding and pledging with him must agree. Why else put your hand up and say those things — unless they’re like Trump, willing to say anything?

Trump made many claims during his speech. A few had a basis in truth. Like, he did increase oil and gas production.

But that’s the problem. Trump’s focus is so narrow and backward. While he increased oil and gas production, that resulted in:

  • Record high profits for the energy companies
  • Diesel gas prices going over $6 per gallon for the first time in US history
  • The highest average price per gallon for gas on Labor Day in the US — ever
  • Increased costs for food and construction due to high construction costs
  • A record national debt that is growing faster than our nation
  • And an affordability crisis for Americans

Now for our second Trump Quote of the Day:

Trump has insisted that we’re not at war (although Trump also claimed we are at war and that’s why we can’t afford things). He always calls the war with Iran a conflict.

But here he is, verifying, yes, he thinks of it as a war. He used the word ‘war’ repeatedly this week.

Because it is a war.

“I think the war’s going to end immediately after the election because they can’t hold out any longer,” Trump said. “They’re desperate to affect the election, so that we can get a nice, weak group of people in there and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon. All they want is their nuclear weapon, and if they have a nuclear weapon, the whole world is in deep trouble.”

Which means that he has illegally taken our nation into war over six months ago. The Constitution states only Congress can declare war.

I know Trump apologists – Trumpologists – are hurriedly giving him cover. “He was just talking,” they’ll probably say. “That doesn’t mean that we’re at war.”

That’s what Trumpologists always say about Trump. Trump was just talking, whether it’s about why he ordered the attacks on Iran, when the Iran war will end, declaring he’ll balance the budget, reduce prices, start no new wars, be a unifier and a peacemaker, release the Epstein files, cheat, or lower drug prices by over 100%.

He was just talking.

Trump cannot be trusted to keep his word. And his attitude and policies are too backward and outdated for what’s needed in this century.

Instead of facing this, Trump lies, bullies, cheats, and exaggerates.

I believe we need people in our leadership positions who are willing to face the challenges and rise to them, instead of trying to drag us backwards.

Otherwise, we’ll forever be going backwards as the world goes forward.

Vote Blue in 2026. End the war, stop the lies, and restore trust.

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Your Trump Quote of the Day

Looks like Trump’s War on Iran is going to heat up more as the US attacked and destroyed three Iranian oil tankers.

Nothing like escalating a war to end it! Especially when Trump said the six-month war — or is it seven? — war was over months ago.

Well, I’m sure after all the attacks on Iran so far, Iran will now meekly submit — right? Sure. I have a Trump golf course to sell if you believe that. Based on previous responses, the Iranians will fight back. That’s what tends to happen when you kill and threaten to kill more. People get upset.

On other aspects of this escalation, sinking oil tankers is probably not good for the environment, and will be bad for oil, gas, and diesel prices. Might be bad for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, too, which might be bad for the global supply chain.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

Of course, Trump did promise no new wars. Like everything else he does, he’s lying about what he said and meant. Just like when he told his first (and second) wife that he would love them forever and never cheat on them.

Just as he said he would never golf if he won the election because he would be too busy. Yet, We the People have spent over $100,000,000 on Trump’s golfing.

Just think of what We the People could have done to help the poor and sick. But no, Trump wanted to golf. Priorities, am I right?

Trump also claims that this is not a war. He’s just ordering the US Army, Navy, and Air Force to bomb things and kill people in Iran and on Iran ships.

Reading Trump’s quote shows the extent of his delusions. Trump claims ‘we had no equipment’ when he came into office. Sure. Search the net to find out how long it takes to build aircraft carriers like the USS Abraham Lincoln. Years, friends. Does Trump think he just snapped its fingers and ‘lo, there it was?

Likewise, the US military had huge numbers of personnel and armaments in place before Trump arrived. If anything, we’ve seen how Trump’s mismanagement and abuse of our military power is weakening the military.

As proven through the years, though, Trump is a lying idiot who fancies himself an expert on everything.

To the people like MAGAts who went to tear down everything, he’s perfect for the job.

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The Trump Logic

I laughed today, reading a few articles about Trump. For example, this one:

Haberman reveals why Trump ignores his own team’s plea to stop voter revolt

“During a Monday morning appearance on MS NOW, author and journalist Maggie Haberman revealed that President Donald Trump’s own team pleaded with him to address voter anxieties, but he has so far seemed content to ignore them as the midterms approach.“

I laughed because Trump has demonstrated that he’s so out of touch, it’s gone beyond surreal. As further news emerges about Trump’s relationship with Natalie Harp, I think she’s influencing him, bolstering ideas that Trump is doing great. So, ipso facto, if Trump is doing great, as he believes, he has no reason to change.

Secondly, I would not be surprised if Trump is already planning to declare an emergency, and in fact to create an emergency to intervene in the 2026 elections or even suspend them. Everyone except Republicans would be in an immediate uproar. What’s really scary in this scenario is that the courts would probably tell Trump that he lacks the authority, but the Roberts Court would probably let Trump do so while they schedule arguments.

Trump and his Project Heritage puppet masters, are expecting that. They’ve been probing the judicial system to see how it reacts to different situations and arguments. They know which courts and judges favor Trump. And they also see how much legal leeway Roberts is giving Trump.

It would be so weirdly Trump: he would simultaneously claim — as he has — that crime and violence is down and everything is great — but also declare an emergency because of how bad everything is.

At the same time, Trump has repeatedly argued that the economy is strong and that his economic record will help Republicans in the 2026 midterms.

When talking about the economy, Trump likes to say that we’ve entered a golden age. He then recites a laundry list of ‘good things’. The thing is, those measurements are typically the metrics for the wealthy.

Outside of the wealthy, the economy sucks. The national debt is at a record high. Dominos fall from that. Bond rates increase; interest rates rise; the housing market suffers.

Gas and diesel fuel prices are up. That drives up the cost of everything, including just going to the store to buy things. With prices up, people have to spend more to buy less.

Back to school sales will be a tell about the economy; so will the upcoming holiday months. But retail sales are trending down YTY for the same period, not a good sign. Although places like Walmart say they’re going to counter by slashing prices by using refunds of tariffs they paid, how much can they significantly offset. More importantly, in parallel to that, Trump is adding more tariffs, and energy prices are ticking upward.

The bottom line of that: the government gives retailers money back for tariffs because the Roberts Court ruled against them. Then retailers use some of it to reduce prices. But Trump imposes new tariffs that push costs back upward.

And Trump knows that his tariffs are costing consumes, even though he previously said that they don’t. That takes us to quotes about what Trump has said about affordability, prices, and tariffs.

Your Trump Quote(s) of the Day:

So, I get it!

According to Trump, he’s going to address affordability, and bring prices down on day one, except affordability is really a Democratic hoax and doesn’t matter, and he doesn’t care anyway. And affordability — that Democratic hoax — is better under Republicans, even though prices are higher and trending to go higher yet. Also, consumers don’t pay tariffs but he’s suspending beef prices to lower prices for you.

If you believe that, Trump has a bible to sell you, religiously used for him to pray every night.

Listening to Trump has all the exasperation and weariness of dealing with a toddler, except toddlers are make a lot more sense.

Joey Politano put it best:

“[E]very 6 months the Trump administration realizes lowering tariffs will lower prices, applies this insight to one specific good, and then proceeds to never introspect beyond that,” he wrote in a post on X. “It’s honestly beautiful in its stupidity.”

Even more beautiful in an ugly way is how so many MAGAts still trust and believe in Trump. Because the direction Trump has taken us in the United States is what they want.

That’s the Trump logic at work.

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Saturday’s Theme Music – Rambling

Ashland, southern Oregon — Saturday, July 25, 2026.

July is romping to an end, but summer is cranking it up. Cooler today. 89 F is our high

It’s fire weather season, not just here in the US, but around the world. Calm here today but wildfires are burning in Spain and France. Hundreds of thousands of people are threatened and evacuated. Yet climate denial continues.

A paper last year in Nature concluded that the odds of encountering extreme, climate-driven fire years have risen by 88% to 152% globally compared to the pre-industrial era. Further, studies aided by supercomputers have concluded that many of the extreme weather, including these enormous wildfires, would not have occurred without human emissions.

Trump and his administration have responded by rolling back protections. Yet, Trump thinks he’s improving the world, because he and the billionaires are getting wealthier.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

Gas was averaging $3.10 a gallon at that time, although some regions were much higher, almost to $4 a gallon. Now gas average $4.11 a gallon, and threatens $5 a gallon in some regions.

Trump is cunning. Trump is not very bright, though. Trump made a big deal about the United States drilling oil. Doesn’t make us energy independent, does it?

No. One, it always depends on the kind of oil and coal taken from the ground. Not all of it is equal.

Two, this is a global situation. Because the US lacks the refining infrastructure and raw material to create the gas and diesel we need, we’ll continue to be dependent on others.

Three, building new infrastructure is hampered by rising costs, which are pushed up by Trump’s tariffs — because the US steel industry doesn’t make the steel needed. Additionally, climate change and extreme heat is driving the need for technical change. But the costs and climate change are also driving up insurance costs.

Additionally, the rising gas and oil prices make construction more expensive. So does the greater demand for energy being generated by AI and Data Center construction. Yet, Trump cut other, more sustainable energy technology, such as solar and wind.

Then Trump started a war — after promising not to, of course. The war drives up oil and gas consumption and demand while increasing oil and refining costs but also decreases supplies.

Yet, Trump continues ignoring climate change and disasters. What a genius — NOT.

It says a lot more about Trump’s supporters and Republicans that he can lie, break promises, promote his backward foolish logic, and still get away with it.

Trump’s failures are MAGA’s failures.

Trump’s failures are the GOP’s failures.

Today’s song in the morning mental music stream is “Ramblin’ on My Mind”. It’s an Eric Clapton cover of a Robert Johnson song. Saddens me some; Clapton used to be a performer I enjoyed and admired. But he and Van Morrisson made a lot of comments during the COVID-19 pandemic that depressed me.

This song came about because I read that Trump made a long, boring, rambling speech at the White House Correspondents Association Dinner last night. Many said that Trump bombed. Anyway, thinking about him and rambling and his flailing mind inspired The Neurons in my own wobbly mind.

Have a peaceful, safe, and restful weekend.

Cheers

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Wednesday’s Theme Music

Florence, Oregon — Wednesday, May 20, 2026.

To clarify, we’re actually staying at Heceta Beach, 3 miles north of Florence. Heard from the catsitter. Papi has adjusted to her presence and her feeding him, and is basically acting just as if we’re there.

It’s 60 F now, on its way to 63 F. Here’s this morning beach photo.

We’ve had wonderful, fresh, tasty food everywhere we’ve eaten, and have only met nice folks. Hope to hell I’m not jinxing this by mentioning it.

Yesterday was a bad day for Mom and my sister Gina, Mom’s defacto caregiver. Mom had another UTI, was complaining of dizziness and headaches. Gina took her to urgent care. They said Mom’s UTI isn’t responding to antibiotics and needs something stronger and had Gina take her to a hospital, UPMC East. Well, that was an eight hour ordeal for them, with miscommunication between the two care facilities.

Mom was back into her room around midnight. Gina was shocked at its state; disorganized and messy. Very un-Mom. Mom denies her dizziness is a problem but Gina said she complained about it multiple times. XRays and CT Scans showed nothing.

Gina is also frustrating because the other sisters are ‘too busy’ to help with Mom. She ended up transferring Mom from car to wheelchair to bed, and back, etc, eighteen times yesterday.

Poor Mom. Poor Gina.

This is life.

Haven’t looked at the news this morning. Don’t want to disrupt the vacay vibe by doing that before I’ve had my daily wine and beer. I mean, coffee. Yeah, that’s what I meant.

I did see that Trump’s Iran War is not over. The price of gas is shocking here. Diesel prices are almost at $7 a gallon.

Trump mocked that as ‘peanuts’. He insists he’s a man on a mission to stop Iran from having nuclear weapons, no matter how much pain it cause US citizens and the world. Sure; we believe that. It’s all just part of Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!

Today’s song is “Boys of Summer”. Written by Mike Campbell, a guitarist who played and wrote with Tom Petty, Petty turned the song down. Don Henley took it and had a hit in 1984.

The Neurons put it in the morning mental music stream because several times, I looked out at the beach and saw, “Nobody on the beach.” Recognizing the line from the song, I suppose Les Neurons thought I was trying to remember it.

I hope your day progresses in a satisfying way. I find that coffee helps, along with staying well hydrated with other fluids.

Off to begin Operation Epic Eat Breakfast.

Cheers

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Trump’s Vision: Unhinged, Untethered

I read the NYTimes review of the Trump Ballroom addition to the White House, the addition where Trump tore down the Easat Wing without public approval.

The Times article cited a grand staircase that leads to no entry. Pillars that block the view from inside the ballroom. A building that is too tall and too large for its planned purpose. It was also a building put up without previous engineering and architectural reviews.

A judge ordered construction stopped so reviews could be conducted. Trump responded to a hand-picked panel that unanimously grunted, “Approved” without thinking about any of the 19,000 objections raised.

In many ways, the ballroom is perfectly symbolic of Trump’s decisions.

  • Dismissing medical science, Trump appointed anti-vax people to important positions. With more people encouraged to dismiss childhood vaccinations, measles outbreaks in 2025 climbed to the highest levels seen in decades. 2026 is expected to surpass that mark.
  • Ignoring economic and political history, Trump instituted ’emergency’ tariffs which drove up costs and prices, and which now must be paid back.

All these are like his ballroom: with steps that go nowhere, a confused design that even now, he’s trying to change.

The problem with it all is Trump. He has a maligned vision of what peace, war, unity, and prosperity means, and it’s an unhinged, untethered vision.

The one clear thing we know about Trump from his actions is that he and Jeffrey Epstein were good friends and he’s scared of having details about his Epstein friendship revealed. To that end, he’ll do anything to hide the truth.

Hiding from the truth is what always drives Trump’s unhinged, untethered vision, whether it’s how badly he lost in 2020 or how his popularity is tanking in 2026.

Get ready for more.

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