Tag: opinion

Thursday’s Theme Music – Dealing

Ashland, southern Oregon — Wednesday, June 18, 2026.

We’re sitting in 72 F. Sun was out but clouds have moved in, murmuring about thunderstorms. One source said today’s high will be 98 F. Another said 91. I think the second one is correct.

We’re all abuzz about Trump’s deal. Fought a war — sorry, conflict — for it, and all we got is a lousy tee-shirt.

That’s the bottom line. Reviews on the left side of the political spectrum can be summarized, “Are you kidding me?” The right side is trying to rally to support Trump but I think the NY Post’s headline says it for many:

Trump’s Iran deal gives the Islamic Republic big wins up front — and America nothing

As part of Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!, Trump’s Iran war did give Trump some respite from his failing economy, the Epstein files and Epstein ballroom, and the mounting court losses.

Overall, though, in a resume of bankruptcies and failures, this will go down as Trump’s biggest. The ‘Iran conflict’ will be the crown jewel in the write-ups about his ranking as ‘the worst president ever’.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

Unfortunately for Trump, we have documents and videos from his speeches, texts, and interviews. They don’t align what his claim about getting 99.9% of what he set out to do.

What Trump Said He Wanted To Achieve in Iran War—And What He Says Now

It’s good to record what Trump is saying now and what he said a few months ago. Because in a while, perhaps a few months, perhaps a year, Trump will claim, I never said that. Because that’s what he consistently does.

Shaking my head, I was laughing to myself about Trump’s deal with Iran as I made breakfast. It’s like going in to get a pay raise and promotion and coming out agreeing to work more hours, with more responsibilities, with the same title and pay.

Spying on me, The Neurons broke out “Deal” in the morning mental music stream. The Grateful Dead tune is about being cautious about the deals you make.

Sample Lyrics:

Wait until that deal go ’round
Don’t you let that deal go down, oh no

Costs a lot to win
Even more to lose
You and me bound to spend some time
Wonderin’ what to choose

Trouble for Trump, he thinks he’s a military genius. He thought Iran would be a cakewalk. Once again, the truth — Trump is a liar and con man, and not a genius — has been revealed.

I hope you make better deals for yourself than Trump did for the nation. May peace and grace carry you today and every day.

Cheers

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Reflections On Trump from the Net

Collections from BlueSky, Facebook, and other social media platforms.

Trump and Iran have a Memorandum of Understanding about not shooting and killing any longer. Much is being said about the $300B portion of the MOU. None of that money is supposed to be from the US government.

Tell you, what, though. Trump has established a pattern of being opaque about money, where it came from, and where it went. Trump made claims about Mexico paying for the wall. Cutting the national debt. Money for the Board of Peace. Trump makes big, headline-grabbing claims that rarely materialize as truth.

Trump claimed he would release the Epstein files and then tried to write it off as a hoax and keeps using every trick possible to keep them from being fully revealed. Likewise, Trump resists releasing his full income tax information, leading many, including me to wonder, what is he hiding?

Then there’s the ballroom, which was to cost US taxpayers nothing, and now — yeah, you get it.

Onward to the news!

TACO Rides Again!!!

TDS: Trump Double Standards

Summarizing Trump: ABSE: Always Blame Someone Else

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Is It Over?

Is Trump’s war with Iran over?

Maybe. Documents have been signed. Proclamations have been made.

Was Trump’s war with Iran worth it? Many are saying no. Personnelente shared a good image (originally on NewsThump, a satire site) demonstrating the differences between before and after:

Yes, that kind of winning is like scoring a touchdown in the fourth quarter with two minutes remaining when your team is down by four touchdowns and the other team has pulled half its starters.

Regime change wasn’t affected. The nuclear program, while degraded, exists. Many Iranians were killed and injured, which probably will be a negative point for our nation; Iranians will look at the destruction and think of the dead and remember, the US did this to us. I hope they amend that with, Trump did this to us.

I always viewed the war through a prism. Trump needed something to boost his approval ratings and thought bombing Iran was a path. Experienced generals and diplomats had been removed and a blowhard was installed as the Defense Secretary, so there were no guardrails. Likewise, a Congress led by weak Republicans wasn’t going to stand in the way of ‘their’ POTUS.

Two, Trump needed distractions from failures stacking and the Epstein files. The war was launched as part of Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! to distract us from his character and the evidence that exists that reveals his past.

The third reason is that this is Trump. He wanted to do it to prove he could do it. He’s excited to have all that power and wanted to flex it, to ‘show the world’ who he is. He thinks that’s manly. ‘Bad ass’.

The world already understood who he was; Trump cemented our understanding of him as a shallow thinker who thinks he can bully and bluster his way through a situation. Trump has shown that when things go bad in business, he blusters and walks away. Usually fails upward in business and personal relationships.

But war and running the Federal government are not like running a business. Trump, MAGA, and even many GOP don’t understand it. The consequences of being wrong when bombs are dropped and missiles are launched are much larger. The ripples of failing last longer and have much greater consequences.

Trump’s Iran war might not be over, though. While never admitting it, Trump will feel the sting of this limp victory and smell the stench of the critiques. It’s possible as he hurtles through more losses that he’ll use cover of any small provocations to drop more bombs on Iran.

Distracting, glorifying himself, and covering his ass is what his second term is all about.

It’s called Operation Enduring LOOK — SQUIRREL!

Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! was just a small part of it, to distract us from the Epstein files.

Operation Enduring LOOK — SQUIRREL! will probably offer a lot more distractions and claims in the very near future.

Like, say, a reflecting pool?

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Monday’s Theme Music – Fight!

Ashland, southern Oregon – Monday, June 15, 2026.

Another hot day in the valley. Blue sky was tinged with smoke from a fire north of us. That smoke has receded.

The temperature now is 89 degrees. Today’s high will be 99 F.

A late start for me today, as we had Food & Friends deliveries. A sadly short list is one way to look at it, because we wonder, what happened to the people previously. On the other hand, less people need the service, right! At least in our area and the route we do. The truth is, we don’t know, and can only guess.

Mom’s home buyer backed out. The realtor ascribed it to cold feet as the reports and inspections had not even been completed. Our realtor is going to talk to the second-ranked buyer to see if they’re still interested.

Our big news is that Trump celebrated his 80th birthday and stayed awake! He held a UFC event, Operation Epic IT’S ALL ABOUT ME! on the White House south lawn, a solid performer under Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! umbrella of distractions.

Trump is a peace president. A violent blood fight at the home of We the People is a perfect demonstration of how much his words really mean.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

When Trump said, “I would never condone violence,” it had an asterisk. Trump only condones violence to celebrate himself, to entertain himself, to distract others from his grift and corruption, have people riot and try to overturn the election, and to kill other people via the military to show how tough he is. Otherwise, he would never condone violence.

Trump says peace is at hand with Iran. I don’t believe him. He’s lied too many times to accept at face value.

News analysis of the peace deal with Iran shows that many of the goals Trump stated when he started the war is unmet.

Trump said that his war saved Israel from nuclear extinction. Trump also said that the bombings he ordered last June, 2025, destroyed Iran’s nuclear program. And he had already claimed victory dozens of times earlier this year. He claimed that the war would be over by April 22, 2026.

Trump always insists that everyone is lying, especially the media. “Fake news!” he shouts. Documentation shows he’s done it well over 1,000 times.

Yet, he wants us to believe them now, when they report that ‘he’s won’. How can we when he’s conditioned us to disbelieve everything being said?

Trump’s name has been removed from the Kennedy Center. The Epstein ballroom is still illegally under construction. There are stories that the work Trump had done at the Lincoln Reflecting Pool is shoddy and already coming apart. Just like his lies, isn’t it?

Let’s see how much he starts caring about inflation now that he’s declared his war with Iran over.

In honor of Trump’s White House fight, My Neurons summoned an old disco-oriented song to the morning mental music stream. Carl Douglas wrote and performed “Kung Fu Fighting” in August of 1974. A global hit, it was on the radio often and I heard it often as I finished high school, graduated, and joined the military. I always thought it a silly song but it hooks me with the lyrics and melody.

I hope your day comes with good news and a good life.

Got to run now. Two dental appointments. First in Medford, the next in Ashland. It’s all about my final implant, where the cyst was removed from my gums.

Cheers

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Saturday’s Theme Music

Ashland, southern Oregon — Saturday, June 13, 2026.

Another June morning. 63 F, it feels cool and comfortable to me, “chilly” for my wife. Today’s high will peak in the mid 90s. A heat advisory is on for tomorrow as temperatures are going over 100. Temperatures are expected to drop on Tuesday — a little.

Nothing new from my family and Mom in Pittsburgh. Going through dreams occupied my morning.

I enjoyed this morning headline:

Trump’s name removed from Kennedy Center after blowing past deadline

One small step for decency, democracy, and justice.

But the Epstein ballroom is still under construction, and Trump is racing to build his Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! arch before the system can stop him.

Do we really need a monument to remind us of Trump’s ego? No. Sure won’t help with any problems we face. It’s just more by Trump, for Trump.

Seven states led by Democrats — Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oregon and Washington — have withdrawn from the ‘Freedom 250’ fair. The states withdrew, citing costs and politicalization.

It started out as a celebration of the United States. As with anything with Trump involvement, he’s slowly made it less about that and more about him. For example, after many musical performers bowed out, Trump decided to replace them with himself as the opening act. He plans a ‘rally’.

Trump’s war with Iran goes on. The war has clocked 105 days. Peace is close, both sides agree, then argue about whether the other is telling the truth. It feels like, “Pot, meet kettle,” to me.

Gas prices in the US have dribbled down over the past few days as peace in Iran seesaws. Many best-case scenario project gas prices will drop to $3.75 gallon on average by November. In most dire predictions, $6.35 a gallon is projected as the national average.

I laughed at this headline today:

Man fed 32,754 of Donald Trump’s Truth Social posts to AI and one concerning observation stands out

The story continued:

Key takeaways

  • Self-Focus: AI found that Trump frequently centers himself in posts, with roughly 1 in 11 posts being self-praise, and his name appearing as the most common positive reference.
  • Conflict & Adversaries: Many posts involve accusations, criticism, and disputes, portraying Trump as both a victim and a winner in political and legal battles.
  • Posting Habits: Notable patterns include heavy capitalization (16% of posts), late-night posting (midnight–6 a.m.), and recurring themes of praise, boasting, and accusations.

We didn’t need AI analysis for these conclusions. They’re self-evident, something who isn’t part of the MAGAsphere has noted for years.

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

“Wrong Again” Trump was wrong again. We the People built this nation. Men like him just conned people to make money from what others built.

Playing “Spelling Bee” this morning, I laughed and put in Levitake as a word. “Not on the list”, the system responded.

I think it should be. Levitake: to lift and remove something. In use: “They worked through the night to levitake Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center.”

The music playing in today’s morning mental music stream is “Fantasy” by Aldo Nova. The 1982 song started playing as The Neurons spied on me doing my dream review. It was because of the night breeze coming in the window, cooling me.

May your day progress with peace and grace, and bring you an abundance of joy and love.

Cheers

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Thursday’s Theme Music — Wrong Direction

Ashland, southern Oregon — Thursday, June 11, 2026.

It’s blue skies and warmer temperatures for us today. Like the weather has just awakened to the season and decided, alright, let’s go.

Tear it up, break it up, go for it. That’s Trump. He alone decides what ‘we’ the nation will do. This is true whether we’re going to war, escalating violence, tearing down the White House, remodeling it, building, modifying, or renaming monuments.

Trump ignores the law, goes around the requirements, skips past reviews. Then, as work begins and We the People protest, we go to court. While the issues are adjudicated, Trump keeps tearing and down and building. He’s been doing this with attacking Iran, building the Epstein ballroom — well, it’s a long list.

It’s also a giant middle finger at We the People, our political norms, checks and balances, laws, and Constitution.

The GOP is okay with it. Him. Speaker Johnson metaphorically shrugs. The media tiptoes around what he’s doing, because the other thing Trump does is threaten. His administration holds a bunch of keys. Everyone knows it. And Trump has demonstrated he has no concerns for anything and anyone but himself. Beyond his words, his policies reflect it. He thinks, oh, the war will end and prices will drop.

Really? Is that what happened when prices rose during COVID?

Your Trump Quote of the Day:

Trump was lying, of course. He always lies. He began acting like a dictator on day one, and still is.

That’s why protests are important. When Congress stands aside, SCOTUS enables, and the press backs away, We the People must stand up.

No Kings is coming up again. Sunday, June 14, 2026.

Show up again. Keep showing up, please. We don’t like the direction Trump is taking us and must change it.

Today’s morning mental music stream song is “Invisible Sun” by The Police. I was reflecting on my childhood and pictures of smoky, polluted skies we would see in the newspaper. By then, our skies were much clearer and cleaner. Now, Trump is turning it back in the name of making money.

Sample Lyrics

It’s dark all day and it glows all night
Factory smoke and acetylene light
I face the day with my head caved in
Lookin’ like somethin’ that the cat brought in

My hopes for you are that the sun is warm, the air is fresh and clean, and your spirits are high.

Cheers

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The MAGA Mind

I laughed. I had to.

Reports had come out: annual inflation was the highest in three years.

Americans are irritated. Worried. Bothered. Inflation has pushed up the costs of new homes, home repairs, car insurance, healthcare, health insurance premiums, food, and energy.

Trump said, “I love the inflation.”

Which is why I laughed.

It also makes total sense for Trump to say that.

Back when Trump started his war with Iran, he mentioned, “We’re not at war.” He often did it with a little sly week, instead referring to it variously as a conflict, operation, or excursion. Yet, he still used terms like dropping bombs and talked about destroying Iran.

MAGA, who loves Trump, immediately began parroting Trump’s language. So, the Iran ‘conflict’ is fine with them, because we’re not at war, and he didn’t break his promise, “No new wars.”

That’s why “I love inflation” makes sense now. They’ll hear Trump say that and begin using his phrase. They’ll get all gleeful and giddy about inflation — using Trump’s terminology, of course, about how inflation is good because we’re fighting Iran, and that’s some kind of good thing, in his head.

That makes it totally swell for MAGA.

For the rest of us in the real world, the inflation isn’t good and has serious repercussions on health, happiness, and the quality of life.

Also, making statements like, “I love inflation,” is part of Trump’s Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! distraction weave.

  • Look — I tore down the White House east wing! Building the biggest ballroom ever!
  • Look — I painted the Lincoln reflecting pool!
  • Look — I bombed Iran! Saved us all from nuclear annihilation!
  • Look — there’s election cheating going on in California!
  • Look — I love inflation! Isn’t that crazy?

As for the Iran War — what is it good for?

That depends on what day Trump is talking about it.

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Thursday’s Theme Music — Illusions

Ashland, southern Oregon — Thursday, June 4, 2026.

Out one window, it’s a gorgeous day: sunny, clear blue sky. Out toward the west, dark clouds are moving in. They look like they have different intentions. It’s 55 now but we expect 80.

Mom’s house is up for sale and it’s had a lot of early interest. I’m not surprised, once it went live. Comparing it to other homes in the $150k range in that area reveals that most are as old or older, and the same size. Mom’s house was built in 1940; others in that range/area were built anywhere from 1930 to 1960. But they’re usually two bedrooms, one bath whereas Mom’s place offers four bedrooms and three baths. I easily visualize it as ideal for a small multigenerational setup. I hope this early interest isn’t an illusion.

While I’ve been focused mostly on Trump’s war on Iran (96 days and counting), he’s been busy with other wars. He’s been actively warring against cultural and political norms. All presidents have done so but none on the scale that Trump has done. We have the visual evidence of the Epstein ballroom and the war for funding for it (after Trump claimed it would cost taxpayers nothing); the atrocious rose garden; and the horrible disfiguration of the Lincoln Memorial.

Trump is turning the White House lawn into a stadium for fights and appending his name on famous places like the Kennedy Center. He’s doing all these things outside of the law but the law is fighting back via judges and courts and their rulings.

Under Trump, his advocates are trying to break the law and have currency with his likeness on it.

Through MAHA and Kennedy, Trump has been warring against good health. Through the EPA, Trump has warred against clean air and water. Through Hegseth, he’s warred against having a good defense and diversity. Through the Departments of Education and Justice, Trump has warred against good education, research, and law and order.

Through his pardons, he’s warred against justice.

Through ICE and his immigration policies, Trump has warred against our very nature as a melting pot, a place that welcome the poor and tired.

Through cuts in the social safety net and programs such as SNAP and Headstart, Trump has warred against people in poverty.

Via cuts to NASA, NOAA, and NIHM, Trump has warred against research, science, and technology.

Through it all, Trump has warred against intelligence, decency, unity, and compassion via his texts.

MAGA stays loyal to him. He buys their loyalty because he’s cultured a distrust of the media, calling it ‘the enemy’. Then he screams:

  • Look at how they treat me!
  • They stole the 2020 election!
  • Look how great I am and what wonderful things I’ve done!
  • I’m doing it all for you and our great nation!

Yet, the evidence shows otherwise.

Trump is selling a grand illusion. But the details reveal the truth.

Not surprisingly, Les Neurons are playing “The Grand Illusion” in my morning mental music stream.

Lyrics:

But don’t be fooled by the radio
The TV or the magazines
They show you photographs of how your life should be
But they’re just someone else’s fantasy

So if you think your life is complete confusion
Because you never win the game
Just remember that it’s a Grand illusion
‘Cause deep inside we’re all the same
We’re all the same…

So if you think your life is complete confusion
Because your neighbors got it made
Just remember that it’s a Grand illusion
And deep inside we’re all the same

The Styx song came out in 1977. Dennis DeYoung wrote the song and said it’s all about how ‘they’ set you up to think and see one thing to hide the truth:

“It’s that feeling that success is set up in such a way that if you succeed you’re a failure, and if you don’t succeed you’re a failure.”

That’s the Trump methodology all the way.

I hope your day is not a grand illusion, but has real progress toward happiness and satisfaction.

Cheers

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