Saturday’s Theme Music – Lies & Truths

Ashland, southern Oregon — Saturday, June 6, 2026.

It’s cloudy today in the valley. Same morning cool air, 50 F. We’ll sprint up to 64 F before the evening cooling begins again.

Quiet back east, in Pittsburgh. Nothing from Mom and my sisters for over sixteen hours. More showings are scheduled for Mom’s house, and more donations of clothing and furniture are being made.

I’m watching Trump’s Great American State Fair slowly imploding, along with his UFC fight. He makes it about him, and he makes it hateful and divisiveness. We the People, along with many artists and celebrities, respond, sorry, I’m not into those values, and I’m not that into you.

Trump takes that all personally. He spins fast to his favorite style of denigrating them. His America250 committee selected performers and artists presumably because they had some cachet, were known and successful acts, things like that.

Once they turn down the gig, Trump calls them all third-rate. If he’s right, then, only ‘third-rate’ acts agreed to his celebration and then even they turned him down. Which means, if I follow the thread right, means that Trump and his ‘celebration’ must be fourth-rate, or worse.

Trump’s war with Iran continues toward 100 days. Despite the cease-fire, there was more back and forth military strikes yesterday.

I don’t think Iran is interested in ending the war through negotiations. I wouldn’t, were I in their shoes. Trump’s war is disrupting political and military alliances and supply chains, causing increased prices. These then cause Trump’s popularity and effectiveness to decline.

With the US already polarized, there’s increased fragmentation as some of the GOP turns on Trump. The US is a mess, paralyzed by these politics and an ineffective Congress.

So why would Iran rush to end the war? Every day it goes on marginalizes Trump and the US. Trump has no cards. All he can do is threaten more violence. That violence comes with escalating costs to his image, ego, and human life. No, Trump doesn’t care about human life, but enough voters do that he’s feeling it.

Trump also pardoned another person.

Trump says he pardoned man sentenced to 7 years for ‘fixing his own truck’

Your Trump Lie — er, Quote — of the Day:

Trump butchered the truth and history. Someone commenting on it told the real story behind Trump’s claims:

“Troy Lake, the owner of Elite Diesel Service Inc. in Colorado, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in federal prison for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act by disabling emissions monitoring systems on hundreds of heavy-duty commercial trucks. He also faced over $50,000 in combined fines. Lake served about seven months in federal prison before being released to house arrest to finish his sentence. Subsequently, President Donald Trump granted him a full, unconditional pardon, completely erasing his conviction and penalties.” NOT 7 YRS, NOT HIS OWN VEHICLE AND BREAKING THE LAW FOR HIS OWN PROFIT, much like Trump!

Proving once again, Trump can’t be believed. Distrust and verify.

MAGA ate it up, though. That means a lot to Trump’s ego.

Gas prices are down, but the national average is $4.24. The high fuel prices are affecting Americans’ travel and leisure plans.

Today’s music is “Misguided Angel” by Cowboy Junkies. A novel I was reading referenced the song. Hadn’t heard it in a while so I pulled it up last night on Youtube and listened to it. Such a sweet, powerful song, about a woman in love with a guy who is not good for her because of his temperament. The singer is fearful of him yet stays with him because of love. It becomes about the courage needed for her to do that.

That’s the kind of truth art often shows us. That things are not black and white but are mired in complications. Love and emotion are often our greatest complications.

The Neurons liked it and it was still in my morning mental music stream today. So here it is.

May your Saturday proceed with peace and grace.

Cheers

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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