Archives for December 2015

         “Oh boy, is this great!” –Kent Dorfman

OK, it’s halftime. We know who is leading going into the second half. But who will win the game?

I am not a seer or prognosticator. I do not own a crystal ball. But I do have some reasoned ideas on how the political contests of 2016 will shake out.

Now that I’ve gotten my disclaimer out of the way (even if I’m wrong, could I be more wrong than Karl Rove in 2012?), here is what I predict:

Republican Presidential Nominee

It is hard to bet against a front-runner who has been clobbering his opponents for the past six months, but I predict Ted Cruz will be the Republican nominee. As readers of this blog know, I believe there is something going on between Donald Trump and Cruz. That Trump, the king of the “birthers,” has not hit Cruz on his eligibility to even run for the presidency, having been born in Canada, tells me everything I need to know. Look for Trump to offer up his supporters to Cruz when he exits the race.

But what about Rubio, you ask? The GOP establishment may get behind the boy wonder but the Republican base will have none of it. As much as he tries to paint himself as “outside the Beltway,” Rubio is a sitting U.S. Senator. For GOP voters, this is the year of the outsider. But isn’t Ted Cruz a sitting U.S. Senator like Rubio? Yes, but Cruz is universally hated by everyone in Congress, both Republicans and Democrats. He’s a rebel and loose cannon, very much in the mold of Trump, hence the appeal.

But might Jeb be the nominee? Fuggedaboutit!

Democratic Presidential Nominee

While I’m a big supporter of Bernie Sanders, look for Hillary Clinton to be the Democratic presidential nominee. I say this with one caveat… no new Clinton scandal erupts anytime soon. With Hillary, you never know. So Bernie supporters don’t give up hope… yet.

2016 Presidential Winner

If it comes down to a contest between Clinton and Cruz, look for a Clinton landslide. Cruz is too much of a radical for establishment-type Republicans to rally behind him. As for Clinton, while many Progressives have vowed never to vote for her, cooler heads will prevail. Bernie supporters are a passionate bunch but they are not suicidal. They are intelligent enough to know another Republican in the White House would be a disaster. One simple argument will win them over … the next president will appoint at least one, maybe two, Supreme Court justices.

If you think my prognosticating, in the words of Joe Biden, is pure malarkey, tell me so. I welcome your thoughts.

Happy New Year!

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Image courtesy of Salvatore Vuono at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Politically speaking, 2015 will be remembered as the year the old rules of politics ceased to exist. Think of Donald Trump and remember back to when a sitting Senator, and ex-governor of Virginia, George Allen, lost his seat mainly due to a (as in one) racial slur directed at a dark-skinned operative of the opposing candidate. The 2006 incident went viral, later to be dubbed Allen’s “macaca” moment.

Donald Trump, the Republican presidential frontrunner, has so far defied political gravity, gaining more support from an angry GOP base with each insult hurled at anyone who dares get in his way.

2015 will also go down as the year the GOP establishment lost control of their party. The party’s handpicked candidate, Jeb Bush, has been soundly rejected by a riled up Republican mob no longer interested in business as usual. Political experience has suddenly become “the kiss of death.”

This year also marked the launch of MoronMajority.com. What began in April 2015 as a simple outlet for this writer’s frustration at the dumbing down of our great country is now a well-recognized political blog. Ranker.com currently lists MM as the 24^th best online liberal blog. The site has received over 30,000 visits since its inception.

I thank all the readers and supporters of this “labor of love” and look forward to an exciting 2016. Hold on to your hats and buckle those seat belts. The ride is sure to be bumpy, with many twists and turns, as we head towards election day 2016!

One final thought, and request. If you are an ardent supporter of Bernie Sanders and have vowed not to vote for Hillary Clinton if she indeed becomes the Democratic nominee, please think twice. I know, no one wants to vote for the lesser of two evils, but we as a country cannot afford a Republican in the White House… especially one who will, no doubt, appoint one or two new Supreme Court Justices!

Happy New Year to all! May the coming year be filled with love, happiness, good health and a Democratic landslide across the board!

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If there were ever any doubt that about the truth to the war on Christmas, the Hyatt family of Plantation, Florida, offers a stark example.

Every Christmas, the spirit of the holiday moves Mark and Kathy Hyatt to show their love for Jesus by decorating their home. Their Christmas display includes over 200,000 Christmas lights, a Ferris wheel powered by a “chain driven by a 4 horsepower electric motor,” snow blowers that blow fake snow, flying skiers, a giant movie screen and live farm animals, oh and motorcycle parades too.

The Hyatt’s homage to the birth of their savior attracts visitors from far and wide to this quiet residential neighborhood. In fact, the display attracts hundreds of visitors daily, and thousands on weekends.

But the Christmas haters at city hall are having none of it. The city sued the Hyatts in 2014 on the grounds that the “carnival-like atmosphere” was incompatible with the neighborhood claiming it created a nuisance. Ongoing fines against the Hyatts now total a whopping $7000.

The Hyatts have refused to pay and are not backing down. They are accusing the city of trying to bilk them out of money. A trial has been set for June.

“They believe it engenders goodwill and a bond between the community,” said their Fort Lauderdale-based lawyer, James Helf.

“For me this is a public safety concern, it really is,” said the bah humbug Police Chief, Howard Harrison. “You can’t have pedestrian and motor vehicle traffic functioning on the same strip of land. That is a disaster waiting to happen. People and cars don’t mix. Without any control, there is going to be a problem.”

There have been some rumors that the hordes of visiting strangers park on peoples lawns, tear down “no parking” signs, ask neighbors to use the bathroom, cut through their property to see the display and leave trash on the streets. The Hyatts vehemently deny such rumors, claiming they are being spread by the atheistic city government.

When Fox News, protectors of all things Christmas, broke this story, they attempted to verify the rumors by talking with neighbors. Apparently none of them were home. It appears the neighbors, on masse, find it necessary to flee the neighborhood each year as soon as the Hyatt’s glorious display appears.

Photo | foxnews.com

Tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time.

-James Agate

Yes, in the coming year … especially this coming year … we should be more tolerant of fools. But that does not mean we should be friends with them on social media! My number one resolution for 2016 is to de-friend any and all Facebook amigos who think Barack Obama has been nothing short of a second Black Death (plague) or think Trump is the greatest thing since sliced bread.

We’ve all experienced this … a college buddy, with whom you haven’t talked politics in years, starts posting right wing articles; an old girlfriend shares posts depicting our president as a circus monkey; a casual friend starts aping Fox talking points.

Up until now, I’ve simply ignored such nonsense and just scrolled down to the next post. Not anymore. Why should I be subjected to such crap? Who are these people to me anyway?

Of course when it comes to relatives, it gets a bit dicier. It is hard to de-friend a brother, a cousin or an in-law. But you’ve known about their political leanings for a long time. You also know trying to reason with them at holiday dinners is just an exercise in futility. So just chill.

As the saying goes, you can choose your friends but not your family.

We will be choosing a new president in 2016. Let’s also choose to loose those Facebook “friends” with obviously closed minds.

And anyway, Facebook should be what it was meant to be: a place where family photos are exchanged and not a political forum.

Image courtesy of Anoop Krishnan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net