Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-anges

COVID has truly changed expected norms in the workplace. MOST businesses are hugely understaffed, which has reduced service to customers. Even if all remaining employees wanted to provide full service, it just is not possible for them to do so. So, Americans are becoming acclimated to levels of service that are more comparable to that which was provided in the Soviet Union. Pretty much non-existent. 

Now, that is less of a problem in the Midwest and the South - some of the friendliest places in the United States. But it is increasing the misery of the coastal areas considerably. And, it makes dealing with companies based in those locations a teeth-gritting experience. 

Coyote Blog, a site I'd never before visited, has that story from the perspective os a multi-state business that has had to make that shift in service expectations since COVID.

The Mistake of Making Decisions on Emotion

We all do it (well, maybe not Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates).

We've impulsively accepted a job, only to regret it within a short time. Many continue on, concerned about 'looking flighty', and suffering through a prolonged terrible experience.

Others, less concerned about what others might think, quickly quit and start looking for a new job (or, secure a job - any job - ASAP, then give notice).

Same with relationships. They are usually entered into with high emotion and expectations. They are often ended with equally high NEGATIVE emotion.

One of the better things churches do (not all of them, but many) is to sit the couple down, and ask some pointed questions designed to take the emotion out of the decision, and ask if this union makes logical sense:

• Does the couple agree on having children, if, when, and how many? How will they handle child care?
• Where will they ideally live? Is their income sufficient for that now? What plans do they have to change that?
• Is one of them in an unstable industry, or frequently required to move for job purposes? How will they handle that?
• What role do they envision the parents of the couple having? Where will they spend holidays; will that continue after having children?
• Questions about drinking, drug use, fidelity.
• Spending habits, and a statement of their debts and assets.

Couples who cannot answer these questions, may be advised to put off the wedding until they can.

And, yet, the world WANTS us to tap into the emotional side of our nature when making decisions:

• You DESERVE to buy this pricey car!
• Go ahead, have the expensive and calorie-laden chocolate!
• Showing models exercising on expensive equipment, and implying that you, too, will look like that after buying a Peloton.
• Vote for This Asshole Politician! If you don't, you hate Black People!
• If you don't wear this mask, you're a BAD person who WANTS to make people sick!
• Their politician hates: Women, Black People, kids, the poor, etc. Vote AGAINST him by casting your vote for this person that we promise, pinky swear, is the next thing to a saint.

And, on and on.

This post by John Wilder - Wilder, Wealthy, and Wise blog - has more on the emotional side of decision-making. Worth reading.

The Publication of Nazi Propaganda - Who is Responsible for it?

The FBI, it appears.

Hmmm. That FBI - is there ANYTHING they can't do?

Well, except for finding out who, in their ranks, is actively working against elected politicians, and using manufactured evidence to try to convict them of - something, anything.

And, more importantly, who gave these "rogue agents" the direction to pursue that illegal aim.

Well, That's ONE Way to Bury the Opposition!

Our world is now divided, not by North against South, or Right vs. Left, but by those who believe that killing an unarmed WHITE woman is perfectly justified, but killing an armed BLACK person is NEVER anything but murder.

In other words, officially, White Lives DON'T Matter.

Not to the government, not to the public, not to the media.

There is absolutely NO reason not to make the name of the shooter, AND the record of the police inquiry, public. Well, except for the fact that they want to bury this - and her - without inflaming the citizens of this country.

What Now

It's pretty clear that America is fractured - the only question is:

Is the fracture terminal, or repairable?

 I'm not all that sanguine about the chances of recovery. Every time we come to a crisis point, in the aftermath, there is a period of what in the Con Game is called Cooling the Mark.

After the blowoff has occurred, one of the operators stays with the mark and makes an effort to keep the anger of the mark within manageable and sensible proportions. The operator stays behind his team‑mates in the capacity of what might be called a cooler and exercises upon the mark the art of consolation. An attempt is made to define the situation for the mark in a way that makes it easy for him to accept the inevitable and quietly go home. The mark is given instruction in the philosophy of taking a loss.

Sound familiar?

It should - that's the last part of the con, when the perps try to slow down or stop any reprisals.

Most of us can understand why stopping any return action is good for the perps, but slowing it? What value can that have?

• It allows many of the most implicated to leave - out of any possibility of either finding them, or bringing them back for prosecution. What's left is the stooges - many of whom won't know the details of the con, just their small part in it. Most of them won't even know the true names of the top guys.
• It allows the perps to hide the evidence - shred/burn the paperwork, erase any audio or video evidence, bribe peripheral people to develop poor memories, and 'put the arm' on those not inclined to let it go - usually by threatening those close to them.
• It starts the clock ticking - the statutes of limitations are a factor, but also the fact that memories will fade, people will lose their fervor for hunting down the malefactors, and most people will decide to give up and say 'screw it'.

Keep in mind that the bulk of the public - those guys who don't follow the news much, those that echo what 'everyone' around them says is true, those that "leave that stuff to the wife" - and that's an unfortunately high number of Americans - well, they just aren't cynical or smart enough to follow the history of the Takedown of America (brought to you by George Soros, assorted Leftists, and the majority of academia at all levels).

They shy away from connecting the dots - needed the movie version of All the President's Men to even begin understanding what happened - from the Leftist's viewpoint, of course. The complete refusal to permit movies from the NLD (Non-Leftist Dissident) perspective has hampered our outreach.

Test it yourself, ask:

• What happened in Watergate? (you'll get some garbled hash of Leftist Truth)
• Was Nixon impeached? (dollars to donuts, almost ALL will agree he was - a factual mistake - he resigned, under pressure from his so-called party, before impeachment)
• Who was Deep Throat? (nearly 100% of those asked will not know the identity of Mark Fell, nor the reason he betrayed the President, and lied about much of what he knew)

That's just ONE example. If you are the kind who likes to make those online quizzes, you could make a neat one that lays out the MANY Lies, Errors, and Omissions of the Left, including:

• The 1960 Presidential race
• The Johnson family's many shady deals with their television station
• The Great Society programs, and how almost ALL of them failed - and for bonus points, where the money went (and to whom)
• The Antiwar movement of the Vietnam years - funded by Leftist NGOs, and directed by the Left
• The Carter Years
• Iran-Contra - the Truth, and the many Leftist fantasies. How the various 'intelligence agencies' were involved, and who ran those agencies
• Clinton - have fun picking the abuses, thefts, lies, and cheats from all the possibilities
• Bush II - Daddy's Revenge on the people for not voting him back
• The commercial interests behind the distortion of the budget for military wishlists - and, Cui Bono?
• Obama - ALL the MANY lies, evasions, half-truths, and assorted scoundrels that surrounded the Legend, and how he managed to play them ALL
• Biden - how the hell did such a nonentity get into office?

Is the Precipitous Afghanistan Pullout this Generation's Saigon?

Unfortunately, maybe. And, that is NOT a good thing for the NLDs (Non-Leftist Dissidents).

This post in American Greatness seems to suggest that This Failure - unlike all the OTHER Leftist Failures - will be the one that FINALLY gets Americans to wake up.

Good luck with that, pal.

We've all seen this scenario before. Charlie Brown, the eternal optimist and believer in the good heart of people, is defeated, again and again, by reality.

He believes - despite his long history with the same people, who have betrayed him again and again - that THIS time, things will be different.

That's the thinking of the Useful Idiots, who actually believe the lies of the Professional Leftists.

Because we scoff at their beliefs, we are labeled as WANTING that bad outcome. WE are to blame for the horrible destruction of their hopes and dreams. Not the Left.

The Left escapes blame for every negative outcome, every betrayal of principle, every self-serving act.

It's all those Evil Nazi Haters' fault. Not them, who had GOOD INTENTIONS.

Unfortunately, the rational thinkers of the world (a VERY small group) don't care about intentions.

They care about results. And, those results are predictably, repeatedly, and deliberately BAD.

I understand how this happens. I lived through those years of Vietnam protests, the withdrawal, and the bloody aftermath.

I was a kid, really. I actually believed that the protests were a good thing, and that our efforts would lead to peace.

Boy, was I naive.

I was a teen when Vietnam took place, only 14 in 1965, when American involvement began to ramp up and the protests starting spreading nationwide. My brother was drafted when I was around 18; his service ended after one year - like many guys, he was NOT eager to sign up for a second tour of duty.

I pretty much parroted all the anti-war talk of the Left; while I was reading newspapers, I basically ignored what the other side said entirely.

After OUR part in the war ended, Vietnam news slipped from my notice. Therefore, it was a shock to see reports of the Fall of Saigon. Initially, the Left was shocked into silence about events. Rather quickly, they regrouped, and presented a mostly united front that claimed the fears of the Viet Cong were overstated, the lives of the South's citizens would be much improved, and that it was the business of the Vietnamese people to decide their own fate, without outside interference (discounting the massive help the Left had given the Northern side).

I had little life experience at that point. I had no clue just how rough life was about to get for the South. I had other concerns - and I just now realized that the Inflation Crisis occurred right about that time. How CONVENIENT was that timing?

This gives me goosebumps - I have a strong feeling that the economy is about to start experiencing some massive disruptions. It should take our minds off Afghanistan, shouldn't it?

So, what should we do about our future?

The American Party (by that, I mean those that actually WANT the country to move forward, regain prosperity and freedom, and sharply reduce the oppressive size of government - which would include many of those who currently identify as Dems or Independents) needs to stop hoping that the Left and their followers will wake up, and slap the sleep out of their own eyes. They will NEVER abandon their Charlie Brown starry-eyed thinking.

We need to firmly but gently move them aside, take control, and put this country back together - even if it means abandoning the most intractable parts of it to the Left. Let them choke on their own Wokeness!

I was watching yet another viewing of McClintock! on Grit a few days ago. My husband loves John Wayne, in great part because his own father - a 6'4" skinny giant - greatly resembled the actor. To see his films is to see his father again (they even both died of the same disease - lung cancer).

In McClintock!, John Wayne's long-estranged wife returns (Maureen O'Hara), and shrilly harangues, insults, and annoys him for weeks. When Wayne finally forces the issue, she reveals her real grievance against him - that he had lipstick on his collar after an evening out.

She then runs away from his wrath.

Relentlessly, he pursues her, delivers a spanking, then dumps her on her fanny, and says, "Now you can have your divorce!". He throws down the paddle, and drives away.

She pursues him, and the movie ends with her agreeing to reform her contrary ways.

Lotsa luck with that one, pal. But, as they were married, I supposed he chose his fate.

America, and us, did not.

We didn't ask for this fight, anymore than Wayne did. BUT, we let it happen, through our laziness, our disinclination to bring it to a close, and - frankly - unwillingness to risk an open breach with family and friends.

So, we put up with the carping, snide comments. We let them have the public arena. When they insulted us in public, we took it calmly, and stepped away from the fight they were trying to start.

No more.

No more sending our family to serve in the military. No more letting our kids be indoctrinated. No more putting up with masking in public.

No more acquiescing to Federal directives that threaten our work, our homes, or our families. No more calm acceptance of judicial abuses, unwilling to challenge the authority of the Court. No more staying aside while the Left and their Minions do their best to ruin the average person's life.

We're headed to the Alamo, and we're all out of F---s to give.

The Neighborhood Project

This project will be a multi-year one; the focus will not be on National Leaders (too often co-opted or even Fake).

Instead, the primary goal of the project will be on development of neighborhood level leaders. Those leaders will be known by how well they can encourage and teach the members of their group to be self-sufficient, work together ad-hoc, if needed, and to enable their continued well-being should the SHTF - as increasingly seems likely.

Things like:

• Neighborhood Watches - both outdoor patrols (perhaps using the excuse of needing to walk a dog, or pick up some milk), and security cameras/inside the home watchfulness.
• Awareness of empty houses; monitoring for signs of break-in/vandalism/theft.
• Phone trees/chat or other means of communication, including in-person conversation.
• Community events on a regular basis.
• Setting up a means by which people can trade tools, ask for assistance with shopping or watching out for deliveries, or check-ins for older residents.

All of the above used to be the norm. When women returned to work, those activities fell by the wayside. I'm not blaming; I also found myself out of energy or time to handle all of those things.

But, it hurt the feeling and culture of the neighborhoods. We lost so much of an essential network, and few of us have gotten it back.

I'm going to try setting up a website to exchange ideas, post updates on my progress in my new neighborhood, and do what I can to make this happen.

[UPDATE]

I found this after posting - another voice that looks to the neighborhood/small town to revive this country.