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I watched the show 3 times. Once when I was drunk. The next when I was buzzed. The last when I was sober. I can assure you that at whatever mental state you watch Jim Norton you will not be disappointed. Stoned, drunk, or sober you will laugh your ass off.

The opening song sets the tone for the whole special. “Wicked World”, by Black Sabbath (Black Sabbath 1970). Ozzy Osbourne sings, “The world today is such a wicked thing / Fighting going on between the human race.” The lyrics explain the Jim Norton comedy special as well as the state of modern day society. I do not believe Jim could have selected a better song or band for his special. I will admit I am partial to his music selection since I am an avid Black Sabbath fan since I was 12, nonetheless, the song fits perfectly.

Rewind a couple of minutes prior to the song and you have an impressive introduction from three A-listers. Jim is asking for some pre-stage encouragement and Ricky Gervais puts him in his place reminiscent of a one-sided roast battle. The next stop on Jim’s trek for encouragement is begging Louis CK for support at Louis’ door. In typical nonchalant Louis CK style, Louis slams the door shut on a pleading Jim. The final encounter is with Robert De Niro, who obliges Jim’s need for support that ends with a few face slaps and an ass spanking. You should be laughing by now and the above mentioned only happened in the first two minutes.

Jim’s humble down-to-earth persona is shown immediately to the audience and viewer. His $20 fake Yeezys perfectly match his plain gray shirt. His opening lines explain how he is not mainstream. He’s just an ordinary looking guy and no one can ever remember his name. Some have called him funny only because he is self-deprecating. I don’t see it that way. He is self-deprecating at times, but the reason why his comedy is so good is because it’s relatable to the audience. Jim’s personal situations have happened to us, individually, or someone we know at some point in time. The crowd interaction throughout the comedy special proves this point perfectly.

Jim made hilariously logical jokes about Charlie Sheen, Bill Cosby, Jared Fogle, and Caitlyn Jenner to name a few. You could do nothing but laugh and then think to yourself, ‘Wow! Jim is right.’ Jim’s timing is impeccable whether talking about mainstream stars, himself, or during the crowd interaction.

Jim did skip one thing that most other comics touch upon to get a laugh, which is politics. I have not read any reviews or articles that address this for Jim Norton. Even if you don’t like Jim’s comedy you should applaud him for this feat. He did not have to bring politics or his political ideals into his special to get a laugh. In my opinion if he did bring politics into the special it would have taken away from the comedy. Personally, I just stop paying attention during a show if an artist is trying to push their ideals on me. He brought pure unbiased comedy and brought it flawlessly. Jim Norton may not be a mainstream name currently but he will be in the foreseeable future.

The simplest and correct answer to the question is yes. President Trump did lose and lost horribly. The future does not look very bright for his term.

How bad was the loss, is the next question? As Donald Trump typically says, “Very bad. Very bad.” The Republicans failed to meet an objective and per the Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, Obamacare will continue to be implemented for the foreseeable future. This means that the current situations regarding health insurance and healthcare may get worse. A 20% increase may become the norm as we move forward. The removal of the tax penalty mandate, box 61 on your 1040, will cause Obamacare to lose some of the money needed to fund the program that will cause premium increases.

Why do the rates keep going up? The reasons are actually very simple. The more the government regulates the health insurance sector the more the premiums increase. Currently, there is no freedom in healthcare. You buy a plan stipulated by government mandates and then hope to see a doctor that accepts that plan. If you do not have the money to buy a plan then you go to an emergency room and get serviced. The public pays into a health tax fund that pays for the people that go to an emergency room and do not have health insurance. Those that go to the emergency room can be billed but if they have no income they never have to pay. This law was instituted as part of the 1986 Omnibus Cobra Reconciliation Act. In 1986, most had health insurance so the point was to subsidize the few that did not have health insurance. Today, most do not have health insurance and the pool of money to subsidize the uninsured has dropped dramatically.

Medicaid. Another aspect of health insurance that is spiraling costs out of control is Medicaid and Medicare. The fraud associated with these plans is unreal. Total fraud for both plans in 2016 amounted to over $200 billion. Almost a quarter of a trillion dollars. This is one major reason that the programs need to more restrictive or removed. These statistics are provided by the Justice Dept and their fraud unit, Medicare Fraud Strike Force.

What’s a comparable scenario for choice? Let’s briefly talk about car insurance. You are required by State law to have car insurance. You buy car insurance across State lines and find the best deal. If you crash your car then you pay a deductible and then the insurance covers after the deductible. Interestingly enough, car insurance can cover a portion of your medical bill as well. Health insurance does not work that way. You can only buy policies from your State insurer and those benefits are mandated. If you are a 60 year old male you can only buy the same policy as the 23 year old male. Both policies offer maternity coverage even though neither can use that benefit. Health insurance should allow flexibility for someone to buy a policy that fits their needs from any insurer in the country.

What are the next steps? President Trump has lost as well as his fellow Republicans. They could have sold Trumpcare much better I suppose. They failed because they did not explain parts II & III fully to the public. The public felt that parts II & III were the same force fed changes that occurred with Obamacare. Obamacare stated the same things. Pass the bill now and we’ll decide later. Later we are at the same point, or worse, from prior to Obamacare. The future actually does not look so bright.

Lobbying. There are large donors who want to keep things status quo. Trump did not drain any swamp. He cannot drain the swamp. The swamp thrives with thousands of alligators and crocodiles with exaggerated kickbacks to insurers and lawmakers. Those kickbacks will never allow forward motion within the House, Senate, and Congress.

What are our options moving forward? The first is that House and Senate come together and fix the current healthcare law to make it more like a car insurance marketplace as described prior. The 2^nd option is that we move to a single payer option. If Republicans fail to fix the plan and lose the next election then single payer will become the new law. Single payer will completely change the health insurance landscape as will the potential Trumpcare Act.

How will it play out? I believe President Trump made to many promises and he cannot change the current health insurance law with all the mandates. Trump’s premise was accurate for positive change but it cannot happen. The kickback lobby policy will always trump President Trump. In President Trump’s prior world kickbacks were illegal. Within the government arena lobbyist kickbacks are legal, which destroys any of his premises.

If President Trump loses the next election then single payer will be the new insurance wiping out most brokers and agents. Trump’s option wipes out most agents and brokers as well but not to the extent of a single payer platform. I am not siding with the brokers or agents nor do I care. These are just an example of the changing landscape. I just want the best option for the population of the United States of America. I think the best option is to have free choice to buy what you want or need like car insurance, but that scenario has a very low probability of being implemented now. Call your local politician’s office to discuss your options and create change.

A question that probably means more in the present century than all past centuries. Ironically most people do not even use pens or pencils anymore to write and writing has become more important than in the past when pens and pencils were widely used. I still do write some of my longer pieces on paper but the shorter ones are usually done by computer. At the other end of the spectrum is the 140 character tweet that barely describes the article or idea and lends much of the reader to infer. In fact, the prior sentence is 141 characters showing how Twitter is so constrained. That being said, Facebook and blogs do seem to allow for a better communicative experience for the reader and writer.

The news organizations have failed us and that is evident in most print articles and television networks. I include all of television because it seems the reporting of the news has spread from news networks to talk shows to television shows. The problem is not that news is spread across many avenues but that the news is completely distorted by the time the news anchor or talk show host speaks. The information is either falsely reported or it is so politically skewed to one side or the other that the actual news is convoluted. News reporting is supposed to be same and not change as it is transmitted. Example original news: The dog stole a bone. News network: The carnivorous dog viciously attacked and bit the lone child and then stole a bleeding bone leaving no survivors.

Has the power of the pen died? I am a believer that it has not died as long as there are readers that believe in writing’s cause. Sift through all the written garbage and you will find gems that provide enlightenment. I certainly seek to accomplish that in every piece that I write, comment, and post.

I have been writing for over 20 years and have decided that the news or current events should be addressed in a concise manner without the need for political or monetary bias. I intend on writing consistent articles with only one goal and that is to enlighten the reader. The current article and newscasts do not typically enlighten their audience especially since the articles or posts are extremely biased. The articles will touch on a multitude of relatable societal topics and no topic is off limits. Comments, either negative or positive, are welcomed as well as sharing. You may submit articles for review and publication as well.

Today is St Patrick’s Day in America as well as other countries in the world. The celebration in each city will start with a parade and then develop into a binge drinking festival. Shots of Irish whiskey, glasses of green beer, and orange shamrock shirts will certainly fill all the bars and pubs throughout every city’s streets.

St Patrick was certainly not a drunken priest and the celebration of St Patrick’s Day was created to honor St Patrick and Christianity in Ireland. The Church decided to lift the Lenten restrictions to consume alcohol on this day and that is why drinking became so prevalent.

Whether you are religious or not you do have the ability to celebrate, drink, and eat today because you live in a free Democratic and Capitalistic society. When you live in a Socialistic society then those freedoms are removed.

Case in point is today in Venezuela. Socialism has reached an unnerving point in modern global society. While everyone celebrates today they must understand that in Venezuela they are arresting bakers for selling bread and pastries. A baker in Venezuela is only allowed to make French and white bread using the government controlled flour. Bakers have been accused of making additional items, such as pastries with government flour, and have been arrested and jailed. They have also been arrested for charging incorrect prices. There is a shortage of food, wheat, and medical supplies. Patients cannot be treated in the hospital and children cannot be fed. The government’s solution to mitigate product discrepancies is to arrest as many people as possible in any industry. That is not a solution but a repercussion of socialism.

The situations that continue to unfold in Venezuela are much disparate than ours in America or for that matter the rest of the world. The next time you think of attempting to vote for Socialist or Anarchist parties remember Venezuela. Remember that in a Socialist society you do not have any freedom. An individual does not have the ability to own a business nor has the ability to buy products not owned by the government. A Socialist government is tyrannical, removes freedom, creates deadly class divisions, and kills the economy and its people. Total freedom should be the only primary objective by all people! No government control!

This man, or as some refer to him as the devil, terrorized every village, city, and country he visited leaving a trail of dead bodies. He killed men, women, and children of all ages in the United States and Canada. His real name was Herman Webster Mudget, born May 16, 1861, in New Hampshire. Raised by a violent alcoholic father and bullied relentlessly by his classmates did nothing to detract from his future endeavors of death.

He became obsessed with skeletons and dissecting animals at an early age further feeding his desire to become a doctor. Dr Mudget graduated from the University of Michigan’s Department of Medicine and Surgery in 1884. After being accused of stealing cadavers and then placing life insurance on those bodies to collect the payouts he fled to New York. In those days death certificates were not filed as they are today so that allowed the doctor to file the claims on the dead and collect the money.

While in upstate New York he may have killed his first victim, a young boy. The boy hung out with the doctor a few times and then disappeared without a trace. Dr Mudget left New York quickly after the boy’s disappearance to make certain no investigation followed him. The next logical move was to Philadelphia since it was fairly close to New York in distance. The second victim died there and he too was a young boy. The doctor gave the child a poisonous medical cocktail deliberately. There were other deaths as well. This time he began the life insurance scam using living people instead of cadavers. He would kill them and collect the money since he was the beneficiary. When an investigation was opened for the murders and insurance scams he denied any involvement and fled to another city.

The city, Chicago, was much further west and almost guaranteed no further pursuit by authorities. While in Chicago he changed his name to Dr Henry Howard Holmes, known today as HH Holmes. Chicago is where Dr Holmes thrived. A more populous city allowed the doctor to use more people for his insurance murder scams. He began to make so much money that he built the three story Murder Castle located in the 600 block of West 63^rd Street where the Englewood Post Office is located today.

The Murder Castle consisted of death chambers and vaults where people were brought and then tortured and killed slowly. Some death chambers were filled with natural gas to suffocate people. Other chambers were sealed for natural suffocation and starvation. Once the bodies were removed by Dr Holmes he would strip their flesh and remove all their organs. The organs and bones were then sold to science offices and medical schools.

In 1894 the law finally caught up to Dr Holmes and he was arrested and eventually executed. The investigators found bones, hair, dried blood, jewelry, shoes, a dissection table, and human scratch marks on the insides of the chambers. Dr Holmes admitted to killing 27 people and was suspected to have killed as many as 200.

Do not fear. He may have been the first documented serial killer and certainly will not be the last. We see massacres and murders daily on the news. Just remember it is nothing new and it will never change. Hopefully the DiCaprio/Scorsese film will come out soon and shed more light on the infamous HH Holmes.

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This is one of the most interesting questions that can be asked by society today. The overwhelming response by most is cloudy at best. A couple of things are clear to everyone. Drugs are bad for you and can kill you. Drugs cause crime, most of it violent.

Is it the drug dealer or the drug law that is at fault for the lethal drug epidemic? The answer certainly depends on the person directly affected by the drug epidemic. The person who loses a friend or relative due to a drug overdose certainly always blames the drug dealer. Most of those people perhaps even wish the same death upon that drug dealer. That response is certainly understandable but at the same time may be exaggerated. You can’t physically kill all drug dealers and not expect new ones to replace them. You can’t blame the drug dealer either. If a product and consumer coexist then there will always be a supplier. The drug dealer is no different than the 1920’s alcohol peddler. We saw how well prohibition played out for the general public and the mafia. Thousands of people died because of badly produced alcohol and thousands died because of mafia/cartel violence.

The government and local law enforcement agencies have a completely opposite response and believe that the drug epidemic is being adequately controlled as to the best of their abilities. They arrest drug dealers and give them long federal or state jail sentences. The drug user is typically written off as a junkie and sent back out onto the streets to fend for him or herself. Law enforcement’s reasoning is fairly cut and dry because they have no emotionally vested interest in either the criminal or drug addict, only the crime.

The prior two scenarios show why the overwhelming response by most people is cloudy at best regarding the legalization of drugs. If you reread both sections the logical deduction can be made that all drugs should be legalized, just as alcohol was made legal. The legalization of drugs will eliminate drug related crime and remove contaminated drugs from the users. The funds saved from the eliminated crime can then be redirected to rehabilitate the addicts. No more cartels, no more drug related deaths and more options for life. Should illegal drugs be legal or illegal? The overwhelming response should a resounding YES from all of society.

Warning: This article must be read very carefully to understand its meaning and it is not racist. The article seeks only to provide an explanation for racism. The warning seems to be apologetic, but it is not. I am not a cause of racism and have been subject to it. I am Italian and not white as the census tells me.

We will attempt to explain why the keyword today is racism, and why it has affected so many of the American population, especially Africans.

Today everyone uses the word racism frequently. The word is used so frequently that its meaning has been diminished and sometimes distorted. Let’s begin with race and racism’s definitions.

Race (Google/Oxford):

A group of people sharing the same culture, history, language, etc.; an ethnic group.

Prejudice (Google/Oxford):

Preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience.

Racism (Google/Oxford):

Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.

As you can see from the definitions, race is the defining factor and prejudice is embedded within racism. Prejudice defines racism, and it is not limited to a color, but rather to a culture, history, or language etc. If there is no prejudice then there is no racism.

Italians, Irish, Jews, French, Africans, Germans, Spanish, Mexicans, Palestinians, Russians, and the list goes on and on. These races have been subject to prejudice and have dealt prejudices towards others since the beginning of time. New York City was created on prejudice and that is why the Boroughs were created and are still there today. Races, not defined by color, separated themselves from other races for safety and community. Enter the present day and age where the word racism is used for anything and everything, especially for white versus black scenarios.

There are plenty of posts, comments, and articles from “white” people that state they cannot believe racism exists or that they are sorry for racism etc… These “white” people have drank the Kool-Aid of the media and forgotten their pasts. They have lost their minds, culture, and identities unless, of course, they are WASPs (White Anglo Saxon Protestants). Research the WASPs on your own in an effort to keep the article shorter.

Why has it become black versus white?

The history of the American population regrading racism is directly attached to the WASP population. The WASPs sought to control all aspects of their population and anyone that attempted to disrupt it. They fought with all races especially the Italians and Africans. The Republicans sided with equal rights for all, while the Democrats wanted limited or no rights for all unless they were WASPs.

The Democrats that were led by the KKK controlled the slavery movement. Once slavery was abolished by the Republican, Abraham Lincoln, the Democrats stepped right back in to minimize Africans and other immigrants will to be free by instituting the Jim Crow laws. Every attempt made by the Republicans to overturn the Jim Crow laws failed miserably decade by decade. The Democrats, KKK, and the South were too powerful and the Republicans failed miserably. It was not until July 2 1964 that the Jim Crow Laws were repealed by, ironically, Democrat Lyndon Johnson.

The plight of the Italians were equal to Africans regarding prejudice and racism and suffered the same attitudes from the WASPs. A couple examples below:

Quotes from prior leaders from http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/10/opinion/falco-italian-immigrants/

What was the reaction of our country’s leaders to the lynchings? Teddy Roosevelt, not yet president, famously said they were “a rather good thing.” The response in The New York Times was worse. A March 16, 1891, editorial referred to the victims of the lynchings as “… sneaking and cowardly Sicilians, the descendants of bandits and assassins.” An editorial the next day argued that: “Lynch law was the only course open to the people of New Orleans. …”

John Parker, who helped organize the lynch mob, later went on to be governor of Louisiana. In 1911, he said of Italians that they were “just a little worse than the Negro, being if anything filthier in [their] habits, lawless, and treacherous.”

I cannot equate my situations to that of Africans since I do not walk in their shoes. I have walked with my relatives as they all were 1^st generation Italians and the walk was not the same as a WASP American. I have been called a Dago, Wop, Grease Monkey, Grease Ball, IROC, Guido, Mario, Luigi, and that list is endless as well (http://www.rsdb.org/race/italians). I have been called those names by all opposing races but that is life. That being said I do not care what they call me because the names, in an ironic way, give me a strong sense of identity. I walk away from the slurs knowing that the other person dropping the slur is jealous of me in some way. When I go to work every day I know that they view me as the Italian and not the typical WASP coworker at the office.

I do know that racism will continue to exist and cannot be removed because racism is inherent to the human mind sociologically and psychologically. We can work on breaking those chains only by speaking out towards the government that has set us up to fail, especially the Democrats and Liberals. Republicans can be tied into this scenario but their political platform differs from the aforementioned.

A solution, to assist the population to remove some of the preconceived notions, is to remove the Democratic Party’s way of hurting African and other race populations. The Democrats consistently have run on the platform of giving to the poor in welfare based programs. These programs are instituted by the WASP politicians to keep the race(s) segregated and set them up to fail. In essence, the Democrats pander and give money so less privileged people will not want to leave their ghettos, menial jobs, and schools. Give them drugs and don’t clean up their cities. Let them have crime and gangs so they can kill each other, while the WASPs watch from their mansions.

Look at Chicago and all the major cities. The WASPs do not care because they feed off of the failed races for their next political election. During their speeches they will state, “I will give you more welfare, more money.” The voters should be appalled. How does more welfare get the citizen out of the ghetto? In any other country, if babies and children were being killed by gangs, the military would be in the streets keeping the city safe. In America, the WASPs look the other way and offer more welfare.

What can a President do? Nothing. There have only been two non-Protestant Presidents surrounded by mostly WASP Congresses. Those being Obama and Kennedy, of which the latter was assassinated, including his brother and son. Almost every politician, whether Democrat or Republican, is of the WASP population and their job is to control all races but theirs.

Which is worse, Democrat or Republican? It seems Democrat since they have over a 100 year history of supporting slavery and Jim Crow laws. People do not change so do not fall for their empty promises. Democrats promote welfare and even sent money to Africans because of slavery. I do not know why no one is offended by those actions.  Republicans seem to allow less government control, which is a benefit to all races in the nation. Before any more Democrats call the Republican President a racist they should look at their party’s history, which affected all races in the United States. The only way that any change will occur in society is if the newly appointed Senators and Presidents will be common citizens and not WASPs.

Deeper thoughts.

If you believe that all races are equal than you are actually trying to be the superior race since no races are inherently possible to viewed equally by any being. Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be racist as well. AI will view each race of AI as inferior or superior.

 

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was developed many years ago, signed on April 4 1949 to be exact, and is still in force today. It has since been ratified multiple times to accede more nations and to develop wording relating to present day scenarios. NATO’s counter by Russia and its supporting Communist countries was the Warsaw Pact signed May 14 1955 that subsequently ended July 1^st 1991. The removal of the Berlin Wall was the predecessor to the disintegration of the Warsaw Pact.

NATO was created after WWII to create world order and prevent another world war. The more countries that joined NATO’s world union, referred to as the Alliance by NATO, the less of a chance for conflict, and an individual country’s ability to have a military uprising similar to Hitler’s Germany. As positive as that may sound the underlying theme when you read the treaty is that if you did not join, then the country was anti-democratic and viewed as an aggressor. Further enhancing joining NATO were the strong-arming tactics implied by the US government. In essence, either join or you can have the same destruction that Japan’s Hiroshima and Nagasaki faced towards the end of WWII. No other country possessed nuclear weapons at that time.

Per NATO, “The fundamental purpose of NATO’s nuclear capability is to preserve peace, prevent coercion, and deter aggression. As long as nuclear weapons exist, NATO will remain a nuclear alliance.” (http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/official_texts_133169.htm)

The link, directly from NATO, is a very good indication describing how the world actually functions. Part of the NATO Alliance requirement is to spend a set amount, usually between 2 and 20% of GDP, on military offense and defense (section 34 of the article).

Before people complain and want no war or a cease to arms they must understand that the world lives and thrives on armament, and will continue as such forevermore, or until the world destroys itself. The inevitable end will be World War Nuclear (WWN/WWIII) where the Alliance fights the former Warsaw Pact countries, as well as the Middle East. WWN/WWIII can be also recognized as the largest religious war ever fought with a discernable finite end.

Peace cannot exist within the confines of the human mind. The mind is, by nature, skewed for violence as are all animals on this planet. Do not blame the current, former, and future American presidents nor can you blame other world leaders. Protesting and the sort is futile. Learning how the world works will allow you to better understand the world and make your day possibly less miserable since none of it is at all under your control.

The news you watch or read is skewed and does not describe any of the statements in the NATO article accurately. The misreporting of the news is not a conspiracy. Truth has lost its place in society and no longer matters. I suppose truth may not have ever mattered but it seemed to be pursued more often in the past. This next statement is not to be taken religiously and the result is equal to all. The end of days will arrive when most of the world believes the anti-truth. You will only know the anti-truth after it has happened and does not involve second comings or deities. Believing the anti-truth will devour the world within itself.

When will this happen? I do not know. It can be 2, 4, 10, or 100 years from now. In my opinion, it will happen when Mars is inhabited, but you never know. Everything is based on irrational and emotional human decisions with inevitable repercussions that are not usually good and always negative.

#nato #newworldorder #alliance #euro #russia #america #nuclear #giannifranco