How many American Parents Buy their kid a Gun?

 A TV or a Phone OK. But a GUN?

The case involving Ethan Crumbley and his parents is tragic. Our hearts must first go out to the four kids Ethan shot dead when he was only 15, and their families. This is just one more reason that Americans should give their heads violent shakes - hopefully before another of their kids blows holes in them.

I read that federal law prohibits anyone under the age of 18 from owning a handgun. A youth can own and use a long rifle to murder people - but not a handgun. Right.

It is apparently the case that Ethan's father James bought him that gun using Ethan's own money! Seriously? It is also alleged that his mother Jennifer emailed him at school when he was caught doing a search for ammunition, telling him not to get caught! That's just as bad as the dad.

A big deal is now being made that if parents are potentially liable for their childrens' actions it would set a big precedent. IT'S ABOUT TIME when it comes to kids using guns acquired by adults. Giving it to their kid is a slam dunk. GUILTY!

Is there any other country on the face of this planet, that seems to rank having guns in the house right up there with stocking the shelves with salt, pepper, and ketchup?Should parents in ANY country allow underaged kids to even handle a gun?

NO!

We all know that the gun makers, sellers, and lovers will repeat the old crap that it is people who kill people, not guns. So I am going to repeat my usual response. That kid did not stab the victims to death, club the victims to death, or poison them to death - he SHOT them to death - with a GUN doing exactly what it was invented and then perfected to do.

Wake up America - while you still can.

#thebrewsterblock

Social Media - Good or Bad?

Social Media has become the Unsocial Media

I am not a big fan of social media. Is it a good thing or not? If not what can be done to make it better? The majority will probably say it is a good thing.

Electronic media from the first cumbersome email networks now allow real time contact . What has not changed is the tendency for people to write things that they would never say face to face. Anonymity makes people brave and brazen while hiding behind an electronic shield.

Networks like FOX News and those on them, know they are spreading lies but don't care. In some cases, legitimate corporations do rein them in. The potentially criminal part is that these "news" celebs know what kind of audience will get fired up by what they say and that many will resort to violence as a result.

Free speech is important in a democracy - it is cherished and fundamental in America. That is not always a good thing - hate mongering is an example which should be restricted and come with negative consequences for those guilty.

The violent ones often act without any true fact checking of what they have been fed. They were just looking for an excuse in the first place. People like Trump and his former crew throw chunks of beef to them as they would to a school of sharks or piranha. They also know where the fish reside. America will probably experience more Jan. 6th incidents.

Social media just accelerates the apparently insatiable need for many people to be FIRST to hear something so they can forward it. The content and its impact don't matter anymore as long as you are first. Hollywood and celebrity gossip have always been an example of this even without immediate access. It is prime entertainment for some people.

Try this: read a good book and pass THAT on.

Imagine the following analogy and we have seen some examples almost as extreme. Some poor soul is on a rooftop or bridge contemplating jumping. There was a time when everyone would be united in trying to de-escalate the situation and talk the person down. Now half of the onlookers would only be there to video the jump and the resulting horror. Then the race to be first would be on - first on Facebook; first to text to a "friend"; first scoop to a paying media company.

What has happened to people? Every person with a phone is now both a paparazzi and a shark. Is social media the cause or has it always been inside people just waiting to come to the surface? I suspect both are true.

I suggest that Social or Unsocial Media has been responsible for many more deaths than other forms of media before it. It is really unfortunate but now that ot os in the hands of the truly evil it will be resposible for thousands - possibly millions - more.

Greed and Apathy are Destroying the Environment

 The Buck for Destroying Mother Earth Stops at YOUR Doorstep

There are two overriding factors that I see destroying our planet: 

1) Apathy 2) Greed

APATHY: most of the apathetic also exhibit some GREED

Very few can say they have NEVER been guilty of some degree of apathy regarding the environment. It is so easy to blame someone else but we are all contributors in some manner or other. Have you ever not bothered to vote - after all what difference does my one little vote make? Besides - it's Monday Night Football! THAT is apathy!

If you actually DO give a rat's ass about your kids' futures, then I tip my hat to you. In that case please add your comments below.

Ten common and very bad consumer habits

Here are 10 really bad habits which over many, many years have resulted in scenes like the images in this post. The solutions are all things that YOU can and should do yourselves. Yes, it might cost some of your prescious time but thanks to us future generations might not have any time.

1. Buying bottled water in throw away plastic bottles. 
2. Failing to properly recycle waste - especially that from the previous item. 
3. Disposing of perfectly useable items instead of taking them to Salvation army, a shelter, or many other places which will give them a second home. 
4. Dropping things where you are - LITTERING. 
5. Including compostable items in your regular garbage. 
6. Driving a big, gas guzzling car or vehicle often because of its immense power. 
7. Over use of paper towels, This is a big one. Most can be used over and over if you are merely soaking up some type of liquid. 
8. Inefficiently using washers - dishes AND clothes and dryers as well. Both of these produce a lot of polluted water and use a lot of energy. 
9. Illegally dumping on the side of the road when you are out of site. 
10. Overheating and overcooling your homes.
    
    There are known alternatives and solutions for each of these but few of us follow through. Think of how stupid this is: people fill their phones with hundreds of pictures of their kids and grandkids but they are quite willing to leave those same relatives a total gabage dump of a planet in which it will be too hot to live.

Have you EVER spoken out about pollution, especially to your friends?

GREED: most of the greedy also exhibit some APATHY

This has been a topic of mine before - greed at the HIGHEST level - the super rich. These are the people who own and profit immensely from the industries producing many of the items mentioned above and many more.

Some of these poeple are so rich they can isolate themselves, their families, and probably their beneficiaries from the worst of what is happening on this globe. Many of these people don't have the personality (they certainly have the wealth) to lend a helping hand or handout to those who need it.There are a few exceptions but not many.

Ten examples of super wealthy Industies that are killing Mother Earth  

1. Auto 
2. Oil
3. Pharmaceutical 
4. Exotic Woods from and development in Rain Forrests
5. Stock Brokerages: Imagine! Sitting at a desk and bidding stock prices up and down for a living. Have any of them ever gotten their hands dirty with REAL work?
6. Politicians - let's not forget THEM, local, region, and national
7. Racing - cars, boats, planes, monster trucks
8. Education. This is after all, where our future needs can be instilled in young enthusiastic brains. 
9. Religion. If people truely follow a faith, then its leaders should take more of a stance on ALL of these issues. Find quotes in indiviual holy books to help make their congregation passionate believers.
10. Media. Many do make a contribution here but others only focus on what sells press and broadcast time. Encourage people to produce more content that addresses this topic. Provide incentives - like Oscars - in this category.

So when are you going to purchase your first water filter for your fridge? When will you next keep your chewing gum wrapper for your spent gum and then walk it to a bin? Maybe it was YOURS I am cleaning off my shoe. How about writing to the car executives or a journalist with suggestions?

Some Hope:

Several decades ago we all heated our homes with coal. A lot of that has disappeared in developed countries - very good news. Unfortunately the population keeps climbing, so each NEW problem caused by industrialization and consumerism is that much worse. There are even more apathetic and greedy people.

Are you going to start leading by example? Recycle centers really don't cost much. The minimum charge usually covers most of my stuff. Try it. Buy a smaller car next time. Get mad as hell and let leaders know you won't take it anymore. OK - maybe a bit melodramatic but I will try anything.

#thebrewsterblock

 

Seriously? Over 75 Million Americans WANT The Donald as POTUS?

Perhaps 75 Million Russians want Trump - but Americans?

Hundreds of millions of rational people around the world shake shook their heads at this and are still doing so. A fresh salmon heading up river to spawn caught by a hungry grizzly would have a better chance at surviving than America does if Trump gets back in. Just like the bear he will immediatly turn around in search of another fish.





The bear is just instictively trying to avoid starvation for another season. Trump is trying to survive prison for the rest of his life. HIS instinct put him in this precarious situation. The bear has no ulterior motive. Trump is a living example of an ulterior motive - and it's DEFINITELY not to help you!






This man never fishes for salmon - that can be dangeroius and hard work. He lets others do that and SUCKERS are his preferred catch. As with the bear, there is an abundant supply to be had.

How can this person be a President?

Yesterday Someone forward this video documenting a huge list of the failures, charges, and crimes of this person - I am loathe to say "man":


How can this person be a President, ANYWHERE, let alone The United States? He surely must have a Guiness record for a head of state. You can fact check these for yourselves but even if half of them are true he should not lead a country.

I knew the list was long but professional mobsters don't have a wrap sheet as long as his. He also deserves the same treatment as they receive. Remember those gallows on Jan. 6 and everyone yelling "Hang Mike Pence?" Trump actually said - and the entire world heard him - that maybe Pence deserved it! Whether he meant the chanting or the hanging is a moot point.

People who saw fit to compare Trump, while he was POTUS, to Hitler were usually slam dunked. I made the comparison myself. This substatiates the comparison whether his base wants to deny it or not.

Here is more:

Chronicling Trump's 10 most egregious abuses of power | CNN Politics

Don't like CNN? Try these

President Trump's worst offenses - CREW | Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (citizensforethics.org)

Opinion | The 10 worst things Trump did in 2020 - The Washington Post


Trump Is the Worst President in History - The Atlantic


New polling finds cracks in Trump's base; criminal cases making an impression (youtube.com)

FOX:
That Was Awkward: Fox News Forced to Fact-Check Trump’s Lies on Air | The New Republic
Fox News reportedly imposes ‘soft ban’ on Donald Trump | Donald Trump | The Guardian

What about the Bankruptcies?

Forget the legal aspect. Why would anyone want a man who has bankrupted so many companies to be President. He will bankrupt the Contry and in doing so profit himself and his rich friends - the few he has anymore.

Has the Liberty Bell surpassed the Statue of Liberty as a famous icon synonymous with America? 

The Lady stands for freedom and hope. Perhaps the Bell was supposed to represent the freedom available in America. Little did anyone know thehow important that crack would become. Better check the Bell again because the crack in the country is widening.

Has anyone checked the Lady recently? If there are no cracks then check for tears.

#thebrewsterblock

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Preserving Animal Species

Do Animal Preserves Protect? Maybe Not!

Ever been tempted to take in one of those apparent animal preservation attractions where you can get up close and personal with some type of wild life? Swimming with dolphins is a famous example. Perhaps you should think twice. I will do some research before I visit one. Some are not worth a visit. Why? Read on.

Is this Natural for the Species?

Try to think like the animal. If you are swimming with dolphins or mingling with and touching a species which would normally run from or attack humans, this is NOT natural.

• How did this "preserve" acquire these animals which are usually found elsewhere?
• Why has a normally wild species become tame?
• What kind of harsh training or conditioning have they received?
• Are they spending most of their time in a pen or cage? How wild is that?
• With a bit of research some of the answers you will find are horrible.

What prompted this post?

I was reading an article in my CAA Winter 2023 magazine (Canadian Automobile Association) called Creature Comforts by Vawn Himmelsbach which got me thinking about this. She sites several organizations you should check out. Here are some of them:

• nathab.com
• sanctuaryfederation.org
• worldanimalprotection.ca
• whalesense.org

Humans Helping Animals

It is uplifting to see that some people think beyond cats and dogs when it comes to animals. Many Zoos have come a long way in the last few decades from past prisons for poor caged animals to elaborate environments spanning hundreds of acres.

They are in some ways a necessary evil as THE dominant species grabs more of the world's resources for itself leaving less for those who pre-dated us by thousands of years.There are also more efforts to outlaw poaching for money to punish the guilty. More is needed.

Humans Helping Themselves

However looking back in history people have not changed much. The money and wealth motive still dominates. For years we have been seeing daily inhumanity inflicted on others in Ukraine and the Middle East to name a couple. America is full of its own unique horror shows and it is getting worse.

So on one level you have to wonder how you can expect humane treatment of animals when the two-legged variety keeps slaughtering its own. We often use the term "treat like an animal". That is disgusting in itself. Animals kill for need - never for sport or trophies. Phrases like scalping, tar and feather, burn at the stake, and skinning alive to name a few ae 100% human and 100% vile.

On another level perhaps those participating in war will find some solace in their down time by furthering animal causes.

Like an animal - don't hold your breath.

#thebrewsterblock

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