NEW YEAR CLARITY

If Debbie Reynolds could forgive Elizabeth Taylor for taking and then discarding Eddie Fisher, then you can forgive your brother for whatever stupid thing he did.

Groups can forgive other groups for the atrocities of the past.

Anger and hatred do not just ruin your own life, they can ruin life for us all.

This does not mean that you have to be friends with the person that abused you. It just means you have to give up YOUR OWN HATRED AND ANGER.

In my 43 years of practicing law, I have found that it is sometimes best to delay a court case until the parties are no longer full of anger.

I have never seen a problem between two people or two countries get solved without talking to each other.

Currently, too many people have decided to "shun" our new president. This means that our new president will hear only from those people who agree with him.

True courage is being the first to say, "I am going to talk with X and see if I can at least reach a compromise with him."

Personally, I believe that all of you should be brave enough to stop supporting the war on drug. The current Chicago is replaying 1930s Chicago, where the violence did not stop until alcohol became legal. Do you think it is OK to continue this slaughter just because it mostly kills Blacks and Mexicans?

SMILE AT YOUR NEIGHBOR! FORGIVE YOUR ENEMY! FIGHT FOR JUSTICE!

HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

I hope you all have happy and fun times during the Holiday Season.

I am going to have to spend Christmas through New Years working. No wassailing for me!

Luckily, I have already spent time with my family in a lovely celebration of a marriage.

Almost all major religions ask that we take care of the poor and the sick. Perhaps this year we can find homes for the homeless, food for the hungry, and jobs for all workers.

Please do your best to stop spreading fear. If you are afraid, you often make irrational decisions that cause harm to both you and others.

But mostly, please have a good time this holiday season.

DOES PUTIN INFLUENCE CALIFORNIA?

CALIFORNIA IS STARVING ITS COURT SYSTEM. Our legislature is trying to silence our major attorney's association, so that they are unable to fight for justice for everyone.

Courts are our most important bailiwick against injustice. Without attorneys, the inarticulate cannot get justice.

LGBT and other nonconformists get representation from California attorneys in order to request justice from California courts.

Putin regularly arrests civil rights attorneys. Russia's court system answers to Putin, not to justice.

California Courts have been lauded for their commitment to justice.

But now that California is rich again, our courts still do not have enough money to keep the clerk's office open in the branch courts. You can no longer call the courts on the phone. If you mail in something to file, it waits over a month to be filed.

This is only going to get worse as courts stop assessing fines which harm the poor.

Sometimes the attacks on the essential services that keeps California strong and wealthy are subtle. Our famously fair justice system is one of the fundamental reasons that people of all varieties are comfortable being themselves while living here.

If we starve the courts of monies they need to run the day to day justice, justice slows, then sometimes disappears.

The California Bar Association is a state wide attorney organization that should be able to alert us all to such a failure to fund the courts. Right now the California legislature is not allowing the Bar Association to collect dues from attorneys. (Attorney associations are always SO critical of bad legislation.)

Keep California great. Spend the holidays fussing about funding our courts. Insist that the legislature stop preventing attorneys from associating with each other, and disciplining each other.

LET'S KEEP OUR CALIFORNIA JUSTICE SYSTEM, WHICH ENFORCES JUSTICE FOR ALL!

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS

For Christmas, I want an END TO THE WAR ON (SOME) DRUGS.

Trying to get people to obey drug laws is causing corruption in our banking systems, violence in our inner cities, and prisons full of people of color.

Worse, it has had NO EFFECT ON ACTUAL USE OF DRUGS.

Unless, of course, you count all the people who are dying of heroin when they can not get prescription pain medication. Did you know that opiate addiction rates have not changed in over 100 years? Opiates can be legal or illegal, addiction rates stay at about 1.5%.

It is very EASY for President Obama to take marijuana entirely off the federal drug schedules. This would remove marijuana as a federal crime, and EACH STATE can then decide whether to keep marijuana illegal. All he has to do is cite the SIX presidential commissions who have recommended marijuana be removed from the federal drug schedules.

Then President Obama can declare a national emergency, and move all the other recreational drugs to schedule V, which would allow for reliable research on these mostly natural remedies which are being misused.

Did you know that a large percentage of drug overdoses involve opiates combined with anxiety medications?

For me, the worst part of the War on Drugs was how trying to make people stop using drugs messed with the US Constitution. The courts allowed seizure of property without a conviction, searches of vehicles, drug raids with battering rams.

NONE OF THE CURRENT RECREATIONAL DRUGS ARE WORSE THAN ALCOHOL.

When Obama is moving drugs onto schedule V, he should state that no drug can be put on any other schedule unless it causes a higher percentage of deaths than alcohol. Require that proving a drug caused a death must take into consideration other substances that the user was also taking.

Alcohol prohibition ended December 5, 1933. We all know how incredibly stupid and ineffective it was to try to keep alcohol illegal.

It is just as incredibly stupid and ineffective to try to keep recreational drugs illegal.

The best way to keep drugs from children is to make them legal and regulated. In states where marijuana is legal, teenagers complain that they can no longer easily buy marijuana.

LET'S GET MEDICAL HELP TO THE ADDICTS, LIKE WE GIVE MEDICAL HELP TO ALCOHOLICS.

FREEZING TO DEATH

I worry about the North Dakota protesters. Having grown up in South Dakota, I know how cold it gets in the winter.

I am also emotionally torn by the pipeline. Pipelines spill WAY less oil into the environment than shipping the oil by rail. Companies who fail to get agreement from all stakeholders often fail to admit that they have leaks from pipelines. Some of the oil destined for the pipeline is the dirtiest oil on earth. Just whiffing it once, sent me to the emergency room.

When I read that a veteran from Hawaii was going to protect the protesters, I was reminded of the Laura Ingalls Wilder book, 'The Long Winter'.

It is SO easy to freeze to death. Often, when you are freezing to death, you feel warm, go to sleep, and never wake up.

The prairie can be a very unforgiving place. The blizzard winds can be so strong, they will blow you off the road. Sometimes you can barely see your hand when you hold it up in front of your face.

Blizzards make your world into a white trap. You can not even go from tent to tent without a rope around your waist. I do not know how you go to the toilet without frostbite. When you can no longer feel your fingers, it means you have frostbite and will probably have to have the finger amputated. Frostbite freezes the blood, as the frozen part warms up, the blood does not reanimate, so gangrene sets in, your finger or toe turns black, and has to be cut off or the infection will kill you.

My blizzards were in SOUTH Dakota. NORTH Dakota is even colder and nastier in the winter.

You may be able to fight the pipeline.

You can not fight Mother Nature.

Trump won the election. You have lost this battle. Please stay alive so we can win the political war that is coming.

TAKE A HIKE

Liberals and progressives need to get out into the woods, the beaches, the parks. Taking a hike on Black Friday is a way of saying that golden opulence obtained through oppression is evil.

If the weather is nasty, go to a museum, a bookstore, or live theater. I always enjoy the Dicken's Faire. (Buying hand crafted items is not opulent.)

Progress towards equal treatment of all citizens can be painfully slow. Sixty four years ago a secret hero of World War II was convicted of criminal indecency because he was a homosexual. He saved hundreds of thousands of lives through mathematical genius, but was denigrated and despised because of his sexuality.

Now we have gay marriage is many parts of the world.

Women got the right to vote less than 100 years ago. This year the US had a woman almost win the Presidential election.

Just 12 years ago, the US Supreme Court found that it violated the Americans With Disability Act for a judge to require that a disabled person crawl up the steps to his courtroom.

Sometimes people can say incredibly awful things, yet not really mean what they say. Sometimes people can say all the right things, but do all the wrong things.

I recommend that, instead of fighting over the election, we all discuss future shock*, and how it can affect society.

After thirty years, Trump tower is still beautifully maintained. It would be amazing if we could do the necessary public maintenance we have deferred for thirty years. Rusty pipes, deteriorated plastics, roads and bridges.... This list is endless.

It will be fun to encourage people to imagine what Trump could build in their hometown.

I am Thankful that I live in California, in the United States of America.

* Future Shock is a book written by Alvin Toffler, about a world where rapid change left people unable to cope, because all of the behavior patterns they learned when they were young, seemed to be no longer acceptable behavior.

LET PEOPLE LEARN

Many of the totally unacceptable things that Trump said, were said at the very beginning of his campaign.

Trump never apologizes, just like Gibbs on NCIS. However, when Trump no longer repeats an awful statement, that means that he has rethought that statement.

For instance, Trump has vowed to get rid of Obamacare. Now Trump is saying that he will replace Obamacare with a better health care system, and Obamacare will stay in place until the new system takes over.

If we always hold people responsible for 10 year old actions and words, then we should also give them credit when they say that they have learned better.

For instance, females really want to be able to drink and drug themselves into catatonic states and still be safe from unwanted sexual intercourse. I agree with them. I just do not see HOW we can actually keep females safe if they go home with, and take pills from, strangers.

I can understand children waiting months or years before telling of sexual abuse. I do not understand how adult women can expect to have a crime prosecuted if they wait for a year to report the crime.

Back in 1975, a magistrate told me that he would not assign me any criminal cases where the defendant was a male, as he could not live with himself if I got hurt by a client that he had assigned to me.

He then said that he would send me female defendants. I let this go, as I am unable to fix everything in the world.

Later, I discovered that I was getting WAY MORE criminal cases than other attorneys. This is because the magistrate was sending me ALL of his female defendants. This really helped my fledgling law office.

If you want to be certain that the US makes progress in solving social problems, you can help solve social problems in your own town. Volunteer to help "at risk" kids. Mentor women, without hitting on them.

STOP PROTESTING AND START FIXING those things you can fix. This election is OVER!                                                                                  

TRUMP IS OUR NEXT PRESIDENT*

I am an optimist. So I am going to be optimistic about the election.**

MARIJUANA is on its way to being legal.*** Hooray! Super duper cool!

Just after the election results were known, world wide markets started into a chaotic downward spiral. Within hours, Trump had calmed these markets, with the NY Stock Exchange having an up day.

He did this by promising a huge stimulus package. Finally, I thought, we can replace our dying infrastructure. Because if you think California's roads need upgrading, wait until you see the rusting bridges in the mid West. Trump may do good for the world by doing what he loves, building things.

President Obama is right, we need to give President Trump a chance to show that he has learned something over the last year.

And, finally, the tech industry, the film industry and the banking industry, all need to "clean their own houses." All of these industries are almost completely white males, with almost no females in positions of power.

* I REALLY did not want to say these words. I did my best to try to get Hillary Clinton elected. But the sad truth is, Trump supporters voluntarily voted. Clinton was bogged down while people complained about the inconsequential. The AGAINST TRUMP people KNEW they had to vote for Hillary, yet too many did not bother to vote. "Your vote does not count," said a famous kneeler. So now you know, NOTHING counts more than your vote.

** I have lived under many presidents, including the famous crook, Richard Nixon. But Nixon did something no one else had the courage to do, he opened diplomatic relations with a very isolated communist CHINA. The vibrant China of today is arguably partially the result of Nixon's policies.

*** I have seen many Presidents come and go. But the drug prohibition just kept getting worse. If you prohibit a recreational drug that is less damaging than alcohol, too many people refuse to obey that law.  The worst result is that many people become very contemptuous of the rule of law. They think that if one law is criminally stupid, then all laws are criminally stupid. The continuous need for a supply of these recreational drugs causes the street value of the drugs to increase. The tax free profit causes violence, murders, and corruption.

HAVE NO FEAR - VOTE!

Do not be afraid to vote. If you are fearful of voting, take your camera. The Federal Courts need photos in order to keep enforcing the voting rights act. PHOTOS OF LONG LINES WILL BE VERY HELPFUL.

If Sheriff Joe's men are at the polls, they will be extra polite or they will be in federal prison.

The reason that Republicans try to get unnecessary voter ID laws, and do not put polling places in minority areas, is that IN THE US NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO PHYSICALLY INTIMIDATE A VOTER.

NO ONE is allowed to use voting information for anything other than voting. (If you are a citizen, you can vote, unless you are a felon and then you have to check as some felons can vote.)

VOTING WILL BE PEACEFUL, but if trouble starts, be polite, sit down and hold up your hands. Do not leave as you still have to vote.

WE TAKE OUR DEMOCRACY SERIOUSLY. VOTER INTIMIDATION IS ILLEGAL, even if you are Sheriff Joe.

Find your polling place TODAY, and print or photo a map to your polling place. Google has a "find your polling place" ap on its front page.

The entire election depends on the number of people who vote. So I will make a deal with you.

If the Democrats win the US Presidency, the US Senate, and the US House of Representatives, I will stop smoking tobacco. (It is best to be specific about promises you intend to keep.)

VOTE!

"TAKE A KNEE*"

From the dawn of time, kneeling has shown more respect than standing. I fail to understand why kneeling for the national anthem is an insult rather than a respectful request for equality.

You have all misunderstood Black Lives Matters. Black people know that white lives matter, and blue lives matter. They are just saying that black lives ALSO matter.**

For too many years, we have all ignored the subtle and not so subtle barriers affecting minorities. We know how to fix these problems, but we just have not been doing it. We could stop judging police on the number of arrests, but instead judge them on neighborhood polling. The poll would ask people how safe they feel.

I will repeat my advice, that if a minority group wants change, they have to VOTE EVERY TIME. Politicians almost never upset a reliable voting block.

I have a dream that one day, ALL people will be treated equally.

* Quote from A Knight's Tale, as the Prince prepares to make the hero into a knight.

** I thought of Even Black Lives Matter, but that seems to be insulting. Black Lives Also Matter is better but not a catchy as Black Lives Matter.

VOTING FOR DRINKING BUDDIES

It is said that "W" Bush got elected because people saw him as a "good drinking buddy". The good buddy got us into the Iraq mess, among other disasters.

Trump is probably a good drinking buddy, He doesn't drink but he loves to chat with people.

Trump is proud to say:

NO MORE OBAMA CARE, which means that people who are already sick will not be able to get health insurance.

LET STATES HANDLE MINIMUM WAGE, which means some of you will get paid even less than minimum wage.

LET STATES HANDLE WOMEN'S HEALTH CARE, which means women in many states may die as they are forced to carry dead children to term.

LET VETERANS USE REGULAR HEALTH CARE, which means that the health centers for veterans may close, and veterans may not get the specific care they need.

TAX DEDUCTION FOR CHILD CARE, which effectively means you only get help with child care if you OWN a home. Many children will be unsupervised as their parents work.

LAW AND ORDER, means that illegal drugs will continue to make dealers rich, children will continue to be recruited as sellers, and violence will continue to escalate.

Many of you HATE the idea of a woman boss.

The saying, "Shooting yourself in the foot," comes to mind.

LEAKED DEBATE QUESTION

The Russian hackers are REALLY unsophisticated about US politics. The debate in question was taking place in FLINT, Michigan. Both candidates would have EXPECTED a question about Flint's water problems.

I am more worried about how the Donald treats freedom of speech. The American Bar Association looked into the Donald's life long quest to limit speech regarding himself. The ABA found that the Donald has brought numerous libel suits, most of them without merit. According to the ABA's committee, he used his money to hire attorneys to legally harass anyone who criticized him.*

The Donald has stated that he wants to change the first amendment so that people are not allowed to insult public figures, including politicians.

The Donald wants to alter our prohibitions on torture, and wants to illegally order our troops to torture people. He has suggested that the families of terrorists should be punished, even if they knew nothing about the acts of their relatives.

The Donald wants to alter our bed rock belief that everyone should be treated equally by the law. He has stated that all Muslims should be prohibited from entering the United States.

The Donald does not believe in innocent until proven guilty, in that he states that a person is guilty of crimes when there has been no conviction. He has stated that the black youths convicted of a rape in Central Park are still guilty even though they were exonerated through DNA evidence and a confession by the actual rapist.

The Donald wants to bring back "stop and frisk", which is unconstitutional search and seizure.

PROTECT THE CONSTITUTION. VOTE FOR HILLARY CLINTON!

 * Defending a lawsuit can be very expensive. Most people can not afford even $5000 to defend a lawsuit. If you are a young woman with few resources, most attorneys would have advised just ignoring the Donald's alleged sexist behavior if he was known to retaliate with a huge libel lawsuit.

MORE EMAIL FUSSING

Did you know that Congressional email is NEVER made public, even if the Congressperson has an ethical charge against him/her?

This seems to be UNFAIR. After all, what is good for the goose is good for the gander.

ALL of the emails sent by and to the Department of State are protected by EXECUTIVE PRIVILEGE. Obama and Hillary could have kept them ALL secret by invoking executive privilege.

Instead, secure in the knowledge that Hillary had done nothing wrong, HILLARY AGREED TO MAKE ALL OF HER UNCLASSIFIED EMAILS AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC. Any emails that were withheld, were withheld by the State Department.

The politically unsophisticated General, who was recently convicted, sent classified information to a reporter. Some Republicans seem to be betting the entire election on hoping that Hillary would be that stupid. 

My guess is that Republicans in Congress told the FBI that if they did not reopen the case against Hillary, they could expect their budget to be slashed in half.

Again, I will remind you that, at the time Hillary used her own server, the State Department was giving out laptops that were so old they could not accept state of the art security programs. I believe that Hillary's service was way more secure than the server the State Department used for unsecured emails. Thousands of CLASSIFIED State Department emails from that era were compromised by Chelsea Manning.

There is no evidence that Hillary's emails were hacked. Speculation is not evidence.

Republicans are getting desperate in their attempt to elect a Republican president.

Now the Donald says he will not agree to a peaceful transfer of power. Mr. Khan, can you mail your copy of the constitution to the Donald?

WIKI LEAKING

I know for certain that someone* has altered those hacked Democratic Party emails.

One email used the term "backward Catholics". NO person who has been in politics for more than five minutes, would use the term "backward**" to describe ANY group. The term used would have been "conservative Catholics" or "ultra conservative Catholics". Once you know that any one email has been altered, you can not trust ANY email from Wilkileaks via Russia.

I think that Julian is angry at Hillary because she did NOT try to have him publicly indicted and extradited. Now he is in a basement avoiding sexual assault charges brought by two women in Sweden.

Republicans are trying hard to scare you about Obamacare. They are talking again about so called Death Panels. Obamacare requires that the doctor offers, and insurance pay for, a discussion about the care wanted by a very ill person as their life comes to an end. A person who had such a discussion was very pleased with being able to discuss alternatives methods of care at the possible end of her life. ***

People are trying to stop voting by mail by saying the Post Office is throwing away votes. If you are worried about your postman being racist, you can take your ballot to the main post office in town. Most ballots have a tracking number, so take a photo of your BALLOT's tracking number. That way, if there is a question about ballot theft, you have evidence that you voted by mail.

The neato thing about US citizens is that you can NOT shut them up. If there is any sort of voting fraud attempt, SOMEONE is going to talk.

Personally, I do not want to take the slightest risk that the Donald becomes our President. Only YOU can prevent this.

VOTE! VOTE! VOTE!

* Probably Russia. BTW, you can NOT enter hacked documents into a court of law, not even to get an indictment. Documents must have a "chain of custody", so that the court knows they were NOT ALTERED.

** The word "backward" is considered so pejorative that our cars do not go backward, they go in reverse.

*** Relatives often get angry about the choices made by the dying, This choice is for the patient, not for the grieving, who often use blaming others to assuage their grief. NO SANE DOCTOR would EVER risk pressuring the dying to make one choice over another choice.

CHINESE SPIES IN YOUR HOME

Twitter was temporarily destroyed by Chinese cameras and DVRs that you bought to play with. Video cameras streaming video of your pet were commandeered by a bot net*.

The current problem can be solved by putting new passwords on your toys. I hope you know how to do that, because I do not.

Motherboard.vice.com has some advice about buying Bullguards's loT scanner to see if your device is on the internet. YOU NEED TO CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD ON EVERY PRODUCT THAT HAS AN INTERNET CONNECTION.

Hangzhou XiongMai has admitted that their cameras and DVRs were used in the latest attack on the internet. They have changed their programming but you have to change your password.

This time the disruption was not very serious. But it only used about one third of the power of the bot net. Lots of hackers can make a bot net, as the programming to do this was posted on the internet.

I have been warning about these problems for a long time.

You need to make certain that all your devices with internet connection have a new password.

MY NIGHTMARE is that that may not be enough, that there will still be a way to make your toys into a group that can destroy the internet as we know it.

This could disrupt banking, the government, our phones. Everything you now do on the internet could be gone in a eyeblink.

Why can people buy toys that can kill one of the world's greatest assets? Maybe we need international regulations that say you can NOT sell one of these toys unless it is programmed to refuse to function until the password is changed.

* Bot nets are used by hackers to do denial of service attacks. Think of it like everybody in an entire city making a phone call at the same time, to the same phone number. Even if there are A LOT of phones answering the same number, eventually the phone becomes so overwhelmed that everyone gets a busy signal. It is very easy to get your toys to go onto the internet asking for one service, as this is what the toy is designed to do. Instead of you telling your toy what to do, the bot net is telling your toy what to do.

This means that people can take over your nanny cam, which makes your child vulnerable.

LEOS* FOR SAN JOSE

VOTE YES ON SAN JOSE MEASURE F**. This will ensure that disabled police officers have enough to live on.

F is an agreement between all the stake holders. Right now, San Jose is losing more officers than it is hiring because the current retirement plan is unacceptable to LEOS.

LEOS put their lives on the line for us. They deserve to have a fair retirement plan, which is Measure F.

BTW, did you know that the Libertarian Party wants to replace income tax with a 23% sales tax? They call it a consumption tax.

This could wipe out many brick and mortar stores in the United States as people order goods from Canada to avoid this tax.

The consumption tax is so unfair to the poor that the Libertarians plan to give the poor a PREFUND to pay the tax. The expense and bureaucracy needed for the PREFUND is mind boggling.

How are we going to get the PREFUND to homeless people? What happens if you suddenly make enough money that you do not get the PREFUND?

*LEO is slang for law enforcement officer. If you need a short word, it is less insulting than cop. Also it can mean lion, which is cool.

** You can remember this by the joke that the city Flunked its first attempt at pension reform. Now they are going to Fix the problem so we will actually have enough police officers to patrol our streets.

PAIN MAKES ME A REAL PAIN

Last week I went to Kaiser Permanente, who did nothing but help me. Several times I made rude remarks. I am sorry. Pain makes me a real pain.

But I did get my flu shot. Many of you miss the point of getting your flu shot. Each person who gets a shot and does not spread the flu, slows the spread of the infection. This lowers the flu deaths of the grumbly old and the huggable young.

I was also upset because the newspapers said that Pence won the debate. When did we decide that lying was an acceptable way to win debates?

I think you all thought that Pense won because he is handsome, botoxed, white and male.

In court, the right suit and the right haircut are sometimes more important than a carefully researched and reasoned argument.

I am no longer young and pretty. Will I lose court cases just because I am no longer thin and can no longer stand?

CALIFORNIA PROPOSITIONS

NO on Prop 51. SCHOOL BONDS.  It has some very BAD features hidden in the fine print. It does NOT help the schools that really need the help.

NO on Prop 52. TAX ON HOSPITALS. It is a very bad idea to put a hospital tax into the state constitution. It is also unnecessary as the current tax is not due to expire for two more years.

NO on Prop 53. The entire state will have to approve expensive local projects. VERY BAD IDEA as it will make it harder for local groups to get needed project approved.

YES on Prop 54. Three day internet notice before passing a bill which may become a state law. Eliminates nasty surprises.

YES on Prop 55. Tax on rich to help schools. YES. I hate taxes that go into the constitution, but at least this one only lasts for 12 years, and is already in effect.

NO on Prop 56. Tax on cigarettes. This is another nasty sneaky attempt to TAKE MONEY AWAY FROM OUR SCHOOLS.

YES on Prop 57. Inmate rehabilitation. This rewards those who try to learn from their mistakes. Let inmates become taxpayers.

YES on Prop 58. Learn English+. If Californians are to remain world leaders, we must be able to speak English+.

YES on Prop 59. Advise that we hate the Citizens United decision, for all the difference it will make, which is none.

NO on Prop 60. Condoms in adult films. It will kill a major California industry and is, frankly, none of our business.

NO on Prop 61. Prescription drug prices. The list of organizations that oppose this is enough for me.

YES on Prop 62. Life in prison instead of death penalty. EVEN ONE MISTAKE IS ONE TOO MANY.

YES on Prop 63. Prohibits large capacity ammo magazines. At least there is a chance to jump the shooter while he reloads.

YES on Prop 64. Legalize marijuana. YES! YES! YES! What has taken so long? YES yesterday!

NO on Prop 65. Grocery bags. It is stupid to put this diddly stuff in the state constitution. Learn how to make your legislators responsive to the people.

NO on Prop 66. Who cares if you kill the innocent? Just do it quickly. NO. NO. NO.

NO on Prop 67. Bag tax. Makes the disabled and poor PAY for needing a strong bag to carry stuff home in. NO. The people who make these laws think everybody has a car and a suburban home. Most of us take the bus or walk long ways to our homes.

SAUDI ARABIA LAWSUITS

Saudi Arabia should just chill. In the US, if Congress passes a particularly stupid law using emotion rather than logic, the US Supreme Court steps in.

I resent giving the Saudis free legal advice. But in the interest of national security, here it is...

The new law is almost certainly an EX POST FACTO law, which is by definition unconstitutional.

The new law changes the jurisdiction of the US Federal Courts, which may also be unconstitutional.

There is a problem with the court orders on discovery being obeyed, which may preclude a lawsuit from being brought in a particular court.

Legal decisions can sometimes be based on emotion, rather than logic, but this happens way less often.

No one can continue with an unconstitutional lawsuit.

So hire the BEST constitutional lawyers around, along with the best tort defense attorneys, and follow their advice.

Maybe you will learn something about why our system works so well. The separations of power is one of the more amazing parts of our constitution.

SUING SAUDI ARABIA FOR 9/11

Sounds like a fab idea. Too bad that it means that OTHER COUNTRIES MIGHT SUE US FOR OUR DRONE ATTACKS. Or worse.

Scenario --  Our ambassador allows a CIA agent to use the XXX embassy communications to inform our President that a terrorist who murdered 500 children in a market bomb attack will be alone at a house on a hill.

Our President sends in a drone to kill the terrorist, who was alone in the house on the hill.

The Prime Minister of XXX arrests our ambassador and all members of his staff, putting them into the local hell hole of a prison.

As an excuse, the Prime Minister of XXX says, "Your country does not allow other countries sovereign immunity, so we do not have to offer sovereign immunity to your country."

Sovereign immunity is complex. It is an international web of treaties that are both modern and ancient.

But basically, it comes down to: You take away OUR sovereign immunity, and we will take away YOUR sovereign immunity.

It means that you are risking the lives of EVERY person who represents the USA overseas.

There are better ways to teach Saudi Arabia that their country should not fund fundamentalist clerics.

TALKING TRASH

Talking trash* can cause a lethal reaction. This is why most politicians do not talk trash.

When a political leader talks trash, that trash talk will be repeated among his supporters. The repeated trash talk, when said by the drunk, in a bar, can be so demeaning that a mentally unstable listener uses the outrageous, disparaging remarks to excuse an act of violence. "I am protecting MY people," the lost soul tells himself.**

We are used to drug dealing gangs using trash talk as an excuse to shoot the nearest opponent.

We are not used to young, mentally ill immigrants using a politician's trash talk to excuse stabbings and bombings.

Luckily, it is more difficult to be an effective terrorist than it may seem when the planning is happening. Young men brought up in a loving family may not be able to actually stab anyone to death.

Young men who have to act entirely alone may not be able to make and place a lethal bomb. This time, out of eight bombs, no one was seriously injured.

It is not a good idea to count on luck.

It is no longer funny that we have a politician who represents a major political party who is talking trash against immigrants.

Is your Republican tribal loyalty more important than the security, both foreign and domestic, of the United States of America?

Vote for Hillary Clinton. She will listen carefully to the experts before making decisions that will keep us all safer. LISTEN TO OUR SECURITY EXPERTS who increasingly agree with me.

* Urban slang meaning disparaging, taunting, or boastful comments especially between opponents trying to intimidate each other.

** Usually a man, but sometimes a woman.

HILLARY'S HEALTH

Just a week ago, Hillary Clinton unveiled a new campaign plane, inviting reporters to fly along with her. She immediately came down with pneumonia. Was there a Pravda reporter on the plane?*

Hillary, you are not superperson. No one can campaign for a solid year without some rest. I know you have chosen a good, solid, rational, empathetic vice president. But I have followed your career since you were the first lady of Arkansas. I believe you will make a fabulous president.

So get some rest. Let Tim Kane, Elizabeth Warren, and Bernie Sanders take some of the appearances.

Now is the time for us all to stand together and say, "The Donald does not represent the best of our great country. We welcome new people. We work together for the greater good. We do not get rich by scamming the elderly."

As for Hillary. When you were carrying Chelsea, you were told you were eating for two. Now it is important for you to rest and get well, so you can represent 320 million people.

I honestly do not care if The Donald can run marathons. Our country was once represented by a man who could not walk. He has become one of the more respected presidents in history.

Bernie, you believe in the greatness of our country. You know that no president is a perfect representation of your political beliefs. But it is time for you to put aside the sting of losing and make certain that our next president represents at least some of your ideals.

Now is the time to stand up and be counted.

* I thought you would enjoy this conspiracy theory. Pravda is the old Russian communist newspaper.

WHO CARES ABOUT BRAINLESS BABIES?

US House Republicans are going to vote on impeaching the Head of the IRS, but not vote a clean bill for funding fighting the Zika virus.

If your grandchild is born with only half a brain, you can blame the US House Republicans.

No one is willing to trade fighting the Zika virus for more maternal deaths in Texas.

The IRS impeachment is stupid beyond belief. The poor guy who is to be impeached had no idea that emails were destroyed. These 'conservative' Republicans HATE the IRS and HATE paying taxes. They will do anything to get more campaign funding from the Koch brothers.

Wise scientific means for combating the Zika virus must continue, and the funding is running out.

Knee jerk* reactions to the Zika virus may starve us all. Killing bees means that trees do not have bees to perform tree sex. Without tree sex, no tree babies are born.**

I am so tired of this revenge against Planned Parenthood, an organization that has helped women since the moment they were founded. For many poor women, Planned Parenthood is the only health care that they can afford.

I think the Koch brothers believe that all women should be constantly pregnant, and carry their babies while wearing six inch heels.

* 'Knee jerk' means an uncontrolled reaction, like when the doctor taps your knee with his little hammer and your leg pops up.

** Pollination is tree sex. Fruit and nuts are tree babies. Many of our crops need bee sex.

BLUE SLAVES

Mandatory police overtime is supposed to be for REAL emergencies, like earthquakes and riots.

In San Jose, mandatory police overtime is currently required because of the incompetence of the current and past city administrations.

Sometimes winning can cause a lifetime of losing. Chuck Reed was really pleased that he got 70% of the voters to agree to take pension benefits away from young police officers.

This "win" has caused the number of police officers willing to work for San Jose to go down past what the city needs to staff the police department.

Now the city refuses to hire officers from other jurisdictions, but just wants to make the current officers work longer hours.

I knew a disabled Palo Alto emergency operator who contended that Palo Alto had a long term policy of forcing 911 operators to regularly work overtime.

I do not want the work of policing to be done by tired, stressed out officers who are not allowed a normal family life.

I understand that sometimes public safety officers MUST work mandatory overtime. But an emergency should be a real emergency.

If you define political stupidity as an emergency, then emergencies will never end.

MOUSE MOTIVATIONS

Scientists have accused MICE ON MARIJUANA of being lazy, because the mice would only go through a maze for ONE sugar. SOBER mice go for TWO sugars. 

This shows real prejudice. I believe the stoned mice knew that sugar was bad for their bodies.

I have always wanted fresh, organic food when I use medical marijuana. I will eat less, but better tasting dessert. 

So you have the mouse motivation wrong. The study proves that marijuana cuts down on the desire for sugar.

BTW, if you want to know what Republicans are up to, you need to look at their accusations against Democrats.

Republicans use charities for political purposes. So they accuse Democrats of using charities for political purposes.

It should be noted that the Clinton Foundation actually does good work in Africa. Many Republican charities are used for spreading the PROPAGANDA OF DISDAIN for the poor, the disabled, and the sick.

Some Republicans are in favor of racist policies, so they accuse Democrats of being racist.

Most Democrats have worked their entire lives to make thing better for everyone. 

Many Republicans do not care about the effect of their parsimonious policies. They are only interested in power, and getting more money from their rich donors.

Somehow the Republicans are going to figure out a crazy way to blame President Obama for the lack of federal funding for fighting the Zika virus. 

Somehow the Republicans are going to figure out a crazy way to blame President Obama for the increasing maternal death rate in Texas. 

IT IS TIME TO STOP BELIEVING IN PROPAGANDA, AND START LOOKING FOR THE ANSWERS TO THE COMPLEX PROBLEMS WE FACE.

LESSON LEARNED

Gabby Douglas is being trashed for failing to put her hand over her heart during the national anthem.

I actually had to look up the rules regarding the national anthem, the flag, and hand over heart.

Did you know that if someone sang all the LONG verses of the national anthem, you have to keep your hand over your heart the ENTIRE SONG? Even if there is no flag on display?

No one said a peep when Donald Trump failed to put his hand over his heart during a presidential campaign debate. Ah, the double standard!!!

I can tell you that her gymnastics team has not been making eye contract with Gabby Douglas since the first night of competition. She was a last minute addition to the team, which may account for this.

Gabby Douglas has earned our respect. She has THREE GOLD MEDALS. But she competes in a sport where you only get respect for what you can do TODAY.

Women gymnasts are really short women. As such, the only time they get respect is when they are flying and twisting in the air.

It is a sad commentary on our times that tall male athletes get respect for life and short women athletes get respect for a fleeting moment in time.

EQUESTRIAN OLYMPICS

I was impressed with the traditional outfits worn by the Marshall Island athletes. Too bad they were totally outdone by an oiled body from Tonga.

Yesterday, I was able to watch the horses and riders jump over fences and frogs. The horses seemed to enjoy the complex game of running and jumping different things.

The horses had no problem jumping through two holes in a hedge. But the beautiful frog in the pond confounded many of the jumpers. To the horses, the frog looked like a large rock. One horse decided that he would climb the frog rather than jump over the frog. I think it disqualified the rider, the horse, and the team.

The divers get a hot tub right by the diving board. The horses get a misty shower, and four attendants. USA channel did not say what the riders got.

I watch sports only every four years, enjoying watching the best in the world do their thing.

MONEY FOR OUR COURTS

Courts were the first sign of emerging civilization. A way to solve conflict without violence.

If courts are not funded, and well funded, injustice happens.

I have been in courtrooms so crowded that a judge can only spend a few minutes per case.

I have been in courtrooms where the landlord was asked to translate for the debtor he was suing for payment.

I have been frustrated with the cryptic forms the overworked clerks use because they do not have time to properly record what happened in court. These mysterious forms are often the only evidence of a sentence to jail or probation.

We all talk to about the injustice toward minorities. Much of this injustice happens because the courts are woefully underfunded. Lack of translators means that people who do not speak complex English are not able to even understand the judge. Lack of public defenders means that people charged with a crime are unable to properly defend themselves.

I live in one of the richest states, in one of the richest countries. It is appalling that our court system is so underfunded that the clerks are not paid a decent wage.

It is nice that Jerry Brown is saving money for the future. However, I believe that the state should be adequately funding our court system so that we truly have "JUSTICE FOR ALL".

MAKE OUR PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE A TRUTHFUL STATEMENT.

THE ZIKA VIRUS IS IN MIAMI

Puerto Rico, a territory of the United States of America, has at least 5,000 new Zika cases EVERY DAY. FIFTY of those are pregnant women, risking severe birth defects in their babies.

Republicans, in their infinite wisdom (sarcasm), have decided NOT to fund anything to stop or slow Zika unless they can defund Planned Parenthood.

The tragedy of even one baby born with half a brain is difficult to grasp. It is estimated that each Zika damaged baby will cost one million dollars for a lifetime of care.

Right now, we are taking monies from the fight against Ebola in order to fight Zika. Republicans and bankers have decided that Puerto Rico should be punished for borrowing too much money. So Ebola may come back worse than ever, and Puerto Rico can just rot, for all Republicans care.

Science says that Puerto Ricans often travel to the US, potentially infecting people with Zika.

Science says that West Africans have almost eradicated Ebola, but the potential for another outbreak exists.

Republicans don't do science. They are too busy trying to control women's bodies.

INVASION OF PRIVACY

Amazon has RUINED my book reading experience by letting me know that they are following my every page turn as I read.

Many of the books I read are juvenile books. Which means they are also invading children's privacy.

Amazon is collecting my reading data because they can. Now that all my books are in Kindle, how do I quit Kindle? Unfortunately, the editing information they get from this data is making books as predictable as movies.

Now the Donald is lusting after being able to hack emails. How long will it take him to hack the emails of his enemies if he has the power to order such hacks?

I am beginning to worry about the Donald ordering a nuclear attack in the middle of the night. As we are all dying from mutually assured destruction, he tweets, "I was only being sarcastic. I didn't mean to kill everybody."

I remember when the Weathermen, the IRA, and German radicals were blowing people up. Western civilization survived that, and Western civilization will survive the current crop of psychopaths using politics as an excuse to mass murder.

Luckily, the trees are in bloom. Dark pink, light pink, purple trees abound on my way to get coffee.

This is a really lovely world.

MY PARANOID FANTASY

I have absolutely NO PROOF that my paranoid fantasy is real.

I have been told that Putin enjoys causing chaos. The Western sanctions are REALLY HURTING Russia. NATO is there to hopefully prevent Putin from causing chaos in the Balkans.

Putin knows that Hillary supports both sanctions and NATO.

The Donald is saying that he admires Putin. The Donald may not support NATO.

In my fantasy, Putin has decided to do everything in his power to ensure the election of the Donald.

Russian hackers have broken into the Democratic Party email system. Right before the convention, some emails showing bias towards Hillary have been published by Wikileaks. I can understand that old time Democrats would have a problem supporting someone who was elected to the Senate as an Independent. But emailing such thoughts is stupid and a resignation was in order.

My real fantasy worry is that Putin has his online trolls searching for loners expressing thoughts of violence and death. Using psychological techniques, these trolls are encouraging these people to act out their violence. It is even possible that after locating the loners with violent thoughts, they provide secretly drugged food or drinks to send the loner completely over the edge.

The Donald has made it clear that he is running on a platform of fear.

It is easy to encourage such fear in those who live in the countryside. Even here in San Jose, I have friends who are afraid to go into San Francisco. We need to fight these feeling of fear.

We live in the greatest country on Earth. There are problems, but together we can solve those problems.

INSANE MURDERERS

The last several mass murders in the West were not group affairs. They were the work of criminally insane murderers who used the excuse of politics to justify their appalling actions.

You can not blame Muslims, Christians, Black Lives Matter or any other group for the actions of these psychopaths. The psychopaths blame bullies, police, society, movies, anyone but themselves.

You can not even blame the women who left them or refused to date them. Not being able to control and/or date women seems to be a pattern with many of these insane murderers.

NO ONE WANTS TO ENCOURAGE THESE PSYCHOPATHS.

The really sad part of all of this, is that this is progress. Those in the West who are sane, refuse to help those who want to murder. This also means that it is harder to identify the insane, as they no longer try to get help from the communities around them.

I do worry that it is possible to use drugs and suggestion to get a mixed up person to do something violent. The timing of the latest French tragedy and the coup attempt in Turkey is worrisome.

My only suggestion is to stop using "romantic" terms when describing these insane murderers. Do not call them "lone wolves", call them "socially isolated". Do not call them terrorists, call them insane murderers. Few people want to be remembered as "that socially isolated insane murderer".

STOP THE TROLLS

All of us have to attend GHOSTBUSTERS this weekend. Trolls are trying to tank the movie because they want half naked bimbos in science fiction movies.

Reports are that the new Ghostbusters is a lot of fun.

If we want the movie industry to change, we need to support movies with women and minority stars.

I would be at the front of the line if I did not have horrible sciatica. I loved the old Ghostbusters movies and have been awaiting the new one with pleasure.

Humor is very subjective. If you think your male significant other is going to pre-diss the movie, try and make sure he has taken some herbal relaxation medication. Nothing like being high to cut through prejudice and see the humor in new situations.

COP KILLINGS DUE TO VIDEO GAMES?

Hear me out. The automatic closing of the fist is part of our brain's 'flight or fight' response. The response is hard wired deep in our brains.

Video game shooters keep their fingers on the trigger. Police officers are trained to keep their finger on the trigger guard until they are ready to actually shoot someone. Training is held to make certain that all officers use this safety procedure so that they do not inadvertently kill someone when their hand contracts in the automatic response to stress.

This is serious stuff. On the audio of many of the latest killings, the shooter is saying, "Fuck, fuck, fuck." The tone of voice indicates that they are actually saying, "I did not mean to pull the trigger."

No amount of training can overcome multiple days and years spent shooting at the TV. May I suggest that video game makers make a gun where the shooter has to keep his finger on the trigger guard, then transfer to the trigger only when shooting becomes totally necessary?

Black Lives Matters needs to get off the streets. They are now endangering police officers, who are rightly frightened of being the target of a sniping murderer.

It is a perfect time for Black Lives Matters to change the system from the inside. Cities and counties are easy to influence.

Most people think that it is money that controls American politics. Usually money only gets you into the room to plead your case.

What REALLY gives you political power is the ability to GET PEOPLE to VOTE IN EVERY ELECTION. Political parties are willing to teach you how to do this.

THIS IS NOT A GAME OF COPS AND ROBBERS. Real people are dying unnecessarily. Together we can work out ways to insure the safety of both officers and civilians.

BRITISH COURTS v BREXIT

SOMEWHERE in the vast British common and parliamentary law, there is a statement that politicians can not tell an outright LIE in order to win elections. If there is not, then now is a perfect time to make new law.

The Brexiteers told a provable untruth about the money that they would give the National Health Service. They lowered the amount of money promised the NHS on the day AFTER the Brexit election.

Austrian courts just voided the results of an election because election laws were not correctly followed.

British courts can void the results of the Brexit election by ruling that, "If a leader tells provable untruths in order to win an election, the results of that election are null and void."

Frankly, I am getting tired of the world wide lies being told.

Historically, Britain taught democracy to the entire world.

The US left Britain because we wanted British democracy. All of us have modified our democracies. But Mother Britain was our teacher.

LET BRITISH COURTS TELL US THAT IF YOU LIE TO WIN AN ELECTION, THAT ELECTION IS NULL AND VOID.

BREXIT RE DO

The British Brexit vote was ADVISORY. This means that the House of Commons still has to pass a bill stating that Britain will leave the European Union.

We have democracies in order to have momentous and complex decisions made by people who have carefully studied the pros and cons, and who then vote in the manner that they believe will be best for their country.

I think it has become pretty clear that Brexit is not good for Britain.

The Pro-Brexit leaders are now taking back some of the promises they made to get people to vote for exit. Some towns were unclear about how the European Union was providing them with subsidies. And the MARKETS. The markets HATE the idea of Brexit.

I do not know what Britain will do now. Personally, I think the House of Commons needs to vote to stay in the European Union.

The Brexit vote is going to cause chaos in the markets for quite some time. The rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer. The middle class needs to hold on to their investments. Now is not a time for amateurs to be in the market.

MY INVISIBLE MOTORCYCLE

"You should always ride your motorcycle as if you were invisible to everyone driving a car," said my U. S. Marine motorcycle riding instructor. How did I get a Marine instructor, you ask?

I decided to sell my Super Beetle and buy a motorcycle so that I would have the money to open a private law practice in Tucson, Arizona. A doctor friend help me buy a used 350cc Honda. He was so appalled at my lack of motorcycle riding skills that he suggested I take a course on how to ride.

"The best course in the area is taught by the US Marines," he told me. So I called the US Marines and asked if I could take their course. I honestly do not think any marines actually learned anything the day I took the course. They all thought it too much fun to teach the lady lawyer how to ride. But I did learn how to ride. I still have the US Marine Motorcycle Course Graduate Certificate they gave me.

I ALWAYS rode as if I was invisible, even after I taught my 75 pound Lab mix dog how to ride behind me.

Tasha was so sad that she could no longer ride with me that I built a wooden platform that attached to the back of my bike to support her while we rode together. The first time she rode, I patted the seat of the bike, and she hopped right on. She balanced and leaned into the curves better than any human passenger.

I am not real certain that she and I were still invisible, but we did have fun. Now days, it would probably be considered doggy endangerment. Sigh.

All of you can make the world a safer place by training yourselves to LOOK for bikes, both human powered and motor powered. If you can not be aware of bikes, how can you be aware of children?

BREXIT - WHY IS IMPORTANT

From across the seas, I worry that the Brexit proponents want to win so badly that they are using fear and hate.

As a US citizen, I am used to watching the use of fear and hate in order to win elections. Often, using fear and hate leads to a crazy citizen turning into a violent citizen. Britain has lost an amazing woman working for the common good, shot by someone who believed in hatred.

In the Robin Hood story, Robin is a Saxon, a hero for standing up to the invading Normans. But earlier, the Saxons were the bad guys, burning and looting coastal England. The many cultures of the British Islands is one of the reasons for the success of the British Islands.

If Britain stays in the EU, they keep the pound and their passports, and free emergency health care wherever they travel in the EU.

The Moscow Times is cheering the prospect of a Brexit. Russians are hoping that real estate in London will tank*, so they can invest ill gotten monies while prices are low. More importantly, Russia believes that an EU without Britain is a weaker EU. Russia is committed to exploiting weakness in neighboring countries.

I think California has become a beacon to the world. Everyone dreams of living in California (usually in a beach hut). The truth is many of our beaches have really cold water, and life in California can be really hard. But we welcome everyone, trying our best to treat everyone equal. For many, for years, California was one of the few places where people could find almost unconditional acceptance. I believe this is why California is doing well financially.

I believe Britain is doing well financially for the same reason that California is doing well.

To stay or leave is Britain's choice. Please do not make this choice because of fear and/or hate.

* When an investment "tanks", it is an investment that has rapidly lost value.

DEATHS IN A CULTURAL WAR

The deaths in a gay nightclub in Orlando were horrible, tragic, appalling. Words are not enough to describe how I feel.

I believe very strongly that each and every one of us are of equal importance in making our country and our world a vibrant home for us all.

It takes a really crazy person to kill people who are dancing in a club. It is almost impossible to stop a crazy person who decides to kill groups of unarmed people. This particular crazy person had been a security guard at a courthouse. It was easy for him to buy guns.

I also believe very strongly in freedom of speech. This belief means that I will not stop the hate radio that spews nasty words about gays, about women, about minorities, about Muslims.

But people can hold advertisers responsible for the deaths that result from such speech. This is done by not purchasing their products.

People who come to modernized countries from poor rural countries can have a hard time adjusting to their new country. Rather than hate them for their cultural conflicts, we need to teach them how our country offered them a safe place to live, because we believe in treating everyone equally. Parents can help by explaining that, in this new country, people have to follow new rules of living.

But prejudice against LGBTs is HUGE. It was not so long ago that the US was putting people in prison for homosexual acts.

The best way to fight back is to reopen the nightclub and PARTY ON. To close the nightclub is to allow the crazy person to win.

Israelis brought babies to eat in the restaurant where people had died the day before. Life goes on, they said. We win by living our lives. The French reopened the nightclub where a massacre took place.

DO NOT LET FEAR CONTROL YOUR ACTIONS!

STANFORD RAPE

I know everybody is angry at the Judge in the Stanford rape case.

As a former defense attorney, I believe that judges should be more lenient in sentencing. I just want the leniency to apply to Black and Brown people as well.

Let me share with you the possible thinking of a judge.

Sentencing is done for punishment, to prevent further crimes, to show others what happens when they commit a similar crime, to keep dangerous criminals off the street, and to rehabilitate the criminal.

A young man with no criminal record is going to be extremely frightened regarding ANY jail time. Often, too much jail time just turns young men into lifetime criminals.

I thought that this particular young man had learned his lack of respect for women from his father. I am certain that the young man now understands that "20 minutes of action" can cause an entire lifetime of grief for both himself and for his victim.

I believe that this particular young man is unlikely to repeat his crime.

I think the total devastation of the young man's life is a real deterrent to other college males.

I am against the worst punishment he faces. A lifetime of registering as a sex offender will be a lifetime of not getting jobs, not getting education, and being unable to find a place to live. I believe that sex offenders should be able to get off the public list if they demonstrate years of living a responsible life, and if a psychologist determines that they are unlikely to reoffend.

I believe that the sentence was given in the hope that a promising young man will become rehabilitated, rather than become a lifetime criminal.

Studies show that a large percentage of campus sexual assault are perpetrated by the athletes. By isolating and idolizing athletes, we allow them to assume that they can treat women as women are treated in the HBO show about professional athletes. This has to stop. Any ideas on how to do that would be welcome.

CALIFORNIA - VOTE TOMORROW

I am not going to tell you how to vote. Just VOTE!

I will make an exception if you vote in San Jose, California. Please vote for Measure C. It is on the back page of the last ballot, so you have to look for it. Disabled people deserve to have medical marijuana clinics that are easy to visit.

NO ONE will precisely mirror your political views. So pick the person who is the best fit for your political views. We have all seen what happens when you vote for pretty and entertaining.

If you do not vote at all, you take the risk that you will be represented by a person who will pass laws that you will really hate to obey.

SO VOTE!

LET US NOT FORGET

Memorial Day is the day that we honor those people who fought, and fight, for our freedoms.

It takes tremendous courage to pick up a weapon and take it to a place where you may be lawfully ordered to risk your life. There can never be enough respect for those people who obeyed a lawful order which resulted in their death.

Our police officers also obey orders in an attempt to keep us all free from violence. Sometimes the violent kill police officers. There can never be enough respect for those people who risk their lives to arrest a violent person.

Sometimes people risk their lives demonstrating on the streets for an important cause. There is NEVER an excuse to use violence while demonstrating. Throwing rocks at police officers and/or their horses is unacceptable behavior. It makes the cause of the demonstrators weaker, and makes their opponents stronger. It makes it easier to say, "Just ignore those crazy violent people out there on the streets."

Our democracy has multiple rules regarding what is a lawful order. Sometimes the pressure to make immediate gains blinds officers, who then make unlawful decisions.

Democracy is never easy. In a democracy you make progress by convincing people that your ideas are good ideas that will work for us all.

FREDDIE GRAY

PLEASE DO NOT RIOT.

I TOLD you that it is VERY DIFFICULT to convict police officers. This is because INTENT matters. INDIFFERENCE is NOT the same as INTENT.

Stopping the killing of black/brown men is going to take time. The violence caused by the War on Some Drugs is causing normal citizens to be frightened of black/brown men.

In case you still do not understand, I ask you to remember the St. Valentine's Day massacre during the height of prohibition. People refused to obey the laws against drinking alcohol. Police and the FBI tried very hard to enforce the laws against drinking alcohol, and violence resulted.

Originally the violence was blamed on the criminal. Eventually the people understood that it was the law that was at fault, and prohibition ended. The violence also ended.

You all seem to think that the War on Some Drugs only affects those of us who dare to violate those laws.

Now we are seeing young people die of heroin because they can not get pain medication. We are seeing black/brown men sentenced to life in prison for something a large number of us have also done. Most of the street drugs have WAY less effect on users and society than ALCOHOL.

The police have to show at least SOME drug arrests. It is way easier to arrest a poor person than a rich person. Rich people sue for false arrest, and they hire very effective defense attorneys who make the police look incompetent. Now really, if you were a police officer, who would YOU arrest?

I will never forget the Black man who told me that he had been arrested in Palo Alto for having less than an ounce of marijuana, which should have been a misdemeanor. He was charged with a felony because the marijuana was already rolled into cigarettes. Do you think a Stanford student on the way to a party would have been charged for a felony? In fact, the police would have never even opened the student's glove compartment, like they did the Black man's glove compartment.

WE NEED TO STOP THE WAR ON DRUGS WHICH IS CAUSING A WAR ON BLACK/BROWN MEN!

VOTE FOR SCIENCE OVER FEAR

SCIENCE HAS SHOWN that TEEN USE GOES DOWN when MEDICAL MARIJUANA is available. SCIENCE has shown that marijuana has never been directly responsible for the death of a human.

Those of us Silicon Valley people who live in San Jose have a chance to vote for SCIENCE OVER FEAR.

Measure C is a rational method of providing medical marijuana to those in need of marijuana's medicinal qualities.

So far, the City of San Jose has been extremely arbitrary and capricious regarding medical marijuana clinics. My visiting a clinic seems to be the 'kiss of death'. The clinic will tell me that they are OK for a year, then are closed the next month.

The clinic I mourn the most, is the clinic that renovated an Art Deco house. Just after they put in an expensive wheelchair ramp, San Jose shut them down.

I can not prove that bribes are being taken, but the decisions made by San Jose officials do not seem to be consistent. Measure C will stop the weird decisions being made by San Jose officials.

An example of a weird decision was when the last downtown clinic was shut. The city official told me that the clinic was a gross violation of the location law. But the San Jose City Attorney stated in the voter pamphlet, that the downtown core was a valid location for a clinic.

Please let me and all other disabled people be able to go to clinics that are close and safe. Going into an industrial area with cash is dangerous for me. It is even dangerous for disabled veterans who want to try to conquer their PSTD.

PLEASE VOTE FOR SCIENCE OVER FEAR.

TESLA SUBCONTRACTORS

The scandal of the day is how Tesla saved money when building a paint shop by using a contractor who brought in H-1B workers.

The foreign workers were not paid the prevailing union wage, nor were they paid for their amazing overtime hours. It does not look like they bothered to buy worker's compensation insurance.

This is more than an indictment of the H-1B worker program.

Now Tesla has a real problem. May I suggest that the attorneys bringing suit against Tesla request copies of ALL federal, state, and local grant, tax subsidy, etc. contracts and other documents. Be CERTAIN that all parts of the contracts are present.

I would be really surprised if most, if not all, of the grants, subsidies, etc. did not include clauses that require Tesla AND ITS CONTRACTORS AND SUBCONTRACTORS TO PAY PREVAILING UNION WAGES.

As we move into an economy where construction and service jobs are more important than manufacturing, we have to insure that construction and service workers are treated fairly and paid correctly.

Did you know that The Donald also uses H-1B and other programs to bring in foreign workers? It is said that he got his start in New York by not paying Polish workers to tear down a building where he then built Trump Towers.

HOW CHINA CHOOSES LEADERS

Yesterday, in the China Daily, there was a very interesting cartoon booklet that explains how China chooses its leaders.

The booklet states that leaders are now judged on more than just GDP. Social change and the environment are now part of the criteria for doing a good job in government. If you can find the booklet, there is a stack of books listing the major criteria for judging whether a party leader is doing a good job.

The booklet mentions several times that polls regarding how people are thinking is a major part of the process. I loved the snarky comment about how they did not want their leaders wasting time and money on getting elected.

The booklet also states that currently the leaders have to reflect the ethnic makeup of the population. This especially includes Tibet, the booklet states.

I found it amazing that ALL of the party cartoon leaders in the booklet were MEN. It is sad that China has given up on equality for women.

Maybe this misogyny is what is responsible for the behavior that Queen Elizabeth found to be "rude". The Chinese delegation was almost certainly all men. The British people doing planning and security were women.

Those cultures who treat women as if they were children and/or possessions are going to have increasing difficulties operating in the 21st century.

DOG WHISTLE POLITICS

Dog whistle politics is when someone makes a statement, but there is a hidden meaning in the statement. Usually this hidden meaning is racist, misogynistic and/or xenophobic.

I believe that Donald Trump is using dog whistle phrases. When he says, 'Make America Great Again', he means 'white men should run everything' and 'beautiful women can work for me because then I have a pool of women to hit on'.

I do not believe in using nasty nicknames, even though Donald uses nasty nicknames.

However, I may make an exception.

Have you seen the Lady Trump bit on the Bill Maher Show? He likens Donald's actions to a song in My Fair Lady. The bit has to be seen, it can not be described.

If polite people do not want to use 'Lady Trump', may I suggest using The Donald. That would bring to mind Donald Duck rather than winning in poker.

Do you really want The Donald to have his finger on the nuclear bomb button?

SCAN YOUR PHOTOS

At any time, Mother Nature can turn all you own into ash or rubble.

When I have talked to people who have lost everything, the thing they most mourn is the loss of the photos of friends, families, and good times.

Scan your photos, upload them or send them to others, such as your children.

Then if you are caught by Mother Nature, you will have photos to remind you of the past, giving you courage to walk into the future.

DIVIDE AND CONQUER - RUSSIA vs EUROPE

Armies are EXPENSIVE. Propaganda is CHEAP.

I am convinced that Russia is deliberately causing chaos in Syria.

The streams of Syrian refugees cause open borders to be closed. Closed borders make the shipment of goods around Europe MUCH more expensive. More expensive goods make life more difficult for everybody. The good thing about free trade is that it make oranges from Greece inexpensively available in a German winter.

But closing the internal borders in order to control the thousands of refugees makes all goods stop to be inspected for stowaways, thereby making the cost of a winter orange much higher. Such an easy way to caused economic chaos in the EU.

By causing millions of refugees to flee to Europe, Russia makes the Europeans worried that their jobs will be taken over by a desperate refuge. It is easy to trigger this fear into a "Let's get out of the the EU."

I would not be at all surprised to learn that Russian spies encouraged the disaffected into violence. Fear is so much easier to trigger if the news shows horrible scenes of destruction.

Fear makes selling xenophobic propaganda much easier. If you do not trust your neighbor, it is easier to convince you that making treaties to support each other is not a good idea.

The EU is humanity's path to stop wars. But Russia is really upset that it was not allowed to steal Ukraine.

So Russia is trying to end up with a smaller EU. Divide and conquer, one of the oldest war games on Earth.

BLAMING THE WRONG PERSON

Black Lives Matter blames Bill for the crime bill that put a generation of Black men into prison.*

It is actually the War on Drugs** that has imprisoned Black people at a rate WAY higher than White people for the same drug offense. Blacks are 13% of drug users, but are 74% of people sent to prison for drugs.

The War on Drugs was designed as a racist law. Asslinger stated that marijuana is horrible because it makes a Black man think that he can look a White woman in the eye.

Opiates were favored by Chinese immigrants. Cocaine was favored by the bright young things who believed that Blacks were equal to Whites.

By making these substances illegal, Asslinger knew that he could then arrest anyone who got too "uppity".

Nixon used propaganda to keep the Drug War running. The hippies not only used these substances, but they were advocating repealing all laws which controlled the behavior of consenting adults. Like Asslinger, Nixon wanted to be able to arrest anyone who got in his way.

WE NEED TO STOP THE WAR ON DRUGS. Like prohibition of alcohol, the War on Drugs is causing chaos wherever it is waged. Terrorists use drug profits to fuel terror. The intercity poor sell drugs as a way out of poverty.

President Obama has the authority to remove all recreational drugs from the Federal Schedules. He can then require scientific proof that a drug is worse than alcohol before a drug is allowed back on the Federal Schedules. It is time to use science rather than propaganda to make our drug decisions.

The neat thing about stopping the War on Drugs is that drug dealers are very territorial. They will take their illegal profits and invest those profits in legal businesses in their own neighborhoods.

Not only will the chaos stop, but poor neighborhoods will get the investment needed to become middle class neighborhoods.


* Most of the Black people imprisoned were the results of states passing "three strikes" laws. In California prosecutors swore, "If you pass three strikes I would NEVER use it for petty crimes." It passed and soon people were put in prison for life for stealing a bicycle or a six pack of beer.

** Drugs here means marijuana, cocaine, crack, heroin, LSD, magic mushrooms, etc. These drugs are MUCH less harmful than alcohol. I believe the increase in heroin deaths is because the DEA has made pain pills unavailable. I react badly to modern arthritis medication, and to Tylenol.  But I am consistently denied effective pain medication. I really understand being in so much physical pain that heroin seems to be the only choice available.

WASTING THE WORLD

The world wide war on drugs is laying waste to the world.

In rich countries, way too many people are in prison for drug use, sale and importation.

In poor countries, the profits on illegal drugs is sucking money (capital) away from investments that benefit the country. It is trivially easy to hide drug profits because there will alway be sleazy lawyers and poor islands that provide absolute privacy.

I honestly believe that Afghanistan would become fairly peaceful if they could continue their centuries old practice of providing pain medication.

Worse, drug interdiction is not working. The profit motive is a very strong motive. The search for profit has resulted in more and more drugs being available for less and less monies.

As we know from alcohol, the ONLY WAY to stop an addict is for the ADDICT TO ASK FOR HELP and for the addict to work hard on becoming unaddicted.

Sometimes social experiments do not work. Too often, instead of admitting that the social experiment is a failure, people just try harder to make the experiment work.

IT IS WAY PAST TIME TO ADMIT THAT TRYING TO STOP ADULTS FROM PUTTING ENJOYABLE SUBSTANCES IN THEIR BODIES CAUSES UNACCEPTABLE SOCIAL CHAOS.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

A royal duchess should be setting a good example for all of the little girls who want to be just like her. Playing soccer (football) in three inch heels is setting a BAD example. In fact, wearing any heels in BAD for girls. Women need to be on LEVEL FOOTING with men or they risk losing the race to the top.

Senator Sanders has asked his Independent supporters to talk to their friends who are Democrats. When Sanders supporters talk to Democrats, they should be careful about their approach. Many Sanders supporters are so intensely for Sanders that they refuse to listen to any rational reason as to why someone would support Secretary Clinton. This is not usually a way to win someone over to your side.

An AMBER alert went out this morning in Northern California. I am really glad that this service exists. However, I worry about how someone driving a car might react. The noise from your phone is a distinct buzz, making you pull out and look anxiously at your phone, which shows a text message. This is not a good thing to happen in traffic. There does not seem to be a reason why new phones can not say out loud what is going on. Apple could do this to show their social consciousness.

I feel really sorry for a young man who's parents taught him to expect women to react as if all women were in a Doris Day movie. Modern Hollywood romantic comedies do not help at all. Hollywood would be much better off if they tried to teach men how to woo an intelligent modern woman.

DUTCH ANGER AT WRONG PEOPLE

The Dutch just held an advisory vote regarding helping Ukraine.

They voted NO.

Putin is really pleased with this vote.

It is EASY to turn anger into illogic.

The Dutch are extremely angry about their many citizens who died from a missile which shot down a passenger liner over Ukraine.

This missile was NOT the fault of the Ukrainian government. I am almost certain that the missile was fired by the Ukrainian rebels. I am almost certain that the person who fired the missile had training from Russia.

Ground to aircraft missiles capable of downing a civilian aircraft require sophisticated training to fire. It may actually have been one of the fabled little green men from Russia who fired the missile.

In any event, Russia is very good at propaganda.

It is too bad that the Dutch are taking their anger out on the innocent people of Ukraine who just want to live a life without fear of a Russian invasion.

PASSION FOR POLITICS

I discovered my passion for politics when I helped my parents try to get Barry Goldwater elected.*

I was a Libertarian until I saw my first ghetto. It was wrenching to become a Democrat. Especially since I was then unable to discuss some political issues with my parents.

I was a government major** in college.

I learned that passion was much less important than a strongly held pragmatic belief that progress on social issues is often slower than us Democrats would like, but we could slowly make social progress happen.

I followed Hillary Clinton's career since Bill started running for President. I watched her be trolled*** again and again.

For newbies, it seems like the office of President is the only important office. What a Party does is elect a President AND senators, representatives, governors, prosecutors, etc. Very little progress on social issues can happen without ALL the members of a Party cooperating.

Unfortunately, Bernie is a brand new Democrat, who may not be willing to campaign for other Democrats.

Bernie is also behind the curve on big banks. Legislation to curb the activities of big banks has already been passed. It is one of the laws that Republicans seem to really hate.

But the financial crises was caused by an insurance company insuring all the toxic loans. The banks believed that no insurance company would be so stupid as to insure loans that would not be repaid.

The reason we need specific and complex regulations is that these huge organizations have really good attorneys. Greed seems to be a very powerful vice.

The problem with newbies is that it is really easy to convince them that a simple solution will solve everything. Often that simple solution helps the greedy and hurts the poor.

* I did such a good job that I was gifted with a a pin of a gold elephant head, wearing black glasses. I held on to this pin until I showed it to my children. Somehow after that the pin disappeared.

** The Dean of the Government Department at the University of South Dakota was not willing to accept the new-fangled term, 'political science.'

*** Back then, we did not have 'trolls', but we had men who were determined to cut down any woman who had any power. We still have these people in my generation. It is sad that so many millennials are trolls.

DISSING STAN LEE

At the closing forum for SVCC, the head honcho* insured that the sound was at ear hurting level, then he talked very loudly directly into the mike.

Stan Lee explained to him twice, that every time HH spoke, all Mr. Lee could hear was "WAAH, WAAH, WAAH." He explained that he was deaf and that he could hear Woz** just fine, as Woz was holding his mike about 12 inches away and we could all hear Woz.

HH continued to shout into his mike, whereupon Mr. Lee left with his daughter to be replaced by an actor pretending to be Mr. Lee.

Overly loud sound has a known effect on modern hearing aids. I am certain that someone explained this to HH. But HH just ignored the problem.

It is very sad that this happened at SVCC, especially after Woz had told us all how the two Steves wanted to help the blind and the deaf with their new computer. Woz was proud that they HAD been able to help the blind and deaf.

In case you think that this was an isolated incident, SVCC provided sign interpreters for the deaf, but they were too cheap to hire a camera person so that the signing could be put up as picture in picture on the big screen. This meant that only the deaf in the front right rows could see the signing.

I really enjoyed SVCC. I have lots of photos of me with people in costumes.

I hope next year that SVCC is more responsive to the needs of the disabled.

* Head honcho (HH) -- Outdated, non-insulting slang meaning the head of any organization.

** Silicon Valley's nickname for Steve Wozniak, one of the two Steves that founded Apple Computer.

DESTRUCTIVE DESPERATION

My heart breaks for the victims of the Brussels bombs.

This kind of destructive violence comes out of the desperation caused by social isolation.

The social isolation sometimes comes from the culture of the bombers. Too often the social isolation comes from the daily sneers given to any outsider from those who are secure of their place in society.

This all becomes worse if even the educated, smart people can not get a job in their professional field because no one wants to work with a _______. (Often that word is "woman, Black, Muslim, or foreigner".)

I have spent my life being sneered at. Even before I had to use a wheelchair, I got sneers for being fat, for being a loudmouth, for wearing tie dye, for never wearing panty hose, .....

I am lucky because I found a profession that I love so much that I dread retiring. I am also lucky that court transcripts do not describe the designer suits, just the words said.

Once a heart is filled with anger, it is very hard to fill that heart with love.

So we all need to smile at everyone. We all need to talk to everyone. And we all need to try hard to help anyone who get daily sneers.

THE BEST AND WORST OF SVCC

THANKS WOZ! I really enjoyed the first Silicon Valley Comic Convention.

Sadly, I was unable to participate in ANY of the science forums that you arranged.

Registration for the convention, and ALL science forums were on the lower level of the San Jose Convention Center. This lower level had ONLY ONE ELEVATOR, WHICH WAS BROKEN ALL WEEKEND!

Worse, there was another way in for a disabled speaker. This route was NOT made available to ANY OTHER DISABLED PERSON.

The San Jose Convention Center is owned by the City of San Jose, which has a duty to ensure that the center does not violate unimportant little laws like the Americans With Disabilities Act and the Unruh Civil Rights Act. You know, the ones where the owner of a building is REQUIRED to ENSURE that ALL DISABLED PEOPLE HAVE ACCESS TO ALL PUBLIC PARTS OF A BUILDING.

I know Republicans think that all disabled people are faking it, but many of the disappointed disabled people were VETERANS.

Under the UNRUH Civil Rights Act, you are able to file suit for $4000 for every event you could not attend. Please add in $4000 for every time you had to go through the criminally stupid security.

You do not have to sue cities. Instead you file a CLAIM FORM, which is available ON LINE. If the city has not paid up within six months, you can then sue.

The more claim forms the city receives, the quicker they will pay attention to FIXING THIS PROBLEM.

Was that $130 million renovation done by a cousin of the mayor who attended Bellarmine High?

SYRIAN PEACE TALKS

The thoughts and prayers of the entire world are with the people of Syria as they try to solve their differences with talk rather than fighting.

This is not easy. I am an attorney, who sometimes takes a child custody case. There have been some cases where I wondered whether the child would be better off if one of the parents were no longer with us.

But I KNOW that finding a peaceful resolution to conflict has been my life's work.

I remind all parties that NO GROUP will get exactly what they want.

The CIVIL RIGHTS of ALL PEOPLE MUST BE PROTECTED. This includes women, Christians, Kurds, Alawites, Sunnis, Shiites, and ALL other groups.

I think that Assad must realize that his people have voted against him with their feet.

Those countries whose leaders resigned under pressure may be having problems with rebels who can not compromise. But at least they are not stuck for the next forty years with the children or grandchildren of the dictator they deposed.

Like Assad, these children were raised in such an entitled manner that they believe that their word is the law.

Almost all religions strongly disapprove of someone who believes their word is more important than religious principles.

STARTING AND STOPPING WARS

We need to stop the WAR ON some DRUGS and start a WAR ON some GERMS.

Now we have to worry about brain and nerve damage from a virus that targets babies.

The war on some drugs is EXACTLY the same as prohibition of alcohol, and is TOTALLY STUPID for all the exact same reasons. The TAX FREE drug money is causing corruption in EVERY aspect of our lives.

A WAR ON some GERMS will make life safer for the entire human race.

If you look at the problem of smog without political correctness, you say very simply..."Smog can be greatly controlled by NOT burning coal. We should only allow coal to be burned if there is NO other reasonable alternative. We should convert coal burning to burning natural gas as natural gas makes almost no smog."

If you look at the problem of Zika, without political correctness, you say very simply..."We need to provide clean water and flush toilets to everyone on the planet. Polluting water is STUPID as almost 90% of our oxygen comes from the ocean. We need to stop dumping raw sewage into our rivers and oceans."

ALL DRUGS which are less harmful than alcohol* should be LEGAL all the way back to the farmer or manufacturer. Otherwise street drugs will continue to kill our children because they have no way of knowing how much they took or whether the drug also contained poison.

Worse, the bad guys will continue to make tax free money.

THE BABIES WE SAVE WILL BE OUR OWN!

* heroin, opium, LSD, cocaine, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and most other street drugs.

MANY REDNECKS* ARE NOT STUPID

Rednecks have figured out that, if a pregnant girlfriend can not get the abortion she WANTS, then the father will HAVE to pay child support.

Rednecks have figured out that forcing poor women to have unwanted babies will raise taxes when we all decide that it is a bad idea to let babies starve.

By voting for a person who respects Planned Parenthood, Republicans are demonstrating that they are tired of politicians who want to control women's bodies.

It is sad that the 'wink, wink' racism of the conservative movement is now being exposed in words that none of our leaders should be saying.

I will warn Republicans who support racist candidates. David Duke won one election. Now being even associated with him is political suicide.

* Redneck is slang for a white man from the South who works outdoors, giving him a "red neck". I have a lot of friends who are rednecks. It is a bad idea to assume that someone who does physical work is stupid.

SIX IMPOSSIBLE THINGS

Unfortunately, if you convince people of six impossible things before breakfast, the credulous people who BELIEVE can be easily led by a con man.

There is going to be a CIVIL TRIAL this summer to decide if Trump is PERSONALLY responsible for lying to, and ripping off, senior citizens.

The rip off worked by giving free classes where people were conned into buying expensive classes. Trump himself promised, in writing, that he would hand pick the real estate instructors. All buyers were promised a personal photo with Trump.

The photo was a photo with a cardboard Trump, and the instructors were mostly failed real estate agents who had never even met Trump.

I honestly do not understand why Republicans are so surprised by the rise of Trump.

You all believe things on faith, not science or logic.

The biggest lie has been that marijuana is a dangerous drug. The TRUTH is that marijuana has NEVER directly caused the death of ANY person. Marijuana is an extremely promising cure for cancer, A CURE that was IGNORED FOR FORTY YEARS because the Republicans wanted to use FEAR OF DRUGS to control the voters.

When you use fear to control people, you should not be surprised when a charming con man uses that fear to take over your party.

I have been warning Republicans for years,

Now I have no advice for saving your Party.

* The legal issues stem from how Trump University was run. The term Trump University is an illegal naming of the organization, because only educational institutions can use the term. Trump University was a just a few increasingly expensive educational weekends.

PROTECTION OUR BRAINS

The most important property in the world is no longer just real estate. Intellectual property is the future for humans.

Our electricity, our airplanes, our military, our spies, all depend on safe and secure intellectual property.

When we keep this information on our phones and laptops, it NEEDS to be encrypted, otherwise it puts us all at risk.

When Blackberry gave out a back door to the FBI, that backdoor was demanded by, and given to, Pakistan and India. Soon no Blackberry phone was secure.

I have decided to think of encrypted phones as an extension of the owner's brain. It might not be possible to question it upon death.

Worse, I truly believe that the FBI's request is like asking for a MASTER KEY to all of our doors, so they can search any of our houses if one person goes crazy and shoots people.

Once the master key is out there, it WILL get stolen and used by bad guys.

And, of course, it is the outside of enough for a US judge to order a US corporation to write computer code for FREE. It is the exact definition of slavery.

RULING WITH WISDOM

A ruler of a country is a kind of parent to all of the people living in that country.

Some rulers believe that they only have to care for the people who agree with them.

Some rulers believe that they should destroy their own country in order to continue to rule.

The imorality of destroying a country in order to continue to rule can be illustrated by the old tale of King Solomon and the baby.

     Even King Solomon's enemies agreed that he was a wise man. Solomon was sitting in judgement over two women, who had recently given birth. The women slept in the same room, and one of the babies died in the night. Both women claimed she was the mother of the living baby.

     Solomon then offered to cut the baby in half, giving one half to each. One of the mothers agreed to this barbarous plan. The other mother said, "No, give the baby to the other woman, but please do not kill the baby."

     Solomon ruled that the mother willing to give up the baby was the true mother of the child.

A parent who is willing to kill family members is going to lose the rest of his family.

A ruler who is willing to kill thousands of citizens, who ask for equal treatment, is too immoral to be a ruler.

VOTING FOR YOUR MOTHER

I have this wild theory that young people do not want to vote for Hillary, because no young person wants to be told what to do by their 'always right' mother.

Personally, I think that it is time for a Mother of Our County. Women tend to be better caretakers.

Maybe, if I had not messed up my knee, I would have gone into politics. Hillary is very much a progressive pragmatist, just like me. She even started out in Legal Services, like I did.

I believe that we could change things for the poor, the disabled, and the disenfranchised by bringing back the old Legal Services and funding it well.

Legal Services could even do class actions in order to help fund itself. That way, we could require a vote by the community governing board before instituting a class action. This should help insure that class actions are not being used just to "beat up" small businesses.

Back when Hillary and I were young lawyers, working for Legal Services, we were fixing real problems.

As Legal Services became more effective in protecting people from predators, the predators used propaganda to make you all think Legal Services were being unfair.

I also think that we could forgive student loans for people who worked in positions where they helped the poor.

Perhaps doctors and nurses who agree to work in rural areas for a while could also have their loans forgiven.