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Trump's advice to Biden on choosing a VP

Today in The New Yorker;

In response to:

Satire from The Borowitz Report

Trump Accuses Biden of Dragging out V.P. Search Instead of Picking First Clown Who Says Yes

By Andy Borowitz

August 10, 2020

WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Donald J. Trump ridiculed Joe Biden on Monday for dragging out his search for a running mate instead of “picking the first clown who says yes.”

“Sleepy Joe is wasting time with all this vetting,” Trump told reporters. “Just pick someone who’s totally desperate.”

“Find an elected official who doesn’t have a chance in hell of getting re-elected in his home state,” he said. “He’ll be overjoyed that you saved him from the junk heap.”

Additionally, Trump said, one should choose a Vice-Presidential candidate “who’s so hopeless, he couldn’t get a real job if he tried.”

“The more pathetic he is, the better,” the President said.

Trump noted that choosing a candidate who is “terrified he’ll never work again” has major benefits if one ultimately makes it to the White House.

“He’ll spend the next four years sucking up to you like you wouldn’t believe,” Trump said. “It’s a beautiful thing.”

Andy Borowitz is a Times best-selling author and a comedian
who has written for The New Yorker since 1998.
He writes The Borowitz Report, a satirical column on the news.

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Aug 2020
in Comedy
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Social Security & Trump

First of all, just so everyone understands, Social Security is paid for by the workers and the employers from a payroll tax. Normally, both contribute 6.2% each of a person's paycheck to Social Security on the first $137,700 earned per year. This supplies 89% of the finances for Social Security. The remainder comes from interest paid on the sum already in Social Security's ownership. So, most (89%) comes equally from the workers and the employers. So, while you, the employee are paying 6.2%, the company is matching it. So, in the long run, you are receiving more, but not getting it until you retire. Since you get tax breaks when you are older, less of this money ultimately gets taxed. Even after you die, your spouse continues to get Social Security checks.

From the Social Security website;

https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/factsheets/HowAreSocialSecurity.htm

In response to:

How is Social Security financed?

Social Security is financed through a dedicated payroll tax. Employers and employees each pay 6.2 percent of wages up to the taxable maximum of $137,700 (in 2020), while the self-employed pay 12.4 percent.

In 2019, $944.5 billion (89 percent) of total Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance income came from payroll taxes. The remainder was provided by interest earnings $80.8 billion (7.6 percent) and revenue from taxation of OASDI benefits $36.5 billion (3.4 percent).

The payroll tax rates are set by law, and for OASI and DI, apply to earnings up to a certain amount. This amount, called the earnings base, rises as average wages increase.

What Trump wants to do, is to eliminate the payroll tax.
He promised to do so, if he is re-elected.
While eliminating taxes sounds like a good thing to those who don't understand the above, this would destroy Social Security, not only for those who would reap the rewards later, but for those who have already paid into this fund.

For the rich, this is no big deal. They don't need Social Security. They have lots of money in 401k and other IRAs, as well as plenty of money in the bank.

For the employers, this is terrific as it saves them 6.2 % of payroll.

For all of the rest of the people, most of the people, this is terrible, as it will eliminate a main source of income upon retirement, and for most, the source of income used for health benefits.
It will destroy Social Security. Most people will no longer be able to afford to retire
and will lose heath benefits, when they need it most.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/08/08/trump-just-admitted-live-television-he-will-terminate-social-security-and-medicare?cd-origin=rss

Thanks Duckie. Also, make sure somehow, that they don't lay you off, before you
can retire.

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Aug 2020
in News
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"Going to get down to it.." Over 3,100 covid-19 dead in O hi O

Ohio Republicans revolt against being deceived by Donald Trump.

Today in USA today;

In response to:

Ohio Republicans against Trump: He no longer deserves the consent of the governed

Phil Heimlich, Opinion contributor

USA TODAY August 9, 2020, 8:40 AM

In 2016, many of us who wanted change in the White House took a chance on Donald Trump. We thought he’d lead as a conservative Republican. Instead, he has imperiled our republic.

We are alarmed by the anti-democratic tactics and flagrant abuse of power committed daily by Donald Trump. His actions are an affront to our Constitution and the Republican Party. Our 18th president, Ohio’s Ulysses S. Grant, called his failures "errors in judgment, not intent."

In 2016, many Ohio voters put their faith in Donald Trump, us included. That was an error of judgment, not intent. For these reasons, we’re joining with other Republicans in this state to vote against President Trump this November.

Corruption, incompetence and death

He has created a culture of fear within the Republican Party as well as across the country, demonizing anyone with differing opinions. He belittles, berates, and ruins the careers of all who oppose him — including his own appointed government agency heads, respected military leaders and war heroes.

He has undermined the rule of law, obstructed justice, and issued pardons and commutations to personal cronies who helped cover up his misdeeds.

He has demonstrated gross incompetence during the COVID-19 pandemic, causing needless suffering and death.

He has run up a $2.7 trillion budget deficit, $1 trillion of which occurred before the pandemic unfolded.

He has, as the late Sen. John McCain put it, "abased himself ... before a tyrant," referring to Trump’s refusal to stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin and protect our elections from foreign interference.

He has turned his back on our NATO allies we have embraced for 75 years.

He has shamed us by diminishing our standing as a stalwart republic and defender of democracy worldwide.

In December 2019, conservative commentator Bill Kristol and attorney George Conway formed the Lincoln Project to encourage Republican voters to support Joe Biden for president. Republican Voters Against Trump was formed by longtime Republican strategist Sarah Longwell; Tim Miller, former spokesman for the Republican National Committee; and Kristol to build Republican support against the reelection of Donald Trump.

'Operation Grant' is our Lincoln Project

Ohio Republicans are now launching Operation Grant to mobilize GOP voters in the Buckeye State, which is crucial to GOP White House hopefuls, against our current president.

Our leadership consists of:

Phil Heimlich, the author, a former assistant prosecutor and Republican City Council member and Hamilton County commissioner;

Chris Gagin, former Belmont County GOP chairman, who resigned in disgust after Trump’s Helsinki debacle;

Roger Synenberg, former chairman of the Republican Party and Board of Elections in Cleveland, and inductee into the Cuyahoga County Republican Hall of Fame;

Chris Gibbs, former Republican chairman and Board of Elections president in Shelby County;

Michael Anne Johnson, former Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of Ohio.

We are free men and women. We claim our rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We believe Mr. Trump no longer deserves the consent of the governed.

Former New Hampshire GOP chair: Why Trump's Republican Senate enablers must be ousted this fall

Trump has routinely evaded the call to rise to the moment and lead this great nation. We will not make the same mistake this November that we made in 2016. You don’t have to, either...

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Aug 2020
in Opinionated
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Solve it, if you dare !

So, you are playing black in this game and it is your move.
Note that your queen is under attack by a rook, and that rook is defended.
Do you move your queen, or is there a better chess move ?
What is your best chess move and what 2 black moves follow ?

(Click on the board to see the whole board).

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Aug 2020
in News
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Hot off the press - Americans Oppose paying a man who refuses to work

Today in The New Yorker;

In response to:

Satire from The Borowitz Report

Americans Oppose More Payments to Man Who Is Not Working

By Andy Borowitz

August 8, 2020

WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Americans are vehemently opposed to issuing more government payments to a Kentucky man who has not been working during the coronavirus crisis.

According to reports, the man has been receiving a weekly check amounting to over three thousand dollars for doing nothing, all at taxpayers’ expense.

Harland Dorrinson, the executive director of a watchdog group called Americans Against Waste and Abuse, called the payments to this non-working individual “nothing short of scandalous.”

“If you do the math, he is receiving checks that add up to $174,000 a year,” Dorrinson said. “Under those circumstances, what is his incentive to work?”

Dorrinson said that the payments the man has been receiving should be cut off “immediately” and sent to someone who is providing essential services during the pandemic, like a health-care worker or first responder.

As for the Kentucky man, Dorrinson said, “It’s time for him to stop living off the government and show some personal responsibility.”

Andy Borowitz is a Times best-selling author and a comedian
who has written for The New Yorker since 1998.
He writes The Borowitz Report, a satirical column on the news.

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Aug 2020
in Comedy
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This one is for you Mic.....and everyone else. 'Melania' lol

After a bit of piano by Jon Babtiste, some words from our 'First Lady' (imitator) relating the Tulsa rally to their love life, her relationship with Ivanka, and the recent book about her,
'Her Art of the Deal'. Enjoy

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Aug 2020
in Comedy
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My New Deer Friend

A couple of weeks ago, I took a walk in nature near Princeton
and saw a redtail hawk soaring over the lake.
So, I walked across a bridge to get to the other side of the lake,
where the bird had perched high in a spruce tree.
But, by the time I crossed the bridge, the hawk was airborne again.
I did get a photo of the bird soaring from a great distance and eventually
found him perched in another tree. However, I was never able to get close enough
to get great photos.

Nonetheless, along the way to that second tree, I discovered a "doe, a deer, a female deer" resting on the ground below some shrubbery. It was a hot day and she was
peacefully cozy in the shade. Although I don't believe I ever met her before, she was very patient with me, allowing me to get within 20 feet of her without her exhibiting any fear. I figured the high heat & humidity that day probably contributed to her lethargy.

Thus, I took a couple of shots with the camera and thanked her with a whisper and walked uphill
to where the hawk was perched. The bird did not allow me to get close and flew.
Thus, I proceeded to explore and heard some other unfamiliar bird call.
I never found that bird. However, I ended somewhat behind where the doe was.
As I walked through an opening, I saw the doe standing up looking at me.
She was initially much more aware on my presence, than I was of her.
But, she stood there facing me and not running away.
So, I whispered; "sorry. sorry. My bad." and I walked backwards through the opening
and circled below to my right to look out on the lake.

Almost immediately, the doe walked towards me and walked into the edge of a little
wooded area that had a lot of ivy and other growth. I just stood there taking pictures
and she kept walking closer to me. At one point she was less than 10 feet from me.
Eventually, I whispered a thank you again and walked away.

Here's some of the pictures from that encounter that day.
Perhaps you'll enjoy them.

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Aug 2020
in Animals
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BREAKING News ! NY AG moves to dissolve NRA after finding extensive fraud.

From NPR;

In response to:

New York Attorney General Moves To Dissolve The NRA After Fraud Investigation

August 6, 202011:35 AM ET

Tim Mak

The attorney general of New York took action Thursday to dissolve the National Rifle Association following an 18-month investigation that found evidence the powerful gun rights group is "fraught with fraud and abuse."

Attorney General Letitia James claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday that she found financial misconduct in the millions of dollars and that it contributed to a loss of more than $64 million over a three-year period.

The suit alleges that top NRA executives misused charitable funds for personal gain, awarded contracts to friends and family members, and provided contracts to former employees to ensure loyalty.

Seeking to dissolve the NRA is the most aggressive sanction James could have sought against the not-for-profit organization, which James has jurisdiction over because it is registered in New York. James has a wide range of authorities relating to nonprofits in the state, including the authority to force organizations to cease operations or dissolve. The NRA is all but certain to contest it.

The NRA said in a statement that the legal action was political, calling it a "baseless premeditated attack on our organization and the Second Amendment freedoms it fights to defend... we not only will not shrink from this fight – we will confront it and prevail."

"The NRA's influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets," James said in a statement. "The NRA is fraught with fraud and abuse, which is why, today, we seek to dissolve the NRA, because no organization is above the law."

James' complaint names the National Rifle Association as a whole but also names four current and former NRA executives: Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre, general counsel John Frazer, former Chief Financial Officer Woody Phillips and former chief of staff Joshua Powell.

It lists dozens of examples of alleged financial malfeasance, including the use of NRA funds for vacations, private jets and expensive meals. In a statement, James' office said that the charitable organization's executives "instituted a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement and negligent oversight" that contributed to "the waste and loss of millions in assets."

The lawsuit seeks to dissolve the NRA in its entirety and asks the court to order LaPierre and other current and former executives to pay back unlawful profits. It also seeks to remove LaPierre and Frazer from the organization's leadership and prevent the four named individuals from ever serving again on the board of a charity in New York.

Allegations against CEO Wayne LaPierre

LaPierre, who also serves as CEO, has held the top position at the organization for nearly 30 years. In the attorney general's lawsuit he is accused of using charitable funds for personal gain, including a post-employment contract valued at more than $17 million that was not approved by the NRA's board of directors.

The lawsuit also claims that LaPierre received more than $1.2 million in expense reimbursements over four years, including gifts for friends, travel expenses and memberships at golf clubs and hotels.

And it alleges that he spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on private plane trips, including for extended family when he was not present; traveled to Africa with his wife on a safari gifted by an NRA vendor; and spent more than $3.6 million on luxury black car services and travel consultants in the past two years....

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Aug 2020
in News
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Under Trump the national debt has increased from $19.9 Trillion to $26.5 Trillion

Apparently, Trump is running the government like one of his businesses.
Thus, driving it towards bankruptcy.

Today from Newsweek;

In response to:

Under Trump's Watch, America's National Debt Has Increased by $6.6 Trillion

By Jocelyn Grzeszczak

7/29/20 at 12:27 PM EDT

Amid partisan arguments over how much federal aid should be approved to help ease the financial crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. national debt has increased by $6.6 trillion under President Donald Trump.

When Trump took office in January 2017, the debt was at $19.9 trillion. As of July 27, according to the most recently available data, that number has grown to $26.5 trillion, Treasury Direct, a division of the Treasury Department, said.

The swelling debt is at odds with promises Trump made before he was elected president. Trump told Washington Post reporters during an April 2016 interview that he would eliminate the nation's debt, which was over $19 trillion, "over a period of eight years."

Trump added that he would cut taxes, "renegotiate trade deals and renegotiate military deals" in his first 100 days in office.

But estimates say the Trump administration will spend $936 billion on its defense budget for the 2020 fiscal year—nearly $100 billion more than the record-breaking defense budget in 2012. And Trump did cut taxes in December 2017 in hopes that the government would recoup its revenue losses in the long term by boosting economic growth, but evidence shows this is unlikely.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has predicted the national deficit will hit a record-breaking $3.7 trillion for just this federal fiscal year, but the approval of a second economic relief package could raise that amount even higher.

In its projection, the CBO cited the worldwide economic recession caused by the pandemic, which has led to a decrease in the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) and Treasury security interest rates, along with an increase in unemployment numbers.

The economic fallout from the pandemic has already cost the federal government an estimated $1.76 trillion, after Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act in late March. That legislative package has provided financial assistance to American families, the unemployed and eligible businesses.

Many CARES Act measures have already expired or are set to expire this week, adding to the pressure on federal lawmakers to pass new relief legislation.

The Democratic-controlled House approved a second package in late May, titled the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act. The $3 trillion bill contains unemployment and state aid but has faced opposition from Senate Republicans.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced on Monday the Republicans' proposed relief package, the Health, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection and Schools (HEALS) Act, but the $1 trillion bill has already received significant criticism from both Republicans and Democrats.

While lawmakers across party lines generally agree that another federal package is necessary during the pandemic, there is much disagreement over how much money should be spent.

Before McConnell could officially announce the legislation, Senator Lindsey Graham suggested that half of Republican lawmakers would vote against it. Senator Ted Cruz said Monday that there was "significant resistance" within his party to adding another trillion dollars in federal spending.

"I think it's likely that you'll see a number of Republicans in opposition to this bill and expressing serious concerns," Cruz told CNN.

Democratic lawmakers, on the other hand, have dismissed the HEALS Act as a "pathetic" nonstarter, criticizing Republicans for arguing over whether to extend the extra $600 provided to unemployed Americans each week in federal aid...

(continued below)

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Jul 2020
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Hilarious !

Fresh off the press. Today in The New Yorker

In response to:

Satire from The Borowitz Report

Trump Considering Replacing Pence with Confederate Statue

By Andy Borowitz

August 6, 2020

WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Alarmed by his plunging poll numbers, Donald J. Trump is actively considering replacing Mike Pence on the G.O.P. ticket with a Confederate statue, White House sources have revealed.

According to the sources, Trump is currently considering a short list of Confederate monuments to swap for Pence, including statues of Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, and Jefferson Davis.

Reportedly, Trump believes that replacing Pence with a Confederate statue is just what his campaign needs to energize his base.

“Plus, he’ll finally have someone in his inner circle who won’t write a book,” one source said.

According to the same source, choosing among the Confederate statues is shaping up to be the toughest decision of Trump’s Presidency. “He thinks they’re all very fine people,” the source said.

But another White House insider was less sanguine about the strengths a Confederate statue would bring to Trump’s reëlection effort.

“Replacing Pence with an inanimate object seems like a wash to me,” the insider said.

Andy Borowitz is a Times best-selling author and a comedian
who has written for The New Yorker since 1998.
He writes The Borowitz Report, a satirical column on the news.

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Aug 2020
in News
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Interesting article about why evangelicals are predisposed to believe liars

In response to:

Neuroscientist explains why Christian evangelicals are wired to believe Donald Trump’s gaslighting lies

President Donald Trump lies so often that it is no longer shocking when it happens, no matter how blatant or absurd the falsehood may be. Not only does Trump regularly exaggerate the truth, he frequently denies facts that can be observed directly from video or audio tapes. This has led some professionals to diagnose his lying as compulsive or pathological, and many psychologists have pointed out that he is constantly gaslighting his base—a term that refers to a strategic attempt to get others to question their direct experience of reality.

With so much evidence to contradict his claims, like having the largest inauguration crowd size despite pictures clearly showing otherwise, one must wonder how there are still people out there who believe anything the man says. But the fact of the matter is there are many who swallow it hook, line, and sinker. Most of his fervent supporters are convinced that Trump is the harbinger of truth when it comes to important issues like climate change—which he states is really just a “hoax perpetrated by the Chinese government”.

While this might sound laughable, it is a serious problem, as it has contributed to fake news and dangerous propaganda running rampant. Given its negative impact on society, it is important to understand why certain groups of people are more vulnerable to believing unsupported lies than others. For this, we must look to science for answers, and fortunately, the fields of psychology and neuroscience offer valuable insight.

One reason Trump supporters believe his lies comes from a basic fact about the brain: it takes more mental effort to reject an idea as false than to accept it as true. In other words, it’s easier to believe than to not.

This fact is based on a landmark study published in the journal PLOS ONE in 2009, which asked the simple question, how is the brain activated differently during a state of belief compared to a state of disbelief? To test this, participants were asked whether or not they believed in a series of statements while their brain activity was being imaged by an fMRI scanner. Some sentences were simple and fact-based (California is larger than Rhode Island), while others were more abstract and subjective (God probably does not exist). The results showed the activation of distinct but often overlapping brain areas in the belief and disbelief conditions. While these imaging results are complicated to interpret, the electrical patterns also showed something that was fairly straightforward. Overall, there was greater brain activation that persisted for longer during states of disbelief. Greater brain activation requires more cognitive resources, of which there is a limited supply. What these findings show is that the mental process of believing is simply less work for the brain, and therefore often favored. The default state of the human brain is to accept what we are told, because doubt takes effort. Belief, on the other hand, comes easily.

This troubling finding makes sense from an evolutionary standpoint. If children questioned every single fact they were being taught, learning would occur at a rate so slow that it would be a hindrance. But this fact could be just as easily applied to both the political left and right. So how does it explain why conservatives, specifically evangelicals, are so easily duped by Donald Trump?

...

(Continued in my first comment below)

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Aug 2020
in Religion & Spirituality
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Somebody went to Jared.....far too often, and I don't mean only for wedding rings

Courtesy of The Lincoln Project;

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Aug 2020
in Politics
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This is a list of JimNastics's Blogs. Click here for JimNastics's Blog List

JimNastics Blog (1,965)

Trump's advice to Biden on choosing a VP

Social Security & Trump

"Going to get down to it.." Over 3,100 covid-19 dead in O hi O

Solve it, if you dare !

Hot off the press - Americans Oppose paying a man who refuses to work

This one is for you Mic.....and everyone else. 'Melania' lol

My New Deer Friend

BREAKING News ! NY AG moves to dissolve NRA after finding extensive fraud.

Under Trump the national debt has increased from $19.9 Trillion to $26.5 Trillion

Hilarious !

Interesting article about why evangelicals are predisposed to believe liars

Somebody went to Jared.....far too often, and I don't mean only for wedding rings

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