US Politics - February, 2024

US Politics - February, 2024: The Super Bowl & It's ties to the Liberal Elite

The Swift–Kelce Bowl, orchestrated by the liberal elites, highlights an interesting dynamic. Good-paying manufacturing jobs often can't afford the steep ticket prices, starting at $5000 or more, or suites that go for over a million dollars. One-minute ads during the event can cost around $15 million, often performed by Hollywood actors attempting humor. This leaves the average blue-collar Joe questioning the democratic process.

Never mind, Taylor Swift brings enough support, and one second of her smile is sufficient for many to compensate for five hours of TV. Three of which are spent on advertisements, and a politically correct halftime show. All for a football game featuring about 100 players on each side, 30 coaches, but perhaps only 5 key players. The remaining hard-working individuals seem to be relegated to the status of "nobodies." The message is clear: it's an elite democracy, where gladiators are welcome.

The NFL strives to be a model of diversity and inclusion. The NFL defines diversity as the respect and appreciation of race, skin color, gender, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical abilities, age, parental status, work and behavioral styles. Accordingly, it is the goal of the NFL to honor and celebrate the broad ranges of human difference among us, while also embracing the commonalities we share, and to provide each individual with the opportunity to achieve his or her full potential as organizational goals are pursued. To achieve organizational success each individual must take ownership of the diversity initiative.

You might be surprised to learn that the Super Bowl half-time show is not a paying gig. But while the NFL doesn’t pay performers, the league does cover the considerable production costs of the entire show, including artists' travel expenses. Despite having a short running time—usually between 12 and 15 minutes—the half-time show is a hugely expensive undertaking. For reference: Jennifer Lopez and Shakira's performance in 2020 cost the NFL somewhere in the region of $13 million.

It isn't even realistic to compare the multi-million dollar salaries of NFL players with that of the typical citizen/fan.

While acknowledging the risk and short career span, earning $15 an hour over a lifetime of work would amount to $1,350,000. This calculation doesn't even consider the added perks like free college, something many players may not have had the luxury of during high school due to financial constraints. It's rarely on the agenda, though some players deserve credit for engaging in social  & charitable activities. That said, working only 6 months of the year as a professional athlete isn't attainable for the majority of the US population.

Don’t get me wrong; sports is a great thing in society. Let's avoid poisoning it with politics. No one is crying that 80% of the players are of one origin. Perhaps consider being on the right side of history? But that would involve politics.

Concerning college sports budgets, it's essential to note that there is no contribution from professional sports; it operates as a draft system for free money, and the profits often get funneled into social activities. While NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) can be profitable for certain college athletes, it is still not attainable for all college athletes. Sorry if you are a cross-country runner, as social justice may not be on your side. Outside of the top players in major sports, most NIL athletes would require a skillset closer to that of a social media influencer to earn that kind of money.

A person of great fame, like Taylor Swift, aims to be on the right side of history. In both financial and ethical senses, Flying from Tokyo to Las Vegas and back for a game doesn't seem to bother her. Not even John Kerry or Al Gore seem concerned.

On the outside it appears to be for love and the sake of seeing her boyfriend, with no price or sacrifice too steep. Perhaps she has TV sponsors, and ratings were certainly higher with her presence. Some people may speculate that a political party may be highly interested in her opinion.

While she claims to be a Christian and is outspoken about sexual assaults (which is commendable), issues such as immigration with child trafficking, drugs, and crime do not seem to affect her. She aligns with the Democratic party, and it is assumed she supports free abortion and their agenda, including her boyfriend's political support of vaccines. Morally, anything can be justified by applying one of the three philosophies.

Questions of justification arise in moral philosophy in at least three ways. The first concerns the way in which particular moral claims, such as claims about right and wrong, can be shown to be correct. Virtually every moral theory offers its own account of moral justification in this sense, and these accounts naturally differ from each other. A second question is about the justification of morality as a whole – about how to answer the question, ‘Why be moral?’ Philosophers have disagreed about this, and about whether an answer is even possible. Finally, some philosophers have claimed that justification of our actions to others is a central aim of moral thinking. They maintain that this aim provides answers to the other two questions of justification by explaining the reasons we have to be moral and the particular form that justification takes within moral argument.

Update at the Border

The Border Czar, Kamala Harris, has been notably silent on the border situation. Aside from her travels abroad to address the root causes of migration and discourage leaders from sending people, there has been little communication or action from her regarding the border crisis.

Vice President Kamala Harris is supposedly the White House point on the border surge, but the issue has vanished from her schedule, the Los Angeles Times reports; she hasn’t hosted an immigration event in nine months.

She appears to be busy discussing women's rights, and as a MeToo member, she seems to be okay with issues like human trafficking, drugs, and the misuse of minors. Perhaps, in reality, her main concern is "MeToo." Some pundits think she is the real deal, especially if you're a Trump basher. Welcome to California.

Mayorkas not impeached yet, as expected. Representatives from CA, CO, and WI gave him a thumbs up, possibly because they need farmers' aid funded by questionable sources. All Democrats seem to adhere to the Omerta rule, so no surprise there. Is he not simply following orders from the Czar and the President? The problem will exist no matter what.

The border issue has now become President Biden's responsibility, with him blaming Trump for the failed vote on the border deal. Biden reversed all of Trump's policies on the border without any debate, using executive actions. It raises questions as to why any logically thinking representative in Washington would support a bill that includes both domestic and foreign aid. There's also a lack of accountability for the funds allocated to Ukraine, and Israel seems to be a loose cannon.

The Border Bill primarily aimed to provide more legal support for faster entries, limit the number of crossings, increase the Border Control staff, and construct a wall in specific sections. Despite the total bill amounting to 118 billion dollars, questions arise about whether all the laws to secure the border are already in place, and considering the power of executive orders, whether anyone can stop them even if someone calls for it.

Regarding Nikki Haley, being the only remaining challenger in the Republican race, her endgame is uncertain. Speculations include hoping for Trump's legal challenges to impede his candidacy or relying on the Never Trumpers and Bush-Cheney coalition to continue the wars. However, at this time, it's challenging to substantiate any legal claims against Trump, and his Twitter chaos might not be worse than the ongoing wars. If her strategy involves counting on an independent/Democrat crossover, she could face challenges, leaving her with approximately 30% of the votes in a general election. Trumpers may view her as a traitor, and Democrats might revert to their party, making her path difficult. Hoping to stay in the race for a vice-presidential position might burn bridges for 2028 unless she runs as an independent.

Haley’s campaign strategy hinges on recruiting independent voters and Democrats to cast their ballots for her in protest of Trump in open primary states, where voters are allowed to cross party lines and cast their ballots in either party’s primary.

But there is a deeper reason that Trump's opponents should consider as they consider how to defeat him. As publicists like Tablet's Alana Newhouse have noted, the word "broken" has become an integral part of Americans' lives: broken families, broken public schools, broken downtowns, broken universities, broken health care, broken media, broken churches, broken borders, broken state—at best, shells of what they once were. And everywhere it is clear that America's institutions and their brain-dead and complacent leaders cannot continue forever on autopilot

Mr. Robert K. Hur, Special Counsel in the Biden document investigation, has concluded that Mr. Biden is an elderly man with a bad memory, and any jury would see him as unfit to stand trial due to his lack of recollection of important information. Consequently, the case is considered closed.

The question arises whether the DOJ/Biden administration played a good cop/bad cop strategy, as Mr. Biden addressed the case in his 5-minute presidential announcement, and the complacent press and the inner circle, including fully capable Senators, confirmed that Mr. Biden has full mental capacity. In this scenario, either the President willfully deceived the Special Counsel, or the Special Counsel interpreted his answers as incoherent. Regardless, it hasn't provided clarity on the inner workings of this administration. As always, it pits multiple parties against each other, and Mr. Biden emerges victorious, emphasizing his interpretation that he did nothing wrong while suggesting Mr. Trump should go to jail.

For further details, you can read the full paper here, or just look at the pictures of the boxes, questioning whether there were moles in Biden's garage. Notably, Mr. Biden's personal lawyer is Mr. Bob Bauer, whose opinion might raise questions. Additionally, his wife, Anita Dunn, who has been associated with Biden for 40 years, may have insights into his secrets. The full extent of these matters may only become clear in a future Trump presidency.

Bauer was President Obama's personal attorney and the general counsel of the Barack Obama 2008 presidential campaign. He has also previously served as the general counsel to the Democratic National Committee,[3] and had advised President Obama since 2005.[4]

As general counsel for the 2008 campaign, Bauer asked the Justice Department to investigate the officers and donors of American Issues Project after it ran a negative ad about Obama.[5]

Anita Dunn (née Babbitt; born January 8, 1958) is an American political strategist serving as a senior advisor to U.S. President Joe Biden, having originally held the post from January 20, 2021, to August 12, 2021,[1] and returning May 5, 2022.[2]

Previously, she served as acting White House Communications Director in the Obama White House. Additionally, she served as managing director at SKDK, a strategic communications firm in Washington, D.C.,[3] and an advisor to the Biden presidential transition.[4] Dunn has worked on six Democratic presidential campaigns over a period of 40 years.[5]

Is there a cognitive test for President Biden, or is it simply a matter of observing his public appearances to gauge his sharpness and cognitive state?

The tech industry in California is expressing concerns about the image San Francisco portrays, fearing talent loss. It raises the question of whether the city is genuinely thriving or if these concerns are primarily about safeguarding the industry's lifeblood. Meanwhile, Nancy Pelosi seems preoccupied with trading stocks alongside her husband, leaving more important matters to be handled by others.

The Bidenomics agenda appears to favor certain industries, espcially insurance and the tech giants. Despite touting a strong labor market, there are doubts about its actual robustness, and an increase in Food Stamp usage is noticeable. Some speculate that the Green hype, particularly in electric vehicles and associated support, may not deliver as promised, potentially leading to economic troubles in 2024. There's a growing concern about the emergence of a two-class system – the haves and the have-nots, exemplified by events like the Super Bowl. More on this topic next time.