Hello:
There are some weeks where writing this blog is a breeze. It's fun, easy, and my hope is that the people that are reading it are having as much fun as I am writing it.
Then there are weeks that it's hard. That is usually due to one of two things. 1) There is nothing to write about, or 2) There are things to write about that I'd rather not write about.
This week falls into the latter category.
We started off the weekend with the most horrible of news.. a young police officer, shot and killed in the line of duty, while answering a domestic dispute.
I've said this all along, all during the protests after George Floyd was murdered, the most basic right we all have is to be able to come home to our families, safely. Cops, firefighters, they don't always know that is going to be the case. I can't imagine living with that kind of uncertainty.
There are few things more soul crushing to the spirit of NY than when a cop gets killed in the line of duty. That the officer who died was so young, just makes it even more of a heartbreak.
We went into the city early Sunday afternoon to see my sister in law, and we saw police officers, firefighters, EMT’s lined up along the FDR Drive. A boat in the East River was spouting water into the air and an NYPD helicopter was flying low above the river. All were saluting as the body of Officer Jason Rivera was being transferred from the morgue. If that sight doesn’t break your heart, then there’s something wrong with you.
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POLITICS: The Biden Administration: One Year In
And I was reluctant to write about any of this because I'm sure this is going to ruffle more than a few feathers around here. But I think one year in is a good time to make an assessment of how things have been going.
So, many of my friends on the right have asked rhetorically, "Do you regret voting for Biden yet?" or "Would you rather have mean tweets or high gas prices?" things like that. Well, here's my short answer to the first question.....
I'd vote for him again, pretty much against anyone the Republicans put up. And if they're going to put up the 45th President, you can carve my vote in stone.
But you know what? In the interest of fairness, I'll start with where I disagree with President Biden.
The pullout from Afghanistan was a disaster. I can buy the argument that there was going to be no clean way out of there to an extent. But after 20 years, to watch as the Taliban took over in less time than it takes Dominoes to deliver a pizza was a disgrace. And while I don't lay it all at the feet of Biden, he had doubled down on his decision. Maybe there wasn't a clear way out, there had to be a better way than what transpired.
But other than that?
I'm not going to sit here and tell you there aren't challenges ahead. But the idea that Biden has put us behind the proverbial 8-ball is utter nonsense.
Do I like paying $3.50 a gallon for gas? Not really. Do I understand that the reason gas was so cheap back in 2020 was because the world was pretty much locked down and no one was filling up their gas tanks? Yes, even a dunce in economics like me can figure that one out.
Inflation is a problem, It was going to be a problem no matter who was in charge. It wouldn't be as big of an issue if the Republicans in Congress would work across the aisle to come up with a plan to fix it, but it seems like their only goal is to block and obstruct. Again, we are still dealing with a pandemic and as much as things have opened back up, there is still a long way to go.
And speaking of the pandemic, I don't know whether to laugh or cry when folks try to blame Biden for people dying of the coronavirus. The Biden administration has made getting vaccinated as easy as going to 7-11 for a Big Gulp. Yet people don't want to get it because well you know, Let's Go Brandon and all that.
Here's what I've seen from my corner of the world:
1) The biggest drop in unemployment in a single year, as well as 6 million jobs added.
2) 70% of Americans vaccinated against the coronavirus
3) A $1.2 billion infrastructure bill that will fund new roads and bridges and upgrade internet access.
4) Most Federal Judges appointed since Ronald Regan
5) Reuniting with our traditional allies to fight climate change.
He's had every Republican and two Democrats opposing his every move. He came into office without the benefit of a peaceful transition of power, having witnessed with the rest of us the terrorist attack on the Capitol a mere two weeks to the day before he was to be inaugurated. A terrorist attack orchestrated in part by his predecessor's nonsensical belief that the election was stolen from him.
I've tried to avoid bringing Captain Orange into this, but really it's unavoidable. The circumstances that Biden faced coming into the job were unprecedented. All things considered, I don't know too many other people who could have made the transition as smoothly as Biden did.
Joe Biden isn't above criticism, no President is, but what I don't get is the hatred towards him. And before you answer "What about the hatred towards Trump?" well, I'm sorry but Trump peddles in hate and division. Anger, so much anger, and for what?
All I've been hearing from the right this week is what a disaster Biden's presser was last week. Hey, I didn't like all the answers Biden gave, but you know what? At least he answered the questions! Trump used to ignore people who asked him tough questions, call them fake news, and usually change the subject. How many times was Trump asked a question about foreign policy and he answered by talking about his poll numbers? If it happened once, that was too many, and it happened much more than once.
I'm not here to change anyone's mind, that's the equivalent of pissing into the wind. But I'm sticking with my guy as well. I still believe that history will show that Joe Biden was the right choice.
OK Let's Lighten it Up a Bit.....
PURCHASES- SNL Stars Buy a Boat
And not just any old boat...an old Staten Island Ferry.
Pete Davidson and Colin Jost both from Staten Island, got together with comedy club owner Paul Italia and ponied up $280,000 for the decommissioned ferry named after President Kennedy.
They are planning to turn it into entertainment event space -aka a nightclub. The boat can't move on it's own, two of it's engines have failed, but it has been declared structurally sound.
I think it's a brilliant idea, and neither Davidson dating sex video star Kim Kardashian, nor Jost, whose married to Scarlett Johansen, will have trouble attracting A-List Celebrities to the boat when it opens.Davidson’s little black book alone would be the envy of most velvet ropes. However much it costs to convert the boat into a functioning nightcl-, um I mean entertainment event space, those two will make it back 10-fold, I would think.
I'm too old, too poor and too irrelevant to think I would ever get to hang in a place like that, but maybe our kids will in a few years. When they get this place up and running, maybe we can get one of you youngins to go there and give us all a report.
NFL PLAYOFFS
Last week I got to witness Bill Belichick get sent packing by the Buffalo Bills, easing my fear of a Belichick- Tom Brady Super Bowl. This week Brady himself was sent home by the Rams. The Rams and 49ers will play for a berth in the Super Bowl. I’m not a Niners fan by any stretch, but it was nice to see Aaron Rogers season come to an end. I didn’t watch much of that game on the Frozen Tundra the other night, but Rogers just looked like he was miserable. He didn’t play awful, he just looked like he didn’t want to be there. As much as I don’t like him, I found myself feeling sorry for him (a little bit).
As we go to press tonight the Bills and Chiefs are playing. With all due respect to the Bengals, I’m thinking the winner of this one will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.
And with my two least favorite people in the NFL already on the golf course, I may actually tune in this year.
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Please pray for those who keep us safe.
Thank you
Stay Safe
and Have a Great Week
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