[shmih-GEH-gee]

The title of this essay is a word I’ve used in past commentaries. Schmegegge is a Yiddish word for baloney, hot air, nonsense, and by extension, bullshit.

Other cultures fascinate me. I’ve lived, traveled, conversed, listened, and absorbed a lot of erudition in my LXXII years on this rock. I embrace this increased awareness because I never know when this knowledge will be helpful.

America is a melting pot of people and languages. We’re an amalgamation of everyone that merges with – not storms – our community. Much of our language originated from other countries, as do some of our customs – like Christmas, St. Patrick’s Day, and Cinco de Mayo.

Sadly, we’ve lost our sense of community and regressed into tribal monikers and identifiers that challenge and expunge that unity. As if that’s not bad enough, we partitioned along partisan political paradigms. Continue reading →

…when you don’t hear from a friend for awhile.

Earlier today, I realized that I had not heard from a good friend and major contributor to the Kettle Moraine Publications family of websites – Justin O. Smith.

About a month ago his family experienced a death of his granddaughter’s fiance, and I have maintained  a great concern for how the family has been holding up.

Early today, I sent Justin a brief text which stated;

“Hey – are you OK?” – to which he responded; Continue reading →

George Mason, “the father of the Bill of Rights.”

Your 21st century American lifestyle may have led you to overlook “oversight.”

Perhaps you vaguely recall its mention during an American government class sometime in your educational past.

Thankfully, our founders did not overlook it, as they stated clearly in Article I, Section I, of our Constitution that “All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States.”

Virginia’s George Mason made a compelling case for oversight at the Constitutional Convention, where he stated that federal lawmakers “are not only legislators but they possess inquisitorial powers. They must meet frequently to inspect the conduct of the public offices.”

Sadly, the conduct of some federal legislators leads casual observers to mistake congressional oversight hearings as a venue for partisan playground palaver. Continue reading →

Menny Floot Cakes een thees Adminislashun!

“Today, if you hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” ~ Hebrews 3:15

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

So Jesus told those indignant listeners this parable:

“A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’

So the father divided the property between them.

After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation. When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need.

So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any.

Coming to his senses he thought, ‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger. I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’

So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him

His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.’

Then the celebration began.

Now the older son had been out in the field and, on his way back, as he neared the house, he heard the sound of music and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean. The servant said to him, ‘Your brother has returned and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’

He became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and pleaded with him. He said to his father in reply, ‘Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’

He said to him, ‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’” ~ Luke 1-2,11-32
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“Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.” ~ from The Wizard of Oz

In 1939 America marveled at Hollywood’s masterful adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s 1900 children’s fantasy. The story is a metaphor for the twentieth century’s social and political times. While the movie is entertaining, the book is astonishing. Watch for the allegory as you read the story or watch the film.

Many words describe the tactic of distraction, a derivation of distract; another is obfuscation, a derivative of obscure; both deal with concealment and, in the context of this essay, hiding the truth.

As you read this essay, consider the following single-word question: WHY?
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“Big Guy,” J.D. Hayworth, Author

For the better part of four generations, Americans have grown into adulthood seemingly afloat upon an ocean of acronyms.

That’s especially true when it comes to our federal government.

News from Washington is filled with letters denoting governmental entities — DOJ, FBI, CIA… CDC, OMB — and the one agency that expects to hear directly from you every April 15 — the IRS.

What most of us find especially taxing is the explosion of acronyms that corresponds with the exponential growth of government. Continue reading →

“We fear no one:” Ukrainians raise flags to defy Russia invasion fear – Reuters

I’ve seen enough death and dying over the course of my lifetime to know that I’ll always try to find a peaceful path out of any situation, regardless of what it is. Violence is a double-edged sword that cuts both ways, and if I was a world leader, going to war would always be the last resort.

The victors of wars may reap some sort of reward in the aftermath, but the citizens of both countries always lose. Continue reading →

Chicago dumps the worst mayor in its long history of corrupt mayors.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot finished third in Tuesday’s election with 16.89% of the vote, behind former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas at 33.95% and Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson with 20.32%.

Lori thinks it’s because of racism that she lost. Lightfoot responded to her loss by yanking out the race card.

“I’m a black woman in America — of course,” was her lame excuse. Continue reading →

The news caught my eye late on a mid-February morning: Actress Raquel Welch had died at the age of 82. If you are an adult of a certain age — and especially a male — you surely can close your eyes and conjure visions of Raquel, who was to Hollywood sex symbols what John Adams was to presidents — second in line.

In Welch’s case, behind only Marilyn Monroe when it came to earning headlines not for her acting talent but for the way she looked. This isn’t to say Welch was untalented — she won a Golden Globe for her role in “The Three Musketeers” — but more to give credit to her beauty, which was otherworldly.

It’s considered politically incorrect to comment on female attributes in the 21st century, but there is no way to think about Welch without acknowledging the obvious. As a beauty, she had few peers. Continue reading →

“Whether the mask is labeled fascism, democracy, or dictatorship of the proletariat, our great adversary remains the apparatus—the bureaucracy, the police, the military.” ~ Simone Weil, French philosopher

It’s hard to say whether we’re dealing with a kleptocracy (a government ruled by thieves), a kakistocracy (a government run by unprincipled career politicians, corporations and thieves that panders to the worst vices in our nature and has little regard for the rights of American citizens), or if we’ve gone straight to an idiocracy.

For instance, an animal welfare bill introduced in the Florida state legislature would ban the sale of rabbits in March and April, prohibit cat owners from declawing their pets, make it illegal for dogs to stick their heads out of car windows, force owners to place dogs in a harness or in a pet seatbelt when traveling in a car, and require police to create a public list of convicted animal abusers.

A Massachusetts law prohibits drivers from letting their cars idle for more than five minutes on penalty of a $100 fine ($500 for repeat offenders), even in the winter. You can also be fined $20 or a month in jail for scaring pigeons. Continue reading →

“Autocrats only understand one word: no, no, no. No you will not take my country, no you will not take my freedom, no you will not take my future… A dictator bent on rebuilding an empire will never be able to ease the people’s love of liberty. Brutality will never grind down the will of the free.” ~ President Biden

Oh, the hypocrisy.

To hear President Biden talk about the Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, you might imagine that Putin is the only dictator bent on expanding his military empire through the use of occupation, aggression and oppression.

Yet the United States is no better, having spent much of the past half-century policing the globe, occupying other countries, and waging endless wars.

What most Americans fail to recognize is that these ongoing wars have little to do with keeping the country safe and everything to do with propping up a military industrial complex that has its sights set on world domination. Continue reading →

Last week, students at small Christian college in Kentucky gathered for their regular Wednesday chapel service. Ten days later, it has not ended. People from around the country and the world continue to join in. No matter your religion or lack thereof, THIS is an exceptional happening. More exceptional even, is that this spirit has spread to other colleges and universities. Continue reading →

You could say it before you could spell it.

And even now – years later – you can recite the words with ease.

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

Yes, the Pledge has been amended… most notably in the 1950’s, when the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization, led a public campaign to add the words “under God.” On June 14, 1954 – Flag Day – President Eisenhower signed a bill into law adding that phrase to the Pledge.

Might someone mount a similar effort today? Continue reading →

It’s no surprise when the idea for a commentary arrives; I call it serendipity.

The idea for this one comes from a dear friend, Jeff Bennett. He and I greatly appreciate literature and one writer in particular, Charles Dickens.

Jeff called me this afternoon about another commentary I wrote recently. He inserted a graphic toward the end of the piece that says…

“The most important thing in life is to stop saying I wish, and start saying I will.” ~ Charles Dickens – (Not me, a relative.)

We chuckled; Jeff did something he’s done only once before. He recommended a title for this commentary based on a novel with a similar-sounding name. So I exercised my literary license and came up with what you are about to read.

The original is from an 1859 novel about London and Paris between 1775 and 1793, The French Revolution. If you haven’t read it, more’s the pity.

Mr. Dickens was anything but succinct because this particular book, A Tale of Two Cities, is three volumes, but boy, what a story… Continue reading →

…DON’T want to be!

The East Palestine train derailment is a real clusterfuck, one hundred percent and seven ways from Sunday, and the nation will see severe repercussions from this event for decades to come, unless I miss my bet.

It’s unfathomable that they didn’t immediately evacuate the entire town as soon as the containers were known to be leaking, given the hazardous nature of what was contained in several of the tanks. The manifest was readily known to railroad and government officials, which makes it unconscionable that they didn’t do more, that they were incapable of doing more due to their own miserable lack of talent and knowledge in their chosen professions, or for more designing reasons. ~ J.O.S.
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