AMERICA SLEEPS AGAIN

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Once we were not concerned enough, did not care, did not believe what was happening in Europe was bad. The Atlantic would protect us from the evils of Germany. America slept. The result, we ended up in a World War.

It is happening again. A World War may not be the result. However, something bad inevitably will occur.

The problem is President Trump.

Michael Wolff’s Fire and Fury published last week has aroused Trump and his troops to the heights. They have come out battling. Cabinet members and White House aides were on national TV talk shows yesterday morning. Denying the accuracy of Wolff’s comments and supporting the mental well being, etc. of their leader.

One was Steve Miller. He appeared on CNN.

Miller was a speech writer for Trump during the campaign. Thirty two. Maybe thirty three now. Knows everything. In reality, nothing. He is a nationalist, white supremacist. Student of Steve Banner, till Banner’s refutation by Trump last week.

I have compared Miller to Hitler’s Joseph Goebbels. Adolph’s propaganda minister. Lie, lie, lie. Eventually the people will believe.

During the interview, Miller was basically non-responsive to questions. Talked about that which he wanted. Finally, the interviewer called an end to the interview of Miller.

Amusingly or sadly, Miller had to be escorted out of the CNN building. Apparently he did not want to leave. What occurred specifically, I do not know. No one is talking about it in any detail as yet.

Our President is mentally incapable of being President. A nut case. He has turned his back on our friends and sucks up to those who have been our enemies for years. Wants to destroy the FBI. Wants Hillary Clinton in jail.

Addressing the last point. We have never thrown a political opponent in jail. Banana republics do it. Totalitarian states, also.

Wake up Republican legislators, wake up America! Trump is trouble. He is dramatically harming the nation.

Spent yesterday lounging around the house. Watched the Golden Globes last night.

Gary Oldman won for Best Actor. The Darkest Hour.

Kirk Douglas appeared. Ninety one. Looks it, unfortunately. In a wheel chair, the results of his stroke remain on his face, speech slurred.

Oprah Winfrey was honored. She won the Humanitarian Award. A special person. A special speaker.

Missed Chicken Dog Church and the Gardens yesterday by giving into my laziness. Tonight, I will be out. Definitely. Dueling Bartenders and then home to watch the Alabama/Georgia game. Alabama favored by four points. Going to be close. Never can tell who the winner will be in a national championship game.

Papua, New Guinea in trouble. The volcano on Kadovar Island is erupting for the first time in history. A tsunami and landslides feared. People evacuating.

I mention Papua because there are a few Papuans who read this blog. Almost from its inception.

I wish everyone on the island good luck.

Christmas is Christmas. However certain portions are celebrated differently in other places.

Italy, for example.

Christian. Roman in origin. Celebrate all of Christmas on December 25, except for gift giving. Gift giving occurs on January 6. January 6 is the Feast of the Epiphany. The day the three Wise Men paid homage to baby Jesus.

The Italians do not celebrate the Epiphany as such. Rather the day belongs to pagan folklore. An old hag dressed in black with a black witch’s hat riding on a broom. Her name, Befana. She brings gifts during the night as Santa Claus does elsewhere at Christmas. If a person was bad, no gift. Coal in the stocking!

Accompanying the gifts are sweets. Cookies and candy.

I am not an economist. Nor would I consider myself a stock market expert. Except in one regard.

My eighty two years has taught me that when the market is flying high, as it has been for quite a while, it will crash. No question. What goes up, comes down. Faster. The crash dramatic. Unexpected. Assets diminished big time, fortunes wiped out.

I have been predicting a crash for more than a year. I suspect later this year or sometime next year.

The experts call the crash an “adjustment.” The market does it on its own. It regurgitates hundreds and thousand of points at a time.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

TONIGHT…..ANDREAS FRANKE

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A special exhibit tonight. At Seven Artists Gallery on Simonton. Vienna artist Andreas Franke. A passionate diver. His preference underwater art.

Seven Artists’ jewelry designer Jennifer Badry responsible for Franke’s exhibition.

Show time 5:30-8:30.

I am familiar with Franke’s work. Outstanding! Worth seeing.

Busy day yesterday.

Started with lunch at Harpoon Harry’s with Guy de Boer. KONK Life and KONK E-Blast publisher.

Guy an old friend. Responsible for my writings, etc. Got me started 12 years ago with a KONK Life column and Internet talk show.

Guy is helping promote Irma and Me. In the very near future, Louis  will be featured in a front full page picture advising the publication of Irma and Me, together with a short article inside. Guy did a similar scenario in 2014 when I wrote my first book The World Upside Down.

A good friend.

After lunch, Guy took me to a back yard to see the boat he is repairing. Actually, rebuilding. A 36 foot power boat. The vessel a victim of Irma. Another boat was thrown into one side. The other side slammed into a dock. The boat a mess.

Guy fears not. He works daily on putting the boat together. Per his explanation of what he was doing, it was obvious he was familiar with the repairs.

He got the boat for nothing following Irma. It was heading for the junk yard. Guy took it off the owner’s hands.

A major job! The boat is a mess.

Spent the afternoon reworking Growing Up Italian. Been working on it 4 years. Four rewrites. My next publication. Hopefully by Easter.

The Chart Room last night.

Key West is normally quiet following New Years till the first of February. Not this year. Key West continues to be packed this week. The season is here!

The Chart Room was body tight. I was lucky to get a seat when I came in. Someone in front of me was leaving.

Old home week. Sheila, David, Steve and Cindy. And Jean and Joe Thornton. My Irma saviors. I spent 12 days at their home in Birmingham escaping Irma.

I was not aware Jean and Joe had returned. Turns out they have been here a week already.

While I was working on Growing Up Italian in the afternoon, a call came in from Jean. I did not answer. I did not want to interrupt my thought wave. They come and go so I have to be careful. Retention difficult in my old age.

I forgot to call Jean back till I was in the Chart Room at 7. Made my apologies. Jean said she and Joe would be with us shortly.

The reason Jean had called was to invite me to dinner. She had cooked one of her specialties. Chili and corn bread. To compensate, she brought a container of chili with her to the Chart Room. My lunch today.

Met a very interesting fellow at the bar. Paul. From London. We spoke for at least an hour. London, the U.S., travel, business, etc. To bad he leaves today. We agreed we hoped to meet again when he returns next year. This was his fourth visit to Key West.

Today, he leaves for Majorca. He and his wife have a vacation home there.

Then a quick stop to Publix. Out of diet food.

I have been at the diet since November 27. Cheated only Christmas eve and Christmas day. I am not losing. Stuck on 10 pounds since mid December. Depressing. I am losing inches. Clothes loser. Wearing clothes I could not get into.

Today going to be another busy one. A pedicure and manicure with Tammy at 1. Dinner tonight with my lesbian wives Donna and Terri. Donna cooking. Pot roast!

A couple of Trump comments.

Fire and Fury seems to be doing a number on him. If only 20 percent true, still devastating.

The book has opened a Pandora’s box. Brought Trump’s mental stability to the fore front. Dangerous for him. I have considered the President a nut since the primaries. He is not equipped to be a President.

It was announced yesterday that Trump had opened east and west coast waters to oil drilling. A disaster in the making. One big spill and environmental ruination for years to a vast portion of ocean.

The oil drilling thing an example of Trump sucking up to and pursuing the interests of big business.

Another Trumpy. Trump told us the huge corporate tax cut would add thousands of jobs. Comcast announced yesterday it let go 500 employees.

Enjoy your day!

 

 

WINTER STORM GRAYSON…..A BOMB CYCLONE

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I sermonize to begin.

There is global warming. Those of you who do not believe look around. The past few years have been replete with huge inexplicable storms of all sorts.

An example is the winter storm upon us at the moment. Non-believers will say if there is global warming, why the snow and cold?

Educate yourselves, my non believing friends. Global warming has to do with climate and not a certain type storm at a particular time. If you wish to learn more, google global warming. Do not be a Trump. You can read. A little education never hurt.

Even winter storms now have names. The storm affecting the eastern United States has been labeled Winter Storm Grayson. Rather formal sounding.

Grayson is being described as a bomb cyclone. A phrase new to me and probably you. Ominous sounding.

Grayson an epic cold snap. Before done, a record setting deep freeze will have been recorded. The worst from North Carolina north along the eastern seaboard. Winds 80 miles per hour. Waves 26 feet. Temperatures below zero. Snow where snow has not fallen in 50 years.

The worst to begin late today. Grayson will be with the U.S. till late sunday.

I find the following dramatic: Temperatures below freezing in 92 percent of the U.S. yesterday.

Zooed penguins will not remain outdoors. They are going inside to avoid the cold. Sharks are washing up dead on the beaches of Cape Cod. Caused by unusually cold waters.

Mentioning Key West, it was cold last night. Fifty four degrees. Fifty six degrees as I write this morning. The high today 62. Same tonight and tomorrow. Long pants, sweaters and jackets the rest of the week. Heat, also.

I am becoming a recluse. Never left the house yesterday again. Worked with Sloan for several hours. Then Syracuse/Wake Forest at 7. Better watched from my bed.

Syracuse lost 73-67. The team was not at Wake Forest to play 40 minutes. They played only half the time. The last 10 minutes of the first half and the first 10 minutes of the second half.

Syracuse’s famed zone defense could not stop Wake Forest. They scored from the key and corners at will. Syracuse did not control the boards. Something I could not understand. We have one of the tallest teams in the country.

The game came down to who made the shots in the last few minutes. Wake Forest did, Syracuse did not.

As Winter Storm Grayson is arriving, Irma’s impacts still with us.

Debris removal.

Turns out the State hired contractor to handle the US 1 debris not experienced. Supposed to have the job finished by January 16. The contractor will not make it.

The side roads a problem,also. Worse. Monroe County’s contractor is working on the problem. Slowly, but deliberately. He has no time limit.

The reason for the difficulty in the clean up is that neither the State nor County were prepared for how bad Irma was. Its impact not expected. Experience a good teacher. Everyone will be ready the next time.

Two days ago, I wrote about the movie of George Bernard Shaw’s play Caesar and Cleopatra. My dear friend Diana Millikan wrote me yesterday. Another Cleopatra movie on its way.The screen writer David Scarpa, director Denis Villeneuve. SONY Studio backing the project.

The movie will be a different Cleopatra. Done from Cleopatra’s point of view. The female point of view.

Scarpa says the movie will be “dirty, bloody, lots of people swearing and having sex and all that other stuff…..a lean, mean political thriller, full of assassinations.”

Steve Bannon and Michael Wolff’s new book Fire and Fury. Wow! If only 20 percent true, wow!

The U.S. is like a ship at sea in troubled waters. Trump the captain. Trump remains in his cabin while the ship is in danger of being swamped.

Trump makes Captain Queeg of Caine Mutiny fame look like a hero.

Recall the gang that could not shoot straight. There is a country that cannot shot straight. At least on one occasion.

North Korea.

April 17, 2017. North Korea was testing an intermediate range missile. It was supposed to land in the seas past Japan. Instead, it fell on the North Korea city of Tokchon. A few miles from Pyongyang.

Details of deaths and damage withheld by the North Korean government.

It is claimed various media outlets world wide carried the news of the accidental bombing. I do not recall hearing of it.

Enjoy your day!