Your Resolutions

Hello My Dear Friends! It's been so long, hasn't it. As you know, I took a hiatus during the Presidential melee to avoid becoming part of the incessant noise. Little did I know that one side would be such poor losers that the noise would carry on in to the new year! So, I'm back in spite of it all, to help make the new year better. You're welcome. It is that time of year where people make a list of promises to themselves that they will never keep. They're called resolutions and they are, as you well know, a recipe for failure and disappointment.  Anyway, I said to myself 'PoKitty, what can you change to make you a better Kitty and 2017 a better year'? The answer was obvious. You! I'm perfect. The only thing I need to change to make life better is you. You're the problem. So, in the spirit of peace and love, I have compiled a list of changes you need to make to make my life better in the new year. Again, you're welcome.
1.  Please resolve to take a breath. I realize that the recent election was contentious, to say the least, but life will go on. At this point, we are all very aware of how you feel about the outcome. It is not necessary for you to share those feeling, three times a day, every day. As a matter of fact, it's not just unnecessary, it's freaking annoying. We get it. You're not happy. So, take a breath, relax, and give us a break. If you must share your unhappiness, as many of you are only capable of doing, in the form of a Farcebook Meme, could you at least make sure what you're sharing is actually real and true. That would probably cut down the number of memes you share by 99%. I never thought I would long for the day when people posted pictures of the food on Farcebook yet, here we are.
2.  Please resolve to make better decisions. Same as the wisdom that, "just because they make it in your size doesn't mean you should wear it"; just because you have the right to do something doesn't mean you should do it!  For instance, stop burning the flag and then saying you mean "no disrespect". That's just stupid. Stop protesting "the rich" by stopping the average person from shopping or going to work. As a matter of fact, just stop protesting "the rich". Success used to be something to be proud of, not scorned. When you block streets and storefronts you're not harming the 1%, you're pissing off the 99% who are just trying to live their lives. You want to change the world? Go to Washington.
3.  Please resolve to grow a pair. I'm serious people. Take your whining, thin skinned, milk and cookies, participation trophy, safe space loving attitudes and pack them away. The world is a tough place for grown ups. If you want to be treated like a grown up, start acting like one. People are going to say and do things that you don't like for the rest of your life, get used to it. There are no 'safe spaces' in the real world, except in your parents basement. So, unless that is where you plan to live for the next 50 years, please, grow a pair.
4.  Please resolve to pay attention. This past Presidential election woke up a lot of people. Kindly stay awake. Case on point: Governor Cuomo signed over 500 bills into law last year alone. They all take effect today or tomorrow. Please obey them all. What? You don't know what they are? Of course you don't. No one does. Those are just state laws. They don't take into account any new federal or local laws or regulations that will also take effect. Each year, hundreds of new laws and regulations are added to the books but few, if any, are ever removed. Adultery is still illegal in New York. It's illegal to shine shoes after 1:00 PM on Sunday. It's illegal to have a puppet show in your window. It is illegal to urinate on birds in New York. How about "Official State Stuff". New York State has an "official" muffin. Yep, It's the apple muffin. The "official" State Snack is Yogurt. The "Official State Insect" is the Ladybug. Add the Bluebird, the Beaver, Brook Trout, Sugar Maple, Garnet, Bay Scallops and Snapping Turtles to the list of Official State Stuff. There are more and each one takes an act by the State Legislature to earn their distinction. That means it costs us money. This is what our elected officials do when we're not paying attention. Let's pay attention.
5.  Finally people, Please resolve to spend more time with family and friends, in person, face to face, where you can hug them, and less time on line in virtual relationships. None of us knows how long we have so let's all resolve to spend at least a little more time with the ones we love while we still can. that, alone, will make 2017 a better year. Be safe My Dear Friends and Happy New Year!
Po

A Little History

Hello My Dear Friends! As you know, I took a break from enlightening you so as not to add to the incessant noise of the election. Now that the election is over, and social media has been overtaken by the "everyone gets a trophy" crowd, I thought I would rejoin the conversation. It occurred to me that a big part of the problem is that, because the "everyone gets a trophy" crowd doesn't have a clue as to what they are talking about, their anger is misplaced. I keep seeing references to "if you don't know history, you'll repeat it". I totally agree. So, since they no longer teach actual history in school, here's a little lesson for you. Let's start from the beginning since the "EGAT" crowd has decided that the Republican Party is the party of hate, racism, homophobia, and the like. Here are some FACTS.
1.  The Republican party was formed in 1854 by anti-slavery activists. In fact, 6 of their 9 point platform dealt with civil rights, equal rights and voting rights for liberated slaves. When Abraham Lincoln was elected as the first Republican President, the Democrats responded by dividing the Union and launching the Civil War and, of course, his assassination. Fun Fact! The first 23 blacks elected to Congress were all Republicans. After losing the Civil War the Democrats proudly formed the KKK to target Republicans and take back Congress. The Republicans passed the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments giving black Americans freedom, citizenship and the right to vote. The Democrat's response brings us to my next point.
2. Jim Crow Laws were established by Democrats. The "separate but equal" state laws, made by democrats in the south, was reinforced by President Woodrow Wilson, a Democrat.
3.  During World War II Japanese Americans were rounded up and placed in interment camps. It was yet another dark spot in American history. Who did that? Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat.
4.  In 1993 "Don't Ask Don't Tell", a slap in the face to gays serving in the military was signed into law by Bill Clinton, a Democrat.
5.  In 1996, the "Defense of Marriage Act", a slap in the face to mankind, was signed into law by Bill Clinton, a Democrat, and strongly supported by the First Lady who claimed to have a "Deep moral belief that marriage was between one man and one woman". Yes, they have since "evolved". But that doesn't change history.
So, My Dear Friends, as you wildly riot in the streets because you don't want "History to Repeat Itself", you might want to pull your collective heads out of your asses and contemplate on how you just dodged a bullet.

Respectfully,
Po

Lessons of the Frog

Hello My Dear Friends! Before I get into my thoughts for today, let me first put some concerns to rest. It is true that my health has been failing and I acknowledge that the end, for me, is near. This, however, will not spell the end of this blog. Oh no! Quite the opposite. I have been training my protege, Nava Blue, to pick up where I've left off. So, when the time comes to pass the pen, believe me, she will be ready! Now, on to more important things....
Did you know that if you placed a frog into a boiling pot of water, the frog would jump out. His instinct for survival would take over in the face of imminent danger. But, if you put that same frog into a pot of cold water and slowly increased the temperature, the frog's instinct would be to adapt to the changing environment. He would stay in that pot until the end. Why do I tell you this? Because we, my friends, are becoming that frog and our proverbial pot is our freedom. If someone were to tell you that they were going to take away your freedom, you, like the frog, would fight. Your instinct would be to keep what is yours. Unfortunately, those who seek to take what's yours are never that obvious; never that straight forward. No. Like the slowly rising temperature, those who seek to take what's yours just nibble away, bit by bit, until there's nothing left. We all know what has been happening on college campuses across the Country. Freedom of Speech has all but been eliminated. "Safe spaces" have replaced discussion groups. Conservative speakers have been banned. Critical thinking is shunned. Anyone who dares to challenge the status quo is ostracized. The same people who talk about diversity and acceptance are the first to slap labels, like racist, homophobic, bigot, onto anyone who disagrees with them. An American themed Barbecue was banned at a college in New Jersey because it was deemed "offensive to some students".  Dartmouth College canceled a Luau, calling it "culturally insensitive". Maybe it is. My point is that everything is offensive to someone so where does it end? Little by little, degree by degree, we're being painted in to a corner where the only acceptable behavior will be to walk in lockstep and say nothing. I don't know about you but I don't look good in gray. Now, imagine if you will, that anything you've ever said, every private conversation you've ever had; regardless of context or circumstance; could be broadcast to the world for judgement. How would you fare? Think about it. I'm sure there are some of you who have never uttered an unkind word. I, for one, am not one of those people. Imagine living in a world where anything you say, even in the privacy of your own home, could be used against you at any time. Well, you don't have to imagine it. You're there. Remember the case of Donald Sterling? How about Paula Deen? These were very public cases but it's happening every day to every day people. Where will it end? It won't. You can't, as my Dad used to say, put toothpaste back in the tube. So where do we go from here? The first step, my Dear Friends, is to stop being so offended by everything. Accept the fact that sometimes good people say stupid things. That doesn't make them bad people. Remember when we used to judge people by their actions? That whole 'sticks and stones' thing? It's time to get that mindset back. The temperature is rising people. Jump now or forever hold your peace!
Po

Fact Check This!

Hello My Dear Friends! It has been a while, hasn't it. I've been taking a break during this contentious election season so as not to add to all of the noise. However, sometimes a Cat has to do what a Cat has to do! Now, I realized a long time ago that we are now living in a post-fact era. Meaning "facts" have somehow become irrelevant, an afterthought if you will. Members of the media today are either too dumb or too lazy to check their own facts so they turn to groups like FactCheck.org or Politico and just assume that they are right.  Well, guess what, many times they are not. So, I asked myself, "PoKitty, who do we turn to when the "fact checkers" are as wrong as the facts they are checking"? Well, after a moment of thought I realized that the answer was simple; ME! During and after the Presidential Debate all the talking heads were babbling about 'fact checking this' and 'fact checking that' and one after another repeated the same WRONG information. I was stunned, really. Two particular "facts" caught my attention. The first was the brouhaha over Mr. Trump's assertion that "Stop & Frisk" procedures were NOT ruled unconstitutional. Everyone with a microphone jumped all over him. Lester Holt interrupted him twice to tell him he was wrong. All of the fact checkers said he was wrong. Guess what. He is RIGHT. As a matter of fact, (there's pesky word again), Stop & Frisk as a tactic was upheld by the Supreme Court in 1968. In New York City a Federal District Judge, Shira Scheindlin, ruled that the way the NYPD was conducting their Stop & Frisk policy was racially bias and therefore unconstitutional. She did not, and could not by law, rule Stop & Frisk as a tactic unconstitutional as the Supreme Court had already ruled on the matter. Thems the facts people. Mr. Trump also said that the judge in question was "very anti-police" and was removed from the case by the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals. Also correct. Let me share a couple of notable quotes from Judge Scheindlin. When ruling on the stop & frisk case she said, "It is pervasive in policing policies like stop & frisk and neighborhood watch, regardless of the collateral damage done to the majority of innocents". Yes, Judge Scheindlin also believes Neighborhood Watch is unconstitutional. She also said "Blacks and Hispanics were more likely to be subjected to force than whites, despite the fact that whites are more likely to be found with weapons and contraband".  That is a fact that I am not familiar with. Anyway, to recap. Stop & Frisk as a tactic was NEVER ruled Unconstitutional. Trump is correct. The second "fact" that has been totally twisted also came from Mr. Trump. He said the murder rate in NYC is up. Again the media jumped down his throat. YOUR WRONG! Well, in 2014 there were 328 murders in NYC. In 2015 there were 352. You do the math. Granted, the numbers for 2016 are trending down but 2016 isn't over yet. So, as a matter of Fact, the murder rate in NYC is up. Sorry pundits. Just because someone calls themselves a "fact checker" doesn't mean they are actually dealing in facts. So, here's another fact for you. When Secretary of State Hillary Clinton left her post, a routine audit by the Inspector General's office found a whopping $6 billion (that's billion with a "B") unaccounted for. Six Billion Dollars missing. Gee, I wonder why CNN hasn't reported that. It's a fact. Look it up!
Po

Hurl 'em If You've Got 'em

Hello My Dear Friends! As you know, I've been lying low these days. There's just so much nonsense being tossed around that I just don't have the energy to battle it all. Today, however, after reading the lead story of our local paper, I just couldn't help myself. A little background...Wendy Long, a candidate for US Senate, tweeted out some questionable comments last week. Why it took an entire week for her comments to make front page news is a story for another day. Anyway, Long was on the city's Northside where a former Catholic church was converted into a mosque in 2014. Long tweeted: "Neighborhood where the mosque displaced the church. Crime, prostitution, money laundering. Nice Dem control of cities". That tweet was followed by: "Catholic Charities takes federal tax dollars to resettle refugees we can't screen. Leaves the Catholics to ISIS". As I said, questionable comments. But that is not what ticked me off. It was the response. Our illustrious Mayor said "I think it's (Long's comments) exactly what has become the Republican Party. It's xenophobic racism". "She has no objective evidence. She has nothing but a blatant appeal to racism and bigotry". Our self-aggrandizing US Rep added, "She obviously doesn't understand the Northside. I've been to a lot of those minority communities over there - the Bhutanese and everybody else - and I'm telling you right now those people are hard working people".  Okay. That's the background. Now, here's my problem. In this world, where we are soooo quick to slap labels of intolerance on everyone, there comes a point when those who label should actually learn the meaning of the labels they use!  Let me begin with the Mayor. "Xenophobic racism" isn't even a thing. Combining 'red flag' words for impact is juvenile. Long implied that crime followed the opening of a mosque. One would then infer that her issue is with Muslims. Since Muslim is not a race or a national origin, neither xenophobia or racism would apply. If anything, it would be Theophobia or the new and ever popular "Islamophobia". However, since she never implied that she was afraid of Muslims, there is no 'phobia' at all. What you have here is a simple case of prejudice. Here's a funny twist. Your repeated use of the word 'racist' implies that you believe that all Muslims are people of color. Your use of xenophobic implies that you also believe that all Muslims are foreign. Hummm. Someone's got issues. Here's a little more food for thought. Your opinion that Long's comments were "exactly what has become the Republican Party" is, by definition, BIGOTRY. Look it up. As for the Congressman; in the future it may be helpful to remember that referring to a minority group as "those people" is, in fact, racist. So, let's be clear. A "racist" is one who believes that one race is superior to another and the belief that race alone accounts for differences in character and ability. That's why referring to a minority group as "those people", as opposed to all people, is racist. "Xenophobia" is the fear of that which is foreign. Religion is hardly a foreign concept. Bigotry is the intolerance of any belief or opinion that differs from one's own. So, hurling labels at people you disagree with makes you the bigot. So, feel free to continue blindly labeling people, let's just try to use the correct labels moving forward. Thank You!
Po

It’s not the Politics, it’s the Hypocrisy

Hello My Dear Friends. It’s been awhile! I know that I’m not updating you as I should but, the truth of the matter is, I’ve just grown weary of it all. We are being so bombarded with “politics” that there is no escape; no reprieve. I’m not here to bash Hillary or to defend The Donald, I’m here because of a video I saw on Facebook. It really got my cat dander up. It was a video by leftwing blogger Ezra Klein. It wasn’t his video that bugged me. It was the header that read “I dare you to watch this and defend voting for Donald Trump”.  I dare you to watch this, as if he were speaking the Gospel, and defend voting for Donald Trump, as if my vote were anyone’s business but my own. You see, my friends, it’s this type of self-righteous hypocrisy that makes me want to scream. Let’s look at the latest “controversy”.  Donald Trump offended a Gold Star family. I get it. No one has sacrificed more for this Country than Gold Star families and they deserve nothing but respect. Trump was wrong. Let’s just get a little perspective here. During the DNC a Gold Star father called out Donald Trump, questioning if he had ever read the constitution and berating him for “never sacrificing a thing”. In a subsequent interview Trump said, in part, “You saw the mother, she didn’t say anything, maybe she wasn’t allowed to speak, I don’t know”. That set off a firestorm in the media because Trump only questioned whether or not she was allowed to speak because she was a Muslim. This, then morphed into an attack on all Gold Star families and “proof” that Trump was unfit to be President of the United States. OK. Here’s the perspective part. In 2012, a week after the Benghazi attacks that killed 4 Americans, including a US Ambassador and 2 former Navy SEALS, Hillary Clinton met with the parents of Tyrone Woods, one of the former Navy SEALS, and told them their son died in a “spontaneous protest over a YouTube video”. She went on to tell the Woods’ that she would get to the bottom of this and punish those responsible. When the truth came out and we learned that Mrs. Clinton had been lying about what happened, Mrs. Clinton claimed she never told the Woods about the video, affectively called them the liars! Then, when questioned about those inconsistencies before a house panel, Mrs. Clinton said, “What difference, at this point, does it make”. That made “news” for a minute or two and then it was gone.

OK, now, let’s take the names and the politics out of this and just examine the facts. Which do you find more offensive? Questioning whether or not a woman was allowed to speak based on her religion or lying to a family about the death of their son, then calling the grieving parents themselves liars, then saying how their son died was really that important.

I don’t know about you but, it seems to me, that this is yet another case of ‘it’s not what you say, it’s who says what’. But why let a little reality douse a perfectly good firestorm.

Po

Here We Go Again

Hello My Dear Friends. Once again we mourn the result of hate in action. 5 Dallas police officers are dead, 7 others injured, because of one man's hatred of white people. Insanity doesn't begin to describe it. So, the President, never missing an opportunity to push his political agenda, blames guns for the slaughter. Hillary Clinton says "white people have to listen more when African Americans speak", essentially blaming society for the slaughter. Although the protest in Dallas began peaceful, it certainly didn't end that way. As is the case with many of the Black Lives Matter protests, it didn't end peacefully. In this case, 12 officers who were protecting the very protesters who were protesting THEM, were shot in the line of duty. If you go to Twitter and search the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter you'll see an endless stream of praise for the SHOOTER. This is, at the very least, reprehensible. It is about to produce the exact opposite effect that these protesters claim to want. Do you honestly believe that randomly shooting police officers will lead to police officers being less aggressive during encounters with the very people who have called for their execution? Do you? I think we all know that this is going to get worse before it gets better. The long term effects are frightening. First of all, response times as going to slow. Police must be hyper-aware of any situation they're called to. Next, and more importantly,there will be far fewer capable police officers. Would you encourage your sons or daughters to seek a career in law enforcement today? As veteran police officers retire, the pool of replacements will shrink, leaving a shortage that will require the loosening of the qualifications, a lowering of the bar, if you will, for new candidates. That's scary. I can't help but wonder why they do it. What leads a person to pursue a dangerous and, these days, thankless job? It's not the money. The starting salary for a Syracuse police officer is about $41,000. Not chump change but not worth getting killed for either. I can't help but reflect on the case of Syracuse police office Kelsey Francesmone. She received a "man down" call and came upon a crowd of hundreds celebrating Father's Day. While waiting for backup, officer Francesmone heard gunshots. With everything to lose and absolutely nothing to gain, officer Francesmone, thinking innocent people were in danger, ran toward the shots. The crowd rewarded her bravery by attacking her like a pack of wild animals. What happened next, and has become routine today, is the lies. "Witnesses" ran to the media to tell their harrowing tale of how this officer, this Hero, ran into a peaceful gathering and starting shooting. None of the "witnesses" saw anyone else with a gun, no one heard any shots prior to the officers arrival and the man she shot was innocent and unarmed. The media ate it up. Of course when the facts came out, through video and actual witness accounts, we learned the original story was nothing but a pack of lies. Herein lays the root of the problem. "Hands up, don't shoot" was a lie. The viral video out of Louisiana only show the aftermath of the shooting, not what led to it, but that doesn't matter. The fact that the man who was shot had a gun was lost in the shuffle because the girlfriend says he told the officer about it. Did he? I don't know and neither do you. But, again, it doesn't matter. The story was written before any facts were actually in, feeding the police brutality frenzy. This, my friends, is what has to stop. Are there bad cops? Of course there are. Just like there are bad doctors, lawyers or auto mechanics. Police officers, like any other citizen, are INNOCENT until PROVEN guilty. Yes, we need to weed out the bad seeds. If, when the facts are in, it is determined that an officers was unjust in shooting a suspect, then that officer should be prosecuted. This "us" verses "them" mentality is only going to lead to more tragedy. Shooting innocent officers in retaliation for the suspected actions of one is anarchy. Making excuses for it, like poverty, frustration or perceived injustice only emboldens the anarchists. Blaming the guns, instead of the people firing them, is just plain stupid. Can we please stop placing color in front of the lives that matter. Black lives matter, Blue lives matter. All lives matter. While we're at it, can we please stop placing color in front of everything! Wouldn't that be a great first step in the direction of peace? How about, we all take a deep breath and start focusing on the real threats to society, ignorance and hate. I think that, if you take another look at all of these tragedies, you'll see that they all began with one or both of those. Oh, and when an armed police officer says "show me your hands", show them your hands. Rant over.
Po