Lucky

Sorry, marcanthony, even the Old Romans wouldn't have liked your approach. We have to vet our candidates. We have to know their strengths and weaknesses. We have to push for their best qualities to appear. The Democrats will deserve to lose if they cannot offer the American people a candidate with ideas and a plan for the future. Watching Beto skateboard across that stage only makes me think he is a goof-ball, a lightweight. Where are the experienced Democrats? Reading the lengthy obituary in today's LA Times of the late Indiana Senator Birch Bayh I realized that we don't make them like we used to. https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-na-pol-birch-bayh-indiana-senator-dead-obituary-20190314-story.html (I met Birch Bayh- twice! I was at an event and we were introduced, then when the event ended I hadn't followed everyone to his car, so he came up to me and introduced himself again. I pretended it was just once.)

I don't understand why so many people have to second guess the experience of another. We all react differently depending on the situation, and with crime there is often no time to think before you act. Why not let people tell their stories without all the judgement?

Work? Those pills can be so confusing. Sometimes they work all too well, other times you wonder what you took. I wonder how many foreign pills regular pharmacies like Walgreens substitute for the real thing?

Beto's fantasy: “This happiness was mine by right. I had earned it in my dreams. As I neared the young ones, I put all my weight on my right foot, keeping the accelerator pedal on the floor until I heard the crashing of the two children on the hood, and then the sharp cry of pain from one of the two. I was so fascinated for a moment, that when after I had stopped my vehicle, I just sat in a daze, sweet visions filling my head.

The Guardian, Arwah Mahdawi: Lord give me the confidence of a mediocre white man! Specifically, I wouldn’t mind the confidence of Beto O’Rourke. A dude so assured of his inner greatness that, after losing a Senate bid, he decided the next logical step would be to run for president. Not only did he lose, by the way, he lost to Ted Cruz: a man so unlikable there’s even a conspiracy theory floating around that he’s the Zodiac killer. Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t think losing one election disqualifies someone from jumping into the presidential nominations. Stacey Abrams has said “2020 is definitely on the table”, and I’d be 100% behind her running. (Then again, Abrams didn’t really lose the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial contest; she had the election stolen from her because of voter suppression tactics.) No, it’s not Beto’s loss last year that bothers me, it’s his entitlement. His certainty that he’s qualified for the most powerful job in the world despite his lack of experience. His belief that he is qualified for the role despite the fact that he himself has absolutely no idea what he stands for. “I don’t know where I am on a [political] spectrum and I almost could care less,” Beto recently boasted during a stop in Wisconsin. I’ll tell you where Beto is on the political spectrum: he’s wherever it’s most convenient for him to be. He announced his presidential bid by talking about the environment but his six-year record in Congress shows him to be a friend of the fossil fuel industry. His voting record is characterized by flip-flopping and he is vague about his position on healthcare and raising taxes. The only strong conviction he really seems to have is that he deserves to be president. “Man, I’m just born to be in it,” he recently enthused to Vanity Fair. In many senses Beto is right: he was born to be successful. He is, after all, a rich kid from a well-connected family. His dad, Pat O’Rourke was a county judge and got 19-year-old Beto (who had no interest in politics at the time) an internship with the West Texas congressman Ron Coleman. Like many privileged people, Beto seems to have confused his luck for God-given talent; a talent so spectacular that he doesn’t need to do the hard work mere mortals do. “I don’t ever prepare a speech,” he boasted to Vanity Fair. Can you imagine a woman boasting about how she never prepares? No, because women know they need to be overprepared just to get a foot in the door. Ultimately, what might be most frustrating about Beto is that we all know someone like him. He’s the guy in the meeting who hasn’t done any of the work but who repeats a woman’s points and immediately gets a round of applause and a promotion. He’s the guy who pays eloquent lip service to the importance of diversity, but would never go so far as conceding a woman might be better qualified for a job than him. He’s the epitome of mediocre white male confidence. And if there is one thing America does not need at the moment, it’s more mediocre white guys running things.

“I have the support of the police, the support of the military, the support of the Bikers for Trump – I have the tough people, but they don’t play it tough – until they go to a certain point, and then it would be very bad, very bad.” Donald J. Trump,alleged president.

It would be nice to see more posting, more interesting topics. RockHard is always interesting, even if I recoil at much of what he says. But planetime? A nasty queen? Not in my experience. Since he is coming to Bangkok soon, why not meet up and see what you have in common? I'll bet it far outweighs any differences.

The most dangerous city in the world is right down the freeway from me. Tijuana, Mexico leads the world in murders per capita, followed by my old vacation favorite, Acapulco. https://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-mexico-tijuana-violence-20190314-story.html Natal and Fortaleza, Brazil, are way down there at 8th and ninth. No plans to visit any of these cities.

I just finished reading a biography of Randy Shilts, so the AIDS crisis was on my mind. It's not something one forgets either. Perhaps narcissists don't like it being mentioned as it distracts from talk about them. My apologies.

That's quite a knock on gay men. Anyone who lived through the AIDS crisis saw the vast generosity of the gay and lesbian community. We see it still today in the support social programs receive. Gay men volunteer, they donate, they show care. Don't knock them. Knock those pompous fools who think they know so much more than anyone else.

Well, I am glad that it is being fixed. However, I can not find any message to me from you about the matter. Could you direct me to that message? Thanks.

I would never click on an anonymous link from someone who has established no presence here.

Today's nytimes.com has a big feature: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/nyregion/hector-xtravaganza-memorial-death.html

She was the author of the very popular novel, The Front Runner, about a gay Olympic candidate. It was really f=good- I read it twice. Talk was it would become a movie, but that never happened. According to SF's Bay Area Reporter, Ms. Warren died last month at the age of 82 following a multitude of health problems.

I once lusted after him. My very closeted self snuck out to see that movie where he wore very little. He didn't age so well, and was not apparently a very nice guy. Thrice married, he allegedly hit the wife. He had a lot of problems with drugs. But damn, his young self was so sexy. RIP

So I finally calculated my taxes, and I owe about $1600 on top of what was withheld. That's amazing. Before my partner and I married, we owed no taxes. The marriage penalty kicked in and we had to pay some. The elimination of the personal exemptions hurt the middle and lower class. I don't know anyone who has received significant cut. It appears the rich won this one.

The president of Brazil does not know what a golden shower is? I thought he and Trump were pals! Anyway, he went on about a guy pissing at Carnaval: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/jair-bolsonaro-golden-shower-video-carnival_n_5c7feb3fe4b06ff26ba49c7d

The Latin Forum was once the best. It wasn't full of negativity, name calling, personal attacks. Do we want to see it continue to degrade? I don't.

With the advent of sophisticated travelers like Tomcal and floridarob, the NY Times jumps on the Merida bandwagon with a lengthy feature piece in today's Travel section: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/25/travel/shaped-by-meridas-artistic-soul.html The article is the front page, featured piece for today's section, and is chock full of pictures and valuable information. Did floridarob and Tomcal know that they were pioneers in the new Merida? Or is it because of them that Merida has a new Merida?

I discovered why I was getting all of the Conde Nast magazine cookies. When I visit the New Yorker, a Conde Nast publication, they reward me with a slew of cookies.

I am not sure what off course means. I went to a regular pharmacy. I bought both kinds.

Exactly. I don't want to taste vagina. Butt for me! Plastic free.

The burden you have. How do you keep from slashing your throat? (You can have the last word- if your throat is still intact. I am going to bed. After all, I am old!

Actually I am quite happy. I've been posting so long that I have a pretty thick skin, so your silly remarks have no effect. Why not follow your own advice and ignore me?

Yea, sure, licking plastic is a delight. You could even lick a vagina if you put enough plastic on it. Bubble wrap might be better.