Turn, turn, turn . . .
Saturday, June 28, 2025. It's a Satyr's day . . . After heavy thunderstorms this morning, easy Southerlies, sun andclouds are in the TulseyTown forecasts for the afternoon with upper 80's and indices in the upper 90's.
Today is the birthday of Richard Rodgers. Half of the Rodgers and Hammerstein songwriting team, Rodgers was born in 1902 New York City .
Mel Brooks celebrates his 99th birthday today. The stage writer, comedian and filmmaker and actor was born in 1926 Brooklyn, New York.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born on this day in 1712 Geneva, Switzerland. A philosopher, writer, and political theorist, he made liberty an object of almost universal aspiration.
And, it's Elon Musk's 54th birthday today.
When it comes to Trump's “big beautiful” budget bill now in the Senate, published polls show opponents outnumber supporters roughly two to one. Twenty percent or more expressed no opinion, presumably a reflection of limited knowledge.
There’s widespread agreement that the most vulnerable will take the biggest hit, and it is by design. Under H.R. 1, the annual incomes of the poorest tenth of the population decline by $1,600 on average while those of the richest tenth increase by $12,000 on average, according to new estimates by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
Among other things, the bill weakens public schools by creating a nationwide voucher scheme and slashing support for Medicaid, which covers nearly half our students and 1 in 10 education support professionals. Cuts in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) threaten school meals while cuts in student loan programs make higher education even more unaffordable. The bill also provides a lot more money for even more ruthless immigration enforcement.
Robert Reich in an email this morning called it “the most cruel, harmful, and flat-out immoral piece of legislation I’ve ever seen” and he's been around Washington politics for fifty years.
If you haven't, tell Congress what you think. If you have already, do it again. Do it today. When it comes to election time, assuming Trump doesn't successfully screw with it, remember: We are the people who put these fear-and-greed-based anti-democratics into office and we can replace them. If you are registered republican, don't be afraid to cross over with your vote. You won't have to change your registration.
There are other ways to pack the Supreme Court than trying to increase partisan numbers. – Joyce Vance, Civil Discourse.
Finally, a hopeful sign from the Supreme Court. A unanimous sleeper decision in a case brought by the NRA could blow back on the Trump administration's efforts to target opponents and could have profound impacts on Trump’s agenda.
As long as the world is turning and spinning, we're gonna be dizzy and we're gonna make mistakes. – Mel Brooks