Well…I guess I’m being offered another chance to be a better person. When Mitch “the bitch” McConnell (probably) died, I wrote, “I’m supposed to say I wish McConnell good health and a speedy recovery, but I don’t. I actually hope that some of what he sent around is coming back around to him.” I readily acknowledge that I’m not displaying a good, Christian attitude about things, but, since I’m not a good Christian, maybe that’s okay. I DO struggle with it, though. One does not have to be a Christian in order to be a decent person. (In fact, I’d argue…uh, never mind…)

On the one hand, I understand people might be bothered by the death of a loved one. On the other hand, in McConnell’s case, I have difficulty believing he HAD any “loved ones.” The guy betrayed the United States and the American people. He was self-serving. His actions directly harmed millions of people – and he didn’t care. He laughed about it. So I need some work on that whole ‘forgiveness’ thing.

Now I’ve got another chance. Apparently, Lindsey Graham,71, has died after a “brief but sudden illness.” Boy, I’ll say. He was in Kyiv giving a speech on Friday. He showed no signs of distress. He was scheduled to appear on ‘Meet The Press’ on Sunday, where he likely would have lied and lied in an effort to defend 47’s mind-boggling failures. He got home from Ukraine just in time to die on Saturday. It sounds like he had a heart attack. Heart attacks are, generally, NOT considered “brief” or “sudden” illnesses. They’re heart attacks.

Graham was no better than McConnell. Maybe they can be roomies in hell. He was a war hawk, so long as HE didn’t have to go. He condemned Trump as a “jackass,” a “race-baiting bigot,” and “the most flawed nominee in the history of the Republican party.” He warned on Brand X: “If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed … and we will deserve it.” Then he supported the Drumpfster pretty much completely. Those are the kinds of principles that made him the man he was. Wishy-washy flip-flops.

After trump’s J6 insurrection, Graham said he had had enough. He said, “All I can say is count me out. Enough is enough,” withdrawing his support from Donny. Well, temporarily. He threw out some tough talk after the attack, but tucked his tail and returned to the fold fairly quickly. He refused the vote for conviction during the subsequent impeachment and he wholeheartedly supported Donny’s campaign in 2024.

It turns out his prediction was correct. The Republicans did nominate Donny and now the country is being destroyed. Graham was a strong supporter of that. So you see, I’m not faring much better in my attitude when it comes to Graham than I did with McConnell. He, too, betrayed the United States and the American people. He, too, was self-serving. His actions also directly harmed millions of people – and he didn’t care any more than McConnell did.

One less lying liar. One less blight on humanity. One less threat to America. Lindsey Graham’s death was no loss to the nation. I’d like to believe they’d replace him with a person of integrity, but these are Republicans. They don’t DO ‘integrity.’ They’ll just replace one loyalist toady with another and nothing much will change. The unexpected announcement of his death DID give my day a little boost, though. It seems I’m less ‘condolences’ and far more ‘good riddance…’

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Well, crap. There’s a fire in southern California and it’s burning Joshua trees. To be clear, not Joshua Tree, the town. Actual Joshua trees. Joshua trees can only be found in the Mohave and Sonoran deserts (I can never tell when I’ve left one and entered the other) and the San Bernardino Mountains. That’s it. No where else on Earth. I doubt the fire will destroy all of the trees, but it’s a real loss. This climate change thing is going to cost us in so many unexpected ways, we can’t even guess…

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This bit is for football fans. No, not futball. Football. NFL style. Specifically, Brandon Aiyuk. That last name is pronounced like an Apple product, ‘the iYook.’ The guy came into the league with great talent and he showed that talent early on. Now? Now the guy is burning his career as quickly and hotly as he can. His actions have cost him millions of dollars and will likely cost him more. Worse, after all of the public whining and bitching and moaning and complaining, what team might want him?

He walked away from the 49ers. Just quit. Did other teams notice? The Niners had just paid him a HUGE contract. He quit anyway. Honestly, nothing Aiyuk is doing makes any sense. He’s destroying everything he ever worked for and in every way, they’re unforced errors. It’s just strange. It got me to thinking and I realized we’ve seen this before.

There was a player a short time ago named Antonio Brown. He suffered a tremendous hit during a game. It gave him a severe concussion and, apparently, did some brain damage. Before the hit, he was something of a Prima Donna but he could walk the walk and he contributed to the team. AFTER the hit, it was all about him, all the time.

His behavior became more and more erratic until, finally, during the third quarter of a game, he stripped off his jersey and undershirt, threw them on the ground, and left the field. It was the last time he ever played in the NFL. I suspect that when he dies, they’ll find evidence of the brain damage known as CTE. It’s everywhere in the NFL.

I find myself wondering if Aiyuk might have taken some similar kind of hit. Something less obvious but no less damaging. He had everything, man. Now he’s just walking away and he can’t even describe a decent reason. He’s just pissed off. It’s irrational. I suspect Aiyuk has played his last game in the NFL. That’s a loss to the team and the fans who love the game but it’s a much larger loss to Aiyuk, himself. Weird…