Snarky Tom's Rants, Raves and Ruminations

When we last spoke, via BLOG, there were nearly 3/4 of a million COVID-19 cases throughout the world and nearly 150,000 cases in the USA. This in a three month time span. The USA now holds the number 1 spot as having the most infected. We really are into winning even at the cost of dying. We should better define 'cases'. People. People, who are now patients or corpses. Many more who may be deceased before summer, even before Easter. Over 2,400 U.S. cases (over 37,000 worldwide) who will never see April Fool's day, tomorrow. All because people didn't take this seriously. In some cases. In other cases, it was just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. There's at least one death on every continent and just about in every country in the world. Which is why it's being called a Pandemic. It spans the globe. So, listen to the smarter, educated voices, not the ones in your head, and stay home. Only go out if it's absolutely necessary. Of course, you can hang...

This week I lost a cousin from cancer. She was young, 59. I can't say she's my favorite cousin because that would be unfair to all my other cousins. All my cousins are my favorite cousins. Every one of my relatives are precious and essential and are responsible for the person I have become. That may sound like I'm blaming people, I'm not. I'm praising them. My good comes from them. My bad is attributed to the influences and interactions with the evil bastards, mostly strangers, in the world, who have made me the cynical, vengeful and angry old man. But I'm okay with that. I've learned to harvest the best and put my best person forward. Most of the times. Meh! On my mother's side of the family, we have lost seven blood cousins which actually include my two youngest siblings. On my father's side, as far as I know, are all intact. All my Aunts and Uncles on both sides have past accept one Aunt on each side. I have a maternal Uncle (brother-in-law) and...

After a few weeks of being quarantined, you probably have developed a new or different routine. But you have developed a routine. That's one thing that psychologist and other professionals state: Set a routine. You need to. This is the main step to getting through this situation. When your body's biorhythms are derailed, your health could follow. You don't want to become susceptible to illnesses of any kind. My routine: I still wake up around the same time everyday. 7 a.m.-ish. I shower sometime during the morning. Monday through Friday showered and dressed by 8 a.m. Weekends I'm a little more flexible. I've been fortunate that I can work from home. I have one of the best WiFis in the world. Xfinity. My company is very techno-savvy. I start work around 8 a.m. and knock off around 5 p.m. I eat breakfast around 8-9 a.m., like I do when I'm physically at my business' location. I eat lunch between Noon and 2 p.m. This parrots my routine at work. We don...

It's 2020 for those of you who have been hibernating. Every ten years the U.S. Government, specifically the Census Bureau, counts every individual in the United States. You must be counted. You should have, by now, received a mailer or a pamphlet in your door from the U.S. Census Bureau. I hope you didn't throw it away. You're going to need it. Why should you care about the Census? The census tells the government how many people exist in the country and where they live. This information is used to determine where funding is needed. This will make a difference in your community. If people in your community are not counted, your community will lose out of potential funding from the government. Your tax dollars coming back to you. So be counted. Who is required to respond? Everyone living in the United States and its five territories is required by law to be counted in the 2020 Census. [2020census.gov] Beware! Don't get scammed. A Census worker will have a val...

We touched upon this briefly in an earlier post. Finances. Everyone is shitting bricks because the Stock Market is tanking. But it has tanked before and has always rebounded. So, stack up those bricks and relax. We will get through this. Some people are pissing and moaning about how some Congresspersons have cashed in on the Coronavirus by selling off their stocks. It's not like they had insider trading information. Everyone should have known that things were going to get rough. The world was in crisis. And whatever happens in the world will affect (and in this case - infect) us in many ways. I don't fault them for looking out for themselves. Any of us who own stocks could have done the same. I could have if I was going to be aggressive about my IRA. As it is, I have a guy managing my portfolio and he called me last week as he was leaving for an unknown island destination. No, I'm kidding. He did call me though. He told me I'm down 12% compared to the national average...

In an earlier post, I jokingly made accusations that the Coronavirus came from Russia or Chinese Weapons laboratories. I should be more careful how I joke because the idiots on the far right Rush Limbaugh , Sen. Tom Cotton (R) , Steve Bannon  and The Washington Post  have published articles and made public statements declaring this accusation as truth. It's not. It's part of the Trump Administration misinformation. Don't believe these idiots. Because...they're idiots and do not have the medical training or knowledge to be commenting on anything concerning the common cold let alone the Coronavirus. It started in the Wuhan Province, China. It was an animal virus that a human contracted. Then it was passed human to human exponentially. It was not created in a Chinese Laboratory. One of the few falsehoods that have been published and since has been debunked. It is believed that it came from bats via another animal that humans came in contact with. This article  by Molly S...

I was watching the news last night. I know I shouldn't torture myself but sometimes I do. The lead-in story was, of course, about the Coronavirus, but with a twist. The video was showing a line of people, not practicing social distancing, standing in a queue to buy guns and ammo. WHAT? WTF is this? Guns? Guns!! Are we now preparing for a Zombie Apocalypse? People! Those are just TV shows. Not real. Apparently, fear of this illness has reached another level. Crazy stupid. The U.S deaths from Coronavirus is up to 100. Add firearms to the mix and it's going to double in no time at all. Statistics show that more gun owners usually get shot by their own gun than used to protect themselves or it's stolen and used in a violent crime somewhere else. The 2nd amendment gives you the right, but you don't necessarily need to exercise that right. I don't. I own no gun. I have a Louisville Slugger for protection.  A gun shop yesterday (3/17/20) in Culver City, CA REUTERS/Pat...

Has everyone been good? Washing your hands and keeping your hands away from your face? When they say, "Don't touch your face!" that's the first thing I do. I don't know why, but we all do it. Hopefully, we are all staying healthy and well and get to work from home. I'm healthy in respect to my pulmonary system, anyway. Now to assist in the timing of your hand-washing, there are songs better suited than singing Happy Birthday to You...twice. Personally, I'm using the Beatles song "Her Majesty" that clocks in just under 30 seconds. It's a nice song and reminds me several times a day how much I lust for Queen Elizabeth II. Being quarantined for two or more weeks could present problems. For instance, cabin fever. You get too many people stuck in a small space and boom. Ya got trouble. Even if your house has 4,000+ square feet of livable space, it will seem smaller after awhile. You'll feel the walls closing in on you. And it won't ...

It has been awhile since I dove into our failing legal system. I think I'll take a break from the looming Election and the albatross flying above us known as the Coronavirus and talk about injustice. Today I won't deal with the injustice of an innocent person or persons being unfairly railroaded by an overzealous Prosecutor(s) or by a stupid, uneducated, overly biased jury who just wants to extract their pound of flesh regardless of whose flesh it is. No. Today I want to talk about the unfairness of the death penalty, in general. I am not against the Death Penalty. I am not necessarily for it either. I do believe that it has a place in our society, if our society chooses to have that form of capital punishment. If it's a choice and has been chosen by a jury or a judge, then by all means carry it out already. Mugshot of POS Michael Overstreet A prime case example of justice not being metered out is the rape and murder of Kelly Eckart from Shelby County, Indiana i...

If you didn't know that this represents Covid-19, you'd think this was pretty and a scene from Star Wars. A word about the Coronavirus. Let's get something straight. Even if you are cooped up (with your kids), it's not going to be forever or possible no longer than two weeks. You don't need to buy enough milk, bread, eggs, cleaning supplies and hand sanitizer like a blizzard is forecasted that will have you trapped indoors until Spring. So, stop it!! Besides, most stores deliver these days. Let's get a few things straight. (Not in any order of importance.) Don't believe the bullspit on social media. People who claim to be experts most likely are not. Don't buy cleaning supplies and sanitizer online for more than you would in a brick-and-mortar store. You're being scammed. The President IS misinformed and believes he knows what's best for America. He does not. The man is a frat boy idiot. DO listen to people who are in the medi...

Where we left off on the impeachment of President Trump, we found that the Senate voted not guilty without ever having witnesses or evidence ever presented at his trial. Now let me throw this out there and see if it sticks. As a nation, we, the people, the taxpayers, the actual people who created this country through our hard work and dedication toward the attainment of the American Dream, should be the ones that decide if our government leaders are fit to lead and have the top job in the U.S. Government. If the clowns in the House and Senate can't get the job done, we should be able to vote the President out of office and not have to wait until 2020. If there was enough evidence to sustain a conviction of a private citizen, then it should be enough to have an immediate general election with one question on the ballot. Should the President be removed from office? Then you would pull the Yes or No lever and it would be decided. Let the chips fall. If the majority of the v...

As is in most cases, the incumbent (sitting President) is rarely opposed. However, The Donald has 3 challengers. Of course, the  Dems are thinking, Who? That's okay. It's a proper reaction because most of the Republican party is saying the same thing. However, one of the contenders has actually won 1 delegate. Can you imagine the Convention floor in the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina this August? There will thousands and thousands of Trump signs and (assuming this other candidate receives no more delegates) one little person holding a Bill Weld sign. That poor bastard! If I were that person, I'd phone in my vote. Seriously. Can you imagine all the "stink-eyed" looks they would receive from the rest of the convention? Some states have cancelled the Republican primary. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Trump was probably the only name on the ballot. These states are so RED that they can be seen from space glowing red. Alaska Arizona...

As I had last left you, there were still a whole bunch of candidates. As of March 5, 2020, 26 candidates have dropped out of the race, and three major candidates are still seeking the nomination: Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and Tulsi Gabbard. [Wikipedia] Tulsi Gabbard! That kid's got spunk and about a snow-woman's chance in hell to winning the nomination. Which leaves us to a head to head between Papa Joe Biden and Crazy Socialist Bernie Sanders. You know I'm drawn towards the crazy. However, Lizzie Warren is still on the Pennsylvania Ballot. I might "waste" my vote and throw it to her. It doesn't matter. It might already be decided by April 28. I took a "test" for which candidate best reflects my values/opinions. Feel the Bern Sanders Papa Joe Biden Tulsi Here's how it shook out: Biden 12 (out of 20 issues) Warren 12 Sanders 11 Gabbard 10 Now if Tulsi had committed to some of the issues, which she was 4 shy of, her score, ...