admin, Author at Patriot NOT Partisan

A Libertarian’s Perspective on Trump

September 8, 2017 Elections, General Commentary

I am a libertarian. Libertarians believe in freedom; in voluntary association; that, because government is society's only mandatory institution (has power over all within its jurisdiction; may initiate force to impose its will), its only permissible function is to protect negative rights (freedoms; liberty); and that positive rights (the so-called right to be given other people's product) do not exist.

IM READY FOR FOOTBALL AND JUSTICE

September 8, 2017 General Commentary

Like many Americans, I love football. I grew up watching football with my uncle. I became a huge New Orleans Saints fan, and am still (and always will be) a flag-flying member of Who Dat Nation. This season, however, I am reluctant to continue watching as feverishly as I always have due to the blackballing of Colin Kaepernick. After taking

A Paper-Thin Line Separates Us; We Are All Dreamers

September 7, 2017 General Commentary, Immigration

One of my favorite teachers in high school had a great saying that I still use today as a reminder of our choices in life. He would mention some aspect of our lives we had no say in-our parents' wealth, for example - and he would say, "if you're not happy with it blame yourself, you chose the wrong parents."

#DACApolypse: What Dreamers Can Do After The Demise Of DACA

September 6, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary, Immigration

Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the end of #DACA on September 5. DACA was never more than a band-aid. It's time to start talking about a cure. I preface this by saying don't let up advocacy and working with allies on the ground, and in the halls of Congress. Ultimately we need our leaders to act. But as a lawyer,

Spider-Man Ethics

September 6, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

I've always loved Spider-Man. I mean, what's not to love? He's strong, brave, selfless, and he's got one of the cooler superhero outfits ever created. But my favorite part about Spider-Man isn't the webs or the wall crawling, or the sweet super-villains. It's Ben Parker; good old Uncle Ben. He's been my hero from the start because he has the

Why America Needs “Dreamers”

September 6, 2017 Immigration

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is an administrative program designed to protect immigrant youth that came to America when they were under the age of 16. These immigrants are called "Dreamers". This program was started in June of 2012 by the Obama administration. In addition to the age requirement, you must also be currently studying or a graduate of

FROM THE FRONTLINE

September 5, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary, Immigration

Today, participants in the 118-mile-long March to Confront White Supremacy made a previously unscheduled stop at the Loudon County office of Representative Barbara Comstock to demand that Rep. Comstock publicly oppose the end of DACA, the deferred action program for immigrants who came to the United States, and to Section 287(g), which deputizes local law enforcement agencies to enforce federal

Trump Set to Kill Dreams

September 5, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary, Immigration

Diego watched his teenage brother murdered with a machete in Honduras when he was 12-years-old. Their father belonged to the wrong political faction in the Central American nation and his son died at the hands of a police sponsored 'death squad' that roamed Honduras in the early 2000s. Diego hid with his mother's family in a small village after the

Impeaching Trump is All about Bob

September 4, 2017 Civil Rights, Elections, General Commentary, Russia

Day after day, we are bombarded by reports of more and more ties between Russia and Donald Trump and his cabal. It seems that EVERYONE on Team Trump "coincidentally" has ties to Russia, whether it's Trump "consigliere" Michael Cohen's negotiations for Trump Tower Moscow during the campaign, Paul Manafort's spider web of connections with Kremlin-linked oligarchs and mobsters, Donald Trump,

DACA and The American Dream

September 4, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary, Immigration

800,000. Eight hundred thousand fellow humans and young adults, living the American dream just as you and I. Eight hundred thousand immigrants who came here illegally as children, but not through their own action. Who were brought over America's borders by their parents at a young age. They did not deliberately defy our laws. They did not try to pull

All The Fake News Fit To Print

September 1, 2017 Civil Rights, Elections, General Commentary

This weekend we suffered a tragedy in Charlottesville with KKK and American White Supremacists walking under a Nazi flag. The tragedy though was repeated when InfoWars went on the race baiting offensive claiming Jewish actors were part of the protest to make it look like Nazis were in Charlottesville. (InfoWars Video) The presence of David Duke confirms what we already

Slamming The Slammers

September 1, 2017 General Commentary, international

Can there be anything more disheartening than listening to yet one more rendition of "back when I was a lad"? Memory persists though. Too many years observing the human condition provides the mind with fodder for commentary. The trick is to remember the bad, along with all of the good. So having entered this strange territory they call mid-life, I

Make America America Again: A Canadian Responds to Donald Trump

August 31, 2017 Elections, General Commentary

Canada is in a unique position when it comes to evaluating what has happened in America since the election of Donald Trump, so I thought I would share my 2 cents. We are, of course, a separate country, with separate traditions, laws, languages (English and French), along with a different system of government altogether. We are, however, just across the

Police Have Made No Arrests Over Charlottesville Assault of 20 Year-Old Deandre Harris

August 31, 2017 Civil Rights

On August 12, five white supremacists were photographed and recorded on video beating 20-year old Deandre Harris in the midst of protests and counter protests regarding a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee and the racist ideology behind this icon. Harris wrote on his GoFundMe page, "No law enforcement stepped in to help me. Once I was dragged off

Heads Up America

August 30, 2017 General Commentary

I spent twelve hours today caring for critically ill people. Sure I glanced at the news a time or two but there was no time for an actual look. The look came after work. And now it's 10:46pm on August 15, 2017 and I have finally consumed all of the news I need to settle my brain for the night.

Someone Call 911 – There’s a Crime in Progress at the White House

August 29, 2017 General Commentary, Gun Violence

On Sunday, USA Today reported that Donald Trump is close to announcing the repeal of another Obama-era policy. This time, Trump is expected to roll back restrictions on the sale of military-grade weaponry and equipment to domestic police forces. Attorney General Jeff Sessions may make the reversal official as early as today while he addresses a national meeting of the

How You Can Help the Victims of Hurricane Harvey

August 29, 2017 General Commentary

Hurricane Harvey hit the Texas Gulf Coast late evening on August 25th. Many residents need your help. Experts say the best way to help when a disaster strikes is to donate to charities that are experienced in disaster relief. The American Red Cross and The Salvation Army are trained to respond to disasters such as Hurricane Harvey. "Right now the

Frontlines of Freedom

August 28, 2017 General Commentary

As a young, new, teacher when 9/11 happened, I had to somehow calm, reassure, and focus students who were scared, shocked, and crying. At the time, I was only a few years older than they, and feeling many of the same things. Over my career, I have had to take upon this role several times for school shootings, shootings in

Better Than Nothing

August 28, 2017 General Commentary

It happened in a parking lot. It's a story you've heard before. As I walked out of the bookstore and into the familiar chill of January in Ohio, I saw him watching me. I wasn't frightened; the neighborhood might not be the greatest, but I had lived there for thirteen years, long enough to know the difference between danger and

High School Boys Treated Like Women in Congress | Field Tripped

August 25, 2017 Civil Rights, Elections, General Commentary

Men make up 80% of congress, which means they have the majority vote on issues that directly affect women. This EPIC high school teacher is on a mission to show his male students what it feels like for the women in congress who don't have an equal say on policies that specifically affect females. In a vote about school policies,

If you still support Trump, then you support racism

August 25, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

When I was growing up, our neighbor had an above-ground swimming pool, a rarity in the tiny backyards of the homes on the Southside of Chicago. We could see the pool from our kitchen window. I often played with the kids who lived in that house and considered them friends. But come summertime, they naturally spent their days in the

The Best Medicine for the Bully in the White House

August 24, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

In the wake of Saturday's white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., Donald Trump offered watered-down criticisms of his neo-Nazi supporters. Facing a violent hate-inspired crisis and a vile act of domestic terrorism, Americans expected at least a modicum of compassion and strength from Trump in response. Trump's reluctance to speak out against his racist brethren prompted a forceful national reaction

Our Next Step, Our Choice, Our Time to Take A Side

August 24, 2017 General Commentary, Immigration

I watched a bride and groom exchanging vows in view of the sun setting on their life apart. The groomsmen entering the reception to a song by The Weeknd. The bridesmaids dancing in to a Bollywood classic. And the bride and groom slowly slipping into their new life to a traditional processional. I danced on a dance floor filled with

My Conversation With a Leading Election Technology Researcher Should Terrify You

August 23, 2017 Elections

Def Con is a 25 year old hacking convention where the worlds best hackers come together often highlighting security vulnerabilities in technology. This year, Def Con made news by raising awareness of our voting machine insecurities by challenging hackers to hack into the voting machines commonly used in this country for elections. These Def Con hacks took place in the

Trump’s speech was bad. The reaction from many pundits was even worse.

August 23, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

Well, that was embarrassing. For one night, Donald Trump succeeded in getting the Washington pundits to forget that he refused to stop equivocating on and coddling Nazis and white supremacists. All he had to do is essentially say nothing about Afghanistan. Let's be clear, that's what Trump's speech was. It was the Seinfeld of war speeches - a speech about

Intolerance

August 23, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

The conversation we are all having. Contributing Editor: mollyelwood

Bronzed Bullshit

August 23, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

I saw an interesting new stat this morning. According to an NPR/PBS/Marist poll, 62 percent of Americans want confederate statues to remain due to their historical significance, while only 27 percent want them removed. To explain why I find this particular poll interesting, I first have to let you into my world a bit. I consider myself a rhetorician, a

Pardon Me, but There’s No Excuse for Arpaio

August 22, 2017 General Commentary

Yesterday, the moon's shadow raced across Middle America, aweing millions who gazed skyward at the eclipse. Today, a less-inspiring darkness will descend upon Phoenix, Ariz. as Donald Trump and a few thousand paid actors cum supporters occupy the Phoenix Convention Center. As his approval ratings plummet, and every week is his "worst week ever," Trump continues to rely on 'ego

6 Decisions You Didn’t Know Were Made by State Legislators

August 22, 2017 Elections

A confession: Despite having voted along the party line for my state reps, I didn't know their names until November 9th, when I woke up and wanted to get much more involved in how decisions were being made in our country. The media reports a lot on what Congress and the Senate are doing, but state elected officials don't get

So, You Call Yourself A Christian?

August 22, 2017 General Commentary

With the way things are going I've decided that it's time to update this one. I spent a lot of time working on it. As you can see, I'm still working on it. I'm not trying to cause fights, I'm really not, but I feel that this needs to be said, and since I haven’t seen many people saying it,

Finding Hope in the Heartland

August 21, 2017 Elections, General Commentary

On November 8, 2016, I, along with 63 million other Americans, entered the voting booth and cast my vote for Donald J. Trump. I want you to know that my decision to vote for Trump was the culmination of months of debating whether I could even bring myself to vote for either candidate. I, like a lot of Americans, found

The Top 5 Lies of Trump’s Stolen Presidency

August 21, 2017 General Commentary

George Costanza from the hit TV Show Seinfeld, once told Jerry, "Remember, it is not a lie if you believe it". Donald Trump's surrogates must live by Costanza's statement because they are constantly trying to push a false narrative on every talk show across the country. Meet the Press host Chuck Todd calls these statements falsehoods, they are not falsehoods,

Ways to combat hate, bigotry and discrimination and help the victims of Charlottesville

August 18, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

The recent violence in Charlottesville, VA has many of us upset, hurt, confused and not sure where to turn to. We want to help, but it can be overwhelming. We may feel defeated and disheartened. We may feel like giving up, but we can't. We have to keep fighting for people like Heather Heyer and Deandre Harris and all the

What Do I Tell My Daughter?

August 18, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

She's nine. And brilliant. It's not so much my job to guide her as it is to get out of her way, though there are times when I'm of use. Sometimes she needs me to interpret the parts of the world that don't make sense to her. After watching inauguration day, she's confused. What do I tell her? She's special,

Nuts with Nukes

August 18, 2017 General Commentary, international

Donald Trump neither is fit to be president, nor qualified to issue an order for a nuclear first strike. His inability to seek counsel, weigh consequences, or consider the well-being of 325 million Americans not only handicap Trump's capacities for office, but also dynamically endanger the health and safety of every American - civilian and military alike. On Tuesday afternoon,

How We Indirectly Teach Racism, Sexism and Discrimination in Schools

August 17, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

It seems that every year another educational prophet or academic messiah comes along with the solution to all of our education and public school woes that we are supposedly facing in America. With policy after policy, then the same policy again, it is obvious that, if there are any failures in the school systems, they are not from the teachers

Trump’s Thin Red Line

August 17, 2017 Elections, Russia

It's the interview that launched a thousand misguided thinkpieces. On July 19th, three New York Times reporters presented a tautology to the President of the United States: if former FBI Director and current Special Counsel Bob Mueller does the one thing his appointment by the Department of Justice prevents him from doing-investigate matters that have nothing whatsoever to do with

Mightier Than the Sword

August 16, 2017 General Commentary

I am a message maker. I change minds. If I do my job well, the swayed minds I create don't even realize any change has occurred; they simply go on with their lives as if they had always believed what I told them to believe. Persuasion, you see, is an art, a powerful, subtle art, and one I have been

Can We Bridge The Political Divide With Baseball & An Empathy Tent In The Age Of Trump?

August 16, 2017 General Commentary

Watching social media since the Trump candidacy was announced could lead one to believe that the answer to the above question isn't 'Yes.' I'm reminded, however, of a question from a non-baseball fan that leads me to believe that yes we can! The question was 'how can you like baseball? It's so boring.' I asked what he liked, he said

The March of the Frightened

August 15, 2017 Civil Rights, General Commentary

What began as a march of irrelevant, underemployed white men with statue-issues escalated into a national tragedy on the streets of Charlottesville, Virginia last Saturday. It caused the death of American patriot Heather Heyer and, if justice exists, it will also bring about the death of the alt-right movement and the hate it spreads. But for all the fiery messages