September 2017

Americans have rights: freedom of speech, assembly and nonviolent protest.  The black NFL players “taking a knee” to the National Anthem is their peaceful protest of racial inequality in this country.  DJT called those players “sons of bitches”, yet he hailed the KKK and neo-Nazis in Charlottesville as “fine people”.  DJT pardoned Sheriff Arpaio, who violated the civil rights of many, contributing to some deaths.  Every U.S. president takes an oath to uphold our constitution, the laws and liberties inherent therein; his role should be uniting our citizenry, yet he is extremely divisive in all his words and actions.  Calling for the firing of those players (who  have contracts), and his minions calling for the firing of ESPN anchor, Jemele Hill,  for stating that “Donald Trump is a white supremacist, who has largely surrounded himself with other white supremacists”, is totally inappropriate!   He is worried about people disrespecting our flag and anthem; he is an ABSOLUTE DISGRACE TO OUR DEMOCRACY!

Trish Forsyth Voss

Republicans gave DJT the message that the legislative calendar was too packed to pass any tax-reform bill before late fall; the next day  DJT blindsided those GOP leaders by inviting Schumer and Pelosi to join their meeting, spurned the propositions of McConnell, Ryan and Mnuchin by readily agreeing to a deal proposed by “Chuck and Nancy”, who stood firm on a three-month extension of the debt ceiling and current spending plan and a relief bill for victims of Hurricane Harvey.   Trump pledged to work with Dems on DACA, declaring the wall could wait.  The GOP was shocked and angered.  Trump ran an end-run around them to “clear the deck” for his primary legislative priority: “tax reform for the American people”, which is code for huge tax-cuts for billionaire political donors.  This week the GOP is falling in line trying to Repeal and Replace ACA.                  Chuck and Nancy know the Art of the Deal.

Trish Forsyth Voss

Great people!  Galesburg, is just the right size city for me; a good place to raise kids among a somewhat diverse population, good schools, teachers, sports teams, and many churches, a community college and historic Knox college, around which Galesburg was planned and built; people who care enough to renovate and restore the great old homes — a treasure  of architectural styles; a variety of annual activities to participate in, Railroad Days festivities, Taste of Galesburg, the Big Bang Boom, Heritage Days, the Stearman Fly-in; the Civic Arts center, art shows, theatres, plays, shopping, unique shops, massage therapists, yoga, spiritual study groups, several high-quality restaurants to enjoy, parks, gyms, a soon-to-be new library,  a hometown daily newspaper — complete with lively debates, the Unify Galesburg forum,an interesting and storied history, public services, good people involved in local public service, politics and community affairs, not too much vehicle traffic, and many awesome, new improvements in and around our burg!   I love “our town”!

Trish Forsyth Voss

On Google, I looked up “Fox news polls”; it showed: “Online Poll Maker – make your own Free poll today – instant results – live interactive audience participation”.  Who answers Fox polls?  I don’t.  Most liberals probably don’t.  I doubt their polling would be a fair representation of the majority of Americans.  See Tuesday’s Register-Mail archive article: “1938 saw the Rise of Adolf Hitler”.  Hitler, who at the outset of his takeover gave this speech to the Reichstag:  “We have seen that a certain portion of the foreign press inundated the new Reich with a virtual flood of lies and calumnies.  Whoever disturbs this mission is the enemy of the people, whether he pursues his aim as a Bolshevist democrat, a revolutionary terrorist, or a reactionary dreamer.”  Trump hasn’t studied much, but he has studied Hitler, who seduced the German people with his mesmerizing rants and ideology for a pure Germanic race.   Turning gullible subjects against a free, independent press is the first step in the Tryanny 101 handbook.

Trish Forsyth Voss