Category: Politik

“Democratic Socialism:” an oxymoron (Part Two)

Socialism, by which I mean “pure socialism” is a great way to generate votes in societies that are functional democracies.  People want free housing, free healthcare, free schools, free police protection, free public transportation, etc., etc. The current mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani,  ran his campaign on these ideas and he won the office by a substantial majority.

He is not the first:  Prior to the 1979 Iranian Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini presented himself as a unifying, populist leader, promising comprehensive political freedom, social justice, and economic prosperity. Khomeini tailored his message to appeal to a broad coalition of secular liberals, leftists, and religious traditionalists who all opposed the authoritarian rule of the Shah.

Prior to taking power in 1959, Fidel Castro promised to restore democracy, reinstate Cuba’s progressive 1940 Constitution, and implement moderate social reforms. Castro initially presented himself as a nationalist liberator rather than a communist. He intentionally moderated his rhetoric to unite a broad coalition of wealthy liberals, middle-class professionals, and rural peasants against the brutal dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista.

Prior to the 1945 August Revolution, Ho Chi Minh promised absolute national independence, democratic freedoms, and moderate social reforms targeting colonial and feudal oppression. Ho Chi Minh minimized class-warfare Marxist rhetoric during his rise to power. Instead, he founded the Viet Minh (League for the Independence of Vietnam) in 1941 as a broad, patriotic, non-partisan coalition designed to unite landlords, peasants, bourgeoisie, and workers against French colonialists and Japanese occupiers.

Prior to the October Revolution of 1917, Vladimir Lenin  captivated the Russian public with a hyper-focused, radical populist platform summarized by his famous three-word slogan: “Peace, Land, Bread.” Amidst the chaos of World War I and the collapse of the Russian monarchy, the Provisional Government chose to stay in the war, which triggered massive public anger. Lenin exploited this frustration by presenting the Bolsheviks as the only party capable of meeting the urgent needs of the suffering working class, peasants, and soldiers.

The Bolsheviks promised an abolishment of private property, redistribution of wealth to all “comrades,” and an end to the food shortages that had plagued Czarist Russia.

Most of these regimes made good on their promises. People did receive free housing, free health care, free education, and a handful of others. In return the ruling parties installed brutal dictators who eradicated freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press and many other rights that we in the west take for granted.

The biggest scam of all was the National Socialist Party (NAZI Party) of post WWI Germany (led by Adolph Hitler) which was a complete oxymoron.  There was nothing socialistic about the NAZIism, though it was Nationalistic. I only mention it in this essay on socialism because they had adopted that word to describe themselves. They were SINOs: Socialists in Name Only.

The reality is this: No country in the world currently practices “pure socialism” as a textbook economic system. In its purest theoretical form, socialism requires complete public, state, or worker ownership of all means of production, distribution, and exchange, alongside the total elimination of private profit and market-driven capitalism

Instead of pure systems, modern nations operate on a spectrum, utilizing different economic models that blend socialist ideals with practical realities.

Marxist-Leninist States (Authoritarian Socialism)
These nations are historically the closest to “pure socialism” because their governments exercise immense central control over the economy, though they have all introduced market reforms to survive.

Cuba: The state dominates almost all industries and provides universal healthcare and education, but it allows restricted private entrepreneurship.

North Korea: Operates a highly isolated, centrally planned command economy. However, it officially prioritizes its homegrown Juche ideology over traditional Marxism and tolerates illegal or semi-legal private markets.

China, Vietnam, and Laos: These nations maintain ruling Communist parties and heavy state intervention. However, they are structurally mixed economies or “state capitalist” systems that heavily rely on global trade, private businesses, and foreign investment.

The Nordic Model (Social Democracies)
People frequently point to countries like Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland as examples of successful socialism. These are not socialist countries.They are highly successful mixed market economies.

  • They feature high economic freedom and robust private property rights.
  • They fund extensive social safety nets, universal healthcare, and free education through high personal income taxes.

Constitutionally Socialist Nations
Several countries list “socialism” in their founding documents or official names, such as India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nicaragua. Despite the constitutional language, these nations operate primarily as capitalist or mixed market economies, and the term is used historically to reflect social justice goals rather than state ownership of production.

Socialism in Fiction
The United Federation of Planets as it is depicted in the science fiction franchise, Star Trek, is probably the ultimate in socialism as (at least on Earth). The Federation utilizes a post-scarcity, moneyless economy where humanity is no longer driven by the acquisition of wealth. Instead, citizens focus on self-improvement, personal growth, and contributing to the betterment of society, with basic necessities provided abundantly by advanced technology.

In Star Trek: First Contact, Captain Jean-Luc Picard explains it this way: Lily Sloan, (whom Picard is encountering in 2063) asked Picard how much the Enterprise-E cost to build.
Picard: “The economics of the future is somewhat different. You see, money doesn’t exist in the 24th century.”
Sloan: “No money? You mean you don’t get paid?”
Picard: “The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives. We work to better ourselves and the rest of Humanity“

The Federation functions across several core principles:

          • Post-Scarcity and Replicators: Advanced replicator technology eliminates the fundamental need for money by synthesizing food, clothing, and everyday items instantly. Because the cost of an item is effectively reduced to the energy required to produce it, poverty and hunger have been entirely eradicated.
          • The Pursuit of Passion: Without the requirement to work for survival, labor is voluntary. Individuals are free to pursue vocations they are passionate about—whether that’s Starfleet exploration, scientific research, art, or teaching.
          • Federation Credits: While internal commerce is obsolete among Federation citizens, the Federation uses “credits” as a medium of exchange when trading with non-Federation cultures (such as the Ferengi) that still utilize currency-based economies.
          • The Limits of Abundance: Despite the post-scarcity model, certain resources cannot simply be replicated. Large assets like starships, land, and specific raw materials are limited, requiring coordination and rationing within Starfleet.

          The government appears to be a social democracy, set up along the lines of the Constitution of the United States. Each planet has a seat and a delegation in the Federation General Assembly; each country has a seat and a delegation on it’s planets general assembly.  What we’re looking at here is an intergalactic version of the United States democracy.  On Earth they have eliminated the use of currency.  There is private ownership/control of individual businesses, but instead of making a profit these “entrepreneurs” get housing, food, health care, a means of transportation, vacations – basically anything they want. They just have to provide the service, or the goods to whomever visits their business. Likewise the individual worker may obtain anything they need or want in exchange for their doing their job.

          An example comes from the series, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Commander Sisko’s father is a restaurateur and chef in New Orleans. A customer enters the restaurant, and transaction goes along just as one would expect, except that at they end no money is exchanged (and of course, no tip). Everyone works at a job or a self-owned business, but everyone does what they want to do. They do what makes them better persons; they work for “the good of all.”

          One would think that because society provides all your needs and wants that there would be no property crime. But, humans are still human and there will always be a few people who just refuse to live within the law. But their crimes are way more heinous because there is simply no excuse for it.

          Although I believe that the ultimate destiny of mankind is to emulate the Star Trek economy, the problem here is that this is Science Fiction, the key word here being “fiction.” It would be a great thing if people were naturally altruistic, but history has proven otherwise.

          Historically, every experiment in instituting socialism has failed its citizens. Oh, for the most part, these governments have made good on their promises, but the trade offs are brutal, because in exchange for giving you all the “free stuff” these governments have taken away your civil liberties. The most extreme case is the Islamic Republic of Iran.  Iran’s citizens live under the brutal rule of Sharia Law, which (for example) should a woman be found wearing the hijab improperly or failing to wear it entirely it violates strict state laws, which can result in harsh penalties ranging from severe fines and confiscation of vehicles to extended prison sentences, flogging, or even the death penalty for repeat offenders or perceived organizers of dissent.

          Many countries have the words “democratic” or “republic” in their official name and most of the time they are oxymoronic, in that they are neither democracies or republics, and their citizenry certainly does not enjoy the rights and privileges that the words “democratic” and “republic” imply, at least this has been true historically. Does that mean that “democratic socialists” absolutely must end up as autocratic shit-holes? No, but the historical record suggests that humans are weak, and will give in to the chance to play god if so tempted.

          Having said all that, I have to state that it is my hope that someday people will put aside petty selfishness and decide to voluntarily and individually act for the good of society at large.  The dawning of the Age of Aquarius is upon us. There is hope therefore that humanity will wake up.

      (This is Part Two of Two Parts. Read Part One HERE)

“Democratic Socialism:” an oxymoron (Part One)

It is poor literacy and understanding that leads people to label themselves as “democratic” socialists. Socialism is the collectivization of the means of production. This means resources are owned in common and it needs to be decided how they are to be allocated. Now you can argue that rather than having an authoritarian government handle the economic planning, the planning can be done through direct or representative democracy on a larger scale. However, that misses the point. It actually doesn’t matter if the central body of planners are democratically elected, selected by merit, or dictatorial party members. One might be better than another but all of them fail in the end because of the “Knowledge Problem” as explained by F.A. Hayek. Planning still means one idea flowing downwards in the economy as to what needs to be produced or not produced. Although central planners could grasp the scale of a village economy (such as happens on Israeli Kibbutzim), historically, it has not proven possible on a national scale. It is impossible to have the required knowledge to interfere in such an equilibrium. People’s preferences change on an individual level not even daily but by the minute based on many external factors like environment, culture etc. No socialist tool such as “surveys” and the like can fix that. Those methods are simply ineffective at accurately relaying necessary information and accomplish the satisfaction of the needs of even the minority of society. This is why market economies have been successful because they are a decentralized model where everyone expresses their preferences by their own volition through purchasing or not purchasing goods and many entrepreneurs are in constant competition to fulfill those needs or be expelled from the market altogether. This is why the comrades in the USSR produced a lot of jeans but not enough buttons for them because the arbitrary planners allocated that resource elsewhere. Whereas in the market you have a constant trial to increase the  efficiency of production methods.

Now a lot of socialist revolutions are initially democratic as the well meaning people get together to take down the “tyrants” and create the equal utopia. However they soon realize the problems of the system. This is why we should promote  individual talents in a way that it collectively benefits society rather than make everyone less productive. At this point, the bulk of the population is tired being told what to do and what reward they will get in spite of all the inefficiency in their economic life. But the revolutionaries who are now in power don’t want to relinquish control. After all they have a near dogmatic belief in the greatness of socialism, and the evil of capitalism. Thus it is natural that eventually almost all socialist societies end up oppressing their populations while the rules of socialism itself don’t apply to the new great class of revolutionary-bureaucrats. I don’t even have to quote examples of this you all know that 20th century has been the history of collapse of all the societies I’ve just described. Thus it is no surprise there eventually are only two roads. Either you liberalize like a lot of “socialist” countries already have done or a strongman takes control.

An alternative is market socialism which states that co-operatives can compete in a market. Co-ops already exist under market economies. Demanding that every firm function as a co-op is just limiting free competition and thus reducing productivity. For a completely co-op based economy the factors of production would still need to be centrally allocated as there is no private property and this also opens the stage for nepotism, bribery and corruption.  Some failures could be considered exceptions but historically the above has been the rule if you aren’t deluded enough to not see it. Excuses don’t work to defend what has been true for almost every socialist experiment.

People hear politicians proclaim that they are “Democratic Socialists,” but history has proven that all socialist societies, by which I mean “pure socialist,” usually deliver on what they promised to get into power, but ultimately the trade off for free housing, free food, free whatever has been your civil liberties. “You shouldn’t bite the hand that feeds you” takes on a whole new meaning here. It means if you do “bite” (criticize, engage in civil disobedience, strike, picket) you may well end up in a gulag.

People, even those raised in Western Democracies, may fall victim to the rhetoric of “Democratic Socialism” because they believe it to actually mean “Social Democracy” such as the Scandinavian countries have actually achieved.

(This is Part One of Two Parts.  Read Part Two HERE)

Why the “palestinians” are interlopers

One of the biggest and lesser known stories of Nov 29 is that the lands allocated to a Jewish state (two color map) were essentially those the Zionists reclaimed from malaria through land purchase, science and education (the two-tone blue map is the incidents of malaria and the middle map shows Jewish land ownership of those lands reclaimed from malaria).

Moreover, the sudden and extremely rapid increase of the Arab population in the 1920’s and 1930’s in this barely populated backwater region (this was the highest population increase rate in the world in 1931/2) was only in part due to immigration spurred by Zionist development of the land. The major share of the massive Arab population increase was thanks to Malaria eradication, which was the work of the Galician born famed microbiologist and ardent Zionist Dr. Israel Kligler (credit to the great historical work of Anton Alexander).

With this knowledge it remains even a greater tragedy that the now much more numerous Arabs of the land directed their efforts towards brutally fighting Zionism rather than choosing to live side by side with an emerging Jewish state. More than a year after the Oct 7 massacre we mark once more the Nov 29 moment when the Jews said yes to the UNGA plan of partition (having prioritized having a state, even if tiny and mostly desert and lands reclaimed from malaria and no Zion and no Judea) and the Arabs said no and proceeded to wage a brutal war to the present day (having prioritized – still – the goal of the Jews not having a state at all and of any size).

 

(Note on map titles: for twenty centuries, before a campaign of denial was underway, it was well understood that the name “Palestine” merely denoted the Roman/Christian/Colonial/European name for the geographic region where the Land of Israel was and was therefore deeply associated with Jews and the their continuous connection to the land.
Hence the League of Nation in establishing the mandate recognized the “historical connection of the Jewish people with Palestine” as the “grounds for reconstituting their national home in that country” and which is why the Palestine Philharmonic Orchestra of Jewish musicians became the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra…)”

Open Letter to the Democratic National Committee

Since the beginning of 2026 I have responded to every letter, email, ad in my newsfeed, etc; from the DNC (or affiliates) with a version of the following letter. This includes surveys (which are really fund raising methods … actually everything I receive from the Democratic Party is a fund raising attempt).
I have a little problem. Although I am a lifelong Democrat, as were my parents and my grandparents (I am 72 now), and although I agree100% with the Party’s platform concerning women’s rights, LGBTQ rights, senior rights, and a host of other issues, I cannot in good conscious support the Party monetarily so long as they tolerate antisemitism (usually hiding under the word anti-Zionism), especially at the leadership level. Mostly here, I am referring to the anti-Israel comments by Senator Bernie Sanders (whom I voted for when he ran for POTUS) and those ladies popularly referred to as “The Squad.” Bernie and “the squad” are right most of the time, I would even say I agree with them 95% of the time, but they repeat lie, after lie, after lie about Israel. It’s like I am hearing Donald Trump (the liar in chief) and the MAGAs, the lies are so incredibly nauseating.
  • Israel is not practicing apartheid.
  • Israel was not founded by European Colonialists.
  • Israel is not now, not has it ever committed genocide.

These are all lies: propaganda authored by people who hate Jews, and these lies make Bernie, “The Squad,” and the Democratic Party look like blatant hypocrites.

Progressives (and I would characterize myself as a Progressive) are supposed to stand against misogyny, racism, oligarchical rule, yet, by attacking Israel, they are seen as supporting regimes that suppress women, openly murder LGBTQ individuals and Arab oligarchs (such as the leaders of Hamas, Hezbollah, ISIS, etc.).

Concerning the hypocrisy of Progressives

When I posted the above meme on Facebook, boy did I get some backlash. Progressives don’t like it when someone points out how hypocritical they are.

Example 1: They claim to be pro-woman and anti-misogyny, yet they support a country that subjugates women in some of the worst ways.  In Gaza and in parts of the “west Bank,” women are forced to wear the hijab, not allowed to leave the house without a male escort, not allowed to work in healthcare (or many other professions). Their husbands have permission from their prophet to beat them, or divorce them without notice. In even stricter Islamic regimes such as Iran, they are not allowed an education, are forced to wear the burka (where all you can see is their eyes), and not allowed to drive a car. In some of these countries teenage girls are subjected to FGM  I think the only thing stopping that from happening in Gaza or the “west bank” is those countries proximity to Israel.

Example 2: Progressives claim to support LGBTQ rights. In Gaza and parts of the “west bank” it is routine for LGBTQ citizens to be thrown from the tops of buildings, or drug from behind pickup trucks.

Example 3: Progressives want to see the right to vote enshrined for everyone. The last time the citizens of Gaza were allowed the opportunity to vote was in January 2006. That was twenty years ago.

Example 4:  Progressives, for the most part, claim to be pacifists. On October 7, 2023 Hamas terrorists invaded  Israel from Gaza, Thousands of militants breached the Gaza-Israel security fence at over 30 points using explosives, bulldozers, and paragliders and targeted more than 20 Israeli towns, kibbutzim, and the Nova Music Festival, where over 300 people were killed. Approximately 1,200 people were killed, including civilians, women, children, and the elderly. It was the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust. Around 251 people were abducted and taken into the Gaza Strip as hostages. The terrorists committed heinous atrocities, including gang raping women and teenagers (some women were found with their pelvises broken in multiple spots); torturing and murdering parents in front of their children, and children in front of their parents. Infants were executed in microwave ovens.  Am I exaggerating?  Not at all. These monsters were so proud of themselves that they video recorded it.

How did Progressives respond? Many of them applauded the terrorists, saying that Israel had it coming, and justifying it with a litany of lies (Israel practices “apartheid,” “Israel “illegally” occupies the west bank, Israel “enslaves” the “palestinian” people, etc., etc., ad-infinitum, ad-nauseum).  Funny thing about the lies: Progressives are fond of pointing out Donald Trumps pathological lies, but when it comes to Israel and the Jews, they are guilty of much worse.

Don’t get me wrong. Donald is by far the worst POTUS our country has ever endured. He undoubtedly wants to be a dictator (a “King”). 

A lot of Jews (a minority, thankfully) support Trump. They point out that he moved the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, this recognizing Jerusalem as the legitimate and historical capital of Israel . They point out that he recognized Israel’s legal control over the Golan Heights. They point out that he expedited military aid to Israel.  All this indicates is that like a broken clock, Trump is right about something twice a day.  What they don’t see (or don’t want to see) is a man who has been a lifelong antisemitic, who will throw Israel and Jews under the bus as soon as we no longer serve a purpose for him.

For Progressives, these decisions further turn them away from Israel simply because Trump made them. No other reason. Trump did it so it must be wrong. Trump supports Israel, therefore Progressives must not, even though it implies that Progressives are supporting regimes with heinous records regarding the civil rights of women, LGBTQ an ordinary citizens. “Oh but that’s not true,” they will say, “it’s really about freedom of religion. People have the right to believe and practice any religious dogma they prefer.”  People have such a right, but Jews are not “people.” So it depends upon whether your religion is acceptable or not for you to have the right to practice.  It doesn’t matter that in many cases people have been forced to convert to Islam (and the Quron states in numerous places that people must convert to Islam or be executed). Another hypocrisy: Progressives believe in freedom of religion yet they support a religion that denies that very freedom.

Most Progressives are atheists or agnostics. This illuminates yet another hypocrisy. They will say that they support Moslems because we have “freedom of religion,” but in reality they would outlaw all religion if they could.  When they wish they are all into exposing conservatives for being pedophiles, or gay, or adulterers, but they could easily apply some of that to Islam, which promotes pedophilia (Mohammad’s first wife was six years old when they married. He waited until she was nine to consummate) misogyny (including FGM), and the wholesale murder of LGBTQ individuals. They disallow the freedom of the press (except for Iran’s propaganda outlets such as Al Jazeera), freedom of speech, and most of the other items listed on the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights.  They won’t because after all “Islam is the religion of Peace,” (tell that to the victims of Oct 7 2023) and besides it’s very fashionable to support Moslem rights above everyone else’s right (such as Israel’s right to exist).

 

Progressive Zionist groups on Facebook

Here is listed all of the groups currently on Facebook (as of 03/29/2026) identifying as Zionist and Progressive/Liberal. These groups are showing a total of 37,084 members. Granted, some people probably belong to more than one group or even all of these groups.

What does “Progressive Zionist” even mean? By “Progressive,” we mean basically that we more or less support those domestic issues promoted by Bernie Sanders and members of the Congressional “Squad.” By “Zionist” we mean that we unequivocally and unabashedly support Israel’s right to exist and defend itself, and the Jewish peoples right to sovereignty in the land formerly governed by the British Mandate for Palestine(1920-1948), including Samaria / Judea (aka, “the West Bank”).

Linda Grindel

I’ve written about progressive psychic mediums before. My wife is particularly fond of them, and I find them to be consistently entertaining and insightful. I’ll include a few links to the ones I find that are accurate. However, like most progressives, they tend to embrace an antisemitic worldview, especially in regard to Israel.

The worst one, as far as being blatantly antisemitic, is Linda Grindel.   In practically every podcast she produces (except when she’s a guest with others), she disparages Israel in some way.

In her latest podcast, she found the straw that broke the camel’s back. She stated on the air that her “spirit guides” informed her that Israel participated in the assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
Linda’s pod cast 2/26/2026

I believe in a lot of things. I believe that we have spiritual advisors that dwell between the worlds that give us insights or advice about things going on in our lives. Other than “spirit guides,” I’m not sure what else you can call them. Some people call them Angels. Celtic-oriented people might refer to them as “faery.” I believe that some people are gifted with the ability to access these entities at will. Psychics, Mediums, Gurus, Shamans, and maybe even some Rabbis are gifted in this way.

I can state here that Linda Grindel’s “guides” did not tell her that Israel, the Mosshav, the IDF, or any other Israelis had anything to do with the assassination of JFK.

Guides do not lie. They are incapable of it. People lie. Politicians lie. Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Adolf Hitler, Tucker Carlson, and many others are pathological liars. (Do you know how to tell when one of them is lying? Their lips move.) 

Progressive Psychic Mediums, such as Linda, claim that they get their information from these spirit guides (or they may call them Angels, ETs, famous people from history, etc,)

But in this case Linda Grindel is either lying, or she is listening to entities that are not benevolent or who do not hold human beings (or Homo sapiens) in high regard or have any respect for them. A third possibility is that Linda is just bat-crap “cray cray.”

Israel has always held the United States and certain of our POTUSs in very high regard. JFK was admired so much that in the hills outside of Bethany there is a perpetual memorial flame that burns in honor of JFK.

 

President Kennedy was very supportive of Israel. Here is a link to some of his remarks at the August 26, 1960 convention of the Zionist Organization of America in New York City.

 

“WE THE PEOPLE…”

These aren’t just empty words without meaning. They are magick. They were written by magicians. Yes, the founding fathers were magicians. They were Freemasons, and back then (not so much today) those words were a magick spell, a spell that proclaimed to the whole world that WE THE PEOPLE — WE THE COLLECTIVE OF CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES –we would be in control of OUR (not “my”, not any one individuals) OWN DESTINY.

What happens in Washington, WE make that happen. Yes, we’ve lost track of things, and yes, and few very rich guys have taken over a few things, but WE THE PEOPLE are still in control, and those of us who use magick can take it all back.

Capitalism is an imperfect system if allowed to just run on it’s own, will allow countless people to starve to death. WE THE PEOPLE — WE THE COLLECTIVE THAT GOVERNS THESE UNITED STATES — we know that if one man is homeless, if one child is hungry, if one person lacks an income WE ALL SUFFER for that. Individualism is a LIE. It’s a very temporary condition, that lasts from the day you are born until the day you die. And then it ends, and you merge back into the collective. THOU ART G-D. That’s what it means. We are here, in this temporary condition, to learn to take care of each other. To overcome the illusion of our individuality. In the deeper reality, the collective is all that there is, and all that has meaning. WE ARE OUR BROTHERS KEEPER. We use government to protect those who through no fault of their own, have fallen victim to capitalistic excess. We use government to put restraints on businesses so that they don’t clearcut the forests; or do what ever the hell they want just for profit because they feel they are “free” to do so.

It’s simple: when my mitral valve failed and had to be replaced, so did yours. So did everyones. Everyone is connected — no one is separate, and that is why we have welfare and food stamps, and why most of the world enjoys free healthcare, and free public education, and much much more (and yes we here should too).

WE THE PEOPLE can take it back, and make this country what it was destined to be — not the United States of (North) America — the United States of the World. Yes, ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT — by the people, for the people, for (WE) THE PEOPLE. Do you honestly believe that the Constitution was written for just 13 states? It was written for the whole world!

 

An email from Duck L’Orange

Honestly, I do not know how I got on this mailing list. Reading it, it’s just one outlandish lie after another. Even the first line is a lie: I have never contacted the White House. I’ll put an asterisk next to every lie I found and bolded it:

Thank you for *contacting the White House.

This Labor Day weekend, President Donald J. Trump *continues to deliver historic victories for the American people.

As a direct result of President Trump’s *pro-growth, *pro-American energy agenda, this weekend, *gas prices are at their lowest price since 2020.  Additionally, *hotel rates are down about 11%, *domestic airfares are down 6% from last year, and *car rental costs are down 3%.  Just as President Trump promised, *America is becoming affordable again.

President Trump *continues to put American workers first.  *Blue-collar wages are rising, private sector *job growth is exploding, *domestic steel production is booming, and the President’s historic *trade deals and landmark tax cuts are *propelling unprecedented opportunity, growth, and success for American families.

American *pride is also roaring back.  This week, President Trump signed an Executive Order to restore respect, honor, and sanctity to the American flag and prosecute those who desecrate this universal symbol of our freedom, identity, and strength.  The *Trump Administration’s revolution of common sense continues—and once again, we are a Nation that cherishes our history and respects our great American traditions.

*Stable prices, booming jobs, and rising confidence are lifting every corner of our Nation—and President Trump is only getting started.

To learn more, visit WhiteHouse.gov.

Here is the email I replied with:

Do you get a commission for every lie you tell?  Because I can tell whenever Duck L’Orange (my name for our POTUS) tells a lie: his lips move. Thank Hashem, when and however tRump leaves office, no Republitard will ever serve in that office again.

My reply email bounced, because the email address it was sent to (which was coded into the original) was noreply@contact.whitehouse.gov  See, they don’t even have the guts to allow comment on their lies.

Had a chat with “Grok” today

In this case “Grok” is not simply a Martian vernacular word from Heinlein’s Stranger In A Strange Land, rather, Grok is a conversational AI chatbot developed by xAI, Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company. It’s designed to be a powerful assistant that can answer questions, generate text, create images, and even write code. Grok is known for its ability to access real-time information through X (formerly Twitter) and its “rebellious” streak, which allows it to tackle “spicy” questions often avoided by other AI models.

I asked Grok about the Reformed Druids of Gaia (RDG).  Here is what  “she” told me:  “The RDG was co-founded by Ceridwen Seren-Ddaear and Sybok Pendderwydd (aka: Robert M. Larson), in 1996.  Her real name is Ceridwen Arseneau. Ceridwen and Robert are married and they also co-founded the Order of the Mithril Star together.”

Several things are just so wrong in this. First of all, Ceridwen’s real name is Karyn Arseneau. She has used the pseudonym “Ceridwen Seren-Ddaear” throughout her career as a neo-pagan elder/practitioner. I have used the pseudonym “Sybok Pendderwydd” off and on throughout my pagan career as well. I have NEVER used the name “Robert Larson.”  Order of the Mithril Star (OMS) was founded by myself and Duane Adam Rostoker (aka, “Adam Walks Between Worlds”) in  1996 at Big Basin Redwoods State Park, following a “Bring Back the Snakes” party at nearby Boulder Creek Brewery circa St. Patrick’s Day.  RDG was founded by myself and Karyn Arseneau around the Pagan feast of Mabon in 2006.

Grok provided some history of RDG:  “Specific to leadership requirements, circa 2013-2014 there was a mandate issued by the retiring Archdruid that his replacement (as well as those in other RDG leadership roles) must be politically far left and/or affiliated with the Green Party (USA residents).”

This is only partially true. RDG members are expected to be Progressive in their political leanings, but there was never a “mandate” issued by a “retiring Archdruid” (whom I guess is me, but rest assured I never issued such a requirement). I can especially reassure you that I have never endorsed the Green Party, which, in at least the last decade, has proven itself to be radically antisemitic.

“Specific to leadership requirements, circa 2013-2014 there was a mandate issued by the retiring Archdruid that his replacement (as well as those in other RDG leadership roles) must be pansexually (or at least bisexual) polyamorous naturists.”

Another bald-faced lie. No such “mandate” has ever been issued. However, RDG (and it’s parent group, OMS) are heavily influenced by Robert Heinlein’s Stranger In A Strange Land, which depicts polyamory and naturism as lifestyle choices. I have written extensively on these topics over the years.

“Unusual pattern of RDG Third Degrees approaching RDNA Third Order Druids requesting the secret Third Order Ordination liturgical scripts There is the perception in the RDNA that RDG Third Degrees are required to attempt to acquire the RDNA scripts. The manipulative sense of entitlement presented is mildly to harassingly disturbing.”

We were formed as the result of a  “vision” of  Karyn’s of seeing Reformed Druidism expanded to a planet wide paradigm, rather then the Reformed Druids of North America’s (RDNA) limitation to just the North American continent.  That’s why we are “of Gaia.”  As for our ordination of Third Order candidates (yes, we call them “Orders,” not “degrees”) requiring such candidates to attempt to procure RDNA’s 3rd Order Scripts — that’s just bull  feces.  It is true that VERY early on we did attempt to find some examples of such scripts, (just as other pagan groups might try to procure materials from groups they are closely related to, which is VERY common) it was found that we could come up with our own scripts (which currently vary from Archdruid to Archdruid and from Grove to Grove).  

These three “accusations” are the usual broadbrush attempt to discredit us. I am very sure that these attempts did not come from any RDNA sources, as we have never had anything but friendship and mutual respect from members and officers of the RDNA. No, I suspect that this originated with members of the N-RDNA (New Reformed Druids of North America) which is a group which officially schismed from the RDNA in 1976 (instigated  by Isaac Bonewits). Some NRDNA members are “embarrassed”  by this and frequently attempt to “blur the line” between their schismatic group and the legitimate RDNA, often characterizing themselves in the role of “spokes persons” for the RDNA. They have been highly critical of the RDG since it’s conception, and particularly because of our close associating with the lifestyles promoted by the Church of All Worlds (CAW) (specifically polyamory and naturism) and so spread outright propaganda and insinuations concerning sexual lifestyles among RDG members.  Very much like how Christians attack their critics: there is always some accusation of sexual abnormality.

Now, getting back to our initial topic here:  I am a tad curious as to why my name, Ellis Arseneau, did not come up in Grok’s “research(?).  My pseudonym (Sybok Pendderwydd) certainly did, as did Karyn’s (Ceridwen Seren_Ddaer) but Karyn’s real name did appear.  I suppose that over the years I have been too zealous at keeping my public persona private (and my employment).  Now that I am retired and in my 70’s such precautions no longer seems required.

BUT — who the hell is Robert M. (or C.M. Larson?  I certainly have never use that moniker and Karyn was surprised when I told her she was married to him! LOL!!!