Babyboomer Tailgaters

I am one of the babyboomer tailgaters.
Most babyboomers have reached 65. They have their retirements. They have Social Security. Their work and lives have been during a lucrative era. They smugly sit at home with retirement packages and 401k's voting in line with the Tea Party.
This generation had advantages no other generation experienced. Their parents, most gone, gave them the sense they were the most important generation of our world.
They act like it. They believe if you can't make it in this life you deserve to suffer. This generation who fought for equal rights, civil rights and helping those less fortunate are truly the most selfish of generations.
Now they don't want to pay for anything not related to their retirement lives.
As a tailgater in my fifties no benefits come my way that come close to the Boomers.
Many people in their fifties have been laid off to save money. Congress wants to screw with Social Security. People have lost jobs, homes, retirement investments and the kids come home to live because no jobs are available.
Those in their fifties are deemed not desirable to hire. They are left to figure out how to survive in a world with no safety net and no promise of Social Security.
A few years ago I bought a bed from a man losing his house. He was a rocket scientist who had been laid off from his government job after 20 years. He was moving in with his daughter and son in law.

The tailgaters hang on to whatever jobs they can, take pay cuts, work extra hours and dread retirement. What will they have? No investment money from a home. No 401k. No chance to build a lifetime of savings such as the younger generations. Continued responsibility for elderly parents, adult children.
Increasing prices in the cost of living.

Tailgaters are discriminated by age in the job market. NO protections (or little) are left to protect them in a hostile work environment.

Congress is so corrupt we have no democratic recourse to change the situation.
Tailgaters are screwed.

Sarah Palin, five minutes of fame and millions later

When you are on the road in a red, white and blue bus, stomping the important election venues with only one purpose: to rake in the high speaking fees, why would you want to run for President of the United States?
Take a pay cut?
Hopefully, the relevance of this person will decrease, knowing her loyalty to the country was a sham to begin with.

Vaccinate? Delusion or Truth?

My daughter refuses to vaccinate her 17 month old son. She reports a teacher in her school told her they were more dangerous than the possibilities.
Having grown up during a time of limited vaccines, I remember contracting the measles, mumps and chicken pox. Hepatitis wasn't even a disease.
Whooping cough and polio were still in evidence.
I can't seem to get her to understand the seriousness of these diseases.
Many of her friends feel the same way. She adamantly believes autism may be a result of vaccinations. No proof is proof for her.
That seems to be the root of many of the problems in our country today.
Truth, or proof, seems to be automatically suspect.
How did we become such an ignorant and stubborn population?
One which will destroy ourselves because we do not have the capability to sort out truth from deception.
Have we been deceived by those in positions of authority so often we have become a nation of disbelievers, regardless of the consequences??

Seniors, don't count on that drink..

Research shows elderly people live longer if they see events in their lives with  the "glass half full" attitude.
I suppose that would be true if the Republicans weren't so intent on taking the glass away from seniors and telling them to be grateful they ever had a drink in the first place.

School Districts Fail Children Not Teachers

When will the public start asking questions? Teachers have no control over the curriculum, the schedule of the curriculum or the evaluation of students.  School district administrations call the shots.
School districts are failing because no one is looking in the right direction.
When Americans scrutinize, evaluate and hold school district administrators accountable for the poor management of the thousands of competent, qualified teachers, education will change.
This nation is shooting at the wrong targets.
In the business world management heads would roll if the product was inferior.
Only in education do school administrations continue to get paid the 100,00 plus salaries with little accountability.
The inferior product is not a result of the teachers. It is a result of  poor management, high turnover, and cronyism.
What is with this country?
Start asking the right questions.
Who sets the curriculum for the district?
Who tells teachers what to teach and how?
How much actual time is set for instruction as opposed to testing and other required district and school functions? Who sets policy for homework ?
How are instructional materials acquired in a school district?
What redress do teachers have when an unethical administrator runs the school?
How does the district handle poor administration of schools?
Who oversees poor administration on a district level?
Where does the money go beyond teachers salaries?
Districts will give all kinds of pat answers to those questions. The real truth is teachers are not a part of the decision making process for what and how your children learn. It is school administrators who call the shots.
Hold them accountable.

Americans are shooting the wrong horse.

The Republicans are being taken seriously and the Democrats aren't talking.
We have a small problem here, don't you think??

A List of Gripes

1. Get those botoxed, ignorant fake tanned, dyed haired white men off the ballot. Show me a man with some real character who doesn't give two hoots about screen time and talking points.

2. I am sick to death of Americans bashing teachers. Go ahead, break the unions, hire the lower paid teachers. You think education is bad now??
When we go after the administrations of school districts for screwing up curriculums, having way too much power , yapping at the heels of teachers to change this, and the next year, do it the old way.., we will make some progress. Teachers used to teach. Now they jump like monkeys to the school district administrative organ grinders. Americans are just plain stupid. Let teachers teach.

3. Outsourcing. The real definition of outsourcing? Take the steady job away from Americans and give it to someone so hurting they will forgo any semblance of a decent paying job with health care benefits.
Make Americans starve! The motto of business is "who gives a rats patootie" about the humans working for us! Make em bleed! That is the American way!

4. If I hear one more profit making huge corporation whine about the cost of doing business, I will scream!
Where are you Americans?? Who put your heads in the toilets??
You don't mind bleeding while those fake tanned politicians whine for more tax breaks?
When are you going to get some ca hones??

5. One more American "love it or leave it" and I will campaign to send all those stupid ignoramuses to a third world country. We didn't get great by keeping our mouths shut.
Remember folks? FYI-We are a free country?? Or are we anymore?

6. Our great country is a shadow of its former self. What a shame we had to use our repreoductive systems to create a generation of idiots. I have become a strong advocate of birth control.

Of all the movie scenario endings to our civilization it never occurred to me our downfall would be stupidity and ignornance.