vaccine

POINTS OF PONDERATION…..EPISODE 1.23

A semi-regular attempt to address some of life’s minutiae that might otherwise be overlooked…..

Well, the “conspiracy” theory has been proven as fact. Many of us have questioned the efficacy & safety of the Covid “vaccine” for awhile, but we had to be extremely careful with comments online because “fact” checkers do NOT want anyone with common sense & critical thinking skills to weigh in with truth, logic, and pesky statistics. That seems to be over now, as “legitimate” outlets like NBC, Sky News, & CNN have published a recent study that confirms “immunity generated from an infection was found to be at least as high, if not higher than that provided by two doses of an mRNA vaccine”, and “immunity acquired from a Covid infection provides strong, lasting protection against the most severe outcomes of the illness”. In other words, y’all were straight up lied to while Big Pharma & career politicians walked away with a financial windfall & absolutely no legal culpability. At best the “vaccine” that so many proud parents cheerfully boasted on social media about having pumped into their innocent children is marginally effective, while we’ll probably never be told the truth about the worst end of the spectrum. Sadly people will continue to “die unexpectedly”, and the ignorant masses will disregard this latest news while gladly receiving booster after booster after booster. Pathetic.

I know occasionally it is meant with sincerity, but ladies, men hate when you call us sweet. It’s dismissive. It is low key derogatory. It’s a gut punch to be perfectly honest. Please come up with something fresh & original.

One of the great mysteries of life is how the hell noted bartending enthusiast Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez became a U.S. Congresswoman. However, I think I may have cracked the case to some degree. I’m still trying to figure out why otherwise intelligent people admire AOC, but an undeniable fact I have stumbled upon is that she is a hero to really stupid people, and sadly there seems to be no shortage of them. Idiots see themselves in AOC…a humble waitress & bartender who became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress. She is a freakin’ Lifetime movie, so it makes sense for such an individual to become a role model to pole workers, service industry laborers, anyone under 40 sucking the government teat, and miserable small town nobodies who think Olive Garden is fine dining & grocery store wine is the height of sophistication. It doesn’t matter that 90% of the drivel that comes out of her mouth is demonstrably false and/or embarrassingly ignorant. The masses don’t even pay attention to what AOC says. It’s the cult of personality, and she isn’t the only beneficiary, just one of the most blatant examples of how dangerous it can be.

Pro Tip: If you have to call off from your job it doesn’t need to be a ten minute conversation. Just. Stop. Talking.

In 1972 Senator Thomas Eagleton was initially chosen as the running mate for Democrat Presidential nominee George McGovern, until it was discovered that he’d previously undergone electroshock therapy for severe depression. I wasn’t yet born when Eagleton was forced off the ticket, so I will refrain from opining on the rights & wrongs of the situation and how it was handled. However, isn’t it interesting that a half century later newly elected Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman, mere weeks after taking office, has been hospitalized for depression and it’s barely being reported by the press?? Many will see it as a sign of how enlightened we’ve become about mental health in our modern society, and in a vacuum they might have a valid point. However, given Fetterman’s already poor physical health and questions surrounding how fit he is to serve that have been a topic of discussion since he was on the campaign trail, I believe the current circumstance should raise major red flags. Those of us with a functioning brain have always thought that Fetterman was a prop, with the goal of keeping that seat in Democrat hands no matter who the actual Senator might eventually be. Rumors have swirled for some time now that his wife, a Brazilian born community organizer, was or would become the real power behind the puppet and eventually replace him when they can no longer hide his deficiencies (not that they ever did a good job of that in the first place). I suppose we’re about to find out. What I find truly insulting is that leftists aren’t even playing coy or trying to conceal their agenda anymore. They brazenly put it all out there in full view, knowing that the American public can’t be bothered to pay attention.

POINTS OF PONDERATION…..EPISODE 7.22

A semi-regular attempt to address some of life’s minutiae that might otherwise be overlooked…..

On 12/8/21 I bought a dozen eggs at the grocery store for $1.29. That same purchase right now costs $3.49. Someone needs to inform the deranged leftist dictator currently occupying the Oval Office that Americans care much more about this problem than we do about Ukraine, climate change, a “vaccine” that not only doesn’t work but is probably killing people, transgender BS, or anything else his evil administration has been gaslighting us with the past two years. 

I’m not interested in a ten minute story about your cat. Please shut your piehole 🙄.

I saw this post in a couple of Facebook groups and didn’t feel like I could freely express my opinion since the “January 6th” silliness has been used as a convenient excuse to turn social media into a fascist dictatorship in which any opinions the “fact” checkers disagree with is suppressed. At any rate, let’s be honest…this list was obviously compiled by an airheaded black millennial. 12 out of the “top” 18 shows have black leads and/or a predominantly black cast. There’s nothing wrong with that, except it is intellectually dishonest to call entrants like Martin, Girlfriends, Black-ish, & Living Single great in any way, shape, or form. The Cosby Show was fantastic, as was The Jeffersons. I won’t even push back too much on Sanford & Son or Diff’rent Strokes, although they are ranked far too high. Also, where is The Andy Griffith Show, Frasier, either of Bob Newhart’s two sitcoms, MASH, and a plethora of others more deserving than half of the shows listed?? Look, I realize these things are largely a matter of opinion, and we are all a product of our generation & our worldview. That being said, perhaps anyone compiling such a list should feel somewhat compelled to respect the readers, respect the genre they’re writing about, and have a shred of common sense.

I still have no idea what the hell pickle ball is 🤷🏻‍♂️🤔🥒.

I can’t respect the thought process of anyone who thinks drag shows are acceptable entertainment for children and refuses to admit that it is blatant grooming. I respect a person’s right to have an opinion, but that does not extend to the opinion itself. It is particularly troubling when someone who holds such beliefs has daily access to large groups of young people. Public schools in America need investigated & reformed. They’ve become breeding grounds for intellectually vacant activists who seek to normalize deviance for kids. Whatever happened to reading, writing, math, history, & science?? That’s what used to be taught in schools. 

WINNING & MUSING…VOLUME 3.21 

Y’all know that I try to keep the sports content to a minimum during the football season due to our weekly picks, but since a) we haven’t done WM since February, and b) there are other things besides football to discuss, I’m going to suspend my own rule. Rest assured there is plenty of other content in the hopper for those that don’t enjoy ball games & such as much as the rest of us. 

The baseball playoffs have begun. In the American League it’s the Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros, & Boston Red Sox, while the National League has the Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers, San Francisco Giants, & Los Angeles Dodgers. I had thought I’d watch a lot more baseball this season after the virus-shortened, empty stadium anomaly of 2020, but oddly enough I think I’ve watched even less. The Manoverse knows that I’m a lifelong Pittsburgh Pirates fan, which means I had absolutely no interest in or reason to watch many games this year. I try to find some level of enthusiasm for the playoffs and choose one or two teams to cheer for. I wasn’t sure that was going to be possible this year, but thankfully the Red Sox beat the Yankees in the AL Wild Card Game, so that’s something.

I haven’t really made a big deal out of my feelings about COVID related subjects like vaccines, masks, & mandates outside of the meme zone that is my Instagram because…well, just because. I have very strong opinions, but realize there are folks with polar opposite views. It is what it is and I see no reason to argue about it or negatively impact relationships I value. That being said, it has been announced that mandates in California & New York will require players and fans attending basketball games to be fully vaccinated. I assume hockey players & fans will be affected as well, especially since Canada has already become an outright fascist hellhole anyway. For the first time in my life I am not envious of people living in big cities with access to professional sports venues. I can’t wait to hear the spin when NBA & NHL players and vaccinated fans start testing positive like crazy for The Sickness. Oh sure, they are unlikely to end up dead or even hospitalized, but of course there is a 98% chance they wouldn’t have gotten that ill without the “vaccine”. Atleast I’ll be able to enjoy the games in the freedom & comfort of my own abode. 

Congratulations to Team USA for bringing home the Ryder Cup. I didn’t watch as much of the competition as I’d anticipated, and I think that had a lot to do with guys like Tiger Woods, Rickie Fowler, & Phil Mickelson being absent while newer players like Colin Morikawa, Bryson DeChambeau, & Daniel Berger took center stage. I’m old enough to remember Ryder Cup teams featuring legendary golfers like Tom Kite, Lee Trevino, Raymond Floyd, & Fuzzy Zoeller, so I just need to get used to these fresh faces. 

Okay okay, my intention was to stay away from football at this particular moment, but I don’t think I can. There is an elephant in the room that needs addressed, and that is my Pittsburgh Steelers. Hindsight is 20/20, and in an effort to think positive I had them as a playoff team in my season preview. Sadly I do not think that is going to happen. QB Ben Roethlisberger is getting most of the blame, which isn’t totally fair. Yes, he is showing his age. At 39 years old he has certainly declined and definitely isn’t performing at the same level as contemporaries like Drew Brees (who still looked pretty decent last season at 42 before retiring), 37 year old MVP candidate Aaron Rodgers, or Tom Brady, who is apparently a 44 year old unicorn. That being said, it must be noted that the Steelers are starting a very young offensive line that hasn’t jelled into the cohesive unit one would prefer. Big Ben was never fleet of foot, but once upon a time he had a unique escapability that allowed him to keep a play alive long enough to make something happen, and that skill has diminished significantly. All of this has affected the perception of RB Najee Harris, Pittsburgh’s first round draft pick. It doesn’t help that former starting tailback James Conner has amassed 172 yards & 4 touchdowns in four games while being the Arizona Cardinals’ backup compared to Harris’ 185 yards & one TD. Do I think drafting Harris was a mistake?? I’m not ready to go there just yet, but I understand the opinion of some that the team should’ve used that pick on an elite lineman. At any rate, whether one chooses to blame Roethlisberger, Harris, head coach Mike Tomlin, or GM Kevin Colbert the fact is that the Steelers are probably facing their first losing season since 2003. I don’t believe that backup quarterbacks Mason Rudolph & Dwayne Haskins are the answer, so even if Roethlisberger retires and a quarterback is taken in the draft we’re probably looking at another tough season next year. At this point my hope is that 2023 will find the team with a young QB we can believe in, an experienced offensive line, the core of the defense intact (mainly linebacker TJ Watt & safety Minkah Fitzpatrick), Najee Harris at full throttle, and the receiving corps of JuJu Schuster, Chase Claypool, & Diontae Johnson still in Black & Gold. Perhaps then we’ll have something to cheer about. 

NASCAR is also in the midst of its “playoffs”, a system I’m still not sold on. There are 12 drivers left in the chase for the championship, and honestly I don’t have any feelings one way or another about most of them. I have paid a bit more attention to racing than baseball the past several months, but that is damning with faint praise. Not only is Dale Earnhardt dead & Tony Stewart retired, leaving me with no one I’m really invested in cheering for, but Jimmy Johnson & Jeff Gordon are also retired, so there is a lack of villains to dislike outside of Kyle Busch.  There are five races left, and I suppose I’ll check out bits & pieces of them, but mostly my eyes will be glued to NFL Redzone every Sunday.