I have not posted an entry for a very long time. But I thought I would publish the long email I sent to some friends last Friday. I updated it a bit today and sent it out to a few additional people, one of whom tweeted out this site. So, in case someone meanders by here is why I'm voting for Hillary and why Donald is/would be a disaster.
(I hope the links work. I'm rusty and doing this.)
Subject: RACHEL’S NOVEMBER ELECTION SURPRISE
UPDATED MONDAY AM:
Some of you received the earlier version; updates are clearly marked.
Some are getting this for the first time.
There is still time to help campaigns.
Remember, it ain't over til the FIRST woman wins!
Don't forget to vote.
SURPRISE!
I am writing to you on the Friday before the 2016 Presidential Election.
(And I am sending this message out as individual emails so that it does not get stuck in a spam file. No bcc’ing today.)
(ACTUALLY this update is a bcc event. Takes less time to do.)
Why am I writing?
Because while the 2016 campaign process has seemed like a Reality TV program from Hell, on November 9, 2016, the results will be REALITY.
A 2016 reality that will impact the future of the United States for 25 to 35 years through the appointment of Supreme Court Justices.
A political campaign is an audition for the position the candidate is seeking.
Based on the more than a yearlong audition process I have determined that Hillary and not Donald has demonstrated the ability to undertake the role of President. UPDATE Donald also lacks the temperament and personal control to be President and communicate with world leaders, command troops and have access to nuclear codes.
I will be voting for Hillary.
And I urge you and everyone you know to vote for Hillary.
Whether you vote for her wholeheartedly, or pinching your nose, or covering your eyes, just do it!
If you are deeply unhappy with the major party candidates at the top of the ticket than strengthen another party of your choice by voting for its candidates down ballot. That way third party candidates might get elected to state legislatures and even the Congress and become part of the on-going political conversation.
(This is not a year to “Go Nader” to prove some abstract political point. If you want to live in a country RULED by Donald than just vote for him directly because if you go third party on Election Day you will have contributed to Donald’s victory.)
Over the next four days there are still several ways to help Hillary's campaign. Volunteering to do Get Out The Vote (GOTV) calls or canvassing. Donating money on-line. I will be in Alpena, Michigan make GOTV calls.
And please forward this email to your contacts. And ask them to send it to their contacts etc. etc. etc.
What I have learned.
The past three months I have been in the process of moving from Chicago to the swing state of Michigan so I have not had time to do as much politically as I usual do or would have liked to do.
But most days, late at night I have been doing research on the net.
In this email I am sharing with you my thoughts about what I have read and in many cases sharing links to supporting articles.
I am a political independent. My analysis is based on practicality not partisanship.
In addition, to my analysis and reasons for voting for Hillary I have included a link to Seth Meyers’ How Do You Chose: A Closer Look segment that recaps many of the better known Donald weaknesses. https://mobile.twitter.com/hashtag/ACloserLook?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Racists know Donald is a racist.
If the KKK supports you in a front-page editorial in its major newspaper, whether the KKK calls it an endorsement or not IT IS A KKK ENDORSEMENT.
The KKK brand is racism.
Anti-minority, anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic and anti-Jew racism.
If the KKK supports Donald it means Donald’s views and platform are in sync with the KKK.
Donald has no real friends.
That’s astounding for a 70 year old man.
He refers to his children-employees as his friends.
How many 70 year olds do you know who have no friends?
For Donald Trump, Friends in Few Places - NYTimes.com
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/03/13/nyregion/for-donald-trump-friends-in-few-places.html
UPDATE: Trump has no (non-human) pets. Every President for the past 114 years has been a dog owner.
http://www.nowaytrump.com/?p=751
Donald the Tycoon was and is the figment of Mark Burnett, the TV executive.
Burnett pitched “The Apprentice” to NBC as “Survivor”, Burnett’s already successful reality program, in another setting, Corporate America. And Donald was cast as the big bad businessman because of his image. And Donald was available to participate full time in producing the program. (Name another big-time real estate developer or top executive in a major industry who would have time to be a TV star, too.)
Remember Burnett has threatened lawsuits if anyone leaks tapes of Donald making more skanky misogynistic statements on the set.
Donald is a horrendous manager.
And while the media likes to use the term Commander-in-Chief and not President, we are electing a person to preside over the Executive Branch of the Government.
(I don’t think Donald actually understands the role, but that just demonstrates his ignorance.)
Donald Trump's Constitution: The multiple opportunities for the abuse of executive power by Robert Kuttner June 13, 2016
http://prospect.org/article/donald-trumps-constitution
Donald Trump's Constitution - prospect.org
prospect.org
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks in front of his jet during a campaign rally on June 11, at a private hanger at the Greater Pittsburgh ...
During his career, Donald has not increased the value of the core business he inherited: a huge portfolio of apartments for middle class people. That is a cash cow business.
Instead Donald went for glamour in Manhattan and glitz in Atlantic City.
He proceeded to bankrupt THE PLAZA HOTEL and THE TAJ MAHAL and other casinos. Properly run casinos are also cash cows. The house always wins. So how did Donald lose so hugely? DEBT. He took on as much debt as he could without concern about how to repay the debt. (This is not Presidential behavior. This is the behavior of a gambler who winds up in Gamblers Anonymous and banned from the casinos.)
Trump bankers question his portrayal of financial comeback
By Reuters Media on Jul 24, 2016 at 12:19 a.m.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-trump-bankruptcies-insig-idUSKCN0ZX0GP
Art of the spin: Trump bankers question his portrayal of ...
www.reuters.com
NEW YORK Donald Trump, who often says he only likes winners, tells one grand tale of loss: In 1990, he nearly went bankrupt and was forced to ask dozens of banks to ...
His businesses have filed for bankruptcy six times.
He does not carefully vet candidates for real world jobs. It’s been a revolving door at his campaign. Because other than selling racism at rallies and on the Internet to people who are racists, Donald does not know how a campaign works.
(Does he even understand that with government employees you can’t just yell, “Your fired.” to remove someone from a position.)?
See also TIME 10 Donald Trump Business Failures April 29, 2011 Updated: Oct. 11, 2016 11:14 AM ET
http://time.com/4343030/donald-trump-failures/
Donald Trump Business Failures - time.com
time.com
Donald Trump talks a lot about his business successes, but he’s had more than a few failures over the years as well. Here’s a look at some of the missteps he’s ...
He is not smart, not knowledgeable and is incapable of clear complex communication.
His demonstrated active vocabulary is at best that of a sixth grader. The job he wants requires a larger vocabulary to understand and express the nuances to the situations he will face.
He lies by omission and commission. (Journalists and the media have documented this phenomenon pretty well, so I will only highlight a few incidents.)
He “believes” climate change is “a hoax.” This is troubling because no matter what the cause the effects of climate change are real. And the next and every presidential administration going forward will need to address those effects and impacts.
He has had business dealings with the mob.
Donald sought and got exceptions to New Jersey reporting requirements so he did not have to disclose those connections to state agencies.
Politico Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob?
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/donald-trump-2016-mob-organized-crime-213910
Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob? - POLITICO
www.politico.com
Investigation. Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob? I've spent years investigating, and here's what's known. By David Cay Johnston. May 22, 2016
His Russian connections, which individually may seem innocuous, but looked at together are troubling and problematic.
They include his admiration (and maybe friendship) with Putin; his not completely disclosed business and banking deals and relationships in Russia; his modeling agency’s “use” of Eastern European women; the Ukrainian/Russian connection of Donald’s campaign manger, Manafort; Donald’s initial anti-NATO statements; Ivanka vacationing during the campaign with Putin’s putative girl friend Wendy (I used to be married to “Foxy” Rupert Murdoch) Deng and Donald’s saying he might go visit Putin if he wins the election but prior to his inauguration as President.
Donald is bad for women.
He is an admitted predator.
He is an accused child rapist.
His agency “imported” young women to be models represented by his agencies and told them to lie about their immigration status.
He housed his “models” in substandard housing in New York.
Donald does not abide by laws, rules or customary practices.
Donald has not disclosed his federal taxes. We all know that.
But based on the analysis of just a few pages of his state taxes, it is now known that in 1995 he claimed a nearly billion-dollar loss that could have been used to shelter income for about twenty years.
Further analysis of his tax treatment of that loss indicates he was willing to file tax returns that eliminated his putative income from debt forgiveness. He filed these returns even though he could not/did not get a tax letter from an attorney that would support this procedure.
His self-serving family foundation did not comply with basic New York statutory filing requirements.
Donald does not follow through on promises.
Remember the promised press conference about Melania’s immigration process.
Hasn’t happened yet.
UPDATE
MELANIA did violate immigration laws. And lied about it.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/melania-trump-modeled-us-prior-work-visa-43321283
Donald is not charitable nor has he been civically engaged, ever.
His lack of charitable contributions commensurate with his claimed wealth has been well documented.
But what has interested me is that he has not chaired any major charity in New York or elsewhere.
In fact, it seems like he has never even served on the Board of a charity. (I was a transplant to Chicago and I managed to serve as the Chair of what was the Associate Board of the Chicago International Film Festival and, after ten years as a board member, as the President of one of the Chicago Boys and Girls Club and so served on the Corporate board of the entire agency.)
To me this demonstrates his disconnection from the society around him.
I also take it as evidence that his business peers did not want to work with him,
Today David Tepper, a billionaire hedge fund manager blasted Trump for NOT being charitable. Tepper asserts that Donald gave nothing after 9-11 and nothing after Hurricane, even though Donald had assets in both New York and New Jersey.
www.cnbc.com/2016/11/07/not-one-dime-billionaire-tepper-slams-trump-on-charitable-giving.html
Donald is cheap and a chiseler.
Doesn’t seem to make contributions to charity unless he is shamed into it (the Veterans contribution which eventually went to a group that supported Donald); or is buying something for himself or if one of his companies benefits by publicity or venue fees.
He routinely hires people. Lets them complete the work. And then stiffs them
Donald U. is under investigation.
Recent articles have reported that Donald has eliminated document evidence related to a range of legal matters.
Hillary’s emails.
I will admit that before Comey sent his vague letter to Congress I had not really given the deleted emails and the Benghazi inquisition a lot of attention.
Not because of any regard for Hillary.
My nonchalance is the result of my experience as an applicant for a position in the Foreign Service. After I passed the written exam I was invited to interview with the State Department.
During the interview I was asked how I felt about the possibility of being killed as a result of my employment in the Foreign Service.
The best answer to the question in those days was: “It would be a privilege to die in the service of my country.”
So, to me, while it was sad and unfortunate that four Americans died in Benghazi. That possibility was a career hazard of representing the United States anywhere, let alone in a third world hotspot.
I also find the endless Benghazi inquiry hypocritical by the current Republican majority. When their beloved Ronald Reagan was President 253 Americans were killed in the suicide bombing of the Marine compound in Beirut and 63 people, including 13 Americans were killed in the bombing of the U. S. Embassy there.
Congress, under Speaker of the House, Democrat, Tip O’Neil, did not launch a political witch-hunt. There was an investigation that issued a report on what went wrong and called for better security.
SO VOTE EARLY OR ON NOVEMBER 8!
Whenever I vote I vote for dead people.
That is, in voting for the living candidates of my choice I honor all the people who have lived who did not have the right to vote because of where they lived (like my ancestors in czarist Russia); their gender (American women until 1920 and millions of women alive on the planet today); or their status as slaves.
I vote because I have the right to vote and I can vote.
Which is not something most humans who have lived could say.
And is something many humans are today fighting to be able to do.
So, go out and vote November 8.
And urge those you know to vote too.
Remember, voting matters. And this year the outcome will matter for decades.
And not voting just means you are letting other people (Those who did vote.) make political choices for you.
(I hope the links work. I'm rusty and doing this.)
Subject: RACHEL’S NOVEMBER ELECTION SURPRISE
UPDATED MONDAY AM:
Some of you received the earlier version; updates are clearly marked.
Some are getting this for the first time.
There is still time to help campaigns.
Remember, it ain't over til the FIRST woman wins!
Don't forget to vote.
SURPRISE!
I am writing to you on the Friday before the 2016 Presidential Election.
(And I am sending this message out as individual emails so that it does not get stuck in a spam file. No bcc’ing today.)
(ACTUALLY this update is a bcc event. Takes less time to do.)
Why am I writing?
Because while the 2016 campaign process has seemed like a Reality TV program from Hell, on November 9, 2016, the results will be REALITY.
A 2016 reality that will impact the future of the United States for 25 to 35 years through the appointment of Supreme Court Justices.
A political campaign is an audition for the position the candidate is seeking.
Based on the more than a yearlong audition process I have determined that Hillary and not Donald has demonstrated the ability to undertake the role of President. UPDATE Donald also lacks the temperament and personal control to be President and communicate with world leaders, command troops and have access to nuclear codes.
I will be voting for Hillary.
And I urge you and everyone you know to vote for Hillary.
Whether you vote for her wholeheartedly, or pinching your nose, or covering your eyes, just do it!
If you are deeply unhappy with the major party candidates at the top of the ticket than strengthen another party of your choice by voting for its candidates down ballot. That way third party candidates might get elected to state legislatures and even the Congress and become part of the on-going political conversation.
(This is not a year to “Go Nader” to prove some abstract political point. If you want to live in a country RULED by Donald than just vote for him directly because if you go third party on Election Day you will have contributed to Donald’s victory.)
Over the next four days there are still several ways to help Hillary's campaign. Volunteering to do Get Out The Vote (GOTV) calls or canvassing. Donating money on-line. I will be in Alpena, Michigan make GOTV calls.
And please forward this email to your contacts. And ask them to send it to their contacts etc. etc. etc.
What I have learned.
The past three months I have been in the process of moving from Chicago to the swing state of Michigan so I have not had time to do as much politically as I usual do or would have liked to do.
But most days, late at night I have been doing research on the net.
In this email I am sharing with you my thoughts about what I have read and in many cases sharing links to supporting articles.
I am a political independent. My analysis is based on practicality not partisanship.
In addition, to my analysis and reasons for voting for Hillary I have included a link to Seth Meyers’ How Do You Chose: A Closer Look segment that recaps many of the better known Donald weaknesses. https://mobile.twitter.com/hashtag/ACloserLook?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Racists know Donald is a racist.
If the KKK supports you in a front-page editorial in its major newspaper, whether the KKK calls it an endorsement or not IT IS A KKK ENDORSEMENT.
The KKK brand is racism.
Anti-minority, anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic and anti-Jew racism.
If the KKK supports Donald it means Donald’s views and platform are in sync with the KKK.
Donald has no real friends.
That’s astounding for a 70 year old man.
He refers to his children-employees as his friends.
How many 70 year olds do you know who have no friends?
For Donald Trump, Friends in Few Places - NYTimes.com
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/03/13/nyregion/for-donald-trump-friends-in-few-places.html
UPDATE: Trump has no (non-human) pets. Every President for the past 114 years has been a dog owner.
http://www.nowaytrump.com/?p=751
Donald the Tycoon was and is the figment of Mark Burnett, the TV executive.
Burnett pitched “The Apprentice” to NBC as “Survivor”, Burnett’s already successful reality program, in another setting, Corporate America. And Donald was cast as the big bad businessman because of his image. And Donald was available to participate full time in producing the program. (Name another big-time real estate developer or top executive in a major industry who would have time to be a TV star, too.)
Remember Burnett has threatened lawsuits if anyone leaks tapes of Donald making more skanky misogynistic statements on the set.
Donald is a horrendous manager.
And while the media likes to use the term Commander-in-Chief and not President, we are electing a person to preside over the Executive Branch of the Government.
(I don’t think Donald actually understands the role, but that just demonstrates his ignorance.)
Donald Trump's Constitution: The multiple opportunities for the abuse of executive power by Robert Kuttner June 13, 2016
http://prospect.org/article/donald-trumps-constitution
Donald Trump's Constitution - prospect.org
prospect.org
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks in front of his jet during a campaign rally on June 11, at a private hanger at the Greater Pittsburgh ...
During his career, Donald has not increased the value of the core business he inherited: a huge portfolio of apartments for middle class people. That is a cash cow business.
Instead Donald went for glamour in Manhattan and glitz in Atlantic City.
He proceeded to bankrupt THE PLAZA HOTEL and THE TAJ MAHAL and other casinos. Properly run casinos are also cash cows. The house always wins. So how did Donald lose so hugely? DEBT. He took on as much debt as he could without concern about how to repay the debt. (This is not Presidential behavior. This is the behavior of a gambler who winds up in Gamblers Anonymous and banned from the casinos.)
Trump bankers question his portrayal of financial comeback
By Reuters Media on Jul 24, 2016 at 12:19 a.m.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-trump-bankruptcies-insig-idUSKCN0ZX0GP
Art of the spin: Trump bankers question his portrayal of ...
www.reuters.com
NEW YORK Donald Trump, who often says he only likes winners, tells one grand tale of loss: In 1990, he nearly went bankrupt and was forced to ask dozens of banks to ...
His businesses have filed for bankruptcy six times.
He does not carefully vet candidates for real world jobs. It’s been a revolving door at his campaign. Because other than selling racism at rallies and on the Internet to people who are racists, Donald does not know how a campaign works.
(Does he even understand that with government employees you can’t just yell, “Your fired.” to remove someone from a position.)?
See also TIME 10 Donald Trump Business Failures April 29, 2011 Updated: Oct. 11, 2016 11:14 AM ET
http://time.com/4343030/donald-trump-failures/
Donald Trump Business Failures - time.com
time.com
Donald Trump talks a lot about his business successes, but he’s had more than a few failures over the years as well. Here’s a look at some of the missteps he’s ...
He is not smart, not knowledgeable and is incapable of clear complex communication.
His demonstrated active vocabulary is at best that of a sixth grader. The job he wants requires a larger vocabulary to understand and express the nuances to the situations he will face.
He lies by omission and commission. (Journalists and the media have documented this phenomenon pretty well, so I will only highlight a few incidents.)
He “believes” climate change is “a hoax.” This is troubling because no matter what the cause the effects of climate change are real. And the next and every presidential administration going forward will need to address those effects and impacts.
He has had business dealings with the mob.
Donald sought and got exceptions to New Jersey reporting requirements so he did not have to disclose those connections to state agencies.
Politico Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob?
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/donald-trump-2016-mob-organized-crime-213910
Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob? - POLITICO
www.politico.com
Investigation. Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob? I've spent years investigating, and here's what's known. By David Cay Johnston. May 22, 2016
His Russian connections, which individually may seem innocuous, but looked at together are troubling and problematic.
They include his admiration (and maybe friendship) with Putin; his not completely disclosed business and banking deals and relationships in Russia; his modeling agency’s “use” of Eastern European women; the Ukrainian/Russian connection of Donald’s campaign manger, Manafort; Donald’s initial anti-NATO statements; Ivanka vacationing during the campaign with Putin’s putative girl friend Wendy (I used to be married to “Foxy” Rupert Murdoch) Deng and Donald’s saying he might go visit Putin if he wins the election but prior to his inauguration as President.
Donald is bad for women.
He is an admitted predator.
He is an accused child rapist.
His agency “imported” young women to be models represented by his agencies and told them to lie about their immigration status.
He housed his “models” in substandard housing in New York.
Donald does not abide by laws, rules or customary practices.
Donald has not disclosed his federal taxes. We all know that.
But based on the analysis of just a few pages of his state taxes, it is now known that in 1995 he claimed a nearly billion-dollar loss that could have been used to shelter income for about twenty years.
Further analysis of his tax treatment of that loss indicates he was willing to file tax returns that eliminated his putative income from debt forgiveness. He filed these returns even though he could not/did not get a tax letter from an attorney that would support this procedure.
His self-serving family foundation did not comply with basic New York statutory filing requirements.
Donald does not follow through on promises.
Remember the promised press conference about Melania’s immigration process.
Hasn’t happened yet.
UPDATE
MELANIA did violate immigration laws. And lied about it.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/melania-trump-modeled-us-prior-work-visa-43321283
Donald is not charitable nor has he been civically engaged, ever.
His lack of charitable contributions commensurate with his claimed wealth has been well documented.
But what has interested me is that he has not chaired any major charity in New York or elsewhere.
In fact, it seems like he has never even served on the Board of a charity. (I was a transplant to Chicago and I managed to serve as the Chair of what was the Associate Board of the Chicago International Film Festival and, after ten years as a board member, as the President of one of the Chicago Boys and Girls Club and so served on the Corporate board of the entire agency.)
To me this demonstrates his disconnection from the society around him.
I also take it as evidence that his business peers did not want to work with him,
Today David Tepper, a billionaire hedge fund manager blasted Trump for NOT being charitable. Tepper asserts that Donald gave nothing after 9-11 and nothing after Hurricane, even though Donald had assets in both New York and New Jersey.
www.cnbc.com/2016/11/07/not-one-dime-billionaire-tepper-slams-trump-on-charitable-giving.html
Donald is cheap and a chiseler.
Doesn’t seem to make contributions to charity unless he is shamed into it (the Veterans contribution which eventually went to a group that supported Donald); or is buying something for himself or if one of his companies benefits by publicity or venue fees.
He routinely hires people. Lets them complete the work. And then stiffs them
Donald U. is under investigation.
Recent articles have reported that Donald has eliminated document evidence related to a range of legal matters.
Hillary’s emails.
I will admit that before Comey sent his vague letter to Congress I had not really given the deleted emails and the Benghazi inquisition a lot of attention.
Not because of any regard for Hillary.
My nonchalance is the result of my experience as an applicant for a position in the Foreign Service. After I passed the written exam I was invited to interview with the State Department.
During the interview I was asked how I felt about the possibility of being killed as a result of my employment in the Foreign Service.
The best answer to the question in those days was: “It would be a privilege to die in the service of my country.”
So, to me, while it was sad and unfortunate that four Americans died in Benghazi. That possibility was a career hazard of representing the United States anywhere, let alone in a third world hotspot.
I also find the endless Benghazi inquiry hypocritical by the current Republican majority. When their beloved Ronald Reagan was President 253 Americans were killed in the suicide bombing of the Marine compound in Beirut and 63 people, including 13 Americans were killed in the bombing of the U. S. Embassy there.
Congress, under Speaker of the House, Democrat, Tip O’Neil, did not launch a political witch-hunt. There was an investigation that issued a report on what went wrong and called for better security.
SO VOTE EARLY OR ON NOVEMBER 8!
Whenever I vote I vote for dead people.
That is, in voting for the living candidates of my choice I honor all the people who have lived who did not have the right to vote because of where they lived (like my ancestors in czarist Russia); their gender (American women until 1920 and millions of women alive on the planet today); or their status as slaves.
I vote because I have the right to vote and I can vote.
Which is not something most humans who have lived could say.
And is something many humans are today fighting to be able to do.
So, go out and vote November 8.
And urge those you know to vote too.
Remember, voting matters. And this year the outcome will matter for decades.
And not voting just means you are letting other people (Those who did vote.) make political choices for you.