The plot: Blondie (Clint Eastwood) defeats Angel Eyes (Lee Van Cleef) in a three-way Mexican showdown and then sets his gaze upon Tuco, the last two men standing. After defeating Tuco, and after a faked hanging, and in magnanimous fashion, Blondie splits the stolen money with Tuco (Eli Wallach) and lets him go, in essence he pardons him, as he rides of into the distance. Art imitating life.

Donald Trump's cabinet picks are rolling in like an assembly line. There are shouts of glee and cries of despair echoing across the land as the future settles into the minds of the body politic. Some pundits point fingers, some pound their chests. The nation remains divided, perhaps even more so after the election. There's an eerie calm across the land, for now.

As I see it, there are some Good potentialities among his picks. There is much fat to be rendered from the bloated governmental carcass. That rendering will cause some hurt but really should be done, the behemoth is stuffed like an 86 pound turkey.

The US of A will be none the worse with healthier food and better product regulation. Regulating poisons would also be a huge plus. Health has been neglected for too long in this country for the sake of corporate profit.

I foresee possible Bad consequences looming in the future as well, namely censorship. Consequences that may affect c99 and the internet in toto. In the past Trump had originally voiced opposition to Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1996, which will directly affect c99 and myself, which provides immunity to online platforms from civil liability based on third-party content. The former President has gone quiet since his previous opposition to Section 230 after he launched his social media platform, Truth Social.

We shall see, since the Republicans have also shown a desire to censor social media, albeit from a different angle from that of the Democrats.

There are Ugly storm clouds of war building on the horizon as well, as Trump loads his cabinet with hardliners. The European theater may quell, but the specter of the ongoing and troublesome war in the Mideast continues. Let's hope that the recent bluster emanating from certain voices in the incoming cabinet are meant to bring the antagonists to the bargaining table and not a portent of the future.

In this moment in time, I feel like the dog in this video. Let us hope to be unburdened by what may be, as the US, Israel and Iran face off in a Mexican showdown of three.

My Take for What It's Worth

I can't say I am one of those struggling with the results of the recent Presidential election. Am I happy with those results? No. I wouldn't have been happy unless a third party won. But I know others are struggling, trying to figure out why the party that is supposed to be for the people lost so bad. Are the common people turning into right-wing assholes? Is that why? Or wait, it's white women, who didn't come out to vote for Kamala in enough numbers? Or? The minorities didn't show... Whatever.

Well, I think it's something else. There is no representation for the common people in the government. When someone, even someone like Trump, pretends to care about the common people, some of them will vote for that person. When what was once the common people's party (or pretended to be the common people's party), the Democratic Party, spends all its time talking about how great it is that they selected a non-commoner (money-wise, power-wise, job-wise, etc), to be their candidate for President, when they force that candidate on the people without giving those people any ability to have a say in the selection, even as low a say as primaries (like the say the people had in the 2020 primaries where Kamala had to quit right away with no support), then that party is gonna lose. But TPTB in the party knew that, and didn't care. They are still TPTB, still in charge, and still doing well. F* the rest of us.

From another recent election, but still appropriate! (Source)

Here in my little corner of suburban America businesses are folding and closing up shop in an ever-increasing rate and the retail landscape is beginning to look like a moonscape.
The recent announcement that Subway was thinning their Washington state footprint has meant no more Vancouver stores and Oregon stores are few and far between.

Hope, Despair, Ambivalence?

Thankfully the election is over with results so overwhelming that no one seems to be challenging the outcome. That was my hope. Prior to the election there were all kinds of predictions of violence, riots, and protests which fortunately didn't come to fruition. So now we wait to see how the administration evolves. Many are hopeful. Some are in despair. Others are simply ambivalent. Is it possible for the nation to heal the divide? Vivek thinks we can? (1.2 min)