\u201cBack in the Day\u201d; before the era of texts, messages, Facebook, and all of the other instant communications applications, we had the \u201cphone call\u201d. \u00a0And, in those days, one of the rules was not to call someone while under the influence of alcohol.\u00a0\u00a0That is, unless you were looking for a ride, or bail because you were caught drunk driving.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We called it \u201cdrunk calling\u201d, and it almost always turned out badly. To state the obvious: being drunk often led to saying things that weren\u2019t \u201cthought out\u201d. This was especially true when the \u201cdrunk caller\u201d was calling the \u201csleeping receiver\u201d. Not only did the drunk wake the answerer up. But, he then proceeded to say something that to him sounded heartfelt and profound, but to the annoyed-awakened one, sounded just stupid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The outcome of \u201cdrunk calls\u201d were inevitably bad. The caller didn\u2019t really remember what they said, and the answerer was well aware that it was the \u201cbooze\u201d talking, not the caller. All in all, one of the last vestiges of reason and common sense beyond alcohol was to NOT make THAT call. With any luck, the drinker might think about it, then pass out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, it\u2019s so much easier to \u201cdrunk text\u201d, or \u201cdrunk message\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0And it\u2019s not just about romance.\u00a0\u00a0Now, it\u2019s about politics, or the neighbor violating \u201cweekend rules\u201d and cutting grass before eight, or those \u201cdamn kids\u201d riding their bikes in the street.\u00a0\u00a0We have unlimited ways to issue a \u201cstream of consciousness\u201d, regardless of the state of mind and lack of frontal lobe restraint of the author.\u00a0\u00a0We do it with a post, or a text or a message. And once it\u2019s out, it never comes back.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ve noticed this particularly on Facebook. There are several commentators, capable of reasoned thoughts about local politics. But once the sun goes down, they become aggressive and virulent in their posts. It\u2019s like a switch flips. My guess is there’s a bottle beside the keyboard, and it’s open. They are \u201cdrunk posters\u201d. And they have little compunction about attacking others, using epithets, and acting just like a drunk about to be tossed out of the bar. The problem is, there are no bouncers around the keyboard, and no bartenders to make “last call”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All of this is a long way to go to talk about nuclear war, but here we are. In our era of the Trump Presidency, American policy is made on Trump\u2019s chosen social media, Truth Social<\/em>. This weekend was a great example. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Department of Labor\u2019s Commissioner of Labor Statistics got fired Friday on Truth Social<\/em>. Her fatal mistake: publishing this month\u2019s unemployment statistics report. It showed that job growth was not only slow for July, but, as these reports often do, revised earlier reports to show that job growth was significantly slower than earlier reported for the months before July. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump wants employment to increase. He\u2019s attacked Federal Reserve Chairman Powell over and over again for holding firm on interest rates, rather than lowering them to stimulate the economy as Trump demands. But what the Commissioner did was a \u201cmortal sin\u201d in Trump world. She told the truth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m not accusing Trump of \u201cdrunk texting\u201d. What I am saying is that he wields his executive authority as if he was a drunk. The sad part is he\u2019s probably not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So Chairman Powell gets burned in post after post.\u00a0\u00a0Now Commissioner\u00a0Erika McEntarfer\u00a0\u00a0learns that she no longer has a job via social media.\u00a0\u00a0And while all of these seem to lack Trump’s \u201cfrontal lobe restraint\u201d, they are now actions we expect.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0But last week, there was a more sinister set of \u201cposts\u201d, ones that could have a more profound impact on our Nation, and the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, messaged the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Trump’s playing the ultimatum game with Russia: 50 days or 10\u2026 He should remember 2 things: 1. Russia isn’t Israel or even Iran. 2. Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war. Not between Russia and Ukraine, but with his own country\u2026Don’t go down the Sleepy Joe road!”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Medvedev, like Trump, is a \u201cmidnight message-er\u201d. And Trump won\u2019t be upstaged by him, even if we\u2019re talking about nuclear war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev … I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that\u2026Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, before \u201cdrunk texts\u201d start a nuclear war, there are a couple of factors to consider.\u00a0\u00a0The US still has nuclear ballistic missile submarines stationed throughout the world.\u00a0\u00a0They are our \u201csecond strike\u201d capability, our \u201cAssured Mass Destruction\u201d no matter what attack a nuclear foe might launch.\u00a0\u00a0So those Nuclear Submarines (do we have any other kind?) were probably on station within range of Russia anyway.\u00a0\u00a0But for the US President to \u201cthrow down\u201d the nuclear word in a text \u201ccontest\u201d with the former Russian President, seems a bit inflammatory (like, nuclear missile inflammatory).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t know if Medvedev is a drinker, and while Trump acts like one (a lot) he claims to abstain.\u00a0\u00a0Either way, they are both \u201cdrunk messaging\u201d in a way that makes our world much more dangerous. We get closer to war with each “messaged” saber rattle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s a dangerous way to govern, sober or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Horseshoes, Hand Grenades, and Nuclear Bombs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n