Ken, I’ll take Strategic Blindness for $600

Here’s the answer — It is the total destruction and blotting out of something so that no traces remain.

What is obliteration?

Correct General!

I’ll take Blindness for $800 Ken.

Whoa, it’s the daily double-cross.

Make it a true daily double-cross Ken.

Answer — This has happened at least 16 times since June of 2025.

Ken, what is the obliteration of Iran?

Bingo! The fearless leader claims any assertion to the contrary is fake news even though no nuclear fissile material has been found. Keep going General.

I’m on a roll here Ken, how about Blindness for $1,000?

Answer — According to Truth Social, this was the first time Fearless Leader claimed that Iran’s military capabilities were 100% destroyed?

Hmm, I’m thinking March 14, 2026, Ken?

Yep, but ironically, Fearless Leader was lying.

Time to play Double Jeopardy! General Mark Milley is killing it so Benedict Arnold will start us off.

Ken, I’ll take Double Strategic Blindness for $400.

Answer — How many times is it possible to claim total victory in the same war?

Benedict?

Simple Ken, what is once?

Incorrect. General Milley?

What is 12 times and counting?

Back on target General.

Same category for $1,600, Ken.

Yo, another Daily Double-Cross! General, you can risk up to $50,000.

Let’s make it a true daily double-cross Ken.

For $100,000, the answer is — These were called Operation Midnight Hammer and Operation Epic Fury.

What is a failed tool and a comic book written by Stan Lee?

Spot on General! You sure know your tools and Greek tragedies!

Thanks, Ken, same category for $2,000.

This will close out Double Jeopardy.

Answer — It is the act of complete destruction, reducing something to nothing and wiping out entire species and civilizations.

Benedict: What is obliteration?

Wrong again! How the hell did you get an egg dish named after you?

I might have been the biggest traitor in American history but I was quite handy in the kitchen.

General Milley?

What is annihilation?

Yes, wars of annihilation have been considered war crimes since the Nuremberg Trials when Nazi leaders violated military treaties, committed crimes against humanity — the holocaust — experimented on prisoners in concentration camps, deported and forced labor of millions of civilians in occupied territories, and committed a boatload of other evil shit.

Johnny Gilbert knows this stuff like the back of his hand. He’s 97. Thank you Johnny.

Now, It’s time for Final Jeopardy. Make your wagers. I’m sorry, Sir Isaac Newton, you’ve failed to answer any questions so you are not eligible to play Final Jeopardy.

That’s Coolio Ken, I let my work speak for itself!

That leaves Benedict and the General.

Here’s the answer — This contemporary leader is emotionally unstable, abusive, vindictive, vengeful, narcissistic, intemperate, erratic, above the law, greedy, paranoid, unaccountable, unethical, dishonest, rules through fear and intimidation, a pathological liar, lunatic extremist, chronic loser in court, and carnival barker for personal ventures that have gone upside down — a private university, institutes, casinos, hotels, resorts, mortgage companies, steaks, vodka, magazines, colognes, board games, airlines and, wait for it, ice.

Benedict: Who is Emperor Nero?

Close, but incorrectamundo?

General Milley?

Who is Donald J . . .

Producer, Our feed was cut!

Ken, WTF? Get the network on the line!

Producer, The network said we’ve been sold to Newsmax TV which is contemporaneously airing an exculpatory statement claiming it’s not accountable for the Jeopardy Show because the producers, employees, Ken, even Johnny Gilbert, are low life, no talent, losers, and enemies from within.

[Screen goes blank.]

Postscript

General Milley’s Jeopardy earnings of $200,000 were seized by Newsmax and delivered to an undisclosed source to be used to host Dancing with the Stars in some garish ballroom, mint fool’s gold coins stamped with the face of a fool, sell Crapto-Crypto, a digital currency that loses its value thirty seconds after suckers invest millions, and promote products for men with hair like wet racoons, U-turns, ambitious corn dogs, mobius bands, and hairspray labyrinths.

Published in

Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs

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• Attention Congress — Get the Hell Out of Our House!
• Forget Your Fiddle?

Let’s Play Jeopardy — The War Edition was originally published in Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

A poem

I believed I was the strong one,
Your shield from darkness,
Your comfort in pain,
Your safe place.

I wasn’t
​ ​ ​​ You were mine
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ You still are

I was lost and broken,
Paralyzed by fear,
Manic, depressed,
Inert.

You weren’t
​ ​ ​​ Aren’t
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ Never will be

You protect your pride with ferocity,
Each cub with unconditional love,
Measured freedom,
And space to grow.

You support
​ ​ ​​ Guide
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ Let go

You are resilient and decisive,
Intentional and courageous,
Taking the initiative,
Building trust.

Aware
​ ​ ​​ Adaptable
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ Authentic

You seek justice for the least,
Give refuge to the stranger,
Displaced, persecuted, oppressed,
And innocents tortured under the thumbscrews of tyrants.

You act
​ ​ ​​ Lead
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ Nurture

You prove your mettle,
Help thousands,
Mentor more,
Selflessly.

You overcome
​ ​ ​​ Weep with compassion
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ Carry others’ burdens

Now, silent assassins attack in masses,
Traitors of the flesh, thieves of time,
Come to destroy,
Your will — your soul.

You will face them head on!
​ ​ ​​ Fight!
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ Never relent!

The prides gather around you,
A synchronized ballet of strength,
To guard, protect, and defend your house,
With inviolable armaments and blood as the mortar.

We will pray!
​ ​ ​​ We will pray!
​ ​ ​​​ ​ ​​​ ​ Until our lioness rises!

My sister, Mary Cappelli, is the strongest woman I know. Her character, integrity, and willingness to serve are matchless. She has spent her life serving others in so many ways — more than I can possibly describe. Last year, her home of 30 years was burned to the ground. She has struggled as we all do. She just contracted breast cancer. Surgery is soon and our family will fight with her as she has fought for us.

We are a family of faith. We are prayer warriors and know our God listens. We pray for healing and Mary’s return to the jungle. She’s not done yet! She still has much to roar for.

The Lark

More from Michael

• Someone’s Daughter
• Owen and Mississippi

The Lioness was originally published in The Lark on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Following this rodent is a danger to yourself and everyone else on the planet

Are you one who bent the knee to the above Nutjob? One who bent the knee and then stood up? Or one who never bent the knee?

If you answer yes to either of the last two questions, you are

a loser, low life, traitor, no talent, stupid, criminal, leftwing lunatic, legal immigrant, illegal immigrant who came here in 1954, started a business, raised a family, paid taxes, and never even had a parking ticket, a person of color, a black president and his first lady, a judge, including a Supreme one, the sneaky Prime Minister of Japan, a Greenlander, an Australian, a Canadian, a member of NATO, the United Nations, not a supporter of Putin, a shithole country, a target for investigation and revenge, the Pope, or any one of the thousands of plaintiffs that have beat Nutjob’s ass in court.

The Consequences of Knee Bending

Food

If you don’t eat, you’re saving tons but starving to death. If you do eat, you’re grocery bill is soaring. If you consume beef, you’re screwed unless you want to pay 18% more for hamburger. If you’re a vegan, you’re screwed if you eat fresh produce, up 48% from July of 2025. Even the damn aluminum canned goods are up because of tariffs. A not so happy meal from Nutjob’s chefs will cost you about $7.00.

The cost of coffee and orange juice are higher than Patron tequila, which I recently started buying as a replacement beverage.

If you’re unaffected by any of this, you’re either a billionaire or still bending your knee to Nutjob as you go broke.

Gas

Nutjob flunked econ at the Wharton School of Rodents. Oil is a commodity traded globally. There is no patriotism in oil companies. If there was, we wouldn’t be paying up the ass for gas today. All of the oil we have, like no one has ever seen, ain’t flowin’ in the USA.

Even if the War in Iran is resolved, a huge if, prices at the pump are likely to remain above pre-war prices until the end of the year.

Inflation

Tariffs are likely to increase inflation as high as 3% this year. But what if it comes down?

Well, it never does. Once consumer prices rise due to inflation, they rarely return to their pre-inflation levels. Instead of prices going down, the typical outcome of a cooling economy is “disinflation” — a reduction in the rate of inflation — meaning prices continue to rise, but at a slower pace.

Nutjob believes inflation is a bicycle pump.

Taxes

Only 60–70% of Americans get federal tax refunds. For 2025, Nutjob’s BFD Bill gave the average American an increased refund of a whopping $350. The highest-income 20% of American households will receive 70% of the tax cuts. The top 1% are expected to receive an average of $66,000 to $100,000 in tax breaks.

The funding for these benefits comes from massive cuts in social programs the rest of Americans rely upon.

For most of us, the increased cost of living occasioned by Nutjob policies will make our tax refund seem like chump change.

The Stock Market

Nutjob constantly credits himself with the rising stock market — but never when it falls — as if it will save us.

Only 40% of us own stock. The top 10% of households own almost 90% of all stock. The bottom 50% own only about 1%. So, most of us are not jumping up or down when the market does, particularly when it’s hopping to the suspect claims of Nutjob.

The closest I’ll ever get to stock is with a nice bowl of chicken broth or at the award ceremony for prettiest cow at the county fair. Sorta tells us the audience Nutjob aligns with.

Healthcare, Insurance, Social Benefits

The US has the most expensive healthcare system in the world. It is getting more expensive as health insurance premiums rose 20% in the private market and upwards of 100% in the ACA marketplace.

If you have a case of gangrene in your leg, you have three options. Self-amputate with a butter knife, have a knee bender blow your leg off with a Smith & Wesson 500, or take a vacation to Thailand and have surgery performed by Harvard trained M.D.s at prices 90% lower than here.

Nutjob is cutting $1 trillion on programs that millions of Americans rely upon to simply survive. Nutjob et al., have taken a meat cleaver to Medicare, Social Security Disability, SNAP, childcare, school lunches, housing and rental assistance, energy use credits, temporary assistance for needy families — plus — plus — plus.

Both The EPA — do you like clean drinking water? and the CDC — do you like immunity from chronic and infectious diseases? are just two of the many agencies gutted by Nutjob that will negatively impact each one of us.

Howzabout some typhoid fever or polio for y’all?

Nutjob Never Really Liked You

Nutjob eliminated all soft diplomacy foreign aid to some of the poorest countries in the world. A literal new star has taken up the cause. In exchange for capital investments, China has stepped in to help the sick, starving, and needy of those we abandoned. Nutjob’s justification for his insanity goes to his core belief that only liberal leftwing lunatics run these programs. You got that Xi?

Wars

Nutjob claimed to be the no more wars rodent. This is precisely why he’s asking major US automakers, including GM and Ford, to shift factory capacity toward the production of weapons, missiles, and other military equipment. I pray they don’t use the template for the Pinto or Vega.

As of this month, Nutjob has proposed a $1.5 trillion defense budget for 2027, marking the largest and fastest increase in military spending since World War II.

Venezuela

The war in Venezuela was a classic hand job by Nutjob. Double bombing sacrificial lambs on speed boats carrying drugs not coming to the US was a ruse to depose Nicolas Maduro and replace him with Delcy Rodriguez, a female clone of Maduro. The singular purpose of this attack was to get back my oil!

Rodriguez and her authoritarian apparatus have consolidated power while collapsing the economy, detaining thousands of Venezuelans, and causing 8 million more to flee.

Nutjob loves his newly inserted Venezuelan autocrats.

Oh yeah, Maria Corina Machado, the Venezuelan Nobel Peace Prize recipient, forfeited her chance to bring democracy to Venezuela when she ceded her prize to Nutjob.

Iran

Iran is a nightmare. The Iranian regime is as repressive as any in history. That’s why, in January of 2026, Nutjob promised Iranians that help was on the way! Help never came!

The Kurds were retained by Nutjob to fight a liberating ground war. However, they stole all the guns Nutjob gave them to prosecute the war.

Some say up to 30,000 protesting Iranians were killed while waiting for Nutjob’s help. Another 20,000 to 50,000 were arrested, beaten, or tortured.

Nutjob started his war without congressional approval. Only he kinda’ knows the minute by minute changing objectives which he is unable to coherently articulate.

After decimating Iran at least three times, the nuclear material hasn’t be found. Regime change — none — or only in the sense of having new cray cray theocrats run the country! Boots are getting closer to the ground while Nutjob aka TACO takes a whimsical approach to the war, spinning loads of crap about its near end even though he already won.

The Strait of Hormuz is opened right now, just as it was before the war, except that its blockaded by the US military. The moving parts to an with Iran agreement are staggering. Iran is demanding reparations and $20 billion in seized assets, likely to be returned in bags. Iran is looking to Israel and Lebanon to factor their impact on Iran. Nuclear dust is not for sale and, so far, we are not near the deal Obama made and Trump erased.

Meanwhile, we suffer, as does much of the world, with the exception of China and Russia, both ready for some war games.

Do you feel safer today?

The US Dollar $

The US dollar is losing its value throughout the world. This is because of Nutjob. Geopolitical instability, wars, politization of the Federal Reserve, maniacal policy making, record increases in US debt, and threats of deploying economic sanctions — tariffs — upon any non-knee bending animal, vegetable, or mineral, have shattered the global rules-based order.

Apparently Nutjob has more important things to tend to. Rewriting the history of America is on top. Right behind that is more money for his ballrooms, stairways to nowhere, monstruous arches, concert halls, MMA and WWE events, and tons of other fake gold crap he’s littering the country with.

As a result of his madness, foreign governments and private investors are loading up on real gold. Investors holding US debt are getting nervous. International trade, once transacted almost exclusively with US currency, is shifting to the Chinese yuan, the Euro, and magic beans.

The Nutjob and his Kits

Since 2024, Nutjob’s famiglia has generated over $1.8 billion in cash through gifts, international real estate, cryptocurrency, and suspect corporate ventures.

Theoretically led by Nutjob Jr. and his brother, the famiglia holds stakes in drone manufacturers seeking Pentagon and Gulf state contracts. There are development projects in Qatar, Dubai, and Serbia, quid pro quos for access to Nutjob. Polymarket gamblers made money betting on Maduro’s ouster and the US strike on Iran. Nutjob Jr. is an advisor to Polymarket. The scope of the grift is literally astronomical — aerospace, defense, rocket motors, and AI.

During his first term, the Sunlight Foundation estimated the Nutjob famiglia to have over 700 conflicts of interest with private enterprise and individuals. Since 2024, the famiglia’s conflicts of interest have escalated. Nutjob has made screening off conflicts between private business from government duties history.

Similarly, Nutjob’s current capos of cabinets have hundreds of conflicts of interest that require recusal or outright divestment of assets impacted by the conflicts.

Christianity and Nutjob

I am a Christian but not a knee bender. Christian knee benders seem to have forgotten the gospels and the foundational principles of their faith in Jesus. They are sheep who’ve gone astray.

Nutjob has never sinned, doesn’t need to be forgiven, has his own moral barometer, and uses his Bible as a beverage coaster. His best thinking comes between midnight and 6:00 a.m. when he’s smothered by Big Macs, fries, and sodas, and posting sick and fake shit memes about his enemies and monumental lies about himself. His belief system doesn’t conform to Christian theology. Neither does his conduct.

Nutjob boasts about his wealth and his unfettered desire for more. He has no humility, integrity, empathy or consistency. He is indignant to the marginalized, poor, and children, and indiscriminate in his violence against citizens and immigrants.

Since 2025 ICE made close to 400,000 arrests. Only 14% were criminals. The vast majority were immigrants without any criminal convictions. Nutjob has created a heartless gestapo to carry out his heartless conduct against the least of our society. Citizens have been murdered, non-criminal aliens and children have been deported or locked up in subhuman conditions. There are 60,000 immigrants in jail and 180,000 immigrants subject to ICE’s Alternatives to Detention, which include parole, bonds, regular check-ins at ICE offices, home visit, telephone monitoring, and GPS monitoring through ankle bracelets or smart watches.

It is impossible for Nutjob to let his yes be yes and no be no. Matthew 5:37. That’s because he lies at the speed of light. Nutjob is a walking three-card monte, a carnival barker with an orange face and strange hair. Christian, he cares nothing about you or anyone else.

Nutjob is a violent and vengeful rodent who seeks retribution from anyone who looks at him cross-eyed. He shreds the Constitution and every law he disagrees with. He is a proponent of the eradication of civilizations, entire races, and nations. He is blasphemous, ignorant, and exhibits none of the qualities demanded by Christ. Frankly, he’s a disgrace to every major world religion.

Obedience to Nutjob

Scripture assumes that a king or state will act for the common good, do justice, deliver the oppressed, seek peace, protect its citizenry, avoid the accumulation of wealth and, most importantly, obey God’s laws. Matthew 5: 3–16 (the beatitudes), Acts 5:29, Deuteronomy 17:14–20, Jeremiah 22:1–3, Psalm 72:1–4, Psalm 2:10–11, 1 Kings 2:3.

When God’s laws are subsumed by the state’s conflicting mandates, they are not to be obeyed. Moses, Daniel, Elijah, Mordecai, Esther, the Wise Men, Peter, and John all defied their earthly rulers.

Jesus refused to abide by the laws and rules of the Pharisees and Sadducees, the delegated authoritative leaders and judges of the Jews in Roman occupied Jerusalem. They called for His death and crucifixion for rebelling and failing to obey their laws.

Hundreds upon hundreds of times, Nutjob has disregarded Christ’s teachings in favor of financial accumulation, pathological narcissism, desire for power, and retribution.

Similar contempt for Christ is displayed by the capos of his cabinet.

It’s abhorrent and insulting for Capo Hegseth to compare the free press to the Pharisees. Implicit in his non sequitur is the attempted allusion to Nutjob as our savior, the second coming. It is equally abhorrent for him to quote the Pulp Fiction version of Ezekiel 27:17 as justification for the annihilation of one’s enemies.

Here’s the deal my fellow Christians. You must surely understand that the covenant God made with Israel was replaced by the new and everlasting covenant made by Jesus upon his crucifixion. Check it out. You won’t find any eye for an eye stuff or merciless retribution in Jesus.

For those Christians who either believe Nutjob was sent by God, is some sort of messianic figure, or world leader who must be obeyed, take the coasters off of your Bible.

Let’s be real. When a leader has never read scripture, has no concept of Christ’s teachings, and believes the sermon on the mount was an ancient rodeo, that leader must immediately board his gifted aircraft to fly to a foreign land, like no one has ever seen, to never be seen again.

In a Nutshell

To continue to bend the knee to Nutjob is a prescription for chaos, lies, inhumanity, and retribution. You are flying a false flag that is destroying democracy.

I’m not excluding non-knee benders either.

The failure to propose and act upon remedial and concrete alternatives that will actually work for the common good are nearly as bad as suffering through the daily torment of a seriously demented squirrel.

I can say these things because I’m a loser, no talent, child of immigrants.

Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs

More from Michael

• YO CHRISTIAN, HOW YOU DOIN’ WITH LOVING YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF?
• Thank You Mr. President
• Let’s Play War

The Nutjob in a Nutshell was originally published in Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Prose poem competition — third place winner

Drizzly gray is winter on the Oregon Coast — until savage gales swallow crab boats and demonic skies spit black ice in front of the semis.

A tempest trapped me in Walmart. Outside, a down-at-the-heel traveler, fortyish, crammed ramen boxes into a patched-up Coleman duffel — no straps — no longer made. His attire: muddy gumboots — holes in the toes, red plaid flannel — shredded sleeves, and standalone cargo pants — threadbare.

I escaped during a lull to offer my standard fiver. No thanks, man, I’m good, as the duffel burst its banks. Cool, I said, returning to buy a reflective, sturdy backpack — check!

Outside, I saw the younger helping a seventyish elder stuff water bottles into another demolished Coleman. Long silver hair — beard of experiences — likely bad ones, I thought. His garment, an oxidized robe — Ritz Carlton crest. Another backpack, coming.

I’m Michael, forcing a backpack upon the younger.

I’m Owen, and this is Mississippi — real name — but he’s from Arizona.

Nice backpacks! shouted an accepting Mississippi. We gotta run, Owen! (On the lam?)

Where to? I pried.

Our camp, through the woods a piece.

Need a ride?

Nope, can’t get there by car.

Intrigued, but terrified, I blurted, Can I come along? 40 degrees and I’m sweating through my knockoff North Face parka. I’m sure they’ll say no? If they don’t? Prospective hostage?

Owen smiled, sure. I was drawn by his mysterious affect, belied by his weather-beaten face, hair, and teeth, and pallid blue eyes. I stuttered an uneasy, Let’s go!

Our ubiquitous trail markers reeked — cankers, tree fungus, decaying logs, and gnarled, undulating ridges of pine roots.

On a dime, the sun fractured the mist. A rainbow awakened a soaring Sitka spruce — flanked by a Douglas fir and a Western redcedar — a majestic choir conducted by a softening breeze. Below the trinity were two Coleman sleep sacks, no zippers — no insulation — no longer made.

Owen unpacked the ramen. Mississippi set the water to boil. I chipped in the Walmart veggies buried in my Trader Joe’s Reusable Tote.

Silhouettes stepped from the shadows. Travelers, empty and aching, sat on beds of pine needles telling similar stories with no endings. As if at a king’s banquet, they feasted on the soup du jour. Peaceful, laughing, and grateful, they were content in their circumstances.

I bid adieu and left confused. Halfway to my car, a quiet voice whispered, Go back. I did — no clue why.

Everyone was gone — not a trace of the camp!

The odors from the sour earth and slime mold were subsumed by scents of jasmine, rose, and juniper. Clean, sweet, comforting, ethereal — assuredly dispensed by a higher power.

A beacon of fluorescence interrupted my communion. Under the spruce, the new backpacks were tagged with a note,

We’re good, Michael.

I met Owen and Mississippi in the Walmart parking lot. They are as I described.

The Lark

Owen and Mississippi was originally published in The Lark on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

AND I WANT MY CUT!

Prologue

My rant is long and I don’t blame anyone for not reading it. I do humbly request you look at the images as they tell a story. But hey, I get it — it’s Medium after all.

In a Trump news cycle of 10 minutes, it takes time to fulminate about this apathetic, undisciplined, lying, ignorant, arrogant, narcissistic, impulsive, manipulative, vindictive, immoral, autocratic, and dangerous man.

The President of the United States has gone mad. He’s lost control over his compos mentis and I’m not the only one who believes this to be true. The leaders of most western European nations, Canada, and other historical democracies view him as crazy, incompetent, arrogant, and dishonest. Not included are Hungary, Romania and, in Venezuela, the leftovers of the Maduro regime.

Trump is Tanking

During his first term, Trump’s overall average approval rating was 41%, lower than any other President in their polling era — lower than Obama and Biden. When he left office his approval rating was 34%. At the close of his first year of his second term, Trump’s approval rating was 39%.

When one hears lemming cabinet members and capitol lackeys speak, one might conclude, albeit it erroneous, that Trump is here to redeem us from all that is wrong on the planet.

Sadly, Trump’s notion of redemption is like a supermarket coupon — he’s here to redeem your stuff.

Trump, always in denial, is unaware he’s pulling ahead of James Buchanan and Andrew Johnson in the race toward the Worst President Ever!

Trump the Carnival Barker

Trump sucks the oxygen from the atmosphere at breakneck speed. A day does not go by where he and his feeble cast of cartoon characters fail to lie, distract, or make some crazy, startling, or infamous claim to divert our attention from the previous day’s crazy, startling, and infamous claims — always ready for the next card to drop.

Trump is a Bad Magic Act

Victims, Congress, and most Americans say, We want the Epstein files!

Trump says, I have no problem with that. Abracadabra, Pam’s got the list. Alakazam, there is no list. Presto Chango, it’s a radical left witch hunt hoax. Oopsy doopsy, we found bazillions of documents but can’t produce them because the bunny rabbit escaped from the magic black hat. Sleight of hand — subpoena the Clintons.

Trump is not particularly competent at anything having to do with running a country. But he is the master of chaos.

A Small Slice of the Corrupt Pie — Every Day, Another Distraction

His misleading and outright bogus claims of settling 8 wars.

His claim of a rigged election. His desire to suspend elections.

His extortion of colleges, law firms, the press, and the media.

His vindictive and illegal use of the Justice Department to target his personal enemies — essentially everyone who disagrees with him.

His stripping the power from the FEC, FCC, FTC, and SEC, using them as checkers on a checkerboard — he doesn’t know how to play chess but he likes to be Kinged.

His cuts of funding for housing and community support, health care, Medicaid, Preschool Development, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services, the Department of Education, Minority Business Development, Small Business, USAID — and the list grows.

His directed command to his Senate cronies to effectively cause millions of Americans to lose or pay up to 300% more for health insurance.

His attempt to erase history, sweep slavery under the rug, end birthright citizenship, invade the privacy of all Americans (DOGE), increase the abuse of our civil rights, rename mountains, gulfs, and everything he can to include his dumb ass name. JFK is roiling in his grave right now.

Tariffs, China, Russia, Ukraine, Canada, Venezuela, Greenland, NATO — Trump is an abomination to civility.

Minneapolis

In light of the reaction to the intentional shooting death by an ICE officer of a Minneapolis mother, and the subsequent peaceful and legal protests, Trump started a campaign of retribution against Minnesotans. To hell that the shooting Renee Good point blank through the open driver side window was criminal homicide. To hell that the shooting of a protester with a cellphone was indefensible.

To the contrary, ICE’S jam is yanking women through car windows, including a policewoman, beating and jailing legal aliens and US citizens, taking children into custody, and destroying homes without warrants or probable cause.

Arresting illegal criminal thugs, rapists, and murderers, swarming the streets of Minneapolis is above the pay grade of ICE agents.

Through November of 2025, ICE detained over 65,000 people. 74% of the detainees had no prior criminal convictions. ICE Stats. Only 5% of ICE detainees had violent convictions.

Notwithstanding, Trump added additional ICE agents to the streets of Minneapolis and has readied 1500 soldiers to deploy to Minnesota. But that’s not all. Trump is recruiting 10,000 more ICE agents by lowering training standards to insure they can pass the cognitive assessment test he aced. Each recruit must memorize the following words — ICE, Raid, Lockup, Innocent, People.

To join his crack team of miscreants one only needs to -

· Be able to stuff one’s 48-inch waist into 38-inch pants. The 10-inch belly hangover is acceptable.

· Be able to float without swimming so water hazard training can be cut from the budget.

· Be able to deliver food orders to fellow agents at least five times per day.

· Be able to run 10 feet from an unmarked SUV to capture a legal alien, citizen, somebody, anybody, CUFF them on the ground and then beat the shit out of them before they are detained and then released.

· Be able to run 10 feet from an unmarked SUV to the driver’s side of an unsuspicious vehicle to shoot the driver in the face, holding the gun in one hand and a cellphone and Big Gulp in the other.

· Be only able to follow illegal orders.

· Be proficient in discharging tear gas, mace, bear spray, pepper bullets, flashbangs, and other deterrents at peaceful protesters just because they heckle or give you the finger.

Remember only Trump can flip the bird because he has absolute immunity.

Venezuela

Trump blew up tiny boats from Venezuela killing everyone on board, including those not killed in first strikes. His stated purpose was to curtail the fentanyl drug trade — which is largely produced in Mexico, using precursor chemicals from China. Duh!

Trump always has an ulterior motive for his cold and unscrupulous conduct. It’s usually about money, fame, power, or all three.

Deposing Nicolas Maduro was, without question, warranted. Maduro was a corrupt and murdering strongman who extrajudicially killed thousands of Venezuelans and forced seven million to flee due to persecution and economic collapse, many of whom Trump is now sending back.

Given his so-called transactional mind, Trump left the rest of the corrupt and murdering Maduro government in place because he thinks some are nice and will accommodate his plan — not for free and democratic elections but to capture the stolen oil.

Trump was sure to remind Americans that the Bush administration screwed up by not taking the oil in the Iraqi war.

Donny spent billions of dollars playing the oil war in the Carribean only to learn that Big Oil has no appetite to return to Venezuela. ExxonMobil’s CEO, Darren Woods, advised Trump that Venezuela is currently uninvestable due to its lack of infrastructure, past asset seizures, and weak legal framework. Donny got mad and said he might exclude ExxonMobil from playing in his Venezuelan sandbox.

Instead Donny will likely join the OPEC Cartel to drive the price of oil to the US through the roof!

Trump and Democracy

It is painfully obvious that Trump and Democracy are mutually exclusive and as opposite as black and white — black as in the color of Trump’s cardiac organ.

Corina Machado, the Venezuelan Nobel Peace Prize winner, is pro-democracy. Her party garnered 70% of the vote in the 2024 presidential election which Maduro really did steal. Machado would be considered a conservative Republican by US standards.

Trump eschewed her as an ally and potential leader of Venezuela until she bent the knee and gave him her Nobel Prize

Trump praised and accepted her offer since no one in history deserves the Peace Prize more than me.

Not Teddy Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, Desmond Tutu, the Dalai Lama, Mikhail Gorbachev, or Nelson Mandela. No, none of them. Just the ignoramus with the attention span of a whiny two-year old.

Trump’s Attempt at Hegemony in Latin America

Trump’s misguided effort at hegemony in the Americas is as contemptible as it is idiotic. He is envious of his pals Xi and Vladdy and wants a bigger cut of the global action. Trump fancies dictators and Middle East monarchies like Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain. He’s been studying third grade geography.

As we’ve come to expect, Trump fails to grok that his conduct throughout Latin America gave the green light for Russia to continue to obliterate Ukraine and China to take Taiwan and, what the hell, Australia. Is this by design? Hmm.

It is impossible to follow Trump’s logic and not conclude that Native Americans deserve their land back as does Mexico — historical notions that make more sense than this simpleton’s view of history.

What is certain is Trump’s miscalculation of economic dominance over Latin America. His ridiculous tariffs and economic policies have critically diminished the trust by Latin countries of the US.

China is now the largest trading partner for Brazil, Chile, and Peru, sourcing large volumes of soybeans, copper, and other commodities. Significant Chinese investments target critical minerals, agriculture, 5G tech (Brazil), and infrastructure, including ports in Peru. Ironically, China is accomplishing this through soft diplomacy, a US foreign policy for decades that Trump has scuttled in favor of tariffs, strongarming, autocracy, fake news, attention diverting tweets, and other demagoguery. Trump’s abandonment of any sense of ethics and morality are dumbfounding.

Iran

A brutal caliphate has been killing and imprisoning dissenters for decades. It didn’t stop after Trump bombed the bunkers. It hasn’t stopped despite the courage of millions of Iranian protesters who flooded the streets of the cities demanding an end to the regime.

Protesters were emboldened by Trump’s January 13th warning to Iran telling protesters that help is on its way setting expectations of US intervention.

No action was taken and since mid-January, it has been reported that anywhere from 5,000 to 20,000 protesters were killed and over 24,000 detained. The protests have been largely extinguished.

However, Trump’s threatening rhetoric and deployment of ships continues.

Beware Iran! Killing protesters is wrong but that’s your problem. I want the oil . . . but now is not the right time.

CANADA

Trump claimed Canadians wanted to be part of the United States. He’s drawn up maps and floated a raft of imprudent crap as to why the move is necessary. Journalists and experts from around the world suggest Trump’s primary goal was to capture Canadian resources, including vast supplies of rare earth metals, gold, oil, coal, and lumber. When Canada refused his tender, Trump claimed he never wanted these resources. Instead, he just tarrifed Canada to death and shuttered American businesses. Now Canada is negotiating with more reasonable world trade partners.

Greenland

Though no Chinese or Russian submarines have been spotted near Greenland for decades, Trump asserted his non-negotiable position to Denmark and Greenland to surrender their sovereignty or prepare for war. Denmark already has a 1951 treaty with the US that permits it to broadly establish military bases and operations on the island to which Greenland has no objection.

Greenland rejected Trump’s demand and told him to pound his desert sand.

Is or was there an ulterior motive again at work here? Greenland possesses some of the richest stores of natural resources in the world, including oil, gas, gems, and rare earth minerals. Technology is improving to source the deposits as is extraction technology. Maybe, Greenland is not just a desolate iceberg.

North Pole

In a similar vein, sources are warning Santa Claus to build up his arsenal. Seems Trump wants the North Pole because Santa stiffed him when he was 16 and gave him a Ken doll instead of the Barbie Skipper Babysitter he dreamt about.

World Economic Conference — Davos, Switzerland

Trump’s rhetoric and threat of war and invasion of Greenland reached new heights at the Davos Conference. Anders Vistisen of Denmark told Trump to f@#k off. Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, made it clear that the old comfortable ways of global politics are gone and have been substituted with threats and the use of hard power.

Carney’s remarks about rolling over and tolerating whatever great powers like the US dole out sparked a clarion call for the consolidation of those countries wishing to remain sovereign and independent in a world of increasing despotism.

Sweden and Denmark have already decided to liquidate billions of dollars of US Treasury Bonds because US policy has become unstable and unpredictable. Legitimate concerns include the high budget deficits and Trump’s increase of the national debt by nearly a trillion dollars.

Actions such as these directly impact the US economy. They signal growing international apprehension about the sustainability of US fiscal policy. They create currency and market volatility and, if widespread, will do irreparable harm to the US economy and all Americans.

Emmanuel Macron segued with his comments about Trump’s bullying tactics in demanding non-negotiable maximum economic concessions from long standing allies and trade partners, or else. Macron noted Trump’s continuous refusal to follow international rules and laws. Instead he’s using his power just as other imperialists and authoritarians do — much like Putin and Jinping.

Trump’s threats to NATO were not lost on the speakers at Davos. Remember, loyalty is a one-way street for Trump. Otherwise, you’re his mortal enemy.

Trump’s response was typical — a rambling stream of consciousness, speaking like a petty gangster in a bad movie. He was bombastic, non-substantive, and insulting.

By way of example, Trump has threatened to impose 200% tariffs on wine from France if Macron declined to join Trump’s ridiculous Board of Peace — his attempt to (1) undermine the UN and, (2) capture billions by rebuilding Gaza into Trump World.

The irony with his so-called board of peace is that peace is no longer at the top of Trump’s mind. He told Norway’s Prime Minister, that he no longer feels obligated to think purely of peace (because he didn’t get the prize).

Taco Diplomacy

After the speeches at Davos, stock prices plunged. It seems the pain of a decline in the market is one Trump can’t suffer. Remember, the top 1% of investors own 50% of all stocks. The top 10% own over 90% of all stocks. And the rest of us own 1% or no stock at all.

Not wanting to piss of the richest of the rich, Trump fell back on his strategy of Taco Diplomacy — Trump Always Chickens Out. It seems he never intended to invade Greenland, stating he would not use force to take the piece of ice. Stocks rallied but then came the Denmark and Sweden announcements causing the Dow to drop further.

Affordability

Trump claims the affordability of Americans’ necessities is a leftist hoax. He barely understands the term groceries and has no objective evidence to dispute the fact that most Americans are suffering under his economy.

Of course, Trump lies. Otherwise, why in the world would Brooke Leslie Rollins, Trump’s Agriculture Secretary, say American’s can eat a healthy meal with virtually no money?

You can have a piece of chicken, a broccoli stem/floret, a corn tortilla, and one other thing for three bucks! It’s good for your damn health!

On the other side of the parallel universe is Trump, whose McDonald feasts of two Big Macs, two Filet-O-Fish, a chocolate shake, and fries cost about $35! He loves a well-done, rock hard 40-ounce tomahawk steak with ketchup — about $200 for the ruined steak. Meatloaf, KFC, pizza, Doritos, and Oreos are often on his menu. He drinks 12 cans of Diet Coke each day. You can get a 35-pack at Costco for about $25, but he’s never heard of it.

The Grift

The Trump family grifting operation is in full swing. The Trumps made over a billion dollars through their Trump crypto empire. The $TRUMP crypto coin is pretty much worthless unless you want to gain access to exclusive Trump events and influence. However, according to Trump, as President, he has no conflict of interest running this side hustle.

National Parks

Trump’s face is now featured on the 2026 national park pass. George Washington on one side and the “drill baby drill” resource consuming, climate change denier on the other. The good news is that a stamp of Smokey the Bear is now available to stick on top of Trump’s mug.

Epilogue as a Dialog

Sir, I stand before you. I can offer no gold bars, gold crowns with encrusted jewels, gold golf glubs, gold watches, gold daggers, gold robes, gold pagers, gold WBC or WWE champion belts, private jets, special holograms, or World Soccer Peace prizes. But I do have something much better than these material things that will soon fade to dust.

I’m listening.

Sir, it is my gift of eternal life.

Are you kidding me? I just got that gift from some red-faced guy with a tail. Look, he gave me these gold horns.

Sir, I believe you were deceived by the Devil.

Oh yeah! Well who the hell do you think you are — Jesus Christ?

You say correctly that I am. John 18:37.

More from Michael -

• Attention Congress — Get the Hell Out of Our House!
• Thank You Mr. President

More from Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs

• Bizarro World Melania Style
• The Message White People Should Be Getting From Renee Nicole Good’s Murder
• Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs

I’M ON THE TOP OF THE WORLD LOOKING DOWN ON CREATION was originally published in Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

A poem

She sits on the corner
Begging for a dollar
All she owns she carries
She is someone’s daughter

The gentry pass with laughter
As if she doesn’t matter
I wonder if she married
Her clothes are worn and tattered

Her eyes are ever piercing
Danger never ceasing
I want to know her story
I want to hear her reasons

The shadows hide a sinner
A word now etched within her
Her fate forever tarries
A daughter mourns her mother

The rain pours as she’s lying
‘neath a doorway where she’s crying
Was she ever happy
Her voice is slowly dying

Will she survive the winter
In cold so raw and bitter
Will someone show her mercy
A prayer that goes unanswered

On the corner sits another
Begging for a dollar
All she owns she carries
She is someone’s daughter.

To watch and listen to Michael’s original video of this poem, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGybNL-_umQ

Homelessness experienced by women is made unique by their disproportionate experiences of gender-based violence including domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, human trafficking, and sexual assault. Over time, women’s wealth compounds at a lower rate compared to men due to persistent pay gaps, resulting in higher rental cost burdens and housing instability. Though younger women are facing higher rates of first-time homelessness, gendered wealth disparities also force older women, no longer able to afford the cost of living, into homelessness. Older women face more chronic health conditions and, on average, die 35 years prematurely. Due to longstanding systemic racism and sexism, women’s homelessness is disproportionately experienced by BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. Unhoused Women

The Lark

More from Michael

• After We Fall
• South Side
• As Your Castle Burns

More from the Lark:

• Walls Don’t Melt
• The November Sunshine

Someone’s Daughter was originally published in The Lark on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

After Ricardo splattered on the sidewalk

In high school, we were a poor man’s triumvirate — then Ricardo showed up.

I’m Mateo. My old man is Italian. My mom is Chicana. The most important thing to them was that I become a priest or a doctor. Those were the only options, neither of which I chose. Instead, I became a sportswriter for the local crap newspaper and a total disappointment to the family.

Osvaldo is half Portuguese half Cuban. His parents are fishmongers and own a tiny home on Boyle Avenue. Osvaldo grew his first beard at 12. He once bet us five bucks he could grow a full head of hair in six weeks after shaving it bald. We lost that bet. Osvaldo graduated from dental school so he could fix the fucked-up teeth of his 400-strong family members.

Reggie is half Korean half Filipino — his real name is Yong-Sun. He was the smartest of the group and regularly got his brains beat out if a minus showed up next to the “A” on his report card. Reggie went to Harvard and became a lawyer for the ACLU.

Richard was chauffeured into our “disadvantaged hood” from Beverly Hills High. His folks were loaded but wanted him to experience the City’s underbelly. He was in the smart classes with us but didn’t give a shit about grades. As a sympathetic gesture, we invited him to join our band of brothers.

We changed his name to Ricardo to keep from explaining why we rolled with a white boy. He was always talking about money, fame, and getting back at everyone who ever wronged him. We figured such was normal for rich people.

We hung out under the 6th Street Viaduct connecting East LA to Downtown. We weren’t a gang but did tag walls and smoke dope — after homework.

Individually, we had zero girlfriends. Collectively, we had zero street cred. I made up a story about my Uncle Mario, a fictional sicario in NYC. The bangers left us alone. The real violence came at home if we didn’t hit the books.

Today, we’d likely be called ghetto nerds.

Ricardo was a head case. He tagged walls with shit no one understood. We let him tag Carpe Fuckin’ Diem on the underpass of the Hollywood Freeway. Locals thought it was a sign from a new crew. For a month, we were in hiding.

Ricardo bought a wrecked car with no front end from a junkyard. He had it towed to school under cover of darkness. He pushed it into the wall of the gym as if it crashed. He put cop tape around the car and chalked the ground with the outline of a dead boy. He tagged the gym wall with the name of our rival, Edison High. Cops, reporters, and the entire high school showed up wondering who died. Ricardo filmed it all on his camcorder. He was never caught!

Things went from bad to worse when Ricardo challenged Tiburón Martinez to a fight to prove himself worthy of Anita, Tibu’s squeeze.

Ricardo arrived with a hammer hidden in his hoodie. He was just about to drill Tibu in the back of the head when we wrestled it away. Tibu beat the shit out of Ricardo and secretly thanked us later, asking what was wrong with that loco muthafucka?

Ricardo borrowed a Maserati from his neighbor’s garage and showed up at school with enough weed and coke to reincarnate Studio 54 on Whittier Boulevard. He wanted us to sell it on the streets to compete with the Bloods and the Crips.

¿Estás chiflado? We weren’t interested in being glock popped in a drive by! Ricardo went cray cray for our lack of loyalty. He started to resent us and we him.

To smooth things over, Oswaldo invited Ricardo and his family to a Portugues churrasco. They brought collard greens potato salad, and cubed watermelon their butler picked up on Crenshaw Blvd. Get where I’m going here?

After being dumbstruck by the kegs of Budweiser, they asked, Where is the wine? Oswaldo gave them the half gallon of Spañada he kept stashed under the cholla cactus no one dared go near — without Kevlar gloves and the rake hidden in the weeds behind the tool shed.

Then they asked us to turn down the music in the middle of Santana’s Soul Sacrifice!

Reggie cautioned us to be polite and smile because Ricardo’s folks don’t really want a conversation; they want to tell you their opinion on everything.

Just nod and make comments like, “Interesting” or “I never thought about it that way” or “Wow, your gardener did act unprofessional and it doesn’t sound like your comment was racist at all.”

Now we knew why Ricardo was an asshole!

Ricardo had to end his high school career with a bang. He brought a quarter stick of TNT and blew up the plastic resin statue of Teddy Roosevelt, our school’s namesake. He was busted by the cops but his old man got him off after donating ten grand to the deputy mayor and installing a granite statue of Teddy inside the principal’s office.

Ricardo went off to college somewhere and disappeared until he invited us to a party on the 15th anniversary of our graduation.

In theory, time has a way of eroding the edges off the nasty shit you did when you were young and stupid. Nevertheless, the three of us decided to go just to see what the hell Ricardo was up to. We got lost and arrived an hour late to his penthouse in the Hollywood Hills.

He had a valet park my car, a ’52 Chevy with a column stick shift, now a classic beater. We laughed our asses off watching the dude try to move it. He said, Thank God you’re his only guests.

We hit the entryway and climbed 17 floors in this glass elevator. You could tell Ricardo was pissed having to wait. Still, he immediately offered up a bowl Cheetos, our go to snack in high school. There was no other food to be found except Cheetos. We didn’t care. He laughed and poured Spañada into his crystal wine glasses, seemingly very proud of himself.

Ricardo hadn’t changed much save for the overbearing gold chains around his neck. He was still wild-eyed and tense as a trip wire. He no longer wanted to be called Ricardo anymore. Now, it was just Dick. We called him Ricardo anyway even though he was still a dick.

He said he was an arbitrageur making millions by exploiting differences in currency exchange rates. Reggie knew what he meant and explained it to us later.

After Ricardo finished recounting his high school accomplishments, he turned ugly, ranting about our never having his back.

Ricardo’s rehearsed guilt trip ended as abruptly as it started. He bear hugged us, which was odd because he was a germaphobe. Ricardo excused himself to take a leak.

Then the screaming began.

Why, Why? Why do you hate me? Don’t kill me, I’ll give you money — anything you want! Have mercy!

The screaming got louder and louder as we raced to find Ricardo in his bedroom standing on the balcony. He gave us a sinister smile. Gone was any sense of desperation until he shouted, Please, please don’t push. I love you guys!

Ricardo appeared happy as he fell backwards and splattered on Mulholland Drive.

We called the cops and were arrested on the spot. The valet and a few other residents confirmed Ricardo’s last words.

The cops matched our DNA in the Cheetos’ bowls with the smears on Ricardo’s shirt. We were stuck in jail, with no bail, having been framed for Ricardo’s murder by Ricardo. Vintage!

Our lives were on the road to perdition. We were trapped in Gehenna, a.k.a., L.A. County Jail, while Ricardo laughed his ass off in some cosmic psychiatric ward.

Then came the shocker. The coroner submitted his report to the D.A. concluding that Ricardo died instantly from a shotgun wound to the head, indiscernible at the scene because Ricardo ‘sploded. The cops searched everywhere and everyone we ever knew but found no shotgun.

After again scouring his house, the cops found a cryptic note tacked to the back of Ricardo’s bedroom door which read, Haha! — Gotcha!

Also found was a receipt from Apex Window Washing, which was scheduled to clean the windows of the 15th floor apartment, two floors below Ricardo’s, on the day he jumped!

Ricardo left instructions to Apex to make sure the work started at precisely 2:00 p.m., for the 2-hour job. He also instructed Apex to bring their largest safety net.

The owner of Apex confirmed his crew’s schedule. That’s all he knew. The crew got their early, at 1:00 p.m., and started working. The owner said he never had a complaint about his crew showing up too early.

At 2:00. p.m., a crewmember saw Ricardo looking down from his balcony, giving him thumbs up. It was no wonder Ricardo was agitated when we arrived late.

At 3:30 Ricardo began his performance, unaware the crew had bundled up and left.

Now the note made sense. Ricardo intended it all as a sick joke, knowing the net would catch his fall.

But what about the shooting?

The coroner determined that Ricardo’s life was interrupted by the shotgun blast as he passed the 16th floor on his way down. Apex was off the hook.

The 15th floor apartment was occupied by an elderly man and his wife. They were arguing and he was threatening her with a shotgun. He was so upset that, when he pulled the trigger, he completely missed his wife and the pellets went through the window to find their home in Ricardo’s dome.

The old man said it was his long-standing habit to threaten his wife with the unloaded shotgun. He had no intention to shoot her and had no clue where the shot went.

The cops learned the old couple’s son loaded the shotgun after they cut off his gravy train.

Knowing the propensity of his father to use the shotgun threateningly, he expected his father to shoot his mother then commit suicide. The epic fail made the son equally enraged and despondent. He later jumped to his death from the 15th floor, detonating in the same spot as Ricardo.

No one was charged with Ricardo’s murder.

Then he called us . . .

THE COPS FOUND OUR DNA IN THE CHEETOS BOWL was originally published in The Haven on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.