Here’s my first effort at cartooning..to say it is basic is … well, it’s basic. So now I’m gonna get defensive: hey! This is my first try at it! Gimme a break, will ya? I am learning the tools, and building my characters, ok? So lay off.

Hey, so even the great and wonderful Charles Schultz had to start somewhere…here’s the first ever Peanuts strip.

So here it is – in video format, with no voices – yet. That will come later, and I’ll build it into the plot, as I intend to make myself a Goddess with a capital Godd…well, you know.

Let me know what you think, but be kind – I’m as thin-skinned as Tiny Hands on this new venture. That’s my new name for he who thinks, “me must be obeyed” – the buffoon known as tiny hands, also known as TH. If Teddy Roosevelt could be TR, then … well, you getit.

Here’s a picture of McConnell and Ryan, taken while DtheT was delivering his inaugural Hitler-inspired screed (see previous post). The looks on the two men’s faces couldn’t be different. Ryan is basking in the glow of words that should be sending shivers down his spine. His desire for raw power is superseding his sense. Sad that he doesn’t realize the peril that he faces: he’ll likely figure it out, and then, my friends, he’ll have to go.

But more interesting is the look on Mitch’s face. As he listens to the disjointed, ugly, fear-feeling and mongering speech, he knows that this will spell the end of the Republican party he has served and enjoyed for the past 53 years. And it won’t be a soft landing for the party, either. It will be an ignoble end, and likely doom the party to at least a decade of humiliation and pariah status, not just with Americans, but across the globe. You almost feel a little sorry for him.

But don’t. When the Tea Party was first in its ascendancy, Mitch thought he could use them to his own ends: first to garner the Majority Leader position, and then for a Republican to win the presidency. He envisioned a return to prototypical conservatism: low taxes, an emphasis on global business and trade, and an end to regulation that stifled commerce. Well, he got the presidency for the Republicans. But not the kind of president he thought would work with him – you know, Jeb Bush. Instead, he got DtheT, a psychopathic, petty thin skin who represents all that is dark about the deplorable portion of the party. In his column today, David Brooks refers to DtheT’s motivation as “porcupine fear”. I’m not quite sure what that is, since Googling the phrase only gives me some progressive rock band’s album name. But it does conjure up a picture, eh?

So look at Mitch’s face and examine it well. What do you see? Porcupine fear.

No, I did not watch any of the inauguration (other than what the nightly news hour foisted upon me). No, I did not get drunk, as I did not want to deal with hangover consequences. Instead, I waited to hear or read something cogent from all the talking heads assembled and providing commentary on the event. Sad to say, I was disappointed at every turn. I believe the media is fatigued and depressed over it all. The only happy people I saw yesterday were wearing red hats and naively believing this man was their salvation.

So this morning, it occurred to me: there was another man who was similarly labeled in history. In 1933, he was appointed Chancellor of his country by an old and weak President. I wondered about his first speech, compared to DtheT’s. So I looked it up. And here it is – at least appropriate parts, relative to yesterday’s missive.

“More than fourteen years have passed since that ill-fated day when, blinded by promises at home and abroad, the German volk lost sight of the most valuable assets of our past and of our Reich, its honour and its freedom, and thus lost everything. Since those days of treachery, the Almighty has withheld His blessing from our Volk. Dissension and hatred have made their way into our midst. In the profoundest distress, millions of the best German men and women from all walks of life watch, as the unity of the nation vanishes and dissolves in a muddle of political and egotistical opinions, economic interests and differences…

Today’s ceremony, however, has very special meaning. Because today we are not merely transferring power from one administration to another, or from one party to another — but we are transferring power from Washington, D.C. and giving it back to you, the American People.

The misery of our volk is appalling! The starving millions of unemployed proletarians in industry are being followed by the impoverishment of the entire Mittelstand [middle-class] and artisan professions.

But for too many of our citizens, a different reality exists: Mothers and children trapped in poverty in our inner cities; rusted-out factories scattered like tombstones across the landscape of our nation; an education system flush with cash, but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of knowledge; and the crime and gangs and drugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential.

When this disintegration ultimately reaches the German peasants, we will be confronted by a catastrophe of unfathomable dimensions. For not only will the Reich disintegrate, but with it a 2000-year-old inheritance, the most valuable assets of human culture and civilization.

For many decades, we’ve enriched foreign industry at the expense of American industry; subsidized the armies of other countries while allowing for the very sad depletion of our military; we’ve defended other nation’s borders while refusing to defend our own; and spent trillions of dollars overseas while America’s infrastructure has fallen into disrepair and decay.

The warning signs of this approaching disintegration are all about us. In a single gigantic offensive of willpower and violence, the communist method of madness is attempting to poison and disrupt the volk, which is shaken and uprooted to its innermost core…

We will reinforce old alliances and form new ones — and unite the civilized world against radical Islamic terrorism, which we will eradicate completely from the face of the Earth.

Peasants, workers, and bourgeoisie must all join together to provide the building blocks for the new Reich. The National Government will therefore regard it as its first and foremost duty to re-establish Volksgemeinschaft – the unity of spirit and will of our volk.

At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United States of America, and through our loyalty to our country, we will rediscover our loyalty to each other.
When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice. The Bible tells us, “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity.”

It will preserve and defend the foundations upon which the power of our nation rests.
A new national pride will stir our souls, lift our sights, and heal our divisions.
It will extend its strong, protecting hand over Christianity as the basis of our entire morality, and the family as the germ cell of the body of our volk and State.

We will be protected by the great men and women of our military and law enforcement and, most importantly, we are protected by God.

It will reawaken in our volk, beyond the borders of rank and class, its sense of national and political unity and its resultant duties. It will establish reverence for our great past and pride in our old traditions as the basis for the education of our German youth. It will declare a merciless war against spiritual, political and cultural nihilism. Germany must not and will not drown in anarchistic communism…

This American carnage stops right here and stops right now.

Resolved and true to our oath, we will thus—in view of the present Reichstag’s inability to support this work—ask the German volk itself to take on this task we call our own. Reich President von Hindenburg has called upon us and given us the order to use our own unity to restore to the nation the chance for recovery. Thus we now appeal to the German volk to take part in signing this deed of reconciliation.

Together, We will make America strong again.
We will make wealthy again.
We will make America proud again.
We will make America safe again.
And yes, together, we will make America great again.

The government wants to work, and it will work. It was not this government which led the German nation into ruin for fourteen years; this government wants to lead the nation to the top once more. It is determined to pay the debt of fourteen years in four years. But it cannot make the work of reconstruction dependent upon the approval of those who are to blame for the collapse.

For too long, a small group in our nation’s Capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost. Washington flourished — but the people did not share in its wealth. Politicians prospered — but the jobs left, and the factories closed.

The Marxist parties and their fellow travellers have had fourteen years to prove their prowess. The result is a heap of ruins. Now, German volk, give us four years, and then pass judgment upon us!

The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country. Their victories have not been your victories; their triumphs have not been your triumphs; and while they celebrated in our nation’s capital, there was little to celebrate for struggling families all across our land.

True to the order of the Field Marshal, we shall begin. May Almighty God look mercifully upon our work, lead our will on the right path, bless our wisdom, and reward us with the confidence of our volk. We are not fighting for ourselves, but for Germany!

That all changes — starting right here, and right now, because this moment is your moment: it belongs to you.
You will never be ignored again.
Your voice, your hopes, and your dreams will define our American destiny. And your courage and goodness and love will forever guide us along the way.
___________________________________
Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Remember that great scene in The Lost Boys with Max, the head Vampire? I know I keep referencing that movie, but geez, it’s really on point in these SURREAL days.

So Max reminds the non-Corey kid of the Frog Brothers that you are helpless if you invite a vampire into your house. So how is that relevant? I just finished watching Part II of The Battle of Chile. The documentary film was made in 1976, while the Pinochet takeover was happening. Here’s the point: the good citizenry of Chile thought it was a fine idea for Augusto and the boys to take over the government, as strikes called by supporters of the Allende government caused life to become a trifle difficult in Santiago. So with much help from the Nixon administration’s CIA, Allende was overthrown and killed himself, rather than being taken prisoner by the junta.

Over the following 15 or so years, 3,000 folk ‘disappeared’ and repression was the name of the game. So the message here: be careful when you invite the Vampire in. Listen to Max’s advice. I think he knows of whence he speaks.

The place to deal with the election of Diaper Baby is NOT in the Electoral College. Silly rabbits – it would set a precedent that would negate any future election the losers didn’t like. So now that we’re past that and ready to move on to inauguration, there’s only one question left: what will be the alcohol of choice to achieve maximum inebriation with minimum imbibation on January 20th? Suggestions appreciated.

The Constitution, Article II, Section 4:
The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.

Friday, July 20th, 1787 James Madison’s Notes from the Constitutional Convention

Mr. {Elbridge} Gerry urged the necessity of impeachments. A good magistrate will not fear them. A bad one ought to be kept in fear of them. He hoped the maxim would never be adopted here that the chief magistrate could do no wrong.

Thank God for Mr. Elbridge Gerry. Just as a side note: Mr. Gerry refused to sign the Constitution. Why? It didn’t include a Bill of Rights. That came later.

Last March, I wrote a blog piece about Kim the Young-Un, referencing the old Twilight Zone episode about Little Anthony, played by Billy Mumy. If you made little Anthony mad, he had the power to turn you into a jack-in-the-box. We appear to have a similar situation with DtheT, and just about everybody with whom he’s come into contact. There’s poor Mittens, humiliated beyond belief in his false hunt for that SofS position. Or how about Carly Fiorina, not just humiliated over her sharp-nosed looks during the campaign, but now forced to suck DtheT’s toes in search of a lesser position somewhere in the Trump shelf of acolytes (won’t call it a cabinet). But the two most egregious acts of humiliation were reserved for the Tweeter-in-Chief-Elect’s alleged “friends”: Chris Christie and Rudy Giuliani.

Christie made the mistake of having his Joisey subordinates convicted of messing with traffic on a bridge. But was that really it? Nah. And Rudy? Allegedly blowing his own horn too loudly? Was that what got him bounced from consideration for SofS? Nah. What these two have in common in making little Anthony, er DtheT, stop thinking about them for anything, was this:

Neither man offered Trumplethinskin anything of value going forward.

Rex Tillerson is now the nominee for SofS. His friendship with Vlad the Impaler will be DtheT’s entree into what DtheT thinks will be the battle of the Titans between he and Vlad. This plot line comes straight out of Buffy the Vampire Slayer or The Lost Boys – yeah, that one is better. But which one is Michael, and which one is David? Interesting that those two characters have biblical names. Hey – maybe The Lost Boys was allegorical? Sure enough, that’s what we have before us. King Ralph (Michael the Archangel?) vs Vlad the Bad (David, the Blond Kiefer)?

I’m fairly certain this joust is not going to end well. And if I were a citizen of Lithuania, Estonia or Latvia, I’d worry about becoming Paul, Dwayne or Marko..satellites in David’s orbit. All Michael had to help him kill the Vampires was his brother Sam and The Frog Brothers. But the two Coreys and the other guy were really there for comic relief from all that neck biting. So really, DtheT will have to fight this epic battle alone. Of course, that’s not a problem – he prefers it that way.

So who will win? Will Anthony (DtheT) put Vlad the Bad in a box? Or will Mr. KGB put Selfish Diaper Baby in a corner/playpen? Wait, watch and pray that the battle doesn’t morph into something for which we all will pay.

The other day, Erik said DtheT reminded him of that old movie, King Ralph. That’s the one that starred John Goodman as the inapt/inept king of the United Kingdom, brought to that position through a freak accident involving the making of media. That made me think about the cartoon character, Wreck-It Ralph, voiced by the adoreable John C. Reilly, generally cast as the sidekick but with a voice that just works with a cartoon – or a cartoonish character (see Talladega Nights). Wreck-It Ralph is tired of being the bad guy in the video game, and sets out to become the good guy. Lots of controversy follows in his wake. But the quotes from the film are really on-point. Which quotes are those?

Well, let’s start with this one.

Wreck-It Ralph: I know, I know. I’m an idiot.
Vanellope von Schweetz: And?
Wreck-It Ralph: And a real numbskull.
Wreck-It Ralph: A selfish Diaper baby.
Wreck-It Ralph: A stinkbrain?
Vanellope von Schweetz: The stinkiest brain ever.

I think this one is particularly on point with the analogy:

Sonic the Hedgehog: Stay alert, because if you die outside of your own game, you don’t regenerate, ever, game over.

Then there’s the ‘ultimate’ quote that answers the question: “Why did DtheT even want to be president?” This comes courtesy of King Ralph.

The first question every car buyer asks themselves is ‘Will this car get me laid?’

So DtheT is the numbskull, selfish diaper baby, asking himself if buying the job of president will get him laid, and then realizing he must stay alert, because he’s outside his own game…and he’s beginning to understand Sonic the Hedgehog’s guidance.

So we need a Cedric Willingham or a Princess Vanellope to save us. Unfortunately, O’Toole is dead, so Sarah: you’re up!* Oh Geez, not THAT SARAH! This one!

*Palin never really said those words. She did once confuse which of the two Koreas was our ally, but hey, potato, potato..

At the Opec meeting in Vienna last week, the cartel members agreed to cut production in order to decrease supply. Their hope is that prices will increase beyond the average $50 a barrel level. All members are keenly aware of the fact that a huge cache of oil and natural gas has been located by the USGS near Midland, Texas.

How much oil was found, you ask? How about the largest ever found in the US? We’re talkin’ 20 billion barrels of oil and 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas? So where was this oil hiding? In plain sight, apparently. What’s different is the new technologies that let shale oil come to the surface. New technologies? Yes – the F word…no not that one, Fracking. Yes, boys & girls, we’ll be seeing lots more fracking in the future. That technology that has caused earthquakes in Oklahoma and that utilizes billions of gallons of water for extraction. What’s the problem with that? Well, I wouldn’t like to live in Oklahoma and have a building fall on me – or live in Midland and have my water well run dry from the cumulative effect of lowering the aquifer in an area destined to be extremely dry as a function of global warming. So, in essence, we’ll be trading oil now for habitability then. Well, there’s lots more real estate in the US – big deal. Tell that to those folk that like living there.

The effect of fracking on the price of oil has been significant. As I detailed in a post from a year or so ago, the producer making money at current prices is Saudi Arabia. Canada, Russia, the US and China have producer prices less than current, but not nearly as much less as the Saudis. So, reluctantly, the Kingdom agreed to curtail production. Why reluctantly? They need the income to stave off dissent. Russia needs the production because of sanctions causing their budget deficit. Canada and China are in the middle somewhere, and the US is on the verge of developing this Wolfcamp shale formation to produce even more oil. Even at $51 a barrel, the economics are there to frack that shale. So OPEC is living on borrowed time and they know it. With the Middle East being a cauldron of distress, the next couple years’ are going to be difficult for Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iran, Iraq and Kuwait. But oil prices won’t help any of those folks in OPEC quell their dissenters. Venezuela is probably in the most trouble, due to a combination of bad governance and declining capacity from lack of cash. That country is about to implode, with hyperinflation and starvation right around the corner. Can you spell revolución?

Prepare ye the way of the loud – and hope it doesn’t come to a town or city near you.

Read a piece in The NY Times talking about the same topic I’ve been discussing for the past week or so. They featured a manufacturer in the midwest that makes recliner chairs for movie theaters. Where do most of his raw materials come from? Yep – from China. Tariffs on imports from China will make his products LESS competitive than his competitors in Mexico, Colombia and Australia. So what will he likely have to do? If he raises his prices, he’ll sell less and likely lay off workers. If he pays more for raw materials and charges the same price, he’ll be out of business in rather short order, and lay off ALL his workers. So with higher priced raw materials from China, he’ll turn to suppliers elsewhere, like Vietnam. And which group of manufacturers are looking in relocate to places like Vietnam and even Africa? Chinese manufacturers.

Obama caved to pressure in 2009 from American tire manufacturers and slapped a 35% tariff on Chinese tires. 45% is the number that’s being bandied about by spokespeople for Trumponomics. What was the result of that Obama tariff on Chinese tires? 1200 tire manufacturing jobs were saved. But the cost to consumers increased by over a billion dollars. What did those consumers do? They spent less elsewhere. The net result? The loss of 2,500 retail jobs. This is all according to the Peterson Institute for International Economics, ostensibly a non-partisan think tank. But it’s run by Pete Peterson, who is no bleeding heart liberal. So I think these numbers are real.

Here’s the thing: at some point, DtheT will get bored with all this and turn it ALL over to the Republicans. Those folk are not the sharpest knives in the drawer, and have been preaching this kind of nonsense for so many years, they’ve convinced themselves that it’s truly the way to proceed. So when DtheT “lets go” and lets the “Freedom Caucus” run things, we will see tariffs, potentially withdrawal from the WTO and other insane moves. Be prepared to see a party very much in disarray within a year of DtheT and President Pence taking office. A whiff of impeachment will fill the air…the last thing we need. Won’t be too long before all these folk that voted for Trump will be wishing they had Barry O back. Ironic, eh?