Au Cochonnet Marin

I just voted, and I consider this undertaking as one of the most important decisions of my life. I voted, no need to wait, and I mailed my ballot as soon as I received it. No need to wait a single minute to fulfill my obligation as a citizen and make sure that my choices are recorded. Too many important issues are at stake in this Presidential election to neglect an essential civic obligation.

Being a good citizen does not mean waving flags and parading with guns. It means being informed, responsible, and willing to uphold the law.
This year, due to many alarmingly declarations by the occupant of the White House, there is a lot of uncertainty and anxiety concerning the elections.
If on the losing side, the incumbent never formally agreed to a peaceful, orderly transfer of power. Before the votes are even tallied, he pledges a “major investigation into voter fraud.” Nothing to inspire confidence into a smooth, orderly transition.

Looking back at history, 2020 bears many frightening similarities with 1933.

1933 was the worst year of the Great Depression and unemployment peaked the world over. 2020 is so far the most damaging year of the Covid-19 pandemic and millions are out of work and demoralized.
In Germany, during that period, there was a lot of unrest and exaggerated fears about Communism. Alarmed people demanded Law and Order.
In the US, increased turmoil and inflated fears about fictitious QAnon and the “Radical Left “compels many people to side with a man who preaches confrontation rather than appeasement.

In 1933, a certain Adolf Hitler became the chancellor of Germany, and immediately enforced his own version of Law and Order. He fiercely clamped down on dissenters… and opened the first concentration camp at Dachau. Beware of stern law-abiding headmen!

Giving a second chance to a man who is an inveterate liar, is like giving carte blanche to Ivan the Terrible. He is as flighty as a bedbug and disposes of friends and allies as easily as emptying a garbage can.
This is also a man who has constantly downplayed the severity of the pandemic. After 210,000 victims and being himself infected by the virus, he still persists in denying the severity of Covid-19. Wearing a life-saving mask seems to be for him and his supporters, a pesky option rather than a mandatory obligation.

The most powerful democracy in the world deserves a better candidate than a fraudulent businessman. His opponent is not flashy, but he is an experienced man with a sense of decency and compassion. As displayed recently on TV, he is also a gentleman who has much better manners than his boorish opponent. Manners worthy of a President of the United States, not of a carnival barker.

Vote early and be counted!

Alain

We live in troubled times, and we are in dire need of a unifying subject to bridge an ever-widening political gap. This is why today’s topic is going to be lighter, even frivolous. It deals with an issue that amazingly, Republicans and Democrats might even agree on.

Women who constitute half of the world population could be that link. Lately, their ascendance and influence have been significant, and the world is paying attention.

Men are mostly bland and boring, and not very interesting to look at. In comparison, women are way more attractive and much easier on the eye. They are also considered more astute and more diplomatic than men. So yes, I am partial to women and I hope that someday we will have a woman in the Executive Office.

With time, women’s influence and physical appearance have evolved. They are like chameleons, adept at changing their looks according to circumstances. After numerous metamorphoses, women today favor a new look.

“Today women are expected to be skinny, but not too skinny, with large breasts and a big butt, all while maintaining a flat stomach”.

The center of attention has shifted from breasts (Jane Russell) to the “derrière” (Jennifer Lopez). And women increasingly are seeking plastic surgery to achieve this look.

When asked what they first notice in a woman, many men opt for the lame “beautiful eyes” answer. Maybe, but I doubt it. At 20 feet, it is impossible to tell anybody’s eye color. What you first notice is the silhouette, bust, waist, and a well-rounded ass, a callipygian ass.

Beautiful eyes will never stop traffic and prompt construction workers to whistle. But a shapely butt will. I venture to say that an exceptional ass could even lead to howling. Don’t blame men, they simply cannot help it.  It has something to do with primeval atavism. Women are acutely aware of this and would kill for a shapely derriere.

And yet, until now, the ass (at least in the American culture) has never been as celebrated as the breasts. Why is that? Maybe because some people feel it safer to glorify the Twins for its life-giving properties than the ass for its satanic promises of unearthly lust. I don’t want to take the thunder away from a pair of shapely breasts, but when push comes to shove, the asses have it.

Political correctness or not, I am an unabashed admirer of the feminine derrière… an ass man.
Have mercy, I cannot help it.

Alain

Life is getting more complicated, more challenging every single day. Have you noticed it?

For my part, it seems that my hearing is getting less reliable than it used to be. In my youth I could hear a mouse fart, but not today. It is not terribly bad, but this problem is accentuated by the widespread utilization of masks. The sound coming through is kind of muffled, not as clear as to when unimpeded.

“I hadn’t really noticed that I had a hearing problem. I just thought most people had given up on speaking clearly.” ~ Hal Linden

Then the problem is compounded when the speaker is foreign-born and communicates with an unfamiliar accent. How many times can you decently ask your interlocutor to repeat himself? Two, three, four? If this person is excitable (and packing heat) the situation could easily get out of control.
Life is getting more complicated…

To add to this difficult situation, ubiquitous plastic screens shielding merchants from customers are popping up everywhere. If your hearing is not as sharp as your pet, you are handicapped. I could bring my cat shopping, but she is not very patient or diplomatic. When annoyed, she is quick to unsheathe her claws and get ornery.

The other major complication of modern living is the inordinate use of passwords. Like bedbugs, they infiltrate every facet of your life. You cannot go to the bathroom without entering a password! And we are asked to make them difficult to guess… from a few anodyne characters it jumped to 8, 10, 12, and now 20 digits. What if you urgently need to go to the loo, and cannot remember the impossible password? Is there a derogation for urinating on the kitchen floor?
Life is becoming more complicated…

Some “independent-minded” people refuse to wear masks. Why? I have no idea. Do they really believe that the pandemic (after over 200,000 deaths in the US alone) is a hoax? Are they so enamored of our leader that they believe every single word coming out of his mouth? Or are they just plain half-witted?

I have the feeling that those “mavericks” are the same individuals refusing to follow rules and using the same 4-digit (1234) password on all their cyber transactions.

They cannot help it… Life is becoming too complicated for simple-minded folks.

Alain