Voting Is Not A Game, There Can Be Serious Consequences

Competition in sports and other activities can bring us tremendous satisfaction from individual or team accomplishment, but after celebrating victory, life moves on to the next game or to the next part of life. Politics is NOT like a game. Election results can bring real consequences, good or bad, often depending upon point of view, in their aftermath. I've written here before about my father's competitive nature and how it affected his political views. He was long a staunch Republican, and he was against Democrats, not because he disliked them, but because they were on the "other team." One time he was talking with a guy out in the yard. When he came inside, he said the guy's name (I don't recall the name now, but this was about 45 years ago) and said he had gone to school with him. The man was running for a political office, county commissioner, I believe, and my father said all kinds of nice things about the guy. This all prompted me to ask, "So, you're voting for him?" He said, "No, he's a Democrat." If I remember correctly, he didn't even know who the Republican candidate was, but it didn't matter, because whoever it was, was on his team. This is how it worked in my dad's world.

Back then, the Republicans, or at least a part of the Republican Party, generally the more conservative part,* had long seethed over Social Security, a program established in the mid 1930s, during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, but with a good deal of Republican support and some Democratic opposition.** Conservative and libertarian Barry Goldwater secured the 1964 Republican nomination for president, and Goldwater was no friend to anyone on Social Security, as he essentially believed it should be voluntary, an idea that could well have led to "Social Insecurity." Well my dad supported Goldwater and tried to play down Goldwater's rough edges, of which there were many. While an outspoken and honest person, Goldwater, in my opinion, hated living in (then) modern times and he would have preferred a more distant time, unless, of course, a time machine dropped him off as a poor person in the 1600s, where "work until you drop (dead)," was largely the way of life for the overwhelming percentage of people not in the nobility. An idea like Social Security would have sounded pretty good to old Barry in those circumstances, and let's forget about that "voluntary" stuff. Anyway, eventually, as with all of us who live long enough, my dad came face to face with the realities of getting older, and the opposition within the Republican Party to Social Security had continued, if not increased. He then saw that politics is not like some sporting event to be won or lost, but that elections could turn your life upside down, and at a time in your life when you had become highly vulnerable, older age. When Republicans took over both houses of Congress in 1994, the situation was much on his mind, as he mentioned how Republicans were too connected to big money interests just greedily rubbing their hands together, hoping to get those hands on Social Security money. How times had changed!  

* I need to point out, that in those times the two major political parties were not as they are today. I think it's safe to say that the most conservative elements in the country were in the Democratic Party, as the South was then known as the "solid South;" that is, it overwhelmingly voted Democratic by tradition dating to before the Civil War. This allegiance to the Democratic Party was HEAVILY reinforced in the post Civil War time, because the Republican Party was the party of Lincoln and an anti slavery party, the party that led the Union in its defeat of the South, as well as in the occupation of the South (Reconstruction). The post World War Two "solid South," however, had been showing the strains of an increasing number of  Democrats moving to advocate for the breakup of segregation and fairer treatment of black Americans, a part of the population then still heavily located in southern states, although some black Americans began to move northward to large industrial cities in hopes of landing good paying jobs. The post World War Two Republican Party still had a fairly potent moderate to progressive wing, eventually led by New Yorker Nelson Rockefeller. Just my opinion, but the venomous part of conservatism was even in evidence back then, as some conservative Republicans absolutely HATED Nelson Rockefeller. That nasty element received lots of reinforcements in the times leading up to today, as the conservatives in the South shifted from the Democrats to the Republicans. Just to be clear, not all conservatives are like this, and wanting checks on spending and government power is not necessarily a bad thing, but rather they are worthy of debate.   

** For more on the establishment of Social Security, here is the link to an earlier article I did:
http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2009/09/yikes-were-already-socialists.html 

WORD HISTORY:
Virus-This word, closely related to "virulent," and more distantly related to "viscous," both words of Latin derivation borrowed by English, goes back to Indo European "weis," with the meaning, "slimy liquid." This gave Latin "virus," meaning, "plant sap, slime, foul smelling liquid, venom." English borrowed the word in the second half of the 1300s from Latin with the meaning, "venom;" thus also, "poison." By the first half of the 1700s, it was applied to "infectious substance," and by the 1970s, the idea of "infectious substance" began to be used for "transmittable computer program for malicious use;" thus, "computer virus."  

"Some" Republicans Take A Stand Against Trump

This was originally published 9-6-18 and it was updated slightly 10-22-20 and again on 4-27-22

 

Generally, I've seen presidents with whom I've had some serious disagreements, but I still did not feel that the nation was in imminent danger of falling into the hands of anti-democratic (small "d") forces, but that is no longer true. Trump and true Trumpists are fascists, and Trump is so infatuated with himself, he obviously would love to name himself as Führer, accompanied by frenzied crowds of Trumpists shouting "Heil!" Not everyone who voted for Trump is a fascist, but there is a hardcore element within his support that seems to have turned off their minds and to have submitted to Trump as if he HAD been named Führer. Democracy isn't something that we can leave to take care of itself. Democracy needs US to help tend to it and to help keep it strong. 

We hear about how many Republicans in both houses of Congress, and in other positions in government down to the local level, don't like the behavior and the divisiveness of Donald Trump. Barring such reports by the media, we would not be able to tell, since most are silent. Need we remind these individuals that they have looked into the eyes of evil, and they blinked. These men and women in Congress vote to send, or offer their support to send, American military personnel into harm's way, but they themselves cower before the president (now ex-president) of the United States, whom they refuse to scrutinize, a scrutiny that is one of their Constitutional duties. Like deserters from the field of battle, these people are missing in action by their own choice. With such people in positions of responsibility in 1776, the newspapers of those times would have reported, "These 'patriots,' and we use the term VERY loosely, do not like what the government of King George III is doing, but they give aid and comfort to the king's policies with their silence."

There ARE, however, some Republicans who have made their opposition to Donald Trump known. They have chosen to put their country first, not some wannabe Führer, who, like Hitler decades ago, would prefer individuals to swear an oath of loyalty to HIM, not to the country and to the Constitution. I will name a few, and some names you may know, while other names are probably unknown to you. There are many more, I'm sure, and I regret forgetting some names, and not knowing the names of so many more, but it's important that at least some be recognized for their opposition to Trump and that we ALL work to put serious checks on the power of this repulsive and divisive (now former) president before it is too late. These are some of the Republicans who have been outspoken in their opposition to Donald Trump and to complicit Republicans in Congress: Joe Scarborough (now an independent), Steve Schmidt (now a Democrat), Nicolle Wallace, Elise Jordan, George Will (now an independent), Richard Painter (now a Democrat), Charlie Sykes, Richard Haass, David Jolly, Bret Stephens, Bill Kristol, Ana Navarro, George Conway, Al Cardenas, Rick Wilson, Rick Tyler, Tim Miller, Michael Steele, John Kasich, Tom Ridge, Miles Taylor. They are human beings and Americans first, NOT Republicans. I have disagreed with some, if not many, of their political ideas, and my television has had to cover its ears over some of the words I've shouted at many of these people over time, but that's okay; this is the United States, at least for the present, and we have disagreements and I know Democrats don't have all of the answers, and they too have had to bear the brunt of some "words" I've hurled in their direction at times. We need good, and yes, at times, hard nosed discussions, that's part of democracy. But this "fight to the death" over EVERYTHING, and the deliberate efforts to divide the country for the sake of Donald Trump's ego cannot end well for our country.   

I guess we often do many things in our lives without a perspective, then one day, we look back and see things in the rear view mirror and we see where we wish we had done things differently. So I believe it has been with some of these people I've mentioned and some of the decisions they have made in the past. I'm NOT saying they will give up on long held political beliefs, but for a year or more, those mentioned have taken definite stands against Donald Trump and against the complicity and enabling by their fellow Republicans of Trump and his "sickophants"... ah, sycophants. No matter what disagreements I've had with the people I've listed, I am proud of them for speaking out and trying to bring the GOP to its senses. They have, at times, spoken brutally honest words in their assessment of Republican colleagues, but that's what is needed, because this is not a matter to be taken lightly, as the very fiber of American democracy is under attack by this criminal and some of those from his former regime. 

 

This emblem is in the public domain from Wikipedia                                                                                          

WORD HISTORY:
Cringe-This word is closely related to "crinkle," and it goes back to Indo European "ger," which had the notion of, "to turn, to wind (long 'i')." This gave Old Germanic "grenkanan/krenganan," with the meaning, "to bend, to yield, to give way;" thus also figuratively, "to fall in battle." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "cringan," with the same meanings. This then became "crengen," then, "crinchen," before the modern version. By the 1500s the meaning had evolved to "bend away in fear, embarrassment or from something unpleasant." There are quite a number of relatives of "cringe" in the other Germanic languages, some of which are: its German relative is now the antiquated "Kring," which means, "ring, circle," from the notion of bending something into a ring shape. It has been replaced in modern times with "Kringel," actually corresponding to English "crinkle," but meaning, "small ring, curl." Low German Saxon has "Kring" (circle, ring) and "Kringel" (ring-shaped baked good, pretzel), Dutch has "kring" (circle, orb), West Frisian has "kringe" (verb, meaning, to pinch, to squeeze, to press; all from the notion of "to bend, to yield), Old Norse had "kringr" (circle, ring).

Make Sure Your Vote Counts!

As we approach the 2018 elections on November 6, be sure to follow the laws and procedures of the state where you are registered to vote. If you are not registered to vote, DO SO NOW, don't procrastinate! Call your local election office, or check for their website online, so that you know EXACTLY what you need to do to be properly registered to vote. You can also check with your state's election office. "Typically" a state's chief election officer is that state's "secretary of state," and I'm sure they all have websites. Remember, in the United States, election laws are set by the individual states, the District of Columbia, or U.S. territories (like Puerto Rico or Guam, for example). For more information to help you register to vote, or for other election questions, here is the link to the site for the "League of Women Voters:"  http://www.vote411.org/

If you have already registered to vote, it is a very good idea to check your registration, even if you just voted in an election within the last few months, and even if your information has not changed. Some states have ways of doing this online, but just as with registering, call or check online for ways to verify or update your voter registration. Remember, even if you move just a block or two away from the address shown on your voter registration information, it might change the ward or some voting district, so keep your information up to date. Further, there are occasional mistakes by election offices, and I'm not meaning "deliberate mistakes," but there are potentially those kinds of mistakes too, so you don't want to show up to vote, only to be told that your name is not on the voter rolls, or that you are listed in another precinct or whatever. TAKE NOTHING FOR GRANTED! REMEMBER, the Trump regime in Washington DC, along with their participants and collaborators on the state and local level, will do ANYTHING to disqualify you from voting, or to see that your vote does not count. There have always been charges leveled at both major political parties about election shenanigans, BUT we have never had the threat to our democracy in modern times that we face now. CHECK YOUR REGISTRATION, DON'T WAIT, DO IT NOW!

If you are in a state that uses early voting by mail, and that is your preferred method to vote, be sure to follow your state's regulations for requesting a ballot, and then follow proper procedure for filling out and mailing in your completed ballot. This is perhaps the most important election in the history of this country. If Democrats do no make sufficient gains to rein in Donald Trump as president, you may not get another chance to vote. Earlier this year in Wisconsin, Republican governor, Scott Walker, faced with Republican losses to Democrats in special elections to fill vacant elective offices, tried to stop such elections from taking place! Thankfully, a judge, who was appointed by Walker, ordered the governor to hold the elections. And let's not EVER forget Mitch McConnell, the most EVIL man to EVER serve in the United States Senate, refusing to hold a vote on Barack Obama's selection for the Supreme Court in 2016. That appointment was instead held for Donald Trump. Now Trump will appoint another judge. If you want to live in about the 1400s (maybe even 1400 BC), you'll love all of these Trump picks, and there will not be any legal thing you can do about them. You could well lose your rights very soon.

BE SURE YOUR VOTE WILL COUNT!

WORD HISTORY:
Ballot-This word, closely related to "ball" (round object),^ goes back to Indo European "bhel," which had the notion, "to swell, to blow or puff up/out." This gave Old Germanic "balluz," "a swollen or bloated object;" thus, "a round object, a ball." This was borrowed by Latin and then emerging Italian from the Germanic dialect "Lombardic" as "palla," but also more properly as, "balla," both meaning, "ball." This gave Italian "pallotta/ballotta," diminutive forms meaning, "small ball." The ball was used in secret voting, often with white colored balls registering as a "yes," and black balls registering as a "no;" thus the term, "blackballing someone." English borrowed the word from Italian in the first half of the 1500s, and when paper ballots came into existence, the word "ballot" simply was transferred to the new voting method.

^ "Ball" is an original English word from its Germanic roots.  

2018, Perhaps The Most Important Election EVER

Signs of a developing trend leading to the crucial midterm election on November 6 have been in abundance in early special elections. Americans almost always seem to reprimand the party holding the White House in elections held at the halfway mark of a president's term. (DAMN! It just dawned on me, that must be why they call them the "midterm elections." See, just give me a few decades and I can figure it out.) It doesn't always seem to mean that Americans dislike the president in office at the time, but all presidents step on some toes, and those with smarting toes are highly motivated to limp to the polls to vote, often leading their own party to turn out in large enough numbers to give anything from a nudge to an outright smack upside the head to the occupant at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, better known as the White House. There have been numerous special elections since Donald Trump took office in January 2017, and while these elections have produced a number of Democratic wins, including some stunning wins, even the Democratic losses have shown a major narrowing of the margins of Republican victories, compared to recent historical Republican margins in those regions. 

Thoughtful change often wins in the end, but it can take time and the question is, can American institutions and American ideals hold on long enough to win against a man who longs to destroy American democracy so that he can become the undisputed Führer of the United States? Republicans in Congress have knowingly rolled over for this strident, divisive and highly insecure president. Have we forgotten the longstanding question about Hitler and Germans? How could an educated and cultured people follow such a self centered and maniacal man like Hitler, a man with obvious emotional problems? We need not ask that question any longer, for the answer is right before our eyes in the United States of America, where a bigoted, resentful and spiteful old bastard with a bad hairdo has risen to lead this country (hey, Hitler had a bad hairdo too). The GOP has long cultivated the uneasiness of some white Americans about the attempts of black Americans, as well as other American minorities, like Latinos, women (who are actually a majority) and gays, to gain equality and fairness in our society. The thing is, in my lifetime, I have heard many divisive statements by American politicians, including, but not limited to, George Wallace* in the 1960s and 1970s, and David Duke** in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, but I've never heard a president of the United States use so much divisive rhetoric to further his own cause and to satisfy his own ego, as one Donald Trump, the unity of the country be damned!      

This upcoming election is likely to be a fight to the death. Are Democrats, independents and anti Trump Republicans ready? Trump and the complicit and enabling Republicans will do anything and everything to minimize their losses and hold onto their control of Congress. The Koch brothers, the Mercers and all of the other "take me back to a previous century" people will spend unprecedented amounts to further Republican control of government. They will say it is to further the Republican Party, but that party is now the party of Donald Trump, which they will NOT tell you. Will the election prove to be the beginning of Trump's political demise, or will he and Republicans emerge stronger than ever, and likely be able to suppress the rights of Americans to protest and to stop the media from reporting critical news articles about them? Vladimir Putin of Russia and Xi Jinping of China are Trump heroes, and they are dictators. We don't need to dig up Einstein to connect the dots for us to understand where Trump stands on democracy. This is all in front us, not hidden somewhere in the shadows of the news. Don't be in denial. Don't stick your head in the sand. We can't take our eyes off of them for one second. The young people of this country have stirred and have been springing into action. They can help to lead us through the potentially destructive nightmare of Trumpian fascism.

For the last couple of centuries, people around the world have looked to the United States as a beacon of hope. Some people have been inspired by the U.S. to pursue freedoms within their own respective countries, while others have left their homelands bound for American shores. We're seeing the light of that beacon flickering like a kerosene lamp running low on fuel. The question is, will WE choose to refill the lamp and keep this beacon of hope shining, or will we let the lamp go dry and extinguish its light, letting the path of hope go dark? We now have a man in office who praises dictators and judges people not as individuals, but by their ethnic, racial or religious backgrounds. That's what Führers do.


* George Wallace was the governor of Alabama in the 1960s, a time when desegregation of schools and public facilities was ongoing. For more on the issue of desegregation and racial politics, here are  two links: http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2017/09/the-former-confederacy-modern-american_8.html 

http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2017/09/the-former-confederacy-modern-american_15.html 

** David Duke is a long time member, and a former leader, of the "Ku Klux Klan," often known by its initials, "KKK," a racist and overall hate filled group dating to the post Civil War era in the American South. Duke was born in Oklahoma, but he has spent much of his life in Louisiana. As most Southerners of earlier times, Duke was a Democrat, and he sought office as such, but as Louisiana and the South, in general, moved more to the Republican Party, Duke changed to that party in the late 1980s. Duke became known for his anti Black American and anti Jewish views. 

WORD HISTORY:
Beacon-This word for "a light positioned on some high place to serve as a guide or warning, often for ships, but not exclusively so," goes back to Indo European "bhah," which had the notion, "to shine, to be bright, to appear as bright." This provided the later basis for West Germanic "bauknan" (English is West Germanic), meaning, "signal light." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "beacen/becn," meaning, "sign, signal." This then became "beken," before the modern version. The other Germanic languages have: German "Bake" (pronounced as if, "bahkeh") meaning, "traffic sign, railway signal," originally used in reference to "a fire set on a geographically high point or in a tower to provide sea navigation);" Low German Saxon "Baak" (sign or signal for ships), West Frisian "beaken" ("buoy"), Dutch "baken" ("beacon"). "Apparently," long ago, Old Norse, from the North Germanic branch of the Germanic languages, borrowed the word from Frisian as, "bákn," which meant, "signal, signal fire."^ This was passed down to the modern North Germanic languages as: Icelandic "bákn," which now means, "large stone column;" that is, "a column showing direction."

^ Centuries ago, the Frisian word was "baken/beken," and meant "signal or signal fire." Later, Frisian split into dialects, giving West Frisian the altered spelling and the narrowed meaning to the modern "buoy." Researching North Frisian is very hard, but it "seems" to have "beken," but I can't confirm that from multiple sources. North Frisian is spoken in the German region of North Frisia, which also includes a number of North Sea islands, called the North Frisian Islands (someone stayed awake late to come up with that name). Remember too, while North Frisian is the spoken regional language, standard German is taught to everyone in school.   

The Deal With the Ruthless, Greedy Internet Devils (Plural)

Likely most in the public didn't exactly understand the deal they were being asked to accept for the "right" to have free access to Facebook, Google and others. The almost voluminous agreements flashed onto our screens are all lengthy and complicated for a reason... SO YOU WON'T ACTUALLY READ THEM! Yes, we SHOULD read them, but few really do (I plead guilty), and the issuing companies know that. The info the technology companies have compiled on us, by various reports, is STAGGERING! We sold our souls and our very personas and the info they have on us will not stay contained; after all, this is about MONEY; therefore, NOTHING is off the table, because they will do ANYTHING for MONEY. Then there are the various Internet service providers to whom we PAY money for their service, and they track EVERY click we make on the Web. They know more about us than we can remember about ourselves! If you really believe these moneygrubbing exploiters won't use any of your medical or banking info, or info on your children or grandchildren, that they have pilfered or pillaged, you're being terribly naive. They want MONEY! Gazillions! Not a quarter of a gazillion, not a half a gazillion, not one gazillion, GAZILLIONS!

Last year, congressional Republicans and Trump repealed Obama rules on your browsing history that were set to go into effect to give individuals the right to approve the collection and sale of their private browsing history. The passage of the repeal by Congress and the signing of the measure by Donald Trump allows the internet service providers (separate from entities like Google and Facebook) to sell your collected browsing history without your consent. Let's start the bidding ... who will give us a bundle for a BUNDLE of info on these people? This is how the vote went in Congress:

Senate vote: 50 FOR, all Republicans, 48 AGAINST, all Democrats, 2 not voting, Republicans Johnny Isakson of Georgia and Rand Paul of Kentucky.

House vote: 215 FOR, all Republicans, 205 AGAINST (all voting Democrats and 15 Republicans*), 9 members not voting**, 5 vacancies***

* 15 Republicans against the measure: Brooks (MO), McClintock (CA), Coffman (CO), Yoder (KS), Graves (LA), Amash (MI), Zeldin (NY), Faso (NY), Stefanik (NY), Jones (NC), Davidson (OH), Sanford (SC), Duncan (TN), Herrara Beutler (WA), Reichert (WA)

** 9 members not voting: Sean Duffy (R-WI), James French Hill (R-AR), Tom Marino (R-PA), Robert Pittenger (R-NC), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Bobby Rush (D-IL), Michael Simpson (R-ID), Louise Slaughter (D-NY), Paul Tonko (D-NY)

*** One vacancy in each of these states: Montana, South Carolina, Georgia, Kansas, California

WORD HISTORY:
Plunder-In terms of this word's more distant history, this is a mystery word. It was borrowed by English from a sub-dialect of Bavarian German called "Hutterisch," spoken by "some" Protestant groups that grew out of the Reformation. The word "seems" to date to a noun form in the 1300s, at least, in German. In those times, the noun meant, "household goods," which also developed the extended meaning, "clothing." The noun spawned the verb "plundern," which later had an umlaut added to make, "plündern," meaning, "to carry off goods from a house." In those times, Low German and Dutch both had the similar verb "plunderen," while West Frisian had "plonderje," all with the same general meaning as the German verb, as well as, "to take over someone's possessions," with a growing emphasis on "taking possessions by force." German also developed "Plünderer," meaning, "one who plunders, one who takes possessions from others by force, a looter." Both the noun and the verb forms were borrowed by English during the first half of the 1600s. More or less as already noted, German has the verb "plündern," meaning, "to plunder, to loot," and the noun, "Plunder," which has now come to mean "junk, rubbish:" Dutch has the verb "plunderen," meaning, "to plunder, to ransack, to loot;" as well as the noun, "plundering," meaning, "the act of plundering, marauding."

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part Twenty-Seven

 In the late 1990s, Republicans, along with some Democrats, pushed for deregulation of the banking industry by removing the "Glass-Steagall Act," a law implemented in the era of the Great Depression, to prevent the mixing of investment banking (also termed "casino banking," as it can be highly risky) from "traditional" banking; that is, savings and checking accounts, car loans, etc. Democrat-turned Republican, Phil Gramm, a senator from Texas, led the charge for the deregulation, which was then signed by President Clinton. This legislation would prove to be one of the causes of the later so called, "Great Recession," as it allowed Wall Street banks to engage in behavior that was more than a little risky.

Anti government sentiment had been on the rise, certainly not discouraged by conservative attacks on government at all levels, and the sentiment came accompanied by hate groups and fascist-like militia extremists. In 1995, a terrorist bomb attack on the Federal Building in Oklahoma City killed more than 160 and injured nearly 700. The main perpetrator, Timothy McVeigh, had ties to militia groups and seemingly hated the government over issues like taxes and gun control. Anti government feelings were a longstanding tradition in the southern states, dating to the very creation of the Confederacy itself.

Clinton's second term included his impeachment over sex scandals, but I will not be covering that, as the overall subject is a bit complicated, and I did an article on it as part of another series. If you're interested, this is the link:   http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2012/12/its-about-coalitions-not-purity-part.html 

A president's political party often loses seats in Congress in midterm elections, and that's certainly true of the second midterm elections of two-term presidents. President Clinton's sex scandal gave Republicans hope for an even bigger than typical win in the 1998 election. It didn't happen; in fact, Democrats actually gained a handful of seats in the House of Representatives and the overall Senate numbers remained unchanged after each party won seats from one another, canceling out any net gain for either. The Republican pursuit of Bill Clinton's sex life seemed to have taken a nasty turn on the GOP, as voters seemed to want the matters of governing addressed, and not the president's personal life. The Clinton sex scandal would soon help to claim two REPUBLICAN leaders, not Democrats. First, the election results in the former Confederate states in 1998: 

1998 Senate: the only change in the former Confederate states was a North Carolina gain for Democrats.
House of Representatives: Alabama, unchanged at 5 Republicans, 2 Democrats; Arkansas, unchanged at 2 Republicans, 2 Democrats; Florida, unchanged, 15 Republicans, 8 Democrats; Georgia, unchanged, 8 Republicans, 3 Democrats; Louisiana, unchanged, 5 Republicans, 2 Democrats; Mississippi, Democratic gain of one seat, making state delegation, 3 Democrats, 2 Republicans; North Carolina, Republican gain of one seat, making state delegation, 7 Republicans, 5 Democrats; South Carolina, unchanged, 4 Republicans, 2 Democrats; Tennessee, unchanged, 5 Republicans, 4 Democrats; Texas, unchanged, 17 Democrats, 13 Republicans; Virginia, unchanged, 6 Democrats, 5 Republicans.
Governors: Alabama, Democratic gain: Florida, Republican gain (Jeb Bush, a son of former President Bush, began to come to prominence with this win); South Carolina, Democratic gain. One note, in Texas, George W. Bush, also a son of former President Bush, was reelected as governor. He would then run for president.

Next: Two Southerners face off in the election of 2000 ...  

WORD HISTORY:
Goad-This word, related to the "gar" part of "garlic," goes back to Indo European "ghai," which had the notion, "pointed, triangular," with the extended, "ghaizo," which meant, "staff, spear." This gave its Old Germanic offspring, "gaizo," meaning, "spear, pointed/triangular in shape." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "gad" (long "o" sound), and meaning, "spear, arrowhead," but also, "pointed staff to move cattle or other animals." This then became "gode," with the latter meaning having become the main meaning, and then came the modern spelling. The noun produced the verb form by the mid 1500s (maybe a bit earlier?), with the meaning, "to use a "gad/gode" (goad) to move cattle," but also the figurative, "cause to do something," and then also, "to stir up, to incite." Only English has forms of the original Germanic word that developed with this particular meaning.  

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part Twenty-Five

The Republican election victory of 1994 was propelled to some extent by what the GOP called, "The Contract With America," a statement of ideas the Republicans promised to vote on in the House of Representatives, if voters made them the majority party in the House. The ideas all had varying degrees of majority support in polls conducted by Republican congressional leaders, primarily Newt Gingrich of Georgia and Dick Armey of Texas. Some of the major proposals were: to require a balanced federal budget, unless approved by a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress; major reform to welfare programs; anti-crime legislation to provide money to states and local communities for law enforcement and to provide for the building of prisons; proposals to give tax credits for children, to reform parts of the legal system and to cut the number of committees in the House of Representatives.

The new Republican controlled House of Representatives elected Newt Gingrich of Georgia as Speaker of the House. Gingrich had been born in Pennsylvania and even lived in Europe for a time, before his family moved to Georgia when he was in high school. Dick Armey of Texas was chosen by Republicans as their majority leader in the House. Like Gingrich, Armey was not an original Southerner, as he had been born and raised in North Dakota, and he eventually moved to Texas when he was in his mid 20s. Tom Delay of Texas was elected as the House Majority Whip. Delay was born in Texas, but he spent a number of his childhood years in Venezuela, where his father was employed in the oil industry. He returned to Texas for much of his teenage education and beyond.  

So now came the election of 1996, as Bill Clinton ran for reelection. *

* For some of the lead-up to the election, here is the link to another article I did covering that general time period. I will do a more detailed view of the election and the former Confederate states'  involvement in my next article in this series: http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2012/11/its-about-coalitions-not-purity-part_28.html 

WORD HISTORY:
Core-This word is related to "cardio," a prefix form borrowed by English from Latin, which had borrowed it from Greek. It goes back to Indo European "ker(d)," which meant, "heart." This gave its Old Italic offspring "kor(d)," which then passed to Latin as "cor." This passed to Latin-based Old French as "coeur" (Norman dialect "cuer?"), which continued the meaning, "heart," but also "center, middle," often used of some fruits and vegetables, especially apples. English borrowed the word circa 1400.

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part Twenty-Four

The election of 1994 proved to be an earthquake for Democrats, as Republicans won enough seats in the House of Representatives and in the Senate to take control of both houses. Democrats had controlled both houses of Congress since the 1950s! Newt Gingrich of former Confederate state, Georgia, became Speaker of the House.

The results in the former Confederate states where there were changes in party representation: U.S. Senate: In Tennessee Republicans took both seats from the hold of Democrats (one actually was a special election to fill a vacancy brought about by the retirement of the incumbent Democrat). That was the only change in the Senate, and in the House of Representatives: in Florida, Republicans gained 2 seats, making the delegation 15 Republicans and 8 Democrats; in Georgia, Republicans gained 3 seats, making the delegation 7 Republicans and 4 Democrats; in Mississippi, Republicans gained 1 seat, making that delegation 4 Democrats and 1 Republican; in North Carolina, Republicans gained 4 seats, making that delegation 8 Republicans and 4 Democrats; in South Carolina, Republicans gained 1 seat, making that delegation 4 Republicans and 2 Democrats; in Tennessee, Republicans gained 2 seats, making that delegation 5 Republicans and 4 Democrats; in Texas, Republicans gained 2 seats, making that delegation 19 Democrats and 11 Republicans; in Virginia, Republicans gained 1 seat, making that delegation 6 Democrats and 5 Republicans. There were no changes in the delegations of other former Confederate states. In races for governors, Republicans took over the governors' mansions in Alabama, Tennessee and Texas, with the other states seeing no change in the party holding the governorship.

One additional note, Senator Richard Shelby, of former Confederate state Alabama, switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican right after the Republican election victory in November 1994, thus increasing the Republican majority in the Senate. 

WORD HISTORY:
Swerve-This word goes back to Indo European "swerbh," with the notion of "twists and turns used for wiping, brushing or sweeping something off." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "swerbanan," with essentially the same meaning. This then gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "sweorfan," meaning, "to wipe, to rub, to scour, to file down." This then became "swerven," before the modern form. The modern meaning of "go off course, move to the side or move from side to side" seems to have come from the idea of the "wiping motion, twists and turns," of the original meaning. As you can see below, other Germanic relatives mean, "wander, roam," which has the notion of "not staying on course," and it's certainly possible that English had this additional meaning long ago too, but that it was not set down in writing. Relatives in the other Germanic languages: German had "swerben," but no longer; Low German Saxon has "swarven" (wander, roam, brush off), West Frisian has "swerve" (wander, roam, stray); Dutch has "zwerven" (roam, wander, stray); Icelandic "sverfa" (file down); Swedish "svarva" (to turn).

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part Twenty-One

A big part of Bill Clinton's campaign for the presidency had been centered around, "It's the economy stupid," an expression originally meant to keep Clinton campaign workers focused, but which, in fact, became the campaign's slogan. Once in office, Clinton and his administration pushed for, and got, a plan to raise taxes on the top 1.2% of earners, while cutting taxes for many people further down the income scale, as well as for many businesses. The tax on gasoline also was raised by 4 cents + on a gallon of gasoline. Republicans went ballistic, claiming the Clinton plan would prove to be devastating (more on this in an future part of this series). Clinton and Democrats would increasingly claim credit for the improving economy, with this legislation being the cornerstone of the administration's economic policy.

The plan eked through both houses of Congress in August 1993, as ALL Republicans in both houses voted AGAINST the measure. This is how the senate delegations from former Confederate states, of two senators from each state, voted: SENATE: Alabama: 1 Democrat for, 1 Democrat against; Arkansas: 2 Democrats for; Florida: 1 Democrat for, 1 Republican against; Georgia: 1 Democrat against, 1 Republican against; Louisiana: 1 Democrat for, 1 Democrat against; Mississippi: 2 Republicans against; North Carolina: 2 Republicans against; South Carolina: 1 Democrat for, 1 Republican against; Tennessee: 2 Democrats for; Texas: 2 Democrats against; Virginia: 1 Democrat for, 1 Republican against. The total Senate vote was 50 votes for and 50 votes against, and Vice President Al Gore (from Tennessee) cast the tie breaking vote, by naturally voting "for" the measure. In the House of Representatives, the votes by delegation from former Confederate states: Alabama: 3 Democrats for, 3 Republicans and 1 Democrat against; Arkansas: 1 Democrat for, 2 Republicans and 1 Democrat against; 9 Democrats for, 1 Democrat and 13 Republicans against; Georgia: 5 Democrats for, 4 Republicans and 2 Democrats against; Louisiana: 2 Democrats for, 3 Republicans and 2 Democrats against; Mississippi: 2 Democrats for, 3 Democrats against; North Carolina: 8 Democrats for, 4 Republicans against; South Carolina: 3 Democrats for, 3 Republicans against; Tennessee: 4 Democrats for, 3 Republicans and 2 Democrats against; Texas: 15 Democrats for, 9 Republicans and 6 Democrats against; Virginia: 6 Democrats for, 4 Republicans and 1 Democrat against.


WORD HISTORY:
Booth-Some of the history of this word is a bit shaky, but this is what I've come up with, although parts of it could be altered, if I find more information. This word, related to "bower" and to the "-bor" (British: "-bour") part of "neighbor," goes back Indo European "bu/bhu," which meant, "to dwell, to live upon or in," an extended meaning from the base meaning, "to exist, to be." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "buraz," with the meaning "place where one dwells," and a derived form, "buwan," meaning, "to construct or settle for the purpose of living or shelter." English once had the verb "buan," meaning "to live, to dwell, to live in or on, to occupy." A derived form, "budo," meaning, "a place constructed for shelter," apparently developed in Old Germanic itself, or "perhaps" in its North Germanic offspring.^ Whatever the case, Old Norse had "buð" (ð=th in more modern times), seemingly meaning, "a small house or tent, an encampment." The notion of "tent, encampment" gave the meaning the sense of "temporary," or, "not sturdily built." This then carried over to an extended meaning, "a structure or enclosure of boards or material for temporary use for selling goods, and thus easily moved around." English borrowed the word from Old Norse in the mid 1100s. 

^ There are similar forms outside of Germanic, but whether these were borrowed from Germanic (I find some of it doubtful), or whether they simply followed a similar course of development on their own from the original Indo European is unclear (something a bit hard for me to completely buy into). Even sorting through the Germanic forms are difficult, as there are many words that are derived from the Germanic form, and the basic meaning had many angles to it. For example, English has "build" and German has "bauen" (meaning, "to build, to construct," but also the extended, "to cultivate the soil"). English has "bower" ("dwelling," but also once a word for "farmer," and then, "area in a garden sheltered by trees or leafy plants." German has "Bauer" (farmer, peasant," but also, "bird cage"), and there are others. Determining the direct relatives to "booth" is also challenging, but German has, "Bude" (booth, kiosk), Low German has "Bood" (booth, small shop), Swedish has "bod" (shed), Icelandic has "búð" (a shop, a booth).

It's About Coalitions, Not Purity, Part Forty-Nine

On election day 2008, financially battered Americans, fearful that the nation, and the world, might be entering into a new era of economic depression, sent a very clear message, as Barack Obama won the presidency and Democrats made gains in both the US Senate and the House of Representatives. Barack Obama won about 53% of the popular vote to John McCain's 45 3/4%, but in the Electoral College, Obama won 365 votes to McCain's 173. Various exit polls showed Obama did well among many demographic groups, with Senator McCain, in major categories, only winning voters 65 and over by a single digit margin, and in the broader category of white voters, he won by about 10 points.*   

In the U.S. Senate, a strong Democratic tide prevailed as the Democrats gained eight seats, although one of those seats, in Minnesota, was not a definite gain until several months later, as the race was so close.** In the House of Representatives, twelve Republican members of the House retired prior to the election and all twelve seats were won by Democrats, as Democrats gained 21 seats overall and increased their majority. 

When Barack Obama took office in January 2009, the racist and bigoted segment among white voters, many of whom seemingly shifted over to the Republicans from the Democrats,*** helped to form a floor of support under the GOP and to offer a resistance to Obama, and often to Democrats, in general. Certainly not all opponents of Obama were (or are) racists or bigots, but a certain element "joined" the Tea Party, where they could "hide out," in my opinion, criticize the "black Muslim guy" in the White House, as some viewed Obama, but still claim, "I'm not a racist, I just care about deficits, freedom, the price of tea and can't we go back to 1773?" The Tea Party was not truly a political party, but rather a conservative-libertarian political movement that became an activist wing, and thus, an important part of the Republican Party coalition. The Tea Party members waved teabags and some wore colonial and early American garb, which gives you some idea of the century they likely preferred to modern times. Of course, they also just as likely forgot about the drawbacks of the 1700s, like no Internet... well, that might not be a good example. Now in 2017, you barely hear the name "Tea Party" anymore, as the racist elements have now come out more into the open by marching with the Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacist groups, as we now have a president who sees some "good people" in these groups. For about 4 or 5 years, beginning in 2009, the Tea Party was highly visible and it proved to be troublesome for both Democrats and for the more traditional Republicans. If there was much "organization" to the Tea Party, it was represented by the financial support of the Koch political organization and former member of Congress, Dick Armey. Traditional Republicans need to look at the Kochs and Armey for their support and courting of the disruptive forces to oppose Obama, but which then helped to bring Donald Trump and company to take over the Republican Party, a force which now threatens the very nation; however, this was not done without the inadvertent help of Democrats. Next... Economic stimulus, Wall Street bankers and Obama administers health care to the GOP and helps it back to its feet...  

* The demographic exit polls I looked over were all similar, with minor differences in some categories, but in no case did I see major discrepancies that showed, for example, McCain winning by a few points in a particular category in most polls, but with another poll or two showing Obama as winning that category. One of the close categories was for "men," where "essentially" Obama and McCain split the vote, although some polls showed a slight tilt to one candidate or the other.

** Senator Arlen Spector of Pennsylvania, a Republican, switched to the Democratic Party in the spring of 2009 (the new Senate was first seated in January of 2009). In the late summer of 2009, Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, a Democrat, died. A temporary Democratic replacement was named, until a special election produced a Republican election victory in early 2010.

*** I told a little about one of these "converts" in Part 48 of this series. Here is the link: http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2017/11/its-about-coalitions-not-purity-part.html     

WORD HISTORY:
Garb-The ultimate origin of this word is uncertain. It is related to "gear," a word from Germanic. "Garb" goes back to the Old Germanic verb, "garwijanan," which meant, "to prepare, to make ready;" thus also the more specific, "to equip (make ready) for battle." This produced Germanic "garwa," meaning, "ready, finished." The verb also produced Germanic "garwi," a noun for, "clothing, military wear (gear, equipment)." This was borrowed by Italian from one of the Old High German dialects of the Alps region, which had, "garawe," meaning, "mode of dress, adorned attire." The Italian form, "garbo," meaning, "stylishness, elegance," seemingly from the notion of "well adorned (well prepared) form of attire." This was borrowed by French as "garbe" ("graceful appearance/bearing"), and this was borrowed by English in the second half of the 1500s, and the shift in meaning to, "type or mode of dress/attire," came in the 1600s. It is related to German "gerben" (to prepare hides for wear or use by tanning), Low German "garven" (same meaning as German). Other related forms in the Germanic languages came to mean "to make;" thus also, "to do," from the original notion of "to make ready, to prepare." Its relationship to "gear" goes back to the same Old Germanic form and the forms that generally meant "equipment, military arms, clothing," which later broadened a good deal in the English meaning to, "saddles, harnesses for horses and pack animals," then also, "parts for ships," and "mechanical parts for machinery," as well as, "equipment to do various activities, like fishing and physical sports."   

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part Nine

In the 1970 election, on the state level, segregationist George Wallace, although he was still a national political figure, returned to the Alabama governor's mansion, while in Florida and Arkansas, the governorship of each state returned to Democratic control. In Georgia, a man won the governorship, who would soon become both nationally and internationally known, Democrat Jimmy Carter. In Tennessee, a Republican was elected governor, and the year before (1969), in Virginia, where elections for governor are held in off years from national elections, Republican Linwood Holton became the first GOP governor of the state since Reconstruction.

The early 1970s saw the political situation take three major turns. First, Nixon, the highly intelligent, but far from warm and cuddly, politician, won a huge reelection victory in 1972. Second, investigations of corruption in Maryland uncovered contractor kick backs to Spiro Agnew when he served in two different capacities there, including as governor of the state. Further, is was discovered that the payments to Agnew had continued even after he was vice president. Agnew resigned and he was replaced by Gerald Ford, a long time Republican congressman from Michigan, and the Republican minority leader in the House of Representatives. Third, during the 1972 campaign, a group of five men were arrested inside the Democratic National Committee's headquarters, located in one of the buildings of the Watergate Complex,* a group of office and apartment buildings in Washington, DC. The men were part of a Republican plan to get information from the Democrats and to plant listening devices on telephones in the Democratic headquarters. The subsequent cover up of any connection to the Nixon White House by some of Nixon's closest advisers and by the President himself, led Nixon to resign from the presidency in August 1974.  

The 1972 election: Richard Nixon carried all former states of the Confederacy by two, three and four times the number of votes his Democratic opponent, George McGovern of South Dakota, received. In the Senate, North Carolina elected a man whose name became nationally known over time, highly conservative Jesse Helms, who had just recently switched to the Republican Party from the Democratic Party. In Virginia, Republican William Scott defeated Democratic incumbent William Spong. In the House, where the districts were reapportioned according to the results of the 1970 Census, Republicans gained a seat in Alabama, where there was one less district due to redistricting, making that state's delegation 4 Democrats, 3 Republicans; in Florida, which gained three seats by the Census, the delegation was 11 Democrats and 4 Republicans; in Georgia, which had the same number of districts as before the Census, the Democrats regained a seat, making the delegation 9 Democrats and 1 Republican; in Louisiana, which had the same number of seats as before the Census, the Republicans won a seat, making the delegation 7 Democrats and 1 Republican; in Mississippi, which had the same number of seats, the Republicans gained two seats, making the delegation 3 Democrats and 2 Republicans; in South Carolina, where the number of seats stayed the same, the Republicans gained one seat, making the delegation 4 Democrats and 2 Republicans; in Tennessee, which lost one seat due to the Census, the delegation was 5 Republicans and 3 Democrats (previously 5 to 4 Republican); in Texas, which gained one seat, the delegation was 20 Democrats and 4 Republicans (previously 20 to 3 Democratic); in Virginia, which had the same number of seats, the Republicans won one seat, making the delegation 7 Republicans and 3 Democrats. In North Carolina, a Republican won the governorship for the first time since the late 1800s.

* The investigations into the Nixon administration's illegal activities, some of which were not directly related to the break in at the Watergate offices, all came to be included under the term "Watergate" in the public mind and the media. 

WORD HISTORY:
Mansion-This word, distantly related to English borrowings, "remain" and "permanent" (both are Latin derived words borrowed by English from French), goes back to Indo European "men," which had the meaning, "to stay," also in the sense, "dwell." This gave Latin "manere," meaning, "to stay, to dwell," which produced the noun, "mansio," meaning, "a dwelling, a place for lodging," with the accusative case being, "mansionem." This was passed to Old French as "mansion," meaning, "house/home," then, "a large house for the clergy," then, "for a lord." English borrowed the word from French in the 1300s.

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part Six

As the United States continued to struggle with desegregation and racial inequality during the 1960s, including violent confrontation in Birmingham, Alabama, as well as in many cities outside the former Confederacy, politically, the people of the former Confederacy "by and large" remained tied to their Democratic roots, although discontent continued with many Democratic leaders, including President Lyndon Baines Johnson (often known by his initials "LBJ"), who pushed for, and signed, legislation that prohibited discrimination against Black Americans and other minorities. This discrimination was used to interfere with, and stop, people's right to vote ("The Voting Rights Act of 1965"). While the Voting Rights Act covered the entire United States, there was no illusion as to its intent being mainly to be used in the southern areas of the country, where voting discrimination and outright intimidation had been a common practice against black Americans.

While the former Confederate states resisted change about racial matters, it is important to note that the demographics and population increase in some of these states also began to show marked change, especially in Florida, where many Cubans had fled Fidel Castro in the late 1950s and early 1960s, AND, where more and more Americans from the northern part of the country chose to make their home after retirement. Further, quite a number of people migrated to various parts of the American mainland, especially to Florida, from Puerto Rico.* In the midterm election of 1966, Republican Howard Baker won a Senate seat in Tennessee.** In Alabama, Democrats recaptured 2 House seats taken by the Republicans in 1964 (Result: 5 Democrats, 3 Republicans in the congressional delegation). In Arkansas, Republicans took their first congressional seat since Reconstruction (Result: 3 Democrats, 1 Republican). Also in Arkansas, New York Republican transplant, Winthrop Rockefeller,*** won the governorship. In Florida, the congressional delegation ended up: 9 Democrats, 3 Republicans, but Republicans won the governorship (Claude Kirk). In Georgia, the congressional delegation ended up 8 Democrats, 2 Republicans. Special note about Georgia: avowed segregationist, Democrat Lester Maddox, was elected governor. The election of Maddox showed that changing the racial politics of the former Confederacy was still a very difficult battle. In Louisiana, the Democrats remained firmly in control, with all 8 congressional representatives. In Mississippi the Democrats recaptured the congressional seat lost in 1964 (Result: 5 Democrats). In North Carolina, the congressional delegation was 8 Democrats and 3 Republicans. In South Carolina, the delegation remained 5 Democrats and 1 Republican. In Tennessee, the congressional delegation was 5 Democrats and 4 Republicans. In Texas, the congressional delegation was 21 Democrats and 2 Republicans. In Virginia, the congressional delegation was 6 Democrats and 4 Republicans. As you can see, while the Democrats were able to retake some congressional seats, the Republicans won other seats, and the GOP was actually beginning to become competitive in some House elections, as well as in some governor's races.  

* Puerto Ricans are American citizens by birth, but they cannot vote in the general election for president. However, if they move to one of the 50 states or District of Columbia, they can register and vote, just as any other American citizen. "If" Puerto Rico became a state, something that has long been talked about, then residents could vote right in Puerto Rico for president, and they would also have 2 United States Senators and voting congressional representatives in the House of Representatives. 

** Howard Baker would go on to become one of the best known politicians in the country.

*** His grandfather was famous oilman and the wealthiest man on Earth, for a time, John D. Rockefeller.     

WORD HISTORY:
Yon-This word goes back to Indo European "io(n)/ie(n)," with the notion of, "that, that one." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "jaino," with the meaning, "that one, that one over there, that one beyond here." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "geon," meaning, "that over there." This then became "yon." It later also became a shortened form of the related "yonder." Forms in the other Germanic languages: German has "jener," meaning, "that or that one over there, also," and also, "jene," simply the feminine form of "jener," but also the plural form; thus, "those, those over there"); Low German "apparently" no longer uses a form, but it did have "gene/jene," West Frisian "itjinge," meaning, "that thing, that object;" Dutch "ginds," meaning, "yonder, over there;" Icelandic "hinn," meaning, "the other, that other one," and it also developed into the definite article equivalent to English "the."      

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part Two

The 1936 election gave the Democratic Party a landslide victory, with Franklin Roosevelt carrying all former states of the Confederacy (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia). Democrats continued to hold all 22 Senate seats and all but two congressional seats in the former Confederate states.* This situation did not change until the spring of 1950, when a special election was held to replace a congressman who became a judge in Texas. The district was in the panhandle area of Texas and a Republican won the special election, but served only a few months before being defeated by a Democrat in the regular election in November of 1950. In the 1952 election, Republicans picked up three seats in the House in former states of the Confederacy: 1 in North Carolina and 2 in Virginia. ** By the next election, in 1954, the Republicans picked up a House seat in Florida, a seat in Texas and two seats in Virginia; however, all senators in the former Confederacy remained Democrats. In the 1956 election, Republican President Dwight Eisenhower won a major reelection victory, but Republicans could still not win any Senate seats in the former Confederacy, nor could they add any further House seats. So as Eisenhower began his second term, his political party's delegation from the former Confederate states had 2 House seats in Tennessee, 1 seat in Texas, 1 seat in Florida, 1 in North Carolina and 2 in Virginia.

Lyndon Johnson, a Democratic senator from Texas, was chosen by John F. Kennedy as the Democratic Party nominee for vice president in 1960, and in the election, the Kennedy-Johnson ticket won a close race. A Democrat was appointed to fill Johnson's seat in the Senate, but he then lost the seat to Republican John Tower in a special election a few months later. John Tower became a Senate fixture. The Republicans had cracked the solid Democratic hold on Senate seats in the former Confederacy.***

* As in Part One, Republicans continued to hold the 2 seats in eastern Tennessee; however, unlike in 1930, the one Republican congressman from Texas died in office and was replaced by a Democrat. This is the link to "Part One," if needed:

http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2017/08/the-former-confederacy-modern-american.html

** Republicans held a majority in both houses of Congress, at that time.

*** Just to be clear, during 1959 both Alaska and Hawaii became states, thus adding a total of 4 senators and increasing the Senate to an even 100 senators, where it has remained ever since. In the House of Representatives, each of the two new states received one House seat, until the Census of 1960 could be completed and new apportionment for House seats calculated; thus, temporarily, the number of seats in the House of Representatives rose to 437, from 435.

WORD HISTORY:
Chore-This word goes back to Indo European "ger/gers," which had the notion "to turn, to bend around." It is distantly related to Greek "gyros," "meat that cooks by turning." ^ The Indo European form gave its Old Germanic offspring "karisjanan," which also meant "to turn, to turn around." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) the verb "cierran" (to turn, to turn back, change/convert; that is, turn something from one thing to another), which produced the noun "cierr" (a turn, a change, period of time changed from normal use to refer to business matter, work, occasion). "Cierr" then became "cherre," with the primary meaning "odd job;" that is, a change from routine work or time, and this then became "char," now rarely encountered except in the compound "charwoman," a term for a "cleaning lady," still in use at times in England. In the United States, the variant pronunciation "chore" for "char" prevailed, and the meaning "odd job" still remained somewhat, but usually with the meaning "routine personal jobs for one's own household," often, but not exclusively, used in reference to "chores" for kids, like "taking out the garbage, mowing the lawn, raking leaves, making small trips to the store." Some other forms in the Germanic languages: German has "kehren" (verb: return, turn around)  and "Kehre" (noun: sharp turn, sudden major change), Dutch "keer" (noun: occasion; that is,  change in normal time) and "keren" (verb: return).

^ Greek is an Indo European language related to English, but further down the family tree. English and many European languages have a number of words that trace back to Greek, although some came by way of Latin, which borrowed a number of Greek words, some of which were later passed on to English and others.

The Former Confederacy & Modern American Politics, Part One

With so much political turmoil going on in the country right now, and with the involvement in that turmoil of groups long affiliated with the southern part of the United States, more especially, with the former Confederacy, I thought I'd put together some basic political history on those states and their relationship to the Democrats and Republicans. I've chosen to start with 1930, as that year began the shift and realignment in the political system, giving a decided edge to Democrats in the following years. Essentially all of this information is available on the websites of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, respectively.  

The Great Depression, and the failed three and one half year response to it by the Republican administration of Herbert Hoover, helped to give the incoming 1933 Democratic administration of Franklin Roosevelt and a heavily Democratic Congress the chance to make Democrats the majority party, potentially, for years to come. That's just what happened, with Roosevelt winning four presidential terms (there was no term limit at that time), the fourth of which was completed by Harry Truman, due to Roosevelt's death in mid April 1945, and then Truman won a term in his own right in 1948. The Democrats dominated elections for the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, with overwhelming support from the states of the former Confederacy. Beginning with the midterm election of 1930, * the Democrats had a majority in the House of Representatives until the election of 1946 (members taking office in 1947**). In the Senate, Republicans barely held on (they had had a 12 seat majority before the election), as the two parties each had 48 seats, but with the vice president able to break any tie vote, this guaranteed Republican control. *** The Democrats gained control of the Senate in 1933, following the election of 1932. They kept control of the Senate until 1947, in the wake of the Republican victory in the 1946 election. 

The states that had composed the Confederacy were solidly Democratic. Here is the break down by state when Congress convened after the 1930 election in 1931:

Alabama U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members-10 Democrats
Arkansas U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 7 Democrats
Florida U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 4 Democrats
Georgia U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 12 Democrats
Louisiana U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 8 Democrats
Mississippi U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 8 Democrats
North Carolina U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 10 Democrats
South Carolina U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 7 Democrats
Tennessee U.S. Senators- 2 Democrats; House members 8 Democrats, 2 Republicans
Texas U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 17 Democrats, 1 Republican (died in office, replaced by Democrat, making all 18 members Democrats)
Virginia U.S. Senators-2 Democrats; House members 9 Democrats, 1 Republican

I have to admit, I was more than a little surprised to find 2 Republicans in the Tennessee House of Representative delegation. They represented two districts in the eastern part of the state, which had elected Republicans in the past. Similar was the case of the one Republican congressman from Texas, who represented a district in eastern Texas in the Houston area for several terms. It is important to remember, the two major political parties were not totally of the same philosophical views as today. 

* During the actual election in 1930, the Republicans retained control of the House by a small margin, but several special elections followed before the House went into session, and Democrats won enough seats to gain a majority. Unlike Congress in more modern times, which meet for a good many months each year, the House members elected in 1930 did not actually convene for legislative purposes until December 1931 (!), by which time, Democrats had won a majority.

** Just to be clear, elections take place in the fall of a year and the new Congress does not meet until the next year. Up until, and ending with, the election of 1932, presidents did not take the oath of office until March 4 after an election, and Congress would convene then, although not necessarily for legislative purposes at that time. Beginning with the election of 1936, presidents were sworn in on January 20 following the election, and Congress "typically" has convened in early January after an election, usually in legislative mode.

*** There were 96 senators in those times, 2 senators x 48 states, as neither Hawaii nor Alaska were yet states. Democrats actually had 47 seats (22 of those in the former Confederacy), and there was 1 senator from the Farm-Labor Party of Minnesota, who often voted with the Democrats. The Vice President of the United States at that time was Charles Curtis.        

WORD HISTORY:
Move-This word "likely" traces back to Indo European "meueh," which had the notion of "move by pushing, push." This gave Latin "movere," with the meaning "move, put into motion." Old French, a Latin-based language, inherited a form of the word as "movoir" ("to move"), which was taken to England by the invading Normans and became "moveir" in Anglo-Norman. By the 1200s the word had become part of English as "moven," before the modern version. The word also took on the added meaning "to be moved emotionally." The noun form was derived from the verb about a century later.

Where Are McConnell & Ryan, Other Republicans?

Note (8/17/17): A few Republicans have been gradually issuing some critical statements directly naming Trump, including a statement by Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, which questions Trump's "stability" and "competence."  

No "Word History" for this today... 

We all know what Donald Trump said, and didn't say, about the White Supremacists, Nazis, the KKK and White Nationalists, first on Saturday, then again on Tuesday, interspersed with a reluctant condemnation of violent racist groups on Monday. It should be CLEAR to ALL Americans, the REAL Donald Trump IS the ONE many of us have been saying he IS for so long. No longer can ANY Americans bury their heads in the sand and deny or fail to address this abomination. After Trump's statements on Saturday and Tuesday, many Republican leaders and officeholders made their way to Twitter to say how much they condemned these same groups, with a few even admonishing Trump for his diluting a long tradition of strong, unequivocal condemnation of such violent racists, although not all mentioned Trump by name. I only say "Trump" or "Donald Trump," because I refuse to dignify this total abomination with the title "president." I also do NOT accept those who say how they've known him for years, and that he is not a racist. Open your eyes and ears, DONALD TRUMP IS A RACIST.

A big question is, where are Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan on things, besides weak-kneed Tweets? These two, and many other Republicans in both houses of Congress, sure didn't waver in their attempt to strip health care from millions of Americans. And as for other Republicans, including those serving in the Trump administration, when do you stop acting like Trump did on Monday, while appearing to be forced to make his condemnation statement, and you stand up and condemn and divorce yourself from Donald Trump? When will YOU lead your constituents and followers to stand against these groups, instead of seemingly fearing the retribution of these groups at the voting booths. The GOP has been courting these groups for many years, now bringing their party to this point in their history. Speak out NOW and ACT! YOU have already been complicit, end that complicity NOW!    

"It's About Coalitions, Not Purity" Part Forty-Four

"The Chickens Come Home To Roost-George W. Bush's Second Term"

George W. Bush's second term began with the failure of his Social Security privatization plan to get anywhere. In Iraq, a civil war had broken out between Iraqi Sunni and Shia Muslims. Caught in the middle were American, British, and other coalition forces or their assistance groups, as well as a number of private security contractors. Bombings and killings were common, and the whole situation was a mess, as coalition forces also tried to oust al Qaeda units. On top of this, reports and photos had surfaced of various torture techniques used by Americans against prisoners in Iraq. This brought condemnation from many within the U.S., as well as from international sources. This part of the war in Iraq continued to grow in media coverage as time went on.     

On the domestic front, oil/gasoline prices surged to new highs, tapping the pocketbooks of already financially strapped Americans. The number of housing foreclosures were rising ominously, as the further movement of jobs to overseas production facilities, and the subsequent reduction in wages in some parts of the American economy, hung like a dark cloud over the country, bringing a queasy feeling about the storm that was coming. During the campaign, a story broke regarding Republican Mark Foley, a congressman from Florida. The story indicated that Foley had sent sexy messages to teenage boys who worked, or had worked, as congressional pages. Foley resigned about 5 weeks from the election, but the whole matter brought into question how much the Republican House leadership knew about Foley's activities. * Also brewing at that time were separate, but related scandals involving lobbyist and Republican contributor Jack Abramoff (and others), including deals about a casino boat company in Florida, a deal about minimum wage in the Mariana Islands (a U.S. Territory in the Pacific), Native American gambling casinos and campaign contributions. All of these matters are highly complex, but they touched several Republicans in Congress and government, as well as Republican supporters outside of government. Their complexity makes them far beyond this article, but there are many online sources, and also check your local library for books and articles. 

The 2006 midterm elections saw a major win for Democrats, as President Bush's popularity plunged, dragging down many Republicans with it, and the Republican coalition fractured to a degree. Democrats gained 31 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, 6 seats in the U.S. Senate. These Democratic victories often came at the expense of Republican incumbents, and in the Senate, Democrats took seats from Republicans in Ohio, Montana, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Rhode Island. Democrats also gained 6 governorships, as well as numerous state legislative seats, and state and local offices. Nancy Pelosi of California became the first ever woman Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

* Republicans, by this point in time, almost all of the conservative bent, had made anti-gay rhetoric a major part of their political party. Here was a Republican directly involved in gay sexual activities. At that time, Dennis Hastert was the Republican Speaker of the House. In the spring of 2016, Hastert admitted that he had molested teenage boys when he was a high school wrestling coach. He was given a prison sentence and a fine.

WORD HISTORY:
Torture-This word, distantly related to "thwart," goes back to Indo European "twork/terkw," which had the notion of "turn, twist." This gave Latin the verb, "torquere," which meant, "to twist, to bend," and its participle form, "tortus," gave Latin the noun, "tortura," which meant, "writhing, pain brought on by injury inflicted to get information or to get agreement to something." This passed into French as "torture," with the same meaning. English borrowed the word circa 1500 from French, but likely with the reinforcement of Latin itself. 

Some More Questions To A Republican

"Hello folks! This is Dan Ratherbe, in Philadelphia. Today I once again have Republican George Owen Pappenstiel here to speak out on the issues confronting the nation and his Republican Party, no holds barred."

DR: "Well Mr. Pappenstiel, it's been a little while since I first interviewed you." *

GOP: "Yeah, that was back when that Bomma guy claimed to be president."

DR: "That's Obama."

GOP: "Yeah right, tryin' to be Irish.... 'O' bomma... haha.... about as Irish as the rest of them people from them places in Africa."

DR: "But he IS part Irish. Don't you remember he visited Ireland?"

GOP: "Visitin' a place don't make ya from that place. I cun visit Massichew... Masseshoe... that place where Boston is, but that don't make me no Democrat, an' that's fer shur."

DR: "So what do you think of Donald Trump's first couple of months in office?"

GOP: "It's a breath o' fresh air! Finally gettin' some truth out, 'cause Ole Donald tells it like it is. That's what's gonna make America great agin, truth tellin.' Just like with that Bomma listnin' in on Ole Donald talkin' on his own private phone in his own private buildin'."

DR: "But there's been absolutely no proof that any such thing ever happened."

GOP: "That's what you librals in the media want folks ta believe. There is proof.... Ole Donald said it, didn't he? That's proof! He the president of the UUUNited States, ain't he?"

DR: "Well I assume you support the wall the president wants to build on the border with Mexico?"

GOP: "Oh now, truer words was never spoke. All them folks south of the Rio Grande is jus' what Ole Donald said 'bout them. They er murderers and rapists. Then they come up here and want US to speak Mexican."

DR: "You mean Spanish."

GOP: "No, I mean Mexican. They ain't from Spain."

DR: "So what do you think of the Republican failure to repeal Obamacare?"

GOP: "That's jus' plain terrible! Don't know what's becomin' o' this country. Wantin' ta give health care to ever'body. An' this law from Bomma helpin' to give care to millions. An' that Bernie Sanders guy... he the worst, even worse than Bomma hisself. He ain't no Christian, that fer shur."

DR: "Ah, Bernie Sanders is from a Jewish family."

GOP: "See, told ya he ain't no Christian. They jus' like those Mooselims... all from over yonder there in the Middle East. All them folks need to jus' stay over there. Ole Donald messed up there, he needs to ban people from all them countries, not jus' a few. All we do is give money to them people over there, includin' Izrel. Never knew any good people from that part of the world, not a one."

DR: "Ah... Jesus Christ."

GOP: "An' don't be takin' the Lord's name in vain, ya hear?"

DR: "Well, our time is up, Mr. Pappenstiel."

GOP: "Ya got that right, if we don't do what Ole Donald wants an' you keep takin' the Lord's name in vain. Jus' ask Pat Robertson!"


* The first "interview" was in May 2013 and this is the link:  http://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2013/05/asking-republican-few-questions.html

WORD HISTORY:
Ode-This word "seems" to go back to Indo European "aweid/e-weid," which had the notion, "to make (voice) sound, to speak, to vocalize." This gave Ancient Greek the transliterated "aeido," which meant, "to sing, to give praise in song." This gave Ancient Greek "aoide/oide," a noun, "song, poetic song." Latin borrowed the word from Greek as "oda," then "ode," the form taken by Latin-based French. English borrowed the word from French, likely with reinforcement by Latin, in the late 1500s.

America Once Fought Fascists, Now It Votes Them In

(This was originally published November 10, 2016, but I made a few updates on May 31, 2018. The updates are noted below, except in this paragraph: Trump, under federal investigation, along with several cronies, for dealings with Russia and possible obstruction of justice and other crimes uncovered during the investigation, has attacked the US justice system, including the FBI. He has used the constitutional power of the pardon to free political allies and to send a message that those under indictment or already charged can count on a pardon, if they keep their mouths shut about him, his son and his son-in-law. The rule of law is under heavy assault as is the truth. Today Trump said it was untrue that he fired former FBI director, James Comey, because of the Russia investigation. Trump claimed this is a media fabrication, but it was Trump himself who said the Russia investigation was the reason on television last year. He also told the then Russian ambassador that with Comey fired, the pressure of the Russia investigation would ease. Note: some presidential pardons by other presidents have drawn fire for being political, but never was the nation's system under attack by those presidents as it is today by Trump.)    

I don't think Americans fully understand what just happened to their country, but they are about to find out. Emboldened racists, bigots, religious fanatics, will be on the move. Don't be surprised to see laws banning the teaching of evolution (religious fundamentalists have been pushing this for awhile), or any other belief not consistent with fundamentalist creationism. EVERYTHING will be on the table folks. Donald Trump's statement, "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose any voters," shows how very dangerous the situation has become, and it is reminiscent of Nazis chasing down and executing disloyal Germans for not believing in "final victory," even as Allied troops were just blocks away in 1945. 

Democracy is far more fragile than many realize. It has survived in the U.S., and is taken for granted by most Americans, because, over time, largely responsible people, in spite of some philosophical differences, transferred power back and forth, based upon elections. They believed in the overall system. Obviously, THE major exception was the Civil War era. For some time now, we have had a growing element, led by self designated "conservatives," begin to trash this very system, a strategy that became ever more nasty, ever more divisive. Their disciples took to the airwaves to spread the faith, and in hateful and divisive speech that could bring a smile to the face of Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels, the faith did, indeed, spread. They have preached hatred of government at all levels, as well as of "liberals, " which seems to mean just about anyone remotely connected to modern times, instead of to some previous century with some sort of perceived "glory days."  Dispirited Americans, angry at wealthy business interests and at free trade that cost them good paying jobs, were often a ready made audience for these these venom spewing manipulators, who were paid for by .... wealthy business interests and free traders. I haven't heard this expression for quite some time, but many a drinker and outright alcoholic, suffering from a hangover, would oft say, "I need a drink, because what makes you sick, will make you well." Really? The propagandists convinced many an American that what benefited a few, would really be good for them too, although statistics have shown the opposite, but they voted for Republicans, because "what made you sick, will make you well."

The Nazis and communists both USED democratic systems to DESTROY the respective democratic systems in various countries. Hitler did not "seize power," the Nazis became a major political party and the number of votes they received convinced some German leaders that they needed to be in the government. Weimar was far from perfect, but it retained the constitutional right of the people to vote, and chancellors came and went, Reichstag (parliament) representatives came and went, so at least providing for some semblance of democracy, even though the chancellors constitutionally circumvented the Reichstag,* by issuing decrees, because the Reichstag was so dysfunctional (sound like Congress under Republicans the last few years?) People have long dissected every aspect of the Nazi takeover of Germany. Why? History helps to teach us what went before, and hopefully, how we can avoid the mistakes of the past. That's why the nonsense of memorizing dates is, well, NONSENSE! They are irrelevant. Those here now will not have to dissect or read about how this has happened in the United States; no, because we have watched it unfold before our very eyes, with far too many participating in it directly. We allowed Republicans to get away with not voting on a Supreme Court nominee offered by a sitting U.S. president. The Republican controlled Congress has sat dormant for years; let me tell you, they will sit dormant no longer, as they plan to consolidate power and strip you of rights and dignity. They enabled money to buy tremendous access into government, something that now will no longer be possible to overturn. It's all too late, folks. This is what we allowed to happen. Since Reagan, some have allowed themselves to be bought for tax cuts. The saddest thing is, many of those same people already had lots of money, but they gave up their consciences for tax cut money they didn't need. 

Americans have sat and watched fascism rise and, now, take over. Traditional conservatives were complicit. Romney played to the fascists in 2012, but then he later tried to change things in the last few months as Trump rose to lead the GOP. Romney is not a fascist, he's a pandering chameleon, who at least finally stood up, but was far too late in doing so. There is NO reset button. Buyer's remorse will get you nowhere. Once you let fascists in, try to get them back out. Many Americans have now not only endangered their freedom, they have given the nuclear codes to a wacko, thus endangering the world and all of humanity. They totally gerrymandered themselves into essentially permanent control of the House of Representatives and many state legislatures. They now will cement the Supreme Court to do their bidding and to make the present and future more akin to something like the 14th Century, than to modern times. Fundamentalist, fanatical religion will now be front and foremost, and BLATANTLY involved in governing.

The big media was complicit, with seemingly not even one innocent person under that Big Top circus tent. When they go to the toilet, they wipe their mouths afterward, because that's where the real dung comes out. Further, and this is not about my just previous comment, but my suggestion for progressives is, if you're going to watch MSNBC, don't take everything as gospel. They are good people, but they are so committed to one side, they lack perspective at times. I'm a devout progressive, but I rarely tune in to any of the chatter stations. Over time I've seen posts online suggesting that everything will be fine, because people on MSNBC said how the demographics are going to pretty much guarantee Democratic wins. Further, other posts told of the imminent demise of the GOP, something I highly questioned in a reply, only to be told how wrong I was. Hopefully, everyone now sees how badly the situation was misjudged; in fact, it is now DEMOCRATS who are in a perilous situation, and although we won't go away, expect very difficult times. If things turn out better than that, great, but be prepared for just about any shenanigans you can imagine, and even some that you can't imagine. As for intellectuals, they sat debating the definition of a fascist, as if that were the important issue at hand. Like Sheldon Cooper, they worry about proper definitions, while not understanding what is going on around them. When someone shouts to them, "Look, that guy is going to set fire to the forest," they reply, "Oh, I don't see a forest, all I see is a bunch of trees." (Updated 5-31-18) As they walk to the gallows, they will ask, "Hm, I wonder if this is fascism?" And someone will reply, "We'd better get this resolved, because they're going to hang us in about the next 60 seconds."

Obama is a VERY good man, I love him, BUT he came to office promising change, "Change We Can Believe In," and he immediately sent the wrong signal by giving Wall Street bankers prominent positions within his administration, after Wall Street bankers brought about the mortgage crisis, which brought the economy to its knees, along with phony high oil prices. The more things change, the more they stay the same. He didn't need Larry Summers or Tim Geithner to tell him that the country needed a stimulus. Symbols DO MATTER. He then chose the absolutely worst issue to take on at that point in his presidency, and in that overall time frame ... HEALTH CARE. The atmosphere was more full of noxious fumes than being locked in a 4 x 4 room with a lactose intolerant person who just ate a slice of cheese, a bowl of vanilla ice cream and washed it all down with a pint of 1% milk (trying to watch their weight). The whole thing was not thought through, and regardless of the president's great intentions, it was THE thing that derailed his presidency, as it gave Republicans, flat on their backs from the Iraq War and the economic meltdown, the opportunity to get up and start swinging, a role they love, and just in time to get all energized and to rout Democrats in a crucial "census election," giving them control of many state legislatures and governorships, so they could adjust (gerrymander) congressional and state legislative districts to keep themselves in control for the foreseeable future. With the House of Representatives then in Republican hands, Obama could not get legislation passed. The next midterm, in 2014, saw Republicans take control of the Senate; and, thus later, prevent a vote on the President's Supreme Court nominee, leaving the seat empty. Now that they have Trump, the Republicans will approve his nominee, and control the court for decades (Update 5-31-18: Trump nominated and the Senate confirmed, highly conservative Neil Gorsuch for the Supreme Court, who took office in April 2017). ALL OF THIS TRAGEDY traces back to a well meaning man trying to help millions of Americans get health care, but it was terribly misguided, and now the ultimate insult will come, as Trump and Republicans repeal the law, removing the largest legislative achievement of Barack Obama (Update 5-31-18: Trump and Republicans failed to repeal the law, but just barely; however, Trump and Republicans have weakened the law, leaving it vulnerable, but its ultimate fate remains to be seen). All of the rancor and the decimation of Democratic officeholders in the 2010 election, and even the loss of the Senate in 2014 can be somewhat attributed to health care, as the huge losses in 2010, set up the Republican win in 2014, it will all have been in vain.  

I've seen posts by some on the left who talk about revolution, but it's not practical, as the weaponry is on the OTHER side! Militia groups and many, but certainly not all, gun owners from all walks of life, didn't buy all of these weapons, especially automatic weapons, to hunt ducks. This has always been about staging a coup d'état, or protecting a regime favorable to them, which they will now have. Further, many, perhaps most, in law enforcement, and many in the military, will gladly carry out suppression of any revolt at Trump's direction; both favor Republicans in elections by substantial amounts. The militias and others, just like Hitler's Storm Troopers and Mussolini's Blackshirt militia,  will operate to control the country. Some of you, and I love you and I love your spirit, needed to learn "compromise," and the art of having to hold your nose to support something you may not completely agree with, but you have to do it to avoid the greater harm, although I'm not sure it would have made a difference anyway, and we've always had some smaller political parties in the US which get anything from a percent or two of the vote, up to far larger percentages. Now is not time to be fighting over what is past, but if you're driving down the road in a Smart car, and an eighteen-wheeler is headed right for you, you crash into the guard rail to avoid being run over, literally, by the truck. It wasn't a great choice, but you had to take it. We saw this same thing, a lack of perspective, with Edward Snowden, who exposed U.S. government spying on its citizens, but then ran to Russia and Vladimir Putin, one of the enemies of humanity. You know, can you imagine an Italian in 1936 saying, "Boy, that Mussolini is a son-of-a-bitch, I'm going to go live in .... Germany!" Julian Assange is in much the same vein. Okay with both of them, show our faults, but also show the faults of others, but there was NO perspective. 

* (Updated 5-31-18) I say, "constitutionally circumvented the Reichstag," because Article 48 of the German constitution of the Weimar Republic gave the president the power to rule by decree in an "emergency," a term that was not defined within the constitution. The chancellor submitted the decrees to the president. 

WORD HISTORY:
Abet-This word, related to "bite," goes back to Indo European "bheid," which had the notion "to split." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "bitanan," meaning "to bite," and the derived "baitjanan," which meant, "to make or cause to bite;" thus, "incite, egg on," especially for use with dogs in hunting. Old French borrowed the word, likely from Frankish, a Germanic language/dialect, as "beter," and tacked on the prefix, which came from Latin "ad," itself from Indo European "ad," with the notion of, "to, toward, near, at," with the French form meaning, "to incite dogs to chase after." English borrowed the word in the latter half of the 1300s as "abetten," but it could have also blended with an existing English word from the same Old Germanic word, the English word being, "bætan," which also meant, "to hunt with dogs," but originally, "to make bite."       

"Party of Lincoln?"

Strange how many Democrats truly admire Abraham Lincoln and how many in the modern Republican Party, "the party of Lincoln," seem indifferent, if not not openly hostile, to the first Republican president, or hostile to what he stood for. Maybe "some" Republicans would feel more comfortable being labeled, "the party of Jefferson Davis?"

WORD HISTORY:
Yore-This word, closely related to "year," goes back to variant Indo European bases "yer" (long "e") and "yor" (long "o"), which meant "year," but also "season of the year." The Old Germanic offshoot was "jaeram," meaning "year." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "gear" ("year"), which had the genitive plural form "geara," which meant, "of years" (no "of" needed with the English grammar in those times), then also to mean, "of years long past." The word then came to be spelled "yore," with the very similar meaning, "a period of time long ago."