Really Right – Page 48 – Religion, Politics, and Culture: Explained and Defined

The Knights and the Catholic Church Are Ruined

By Jake the Snake

I celebrated Easter this past weekend like most religious folks try to do. I woke up, poured a cup of coffee, sat on my couch, and logged into a “live stream” Easter service. To be very frank, this was the most forced, pathetic let down I have witnessed in my years on this earth. Allow me to explain.

First our head priest “abandoned the flock” by returning to the Philippines to mourn a relative who had passed. I do not take issue with his mourning, as that is not my place, but the timing was horrific. It left our associate priest in charge, and with English being his 2nd or third language I feel he takes a back seat on everything that doesn’t involve the Spanish mass. The music was live played recordings from YouTube….yes, we even got treated to the commercial advertising prior to the songs being played. After the homily (sermon) I had to turn it off, it may have been a valiant effort, and the devil was likely smiling at my decision, but it looked forced. The priest was literally reading his homily off an iPad, and during the hymns he had a mono-toned voice, which again seemed very forced.

I was a little taken aback that we never were treated to the typical Christmas and Easter ode where the priest apologizes to all the folks who only show up to mass twice a year. It’s honestly a tradition unlike any other…and I’m not talking about the Master’s. It’s hard to fathom but yes, most all Catholic Priests apologize in hopes these folks will start showing up weekly to service….it never occurs. I never understood why someone would eschew the regulars in hopes that a couple additional folks will resume full attendance at mass.

Sadly it all boils down to $$$. More folks in the pews = more $$$ on the plate, and more money in the bank account. That being said, I was more taken aback by an email I received from the Bishop of Northern California Diocese. I will paraphrase and not include the email, but it talked about “tithing” which is a “highly suggested amount of required giving to the church of your before tax salary.” I literally was stunned. While I do not pretend to know anything about this Covid-19, I do know this, people are scared, and church has been closed for about 4 weeks now. A closed church means very, very little money donated. I feel for the church, even though ours is not struggling; we have almost 2 million in the bank. However this has to be one of the more tone deaf things I have heard. We have almost 22 million folks nationwide unemployed, most of which are all in the same sectors, meaning their unemployment is going to be long term. I thought churches were supposed to charitable. Why is it we have shut down entirely, yet we demand folks….check that….guilt trip folks to keep giving? I hate to say this but when an economic crisis like this occurs, folks need to take care of themselves, and I hate to break it to clergy folks, but at the moment, you are not the most important thing in people’s lives. Homes, cars, and food on the table are far, far more important. Church giving, and other charitable giving are optional.

However an organization I love to beat up on outdid the “Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, Church” I’m talking about the Knights of Cash…. I mean Columbus. Check this out. Our first vow, one of charity should be in full force right now. Our local food bank has made a desperate call for volunteers, and donations; for both food and money. However this plea fell on deaf ears. Instead, both the state office and the supreme office have sent out email blast upon email blast saying now is the best time to recruit new members. Think about that one for a minute, rather than actually do some good and help the folks who actually need it, at the local level, we are being told to recruit???? Increasingly I have begun to be distant with this cult, as I feel it has turned into a pyramid type scheme. Seriously only an organization led by an incompetent jackhole like Lee Ann Harper could possibly think this is a smart idea.

Not to be outdone, here at the local level, we were going to have a ceremony to promote to the 4th degree, this ceremony requires folks to pack in shoulder to shoulder in a church…again this is mostly older folks mind you. For a day long ceremony, followed by a banquet, where the usual folks promote themselves for sainthood all while this virus is killing folks in this demographic group! Yes you cannot make this up….even doing this over the priest’s objections! When the event was finally cancelled, the email focused more on how upset the leadership was that the recruits would now count toward next Columbian Years numbers! I swear these folks must all belong to a local Amway chapter; the absolute lack of common sense is befuddling to me. Again, this virus seems to kill folks who are elderly, which happens to be the age of all our new recruits…. but what’s a few lives when a silver star for recruiting is at stake.

It’s very disappointing to me. Great moments come from great opportunity, and while I won’t say Covid-19 is a great opportunity, it has presented a challenge for which the Church or the Knights could shine. Instead both have decided to ignore the Bible and its teachings and put money and recruitment above all else. How tone deaf can you be? While in the midst of a crisis, you are guilt tripping folks into giving money while not having the compassion to understand this economic depression that we are entering into is wrecking families. No one at my church, or my Knights Council will be lifting a finger to help those in need, and frankly why should they? The lesson seems to be that money should be hoarded and, in such times,, who the heck cares about the needy or charity? Maybe the Bishop should question why Planned Parenthood gets to remain open rather than asking us to reach deeper into our wallets? Maybe he should come out of his ivory tower and recommend we help at the local level, set our swords and shields down for a minute, and volunteer? What better tool for candidate recruiting or growing the church or Knights Council than needy folks seeing local groups step up? You know like the Rotarians, or Elks? The church may be in for a day of reckoning soon and not just falling membership…. changes to Prop 13 and our tax-exempt status may be coming soon. You think the state/county/local government wouldn’t love getting a piece of that 2 million?

Jake the Snake

Editor’s Note:
Jake this change in religious practice was all predicted 16 years ago. At the time we thought it was a joke but considering that Bill Gates is at the epicenter of the pandemic modeling that closed your church maybe…

“we will make the sacraments available on-line for the first time”

“You can get Communion, confess your sins, receive absolution — even reduce your time in Purgatory — all without leaving your home.”
Microsoft acquires the Catholic Church

Thoughts on Bail-out Bucks and other Oddities

OK, who besides me finds it weird that April 15th is almost like any other day—except for the fact that the government is giving people money tax-free for no reason except they watch cable/satellite news and believe what they’re told. I know tax protestors have advocated for a system where April 15th would be just be another day but somehow, I don’t think this socialist scheme is what they had in mind.

Also, is it me or did you notice that Democrat governors want to keep their states shutdown for many more months while Republican governors are beginning to open their states and rev-up their businesses? Folks, the latest draconian directives from Sacramento and Los Angeles are exactly the opposite of what we need—no surprise there except these folks need a stream of other people’s money to keep the utopian/socialist dream alive.

For example, today Los Angeles County leaders proclaimed that all 12 million plus people must wear a face covering or not be allowed outside of their homes for the next several months (Actually, at this point, it was indefinitely). Are they adopting Sharia Law or something just as wacky? Imagine Southern California with no sporting events, amusement parks, concerts, or other gatherings—including churches? Yet apparently, none of this is allowed thru at least the summer. In other words, no tourists allowed, and the locals will be punished to boot. FYI: Disney is bleeding 30 million a day in lost revenue and this could drive them into insolvency.

Did you read Newsom’s restart plan yesterday, talk about tilting at windmills? Remember, in terms of fatalities, Covid-19 is not as bad as the average flu season and the mortality rate might be even lower if the numbers coming out now hold true. Its as far from Spanish Flu, Black Plague, and Ebola as you can get. Yet, our governor wants to make it as difficult as possible for us to get back to work.

I have to agree with those that say Covid-19 went thru California before anyone—except maybe Trump—was even paying attention. At the same time Dr. Fauci and other were saying it was no big deal (late January), Covid-19 was going thru California like wildfire. Yep, in the timeframe of late January and into February, it was everywhere, so by the time social distancing and all the rest were in vogue in March, most of us had already had it. The biggest trigger to the spread was those celebrating Chinese New Year in later January. People returning home from China spread this virus worldwide and simultaneously. (Plus, I think it was here before then anyways.)

There is no way New York could be the epicenter in the United States. Ground zero was California; but earlier. Now that antibody tests are coming online, we will have the opportunity to see if I’m right. I have friends being tested now that think they had it in early February. I think my wife and son had it during that time as well. This is herd immunity. When enough people in a population develop immunity to the disease, a disease can’t easily spread to new people because it runs out of hosts.

Folks, Garvin Newsom’s Presidential aspirations are riding on how he deals with restarting California. If other states recover before we do, he’s toast on the national stage. I think he’s listening to the wrong people and will muff this up. Newsom’s linking our fate with Oregon and Washington is not a bright idea. The good side is that his leadership failure in California will be used to protect the rest of the nation from his failed ideas in 2024.

One last random thought. Does 4/20 seem like an odd day to restart education in our part of California? Hitler’s birthday, Columbine anniversary, and make pot legal day. Also, I think the Sith Lord is celebrating another birthday.

Folks, I hardly watch any television but seeing the behavior of those that do is always a treat. The insanity I witness (and overhear) at work and in the grocery store check-out line is breathtakingly uninformed.

Conversations with the Naïve COVID-19 Edition

By regular contributor Johnnie Does.

Editor’s Note: This article was submitted to me last week but life got in the way and I’m just now able to get this posted.

Well, we are back with another segment. I really wish I could stop writing these but the naïve are everywhere and continue to spout off their naivety about COVID-19.

Here we go:

My friend who manages a movie theatre:
She took a 50% salary reduction along with limited hours at work since the place has been shut down. Her job is essentially to keep the movie theater in decent shape for a possible restart. Key word here is “possible.” She has been told the target date for reopening is June 9th but based on what criteria she has no clue. I have tried to tell her otherwise but like most, they don’t want to hear a contrarian viewpoint. She says that come December, she will have 15 years with her company. Inexplicably, she thinks it’s some vital milestone she must see through despite the obvious fact that at 50% of her income, she can barely cover her bills plus rent. I have tried to reason with her about finding another job/line of work…. crickets. Better the devil we know… or a lack of ambition?

The reality is, we know how this story ends. Best case scenario, she returns to fulltime capacity in August (at the earliest) and at 75% of her previous salary. This fiscal reduction will be explained under the guise of “shared sacrifice” that comes with a benefit cut and bonuses that are unattainable. Nevertheless, if she hangs tough with this arrangement, she’ll be the only one sacrificing. Once the business is back in operation, the suits at corporate are expecting their old pay and benefits packages to be reinstated.

This babe claims she is willing to endure the toil and economic hardship for a long period of time out of some inexplicable loyalty to a company that would gladly kick her to the curb in a heartbeat. Whether her personal finances eventually succumb or not, matters not to corporate. Either way her old reality is over. If she finds employment elsewhere, they will hire a much younger, recent college graduate at 50% of her salary. If she does return as she hopes, she will keep toiling away working just as hard or harder while making less money. Corporate may sing her praises but so what? There is no scenario in which her standard of living will be improved by allegiance to her old status quo. While all this is occurring, she continues to rack up very expensive credit card debt in the process of trying to survive. Sadly, I’ve learned that most need to learn the hard way or not at all. 9/10 times you never earn back your old rate of pay.

A charter schoolteacher:
Ok let me preface this, I do firmly believe there are a handful of really dedicated teachers out there, but the rest are literally the worst types imaginable. Charter schoolteacher (a Berkley Grad BTW), when it was announced school was cancelled for the remainder of the year, decided to berate the administration for dragging their feet on the restart dates of the school year. Keep in mind this virus, as serious or not as it may seem, has made for a very fluid decision-making process. The entire time that schools are closed, teachers have been paid full salary and benefits! Additionally, most teachers and their spouses will be receiving the promised $1,200 stimulus checks. However, due to her perceived injury for not being in a classroom, she decided to spout-off that teachers should be paid double as an inconvenience. Yes, you read that right. While her neighbors and many of the parents of the children she teaches are being furloughed, laid off, watching their small businesses die on the vine, or in the case of frontline workers, being worked as many hours as possible for very little additional compensation, in other words people around her are really suffering, all she can do is demand more for herself. This moron thinks she should get paid double…to not work mind you. Being less aware, you can’t! I hate to break it to her, but she and her fellow educators are not essential…and the Berkeley Grads are literally the absolute worst, most condescending folks one will ever meet.

All the state workers I know except 1:
I am sure you can guess the one. (Hint, hint he owns this space). This lot of folks may be as bad as the teachers; they all feel all is well in the world because they are due as raise 7/1. I wouldn’t count that chicken so soon. Sales tax collections are way down, as are capital gains (stock sales) taxes for the State of California. This will be causing a massive shortfall for next fiscal year’s budget. Every private sector job lost, even the low paying retail and service jobs, has a direct effect on your compensation. While I do not pretend to know how state government employee contracts work, you could be in for very tough sledding; especially with a governor who has his eye on the White House in another 4 years. Most government workers think the pain is only going to be shouldered by private sector workers but beware, you may be in for a rude awakening.

90 Day Guy:
No one has been a star of this more than him. He is a man of many talents and professions and knows more than all of us due to his cable watching prowess. He has decided to avoid Covid-19 danger by staying in his house and smoking weed, whilst watching cable mind you. I cannot think of a wilder trip to be on. I never thought “the munchies” and self-isolation were compatible aspirations during the existential threat we are witnessing on the 24/7 news stations. Additionally, he claims he is doing his part observing social distancing by frequenting various golf courses in the county, since they have been kept open by the county Health Director.

Even amid the coronavirus crisis, Saturday was a busy day for golf courses across Sacramento County, like Haggins Oaks. The parking lot was packed with cars as golfers hit the green, but not everyone was happy about their decision.
The sound of a good swing paired with some sunshine makes a good mix for golfers like Tom Crook and Alisha Griffin-Crook. Both went to Haggin Oaks searching for something to do and stay active in the era of coronavirus and social distancing.
“It’s pretty much it other than walking,” Tom said. Their concern for health still high with this pandemic, but they say there are enough distancing protocols to feel safe.
Sacramento County Golf Courses Remain Open, Packed With People

Cable/Internet People:
These folks have been something else to endure. They hear some rumor or Google some topic and regardless of whether its peer reviewed or scientific, they take it as gospel. For example, the couple who drank fish tank cleaner in Arizona under the guise that it is an antidote for Covid-19. In case you missed that one, one person died from this “home remedy” and the survivor (both lifelong Democrats) claimed it was Trumps’ fault.

A man has died and a woman is in critical condition after ingesting a chemical that contained chloroquine, which Donald Trump has promoted as a coronavirus treatment despite warnings from health officials that it has not been proven to treat the virus.
Coronavirus: Man dead after trying to create Trump’s miracle drug from household cleaner

The aquarium “cure” and the media’s spin on it is just one example of journalistic malpractice in the coverage of this virus. Daily projections of death and hospitalization are another. Hiding behind worthless models of the virus and claiming they’re valid is just as dumb as putting faith in political polling a year before said election… well, except for the fact that our leaders believed them and shutdown the country because the so-called experts cried “wolf” very loudly. The correct phrase for such nonsense coming out of the mouths of these folks is SWAG—Scientific Wild Ass Guess.

Case in point concerning crying “wolf”, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee dissed President Trump a week ago for not offering enough help to his state and a week later, low and behold, Inslee’s extra medical field hospital has been dismantled because it was never needed.

The massive army field hospital that hundreds of troops built inside a Seattle convention center last week will be dismantled before treating a single patient.
Washington’s field hospital to be dismantled before treating a patient, sent to states worse-hit by coronavirus

Nearly 300 soldiers from Fort Carson, Colo., and Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) near Tacoma, Wash., built the makeshift facility inside CenturyLink Field Event Center, normally home to the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and the Seattle Sounders of the MLS, for patients who do not have COVID-19.

CenturyLink Field Event Center emergency hospital #1

Oh, and buried in the end of the story are these nuggets.

The decision comes just days after Washington returned 400 ventilators it received from the federal government so they can be used in New York and other hard-hit states.
Despite these returns, Inslee assured Washingtonians the state was continuing to take steps to bolster its medical resources in the event of a surge in cases, purchasing 1,000 hospital beds and more than 900 ventilators.

The virus has sickened more than 9,000 people in the state, killing 432 as of Thursday.

CenturyLink Field Event Center emergency hospital #2

Against this backdrop of foe drama and disinformation, we all hope for antidotes or cures, but the truth is that in the strictest sense, they do not yet exist. Nothing is yet scientifically verified as a proven “cure.” Anecdotal evidence may help with treatment strategies, but no universally recognized treatment protocol exists, and a preventative vaccine is still in the early stages of development. Many groups are preparing for phase 1 clinical trials and are seeing hopeful signs in certain patients.

Folks this crisis has largely been the product of cable news sensationalism. Folks on television grab on to one possibility or ill-informed idea and run with it, often to the exclusion of all else. (Think dog with a bone.) Somehow one facet of the story becomes their sole focus. It makes me wonder if they are the ones that can’t deal with a complex issue while claiming that we are the ones lacking the requisite number of brain cells. The net result is that most people lack context to what is going on versus what they read on Facebook.

As a result of the 24/7 news cycle, we are now stuck with social distancing, arbitrary shelter in place orders, and business closures. The truth is that only the governors in each state can release us from them not President Trump. That won’t happen until at least the end of April. I would say closer to end of May. I do not have any idea what the criteria to reopen will be and neither do they.

The naivety out there is truly something else, especially during these times. Sadly, I don’t have to look far to find it. If you ever need an example of the blind leading the blind, we’re living it now.

Johnnie Does

Another Aaron Park Client Shows his True Colors

Chad Bianco… it’s all over Park’s blog (unless he’s recently deleted the posts) defeated “corrupt, drunk womanizer” Stanley Sniff as Sheriff of Riverside County. We needed Bianco because he could do Republican things like give out concealed carry permits by the thousands! Well Aaron, you got us a good one in Bianco, look at what this newly minted Doctor of Medicine had to say about Corona Virus in his County.

Sheriff Bianco has mandated everyone wear masks to cover their faces in public or risk a $1,000 fine or jail time.

The mandate went into effect on Sunday after Riverside University Health System indicated 946 confirmed coronavirus cases in the county.
“This is a valid order and enforceable by fine, imprisonment or both,” Bianco said on Monday in a video statement.
He added: “Not everybody’s getting the message.”
“It started with staying at home, social distance and covering your face. But now we change from saying that you should to saying that you must.”
“Right now, you could be a carrier of this virus, spreading it to your family and friends.”
California sheriff warns he can arrest and fine people $1,000 for not wearing masks in public

There you have it boys and girls; Dr. Chad Bianco put down his scalpel and stethoscope and has donned a Sheriff’s badge in hopes to save the world! No one knows more about this disease then Dr. Bianco…. he is not the hero we asked for, but the hero we needed during these trying times! Fixated on cable news, he has all the information to make an informed decision on the heath crisis facing his county! A total of 25 folks have died in his county, out of 2.7 million, but let us not allow a good crisis to go to waste.

Keep in mind, he also announced there will be no checkpoints or traffic stops to pull over folks not in compliance…. I guess he didn’t go full Adolf Hitler on us. He also said you will not be stopped while walking or hiking. After reading those statements aren’t you left asking “What’s the point of this order?”

Additionally, in the People’s Republic of California, we have been releasing “non-violent criminals” from both our prisons and jails to prevent the spread of this disease. Yet this MORON wants to arrest and jail you for not wearing a mask in public? And what about this fine? Good grief! Please help me understand the logic behind this, you can steal from a store and not even get cited, yet walk around in Bianco’s County sans a mask and you will be fined $1,000?

Well that Aaron Park sure knows how to pick ‘em!

The Chief

BTW We here at Reallyright.com encourage Aaron to wear a mask at all times, not just due to his looks but due to the toxic emissions coming from his mouth. Frankly I’m surprised the EPA hasn’t shut him down yet.

The Real Cost of COVID-19

People frequently ask me what the real cost of this virus will be when it’s all said and done. Sadly, as Natasha Bedingfield said in her famous song “the rest is still unwritten.” As vague and sad as that statement was for me to say, we won’t know the answer for years, and that is the truth. As I write this, we are under a “shelter in place” order in California. New York and other states are under similar guidelines. As a result, large gatherings (over 10 people) are banned, church services are cancelled, most retail is closed, and restaurants are either closed up, or doing take out only. Commerce has come to a standstill, and while we have a stimulus plan being rolled out by the federal government (coming soon to a bank account near you), it will do no good.

Let’s analyze the impact of Corona using current events. Cheesecake Factory has declared they cannot pay rent due April 1. Cheesecake is a very large operator of restaurants; this should not be the case after just a 10-day shutdown (as of writing).

Cheesecake Factory Inc. is doing what a lot of tenants would like to do come April 1: withholding their rent.
The restaurant chain said that the “unprecedented times” we are living in has prompted it to take a closer look at its economic situation.
Cheesecake Factory says it’s not paying rent in April, has furloughed thousands of employees

The company has also furloughed 41,000 employees. These staff members will receive a daily free meal and retain benefits and insurance until June 1.

Point being, if Cheesecake is in trouble, how about the local independent shop? How does it survive? They cannot get a bulk deal on food and their staff is likely composed largely of family members working long hours… I don’t think this ends well for a majority of small restaurants. If stores do not close, the layoffs have started and it’s going to be brutal. As Samuel L. Jackson said in Jurassic Park “Hold onto your butts.”

Retail must be viewed the same way. I feel this virus and subsequent state ordered shutdowns will bring most to their knees. Case in point, Macy’s has laid off almost all employees (130,000) and the governing board will not be paid anytime soon.

Macy’s says it will stop paying tens of thousands of employees who were thrown out of work when the chain closed its stores in response to collapsing sales during the pandemic.
The majority of its 130,000, including stock people and sales clerks, will still collect health benefits but the company said that it is transitioning to an “absolute minimum workforce” needed to maintain basic operations. Macy’s has lost the bulk of its sales due to the temporarily closing of its stores starting March 18.
Amid Coronavirus Closures, Macy’s Furloughs Majority of Its 130,000 Workers

I feel most will use this as a chance to “get out of leases” where stores aren’t hitting their numbers. Online commerce will be even more important, and I think the days of free shipping may be coming to an end, as in-store sales will no longer subsidize it. See above on layoffs. This will be very brutal, and like the food service business, retail doesn’t pay well either. Folks, this event is the “retail apocalypse,” just not the way we pictured it happening.

Movie theatres, how the heck do they recover? If you work in this field, then look for new work quick. Not only are your local multiplexes closed, when operating, they serve overpriced food and booze, it tastes horrible. Movie production has also ceased worldwide, and as a result, movies won’t be coming out for a while. Again, I am envisioning mass layoffs here.

How does our education system recover? Is it just business as usual next school year? Nope. I think this virus exposed flaws in the current system in a couple ways. First the lack of on-line or distance learning. The district can’t assume everyone has a laptop, let alone Wi-Fi access at home. So, is the answer we buy all kids laptops? But if we do, how do we know Wi-Fi is available? Additionally, most schools offer a hot breakfast and lunch program, along with a take home bag for dinner for eligible students. How does this continue in the future? What if a cook somehow passes this virus on to food, and affects child…is the district liable?

How about volunteer groups? I will say this, you will see a steep drop off in membership. I guarantee it. Most members tend to skew older and those folks will be even more cautious going forward. This will be very prevalent in social justice groups, because who wants to be around a group of unknown folks with various levels of hygiene?

In closing, I would like you to consider the following.

First, the 2 trillion dollar “bail-out” is typical for an out of control Congress trying to assure re-election. This bill, which we had to pass to know what’s in it, was a cornucopia of pork barrel projects totally unrelated to mitigating the effects of the virus either medically or economically. Talk about putting lipstick on the proverbial pig, this thing was horrible. I would argue the “cure” is worse than the disease. Sadly, this is a recurring theme of omnibus fixes coming out of Washington. Oh, and two more “waves” of legislation are in the pipeline now, both with multi-trillion-dollar price tags in addition to what has been passed thus far.

Sadly, this virus, while it may calm when the weather gets warmer, will likely be back again in the fall, possibly in a new strain, just like any other flu. If it returns, how do we react then?

While we’re passing time in self-exile and hoping for warmer weather; hopefully, the Troll gets a few new photos of Hope Hicks celebrating summer apparel. To him, she’s like Campbell’s soup, it warms the soul.

I do firmly believe that social distancing is not a fad, it won’t be going away. We are all going to be germaphobes to the umpteenth degree. Bars will need to space out their stools and tables. Folks go there to “hang out,’ but don’t want to hang with strangers anymore. The concept of speaking to a barfly is not going to be a thing for a while. This goes for the restaurant side as well; tables will need to be spaced out… I do not see this ending well. Casinos will undergo big changes as well. The days of a 24/7 operation with minimal cleaning are over. Have you been to a blackjack table? Talk about shoulder to shoulder, more like bumping ugly’s with the person next to you; that will change. Bottom-line, I would say best case scenario is you see a return to 70% of your revenue compared to pre corona virus.

Movie theatres are literally screwed. They just spent a pant-load to re-do seating and configurations, subtracting quite a few seats. Total folks per screen are lower and they were forced to pay increased prices and then this happens. Ouch! I foresee in the future that seating may be even more limited. What if they have to go to small “clusters” of seats like 1, 2, 4, and maybe larger parties of 6-8? They may try something “value added” like table service or at the minimum food upgrades. The idea of paying $12 for a frozen pizza or $15 for a watered-down Bud Light are long over. Theaters have to upgrade and get a lot better but now it’s probably too late. I think the theatre business is dying on the vine and their demise just sped up. Streamers have put a dent in the old business paradigm and perhaps worse, the creators could take it straight to the people. Folks don’t have to watch movies at a theatre anymore. The traditional Hollywood revenue model is totally broken now. How do they pay 300 million dollars per episode for their “tent pole” franchises going forward? If you missed it, in the wake of the COVID-19 virus, Disney took out a $6 billion dollar loan. Guess owning 40% of all Hollywood movies has a downside.

A ton of retail will not make it. Look for deep discounts soon, especially in the clothing area. Maybe the Chief can buy some actual clothes. Last Monday, at our regular editorial board meeting (held at an undisclosed salsa bar) he was a sight no one’s eyes should be forced to endure. Trying to claim that a loincloth is just a leather kilt and he wore it in honor of St. Patrick’s Day was not very convincing. Sorry Chief but “sculpted” is not my word to describe you shirtless. Next time at least wear a shirt at the dinner table.

Anyway, back to the present topic. I think we will see a very different scene at restaurants, bars, theatres, and malls very soon. If you were looking for some ideas for the market, I would look at the “dinner kit” companies, and companies that are into the teleconferencing type stuff.

We will get out of this, but it’s going to be a rough several months, and look for this to rear its ugly head next fall.

Johnnie Does

PS the food reviews will continue no matter what. We just won’t do the ambiance. The people need me. I’m performing an essential service during these trying times. BTW the “Sac Bee” called me today looking for me to subscribe… of course I signed up and asked for 30 papers to be delivered daily. Hell, at $.50 a paper; on average that’s cheaper than a roll of toilet paper, if you can even find one! Hell, finding that stuff is like playing the adult version of Where’s Waldo?

Johnnie Does Questions the Trump Stimulus

Now that the details are starting to be released (Why is it that we have to pass this thing to know what’s really in it? Sound familiar?), I wanted to give my commentary on a few things I already disagree with. Before you shrug your shoulders and say “it’s just a right wing reaction by a right wing blog” hear me out.

This is a truly unprecedented situation. The leisure, restaurant, casino, and airline industries are on the verge of collapse. The stock market has given up all of the Trump gains since his election. The news media has whipped everyone into frenzy. Schools have closed indefinitely, restaurants have closed all dine-in operations, and movie theatres have closed. While I still feel this is a huge overreaction, as William has told me “once you ring the bell, how do you un-ring it?”

Now on to the Trump plan, it involves two $1,200 checks per person, for 2 months, with an extra $500 for children. The goal is that these checks to be out in a little over 2 weeks. My question is how? The Treasury/IRS has to have files upon files upon files, no chance this gets done in just a few months. (Last time the government did such payments under George W Bush, it took 3 months.) I have a feeling this will be left up to the individual states because at the end of the day, the federal government can’t move fast enough to be effective. (I’m assuming they want to be effective.) Instead, I think you may see the states distributing funds with the Treasury reimbursing. This means the $$$ will be going to non-citizens and likely people making far more than the intended income levels. Sorry folks, but we have voter registration roles that are out of whack, what makes you think they will get this right?

I also question bailing out corporations in return for equity, this I liken to a real life game of Shark Tank. I almost envision the CEO going into the smoke filled room asking for so many million/billion/trillion/gazillion in exchange for so much equity. It would literally be must see TV, almost the Apprentice in disguise! I guess if they like your pitch, equity stake can be negotiated. If they don’t like your pitch, well, you go the way of Lehman Brothers. I do not like this idea one bit, I understand the need for a lifeline, not a bailout. Even an equity stake doesn’t give the government enough downside protection, especially with the political risk of an election year!

In conclusion, the worst part is that I feel the GOP has once again been goaded by the Democrats into thinking this is a good idea. I see this ending horribly in November. All this talk of playing nice, ends with the Dems running TV ad, after TV ad of the party of the rich only gave you folks $1,200 X 2, we want to give you a living wage paid for by Uncle Sam each month! Shades of George W. Bush in 2007ish, it ended badly. They will have us over the barrel.

George W Bush signing legislation for tax rebate checks in 2008

These guys might all shake hands and bump fists in public, but they all know there is a lot at stake in November. All are trying to insure the re-election of themselves and their “fellow congressmen” while trying to pick off as many of the other side as possible. There is a reason we have 2 parties, I don’t think Pelosi and Schumer will be cutting re-election ads for Trump, and the GOP in November…..Just saying. Remember the last time things were TOO BIG TO FAIL!

Johnnie Does

EG Schools Might Be Back…Sort Of

After being closed for a good six or seven weeks, the Elk Grove Unified School District is hoping to roll-out another four or five weeks of instruction for this school year. Seems like it took a while to greenlight the concept (this is the third week since the shutdown) and now they are giving teachers an additional month to figure out how to implement the details. The goal is to have the district “go live” with online instruction for the last week of April with all instruction terminating by the end of May. All schedules year round to traditional are included in this new and truncated calendar.

Please note my son’s private school went live (K – 12) with full blown instruction in all classes on their third day following a shutdown. Ditto for many other public-school districts. Why Elk Grove is taking their ever lovin’ sweet time is a mystery. Why they need another month now that they have a plan of action is ridiculous.

Meanwhile, teachers have been given the green light to make suggestions to parents for online resources (which is good) but teachers are still forbidden to continue with any new material for their children (which is bad). I guess the lowest common denominator governs not just the student’s but the teacher’s instruction as well. Sad.

I’m left with many concerns and questions besides the ones I’ve already mentioned. Will the grades count? If so, will they be weighted the same? What about teachers that don’t even know how to check email? (This is not a rhetorical question because a bunch of teachers get stumped when asked to press the “Any Key.”) What about AP classes or special ed classes? Both extremes pose challenges. What if Johnny or his folks want the district to supply the computing device and/or internet access?

The District’s correspondence makes it clear that their relationship with the union comes before the children. No surprise to me. Had they let their principals take the lead, instruction would be happening for most children, but education is a top-down world. This experiment in “Distance Learning” will result in an uneven quality of education; limited by the abilities of the teachers. Hopefully it will encourage a few to either retire or up their tech skills.

Anyway, it looks like my pronouncement of no more school this year, may be proven wrong. Let’s just see what happens. Whether it can be called distance daycare, or entertainment, or education may be in the eye of the beholder.

Johnnie Does: Wendy’s Breakfast

We have all seen the ads and heard the hype, Wendy’s–for the octillionth time–is making a run at the breakfast crowd. Since we are under house arrest unless you are going to work, ~~school~~, the grocery store, the pharmacy, getting alcohol, or getting take-out so I figured I would try Wendy’s. I checked online to peruse the options, and most of the items looked pretty good!

Ambiance: Well it was take-out only, so, it’s going to be a low score. Damn the Chinese and their BAT SOUP!!!!!!! But actually, the inside of this newly renovated Wendy’s was actually quite nice. We’re talking close to a Starbucks type vibe here. I could see myself…well not really hanging out here for a long length of time. Still 3.3/5, its actually pretty nice inside.

Food: The menu had a nice selection; biscuits, sandwiches, a burrito (weird for a place headquartered in Ohio). After careful consideration, I settled on the Breakfast Baconator Combo, consisting of a burger bun, 6 strips of bacon, a sausage patty, 2 slices of cheese, an egg and Swiss cheese sauce. It came with potato wedges, coffee, and a free Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit. So, I get all 2,000 calories for breakfast, wow. Price point was a little high for my liking but that’s ok when you account for the free sandwich. The honey butter chicken biscuit was outstanding, like on par with Chick-fil-A. Actually, really good. Also, the potato wedges were seasoned perfect, again very good, coffee is coffee. The Breakfast Baconator though, was way too much, everything competed. The sausage was over seasoned, so it fought the bacon, and the egg, the burger bun was wild and out of place, and the Swiss cheese sauce was overkill. I would go 3.5 on the breakfast; I would order the biscuit and the wedges for sure.

Overall: It’s a fast food joint, so it’s graded on a lower end curve. The place was nice, the people were surprisingly friendly. The food came out way too quick for my liking, almost like it was sitting from earlier. (I was there at 6:45, I ordered to go from inside). I really liked that biscuit though. 3.4/5, I think the menu is here to stay, and it’s not bad.

Johnnie Does

Corona Finally Disrupts My Life

China’s newest gift to the world, the dreaded Corona virus, has finally caused a level of disruption in my life. It started on Monday as I stopped at the Save Mart grocery store located near my office. I happen to get there most days about 6 AM which is when they open. I typically buy one beverage item on my way to work. This week, I have been greeted with hoarders each day. As the week goes on, their numbers have increased. I estimate that today there were 60 to 70 people there to greet me. All self-check-out lines were purposely down to keep people from breaking the hoarding rules which are enforced at the cash registers. Last week, when they opened, there were only two or three folks in line counting me. I’ve never seen grown humans so excited about toilet paper in my life.

Save Mart 6 AM line on west side of store 03/20/20

Also, in the last week, our church threw in the towel and cancelled all services. The church has many elderly members but good grief, this is ridiculous. They hope to hold services on Easter… like you better. Meanwhile, if you know a good set of catacombs anywhere, I’d be interested in going to their services. I thought we had faith not fear. See what happens when you get shaky on Predestination and Unconditional Election? Oh well, guess it wasn’t meant to be.

The last few days at work have taken a turn into the Twilight Zone. Note to self, don’t say, “it’s just a bad flu” in the presence of a room full of state workers that get their news from cable TV providers. It’s a most unpleasant feeling when they glare at you for trying to talk sense. Anyway, management is trying to implement “social distancing” by reducing the number of people in the office at any one time. Thus, they are having us work six hour shifts and then work from home for the remainder of our day. Please understand that logic and common sense take a back seat to this random directive. If you can imagine working in an accounting office with no access to your files or accounting program. We are given nothing to do at home but watch the email box for three hours at a time. No fears. We get a full check while all this going on.

The wife has it worse. Earlier this week her district cancelled school for the rest of the year. Today in a joint release, the district and their union not only told teachers that they can’t provide their children with learning opportunities—many of which are currently free on the Internet during this current social upheaval—but if any teacher knows of a fellow teacher that dares to try to help their students learn during this extended break, said teacher is to be reported by other teachers so the violator can be disciplined. Yep, we got it in writing. Teachers who try to continue teaching will be punished. Caring forbidden, conforming mandatory. Welcome to California. For those keeping tally, just another reason to leave the state.

Contrary to the instructions of the County of Sacramento and Governor, some of us boys met last night at a local “speak easy” to shoot the breeze. I think our group was below the current gathering size eligible for the automatic death penalty—currently set at ten individuals. The topics didn’t really matter, it’s just getting out of the house for our regularly scheduled gathering.

California bars closed, designated non-essential

Short of the governor declaring martial law or California falling into the sea, the family will be taking a road trip in the coming months. We will get to see if the rest of the country is as worked-up about this illness as are people here in California. I have heard mixed reports on whether this is the case in other parts of the country.

Folks my most immediate gripe has been the difficulty of finding eggs and bread in the pillaged grocery stores in this part of Sacramento County. We’re not greedy, we just want our usual breakfast on Saturday morning. Last night, after half a dozen trips to various places, I finally scored a dozen eggs. Thanks, Chief for your personal recommendation and direction in guiding my quest. I’ve purposely not hoarded anything but try to buy only what I need and live life as normally as possible.

Panic and worry are not on my radar over this Corona virus. I think thousands of people are walking around with it and have no symptoms. I base that on the number of celebrities, sports figures, and politicians that are getting it. They only know because they have doctors that can use their patient’s station in life to get a test. Those of us with McDonald’s medical plans (talkin’ about you Kaiser) are just fighting over scraps. I think most folks will never know that they had it and that’s probably for the best.

Frankly, unless you’re in a high-risk group, this whole thing is as overblown for most of us as Y2K. Lest you think I’m just saying crazy stuff, take a look at the Bloomberg news article about deaths in Italy. Over 99 percent of the people dying had preexisting conditions.

More than 99% of Italy’s coronavirus fatalities were people who suffered from previous medical conditions, according to a study by the country’s national health authority.
99% of Those Who Died From Virus Had Other Illness, Italy Says

The new study could provide insight into why Italy’s death rate, at about 8% of total infected people, is higher than in other countries.
The Rome-based institute has examined medical records of about 18% of the country’s coronavirus fatalities, finding that just three victims, or 0.8% of the total, had no previous pathology. Almost half of the victims suffered from at least three prior illnesses and about a fourth had either one or two previous conditions.

The average age of those who’ve died from the virus in Italy is 79.5. As of March 17, 17 people under 50 had died from the disease. All of Italy’s victims under 40 have been males with serious existing medical conditions.

Folks, people in Italy smoke like chimneys, so many had compromised respiratory systems. Italy is also the “Florida” of Europe. Many people choose to retire to this country. Italy has a climate similar in many respects to California.

Again, for the vast majority of us, this virus is just an inconvenience. I think we could have dealt with this without putting the economy on hold and citizens under house arrest.

Today, people at work were asking me if they should be afraid of the police stopping them and whether they risk going to jail just for being outside of their house or driving to and from work.

It doesn’t help when the guys on the radio during my morning commute were joking about being issued passes proving they work for an industry designated as critical in case police ask them for papers while commuting to work.

Are we really that far gone? I hope not.

Anyway, have a good weekend.

Aaron Park is a Lonely, Pathetic Human Being

By Chief

I woke up this morning to a sound of a baby crying, which is odd since I have no offspring that I’m aware of. Turns out it was a story sent to me by a friend of mine, from the blog of a man who no longer has many friends, Aaron F Park. I wish I could get back the five minutes of my life I spent reading that absolute abomination of a wannabe hit piece, but I would rather not bleach my eyeballs. In the piece, Aaron tried to lay out the case as to why his client, Supervisor Kirk Uhler lost re-election. He used classic Aaron Park lines from every campaign he had run…. “You took down my clients signs.” “She was funded by far left people” “Tried to use undue influence over the public.” Aaron these were all total and complete bunk, and you know it!

Photos of Aaron F Park per Microsoft Bing search engine

Editor’s Note: I tried searching for a recent photo of Aaron F Park on Bing for use in this post and the second image was a dumpster fire; ok, actually it was a row of porta-potties totally involved in flames but isn’t that actually worse?

I have spoken to about 8 folks in Placer, specifically about your political operations. All were less than impressed. All 8 live in Supervisor District four, home of your doomed client Mr. Uhler. None of them to a man could bring themselves to vote for Mr. Uhler. They described Uhler as being one of the most arrogant, condescending human beings they have ever met. Furthermore Mr. Park, no one had a good thing to say about you. Most questioned you even wanting to be in politics due to your extremely thin skin. When I brought up as your name as an insurance professional, they all became flat out irate. Seems like you are a failure at both lines of work…congrats!

Aaron let’s take a close look at some of the clients you helped usher into office…..for the low, low cost of just a couple hundred bucks a month blogging fee you charged!

William “Bill” Brough, you piled on Anna Bryson, (congrats you successfully wiped those posts from your blog) and defended a womanizing, alcoholic, sexual assailant. You now claim you never knew, and blogged about his exploits in the Capitol, I consider you an accomplice.

Ted Gaines, this was classic Aaron. He was all in against Roger Niello, and according to Aaron, Gaines was the best thing since sliced bread. Almost right after the ink dried on the Gaines election, he became public enemy number 1. Don’t believe me? Check his blog, post after post about the Gaines family.

Beth Gaines, Aaron was all riled up that she ran and won her husband’s old seat. Aaron screamed she was unqualified, nepotism, etc. In most ways Aaron was right, but let’s take a look behind door #3 here….

Megan Dahle, wife of now State Senator Brian Dahle, check the blog again, Aaron had no issues with her being elected to follow her hubby under the same circumstances. Looks like she doesn’t exactly hold major qualifications either?????? Aaron…I’m hearing crickets from you?

In the 2015 special election you supported Don Wagner over John Moorloch, and I understand why, as I supported Wagner as well. However you referred to him as “Moloch” a pagan god of human sacrifice. This coming from a man who “claims he is a Christian first, and conservative second.” May I ask if you have ever actually read the Bible? That alone is horrific and the fact you wrote it over and over is astonishing.

Have you ever read your own posts? Not to proof read but for the actual personal attacks? They all settle on womanizing, drinking, or not being ideologically pure enough. Newsflash you moron, people can have a drink and not be an alcoholic, I swear you AA graduates are the worst of the lot. As far as your womanizing attacks go, funny how you left Duane Dichara unscathed on that one, with you even going as far as calling him ethical! LOL As far as your ideological attacks, most of the time you are so far off base its laughable. These are literally his only attacks folks, he either lacks the mental capacity to think of other ones, or runs his life like he runs a campaign, same old box of tricks each year.

You complain and whine constantly about the lack of paid campaign jobs you have received lately….maybe because no one likes you. I heard you did great work re-electing Harmeet Dhillon as National Committeewomen to the CRP….oh wait, that’s right you were not allowed near it, probably because she wanted to win! I actually have it on record that you are a laughingstock inside the CAGOP headquarters, they have screen shots of your blog trashing Jessica Patterson, then going on an apology tour after she got elected chair. Your chances of a campaign consulting gig went from zero to piss off.

Aaron you exhibit patterns of behavior that any medical professional would say are signs of a psychopath. You peaked when online blogging was invented as you can now make anonymous posts about any and every one with whom you have an axe to grind. However you lack the material or the state of mind to do so and make any impact. Also think about the high number of folks you have run out of your life on a rail over very small squabbles! Tom Hudson, and Charlie Schaupp are just two of them. Best friends you were, you even helped Charlie run for office, yet you attack them on personal matters so far out of bounds; you can’t even tell you’re turning other folks off to you. Also you seem to get the police/FBI called on you far more often than anyone I know…maybe find a new schtick? Or get a life outside of politics? Or find an actual hobby?

Aaron get some help and take a long hard look in the mirror. You are a dumpster fire in the worst possible way. Your attacks on Victor Behket were despicable. You trashed that man, who by the way was running for a local office not even a partisan one! You trashed Celeste Greig, and Karen England…all for what, simple political disagreements? You blame every campaign you’ve been against at stealing your candidate’s signs; however, I have first-hand knowledge that you have removed far more of your opponent’s signs over the years! Come on Aaron, it’s over.

Kirk had only one friend left, and he hired you to do his dirty work, congrats on failing spectacularly. Oh hat tip to you on the robo call from the Democrat operative in the area, while others say that reeked of desperation, you’re dumb enough to have thought it would work!

It’s not too late to remove all those old posts Aaron.

The Chief

PS who can ever forget you and your loser brother George sitting front row at a Jeb Bush event in Reno way back during the presidential primary…ouch, bad look for you two “conservative brothers!” Before you try to spin the tale, the only folks allowed to sit in the front row are large money donors.