Category: Politics

A jump to the left….

Do we believe, in rhetoric or in evidence? In a court of law, evidence is required. You can make a claim, but you must also back it up. Example, a person sneaks through an intersection with a red-light camera and they are filmed doing this, but yet that same person goes to court and tells the judge, no they didn’t do it. They yell, they scream, they blame the manufacturer of their car, they blame the car next to them, they blame the clouds in the sky. Then the judge informs said violator that there is a picture of them running the light, so they must pay the fine. But they still deny. They go outside and convince the group on the corner waiting for a bus that there is a grand conspiracy. Is this sensible? No, the camera shows it, but yet we are being told not to believe the evidence that our eyes and even our ears show us.

Likewise, we are hearing tales, tall and false as usual, from the podium of our most treasured house. All kinds of attacks are being launched on the democratic process of vote counting. There is not one shred of proof, no evidence whatsoever that any fraud is happening. Counting votes is NOT fraud. It is not, it is counting votes. Here’s some actual truth; every vote processing place has live stream cameras, as well as a Democrat and a Republican and an Independent poll watcher. They are reviewing the count and they are approving or throwing out questionable ballots. This underappreciated trio is reaching a bi-partisan consensus. This has always, ALWAYS, been the process. Approving ballots, counting votes, and reporting the findings. This is how elections are supposed to work ladies and gentlemen. It is quantative. It is math. Math, like science, doesn’t lie.

Solutions To America’s Problems

John: Congratulations Steve on being nominated for Model Citizens Magazine. You are a former County Executive, an attorney and now an author. I understand that you have a new book.

Steve: I do and I’m very excited about it. It’s called, “Solutions to America’s Problems”, with the subtext being; “A Politically Incorrect Conservatives Take on How to Maintain America’s Greatness”.

It’s going to be in the nonfiction section of bookstores and also available on Amazon. You can go to my website stevelevy.Info  for more information

John: Tell us more about what this book is about, because you’ve been out of politics for a while now. For those readers who don’t know you were the former County Executive of Suffolk County, as far as I ever knew you did a wonderful job. Can you give me more details about the book, what do you think is going wrong and what do you think is going right, and how do you think we should fix it? Give us your Insight.

Steve: The point of the book was to put something out there that differentiates itself from the typical book that is yelling at the other side and basically restating what the problems are. We know what the problems are. 

John: What are the problems?

Steve: I delineate about fifteen or sixteen different chapters dealing with everything from climate change to our electoral process to the Supreme Court, which is very timely. This was written prior to the Ginsberg passing.

John: I think everyone knew she was on her way out. She had such an amazing life.

Steve: Right, right, and now that leaves all kinds of controversies. I also talk about foreign policy and how to deal with the Middle East crisis, which I wrote about prior to these latest peace proposals.

Presidential Debate 2020 Who won?

If you watched the first presidential debate I am sure you would agree that this was not very presidential. In fact, I would think that most of us would say it was a rude and unprofessional brawl. Childish name-calling by both candidates and dodging the facts while interrupting the moderator and each other. While former VP Biden maintained some form of courtesy President Trump came out swinging and as many athletes would say “he was all in and fought the battle on the field”.

Trying to actually make heads or tails of the actual information that was shared during the debate, it does not seem as if we learned anything new about either candidate. Nor did anything much in their individual plans and forward courses of action change from what they both have shared previously. However, there are a few items that we are left with still wondering what the truth is. For instance, Biden keeps saying that the millions of dollars paid to his son and the legitimacy of that was debunked. I do not see where it was debunked at all. In fact, to me, it actually seems that his son was paid by foreign interests specifically to win the political support of Joe Biden. I would love to see a hearing on that before the election, I believe that most American’s would have liked to have seen the actual evidence and see why he was paid with no previous experience at all.

That being said it seems as if no one really believes that politicians in the US are examples of the most ethical and moral people in our society anymore but the most devious who are supported by special interests, not what is best for the US at all. But what is best for those that support them. As many would say, just follow the money and you will see who these politicians are actually working for.

Sal Ferro: 2020 Presidential Debate and Election

John: I am talking with Sal Ferro so that we can get his thoughts on the breaking news that we’re getting out of the White House, President Trump and his wife First Lady, Melania Trump, have both contracted the Coronavirus. Sal, what do you think about this news and how do you think it’s going to affect the upcoming election?

Sal: Well first and foremost, I would certainly like to say that I hope the two of them recover fully. We don’t wish any harm on anybody. I think our country should be hoping that are President and his family are safe and get through this. 

As far as the election, I think you can look at it in two ways; some people will sympathize with Trump and then you’re going to have a lot of people who will just wish him ill. Unfortunately, you already are seeing this online. It’s just going to further put a divide between the far-left and far-right and the conspiracy theorists and all that other stuff. It’s simply that somebody got COVID. Many people that I know have contracted COVID and they didn’t mean to get it. 

John: I’m pretty sure I had it myself earlier this year.

Sal: Right, you didn’t get it on purpose. COVID is a reality and how severe it is up to interpretation. According to scientists, it is a serious issue. Right now our President needs to quarantine and the people who do support Trump will support him even more now and people who hate Trump will continue to hate him.

Supreme Court Supremacy?

On September 18th, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away at the age of 87. Ginsburg served as an associate justice for 27 years; she was nominated by President Bill Clinton in 1993. At the time she was brought into the Supreme Court, she was viewed as a moderate and later became more left-sided over time. President Clinton’s biggest reason for bringing Ginsburg in was to increase the diversity in the Supreme Court. Prior to her nomination, only one of the eight justices on the Supreme Court was a female. Clinton believed the addition of another female justice would be a good change and a change that the country needed.

Prior to Ginsburg’s passing, the Supreme Court sat six men and three women (including Ginsburg). Of the nine justices on the Court, five of the justices identified as Republicans, including Chief Justice John Roberts, while the other four identified as Democrats. Interestingly, all three female justices in the court happened to fall on the left side. Now that Ruth Bader Ginsburg has passed, the Supreme Court currently leans much more to the conservative side. President Trump recently nominated conservative federal appeals court judge, Amy Coney Barrett, to replace the late Ginsburg. Trump called it a “very proud moment”, stating Barrett was a woman of “towering intellect”. With Barrett’s nomination, the Supreme Court will sit six Republican justices, and only three Democrats, if she’s confirmed by the Senate.

Rhonda Klch Politically Neutral

It’s the beginning of October and we are only weeks away from the 2020 presidential elections, but it is hard for me as a leader in the community to voice my opinion about our two candidates without confrontation. These days as soon as you voice a political opinion about anything, even from a politically neutral standpoint, you are attacked by the “opposing party”. Not even the “opposing opinion” just an attack by anyone who supports the “other candidate”. Even so, I do have the right to have my own voice and my own opinions. But, to share them with the outside public really only subjects me to ridicule and attack. 

So now when anyone asked me what my opinion is on a political issue or even who I am voting for in both local and national political campaigns, I simply withdraw from the conversation or change the topic. While my nomination as a model citizen and continuous contributions as a columnist to Model Citizens Magazine has given me a voice, it has also subjected me to ridicule, just like with my radio show, The Diversity Project. So all in all, staying on the safe side in a polarized political world, or being “Politically Neutral” as Model Citizens Magazine publisher John Dowling Jr. likes to put it, is a safe place to reside. 

While it is somewhat heartbreaking to admit that, I do have friends and business colleagues on both sides of the political divide. As a politically polarized society, there is a new cold war in the making, and I am not referring to the one between the US and China which has been brewing for decades now, I am referring to the cold war that exists now right here in America between the far left and the far right politically. To most anyone regardless of political affiliation or how moderate or liberal you are, we all recognize that as a country we are on two extremes of the spectrum. You are either ultra-conservative or a socialist. There is no more middle of the road liberal republicans or conservative democrats. We are in a political world where you are either with us on our entire political agenda, or you are the enemy, with them, the opposing party. 

We all should really stop and take hold of the fact that in this election cycle yet another seat in the Supreme Court is up for grabs, and it will determine just how far left or right our country goes for decades in the judiciary. The same polarization that is occurring in our society, with our politicians, and with us all, is also now expected to be represented in the Supreme Court. As I am sure you will agree, even judicial choices are based on political affiliations. Again, this is a full-blown cold war between the two parties.