2021-01-25 19:08
Is Now the Time to Use the H-Word A mob of Trump supporters attack the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, January 6 | Alex Kent, Tenessee Lookout When I be… Read More
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The Gadfly Scholar Blog
gadflyscholar.blogspot.com
Provoking thought in a conversational way with light humor. The Gadfly Scholar is meant to share insights into politics and critical thinking in a way that is meant to be respectful to both liberals and conservative. The goal is to inform and improve opinion, not to shape it. (And also be funny. Don't forget funny).
2020-10-25 17:44
How could Trump Still Win Clifford Kennedy Berryman, Artist/National Archives, Records of the U.S. Senate, 1789 - 2015 In response to the 2nd Iraq War failures, Rumsfeld famousl… Read More
2020-08-11 15:13
You Say Election. I Say Electoral College Less than 3 months until the 2020 election, and we all have the same question. Will we be able to listen to news without an anxiety attack? As m… Read More
2019-11-08 02:37
Some Interesting CasesMitt Romney, Lisa Murkowski, and Susan CollinsYou would think that Mitt Romney and Lisa Murkowski. They have often been vocal critics of Trump and have the most politic… Read More
2019-11-06 04:04
The Tracking Republican SenatorsI’m out of time.I’ve owed you a track of Congress vs the President for over a year now, so with impeachment looming here, it is. A new button, Imp… Read More
2019-01-31 03:19
The Stuff That’s Just a Little Crazy, But Not So MuchAs we march along the path of craziest, it’s time to let you know my outrageous, though possible, predictions. In the past, I… Read More
2018-11-04 02:39
What Will the Midterms Change?Is there going to be a blue wave or a red wave? Most likely they’ll be both, or at least that’s how it will be spun.So, here’s the deal. Only… Read More
2018-09-15 23:10
Are Democrats Loser?Democrats have, for my lifetime, held the majority of registered voters. Every indicator says they are likely to win the House in 2018. But, even Democrats are afraid of… Read More
2018-08-19 19:19
The Details of Russian InterferenceAs of now, per the last Mueller indictment, Fancy Bear is identified as two cyber units of the GRU, Units 26165 and 74455. They are responsible for infiltr… Read More
2018-08-09 01:45
Yes, We Can Know the Russians Interfered in the 2016 Election. Here's How.Understanding how the Russians interfered in the election involves computer forensics and counter-espionage. It also… Read More
2018-08-09 01:31
We keep saying the Russia Investigation is complicated. It’s not. It comes down to three statements:The Russian Government interfered with the 2016 election by a combination of hacking… Read More
2018-04-19 03:17
As you have probably heard, Paul Ryan, the current Speaker of the House, has announced that he will not seek re-election, which immediately prompts the question as to what that means. In par… Read More
2017-08-23 21:09
A Trump Watch UpdateGiven all that has happened, it does seem time to update the likelihood of a Successful, Disastrous, or Threatening Presidency. In fact, you are probably wondering why I… Read More
2017-07-28 22:14
Will Republicans Pay for Not Repealing ObamacareSo, after seven years of Republican politicians promising to repeal the ACA (Obamacare) and with the first chance to do so, they could not mus… Read More
2017-06-21 18:43
Handel Won Because of Republican Culture, Not PoliticsI’ve avoided talking about Democrats vs Republicans so far, but in the recent special election between Ossoff and Handel, I notice… Read More
2017-05-20 22:10
For the Good of the Country, Make Trump a 1 Term President Republican Lack of Will and Wishful Thinkinghas Endangered UsIn part 1 and part 2, I warned that the likelihood for a Thr… Read More
2017-05-18 02:13
Rise of the Accidental DictatorWARNING: Do not read this while drinking. It will make you sad and drink more. A lot more.In part 1, I warned that the likelihood for a Threatening Presidency… Read More
2017-05-14 17:45
How Firing Comey Makes the Trump Presidency More ThreateningWARNING: Do not read before going to bed. You will lose sleep over this.So here I am. Behind on my posts. Figure I need to write o… Read More
2017-05-12 16:54
This is going to be quick, and I can only touch the surface. But, this morning was such a good example of what biased and unbiased news sounds like.At 8 AM I listened for about 5 minute… Read More
2017-05-10 04:25
How the AHCA Hurts RepublicansSo, we have a new republican health care bill, and there is a lot of celebrating on both side. So, who’s right? Will this be the doo doo on the republican… Read More
2017-04-11 22:46
Update to the Threatening Presidency WatchAs I’m sure you heard, as of five days from writing this, the U.S. Navy launched and air strike against a Syrian airfield in response to Assad… Read More
2017-03-28 04:43
The Progressive Era and the Power of the PeopleExactly when the Gilded Age ended and the Progressive Era began is, as always, a bit of a historical debate. As I discussed in the last post&nb&hell…Read More
2017-03-12 21:45
What Does a Successful Presidency MeanLet’s talk first about the Successful Presidency and let me extend on that definition because I need to. My previous definitions have been too vag… Read More
2017-03-05 22:28
Projections of the Latest Congress CountHere are my latest Success and Disaster Count52/237 is the Senate/House Success Count61/206 is the Senate/House Disaster CountFirst, off the bat, you… Read More
2017-02-28 01:08
The Gilded Age: The Origin of the Cult of WealthAfter the ending of Reconstruction in 1877, politics started to become familiar with the modern day. State's Rights is ensconced in the Consti… Read More
2017-02-21 16:08
How I Count Senators to Evaluate President TrumpIn Trump Watch, I outline three scenarios all of which depend on whether the Trump Presidency is perceived a success of a disaster. And, as I… Read More
2017-02-15 04:20
Many people are saying that Trump, Bannon, and Putin are in a love triangle. As we already know, Trump was born in Russia and is being used against his will as a puppet president. Despi… Read More
2017-02-10 23:31
When Do We Know It’s Bad?I'm still not ready. I've done warm baths, therapy, distracting myself with video games, and drinking (a whole lot of drinking), and I'm still not ready to bea… Read More
2017-02-07 05:37
Democracy Without Slavery (Sort of)In Post 1 and 2, I discussed a lot about how American politics today are influenced by the debates of State's Right, tariffs, and slavery. Then in Post 3… Read More
2017-01-23 17:58
My 1st Predictions on the Trump PresidencyIt's official. He is now President Trump. As much as I've been avoiding writing about him, I'm out of time and need to get at least of few predictio… Read More
2017-01-19 21:43
The Jacksonian Era, and What I didn't Talk AboutBy now, you should have realized that the point of this post series is to show how American history formed the political arguments of today. S… Read More
2016-12-17 02:01
In Some Ways We are Still Fighting the Civil WarIn the last post of How We Got Here, I described how the forming of the U.S. Constitution embedded a conflict between Northern and Southe… Read More
2016-11-20 21:30
The 2016 Election Starts with America's 1st ConstitutionWe’ve just had the biggest upset election in my lifetime. Perhaps I’m right, and we will see one of the historically worst… Read More
2016-11-09 16:32
The Inconceivable President-Elect TrumpThis will be quick because I can only write so much in my current state of shock. However, there is about to be a lot of post analysis theories, and I… Read More
2016-11-08 02:10
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 30% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.The Horse RaceNumbers are moving fast and in a pro-C… Read More
2016-11-05 21:36
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 36% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.Last Nights Bombshell...was a fizzle. Not that no on… Read More
2016-11-03 22:43
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 35% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.What a difference 1 point makesToday Trump and Clint… Read More
2016-11-03 04:22
You Should Always Vote, and Not Just to Decide Who's ElectedVoting is critical to our democracy, but we often choose not to. We see our reason for voting as just an extension of our desire t… Read More
2016-11-03 04:07
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 32% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.Poll WatchingI'm still trying to re-evaluate how to… Read More
2016-11-01 23:58
Last Chance to Stop the Trump MeteorWe have less than week, and Trump still has a chance to win. Maybe not the best chance, but still too much for me to get to sleep without drinking. So, my… Read More
2016-11-01 22:05
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 31% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.What's Old is New AgainWould you believe. There's a… Read More
2016-10-31 22:40
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 26% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.Update on the Techy StuffIn my last update… Read More
2016-10-29 18:11
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 21% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.Yes I Know It's SaturdayAs I was writing t… Read More
2016-10-28 01:09
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 19% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessYou may have be… Read More
2016-10-27 03:06
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 17% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessLooks like ther… Read More
2016-10-25 17:56
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 17% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessToday, the smal… Read More
2016-10-24 22:55
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 16% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessThe ability to… Read More
2016-10-22 06:13
Maybe This Was All Just a PR StuntIf you read Trump’s Utility Function, I made an offhand comment that the Trump Campaign is just an elaborate hoax, and all Trump really wanted to do w… Read More
2016-10-22 06:10
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 16% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.The NewsAnd the news of today is that... t… Read More
2016-10-20 16:13
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 17% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There was a Debate Last NightAfter watching the fina… Read More
2016-10-19 16:23
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 15% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessMy last two upd… Read More
2016-10-19 04:38
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 16% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessYesterday I sai… Read More
2016-10-18 05:13
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 15% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessTrump has held… Read More
2016-10-18 00:15
10th Reason: Violence is acceptable to himAs the leader of our country, we expect the President to protect and unite us. We certainly don't expect him to sit back and watch when violence eru… Read More
2016-10-15 21:26
Trump is Losing Big Time, But Has He Lost?Trump has had the worst three weeks I've seen in a presidential election. He's lost two debates. As of now at least 9 women have come forward… Read More
2016-10-15 01:28
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has moved up to 18% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.Accusation CountAs of today 12 women have… Read More
2016-10-14 18:34
Trump's Angriest SpeechYes, I'm back on the Hitler thing again. But, this time, Hitler is not a stand in. I'm actually talking about the little guy with the weird mustache. And no, I'm not a… Read More
2016-10-13 17:55
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor still has a 17% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.Running Out the ClockWomen are comin… Read More
2016-10-12 18:07
State of the Election 2016Trump Meteor ForecastThe Trump Meteor has a 17% of striking the Earth and destroying civilization as we know it.There's an Election I GuessIn The Fin… Read More
2016-10-12 16:05
State of the Election 2016We live in interesting timesYou know that means we're cursed right? But, we very well may be seeing history unfold before us, because we now have three stories that… Read More
2016-10-12 16:05
State of the Election 2016Today is a big day, and for more reasons than you think. The catch, we won't know fully until tomorrow.Happy Registration DayFor most states Oct 10th is the last da… Read More
2016-10-11 23:41
Everyone Forgets About the FilibusterTrump is not a true conservative. Do I need the argue that? He has constantly flipped on issues with no clear allegiance to the conservatism or the Const… Read More
2016-10-09 23:26
Did Everything Change After Labor Day?On Sep 23rd Cruz endorses Trump. Oct 7th, he wished could take it back.I've been saying for a while now, that more voters are expected to pay attention… Read More
2016-10-09 00:27
Time to Revisit My Ambitious and Outrageous ClaimsIn The Good, the Bad, and the Delusional, How to get Voters, the Gadfly Way, and Just Who is Voting for Who, I made some ambitious claims ab… Read More
2016-10-08 17:25
State of the Election 2016My apologies for being late on this update. As you probably know, there's been a lot going on both politically and Hurricane Matthew. I intend to deal with the poli… Read More
2016-10-07 01:43
State of the Election 2016There's a Storm a BrewinHurricane Matthew is likely to hit in the next few day, and I would not be crass to discuss it's political effect. (At least until the dange… Read More
2016-10-06 23:03
It’s All About TemperamentSo, it’s been over a week now, we are finally seeing some polls, and my wrists have healed after writing all those background post. So how’d it wo… Read More
2016-10-06 15:02
9th Reason: He Can't Hire Good PeopleUnlike the movies, the best people don't go to work for startups. Sure, when Steve Jobs was fired from Apple and began a startup, premium talent lined up… Read More
2016-10-06 02:54
State of the Election 2016The VP DebateYesterday, the VP debated happened. I said they don't matter, but that was a bit un-civic of me, but we have a Trump meteor about to hit the Earth. I'm… Read More
2016-10-04 15:42
State of the Election 2016Trump's TaxesAs I feared, Trump has a counter argument to him not paying taxes, and I think it will work. The problem with pointing the many ways Trump has gamed th… Read More
2016-10-03 16:53
State of the Election 2016The Deluge If you saw my deluged over the weekend, you might be sick of me. I don't blame you, but there was a lot of background, I needed you to hear before we got… Read More
2016-10-03 15:32
What is the Make Up of Trump and Clinton SupportIn the The Good, the Bad, and the Delusional and How to get Voters, the Gadfly Way, I went on to describe the mindset of voters… Read More
2016-09-30 21:23
The Great Delusion of Politics... is that everyone thinks like my friends. They don't. All the people we know and interact with only represent a minority, ALWAYS. The presidents that win und… Read More
2016-09-30 16:24
Using What We Know About Voters to Build a CoalitionNow that we've figured out the mindset of voters in The Good, the Bad and and Delusional, we can talk about how politicians win elect… Read More
2016-09-30 15:25
State of the Election 2016Hey, did you know there was a debate Monday?OK, the news is starting to move away from the debate, which I can tell because the googles are getting mixed news. Howe… Read More
2016-09-29 15:30
State of the Election 2016Trump in the NewsLast night, Trump both continued to insist that he won the debate and claimed he was right about Machado. However, the morning google is pushing ou… Read More
2016-09-29 04:52
The Conspiratorial and Reckless TrumpTo add to our list of 5 Reasons and 6th Reason No One Should Vote for Trump.7th Reason: He has a conspiratorial mindDo I even need to prov… Read More
2016-09-28 16:40
State of the Election 2016Post DebateYou should never assume the winner of a debate, until a week after the debate. Winning is not appearing to be the winner, its how it helped or hurt you p… Read More
2016-09-27 15:30
State of the Election 2016Now I'd like to take the opportunity discuss the International Monetary Fund.Naw, I'm going to talk about the debate of course.Before I go into the candidates, How… Read More
2016-09-26 14:18
State of the Election 2016We have the debates tonight, and that's all anyone is talking about. So, there's not much more to say. However, I've already prepared a lot for you to read over the… Read More
2016-09-26 03:57
This Time It’s ArmageddonSo now, begins the event, we’ve been waiting for all this election, the 1stdebate. I already discussed the scaredy Trump face, so you have some body… Read More
2016-09-25 02:42
Theses are the Body Language Tells I Observed During the Commander-In-Chief ForumAs mentioned previously, I found some body language that indicates when Trump is scared and lying, so I clipp… Read More
2016-09-23 17:00
State of the Election 2016Charlotte, NC and Tulsa, OKThankfully, while the protests in Charlotte where large, they were largely peaceful. Hopefully, the calming will continue, and I will use… Read More
2016-09-23 01:48
State of the Election 2016I realize I have been a bit dire in my last posts, so let me interject some levity before I start:I have also found a recent discover about Trump. Many are say… Read More
2016-09-23 01:34
Trump's Secret Addiction has made Him Part of the MobMany are saying Trump is controlled by the Mob. As with most stories about how someone falls prey to organized crime, his is common. It a… Read More
2016-09-22 01:46
Now is Just Not that Bad4,000 California Army National Guardsmen patrolled the city to enforce the lawI'd like you now to look up two relatively obscure movies, Gung Ho (1986) and… Read More
2016-09-21 16:23
State of the Election 2016Again today, the "real" news is more important than political speculation. I felt it was more important to focus on How Soon We Forget. Please read instead Read More
2016-09-20 16:09
State of the Election 2016Bombings in NY and NJThe bombings have now become political. (That didn't take long.) I still feel, however, it too soon to speculate, so I won't.Is the Bounce Here… Read More
2016-09-19 22:33
Trump is the Kardashian of MoneyKim Kardashian became famous by convincing everyone she was famous. Trump became rich convincing everyone he is rich.Once you understand that, the rest is obv… Read More
2016-09-19 18:40
State of the Election 2016Terrorist Attacks Over the WeekendAs you have probably heard, there were 2 bombs and one knife attack this weekend that are suspected to be acts of terrorism.My sin… Read More
2016-09-18 01:39
Yes, We are Finally Talking About the Birther NonsenseTo add to our list of 5 Reasons No One Should Vote for Trump.6thReason: He is a Bad InvestorTrump claims to be a great business man… Read More
2016-09-16 17:12
State of the Election 2016Trump in the NewsWe are finally talking about birtherism. Trump is trying to deflect this by claiming Clinton started it. The details of this get complicated, but I… Read More
2016-09-15 15:22
State of the Election 2016Health RecordsOK, He got me. First I wrote that he was showing his medical records on Dr. Oz. Then, he said he wasn't, and I corrected the 09-14 post. Then he did.C… Read More
2016-09-15 03:29
Many people are saying Donald Trump was born in Russia. When the Guardian asked him to release his birth certificate, he refused. This spawned further investigation which uncovered… Read More
2016-09-14 15:04
State of the Election 2016Before I get into the ugliness of the news, I'd like to continue an ongoing meme and show you my favorite "Basket of Adorables" from Karen Tumulty.OK, enough o… Read More
2016-09-13 14:58
State of the Election 2016Since most most of the news today is a rehash of yesterday, I'm going to take to opportunity to cover some background.How Do I Get UpdatedMy start is to just google… Read More
2016-09-12 05:25
State of the Election 2016Trump in the NewsThe news on Trump is that there was little news on Trump. Since the media has trouble focusing on two candidates at the same time, there will be th… Read More
2016-09-10 17:15
Trump is Uniquely Unfit to be President Believe it or not, I have so far been pretty easy on Trump. Sure I started comparing him to Hitler, but who hasn't, and I was fair about. I even said… Read More
2016-09-09 11:52
State of the Election 2016Trump in the NewsThe result of Wednesday forum has pushed the focus on Trump's bromance with Putin, I mentioned yesterday. However, I still stand by my claim that t… Read More
2016-09-09 11:51
State of the Election 2016 Today I'm going to try something different. Instead, of post semi-weekly deep topics (which so far have been how bad Trump is), I'm going to also post how the elec… Read More
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