People say to me sometimes that they don’t see the sense of being involved on social media, especially Facebook. I know some are fearful that ‘big brother’ is watching through our cameras, or that they are listening in, and that a mystery organization is aware of our postings and buying habits.

Some of that might be true. But, I live an open book. I don’t have anything to hide. I’m careful enough with my social security number and with credit card numbers and I have never (yet) had anyone steal my numbers through social media. I’m not saying it may never happen.

But I don’t live in fear.

This time of year with Thanksgiving next week and Christmas next month, I really enjoy the positive posts I see on Facebook. Just this morning I saw a video about a local restaurant that prepares and serves free Thanksgiving meals downtown in my town. It touched me and I plan to drop off some cash later today to help out and to give my thanks to them. Had I not seen it on social media I would not have known.

I also see the thousands of Samaritan’s Purse boxes getting collected now, that will then be sent to big centers for packing up, and to send out to children around the world.

I read uplifting messages from a local group called “Good Friends of Georgetown County” who receive donations that then go to those who are temporarily in need of funds to get by.

I admire the group that has turned the local community garden into a thriving place that produces food for many and teaches children who come on field trips to experience it, to get their hands into the soil.

There are many many more.

Facebook makes me feel good about the goodness of others. Instagram does it also, but I see more positivity more on Facebook. More in-depth stories. Pictures of people making a difference.

Maybe it’s just me, but I love – and I think I need – to see the good posts. There is so much bad and sadness everywhere else. It helps to balance what is going on in the world.

I have always said that if you have a little time each week to do something good for someone else it comes right back to you. It’s amazing how that works. It’s not an ego thing. It’s a community feeling. It’s about knowing you are one part of making love happen in our world.

Social media is fun of course. I love seeing my friends’ pictures, especially of their families. I love getting updates. Perhaps I am just seeing the best of their times, but that’s okay with me. It makes me smile.

I love feeling connected. I definitely feel more connected with my family and friends who use Facebook and Instagram. It’s not being nosy. It’s being thankful – for knowing them. I’m interested in what they are doing. Occasionally, it’s offering a kind word when they need it. But most often it’s sharing in their good times. I use emojis and maybe too many exclamation marks in my comments to them!!! But, don’t we need cheerleading? Isn’t it a good thing to celebrate even our day to day normal life??

So, with thanksgiving next week, I am grateful for all the good acts I see on social media. I appreciate those who share their good times through posts and pictures because it lifts me up too. Please eep ‘em coming. The more I see the better. I think you know who you are, but there are a few girlfriends who live far away but I still feel close to you. I love that.

Thanks for sharing the good on social media.

This time of year, after Halloween, I see posts and memes on social media about when people think is the right time to put up Christmas trees and decorations.

Obviously it is up to the individual. I know people who do it early because they enjoy the lights. People get ‘itchy’ to do it because they go into stores and see everything up, and all the Christmas items are on the shelves for sale.

Time flies by. Too quickly.

I’m the type that tries to slow down time, and to enjoy each day, and not rush on to the next thing. By the way, the next thing is Thanksgiving.

So, I admit I get a feeling of sadness when I see the seasons and the holidays go by so quickly. I get a bit annoyed at the rush for Christmas.

There are two Christmases. The secular one with Santa and lots of glitz and too many parties. Then there is the religious Christmas. You know, the one with the baby Jesus born in a stable, who came into the world through a teenager named Mary. God’s son that came to earth to show us how to live, and to let us know the grace of God, and the hope for eternal life.

This morning I saw a meme about decorating for Christmas and I wondered how many Christians actually follow the church calendar and celebrate Advent first. Advent starts the church year off. It is four weeks of preparation for the arrival of the baby Jesus. I’m sure you have seen Advent calendars for sale (with chocolate behind each door). I grew up with them but they had written scripture telling the Christmas story behind each door. We also had an Advent wreath with 5 candles on it that was kept on our table and we lit a new candle each week. Each week brought more light, and then the special Christmas candle in the middle was lit on Christmas Day. The light of the world has arrived. It’s a tradition that is fading.

Christians are supposed to be different. We are meant to be examples of the teachings found in the Bible. We are to spread the Good News, and to follow the commandments and the B’attitudes. It’s hard to do at times. Right? It’s so easy to slip into the secular ways. Not that they are all bad. But they can be stressful. Expensive. Tiring.

I think that is why I feel weird about this time of year. The secular Christmas is so in my face already. The rush to do all the lights and to put up the trees early, and everything is already about Christmas – already.

Already.

I want Thanksgiving. I want to experience thanks and gratitude. I want to do one holiday at a time.

I want to acknowledge Advent. I’m a Christian that wants to use the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas to prepare. Not now. Not yet. I want to slow down. I want to wait and see the twinkling lights and feel the awe and joy closer to Christmas. I want to create that feeling then – not now.

Don’t get me wrong though. I am buying some gifts. I want to allow enough time for purchasing and shipping and wrapping. I am practicing Christmas music with my bandmates, handbells, and flute choir friends now. I do what I can to relieve the stress I usually feel once December arrives. Because, yes, time flies by.

That’s why it’s so important to me to not push it even more. I want to find the joy, and to live it at the right time. I want to always acknowledge that Christmas is about Christ.

So for me, Advent is not here yet. The time for Christmas preparation is not here yet. I’m not ready for it yet.

Seriously, what’s the rush???

When I heard about the death of Matthew Perry this weekend I felt so very sad, as millions of other “Friends” lovers did. We felt we knew Matthew’s character Chandler so well from watching and rewatching the 10 years of episodes.

Chandler was a very funny guy but as we got to know the character over time we came to know him as a loving and very sensitive guy too. The writers made Chandler, but Matthew said the role was ‘him.’ Chandler often covered up his feelings with humor. Matthew did too. He was really good at it.

I read Matthew Perry’s autobiography that came out last year. It was a very good read to try and understand how some people go through their whole life dealing with mental health issues. He struggled constantly with self esteem issues, and he was born with a very addictive gene. He reached for drugs and alcohol from a young age on. And, he tried and tried to get clean only to fall back into his addictive and abusive ways. He was in and out of rehab more times than anyone can imagine.

His death has not been listed as anything but an accidental drowning at this point. But, lots of prescription drugs for depression and anxiety were found in his home. He had hurt his body for years. The drugs and alcohol, vast weight changes, and even his colon bursting, all contributed to his demise, brought on but constant doubts, and disappointments, expectations, and more.

Matthew Perry struggled with his mental health all his life.

Last week we also heard about the mass shooting in Maine and that the mental health of the shooter was out of whack. He had been suffering for months (or more) and had been hospitalized for two weeks this past summer. People who knew him knew he was delusional and that he was speaking of possible violent acts.

We have a mental health epidemic in America. We don’t put enough emphasis on those in need until it can be too late. A person’s well being and their thoughts about themselves start early in childhood. We take babies and children for physical exams regularly but never have mental care checks. A traumatic event can also trigger mental health issues. We all live in a stressful day to day world of wanting to succeed, wanting to be loved, wanting to be liked, and wanting to live financially secure. We ALL have times of mental illness. Maybe not clinically. But in some degree we do – depending on the day.

Matthew Perry never acted out in ways that hurt others. He hurt himself. But some do lash out. Their brain tells them too – and it is really hard to understand why. But it happens. Every mass shooter has these feelings. And in the United States we see it happening every day.

Our mental heath is even more important than our physical health. Yet we still keep it hush hush and we attach stigmas to anyone we know who might be struggling. We want to ignore it. We want to pretend we are tough, and happy, and always in control.

The need for mental health care is still too often considered a weakness.

But seeking help is a strength. Care is available through counseling, therapy, and prescription drugs. But it costs money and it shouldn’t. And it should not be a political fight. But it is. I believe every person who wants help with their mental health should be able to get it. I also believe working on mental health should happen throughout each individual’s life, and that it will stop a lot of the other ills of America.

We need to stop thinking that it’s not my problem and that every man is in it for himself. Because – it’s not right. We live in communities, and what happens around us happens to us! Supporting anyone and everyone who seeks mental health care will better all our lives.

The only time I ever really hear people talk about the need for better mental health care is when they are blaming it for gun deaths. And it would certainly help for that. (I still strongly believe in the need for better, safer gun regulations too), But, it would also reduce road rage, and spousal abuse, bullying, and so much more.

Since we live in communities we have to care for all wh live in the communities. Speaking up, showing compassion, offering help, and voting for those who will make mental health free in our country. You can call it medical socialism if you like. I don’t care. I believe it’s an important path to a healthy democracy. It’s about healing the whole body and therefore having a better country.

Nothing is more important than taking care of our mental health. Nothing.

When I heard about the mass shooting last night in Lewiston, Maine, I thought to myself that unfortunately I could just go back to one of my earlier “Marla’s Musings” posts I have written. I could post one from the past again because the pain is the same and there have been no changes in our country to get mass shooting weapons out of the hands of those who should not have them.

Nothing.

But I decided to write a new post – for a couple of reasons. First, I feel we can’t just think, oh another mass shooting. Been there, done that. I also felt it was important to the people so personally effected by this to let them know THIS IS NOT RiGHT. IT IS NOT NORMAL. THiS CAN NOT CONTINUE.

Yet it does.

This time the mass shooting happened in a large town in Maine. In Lewiston, Maine. Maine is a state not highly populated, and a state known mostly for it’s beauty. It’s usually a quiet place. My son-in-law comes from Maine and all his family still live there. Good people. Loving. Hearty.

Not to give the shooter any glory – at all, but we must know this is important: He’s a white male, an expert in guns, with a military past. Other mass shooters have been the same. There is something going on with these individuals. In fact, this shooter had already been in therapy for delusional thoughts. Yet, he was still able to have a mass shooting weapon. Were his weapons seized when he was under mental health care? Then given back? Did he steal the weapon? Or buy a ghost gun? We don’t know these answers yet but these are important questions. Did his family and friends pick up on him again struggling? Did someone else abet the shooter and help him get a weapon? Is there responsibility for a mass shooting beyond the individual who did it?

Last night’s shooting started in a bowling alley on “Youth Night” and then continued at a local bar. The tally of dead I have heard so far is 22, with many, many more injured. Names of the dead have not been released yet but I worry that many will be teenagers who were enjoying some fun together at the bowling alley.

I am a mother and a grandmother. This time it was not one of my daughters, or grandchildren – but for the grace of God at this point. Because, here in the United States, we continue to allow this to happen. We have legislators more concerned about winning votes, and getting NRA lobby money, and talking about “Freedoms” above anything else.

Freedom.

Freedom means going out to a bowling alley, to a bar, to a temple, a movie theatre, a school, a church, a shopping center, a music concert, a grocery store – and not get killed in a mass shooting.

Freedom is NOT the right to have a gun. I’m sorry – it is not. There are been gun manufacturers and lobbyists who have put fear into people for years, thinking a gun will save you. It will not. Nobody had time last night to shoot back at the guy who walked into the bowling alley and then the bar. Guns are NOT personal safety. In fact thy are a false power belief. Way more guns are used in mass shootings, in spousal abuse, in accidents with children, and in suicides, then in personal safety.

Statistics don’t lie. We can look all around the world at countries that limit gun ownership and have stronger laws. They have less shootings. The United States in known around the world as being the ‘gun happy’ country because we recklessly allow just about anyone to get their hands on one, legally and illegally.

ENOUGH

So – I say ENOUGH again. I write another post again. I promise to continue to voice what I can about how we need to change. We need sensible gun laws and we need much better mental health care, and restrictions. The two: guns and mental health issues should never be allowed. If that means taking away guns and not always getting it right, I am okay with that.

ENOUGH.

I continue to promise to only vote for candidates who are determined to do something about guns in America. We all CAN do something if we have the right leaders and members of Congress. We can do something as citizens. If you own a gun, secure it. If you have one but wish you didn’t, turn it into the police. If you notice anything unusual with someone who owns a gun, report it.

ENOUGH.

If you attend church you hear these words: “It passes all understanding.”

It is said because sometimes a Christian has to put their faith before their knowledge. Sometimes a Christian has to go out on a limb and put their life in the hands of a Lord who is not human – to believe in the one that created, and loves endlessly, and is not limited by time or space. Our human minds just can’t comprehend all that God is and does. But still we believe.

In religion we are not looked down on for having faith above knowledge. In fact, I think true followers of God, believers in His Word found in the Bible, have to ‘let go and let God.’ I have used that expression often in my life. I have enough faith to know I don’t know everything, yet as a child of God I am forgiven and loved anyway.

Lately I have been thinking about how I use the phrase ‘it passes understanding’ with some earthly events, or beliefs, or actions of others.

I watch the videos of the hatred I see on the news that leads to violence, to inhumane treatment, and to killing beautiful innocent children. I can not understand how someone can get to a mental state of lashing out so severely. How can someone use knives and guns against people they do not even know who never did anything wrong to them?

It passes all understanding.

I Think about world dictators who seem to be missing the element of compassion, like a tin man with no heart, who want to be powerful above all else, and who think people are collateral damage to their mission. What brought them to this place? Why are they bullies without a conscience?

It passes all understanding.

I think about a whole group of Americans who have been sucked in to a cult-like belief , denying facts, pushing forward false theories, and who have become defiant in not opening their minds to see other possibilities. I will never get how friends and neighbors who live like me, yet support a man who has shown himself over and over again as an ultra narcissistic liar, someone who has been indicted over and over for illegal behavior, who speaks rudely to and about women, veterans, the disabled, etc. and has no boundaries for civility.

It passes all understanding.

We are who we allow ourselves to be. We make choices that define our lives. Some people seem to be fine with that. I hear this: “I am who I am” so take me as I am. There is no desire for learning more, for bettering themselves, for offering respect to the stranger, and certainly for giving out help when it looks you in the face. “Not my problem” and “this is mine, not yours” – “Come at me and I will take you down.”

It passes all understanding.

I suppose if I were a social worker or a psychiatrist I would understand better, perhaps I would know how the pains of the past, or the lack of education, or the feelings of being unimportant, and more – resulted in a lack of emotion that brought some to be able to kill, to hurt without remorse, to act better than others, to fall into cults, and on and on.

Sometimes I think it is a test for me.

When something happens or a person does something I truly can not understand…. Do I accept that it passes all understanding? Do I forgive and love anyway? Do I put my faith in God and let it go?

Hello and happy Thursday! I hope you are doing well as we head towards the end of October and to Halloween.

We also have the twins’ 6th birthday celebration coming up at the end of the month, and it’s hard to believe these little guys are almost 6 years old. I spent a good bit of time with them earlier this month because they were ‘tracked out’ of school and their mom and dad had to continue to go to work. I enjoyed all we did together and I enjoyed all the talking they did, and constantly asking me how to spell words. After only a few months in kindergarten they are learning word sounds, vowels and consonants, etc. I loved seeing their enthusiasm for it. I loved how they wanted to figure out words – and it reminded me how our language has so many ‘exceptions’ to the rule. Yikes! It’s a tough language to learn.

Each day that I was with the boys though it was nice to have mom & dad come home and take over – while Mimi poured a glass of wine and relaxed. Ha

October is a wonderful weather month. We are now experiencing cooler mornings and lovely afternoons, where it is still warm (not hot) and without the humidity. We don’t get frost on the pumpkins here and I am okay with that.

Tonight we are going to a Willie Nelson concert down in North Charleston. Hubby and I both love his music and we figured we better see him live now because he is 93 years old and he may not be around much longer, or he may not be able to entertain on stage. It’s an outdoor concert at a distillery. Low key. Sitting on a blanket, and enjoying the music under the stars. Willie has so many classic country songs I look forward to hearing. I love concert experiences.

Of course October has also brought some pretty bad news – including the horrific violence on innocent Israelis. At this evening’s concert I will be thinking of the young people who were at a music festival there, heinously killed in the big attack on their country. It is hard to understand such hatred to do ‘eye to eye’ murder, pulling people from cars, and taking lives brutally. It is beyond any understanding.

The history of that area, along with the opposing religious beliefs, and the feelings of ‘entitlement’ and the lack of freedom, and so much more, goes into what is happening. BUT, the Hamas terrorist group has to be accountable for what is going on now.

Here at home, today Sydney Powell has agreed to a plea deal for her actions in Georgia when she participated in a scheme to try and change the presidential election results. I hope this will be the first card to fall and that more and more will come out now in court. There is no doubt in my mind that Trump was very involved in it. Hopefully those who took his orders, and who tried to cover up for him, will speak now.

As all this goes on, the Georgia indictments, and the NY cases, and more – the Republicans are still beholdened to Trump. It is another thing beyond understanding for me. But, I do understand that those so entangled with him are holding up the Democratic workings of our country by not electing a Speaker of the House. It’s been weeks now where our Congress has been at a stalemate, unable to enact laws, to vote for defense needs and non-political positions we need. We Americans are paying the salaries of Congress while the Republicans squabble and do nothing.

October is football time. The South Carolina Gamecocks are once again unable to come together as a powerhouse team and beat the tough teams of the SEC. Poor coach Shane Beamer. He was so frustrated after last Saturday’s game that he kicked something and broke a bone in his foot! When things go wrong they just get worse.

October is the quiet before the holiday trifecta: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Enjoy the calm days of now.

I’ll end this with a tease: Hubby and I are dressing up in costumes for the grandboys’ Halloween birthday party. Want to take a guess on who we plan to go as?? Pictures will be on Facebook at the end of the month.

I got a new IPad and it took me a few days to get everything downloaded, including my “Marla’s Musing’s” site. This is a test to see if it is working.

Fingers crossed.

This morning I attended a church service in my community as I was part of a handbells group. I like the opportunities I get through playing handbells, because it includes experiencing various worship styles and clergy.

There were times though while sitting and listening this morning I wanted to raise my hand and ask a few questions (but I didn’t – ha!)… like: How do we know and always understand exactly what the Bible is telling us? How with our small human brains can we be sure we get it right? Isn’t the Bible written in a way to create discussion, to think about what the people of those times were dealing with and how it relates today? And why oh why did Paul say to Timothy to have nothing to do with ‘those’ people who sin? I mean, we all sin, just in different ways, and how can we stay away from the people who act like the list above? Does that seem like a good Christian to stay away?

This morning the pastor, a man I have heard preach before, spoke on Timothy 3, 1- 9. It reads:

‘But mark this: there will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous,, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God – having a form of godliness but denying it’s power. Have nothing to do with such people. They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jane’s and Jambres opposed Moses ,so also these people oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone. ‘

Wow!!! Right?

The apostle Paul wrote the epistle to Timothy, as Timothy was getting ready to head out on a missionary trip.

This morning the pastor spoke about how true it is that today we still meet people like what is listed in the above verses. Somethings – and people – never change over time. We as Christians certainly know of people that fit the categories listed. We need the Holy Spirit to try our best to be led the way God wants us to go. The pastor pointed often in his sermon that Christians live in this world but not ‘of’ it and that Christians live by the Bible. He stressed that the Bible is ‘the truth’ and the Bible is the place to find the answers. Yes. Yes.

While listening this morning, I thought that maybe Paul was telling Timothy not to waste his time – and to go and disciple to people who will listen. They were traveling to spread the Word, and they were reaching out to those who could then continue on spreading it. I personally don’t think it’s ever right for Christians to shun someone, or to judge their sins.

The pastor also used a reference that I had not heard about: He mentioned some children in a school saying they were cats and wanting a litter box placed in the school’s bathrooms. What?!?! DO you know this story? The pastor said we as Christians must use our wisdom, and make the right decisions. As I listened I thought this example was used to not accept all children, especially those who have different thoughts. A comment to these times.

At about this point I sat there and thought, hmmm…. okay. It’s a tricky part of the Bible to discuss, and maybe I am not understanding what is being said – but if I was unchurched, or checking out a church, this was a red flag. I thought about how church traditions are fine, and I like a liturgy, and I like the respect shown in churches, and I love the music (and today there were two handbell pieces and a lovely choir anthem), but today was a reason some find that the church is hypocritical.

This pastor is a servant of God, and a good family man, and a wonderful speaker – but I worry about the ordained who cannot admit that we don’t always know what God is saying through the Bible. And that, over EVERYTHING God is love – and that Christians are in a constant state of learning… and that we don’t always get it right.

During these turbulent times we need to be

“walking humbly with God” ….

Offering love to all.

Did I get your attention with this musing title? What? Marla is going to talk about Fentanyl?

Well, I have to tell you that I am absolutely not an expert on the drug Fentanyl, and I don’t even know how it is ingested into a body. In pill form? Through a needle? A powder put in other drugs? Is it sold on the street by the same dealers that sell cocaine and other illegal drugs? Is it priced by the drug lords? And – once it gets into the US how is it so easily distributed around the country, state to state? I don’t know.

The reason I am writing about Fentanyl today though is it has become a political issue and the drug tied closely to the southern border controversy. What I have learned about this drug is that it is produced in China and then it is brought to Mexico and snuck into the US by illegal immigrants. At least that is what conservatives and Republicans want me to think. I’m not denying that it comes in that way. But, I also know that it probably comes in many other ways too. We have 4 borders, and we have planes and boats and cars entering our country all the time.

It is incredibly sad that people want to use Fentanyl. For some reason too many are looking for an escape, or a quick high, or they may just want to stop thinking for awhile. Other drugs have been used for the same purposes for years. Fentanyl is the choice now. And, from what I hear it seems extremely dangerous and deadly. Yet, people have the desire.

Fentanyl would not be a problem in America if it was not wanted so badly.

And, that’s the part of the whole epidemic that doesn’t get much discussion. Are we failing all these people because they are feeling empty, or depressed, or helpless – so they turn to drugs? They are in such a bad way that they take the chance with their lives – and they use their money, and make illegal drug deals, and sometimes die. Fentanyl overdoses happen all the time in the poor areas of America.

Trying to stop the flood of Fentanyl into our country without addressing the core reasons for Americans to desire it will not make the problem go away. Just as with illegal gun use, drug use happens because people are hurting. They are not happy with their lives. They feel unimportant, perhaps unloved. They can’t make enough money to live on and to take care of their kids. They don’t have hope for their future, and therefore they turn to a way to block out the pain.

The Republicans want to close the border. They blame the immigrants coming here for bringing the Fentanyl, and yet, they do nothing to work on the core problems. They don’t want to admit that the poor, and the uneducated, and those in low paying jobs, etc. don’t have the opportunity to improve, and to gain self esteem. Republicans don’t want to use tax dollars for social concerns to better us all. Even their own constituents! Those who elected them!

In general, it seems these days that we want to live without caring for ‘the other guy.’ We don’t want to spend OUR money on THEM. We don’t want to pay for equal education for all, and support early medical treatment, and preventive care, and more job opportunities, and we don’t want to give our hard earned money to those ‘no good druggies’ who have no worth.

Until we look at the big picture differently, and then do something about the core problems, we will continue to have devastating drug deaths. Fentanyl will be the easy escape.

Until we consider that all Americans have a right to mental and physical medical care, until we make sure all Americans can educate themselves for a job or a trade, until we do whatever we can to make ALL Americans feel worthy, then drug lords will find ways to get Fentanyl into the country – and people will continue to die.

It used to be that the children were ‘hands off.’ All the opposing politicians and the media honored that. The Children did not sign up for a public life, and it was considered a low blow to go after them. Especially young ones. It’s one more thing about the political world where the standards have been dropped. Everything is fair game now. People will go after family members, looking for a scoop, and looking for a way to put a black mark on the politician’s life.

You know where this is going. Hunter Biden. But – wait, he is no kid.

Step back for a minute.

I remember Billy Carter. He loved his beer and he was a Georgia redneck. The media had a lot of fun with him. I remember Amy Carter living in the White House during her awkward pre-teen years. I felt for her. Wearing glasses and braces. Chelsea Clinton was about the same age and she went through some teenage angst, was an only child with two powerful parents. Later, I remember the Bush girls wanting to be a bit defiant too, wanting to be normal teenagers. Jenna once gave the finger out the presidential limousine window.

The Obama girls seemed to have stayed out of trouble for 8 years. That’s a large feat. Maybe they really didn’t, but the press and Congressional members did not bring up any issues about them. Growing up in the spotlight, in the White House, has got to be hard. It was understood. Give them some slack. They are just kids.

Then came the Trumps – a bunch of them! Some were already adults. But Barron was not. He stayed out of the way, thanks to his mother, and again, the press and Congress members left him alone. Almost all of the older Trump children were definitely involved in the runnings in the White House, given titles and jobs to do within the administration. They had been in their dad’s former business dealings and grew up workin with him before he got into politics. They were involved. Therefore they were easy targets. The late night hosts certainly had fun with them. At the same time, the Trump offspring all were involved in social media. They poked the beast – supporting their father’s lies, and acting as a shield at times.. The walls were taken down at that point on the separation of politics and family. Ivanka sat in on many meetings and often represented her father when he could not be at functions. As she did this she carried on her own business dealings, including her own clothing line. Ivanka’s husband Jared Kushner and his family were also closely involved, mixing politics with their personal business. I have no doubt there were times that the lines between them got gray, and it was probably questionable whether or not their actions were legal, or at least ethical. I also believe the Trump children, young and old, were never taught to be concerned about that. They did not have a role model.

Now we have the Hunter Biden saga. I believe that Hunter has had a sad life, caught up in drugs, bad behavior, and unable to get his life together as an adult. He lost his mother and sister at a young age when they were killed in a car accident. Life as he knew it immediately changed. Hunter and his brother Beau were raised by Joe and others in the family. They went through trauma, and Hunter did not handle it well. Beau was the stronger one, who went into the military, was a hero in his Dad’s eyes – and then sadly died from cancer. Family dysfunction is nothing unusual. Sibling rivalry and more. They are like so many of us.

I do think Hunter Biden used his last name and his dad’s political power to get ahead at times. I also believe he lied on his gun application and that he paid his taxes late. He was a messed up guy. He fathered a child out of f wedlock. He escaped life, his demons, at times through drug use.

But, I don’t think President Biden has done anything more than any parent would do for their only living child. A parent is always a parent. He was worried about Hunter through the years. He wanted to help him. So, Joe took his phone calls when he called,, and tried to help him get straightened out, and probably told him he was proud of him when he could.

So – When it comes to what people say about President Biden being conniving, and secretly helping his son, I think they are making way too much out of it. It’s become a political hot potato, and it’s all tied up in the meanness we see now between the two political parties. It’s about being vindictive. It’s about hurting a family. It’s about sending messages to voters, putting doubt in their minds, saying things that may not be true. The situation is in the judicial department’s hands now. Hunter Biden might likely be found guilty of tax evasion and for lying on a gun permit form. I believe he did wrong. And he will have to pay and/or serve time, depending upon the judge’s decision. But, seriously – the Republican side has hammered it all to death – it is ALL they talk about, over and over, for years now, and they use Hunter’s problems as a sign of a bad president and father. That is their intention.

Who does this help?

What are we Americans learning from all this?

Is it that Republicans really don’t care about family? That they don’t care about helping a person with drug and mental problems? That they will use a person’s downfalls to their own glory? Will they do anything to belittle the president, to try and show the world he has a bad adult son??

I’m just not sure what the big picture is – except I don’t know why any person considering a run for president would drag their family through this. Politics is ugly. It has been for a long time. But families used to be exempt from it. It’s a line that has been crossed.