Memories Of September 11th, 2001 - Twenty Five Years Down The Line - Lessons Learned

Monday, September 14th, 2026 

My Dear America:

We just recently celebrated September 11th, 2026.  Twenty Five Years have gone by since that Awful Day when You and I, America, woke up to find that we had been invaded by Terrorists and following that day we would never be the same again.

My Memories of that day are mainly quick flashes of things that occurred throughout the day on 9/11/01.

I have one strong memory and that is that the day was an incredibly beautiful day.  The weather was gorgeous.  The sun was shining.  It wasn't too hot or too cold.  It was just right, the kind of day that you hope to wake up to every day of your life.

I was sleeping soundly and was not planning to get up too soon because I didn't start work until after lunch. Sandy was suddenly shaking me and seemed to be upset.

"What's Wrong," I asked her as I woke up.

"Get Up." she said.  "You have to see this," she continued.  "My mother called me and told me to turn on the television and I did.  It's horrible.  Somebody just crashed their plane into the World Trade Center.

I don't recall if I had ever even heard the words World Trade Center before but I certainly didn't know much about it or even where it was until I came out to our living room and watched what we thought had to be an accident as a quick flash on TV showed what appeared to be a plane hitting a large building which announcers told us was in New York.  We were not the only ones watching the World Trade Center and thinking that it was an accident.  Probably a small plane hitting the World Trade center. The talking heads on TV were convinced it was an accident too.  It had to be an accident, we thought.

And then The Second Plane hit the second building in the World Trade Center Complex and nobody continued to think that either of these plane crashes were accidents anymore.

Over the past few days and into the weekend much has been said about the events of September 11th, 2001 and will continue to be said abut this important Historical Event that shook You to your core, America.  

We know a lot about 9/11 now but that was not the case in 2001 When the Twin Towers were destroyed, The Pentagon was also hit and a little later in the morning the passengers and crew of Flight United 93 apparently fought back against the terrorists who commandeered their plane that was reportedly heading for the Capitol Building in Washington to crash into it.  Fortunately for Congress but not the United 93 Passengers that plane crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

We didn't know it at the time that this highly organized bit of madness was a once and done effort to destroy more than a little bit of American Democracy.  It looked at the time like a well coordinated First Strike at our country that could just be the beginning attack that might be followed by continued tong term orchestrated violence on American soil.

Clearly none of us knew what in the hell was happening at the time.

What September 11th of 2001 turned out to be was the first day of the first battle of the "War On Terror" that the George W. Bush Administration initiated following the 9/11 terror attacks.  Although looking back on it these days we can clearly see that mistakes were made following September 11th and that Wars were initiated that caused more problems than they solved.  

These days when we see a straight up Fascist in the White House we tend to forgive George Bush for some of his sins because we recognize that although he made some serious mistakes his intentions at the time appeared to be good.

We certainly could have done without the Forever War in Afghanistan and the damn near forever War in Iraq.  But on the other hand Bush was handed a situation that he clearly had to respond in some way to and he did the best he could.  

While it is easy to find fault with much of what the Bush Administration did in hindsight in response to September 11th, back in 2001 it was not clear to anyone back then what the right path was.

At the time that George W. Bush established the Department of Homeland Security it appeared to be the right thing to do in response to 9/11.  These days, however, as we watch the Trump Administration continue to turn ICE and the FBI and other Law Enforcement Agencies into Gestapo like tools of cruelty and chaos it is difficult to observe these agencies as they spin out of control on the streets of America.

Today in our Country We are no longer quite as worried about our destruction from ISIS or Al Quida or some other foreign Terrorist Organization destroying us from the skies as we were in 9/11.

Today in our Country we have more to worry about from those Americans who don't crash our planes into our buildings but appear to be intent on crashing our Democracy from within.

We certainly had been warned by many American Writers over the years from Sinclair Lewis to Norman Mailer and Hunter S. Thompson that one day we might be faced with a Fascist in the White House with very bad intentions.

The worst has happened.  Donald Trump has somehow weaseled his way back into the White House and as long as he is in there we are all up Shits Creek. We are no longer so concerned about Death Planes In the sky.  Our concerns now are more focused on Death Squads in our Cities.

The Vermin are no longer only "Over There". They are also running loose in the White House, In the Republican Halls of Congress and even in the Supreme Court.

And we are running out of time to stop them from turning the United States from a Two Hundred and Fifty Year Old Democracy  into a Russian Patsy State.  

Please Everyone Consider this, Every time you hear Donald Trump running his mouth about Communists Please consider the fact that every time he talks about Putin and Xi he praises them.  If Trump was Anti Communist How come he loves all these Communist Leaders.

Wake the hell up America and Smell the Treason before its too late. 

We are running out of chances to save our Democracy.  

We do have one more chance in November to vote out those Republicans who have been willing to allow Donald Trump to run Roughshod over Democracy for the past year and a half in America.

Let's Vote and Let's hope we are not too late to save Democracy in America.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

On The Second Anniversary I Have Spent Without You, Sandy

 September 1st, 2026

Dear Sandy:

Today, September First, 2026 is the Second Anniversary of our Wedding in 1979 that I have spent without you.  You passed away on June 9th of 2025 and although I thought I was doing Okay throughout that first year alone I discovered on the Anniversary of your death this year that I had been kidding myself. Since I realized that it had been a year without you I have found myself getting much more deeply depressed than I had been previously.

It is on holidays or anniversaries like today that it really hits me that you are gone, really gone and will never be coming back.  

I start to have visions of the morning you died and collapsed on the bathroom floor and the EMS People worked on you for a long time before taking you to the hospital.  I remember two Doctors coming into the room where I was waiting and I knew what they were going to say before they said it.

"We did everything we could but she didn't make it."

I began to feel faint but they put me in a wheelchair and admitted me to the emergency Room to check my vital signs and my sugar level.  When our daughter arrived we both went to see you and we were both astounded by how beautiful and peaceful you looked.

A lot has happened since you sailed away to heaven.

Our daughter took me down to her new home in Havertown for the week after we left the hospital.  I'm sure you would be very proud of our daughters and our other relatives who have all been very kind and considerate to me since you passed.  I have spent a good deal of time with our daughters and their families over the past year.  Actually both of our daughters and their families now live in Havertown, which is on the Main Line right on the outskirts of Philadelphia.

I will be moving to Havertown myself shortly.  I just signed a lease on a very nice but very small Apartment very close to "The Kelly Center" which is modeled after the "Godfrey Daniels" Music Club that has operated for years in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.  The Kelly Center has a lot of musical happenings that I hope to take part in.

I know you will be happy for me but also a little jealous at the same time.  In a way I will be living your dream of residing closer to your daughters and granddaughters.  I know that this was your dream and I'm so sorry that it didn't come true for you.  Although you wanted to move closer to the girls you loved our house and all of the pictures and antiques in it.  I love our house too but I am willing to give up what I need to to be closer to our daughters and granddaughters.

Shortly after your Funeral Celebration Our daughter was able to set me up with a program called Grief Share.  This program is a national program that is generally conducted through local churches.  Grief Share was helpful to me to help me see that I was not alone in my grief.  There were several other people in the program who had also lost people close to them.

I was also very lucky in the past year to find a place to play my guitar and sing close to home on certain Saturday mornings.  The place was a health food restaurant called Cafe 23 in Emmaus, Pa.  

All in all it has been a very lonely year for me.  Although neither of us was in the greatest shape for the past few years We had each other to hang out with, to talk to and to watch Television with and even sometimes get stoned with each other.  I have loved you for a long time and will always love you and know that I was lucky enough to love you and have you in my life for a long time.  I know that my time on this earth is limited.  Your death has taught me that.  But in the time that I have left I will always have your love and life to look back on and realize how lucky I was to love you and share a life with you for as long as I had you in my life.

I miss you like crazy but I will never regret sharing the love that we had for each other during the time that we had together.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher   

A Review Of The Book "Regime Change" By Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan

August 20th, 2026

My Dear America:

I had initially wanted to write a Post and Podcast titled "Flight of The TACO" because I truly thought that Donald Trump's disgusting behavior regarding putting his staff and journalists in grave danger without the decency to notify them of that danger was in my mind a new Low. I changed my mind about that, however, because I just finished reading "Regime Change" and feel compelled to write a Review of that Important, Compelling and Highly Disturbing Book.

Here Goes.

Title: Regime Change

Authors: Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

464 Pages

Every page of the book "Regime Change" is both Highly Interesting and Highly Disturbing.

Much of what Authors Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan write about in this book is not exactly new.  We have all seen over the past year and a half what Donald Trump has done to demolish and denigrate much of what we have come to Respect and Understand about America during the past Two Hundred and Fifty Years of American Democracy.  What these two Authors add to the story of Trump's First Year of Trump Unleashed in his Second (Possibly Stolen) Term is the addition of Background Information which, in almost every case turns what we all knew even more disturbing than we thought it was in the first place.

Haberman and Swan are both truly professional Journalists and show it throughout the book.  Both are seasoned writers who seem to have some significant sources who are in extremely close contact with some of the important movers and shakers in the Trump Administration.  

Both of the Authors are presently employed as Journalists for the Prestigious and highly respected New York Times Newspaper and both have covered the White House beat for several years.  Each chapter of the book adds background to the Trump White House Story and most chapters give background information on many of the backroom deals and many individuals who advise Trump and carry out his often questionable orders including, among others Stephen Miller and Stephen Cheung.

Haberman and Swan Write each chapter and section of the book with surprising clarity in their description of incidents and individuals involved in White House matters.

As Haberman and Swan describe much of what has gone on in the Second Trump Administration it appears as though  in many matters regarding the Trump Administration Nobody seems to know what they are doing because Trump  changes his mind  constantly regarding what he wants done.  This tendency has embarrassed Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President J.D. Vance often.

One of the more interesting stories regarding Rubio and Vance in the book occurred at a Dinner Party Trump gave for Fox News And Wall Street Journal Executive, Rupert Murdoch.  While everyone was at the dinner table Trump asked Murdoch who he preferred to see run for President in 2028, Rubio or Vance. Murdoch tried to be noncommital but did say that he thought that Marco was "Brilliant".

Haberman and Swan seemed to have the backstories for Ice and Iran nailed down pretty well in the book.

All in all "Regime Change" is a rather horrifying and unsettling look at life in the United States during the Second Coming of Donald Trump.

Although the entire book is a terrifying look into the inner workings of the Trump White House it appears to me as though the most terrifying part of the text is the Epilogue which describes Haberman and Swan's efforts to get an interview with Donald Trump, which at first he refused to give them.

When Trump did finally agree to meet with the Authors of "Regime Change" he spent much of the time comparing his power to some of the most vicious and violent leaders that ever lived including Alexander The Great, The Caesars, William the Conqueror, Genghis Khan, Attila the Hun and Napoleon, as well as Putin, Xi and Kim Jong Un.  Trump pointed out to the Authors that he saw himself  as much more powerful than any of these leaders as he led the United States.  

As Haberman and Swan ended their interview Trump went off on Maggie Haberman telling her that "I know that your book will be critical, but remember this: People are tired of your bullshit. Always criticizing."

It was a chilling end to the interview but to her credit and to the credit of Jonathan Swan These two outstanding Journalists have continued to write stories critical of the man who sees himself as the most powerful Leader who ever lived.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher      

                                                                                                                                           

Musikfest Is Over For 2026 - Long Live Musikfest

 

My Dear America:

There Is nothing in the world as thrilling to a musician as looking out from a  Musikfest Stage into a sea of faces enjoying the weather and also enjoying the music being performed on that Musikfest stage.  It has been a long while now since I have had that feeling but I confess that every year at Musikfest time I miss that musical thrill that came with every Good Performance in those long ago days when I was lucky enough to play at Musikfest with my Musical Buddies in "The Earth Riders" or with "The Lehigh Valley Folk Music Society."   

I realize that very few people outside of Pennsylvania and New Jersey might have ever heard of Musikfest or have been to Musikfest but regardless this 43 Year old, 16 Stage, 11 Day FREE MUSIC FESTIVAL continues to break attendance records every year that it is presented and the weather cooperates.

This Past Year, 2026 was a banner year for Musikfest in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.  The music was overall pretty awesome and the weather was pretty awesome too.  As hard as it is to believe almost all of the concerts are free.  There is one stage, The Wind Creek Stage which features pretty well known acts and charges for them.  This year many of those well known acts like TI and da baby were not well known to me.  I had heard of John Mullaney, however.  He was the first Well Known Comic that I recall playing Musikfest.  There were some free stages this year, however, featuring mainly locally known comics.

Music presented at Musikfest includes all kinds of music.  The Festplatz Stage has always featured some polka music (Not my cup of tea) but these days it features other types of music as well. Rock - Folk Rock - Blues - Jazz - Bands that performed Tributes to Coldplay, Dave Matthews Band and The Grateful Dead were also featured this year.

In addition to the thrill of playing at Musikfest with my bands back in the day I have had some wonderful experiences and memories not only this year but in many past years as well.  This year I made it to Musikfest a couple of times.  On the first Friday of Musikfest when it was hellishly hot I sought refuge from the heat in the Artsquest Building at the Frank Banko Ale House, which is a Movie Theater with Comfortable Seats and Air Conditioning.  During Musikfest  this theater changed its name to the Lutron Jazz Cabaret and featured an Excellent Jazz Band called "Doctor, Doctor". One Doctor played great Jazz Guitar and the other Doctor looked outstanding as she sang mainly Jazz Standards. Other talented members of the band were a trumpet player, A bass player and a Percussionist.  They were terrific and so was the air conditioning.

I had such a good time at the Jazz Cabaret that I decided last Tuesday to go to see a Fleetwood Mac Tribute Band, called "Yesterdays Gone" on the north Side of Bethlehem at the Zinzenplatz Staqe.  Unfortunately for me I was cheap enough to decide not to pay the 10 dollars to ride the bus from the South Side of Bethlehem to the North Side of the City where the concert was .  I forgot, for the moment, that I am 83 Years old and I recalled the good old days when it was no big deal for me to walk across the bridge over the Lehigh River To get to the North Side Musikfest Stages.  When I was Halfway across the Bridge I realized that I had made a big mistake and after briefly watching what I could see and hear of the band I figured I had better head back across the bridge again.  I made it back to my car without being hospitalized but just barely.  God, how I missed that Air Conditioned Jazz Cabaret.

After my disastrous experience on Tuesday night I decided to watch the rest of Musikfest on TV at my home on the Service Electric  Cable Network that was broadcasting 3 different Musifest channels during Musikfest.  Although it wasn't quite as exciting as actually being at Musikfest, It was air conditioned and I was able to see and hear the festivities fine on my TV Set.

I had a lot of great Family Times at Musikfest in the past.  I missed that this year.  But as I look back through my memories of Musikfest I am impressed by the fact that in this strange and desperate time we are living through when it is difficult and sometimes nearly impossible to get through the day without a feeling of dread about what is happening in our country and in the world there are still some wonderful things happening.  One of those wonderful things is Musikfest.

Musikfest has been providing this incredible Free Music Festival for over Forty Years and it has always been incredible.  It is extremely well organized and seems to have a dedicated group of Volunteers who return to serve their neighbors at Musikfest year after year. This year I heard of a  couple who formerly lived in Bethlehem but moved to Florida.  This couple volunteered at Musikfest when they lived locally and still return from Florida every year to volunteer at Musikfest.

Although I have seen countless really great Performances at Musikfest There are a few that really stand out in my memory. Crosby, Stills and Nash cost money but they were worth every penny.

Believe it or not The Everly Brothers played at Musikfest for Free in the early days of Musikfest and although they had a little difficulty hitting the high notes on some songs They were Historic.

Speaking of Historic I will never forget walking around Musikfest one year back in the Eighties and hearing this group rocking out sounding like they invented Rock and Roll.  When the band took a break I began  to talk to the guys in the band and found out that the band was called "The Sun Rhythym Section" and was made up of only musicians who had played on Sun Recording Sessions with the likes of Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis.  They had, in fact, invented Rockabilly Music.

The truth is that I know that there are already too many people who attend Musikfest and I am not anxious to see a lot more people showing up in Bethlehem at Musikfest time.  But I also feel as though Musikfest is such a special gift to those of us who live in the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania that it is only right to share this Magical Musical Experience with our Brothers and Sisters in America.

So if you missed Musikfest this year do yourself a favor and plan to be in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania next August to enjoy the incredibly American Experience of Musikfest.  I promise you that you won't regret it.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher  

     

The (Character) Assassination Of Dr. Anthony Fauci

My Dear America:

This past week Senator Rand Paul and his Band of Republican Bootlickers brought Dr. Anthony Fauci in for a Senate Republican Committee Ambush and Smackdown by some of the poorest excuses for Legislators that I have seen in some time..  Although Dr. Fauci appeared a bit haggard having endured Extensive and Continued Verbal Bashing by Dr. Rand Paul and other Republicans on the Senate Committee on Homeland Security And Governmental Affairs for a considerable period of time he was ready for the Republican Onslaught.  Thank God for the good sense of the members of the Biden Administration to Pardon Doctor Fauci prior to the beginning of the Trump Administration.

Certainly the main reason that Dr. Fauci was dragged before the Senate Committee that was chaired by Rand Paul was to have him testify so that the Republicans could use his testimony to trap him and somehow use his testimony against him.  Dr. Fauci was ready for the Republicans, however.  He first of all read a prepared statement which indicated that he knew full well what Rand Paul and his Republican Cronies were up to and following his prepared statement he answered every question he was asked by members of the Senate Committee by utilizing his Fifth Amendment Privilege.

Clearly back during the First Trump Administration when Covid spread like wildfire across America and the world and nobody was prepared for it, Donald Trump and many Republican Legislators were big fans of Dr. Fauci.  Dr. Fauci was the Expert who everybody in the Government and, indeed in the country was depending on and had been depending on for several Decades  Back then when nobody seemed to know what in the hell to do next about Covid. Dr. Fauci recommended Wearing masks, avoiding contacts with other Human Beings and when the vaccines were available Dr. Fauci recommended that everyone get them.  All of this advice certainly seemed to make sense at the time and still makes sense.

Now, however, it seems that because Dr. Fauci might have been mistaken about what nobody knew at the time regarding where Covid came from and maybe some other problem guesses that he made, Republicans seem to be trying to make Dr. Fauci the scapegoat for what might have gone wrong with regard to Covid during the First Trump Administration.

The truth is that we were all lucky as hell to have Dr. Fauci on the job when Covid hit. For decades when we have been affected by strange and terrible killer viruses we have always had Dr. Fauci to advise us and help us through the difficult times.  Whether it was Aids, Ebola or Covid Dr. Fauci was there to advise us and give us his best guesses regarding what to do with regard to dangerous Pandemics.

I am certainly glad that Dr. Fauci was on the job for as long as he was.  It seems as though Dr. Rand Paul has taken great  pleasure in releasing transcripts of Dr. Fauci's Private diaries in which Dr. Fauci seems to reveal that he certainly got a kick out of being recognized for being on the front lines of Covid and had reason to be proud of himself for helping the United States deal with that awful Pandemic.  I have seen nothing, however, in Dr. Fauci's diary entries that shows that he is deserving of the threats and abuse he got in his Republican Beatdown this past week in the Senate.

Although most Republican Committee  Members seemed to be anxious to get into the abusive Republican Fauci Smackdown Session the people I saw who were the worst offenders were Senators Bernie (has nothing to say about his Daughter's abusive Congressman Husband) Merino, Josh (January Sixth Running Man) Hawley and  Joni Ernst.  These people were disgusting in their horrible treatment of the man who deserves nothing but positive credit and accolades for helping to get us through the worst pandemic of my lifetime.

I have certainly seen some incredible abuses of power in my time but I can't recall anything rising to the level of the nearly criminal behavior that this horrible spectacle showed to a man who has deserved nothing but respect but got none of it from the Republicans on this disgusting Runaway Committee.  

Although this hearing was on C Span and was probably not watched by many people I can only imagine the reaction of young people who might be considering becoming Physicians themselves watching this Republican Horror Show and thinking to themselves I would never want to endure something like what they are doing to Doctor Fauci.  And who could blame them.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher  

All You Need To Be A Republican Is To Admit That You Believe THE BIG LIE That Trump Beat Joe Biden In 2020

My Dear America:

As You are Well Aware, America, you have been A functioning Democracy For A Hell of a Long time.  Those of us who love you have been proud of the fact that every year for two Hundred and Fifty Years your Democracy and in particular your Elections functioned, for the most part, pretty well.  Certainly there were questions occasionally regarding Election functions and results.  When certain problems were discovered in the election system usually valiant and quick efforts were made by leaders and legislators to fix whatever the Election Problems were.

I think that it is fair to say that in my 83 Year old lifetime although there have certainly been some  problems and sometimes irregularities in the Election system  I don't recall any Presidents or even any presidential losers complaining and whining about the unfairness of the system in their elections like Donald Trump has continued to do.

Speaking as an American I just want to say that I am sick of Trump's whining about his problems with the election system.  He had no problems with the Election system when he allegedly won his election in 2016.  He also had no problems with the election in 2024 when Elon Musk paid people millions of dollars to register as Republicans in Pennsylvania and one of Musk's girlfriends has claimed that Musk told her that he manipulated the election in 2024 so that Trump Won.

Still Trump continues to whine about the 2020 Election being "Rigged."

Yes, President Trump.  You are right about the 2020 Election being rigged.  It was rigged and you were the one who was rigging it.  Unfortunately for you, although you were willing to trash the Constitution your Vice President was not willing to do so and you and your Right Wing "Patriot" Posse were unsuccessful in your efforts to steal the election from Joe Biden although you all tried very hard to do so.     

Our Country has a wide array of problems that can be laid at the feet of Donald Trump Including The Iran War,  Ice killing people in the streets of America in the name of Immigration Control,  Prices of everything skyrocketing, all for starters.

Clearly those of us who have not been cut in on the big road to riches in America are sick and tired of hearing about Donald Trump's problems. In particular his Election Problems.  We don't give a Damn about his problems.  While he and his Rich friends are doing fine the rest of us are afraid to see the prices rising in our country with regard to everything we consume including Gas and Food.

With all the actual problems we have all had these days Donald Trump had the audacity to demand Prime Time Coverage from the major Networks so that he could air his well worn grievances about the 2020 Election in Prime Time.  Although his Right Wing Syncophantic networks carried his prime time speech ABC and NBC did not carry the President's speech.  

CBS, a network that has shown an embarrassing amount of deference to Donald Trump recently apparently started to carry the speech but to their credit they interrupted the speech with some of the best of their correspondents challenging the credibility of what Trump was claiming about the 2020 Election.   Although I have had some serious Criticism about CBS recently I was very pleased with their coverage of Donald Trump's Complaint Night in Prime Time.  In my opinion although I was pleased with ABC And NBC not covering this embarrassing spectacle I was even more pleased with CBS truthfully taking Trump to task for lying his ass off in Prime Time.

What in the hell is wrong with you Republicans who refuse to react to the Lies that are coming out of Donald Trump's mouth every time he speaks?  You found the balls to criticize Barack Obama every time he did anything and throughout his eight years in the White House he never did anything that was even close to as embarrassing as what Donald Trump does every day.

I still recall the many Republican members of the House and Senate standing up on television on January 6th of 2021 like Lindsey Graham saying they had endured enough from Trump.  And then days afterward they were all once again back kissing Trump's Ass and trying to curry favor from him.

What is wrong with you Republicans?  

Is there no one in the party with a spine who can and will tell the truth about the Dictator with no clothes on.

We can all recall the savage epithets that were thrown by Lindsey Graham, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and others when they were running against Trump back in 2016 and had no use for him.  But these days every Republican who is in the House or the Senate or is being considered for a job in the Trump Administration is not allowed to be a Republican in Good standing if they tell the truth about the Election of 2020.

FOR GOD'S SAKE REPUBLICANS, HAVE SOME BALLS

JOE BIDEN WON THE 2020 ELECTION BY A WIDE MARGIN.

WE ALL KNOW IT.  iT ISN'T ANY SECRET AND YOU SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO SAY IT ANY DAY AND EVERY DAY.

HOW CAN YOU REPUBLICANS LIVE WITHOUT A SHRED OF HONOR AS YOU CONTINUE TO PROP UP THE BIG LIE THAT DONALD TRUMP WON THE 2020 ELECTION.

I ALMOST FEEL SORRY FOR YOU REPUBLICANS.  BUT NOT QUITE.

HOPEFULLY YOU PEOPLE WILL GROW A SPINE SOON ENOUGH TO SAVE OUR DEMOCRACY BEFORE DONALD TRUMP COMPLETELY DESTROYS IT.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher       

 

 

Happy Fourth Of July To The Readers of Letters To A Lost Nation And To The Listeners Of Podcast for A Lost Nation

Friday July 10th, 2026 

My Dear America:

I have always loved celebrating the Fourth of July and on the 250th Anniversary of the beginning of The United States of America I was once again happily celebrating July 4th.  I was once again in Havertown (My Future Home Town) with some of my Favorite Family Members.

Although I know that all is not well in every American Family I find it necessary sometimes to simply concentrate on those Good Solid Refreshing Moments of Pleasure like swimming with my Daughters and Granddaughters on some of the Brutally Hottest Days of the Year 2026 and reflect on the Long Term rather than the Short Term History of the United States of America.

I love my Country.  I always have and always will.  I am saddened and depressed regarding the fact that we are currently being governed by a Madman and his band of Syncophants who have Hijacked America for purposes that most of us do not agree with.

A long time ago in 2008 I began to write a Blog that I called "Letters To A Lost Nation".

When I began writing my Blog I was hopeful that as I wrote about 2008 that I would be commenting on some Very Important Political History.  After all, the 2008 Presidential Campaign was pitting, on the Democratic side, a Black First Time Senator against A Woman Senator who had also been the First Lady living in the White House for Eight Years while her Husband was President of the United States.  Surely there was some Political History to be had in this incredibly important Political Race for the White House.

Whichever one of these two Candidates who won their shot to be the Democratic Contender for the Presidency in 2008 would certainly prove to be a Historic Candidate.

Hope was in the air in 2008.  Democrats had suffered through Two Terms of Republican President, George W. Bush.  It was now time for a Historic Democratic Candidate to take the reins of government and in the end Barack Obama did that with Style and Grace and waited patiently for Republican Members of The Congress to come to their senses and support him and the American Government.  Unfortunately, however Barack's hope for Unity with Republicans never really occurred.

What has occurred during the intervening years between Barack Obama's Administration and today's Trump Administration, however is an increasing division between Democrats and Republicans that has resulted in Donald Trump's return to the White House with a Vengeance and a Boldness which no longer hides Trump's readiness to milk the United States for all he can get out of it.

In July of 2020 as we prepared for the election in November of that year I decided to turn my Blog into a Podcast in order to do all I could to prevent Donald Trump from being re elected President in 2020.  I know that my Podcasts and Blog Posts did not have a great deal to do with Trump's Defeat in 2020 but I still felt good about the fact that I might have had some extremely minor influence regarding Joe Biden's 2020 defeat of Donald Trump for the Presidency.

As I write presently 18 Years after beginning my Blog and in the Sixth Year of my Podcast I have seen some interesting things occurring.

In the First and Second Year of Trump's Strange and Terrible return to the White House I have seen the numbers of my Blog Readers skyrocket.   Over the years I published my Blog I would be lucky if I got a total of a Hundred Blog Readers over the course of a month. Presently I am seeing at least 2000 and sometimes many more than that Read My Blog Posts over a monthly period.  

My Podcast traffic has also shown some small uptick in traffic but nothing close to the uptick in the Blog Traffic.

I still continue to do my Podcasts because I know that I have Friends and Family Members who continue to listen to the Podcasts with enthusiasm.  And Frankly I enjoy turning the Blog Posts into Podcasts 

I continue to do the Blog and Podcasts with the hope that what I am doing is at least doing something to help encourage America's return to its sense of Patriotic Responsibility.

We still have Newspapers like the New York Times which seem to be attempting to print the truth.  We also have MSNOW and their Hosts trying to get the truth out. Unfortunately, however we also have a number of Television Programs and Newspapers who cater to Right Leaning American Readers and Television Viewers and do not seem to reliably tell the truth to those Americans who depend on them for their news.

I have recently begun to follow the lead of my Blog Readers who I have noticed over a period of time appear to have begun to read not only the latest Blog Postings but also have begun to go back and read many earlier posts.  I have actually begun to do the same thing and as I have returned to some of the older posts I have realized that although I wasn't recognizing it at the time I have been writing what is, for the most part, a pretty detailed Political History of our time and quite frankly I am proud of what I have written and I am encouraged to continue to add to the Political History of the U.S.as time marches on into a new and hopefully more decent Political Climate.

To be honest as I see more Newspapers and Magazines fall by the wayside and more Podcasts and Blogs appear to be veering to the Right of Center I feel more compelled than ever to continue my Blog and Podcast.

I want to sincerely thank Blogspot and Spotify for their assistance in allowing me to freely use their platforms without ever throwing impediments in my way to alter or impede anything that I wanted to say regarding anything I wrote. I appreciate their granting me the Freedom to say whatever I wanted to say.  I also want to say that I greatly appreciate everyone who has supported me by reading my Blog and Listening to My Podcasts.  

I continue to hope for the best in America and as long as I can do it I intend to speak out truthfully as long as some Americans are willing to read my Posts and Listen to my Podcasts.

I thank all of those Americans participating in the "No Kings" Protests.  

I live in Hope that there are enough of us left who will vote in the future in an effort to Recapture Our Democracy before it is too late.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher  

  

The Slippery Political Journey Of JD Vance

 Wednesday July 1st, 2026

My Dear America:

There are plenty of Slippery Characters in the Administration of Donald Trump.  There is no doubt about that.  Certainly Donald Trump, himself is an extremely slippery figure himself and clearly he refuses to be held down to one position on any political subject.  Indeed Trump is clearly a master of distraction but based on what I have seen in the past week Trump has some very serious competition when it comes to slippery political behavior from his Vice President.

I watched JD Vance on two relatively left leaning Television programs during the past week and I have to give this guy credit where credit is due.  On both "Real Time with Bill Maher" and on "The View" JD was like Daniel in the Lion's Den but the slippery bugger danced through both those programs like a master of slippery behavior.

Although Vance was asked some very important and relevant questions by Bill Maher and the girls from the View that certainly didn't mean that he was required to answer those questions truthfully or even to answer them at all.  

I have watched politicians interviewed on Television for many years but I don't really believe I have ever seen someone as skilled as Vance when it came to dodging questions that he didn't want to answer or simply changing whatever he was asked into talking about a subject that he did want to talk about.  

This son of a gun was good.  i'll give him that 

I have often wondered what it was that convinced Donald Trump to offer the Vice Presidency to JD Vance.  I don't wonder about that anymore.  

JD has some serious skills and is clearly smart as hell.  He proved that by charming his way into not only becoming a best selling Author but by getting himself befriended by some very influential Tech Giants who were loaded with money and helped JD to get on the Rich Track.  JD's Rich backers helped him to ease himself from Author to Hedge Fund Manager to Senator all in a very short space of time.

When Donald Trump chose JD Vance to be his Vice Presidential Running Mate in 2024 it appeared to many, including me, to be a very odd and hard to fathom choice as is the case with many things that Donald Trump Does.  Looking back on it, however, it was clearly a brilliant choice.  

Vance had started out during the time that he was hawking his book as a clean shaven newbie who had nothing but scathing criticism of Donald Trump.  He identified Donald Trump as an "American Hitler".  Apparently at that point in time Vance had not developed the skill of lying and Kissing Trump's Ass that he would in time become super skilled at.  

These days Vance seems focused on selling his new book, "Communion" in which he apparently describes his progression from Hillbilly Baptist to Catholic and in the process has felt as though it was OK for him to instruct Pope Leo on the ways of the world.

Pretty Audacious, I think.

Although we don't know for sure what is going on in the White House with JD Vance and Donald Trump we do know that JD was probably the only one of the President's advisors brave enough to risk Donald Trump's Wrath by advising Trump not to attack Iran.  

Trump's reaction to Vance's rather sensible advice was  to put Vance in charge of the next to impossible task of negotiating a peace deal with the Iranians Who never Trusted America to begin with and after getting the shaft by America twice certainly don't trust us now.

Speaking of Trust, JD Vance Cannot be trusted.  I will never forget a Rachel Maddow Program where she showed some videos in which one of JD' buddies and Mentors was promoting the value of America becoming a Dictatorship.

And Furthermore JD Vance has had the gall to state that if Watergate happened today that it would be nothing but a one day story in the media.  The enraging fact to me is that he is probably right.  The way one commentator put it is that comparing Watergate to the extreme corruption of the Trump Administration is like comparing the crimes of Jaywalking to that of a Serial Killer.  By the way if anyone is interested in learning a lot more about Watergate My book, "Letters To A Lost Nation: A Watergate Chronicle" is still available through Amazon in Paperback or E Book Editions

Jesus, And this guy, JD Vance is our Vice President and may one day become our President.  

Let's hope not.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

The Murder Of 60 Minutes

Tusday, June 2nd, 2026 

My Dear America:

Although I fully intended to write about something else entirely today, I just watched several Journalists on the Deadline White House Show on MSNOW discussing an incredible story that one of the Journalists had discovered regarding the CBS Television News Program,60 Minutes.  The Journalist whose First Name is Oliver.  I can't recall his last name, seems to have lucked into one of the most disturbing Journalistic scoops of all time.  

Oliver somehow got hold of a tape made inside a meeting of some CBS News Executives and some members of the 60 Minutes Staff. Former CBS News Anchor and long time "60 Minutes" Correspondent, Scott Pelley was quoted in the meeting as not only questioning the firings of several highly respected Staff Members of 60 minutes and the failure to renew the contracts of Correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega but Pelley clearly called into question the News Qualifications of his new bosses, Including CBS News Dictator, Bari Weiss.

All of the Journalists on the Deadline White House Program were in agreement  that this story was extremely explosive stuff. What is certainly clear is that although CBS Bigwigs are certainly at fault here, messing with the Number One Television News Magazine can also be laid at the feet of President Donald Trump, who has made it clear over the past years that in addition to Trump not liking being laughed at, he also doesn't much appreciate the truth being told about him. 

It will be a miracle if Scott Pelley is not the next Victim of the CBS News Purge by CBS News Executive Bari Weiss.  If he goes, however,  He will go into that CBS News Good Night with his balls intact.  Pelley was quoted in the CBS Meeting as questioning the News Credentials of not only Bari Weiss but of his other new news  bosses.   Scott Pelley termed what is going on at CBS News and particularly at 60 minutes as "Murder"

As was in the case with "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert", 60 Minutes was a ratings success. The show has existed for half a Century on CBS and throughout its existence it has always been a ratings success.  

What is going on here?  Why is CBS "Murdering" its most successful shows?

The reason is fairly simple actually.  CBS Owners are looking to make a Merger deal with Warner Brothers.  Donald Trump has made it clear to CBS Owners that if they want their merger they need to do some things for Donald Trump.  They have already done one important thing for Trump.  They have killed The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, a consistent ratings winner hosted by a Comedy Host who pulled no punches when it came to Donald Trump.  Despite the show's obvious Popularity CBS chose to shut it down because that's what Trump demanded.  

We are increasingly living through a nightmare of epic proportions in which what is happening at CBS is indicative of what is happening throughout our country.  Donald Trump is exercising his authority and I am afraid that the worst is yet to come.

Yes, there is some hope on the horizon.  Except for the Supreme Court, American Judges seem to be trying their best to prevent America from becoming a Third World dictatorship.  Average Americans also seem to be recognizing that they still have some power and are not afraid to use it.  

There is no doubt that America is sinking into quicksand and sinking fast.  

The Mid Terms are fast approaching and we hopefully have a shot to turn things around.  But Americans need to recognize that we are running out of time and energy.

Yes, Trump's name is coming off the KENNEDY CENTER but he is still in the White House where he is making it look more like a Junkyard every day.  The East Wing is gone and they are putting up an Ultimate Fighting Ring.

Good God.  What did we ever do to deserve this?

Bravo Scott Pelley.  I hope you can keep your job but regardless whether you do or don't you can still keep your Self Respect.  And regardless of what happens to you, you have shown Americans that there are still American Heroes out here willing to speak the truth to power.  I just hope we still have some Americans who are willing to stand up with you against the madness of King Donald and his Disgusting Minions at CBS and Elsewhere. 

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

The Welcome Mat Is Out For Donald Trump At The World Dictators Club

 Tuesday, May 19th,  2026

My Dear America:

I feel very sorry for those young Americans whose memory simply goes back no further than Donald Trump.  They might also remember Joe Biden but Republicans, many of whom in Congress used to love Joe Biden and call him a friend, have chosen to join the Trump Republican Liars Club which does nothing but disparage a Good man and a Good President who did a Great Job in the White House but gets no credit at all from Republicans for doing so.

Although I probably would prefer to be younger than the the Eighty Three Years of age that I am presently, I am happy and proud to have lived through the many years of Pride and Progress that I have witnessed throughout my lifetime in The United States Of America. 

During my Early Years while I was growing up happy with my Parents, my Grandfather and later on my sister in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Young Jewish kids and their parents were being marched off to their Horrible Slaughter at the hands of Monsters disguised as Human Beings all over Europe.  I was certainly too young to see it at the time but as I learned about Hitler, Mussolini and their Incredibly Brutal Henchmen and Women later on I wondered how it could be that Monsters like them could be allowed to seize power from good people in the world that I lived in.

I don't wonder about that anymore.  

I have seen the same thing that happened in Germany and throughout Europe happen in my Country of America.  We do not have Death Camps yet only because Americans around the Country have risen up and protested and done everything that can be done to block the setup of ICE Prisons wherever Republicans have tried to build them. But we do have an Administration that is working hard to set up more prisons than we need for "Immigrants", while they designate Democrats who are working to keep Democracy alive in America as Domestic Terrorists because they don't want to allow Ice and the Corrupted U.S. Justice Department of Justice to arrogantly wage war on Good Americans and other Human Beings in our country who have been designated as "Vermin" by Donald Trump and his Thug Posse.

Those of us who are not Monsters but are Genuine Normal Human Beings have unfortunately been asleep at the wheel  and not paying attention while the Monsters have eased themselves into our Politics and like the Pod People in the movie "Invasion of The Body Snatchers" they have turned into Monsters who look just like People but have no feelings or Empathy for others.

The changes in America that we have seen since the beginning of the Second Trump Administration have been nothing short of Overwhelming.

Donald Trump's Ass Kissing of Vladimir Putin has been Disgusting.  While Joe Biden's support for Ukraine put some limits on Ukraine's use of Weapons obtained by The U.S., the support of the United States for Ukraine was never in doubt.  These days, although Americans for the most part do support Ukraine fighting for their Lives and their Democracy, there seems to be absolutely no support coming from the Trump Administration.  In fact, although Trump should be supporting Ukraine, it seems as though Trump's Ally in this unnecessary and brutal war is  Putin, who invaded Ukraine in the fist place with no provocation from it's neighboring Country of Ukraine.  It appears as though Putin's main complaint about Ukraine was that it made him nervous to have a Genuine Democracy like Ukraine functioning so close to Russia.

When Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin get together Trump is constantly Fawning over Putin at all times.  It is almost like the good old days of buddies Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein hanging out together.  

It certainly doesn't seem to bother Donald Trump that Putin and Iran are Allies and that Iran has received assistance from Putin in determining where Iran might be able to successfully strike American troops most effectively in the Middle East.

So, to break it down, In Donald Trump's World Vladimir Putin and Russia are our Allies and Ukrainian President Zelensky is fighting against our Ally, Putin.  Something is radically wrong with this picture.

Just recently Donald Trump traveled to China and throughout his short stay Trump heaped incredible praise on Chinese President XI.  Although other Presidents have also made efforts to get along with the Chinese no President that I can think of has Man Gushed over a Chinese President like Trump has.  According to Trump Xi is Tall and Strong and Commands the Respect of his people.  Trump obviously wishes Americans would Fawn over him like the Chinese people do XI.

Certainly we can all still remember the fuss that Donald Trump made over North Korea President, Kim Jong Un.

Then we had the rather Weird spectacle of Donald Trump traveling to the Middle East where he enjoyed being treated like a King by other Kings, such as MBS Muhammed Bin Salman, the man who decreed the killing and dismemberment of a Washington Post Critic of the MBS Saudi Regime.

And who can forget the Middle Eastern Potentate who gave Trump an Airplane.

Any way you look at it it seems obvious that while the rest of us in the United States see NATO Countries like England, France and Germany as our Allies these days Donald Trump is looking at Russia and China as his Allies. 

He has allied himself as a full fledged member of the Dictators Club and that appears to be something that the rest of us must begin to recognize as an increasingly Worrisome Problem.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

Stephen Colbert We Will Miss You - Or - Comedy Is Not Pretty In The Age Of Donald Trump

Wednesday  April 29th,  2026

My Dear America:

We are in the countdown stage right now.

Counting down till the end of May of 2026 when the Morons running CBS Television have decreed that the Highly Successful and Very Entertaining "Late Show With Stephen Colbert" will end its Long Run.  Apparently the New Owners of CBS feel that Kissing up to Donald Trump is more important to them than providing what is important to their Television Viewers.

I have a strong feeling that they will soon be regretting their decision.

What seems to be happening presently is that a long parade of some of Colbert's Most Frequent and Favorite Guests seem to be stopping by to say "Goodbye" to the Long Running Television Host and Comedian.  The result has been some spectacularly Good Television.

I have to say that although I am dreading the end of Colbert's CBS Run I am thoroughly enjoying watching these last ditch Special Colbert Shows where Guests like Oprah, Paul Simon, John Oliver, John Lithgow, Anderson Cooper, Michael Stipe and so many others are showing up to say "Goodbye".

Although I have no doubt that Stephen Colbert will be Okay after the end of May, I am not so sure about the American Television Viewer.  Stephen Colbert will undoubtedly have  plenty of offers for his Comedic Services following the  end of The Late Show but clearly the end of this television program signals a cold chill in The air in the realm of Comedy in The United States of America.

We have certainly come a long way when it comes to Comedy in America.

In the Nineteen Fifties Lenny Bruce was arrested and hounded to death for using off color language that today is used freely by the comedians of today and hopefully tomorrow, as well.

But what does the end of the Late Show mean for the world of comedy?

Certainly Political Comedy like that of Colbert's and Jimmy Kimmel's and other Late Night Comedians is nothing new.  Johnny Carson, David Letterman, Conan O'Brien And others nightly skewered the Presidents of their day.  Nixon, Ford, Reagan, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton all seemed to take their skewering with mainly good humor and very little pushback.  The Presidents all seemed to understand that being laughed at and about came with the territory when you were President of the United States.  I am sure that previous Presidents didn't like being made fun of but for the most part, Previous Presidents took the laughter about their foibles with Grace and Dignity.

To say that Grace and Dignity are in Short supply when it comes to Donald Trump is putting it mildly.

Donald Trump clearly does not like  being laughed at.

Indeed, Trump's serious and successful race for the Presidency in 2016 seems to have begun as the result of his being made fun of at a White House Correspondent's Dinner where Barack Obama and Seth Meyers made fun of Trump's stupid and irresponsible demand that Barack Obama needed to show his Birth Certificate and his Harvard University Grades.  This was back in the day when The White House Correspondent's Dinner featured stand up comedy sets by comedians as well as by President's like Barack, Joe B., Bill Clinton and George W. making fun of themselves.

I spent a good deal of time last Saturday Afternoon watching C-Span prior to the latest planned White House Correspondent's Dinner that was scheduled for Saturday Night.  During the entire afternoon Saturday C-Span featured reruns of Presidential Comedy Sets from Trump's Presidential Predecessors and I have to admit that most of what I saw was pretty funny.  But the funniest and most surprising comedy set I saw Saturday afternoon was at one of the dinners where Laura Bush came up and pushed George W. away from the podium and delivered one of the most hilarious comedy sets that I watched all afternoon.

I never cared much for Bush when he was President but after watching him laughing at himself and allowing his wife to make fun of him also I had to admit that I was more than a little nostalgic for the Bush era at least for a little bit.

I think I speak for most reasonable Americans when I say that we have had it with Donald Trump's assault on Comedy.  

Trump had been scheduled to speak at last Saturday's Ill Fated White House Correspondent's Dinner.  Of course he had demanded that the Dinner not feature a Comedian like it had for many decades.  Instead he wanted to have a "Mentalist".  The word was that Trump had prepared a Screed in which to savage the gathered Journalists who, because they were doing their jobs by telling the truth about him, he had long designated as "Enemies of The People".  In the end there was nothing to laugh about at the White House Correspondent's Dinner.

Jimmy Kimmel, Host of the late night ABC Jimmy Kimmel Show had already been targeted by Donald Trump and his Minions for Television Extinction and had been taken off the air for a brief period apparently as the result of making fun of Trump until Kimmel Fans began hitting ABC where it hurt, in their pocketbook.  ABC then wisely put Kimmel back on the air and ever since Kimmel has continued to poke fun at Trump's continuing stupidity.  Just prior to the recent Correspondent's Dinner Kimmel presented what would normally be presented at the Correspondent's Dinner, which was a "Roast" making fun of the President.  Apparently Kimmel's 'Roast" pissed off the humorless President and Trump is once again on the warpath demanding that Jimmy Kimmel be canceled.

It is probably too late for Stephen Colbert to be saved from the fate of cancelation but I would suggest that Colbert Fans might consider doing what Kimmel Fans did and try to save Colbert.  In the meantime those of us who enjoy the Colbert Show can continue to watch Colbert and hope for a miracle.  

It goes without saying that Comedy should not have limits put on it by Thin Skinned Politicians like Donald Trump.  It is only a matter of time until Donald Trump will turn to attempting to rid the airwaves of criticism of him and his policies.  Certainly Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers and John Oliver will be in Trump's Comedy Crosshairs, as will be Saturday Night Live. 

Hopefully those of us who love Comedy and still have a Sense of Humor will have something to laugh at as we continue marching through the New Dark Age in which we are saddled with the Humorless and Frightening Presence of Donald Trump.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

    

 

One Battle After Another Sounds like Life in Donald Trump's America

Tuesday March 24th 2026 

My Dear America:

Recently I watched the last three quarters of the movie, "One Battle After Another" on HBO.  I had tried to watch the movie a couple of months ago on a Sunday night but I ended up doing something that I rarely do.  I turned the movie off after about a half an hour because I was rather disturbed by the level of extreme violence that occurred in the beginning moments of the film.  It just seemed to me at the time like something that I could care less about watching the whole way through so I bailed out and figured that I had just avoided spending a few hours with a really crappy movie. I didn't want to watch it and that was the end of it, I thought.  Why in the hell had Sean Penn and Leonardo DiCaprio signed up for this Dog of a Picture, I thought.  

I felt fine with my decision not to finish watching "One Battle After Another" for awhile but then Awards Season came around and I started seeing that the movie and the Movie's Stars, Sean Penn, Leo DiCaprio, Benicio Del Toro and Teyana Taylor and the movie's Director, Paul Thomas Anderson all seemed to be not only racking up good reviews for the work they had done on the movie but were also being nominated for and also picking up some serious awards for their work on the film.  I began to think that I had made a mistake in not watching the movie as the awards rolled in.  I especially regretted my mistake when I watched the Oscars and saw "One Battle After Another pick up several Academy Awards including for Sean Penn, who wasn't there to get his award for Supporting Actor, for Paul Thomas Anderson for Best Director and the movie even won Best Picture.  

Unfortunately, when I went to look on the listings I no longer saw it listed as a movie I could see on HBO.  

But Then, Shortly after the Oscars telecast ,like a miracle, while I was checking out what movies were on this past Thursday night I found it already playing on HBO.  I had unfortunately missed the first half hour but there were still two hours to go.  I had missed almost the first half hour but then I had seen most of the first half hour in my initial excursion into the movie.  

What the Hell, I thought,  If its bad I can always turn it off again.  

I didn't turn it off.  I watched every minute that I could and I was, indeed, sorry for my first foolish move in not finishing watching what turned out to be a Great Film. I have seen many of the films that Sean Penn and Leonardo DiCaprio were in and I truly believe that both of these fine actors were outstanding in their roles in "One Battle After Another".  Both Leo and Sean played their roles, Leo as a burned out radical and Sean as a burned out Military Leader, with great intensity aided by a terrific script written by Paul Thomas Anderson.  

The Movie was adapted from a Novel called "Vineland" that had been written by a Mysterious Sixties Cult Figure and Author named Thomas Pynchon.  

The acting and directing in this film, as well in a few other films directed by Paul Thomas Anderson that I have seen was first rate.  One thing that I noticed about this film was the variety of musical genres that the Director used in the film.    The film ended and the credits started with the booming strains of "American Girl" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

I learned a couple of lessons from this film.

First of All, I learned to be careful about choosing when to bail out on a film.

Second of all, I thought that this film pointed out that Bad People are always around us.  Both Leo and Sean played Bad Guys but neither one was all bad.  The film was a bit disjointed and somewhat difficult to follow at times but although I never read Pynchon's book the Author did have a reputation as a mysterious cult figure who avoided publicity like the plague. 

I think that in the time we are living in there are some sincerely important lessons to be gleaned from this excellent but intensely violent film.  

We are watching in Real Time as our military under the direction of a bone spur draft dodger is being projected into dangerous endeavors all over the globe and we all need to be careful that the Bad Guys who are everywhere in charge of our corruption filled American Government do not lull us into thinking that it's not a big deal that Soldiers and Innocents are being killed in sometimes fantastic numbers.

Donald Trump and his Sycophants in the State Department and the Pentagon seem to be hell bent on doing what Putin did in his section of the world when he invaded countries like Ukraine.

There is no doubt at this point in time that the United States of America is being run by someone who is extremely unstable and whose view of power is that the world is like a video game to him and he is so powerful and so intelligent that the world should bow down to him and allow him to do whatever he wants to do in the world.  That is a recipe for the kind of danger that will make the violence of "One Battle After Another" into Reality.

The more we know from the Epstein Files the more we can see that our President who likes to call Gavin Newsom "Newscum" is the real scum.  

Although there really is not much we can do presently other than continue to speak the truth to Donald Trump's Lies, We can and should look around us and work on not letting Trump and his Republican cronies screw with our elections with the Save Act and make sure that all of us who can will vote for Democrats in the Mid Term Election and in all future elections.  

I hope for all of our sakes that someday soon the Republicans that used to be like Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger retake the reins of the Republican Party and turn it back into the party of decency that it used to be.  What it has become has turned America into a country that we can no longer feel proud to be a part of.   

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

Clearly Donald Trump Will Do Anything To Distract From The Epstein Files Including Going To War With Iran

 Thursday, March 5th  2026

My Dear America:  

Although I never watched the Movie, "Wag The Dog" I am aware that the film's plot involves an American President going to war in order to distract from a Scandal involving that particular American President.

Sound Familiar.

It does to me.

On The last Saturday morning in February I sat in my living room having a toaster Scrambler and a cup of Decaf Coffee before Loading up my guitar and sound equipment prior to heading for my Saturday Folk Music Gig playing at the Cafe 23 in Emmaus, PA.  I was in a Great Mood.  I love this gig.  The place is cool and has the feel of a Coffee House and the people who run it are wonderful people.  I was looking forward to playing as I turned on my Television just to see what was happening on this Saturday morning in my world.

I was immediately sorry that I had turned on the TV.  Although I didn't have much time left to watch television before my gig, it turned out to be too much time.  It was just enough time for me to get the picture.

Donald Trump and his band of Synchophants had done it again.  Once again as Trump pretended to negotiate in good faith with the Iranians regarding their Nuclear program he was once again planning to put the Kibosh on Iran and at least he was honestly saying it out loud this time that he was aiming for "Regime Change".

There have been several different explanations produced by Trump and his cronies as to why we are now suddenly at war with Iran. None of these many explanations seem to make much sense to anyone other than Donald Trump or his National Security Team of Toadies.  

The television networks have been having a field day with rebroadcasting  the countless times Trump has railed against his Presidential Predecessors for "Stupidly" going to war in Iraq and Afghanistan without a plan for what to do on the days after the victories when all hell breaks loose in the war torn defeated countries.  

ISIS is what happened in Iraq.  

God knows what will happen in Iran.

Clearly Donald Trump is Drunk With Power following what he believes is a victory where he engineered the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Meduro and plans to put him on trial.  Certainly Meduro was a bad guy who led a Corrupt Governmental Regime.  The problem with Venezuela is that although Meduro is gone from power his Corrupt Governmental Regime is still solidly in power in Venezuela now under the Governmental Guidance of the Donald Trump Regime.  

What could possibly go wrong There?

Although the explanations for why Trump bombed Iran were varied all explanations so far seem to involve a coordination with Israel.  Either America coordinated with Israel or Israel Coordinated with America.  The bottom line was that these two countries were coordinated in their assault on Iran.

Trump has had a few press conferences supposedly explaining why we attacked Iran.  These press conferences were embarrassing displays of Donald Trump's ignorance and unfitness for the job of President as he rambled through talks more about the White House draperies and ballroom projects than about the Hell on Earth that he has unleashed on Iran.  

The fact remains that for the past several decades American Presidents may have been tempted to attack Iran but did not do so for many good reasons.

Unfortunately, however, those good reasons for not attacking Iran are past history now.  The Damage is done.  Iran is hurling their missles everywhere in the Middle East and it is anyone's guess just how much damage will be done as the result of Donald Trump's Reckless Egomania.

We can only hope for the best at the present time.  That is not much to hold onto in the age of Donald Trump's Strange and Terrible Presidency.  But it is clearly all we have left. 

One of the more important bits of information that Trump did reveal was that in the course of the bombing of Iran we may have killed some of the possibly more moderate leaders who Trump had Thought might have been considered to replace the extremist leaders in the Iranian Government.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher 

A Cold And Dangerous Wind Blows Through Minneapolis, Minnesota - A City Full Of Hometown Heroes

Thursday, February 19th  2026

My Dear America:

I recently watched a double feature on the "Movies" Channel.  The First Movie featured was "The Diary Of Anne Frank".  The Second Movie was a movie starring Mary Steenburgen playing the woman who worked for Anne Frank's Father's business and once the Frank Family went into hiding supplied Anne Frank's Family with supplies as they hid with other Jewish Families in an Attic in Amsterdam hoping and Praying that the Allies would begin D Day in time for these Jewish Families to be saved from the depravity of German Nazis who had turned the wonderful city of Amsterdam into a Living Hell for Jews who had the misfortune of being captured by Nazis.  

Unfortunately for Anne Frank the Allies landed on the Beach at Normandy just a little too late to save her from a One Way Trip to a Nazi Death Camp.  Millie Perkins who played Anne Frank did a great job portraying Anne Frank, whose life we know about because she wanted to be a Writer and she was a Writer who left behind her a stunning daily diary which revealed just how normal a child she was even though she was living in an extremely abnormal situation.

After watching these two movies with their accurate portrayals of Brutal Nazis in the Gestapo, The SS and the Secret Police I found myself facing the fact that although We Americans have always thought of ourselves as too smart and loving Liberty too much to ever let ourselves be led into a brutal dictatorship like the Germans did, I was wrong.   Apparently we Americans let our guard down too far and were stupid enough to re elect Donald Trump to the American Presidency and to say the least things have not gone well for America and, indeed, the rest of the world since Dictator Don returned to the White House in January of 2025 and immediately began to implement "Project 2025",  The Extreme Right Wing Republican Plan that Donald Trump claimed throughout his Campaign for President in 2024 that he knew nothing about.

As we are well aware in 2026 Donald Trump was Lying about Project 2025 and Lying about a lot of other things, as well.  

One thing that Donald Trump was telling the truth about in his Campaign for President in 2024 was what he was going to do about the January Sixth Insurrectionists who he insisted were just Patriotic Tourists.  He had promised on the Campaign Trail that he was going to pardon those Goons who had wreaked havoc on the Capitol Building on January Sixth of 2021 in support of Trump's urging and he did follow through on the promise he made to them and did pardon all of them.  Not only did Trump Pardon the January Sixth Insurrectionists, he also gave many of them good paying jobs as his personal Gestapo Agents in the Government that had been savaged by Elon Musk, Big Balls and DOGE in the beginning days of the Trump Administration.

Another broken promise made by Dictator on Day One Don on the 2024 Campaign Trail was his promise to release "The Epstein Files".  Trump was recently backed into a corner when Congress overwhelmingly voted to release The Epstein Files and he was forced by a veto proof majority of Congress to approve the release of the files that he and Mike Johnson had fought so hard to keep under wraps. Since that overwhelmingly strong vote by Congress to release the Epstein Files Trump and his DOJ Toadies have continued to slow walk the Epstein Files as much as they can and in the end they have failed to release half of the Epstein Files despite the fact that the bill passed by Congress demanded that the entire contents of the Epstein File was required to be released which was not done. 

The sad and disturbing truth is that ever since Donald Trump's second Inauguration almost everything that Donald Trump has done or has ordered done seems to have been done with the purpose of distracting everyday Americans from thinking very much about "The Epstein Files."

As more and more information comes to light from what has already been revealed from The Epstein Files it is becoming clearer every day as to why Donald Trump did not want the contents of these files to be revealed.  As most of us expected Trump is everywhere in the Epstein Files just as he was everywhere in Jeffrey Epstein's life when they were Running Buddies in both Florida and New York City for over 15 years.  Representative Jamie Raskin, who has been allowed to see the unredacted Epstein Files has stated that Trump's name is mentioned more than a million times.  Of Course, the mention of Trump's name does not by itself guarantee that Trump is guilty of crimes.  But let's face it, If it walks Like a Predator and hangs out with a Predator there is a pretty good chance that it is a Predator.  Let's also face the fact that there seem to be countless accusations by numerous women over the years claiming that they were either assaulted or sexually harassed by Donald Trump. We also have his admission on video tape that Women "Let You Do It" as he was bragging about having sex with married women.  And Lets not forget that in a court of Law E. Jean Carroll was awarded the sum of 83 Million Dollars from Donald Trump following her accusation of Sexual Assault by Donald Trump although it is doubtful that E. Jean will ever see a dollar of that money that was awarded too her in a New York Court. 

Let me try to get back to discussing Anne Frank and her Family, most of whom died in the Holocaust.  She was just a young teenaged girl with young teenaged girl expectations prior to her family going into hiding from the Nazi's.  Anne's father was wise enough to recognize that what the Nazis were doing to the Jews everywhere in Europe was quickly getting extremely dangerous, so dangerous, in fact, that Otto Frank and his Family were willing to hide away in an attic as they could observe their Jewish Neighbors being carted off to God Knows Where.  The Franks were smart enough to know that wherever the Nazis were taking their neighbors was somewhere they certainly knew they did not want to be.

Like the Frank Family, the residents of Minneapolis Minnesota were also smart enough to see what was going on in their City when Donald Trump and Kristi "Dog Killer" Noem and their heavily armed, masked and violent Gestapo Like ICE Agents invaded their city.

Even though Texas and Florida which are well known to be Republican led States  have much more of an illegal Immigrant problem it was obvious and blatant that Trump was targeting Minneapolis and Minnesota because Governor Tim Walz, who ran with Kamala Harris against Trump and Mayor Frey of Minneapolis were Democrats.

What I have observed on television since ICE began recklessly invading Minneapolis is that what I saw in "The Diary Of Anne Frank" when the Nazis began rounding up Jews in Amsterdam back in the day to send them to Death Camps for Extermination did not look much different than what ICE was doing on the streets of Minneapolis.  Maybe the uniforms had changed but it certainly seemed as though the tactics of Facism had not changed.

It certainly was not the first time that Trump Thugs had invaded an American City and it appeared as though it would not be the last time either.  But the Trump ICE Nazis who savagely shot two American Citizens in Minneapolis for the crimes of caring about immigrants were not really prepared for the unbelievably animated yet Peacefully Nonviolent  response to these killings by the Outraged Citizens of Minneapolis.  It seemed at times as though the entire population of Minneapolis had taken to the streets to push back against the ridiculous lies about the citizens who had been killed.  Without a shred of evidence Homeland Security Chief, Kristi Noem had declared Nicole Good a "Domestic Terrorist" after an Ice Agent shot her in her vehicle.  Noem then used the same bullshit slur on Veterans Administration Nurse, Alex Pretti, who was shot ten times while laying on the ground after being savagely punched and kicked by ICE officers.

The Good Times are over, America.  The Shit has hit the fan and America, which is in the process of celebrating 250 Years of Freedom is fighting for its life.  Fortunately for those of us who love Freedom and love America we have seen from the residents of Minneapolis the way out of the mess we are in.  The Hometown Heroes of Minneapolis despite the freezing conditions of their Hometown hit the streets with a force that was even too much for the Ice Nazis to put up with.  

Once again the power of Nonviolence and caring for your neighbor pushed the arrogant leaders of the Minneapolis Invasion Force to retreat but only after good Minneapolis Freedom Fighting Citizens were lying dead.  

Minneapolis has shown us the way to deal with Trump Nazis.  Unfortunatey it is not going to be easy for those of us who are fed up with Trump and Republican Nazis.  Clearly these ugly monsters who are looking to beat us down like they beat down and shot Alex Pretti in the streets of Minneapolis are not going to be easy to defeat but although hard times are coming for us all in the coming months and years I am certain that we will emerge victorious from this Republican Led Nightmare at some point stronger and more determined than ever to treasure the freedom that has been our watchword for 250 years.  

We will learn serious lessons from our struggle.  Clearly Republicans are not going to be willing to give up the power that we have allowed them to steal away from us bit by bit over the years.  

But we have been shown the way to deal with Fascists by the residents of Minneapolis.  We have seen This terrible show of force before when Fascists tried to destroy the Labor Unions and when Blacks fought for their Civil Rights and won and when Americans demanded an end to the Vietnam War and when Watergate tested our spirit of Freedom.

These were all terrible times and no doubt we are in for more terrible times as Trump arrests Journalists like Don Lemon and attempts to turn Freedom Loving America into a Dictatorship similar to his Buddy Putin.  

But the Hometown Heroes of Minneapolis have shown us very clearly that there is  only way to deal with bullies and that is to stand up to them and kick them the hell out of your town and your country.

It is time for every American who believes in the United States as a Freedom Loving Country to stand their ground and tell the bullies who would turn this country into a Fascist Dictatorship that "Your Time has come and gone so get the hell out of America and don't come back " and mean it.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher