Author: Steve Swope

#NotWelcomeHere

~ Steve Swope ~ Leave a comment

I love the town that I live in. My wife and I have raised our kids here and our grandchildren visit often. It’s a peaceful multi-ethnic community 45 miles southwest of Atlanta. Unfortunately, today we’re being invaded.

Two groups are coming to our city that are not welcome here. The racist, ignorant neo-Nazi group NSM is planning a rally this afternoon. To counter that rally the violent Antifa group is coming too. Neither of these groups represents what our city or our citizens stand for.

To the credit of our city leaders and law-enforcement our community is ready for whatever happens this afternoon.

All of our downtown businesses are closed for the day. Because Saturday is one of the most important days for any retail or dining establishment this could have represented a huge loss for those businesses. The citizens of our city resolved to come downtown on Friday night and patronize all of the businesses and restaurants. Last night, when my wife and I went downtown we found the streets packed with good citizens, stores jammed with with shoppers, and restaurants filled to capacity. That’s the kind of city we live in.

These two groups are not welcome here but the United States Constitution guarantees them the right to assemble in my city, your city, and any city. Our citizens have responded to their hatred with kindness and compassion for our local merchants. We can only hope that there will be no violence, no one gets hurt, and these unwelcome intruders will leave and never come back.

#Privacy and #Rights

~ Steve Swope ~ Leave a comment

Recently I received a message from a friend criticizing my decision to #DeleteFacebook . I did because of their intentional information leak to Cambridge Analytica and generally their bad behavior. Please note that I said “information” rather than “data.” Losing private data sounds a bit like forgetting to save a spreadsheet, having personal information given to a third party without your permission is much more serious.

My friend said “If you have nothing to hide, lack of privacy and what Facebook did isn’t a big deal.” That position is ludicrous. To say that privacy isn’t needed because I have nothing to hide is like saying freedom of speech isn’t needed because I have Continue reading “#Privacy and #Rights” →

#DeleteFacebook – An Idea Whose Time Has Come

~ Steve Swope ~ Leave a comment

From the March 24th cover of The Ecomomist

I have never been a big user of Facebook. I rarely posted to it and when I did it was simply a link to my blog. I almost never spent time reading posts on Facebook because a lot of them were political nonsense, silly memes or users shouting at each other.

The recent news that Facebook allowed the private information of over 50 million users to be compromised by Cambridge Analytica and thus various political Continue reading “#DeleteFacebook – An Idea Whose Time Has Come” →

Skiing Thoughts

~ Steve Swope ~ Leave a comment

 

I have just spent two days skiing at Snowbasin and have the following thoughts:

  1. I don’t ski as fast as I once did, damn!
  2. My legs are not 30 years old, despite what I wish!
  3. A lunch break is a good, no make that an excellent idea!
  4. Skiing is easier than playing the banjo!
  5. There are only four things to do with skis, turn right, turn left, go straight or sell them.
  6. A hot tub with five (very large) guys in it is not something that I want to join.
  7. In the crazy world we live in, getting away to the beauty of nature, where everyone is happy, and pointing your skis downhill into fresh powder refreshes the soul.

#NoTariff is Good – They are a Can of Worms

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#NoTariff is a good tariff. #NoTradeWar is easy to win. They are a can of worms.

The recent announcement by Trump that the United States will impose a 25% tariff on steel and 10% tariff on aluminum is a case of incredible economic ignorance, foolhardy hubris or both. Some of the greatest minds in economics, both Republican and Democrat have expressed the same sentiment, sometimes in even stronger terms. This week 107 Republicans sent a letter to the president urging him not to impose the tariffs. In the letter they state correctly that, “tariffs are taxes that make U.S. businesses less competitive and U.S consumers poorer.” I’m pleased that my representative, Drew Ferguson signed the letter. Continue reading “#NoTariff is Good – They are a Can of Worms” →

Passion of the Christ in Faith and Art – #4

~ Steve Swope ~ Leave a comment
Dali
“Christ of St. John of the Cross” – Salvador Dali, 1951

We are concluding our program about the Passion of the Christ in Faith and Art at
St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Church in Newnan.  On Tuesday, February 27, 2018 we are covering the Crucifixion, Death and Burial of Jesus.  The presentation is at this link: The Passion in Word and Art 2018 – Session 4

#Dreamers – Congress Call in Day

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DACASpeak Up!  Congress is dithering as usual and your voice is needed.  DACA, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals expires soon.

Polling in the United States consistently shows that an astounding 87% of all American citizens support bi-partisan action in Congress to protect the nearly 1.8 million Dreamers, young people who were brought into the United States by their parents as children.  There is no other issue in our country where such a huge majority of Americans are in agreement.  The problem is that Congress, as usual, cannot get its act together.  We can change that and each of us should speak up.

Please participate in the DACA Call-in Day to Congress on Monday, February 26, 2018! Continue reading “#Dreamers – Congress Call in Day” →