Editorial: Predictable predicaments

Contributed Photo: Hamas fires a rocket toward Israel on Wednesday, May 19.

Contributed Photo: Hamas fires a rocket toward Israel on Wednesday, May 19.

Column By Mike Bibb

In less than four months on the job, President Joe Biden has created havoc from one end of the country to the other.  Normally, it takes a year or two for most administrations to either prove themselves successful or just spinning their wheels.  Joe’s crew can’t seem to get out of first gear. 

On the other hand, he’s had nearly a half-century in Washington to hone his skills.  No other president in history can make that boast. 

The recent cyber-attack on a large pipeline causing a gas shortage calamity in multiple states in the eastern United States is simply reflective of his ongoing problems.  “We’re working on it,” he says.  That’s encouraging, but what else could he say and not be viewed as being totally out of touch with reality?

The gas company, supposedly, paid a $5 million ransom in crypto-currency to have the pipe turned back on.  It will take several additional days for the gas to reach individual state distribution centers. 

The Russians did it, or someone within Russia did it we’re told.  I think that was the same line Democrats used when accusing President Trump of various misdeeds.  Those accusations were proven to be a fabrication.  This time, however, maybe the Russians did do it.  Who really knows?

He uttered a similar “We’re working on it” declaration when insisting our southern border with Mexico was closed.  If that’s the case, tens of thousands of migrants and the Border Patrol didn’t get the memo.  Still haven’t.  Confusion and chaos are the order of the day along our 2000-mile boundary.

After four months in office, neither Joe nor his vice president has yet to travel to the border to get a first-hand view and briefing of the emergency; an emergency of his own making.  I guess their busy schedules prevent them from visiting a part of the country that is nearly under siege from waves of foreign nationals. 

Apparently, test driving a Ford electric pickup in Detroit is much higher on his list of priorities than listening to the agonies of farmers, ranchers, and town folks living along the border.   

Inflation is beginning to become a major issue as his socialist policy of “free money” for everyone is starting to adversely impact the economy.  A large segment of the workforce refuses to return to work and instead prefers to remain home and collect unemployment checks.  Food, gasoline, and materials are rising faster than expected due to the fact there’s too much paper money chasing too few goods and services.  It is reminiscent of President Jimmy Carter’s economic fiasco in the 1970s. 

In a May 15, 2021 editorial, The New York Post commented in like fashion, “Joe Biden is proving even more of a ‘master of disaster’ than Jimmy Carter.”  Not surprising, since they share similar political and economic views.  Although, it appears Joe has moved further left than most people anticipated. 

The COVID scare has turned into a colossal comedy of errors, and in the process nearly warped our entire society.  Every day, the rules and excuses change to justify the government’s continued intervention and management of a flu-like disease that is blamed for everything from pre-existing bladder leakage problems, to canceled baseball games, to Congress being masked-up like an astronaut, to store’s having depleting inventories.   Even President Joe, who has been vaccinated twice, and probably has the best doctors and health care available in the world, continues to strap on a mask or two when walking around the White House lawns.   

His advice, “Get vaxed or stay masked.”  Poetic, if nothing else.

Maybe his suggestion is actually based upon the fact about a month ago, the CDC and FDA’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) reported 2,250 deaths after COVID injections.  As of May 3, the reported deaths had jumped to 4,178.

Also, VAERS reported 50,000 adverse reactions a month ago.  By the end of April, the number had more than tripled to 157,277.

This seems to indicate at least two distinct things are happening:  As vaccine injections increase, so do vaccine deaths and adverse reactions.  In turn, these incidents and the FDA’s hesitancy in approving the vaccines may be influencing the public’s reluctance to fully accept the shots.

In the meantime, we’re expected to stay home, continually wash our hands, skip church, social distance at least six feet from the nearest human, do virtual school learning, don’t attend public events involving 10 people or more, stay masked and be sure to follow the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That sounds like a government-created oxymoron.  How, exactly, did the CDC control and prevent COVID?  Refresh my memory.  I seem to have forgotten while attempting to comply with the blizzard of decrees from the head maven, Dr. Anthony Fauci, whose expertise and opinions have flipped-flopped more than a fish out of water.

Paranoia and facemask neurosis has become an obvious result of the virus.   In a complete reversal of its previous admonitions, the CDC suddenly announced it was okay to remove masks if you’ve been fully vaccinated.  Just a few days ago we were warned to wear masks because the vaccines are not an absolute deterrent to the contagion.  Which is it?

Perhaps an indication the people are no longer believing the b.s. and the CDC has finally realized it.  Rather than issue bogus mask-wearing excuses one after another, Dr. Fauci has now decided to toss the mask and blame COVID as a result of racism. The guy has totally slipped into the Twilight Zone.

Speaking virtually to graduates of Emory University, May 16, 2021, Fauci informed the students, “Now, very few of these comorbidities (with COVID-19) have racial determinants.  Almost all relate to the social determinants of health dating back to disadvantageous conditions that some people of color find themselves in from birth regarding the availability of an adequate diet, access to health care and the undeniable effects of racism in our society.” 

First, he said COVID had very few racial determinants, and then a few words later he asserted the “undeniable effects of racism in our society” was one of the causes of COVID deaths.

For this gibberish, the taxpayers are being fleeced to the tune of $420,000 a year.  Fauci is the highest-paid employee in government service.  

What ever happened to the “Follow the science” mantra that was frequently pounded into our heads? 

Is there currently anything that is not racist in some form?  When will we be told having a July 4th backyard barbeque has been determined to be racist?  Or, drinking white milk is racist, but chocolate milk is fine.  Growing cotton?  Not wearing a mask?  After all, if Snow White and Dumbo have been labeled racist, then there really must be “undeniable effects of racism” everywhere.  Seen and unseen.  Real or imagined.  

To cap off things, the Middle East is starting to rumble.  Hundreds of rockets are flying back and forth as Israel and its neighbors are resuming prodding each other.  Nothing new here – been going on for a long time.  Only now, it’s much easier to provoke one another by simply firing salvos of short-range missiles in hopes they’ll hit something.

Get ready for North Korea’s missile reappearance on the world stage.  Like everyone else, Little Kim realizes Trump is no longer around and Biden isn’t cut from the same cloth.

Joe says he’s keeping an eye on the situation.  That’s reassuring.  Unfortunately, he may be getting dizzy from all the commotion going on.  With the multitude of unpleasant situations he has to keep track of, it’s enough to make an old guy want to stay in his basement.

There’s at least one undeniable fact in these predicaments – they were predictable.  Foolish actions always produce opposite reactions.  Don’t need a government-licensed soothsayer to figure that out.

To think, Joe still has seven months to go in 2021.  How much more fun and excitement can we take. . . or afford!