‘A head shot or headshot is a specific type of portrait (usually a photograph) that realistically demonstrates a person’s appearance for branding or casting. Many head shots are promotional pictures of actors, models, authors. Headshots could be a portrait of a face or full body with a background that clearly illustrate the personality inside the person photographed’. Thank you Wikipedia…

No one seriously thinking about running for public office would consider doing so without taking a series of head shots to pass out among the voters. If old enough to have gray hair, not to be included, a youthful appearance is preferred. All of the above seem to go double for women reporting the news, as if the news is more appealing with the youthful appearance of the reader, we are at a stage were the phony baloney have taken over the world, can anyone to be trusted to appear in public as they really are. One presidential candidate leaving nothing to chance appears in pounds’ orange like make-up, others in fake dyed blond hair, and if the need so arise fake hair and nose job too. In my opinion one of the most qualified person to ever run for president of the U.S. in these modern times was Adlai Stevenson II, a balding middle age man with a bad comb-over who will never be able to pass the appearance test of today, but a no nothing air head might, with the proper streaking hair dye and make-up. And if such a person should win an election we would have the best looking president in the world with phony baloney polices with the best forgery of face money can buy…So before going to the polls, first compare headshots and may the best looking candidate win…and be reported by the best face shot ever to grace a television screen…

 

 

 

 

 

The word puzzlement comes to mind every time a story breaks of a terrorist attack somewhere in the world, reminds me of the seemly ten-foot-tall American solider out to ‘win the hearts and minds’ of seemly three foot Vietnamese people by maiming, killing women and children, destroying whole villages crops and all as a winning strategy. When a little kindness would go a long way in the winning of hearts and minds; how about urging the exploring of the goodness of Islamism as a winning strategy, a deep welcoming to the unbelievers an adherence to the promises made to the faithful alike. Housing and feeding the homeless, educating the ignorant, guaranteeing a heaven on earth by engaging in good deeds. Arm guards may have to be posted at the mosque door to keep the people out instead of the protecting the worshipers within. ‘Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s’, et cetera, et cetera…

 

The recent Brexit vote and the phrase ‘I want my country back’, in the United States, have common roots in young vs. old. The phrase harks back to a simpler time that the young know little about except what can be read in history books. Those simpler times were very uncomplicated, before the rupture of the mid to late 1960s. When I was drafted into the U.S. Army, there were many boy-men who had never ever been more than twenty miles from where they were born, had never been in the presence of a person of another ethic background or religion, everything they knew of life and world was available to them in their very small town and that was not very much. Women where bare footed and in the kitchen, men went to work, had a pint at a pub with the boys, then back home, sat in front of the television, if it was not on the telly, it did not exist, whatever the government said was ok and true, nothing told to them was ever in doubt, it was a lovely black and white world enjoyed by all around them. Then out of nowhere came the flaming late 1960’s and those young people with ‘their’ don’t give a dam about tradition and rock n roll, and the European Union, those outsiders with new ways of thinking and doing things…as they cry out and hope to one day go back, go way back to the good old days, that really were not that good just small town wholesome living…

 

13^th August 1961, East Germany erected a wall to prevent mass emigration to the West. On 12^th June 1987, an American President urged, ‘Tear down this wall’, the subject for each of the above, was the Berlin Wall. Now a cry can be heard to build another wall, whether to keep in or to keep out the result would be the same, to stop the free flow of peoples. On 25^th June 2015, New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, recognized the Stonewall Inn, the first in LGBT history, on 24^th June 2016 the Stonewall National Monument was named the first U.S. National Monument so dedicated to the LBGTQ rights movement. How easy to proclaim that the fight is over, the war won, but every few years, and perhaps for the rest of civilization, someone will come along with an idea, a reason for a wall, the answer will always be, its hoped, is no, hell no…

 

‘America First’, got its start as just a committee, the America First Committee, formed against American entry into WW2, an anti-war, isolation group, dissolved shortly after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The ‘America First Party’, (1944) an isolationist political party, not much more than a group then a party. What both groups have in common is ‘isolationism’, it is hard to believe that anyone in their 21ft century mind would even think of forming a group hoping of encouraging withdrawing from international trade and communication, or even dare to start a discredited venture called ‘America First’ or ‘Make America Great Again’, as if closing up borders, building a wall, ending involvement with other countries can be a winning strategy. The age in which we currently live has been rejoicingly called one of a ‘new age’ of enlightenment and international cooperation and development, a chance to meet and understand all the peoples of the world, ‘a glad to know you, sit down have a cup of java, let’s be friends’.

 

In the hit movie, When Harry Met Sally, a character proclaims, ‘I’ll have what she’s having’, the subject was not the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, as far as other members are concerned that is just what is going to be served up. The Brexit vote has opened a crack in the shield of the Union that has lasted since its preliminary founding (1945-1957), large enough for other members to walk through. The Brexit vote was an event not a tread, though some will disagree. The deterioration of world markets, cause and effect, on the U.S. markets will be years in the coming, it makes a big difference in negotiating a trade deal with one major player then with say twenty-six players, all with their own currencies, like the nightmare days before the Union. Some like to say that the hammer and nail of migrants was used to seal the United Kingdom leaving the Union but I submit it’s the Commonwealth people coming home in ever larger numbers, so easy to picture and blame the migrants, the newer ones, as was done. I saw one Brit on the BBC yesterday could not believe what she had just done, wishing to return to the polling place to try to undo what has just been done, thinking that her pounds may soon turn into ounces…

 

The word ‘affirmative’ by its self is a ‘positive’, then add the word ‘action’ then a positive can become a ‘negative’, used together in a court of law, as in ‘affirmative action’, can conjurer fear of the future. Because of the human condition, the word diversity does not come naturally, it is common to push forward what one knows, not what one does not know. In the State of New York Fire Departments, not to single them out, but recommendations to full its ranks come from family first then friends and if within those two groups there is no diversity, then no diversity can be had in the Fire Departments. School boards are no different from recommendation boards everywhere, courts, it’s sad to write, often must step in to insure the diversity of recommendations and by extension the student body if necessary. If a student receives an education from a narrow group of educators, experience classes with fellow students of that same narrow group they will not be equipped to interact with all the other diverse groups of the world, then education and educators have failed that student…

 

Should Americas be concerned whether or not the United Kingdom stays of leaves the European Union? That will depend on who you ask and if they have deep economic ties in either the Union or England, however, like so many life changing events the vote will depend on the young. It’s the young who are more likely to bring home a migrant for tea, take on a date, or marry one. Briticism is practiced by both old and young alike, however, it’s the young that are more flexible in their thinking, more outwardly excepting of the new. It was Britain that accepted transgender openly in their military since 1999 and Australia since 2010, these movements was speared on by the young. For my money the future of the European Union is at stake if one of its members is allowed to break away, it can only be followed by another, separatism leads to discrimination, leads to segregation leads to petty enviousness, suspicion, distrust on a much larger scale then there is now, but with Union membership its kept to a minimum, argued out and not turned into a trade or shooting war. I consider myself on the younger side on most issues, many do not, however, when doing a day visit was asked to stay for dinner I had to decline since I did not bring a dinner jacket, as only the elder, not the younger side of myself, would be in conflict…

We live in an exciting information age were anyone and everyone with a mobile device can become a media projector of news and information with images. In view of the above, all it takes is a microscopic germ of a story, a hook to hang a much larger story on, a germ of truth and we are off to the races. A well-known print journalist has been screen tested, vetted, able to place one word in front another, an expert in the Kings English, with one drawback, she refuses to dye her salt and pepper hair, her television consideration was rescinded, if she was allowed to appear as herself, she would have been the only female news contributor appearing with gray hair. Another story came to light, circumstances about the same except this woman refuses to wear a straight hair wig on camera, as if the wig is the price for employment, a price too high she refuses to pay, I think it has something to do with dignity…and perhaps pride in ethnicity…

 

You live in the continental United States, what if to travel from state to state you were compelled to show some sort of documental proof of your home state residency, or have to exchange currency, or deal with a rate of exchange on purchased goods and services, these are just a few of the obstacles that were in place comprising twenty-six European countries on Continental Europe or main land Europe or the Continent, before the Schengen Agreement. This agreement since about 1995 gradually abolished border checks between countries (states) just like the continental United States. Regrettably, this one harden progressive agreement thanks to recent influx of emigrational peoples is in danger of being soften into a kind of sliding scale to discourage people traveling between countries. ‘Let me see your papers’ can now be heard at some border crossings sites for the first time since WW2. The Schengen Agreement operated prior to 1999 operated independently outside of the European Union did allow the United Kingdom and Ireland to opt out. There was once a time when any asylum seeker after reaching the continent was free to roam sort of from country to country without anxiety, now are being asked to carry ID cards with picture and finger print and a declaration of European country and home country as well. These hinderers are being greeted with a mixed bag, glad by some as observable controls on movement of peoples and yet don’t like to have to proclaim that they are indeed native European like in the old not so good old days…