{"id":18298,"date":"2021-10-28T15:30:38","date_gmt":"2021-10-28T19:30:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2021\/10\/rationality\/"},"modified":"2021-10-30T12:37:15","modified_gmt":"2021-10-30T16:37:15","slug":"rationality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2021\/10\/rationality\/","title":{"rendered":"Rationality"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Rationality. If you look at American politics right now, you don&#8217;t see much of it. No, you mostly see two heavily armed camps, ready to flirt with disaster, risking all of our futures to achieve some set of higher principles that, if left to the other party,  mean nothing short of destruction of everything we hold dear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you lean left, you&#8217;re being told that the evil Republicans are trying to stop the valiant Democrats from purging corporate control of our government and giving money, and the country, back to the people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"980\" height=\"653\" data-attachment-id=\"18295\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2021\/10\/rationality\/attachment\/16316287211405948786374990130772\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?fit=1160%2C773&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1160,773\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"16316287211405948786374990130772\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?fit=1024%2C682&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?fit=980%2C653&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?resize=980%2C653&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-18295\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?w=1160&amp;ssl=1 1160w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?resize=1024%2C682&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/16316287211405948786374990130772.jpg?resize=210%2C140&amp;ssl=1 210w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 980px) 100vw, 980px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><figcaption>US Capitol &#8211; Washington DC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>If you lean right, you&#8217;re worried the stupid Dems will spend us into doom, while taxing the rich until they can&#8217;t afford their summer homes and ski retreats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re on the far right, they&#8217;re trying to convince you that Socialism is the root of all evil, and that Satanic forces are killing babies in the womb, as they hand our God fearing Nation over to Hillary and Obama&#8217;s army of godless heathen Democrat pedophile pizza-politicians. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, I&#8217;m not saying I believe politicians from either party (especially the MAGA Republicans). Politicians are liars. It&#8217;s what they do. But some things they say make a grain of sense on their own, while others require a leap of faith to believe. I&#8217;m too old for leaps of faith. Especially when they require lapses of logic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>None of the MAGA Republicans claims hold up to rational thought. They are based in conspiracy theories, rumors, and full-on mistruths, lacking in facts or proof of any kind. There simply isn&#8217;t much in the way of a rational argument. For anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"980\" height=\"980\" data-attachment-id=\"18297\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2021\/10\/rationality\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?fit=1142%2C1142&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1142,1142\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?fit=1024%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?fit=980%2C980&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?resize=980%2C980&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-18297\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?w=1142&amp;ssl=1 1142w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?resize=1024%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/img_20211025_114300_4106292006744679660103.jpg?resize=210%2C210&amp;ssl=1 210w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 980px) 100vw, 980px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><figcaption>Share your fire. Feed the blaze.<br \/>#happiness #N0H8<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>When it&#8217;s all said and done, proof is best measured in actions and results. Rich people always do well. They do better when Republicans are in power. Since the 80s they&#8217;ve claimed the wealth will &#8220;trickle down&#8221;, while it gushed up to the millionaires&#8230;who became billionaires as millions died in the Pandemic. Meanwhile, America is deep in debt, and sitting on the edge of climate disaster and insurrection.  Suffice to say, the trickle they&#8217;ve been promising for 40 years ain&#8217;t enough. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Poor people rarely win in America. Their voices, while numerous, are routinely ignored and rejected by all in power. At least when Democrats act, the average goes up. Poor gets less poor. Inequity decreases. Usually not by much, of course. <br \/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"337\" data-attachment-id=\"18294\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2021\/10\/rationality\/attachment\/1631280367181713301637229038400\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1631280367181713301637229038400.jpg?fit=600%2C337&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"600,337\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"1631280367181713301637229038400\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1631280367181713301637229038400.jpg?fit=600%2C337&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1631280367181713301637229038400.jpg?fit=600%2C337&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1631280367181713301637229038400.jpg?resize=600%2C337&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-18294\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1631280367181713301637229038400.jpg?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1631280367181713301637229038400.jpg?resize=210%2C118&amp;ssl=1 210w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><figcaption>Jan 6 Insurrection| Capitol police defend The Capitol from Trump supporters in Washington DC &#8211; Jan 6 2021<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>We&#8217;re reaching a tipping point where debt threatens to collapse our economy as injustice and inequity are rising to unsustainable levels. The seeds of revolution are deeply sown, and change WILL come, one way or another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our choice is to usher it in gracefully, or let it take us by force, and at great cost. If the way we&#8217;ve handled climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic so far are any indication, we are in for a REALLY hard ride, folks. ~jg <br \/> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"730\" height=\"1095\" data-attachment-id=\"18296\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2021\/10\/rationality\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?fit=730%2C1095&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"730,1095\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"comica16030366260846795639565482455937\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?fit=683%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?fit=730%2C1095&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?resize=730%2C1095&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-18296\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?w=730&amp;ssl=1 730w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?resize=683%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 683w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?resize=140%2C210&amp;ssl=1 140w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 730px) 100vw, 730px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><figcaption>Musician and Writer, Jamie Gray<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Authors Note: All opinions expressed here are just that: opinions. If you don&#8217;t like mine, I probably won&#8217;t like yours either. Let&#8217;s just nod, and walk away. Maybe come back with solutions instead of opinions. Because of the two, only solutions actually matter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rationality. If you look at American politics right now, you don&#8217;t see much of it. No, you mostly see two heavily armed camps, ready to flirt with disaster, risking all of our futures to achieve some set of higher principles that, if left to the other party, mean nothing short of destruction of everything we [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[582,565,561,606,587,588,690,585,600,622],"tags":[593,596,96,607,594,595,691,592,684,661,623,523,521],"class_list":["post-18298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-image","hentry","category-blog-2","category-jamiegray","category-jfs","category-justthinking","category-moregray","category-myopinion","category-n0h8","category-opinion-3","category-politics-2","category-vote","tag-editorial","tag-imo","tag-jamiegray","tag-justthinking","tag-moregray","tag-myopinion","tag-n0h8","tag-opinion","tag-rant","tag-truth","tag-vote","tag-blog","tag-politics","post_format-post-format-image"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":18487,"url":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2022\/10\/two-kinds-of-people\/","url_meta":{"origin":18298,"position":0},"title":"Two Kinds of People&#8230;","date":"October 8, 2022","format":"image","excerpt":"There are only two kinds of people in this world: People who want to live their lives by their own rules People who want to tell others how to live If you're in the second group, kindly go fuck yourselves with a fire hose. ~jg Authors Note: All opinions expressed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;#blog&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/20220413_174433.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18634,"url":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2024\/10\/oops\/","url_meta":{"origin":18298,"position":1},"title":"Oops","date":"October 18, 2024","format":"image","excerpt":"It probably wasn't what I said. Most likely the Nazi flag got it pulled from TikTok. Now just imagine George Carlin talking about Stupid People, and the slideshow below, give or take, and you'll get the post. Nobody can censor me here. Removed! Oops. A badge I'd gladly wear. Hahaha\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;#blog&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/screenshot_20241018_164534_tiktok5660283677041512534.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18439,"url":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2022\/05\/lawyers-guns-money\/","url_meta":{"origin":18298,"position":2},"title":"Lawyers, Guns &amp; Money","date":"May 29, 2022","format":"image","excerpt":"This is what happens when lawyers and corporate money steer public policy, rather than the votes of The People. Corporations don't care if you die (unless it affects their profits) and corporate bosses can almost never be prosecuted if their decisions kill you. A HUGE majority of Americans want action.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;#blog&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/comica16030366260846795639565482455937.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18582,"url":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2023\/08\/im-ending-my-abusive-relationship-with-the-wealthy\/","url_meta":{"origin":18298,"position":3},"title":"I&#8217;m Ending My Abusive Relationship with The Wealthy.","date":"August 27, 2023","format":"image","excerpt":"I think it's time that the human race figures out, that progress for a few should never mean regress for some. If your success comes at another's expense, it is not really success. It's abuse.Abuse of human rights. Abuse of our shared resources. Abuse of power, for profit...and more power.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;#blog&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/6b2551df-d71c-434c-a030-8e70a1cfd1f1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18668,"url":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2024\/12\/time-to-rock-and-roll-bitches\/","url_meta":{"origin":18298,"position":4},"title":"Time to Rock and Roll, bitches.","date":"December 26, 2024","format":"image","excerpt":"Unalienable We've grown complacent and blase Mainstream music, homogenized, blandTime to teach them the meaningOf Punk. Rock and Roll. Again.Time to hammer the hounds of repression Demand Freedom. Liberty for ALL.Demand Equality. Justice and peace.Nothing less is acceptable.Nothing more is necessary.Unalienable. Undeniable. We did it in the 60s-70s. Well, I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;#blog&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/6b2551df-d71c-434c-a030-8e70a1cfd1f1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18490,"url":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/2022\/10\/democracy-matters\/","url_meta":{"origin":18298,"position":5},"title":"Democracy Matters.","date":"October 9, 2022","format":"image","excerpt":"They say your vote matters. This year it really may. Across the country, election deniers are running for offices that can affect the outcome of future elections. If they are elected, they could change the results of elections, despite the will of the voters. It's clear they are willing to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;#BlackLivesMatter&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/d44de044562105699464645241.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18298"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18298"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18298\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18299,"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18298\/revisions\/18299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18298"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18298"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamiegraymusic.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18298"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}