As I have pointed out before, the real losers in the Democrat debates are the American people who are being offered a choice between totalitarian socialism and a politer, but similarly destructive, form of socialism.

Worldview…

Unfortunately, most in the far left believe that mankind is imperfect, but can be perfected with public policies administered by “enlightened” individuals that are worthy of trust by the rest of the population. Many also believe that the historical activities of the United States are the root cause of existing global problems.

Again, unfortunately, this worldview is insane because it violates the very basis of human nature: the strong will exert control over the weak and complacent to their self-benefit. Thus, some will do everything in their power, foul or fair, to gain and retain their power. And as we have historically witnessed, no group of individuals has been proven worthy of being considered “enlightened” for the central administration of the affairs of the greater population.

As for the historical activities of the United States over its short lifespan, slavery can be traced back to antiquity, and colonialism was the theme of many empires. Why is it that the extreme left finds itself unable to recognize modern colonialism in Russia and China and modern slavery in many African nations?

It appears that it is more advantageous to disparage the system where you reside and where you seek political power. It is more politically advantageous to sell a utopian viewpoint than deal with the failures of existing public policy to improve lives among minorities and the poor.

When you listening…

As you listen to many of the nominees, it is helpful to remember that these people and their staffs live in a carefully-managed utopian bubble without any sense of responsibility or accountability for the real-world consequences of their actions. The paint a picture with broad strokes and not with the implementation of specific legislative solutions. The gloss over prior policy failures as easily and quickly as they dismiss their own failings as “old news.”

We have seen the consequences of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, where patients were not protected, and routine care became massively unaffordable in terms of premiums, co-pays, and reimbursement restrictions. Most of the so-called uninsured were actually transferred to state-managed Medicaid programs that could not exist without massive federal subsidies.

Now, they speak of “Medicare for All, which would result in reducing or eliminating all private insurance, the loss of Medicare paid for decades by senior citizens, and forcing everyone into a one-size-fits-all Medicaid-like program where the government sets coverage and reimbursement rates.

But, worst of all, even in the face of trillion-dollar costs, these candidates cannot explain how you can service a greater number of people with the same number of facilities, physicians, diagnostic devices, and medical support personnel. Or how many doctors would be willing to work for the government with reduced wages and restrictions on the care of patients. A scenario that will most surely lead to denials, delays, and deaths.

This is all because the candidates and their respective staffs live in a bubble where all of the feedback comes from like-minded consultants, pollsters, and even the media.

Everything is about narrative, and individuals are screened and provided access based on how well they support that narrative.

Memorable or not…

** From the opening moments spent condemning Trump and supporting the impeachment effort by moderator Rachel Maddow who mischaracterized the present day’s testimony, it went downhill. You know something is wrong when a nominee quotes Walter Mondale’s words on the wall of the Jimmy Carter Presidential Museum: “We told the truth. We obeyed the law. We kept the peace.” Yeah Right! We gave the world Islamo-Fascism in Iran, We failed to protect our fellow Americans in our Embassy. And, we almost bankrupted America with a damaged economy and sky-high interest rates. One might think that they would start with some of their initiatives – not attempting to destroy the existing president.

** I was hoping someone would ask Joe Biden why his administration failed to give weapons to the Ukraine while they were being attacked – not about a 55-day delay in lethal aid.

** Harris mentions people who shoplift should go to jail – yet in California, shoplifting or stealing anything under $950, well under the price of a gun, gets a misdemeanor ticket. Well, I guess that’s one way to teach functional illiterates everyday arithmetic.

** $15/hour minimum wage – Yes, I want $30,000+ burger flippers and to pay $10 for a hamburger. What an incentive to displace human labor with automation or kill small business opportunities!

** Warren wants to bring 135 additional million people into her Medicare for All at no cost to them. Screw senior citizens who spent their whole life paying into the system – not to mention everyone else losing their private insurance.

** Tulsi Gabbard destroyed Kamala Harris as a liar.

** Steyer condemning the corporations that provided his billions – a hypocrite to be sure.

** Klobuchar: Let’s overturn Citizens United – but says nothing about curtailing the very same campaigning by unions, especially public employee unions.

** Sanders: Nobody is above the law. – Right, just ask Hillary Clinton!

** Democrats want to preserve Ethanol – even as it raises food prices, destroys car engines, and is simply a subsidy to corporate America.

** Yea! Let’s kill our economy with green policies. Yea! Let’s live in a dream world. Steyer: Climate is an emergency, and I will use the President’s emergency powers. Environmental justice – explain how that works.

** Biden: Climate is an existential emergency. Bullshit! Political corruption is an existential emergency – and the Democrats are the most corrupt of all.

** Warren: Mentioning cages at detention centers at the border – I guess she forgot that these were Obama’s cages.

** Sanders: I will stand with 11,000,000 undocumented immigrants. If only that were the true number!!! It hasn’t changed for decades.

** Warren goes on-and-on about corporate corruption, but says nothing about political corruption which permits corporate corruption.

** Biden claims the Obama Administration had a spotless reputation. Pretty much proof that he is out-of-touch with reality.

When are they going to ask Joe why his son was qualified to receive millions from countries and companies in nations in his political portfolio?

Yada. Yada. Yada.

BORING!

Bottom line…

There were no real winners. This is not a contest, a beauty contest, or a reality show. It is a process to determine which individuals might be capable of leading our exceptional nation. And, in my opinion, none of the current candidates meet the challenge. The biggest losers were non-entities Andrew Yang, Tom Steyer, Kamala Harris, and Cory Booker.

Most notable moment for me, watching Tulsi Gabbard going up against “Mayor Pete” saying that simply serving in the military does not qualify a candidate to be the commander-in-chief.

The funniest moment for me was Warren saying: “I am so grateful to be here and I am grateful to an America who gave the daughter of a janitor a chance to become a public school teacher, a chance to become a college professor, a chance to become a United States Senator and a candidate for President of the United States.” Funny because she wasn’t grateful to an America who gave her a chance to become an American Indian which she parlayed into a $500,000 professorship teaching one class at Harvard.

Stripped of the euphemisms, they are about collectivist, communist if you are honest, power over the self-determination inalienable rights of the individual citizen.

It is not a matter of choosing the best of the worst; it is a matter of rejecting their message altogether and making your displeasure known.’

For three years, the Democrats have tried to bring down or cripple President Trump, mainly because they lack the ideas and the candidates that can win over a majority of American citizens. There is no doubt that Trump is an unpolished, sometimes crude, individual. But he does try to fulfill his political promises, and his chaotic nature is shaking the establishment to its foundational core.

As we approach funding deadlines and the threats of China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, etc., all we see is the Democrats obsessing over President Trump and doing little or nothing to have improved the well-being of Americans over the last four years.

We are genuinely screwed when we see ten self-important individuals fighting among themselves to see who can destroy productive capitalism and implement destructive communism in the United States.

Today proved, beyond a shadow of a doubt, democrats are dysfunctional crazies living in a mythical world.

We are so screwed.

-- steve