Hillary Is 100% & 100% Wrong

I am voting for Hillary Clinton.

There is not a doubt in my mind that she would be a better president than Donald Trump.

Not that that’s saying much.

Hillary has had an amazing political career. She has been at the top of the political world for nearly 30 years, which is an incredible feat in-and-of-itself. Does that mean she would be good in real estate? Hell no, so why are we thinking it would work in the reverse?

Anyways.

I wasn’t planning on voting for Hillary 6 months ago, but I was not left with much of a choice.

Would you like fries with your burger? Or dog poop?

I will take the fries, thank you very much GOP.

So, How Is She Right, And How Is She Wrong?

I am going to focus on the disparity of wealth in this country.

She is 100% right that there is an issue with the disparity of wealth.

I live in the SF Bay Area, and it is expensive here. So expensive that some people cannot afford to live here.

This is all true.

What is Hillary’s solution?

Raise the minimum wage so people can live here.

Why?

What not move to a city you can afford to live in?

Move

We are a country comprised of immigrants. When did we stop migrating? The only reason any of us are here (unless you are a Native American) is because someone down our family tree wanted a better life and moved.

Where they lived was not providing the opportunities they wanted, so they went and found a place that did.

The history of America in a nutshell.

My family did it about 100 years ago. Sustaining a living was becoming increasingly difficult in the area of Genoa, Italy called Liguria, so they moved. I don’t mean they packed up and moved to a cheaper part of Italy. They packed up their lives, took a boat to New York and then a train to California. Ever since then, my family has been on a steady upward trajectory. More education, better jobs, more money, and more comfortable lives.

What if they had stayed?

Would we have a better life or a worse?

I am guessing it would be worse. Why? Because it was hard 100 years ago, then there was a war, then there was another one. Not a great recipe creating a better life.

Forcing your family to live in a situation that is a daily struggle is not fair to you or your family.

Paying $15 an hour is not going to allow you to live comfortably in SF anyways. It is more of a publicity stunt. It sounds nice, a couple extra bucks is better than nothing, but the city is still expensive as hell. It won’t even make a dent in the housing issue.

What is wrong with moving? Modesto? Fresno? Nevada? Nebraska? A place where you can work whatever job you are qualified to do and still live reasonably.

What are you doing to your family by forcing them to struggle in a city they can’t afford to live it? 

Why would you live in one of the most expensive cities in the world? What trajectory are you putting your family on? Is it going down? Or going up? You are the deciding factor. Decide wisely.

Figure out how much you can pull in, then find a place that allows you to live there. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

We have done it since America was just a wee little lass. Why would we stop now?

Change Jobs

I know you work your butt off. No one is denying that.

But are you working smart as well?

Are there other jobs you could do that would pay you more? Are there skills you could learn that would allow you access to better opportunities? Not just in your hometown, but anywhere. 

Remember, we are willing to move now. We are going to tap in to our history and get moving.

Are you trying to “move up the ladder,” get raises, increase your value to the company?

I am not trying to take away anything that you are already doing, but if you took a step back, are you really doing everything you could/should?

Ask yourself that difficult question. Get some “mirror time” as LeVar Burton says. Be honest with yourself. It could be a defining moment in your life.

Are you really doing what you should to get what you are complaining about? Or are you just complaining because it is easier than doing the stuff you should be doing?

Let that marinate for a minute.

No One Is Entitled To Anything

When did we start feeling we deserved everything just because we wanted it?

I want a James Hetfield (lead singer of Metallica), white, ESP, Snakebite guitar. I don’t have one. 

That’s not fair.

Should it be cheaper? Should ESP give me money so it is easier for me to buy the guitar?

Hell no.

When you put it in a different context, can you see how crazy that line of thinking is?

I don’t have $2 for a Big Mac, but I’m hungry. Should McDonald’s give it to me for $1.75?

Hell no.

What do you do? You go find a place where you can buy food for $1.75.

The job and housing market are the same thing.

You don’t deserve it live anywhere. Is SF cool? Yes. Is Manhattan cool? Yes. But so is Tempe, AZ. 

So is Colorado Springs, CO. So is Chattanooga, TN.

Stop wasting time wishing things were different. No one cares about you. Only you can make the changes in your life that get the things that you deserve. So get up and go deserve them. Put in the work. Stretch your comfort zone. Maximize your potential.

Can I get a hoo-ra?

HOO-RA!!

Alrighty then.

Get to it.

Joey

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I Hate Google

I hate Google.

I really do.

Google and I are not friends. No simpatico.

Google sucks.

A Google is forever.

“You shouldn’t live in the past.” That’s what everyone says. Not Google. They are all about the past. In fact, they like reliving the past too. That’s what happens when old news is new news. If you are just getting the information, it’s new news to you.

I try not to live in the past. I really do.

If I did, I don’t know how I would get out of bed in the morning.

I totally fucked up. I made a mistake. I would love to forget it, but thanks to Google, that won’t happen. That’s 90% of why I wrote my book: Prison Diary(a) – A San Quentin Comedy, Kinda. I HAD to. Google forced my hand. It would be much easier to leave my past in the past and move on. New day, new me, you know? But no. I had to write a book because no matter what I do (nearly 5 years later), if you search me, you see all the news coverage from my arrest, like it happened yesterday. Without a book I would just be waiting around for people to “find out.” I decided that the obstacle would be the way. If I attack it head on, I know that everyone I work with or deal with knows that there is an old Joey and a new Joey. There is a mistake and there is a person. Not a bad person. A good person that did a stupid thing. There are lessons learned, a life healed and a purpose driven individual that pushes himself every single day. There is no hiding here. I am all out in the open and ready for any and everything.

But I still hate Google.

I like to think of myself as the epitome of what the judicial system would want: highly educated, single arrest, smart, hard-working, learned from my mistakes, gritty, and a grinder. I am a rehabilitated, productive member of society. Yippee!

But then there is Google.

Just recently I was volunteering to help out the marketing for a non-profit in the SF Bay. I am VERY good at strategies and implementation of on-line marketing. VERY GOOD. The interviewer said he “googled” me and that was all he needed to say. He wished me luck. It looked like I was doing well, but he could not use me.

Fuck you Google.

I can’t volunteer? I am trying to work with a group designed to give people second chances yet I am not able to get a second chance? Seriously? I know I am completely biased here, but is that fair?

Don’t get me wrong, nothing is going to stop me. I will keep pushing and grinding along. I will find the right people with the right mindset. The ones that like me AND aren’t worried about what other people say. People that want a job done well by an intelligent, creative, hard-working, 30-something-year-old.

That’s me!

I have a past, but so do you. Luckily yours is not on Google. If those stories came down, I would still have the arrest record, still have the past, but the old news wouldn’t be the new news 5 years later, eventually 6 and 7 years later. If nothing changes, I will still be dealing with this shit 10 years later.

I hate you Google.

I think about my mistake enough, I don’t need your help.

With a record I already can’t get a license to practice anything. Not to be a therapist (I would be so good at that too). No lawyering (I’ve had enough BS courtrooms for a lifetime). Not even a real estate license. Seriously? Because I have a record I can’t sell a house? That doesn’t even make sense.

And I can’t go to Canada.

That one actually stings. I love Canada. I would love to take my family up there. But it’s not going to

happen, eh.

Damnit.

So on top of all the things I can’t do, there is a fat ass “Google” bow on top of it all.

In Europe they allow you to petition to have old stories removed. Stories that may make it hard for someone who has done their time, rehabilitated themselves, and ARE productive members of society to move on with their life. That sounds awesome. Do they do that here? Of course not. Why? Who knows, but they should.  

I would love to have my mug shot taken off of Google. The “Hey, I’m a fat, piece of shit, idiot” photo removed. That would be nice. The local stories (from 2012) gone when you search my name. Hell, my book is already all over the place, it’s not like I am trying to hide anything. I would just love it if the positives were given a chance to take center stage. Obviously the news channels work the Google algorithms so their stuff is on top. There is all kinds of good stuff when you search my name: books, blogs, pictures, stories, etc. But you have to get passed the old stories first.

You need to get over the past to move on to the future.

That means you Google.

Written by Joey Reghitto, author of: Prison Diary(a) – A San Quentin Comedy, Kinda

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The Only Chance The GOP Has to Stop Trump

 

I am only writing this blog because I was down-voted enough times to be collapsed on Quora.

 

I think it is hilarious that ANY answer to who the GOP would need to beat Trump would get down-voted. We are talking about DONALD F'ING TRUMP as the GOP candidate for the presidency! WTF!!?!?! It's not like I put Mickey Mouse, even though MM is just as much of a character as DT.

 

Anyways, this is what I wrote. I thought it was good:

 

I can only think of a couple people who could come in at this point and unseat The Donald, and they would be long shots, but that's what is needed right now.

 

I think the only way to end this whole Trump fiasco would be to bring in
another non-politician.

 

People who are voting for Trump are anti-establishment, whether they are correct or incorrect in those sentiments. Having an establishment member like Romney lash out doesn't really do anything, because the people voting for Trump are going against the establishment anyways, so who cares what the establishment thinks. If anything, it's giving him more credibility. "Look, the establishment hates me too."

 

I personally think the media guides people to think things are worse than they really are, but that's just me. If I were in the Mid West or Flint, things might really be messed up. We are pretty
insulated out here in the SF Bay Area.

 

So who in the hell can come in at this point and take out ol Trumpy?

 

Who would that be?

 

A celebrity of course.

 

A fireball for sure.

 

Someone that can get people real fired up, and real quick.

 

I know the perfect person.

 

The Rock.

 

Yes. THE Rock.

 

Imagine that. I think it would actually work. Remember how fired up Arnold got everyone at the National Convention in 2004? It was awesome.

 

If you got The Rock up there, all 6'5 260 of him, eyebrow raised, looking
in to the camera, and saying "What's the Democrats candidate's name?

IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT HER NAME IS!"

 

"CAN YOU SMELL WHAT THE GREATEST NATION IN THE WORLD..... IS COOKIN'?

 

Holy shit! That would be amazing.

 

Sound crazy? Who gives a shit, Trump is the nominee. Shit's already gon crazy baby!

 

Jesse "The Body" was governor of MN.

 

Arnold was governor of CA.

 

Ronald Regan ("Ronald Regan? The Actor?)" was president.

 

Trump is nominee.

 

The Rock running against Trump is not all that crazy (when I put it like that).

 

He is conservative, which the right wing needs.

 

He is not the establishment (except the Hollywood establishment, I don't think that counts).

 

He's huge.

 

He could take a picture on a horse with his shirt off like Putin.

 

What's not to like?

 

He's a stud.

 

He should run.

 

That would be the only way the Geriatric Old Party could get Trumperdink out of here.

 

The Rock for President 2016.   

The Electability Of Donald Trump and Our Fat Ass

Donald Trump, meet Our Fat Ass.

Our Fat Ass, meet Donald Trump.

You may not think you two have that much in common, but you do.

I know what you think I am going to say, “Donald Trump’s an ASS!”

Nope.

The thing Our Fat Ass and Donald Trump have in common is they both got here relatively the same way. We saw them enough that we got desensitized to them, which meant it’s ok that they stayed, and voila!! Donald Trump is THE candidate for the GOP and our ass is fat. Fantastic!

Remember the first time your jeans didn’t fit?

Remember when Trump said he was going to build a wall? (actually he said the best wall. He builds great walls, so I’ve heard, mostly from him) He was going to keep all the crime ridden, rapist Mexicans out of the U.S.?

In both of those situations you were appalled.

In both instances you thought, “What the hell are you doing here? You don’t belong.”  

But you didn’t do anything about it. You thought they would go away.

You knew they were still there though. You looked at it day after day.

Yup, still there.

Yup, still don’t like it.

But you still didn’t do anything about it.

“It will go away. It has to. It doesn’t belong.”

Then something weird happened. You got used to it being there.

Maybe it’s not such a fat ass?

I am just big boned.

It happens when you get older.

Maybe he could be the president?

You justified it to yourself. You didn’t want to make yourself feel bad for allowing it to be there, so you made yourself feel that it was ok that it WAS there.

The news says I should be angry.

I AM angry!!!

The news says we are losing the war to ISIS.

ISIS!!

THE MEXICAN BORDER!!

RRRAAAAAAAAA!!!!!

We need change!!!

I am so unhappy!!!!

The news is so bad every day!!! Things must be terrible because David Muir says they are every day! The world is falling apart!!! America is in shambles!!! That’s what they keep telling me!!!!

TRUMP FOR PRESIDENT!!!

MY ASS IS PERFECT!!

SO WHAT IF MY CLOTHES DON’T FIT!!

SO WHAT IF HE SAYS NOTHING IN HIS SPEECHES!!

3,2,1

Boom.

And that’s how it happens.

You become desensitized. Actually, you become sensitized to not so bad, and desensitized to bad.

It becomes ok.

You love drama. You love to be stimulated.

Your life is boring, so you find your stimulation on TV, on your phone, on the internet.

Guess what? They know you like to be stimulated. You love cupcakes. The worse the news, the more stimulated you are. Truth? Eh. We can bend that. As long as we get viewers, we are good. You love drama, and that’s what they give you. You eat it up. Cupcakes, cheeseburgers, bad economy, America falling apart, we aren’t safe, pizza, shut down the borders, everything. You eat it all up and don’t even realize what you are doing. Instead of changing course you tell yourself stories to make it ok.

“I’m not the model body type.”

“I am happy being thick. More cushion makes my man happy.”

You aren’t thinking about your health, about your quality of life.

“The Mexicans are going to take our jobs. They are raping and killing people.”

“ISIS is practically living next door.”

You aren’t thinking about the health of the country. You are voting for a candidate that use hate speech and fear. That’s who you want to lead the free world? Of course you say no, but you are still voting for him. You are not disgusted any more.

He has the full support of Putin.

PUTIN!!!!!!

Are you guys retarded?

I bet his campaign posters will be used for the campaign posters for ISIS. “Trump in ‘16”

“Well, he is a successful business man. He will make good decisions.”

He makes the “decision” to do his hair like that every morning. Think about that.

It Is A Perfect Storm

The news and media sensitizing us to fear the things that aren’t there. The desensitization to The Donald being president, that he will solve these “problems” that are completely blown out of proportion (and don’t think the same thing isn’t happening with Sanders. That is equally as ridiculous).

We are being spoon fed our own shit. “How does the ice cream taste?”

Not only are they telling us it’s ice cream, we are telling ourselves it’s ice cream.

Do we even see what we are doing?

Turn around.

Look at your ass.

It’s huge.

That’s not ok.

Please do something before it’s too late.

Talk to you soon,

Joey