Tag: Featured Posts

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Politics, Trump

Independent Progressive Media: Vital Resource for Dark Days Ahead

Originally posted 1/17/25 & pinned to the top of the blog.Latest update 2/22/26. Apologies for any content not up to date. This Monday, January 20, will usher in what may prove to be America’s darkest period since the Civil War. We’ve known bad times before — the Depression, Vietnam War, and Watergate to name a few — but I don’t think the country has faced … Continue reading Independent Progressive Media: Vital Resource for Dark Days Ahead

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Politics, Trump

Stocks Soaring. Inflation Tamed. Unemployment Low. So Why Do Things Seem So Bad?

Trump paints a picture of America as a hellscape. He says we’re suffering the worst inflation in history. Illegal immigrants are either eating our pets, stealing our jobs, or invading our kitchens and slitting our throats. Meanwhile, Biden and Harris are boasting an economy that has rebounded from the depths of the worldwide pandemic and is thriving by every measure: Wow. That’s good stuff — … Continue reading Stocks Soaring. Inflation Tamed. Unemployment Low. So Why Do Things Seem So Bad?

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Politics, Trump

Excerpts from Project 2025

Project 2025 is a proposed presidential transition project that is composed of four pillars: a policy guide for the next presidential administration; a LinkedIn-style database of personnel who could serve in the next administration; training for that pool of candidates dubbed the “Presidential Administration Academy;” and a playbook of actions to be taken within the first 180 days in office. It is led by two … Continue reading Excerpts from Project 2025

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Laycock Family, Mind, Body & Soul, My Personal Journey

Feeling Grateful on this Thanksgiving Day

The death and suffering of war in the Middle East and Ukraine; devastating earthquakes like Turkey’s 7.8 in February; whole communities leveled by tornados; ravaging floods in Greece, Libya and here in the United States; droughts and famine like in the Horn of Africa; wildfires across the U.S., Canada and Europe; poverty and homelessness right here in our backyards; rising hatred and violence against Jews, … Continue reading Feeling Grateful on this Thanksgiving Day

Bob Laycock (He/Him)1 Comment
Labor, Politics, Trump

The Mythical Land of Deep State

Donald Trump pledged to “drain the swamp” when he took office in 2017. Steve Bannon went further, calling for “deconstruction of the administrative state” itself with aims to “destroy all of today’s establishment.” Trump, Bannon and their followers believe that American society is controlled by the “Deep State,” an evil conspiratorial cabal. A vast army of conspirators embedded throughout the federal bureaucracy and judiciary is … Continue reading The Mythical Land of Deep State

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Great Wall of China, Laycock Family

Two Brothers Walk China’s Great Wall End-to-End

This post has been updated to include the complete set of 22 videos recorded during the journey of James and Tommy Lindesay along the Great Wall. You can follow the Lindesay Brothers directly at YouTube, Instagram and Twitter. My grandfather, Dr. William Edgar Geil, walked the entire length of China’s Great Wall in 1908. He is first person ever documented to have done so. He … Continue reading Two Brothers Walk China’s Great Wall End-to-End

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LGBTQ+, My Personal Journey

A Day to Remember a Lifetime of Memories

Souls tend to go back to who feels like home. N.R. Hart This past Friday is a day I will long cherish. My college friend, Wendy, lives in Australia now but comes back home to the states from time to time. We last saw each other before the pandemic — too long! Freed now of lockdowns and travel restrictions we met this week and were … Continue reading A Day to Remember a Lifetime of Memories

Bob Laycock (He/Him)1 Comment
LGBTQ+, Transgender

Deja Vu All Over Again: The New Wave of Anti-LGBTQ+ Attacks

Effective today, beginning with this post, I am adopting the expanded acronym of LGBTQ+ over simply LGBT. As I’ve delved deeper into transgender issues, I’ve come to understand the old acronym is too limiting. The “LGBT” community is broader and more diverse than the traditional 4 letters represent. There’s nothing wrong with “LGBT” and it’s frankly easier to say and type, but I would rather … Continue reading Deja Vu All Over Again: The New Wave of Anti-LGBTQ+ Attacks

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Cancer, My Personal Journey

My Cancer Journey Post-Radiation: A Happy Ending?

This post from February 24 is revised to include an Addendum following my first post-radiation blood test and exam on March 18. The results are very promising as you’ll see at the end here. This afternoon I completed my 45-day regimen of daily external beam radiation treatments for prostate cancer. Amazingly, most of the side effects I was led to expect have never appeared, or … Continue reading My Cancer Journey Post-Radiation: A Happy Ending?

Bob Laycock (He/Him)2 Comments