From Independent Voter site Balladeer’s Blog it’s time for another current events roundup.
*** QUICK NOTE FOR OVERSEAS READERS – THE INITIALS “C.R.” IN SO MANY STORIES ABOUT THE SPENDING NEGOTIATIONS STAND FOR CONTINUING RESOLUTION. Long before Trump came along, Democrats and Republicans spent decades playing games of chicken over trying to avoid “government shutdowns” ultimately blaming each other for any temporary shutdowns that resulted.
Long years ago things were always slapped together right before a shutdown while the corrupt political establishment acted like an apocalypse had been averted. But eventually, arrangements started falling through and we got “government shutdowns” (which were NEVER truly government shutdowns) that resulted in Continuing Resolutions, etc. and our white-collar criminals in office switched to hyping up the repeated “showdowns” over the C.R.s, like is going on now.
HOWEVER, THIS TIME IS EVEN MORE REPULSIVE BECAUSE MEMBERS OF THE OUTGOING, LAME-DUCK CONGRESS ARE SABOTAGING ATTEMPTS AT COMPROMISE BY INCLUDING DEAL-BREAKING ITEMS. This is setting an ugly trend for the future – Congress members who were just VOTED OUT OF OFFICE in November are free to play scorched earth games with the entire country on their way out the door. Specific members from BOTH parties are guilty.
CONFIDENCE IN TRUMP LEADS TO FIRST RISE IN LEADING ECONOMIC INDICATORS IN YEARS. He fixed the economy before, hopefully he can do it again.

Nancy Pelosi, whose policies harm the working class and the poor.
DEMOCRATS NANCY AND PAUL PELOSI CASHED IN ON FEDERAL BAILOUT MONEY. All this on top of Nancy’s insider trading scandals.
CAREER CRIMINAL JOE BIDEN FREES MEN WHOSE VICTIMS NUMBER ROUGHLY A MILLION. Those same men scammed over five billion dollars.
OREGON DEMOCRAT ELECTION OFFICIAL RESIGNS OVER SCANDAL ABOUT NON-CITIZENS BEING ALLOWED ON THE VOTER ROLLS. Ignore elected figures who say voters should stop looking into vote fraud. It’s important to keep fighting it.
AND YET ANOTHER COURAGEOUS WOMAN WALKS AWAY FROM THE INCREASINGLY DERANGED DEMOCRAT PARTY.
AND ANOTHER APPEALS COURT – AS ALL REASONABLE PEOPLE KNEW IT WOULD – SETS RIGHT YET ANOTHER DEMOCRAT LAWFARE ABOMINATION AGAINST TRUMP. More HERE. Fani Willis goes down in flames. Trump responds HERE. Continue reading

This is one of the perennial staples of Christmastime viewing for many people. Readers are often surprised that it took me so long to review this one even though it’s one of my favorites. No special reason, it’s just that so many excellent reviews have already covered this Carol that I wanted to hit the more obscure versions first.
Another current events roundup from


THE SWAMP FOX (1959-1961) – The forgotten television series about a young Leslie Nielsen portraying Francis Marion, the guerrilla leader known as the Swamp Fox during the Revolutionary War. Click 
ANNA MARIA LANE (left) AND SALLY ST. CLAIR (far left): REVOLUTIONARY WAR HEROINES – A look at two heroines from the American Revolution. Click
BLACKE’S MAGIC (1986) – A Father’s Day look at the series which featured Hal Linden and Harry Morgan as a father-son team of stage magicians who solved seemingly impossible murders and other crimes on the side. Click
THE BLACK COAT – My look at this comic book series about a costumed Revolutionary War hero. Click 



R.I.P. ROGER CORMAN: FILM LEGEND – I noted the passing of the King of B-Movies and the man who nurtured more up and coming talent than most other figures in Hollywood history. Click
BRAZIL’S SUPERHEROES – From the 1950s into the 21st Century, I looked at Brazil’s home-grown heroes like Captain Seven, the Black Ray, Mylar and the Black Lizard.
ANCIENT SCIENCE FICTION: GUESSES AT FUTURITY (1894-1895) – Frederick Thomas Jane’s work of speculative science fiction about what life might be like in the year 2000. He predicted scientific achievements far beyond what 2000 really had to offer, but his take is still fascinating. Click
TRADER HORN (1927) – Alfred Aloysius Horn’s book about his experiences as a Trade Agent in Africa during the late 1800s. Various film versions were made over the decades. Part One
BLACK LIGHTNING: HIS 1970s STORIES – The early adventures of DC’s African American superhero from the 1970s. Click 

L’INFERNO (1911) – My review of the epic silent film adaptation of Dante’s Inferno. This production blew me away given its time period. And it was filmed in Italy just a few years before the horrors of World War One. Click
INDEPENDENT ACTION AND HORROR FILMMAKER LEN KABASINSKI REMEMBERS THE LATE LEO FONG – The one and only Kabasinski was gracious enough to leave a few memories about international action star Leo Fong here at Balladeer’s Blog. Click
TRANSGRESS WITH ME: APRIL EIGHTEENTH EDITION – Are you daring enough for this? It’s an ongoing series going back several years. Click 


SILENT MOVIES ABOUT THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS – On Easter Sunday I reviewed silent films that were relevant to the holiday. The movies dated from 1898, 1899, 1903, 1906, 1912, 1916, 1917, 1923, 1927 and 1928. Click
THE LEGEND OF FRANCOIS VILLON – The life and legend of this 1400s poet and outlaw from France. Follow his saga as a lauded poet who was often on the run in between crimes. Click
SPACE MONSTER WANGMAGWI (1967) – A South Korean attempt to jump on the Godzilla and Gamera bandwagon as invading aliens unleash their enormous monster called Wangmagwi on the world. Hilariously bad. Click