His reply was some of the most smarmy, condescending bullshit I’ve ever heard.

I was so mad, I couldn’t rest until I came up with a rebuttal. Here it is.

————————————————-

You sent me a reply to my email about the murder of Renee Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross. This is my rebuttal to your attempt to justify this deed, in a sentence-by-sentence format. My remarks are in brackets.

——————————————————-

Thank you for contacting my office regarding the recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) incident. I truly appreciate your engagement and the opportunity to hear from you. 

We are a nation of laws, and we have the responsibility to protect the safety and security of the American people.

[—Then why is ICE murdering people? I thought homicide was illegal. The Hennepin County medical examiner has ruled Nicole Good’s death a homicide. https://www.startribune.com/hennepin-county-medical-examiner-renee-good-death-homicide/601568759 ]

Our law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every day to protect our communities, and they deserve to do so safely.

[—Since the ICE agents are usually physically big, armed to the teeth, and lacking in basic morality, they’re more than a match for immigrants and protestors who are usually undernourished and can’t afford to buy guns.]

While Americans have the right to peacefully express their views, recent reports of federal agents being assaulted or harassed are deeply concerning and unacceptable.

[—-And UNTRUE. Protestors are shouting insults. Merchants are refusing to do business with them (which is their RIGHT.) People being attacked by ICE agents are asking to see some ID (which is their RIGHT.) There are no credible reports of ICE agents being physically touched by anybody else. If ICE agents can’t handle a few verbal insults, and they’re scared to show their faces….they’re a bunch of pussies.]

ICE plays an important role in public safety, particularly when enforcing the law against individuals who pose a threat to our communities.

[—If that was really true, they’d be arresting each other. The biggest threat to our communities is ICE agents. I’m not even a little bit afraid of the brown people who clean the building where I work, or the brown people who maintain the grounds.]

The ICE agents in Minneapolis were doing their job when the situation escalated,

[—Horseshit.

An ICE agent (Jonathan Ross) shot a person (Renee Good) who was attempting to withdraw from a confrontation by driving her car away. Was that his job?

Another ICE agent told a nearby doctor who offered to help and identified himself as a doctor to “back off.” Was that his job? Because she was denied immediate medical care, Renee Good lived for another eight minutes in agony while bleeding out.

Some other ICE agents broke into a Minnesota home and forced a barely clothed old man outside into snow. Was that their job? https://www.reuters.com/world/us/ice-broke-into-minnesota-home-dragged-barely-clothed-man-into-snow-2026-01-20/

ICE agents took five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos from his own driveway and ordered him to ring his doorbell to tempt adults inside to open the door. They abducted Liam and his father and took them to a prison in Texas. Mr. Ramos had submitted paperwork to remain in the U.S. legally. Was that their job?

https://apnews.com/article/immigration-minnesota-boy-father-detained-342f319fafb766d13afe07f5bcc1f112 ]

and their safety was threatened. 

[—Bullshit.  As I said before, ICE agents are usually physically big, armed to the teeth, and lacking in the basic morality which prevents decent human beings from being violent.]

As the incident is reviewed, it is important to respect the process and allow for all of the facts to be examined and considered.

[—The Hennepin County medical examiner has ruled Nicole Good’s death a homicide. https://www.startribune.com/hennepin-county-medical-examiner-renee-good-death-homicide/601568759]

I will continue to monitor the situation closely while remaining focused on public safety, respect for the rule of law, and ensuring enforcement is carried out humanely.

[—Easy to say while it’s out of state. What are you going to do when Donald’s thugs start pulling this bullshit in (my state)?]

As your representative, I am committed to serving all constituents in (my) Congressional District, regardless of differing opinions. I understand that many people have strong feelings about the current administration and its policies.

While I personally support President Trump’s policies aimed at strengthening our economy, enhancing national security, securing our border, and promoting job growth, I recognize that not everyone shares this perspective.

[—If that’s the case, you’re as bad as he is. After we put him on trial for war crimes, human trafficking, fraud, and who knows what else….maybe we should take a good hard look at you.

“The ICE agents were doing their job,” sounds an awful lot like, “We were only following orders.”]

⭐️ One star: do NOT recommend

Unless you’re independently wealthy, live all on one level with no stairs, have no responsibilities like a job, and have Downton Abbey levels of servants, do NOT have bunion surgery.

Mobility

You will be unable to put weight down on that foot for 100,000 years.

You’ll need a knee scooter. Without it, you will be literally trapped wherever your body weight is holding you down. That scooter is a lifesaver.

At the same time, it’s awkward and unwieldy. It’s like learning to drive all over again. Under different circumstances, scooting around could be sort of fun.

Until you can’t reach anything because you’re at a different height and in a different position than usual.

Until you realize you need at least one, ideally both, hands to steer the damn thing—so you can’t use your hands for anything else. You can’t carry things without dropping or spilling them.

Until you run it over different textures of flooring. After a week, I’m now fairly comfortable with carpeting. The kitchen floor seems slicker and more slippery. I’m more worried about the scooter sliding out from under me. So it’s hard to get a drink or a snack.

At least we have an open kitchen area. I don’t have to be in the kitchen to reach the sink. I can get to the sink from the carpeted area.

It’s more difficult to go into any room with a closed door. It’s possible, but I have to do some maneuvering.

Your doctor will tell you to keep the affected foot raised. That doesn’t sound bad….until you have to do it almost 24/7. The only two positions I can achieve are flat on my back (more comfortable, but I can’t eat or drink, and I can’t see anything) or else cramped up almost double on the couch (I can see everything and I can hold things more easily, but it’s not great for my back and I feel like a sardine in a can.)

Medicines

The doctor will probably prescribe an opiate painkiller. Mine was fairly mild (oxycodone IR 5 mg.) I’ll take your word for it that the pain would be worse without it. The pain was pretty much constantly at level 8 for the first day or two, with the oxy.

Everybody makes such a damn big deal about opiates, but I’m not seeing it. This stuff does not get me high; I’ve been high before, and this isn’t it. If you want to get high, my advice is to skip opiates and stick to THC; that does give a mild high, without the addictive potential and the constipation.

Yes, constipation. That’s one of the nasty things about opiates that they don’t tell you. It can be awhile before you’re able to eliminate. You know you’re not supposed to ignore the urge, or postpone it to a more convenient time. So when you feel the urge, you drop whatever you’re doing and haul yourself onto the scooter and wrangle the scooter to the bathroom.

Your impaired mobility makes it take longer, so by the time you get to the bathroom, the urge has come and gone. All that work for nothing.

Besides, there’s a nasty little fact about using the bathroom with a knee scooter that nobody tells you: you won’t be able to sit in exactly the same position that you’re used to on the toilet seat. It is possible to get on the seat and do Number One fairly easily and without making a mess.

I suspect that the position you’re forced to assume on the toilet seat does not work well with the muscles you use when doing Number Two. (At least, I’m guessing this is part of the problem, since I haven’t been able to do Number Two yet.) It’s like your body is saying, “Wait a minute….I know we need to go…but this isn’t how we sit to do Number Two. Come on, assume the position! I can’t do Number Two when you’re sitting like this.”

If only I could just stand up, walk to the toilet, and sit on it in my usual position.

Little things become bigger things and simple things become hard

Getting your clothes off, doing a sponge bath (you can’t get a real shower because you can’t get that foot wet), and then getting clean clothes on.

Washing your hair. I tried a shampoo cap that’s intended for hospital patients: you put the cap on your head with your hair inside, and massage it around. It has some kind of substance that allegedly washes your hair, without you needing to rinse it. I found that it left a nasty residue in my hair. So I figured out a way to wash my hair in the sink. It’s awkward and uncomfortable, and I just don’t have the dexterity to use the hair dryer or do much else besides wash, rinse, and comb my hair. I guess I’ll deal with the hair clog in the drain sometime in the future.

Doing laundry. Getting the clothes to the laundry room, opening the washer, pouring detergent, putting the clothes in the washer, and setting the controls—from a knee scooter. Oh, and the washer is top loading, but the dryer is front loading.

Got a craving for a particular food while your partner’s not home? If you try to use DoorDash or call for takeout, how are you going to unlock the door? And they’ll probably need to come all the way in and set it down somewhere. You can’t just do it the easy way: get up, walk to the door, and let the delivery person place it in your hands.

Oh, and speaking of partners: DO NOT—I repeat, DO NOT—have foot surgery if you live alone. It’s hard enough with a partner. My partner has been a lifesaver, and he’s still not showing any resentment about this. He agreed to help me beforehand. I couldn’t do this without him.

But because I don’t want him to resent me, I don’t want to ask for too much. It’s hard for me to see myself as anything but an invalid and a burden. I’m not pretty anymore; I haven’t been able to figure out how to do makeup from a knee scooter. I feel lucky to be able to do basic personal hygiene and change clothes.

Never mind pretty; I’m probably not even fun anymore. I try to curb my irritability. But I’m sure it leaks out. And would you want to hang out with a person who can’t go anywhere and can’t even move around the room without a huge hassle? All I can do is watch TV with him.

The lesson

This experience of having foot surgery has been a real lesson in what disabled people must have to deal with. Although I feel like this is going on forever, realistically I know that by this time next month, I should be allowed to put weight on that foot. If I had to do this for the rest of my life…..

I look at the world differently now, and I feel motivated to do whatever I can to work towards better accessibility for disabled people. No wonder they’re angry and depressed.

I told her that I wasn’t angry at her, but that was only partially true. I really wasn’t angry that she removed my comment. It’s her FB post, and she has a right to control what goes on her own posts. She is not the federal government, and freedom of speech doesn’t apply here. I’ve done similar things myself; I don’t want people fighting on my social media accounts, either. It’s too much hassle to deal with.

But I was still feeling angry and it took me a little while to figure out why.

I realized that it was her statement, “I have friends who voted for [the bastard.]”

I was angry that she still considers some of those traitor-supporters friends, and is willing to talk to them.

Family, you’re stuck with. But friends can lose the right to friendship if they do something bad enough. For me, supporting Trump—when we already all suffered under his first disastrous term…after he was found guilty of rape, fraud, and who knows what else…after he incited the January 6 insurrection…is unacceptable. If, after all that, you STILL support Trump…I don’t want you in my life anymore.

I have a don’t-ask, don’t-tell policy. If I don’t know for sure that you’re a Trumpist, I’ll stick around and I’ll act normal and be polite. But the minute you make it obvious….I make an excuse to leave. And I refuse to hang out with you again. If I know you well enough, I may say something to the effect of, “I really thought you were better than that. I’m disappointed in you.”

But that’s MY way of handling Trumpist trash. I can’t force other people to use my methods. I can’t get inside someone else’s head and cause them to behave the way I want them to.

So I was able to let it go. My friend has other ways of handling Trumpists, and I have to be OK with that.

If she wants to talk to those lunatics, she can have at it. Just as she can’t force me to make nice with assholes, I can’t force her to shun them.

That motherf**er Trump just did something terrible.

Before 1974, a woman could not get credit in her own name. After the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) passed, such discrimination became illegal.

Fvcking Donald Trump just issued an executive order undoing the ECOA's main protections, threatening to send women's ability for financial independence back to the 1970s.

Trump's executive order is not just an attack on the ECOA, it undermines the Civil Rights Act altogether.

His order requires federal agencies to stop enforcing laws that ensure lending institutions aren't discriminating against people based on characteristics like sex or race.

I don’t have enough cuss words to say how I feel about this. If I make threats, I’ll get in trouble. I’m not stupid and I don’t want that.

But I am BEYOND angry.

Somebody needs to take Donald’s executive order pad away from him. He’s acting like a junkie who stole a prescription pad.

Any agency or organization that complies with this order deserves to go completely bankrupt, and its leaders deserve to lose everything they have and become homeless.

If you don’t do something EFFECTIVE to stop this, I will make it my life’s mission to help anybody who brings you down.