Day: December 23, 2016

Closing Thought–23Dec16

Repent!  The End Is Near!

There have been many horrible situations this past year but as we draw closer to the celebration of Christmas the absolute worst situation is evolving….could possibly bring the end of civilization as we know it……

Your favorite whipped desserts might be a little less whipped this holiday. A deadly explosion back in August at a nitrous oxide plant home to North America’s largest producer means the gas used in aerosol toppings is in short supply, reports the Chicago Tribune. Reddi-wip—with $278 million in annual sales—is just one of the products affected, with maker Conagra Brands claiming it won’t be producing its usual supply of the whipped topping until February, per the Boston Globe. “It’s in stores now, but we’re encouraging people to buy it early,” a rep says. “There will be a shortage if people buy at the typical levels during the holidays.”

It isn’t clear what caused two gas tankers and a nitrous oxide holding tank to explode at Airgas’ plant in Contonment, Fla., killing a worker. Production is back to normal while an investigation continues, but Airgas is focused on getting nitrous oxide—also a general anesthetic—to medical customers before food manufacturers, reports the Los Angeles Times. That doesn’t mean your holiday pies and frothy drinks must go without whipped cream. Popular Science notes it’s possible to survive “the Great Whipped Cream Shortage of 2016” simply by making your own using heavy whipping cream and elbow grease.

This has made the national news…so we know this must be a life changing occurrence….can we survive as a civilization with this apocalypse hanging over our heads?

Damn!  This is becoming a pathetic society!

May all my friends have a safe holiday and a wealth of love and enjoyment.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good day!

DACA–Repeal And Replace

Well for as long as I can remember the Repubs have been on their high horse about immigration….and this election was NO different…even the mighty Trump had lots to say about people coming to this country….most of it was the typical rubbish and campaign bullshit…and question now is after 20Jan17 will he, Trump, do something or will it be later down the political line?  Or will he leave the high lifting to others?

We know that Trump has had his rhetoric about Obamacare…the repeal and replace chant that has been around since about 2010….but what about DACA?

DACA?  Anyone scratching their head about now?

Let me help those of the slower persuasion…….DACA is an acronym for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals…..got it now?

The question is can this somehow be repealed and replaced?

Ike Brannon and Lyle Albright have written about it in Bill Kristol’s Weekly Standard…..(a conservative mag that has all the GOPer loyal reading)……let me say here and now that I do NOT subscribe to much written in this site….but some of it is well thought out and bears scrutiny.

The issue of illegal immigration was a central plank in the campaign of President-elect Donald Trump and played no small role in getting him elected to the White House. His populist, “America First” position spoke to the economic anxieties of many Americans, and it could be argued that he has a mandate to make immigration enforcement a key priority in the first year of his presidency.

There are different ways to address immigration, however, and the path Trump chooses will go a long way towards setting the tone for his administration, as well as in defining him as a leader. Handling immigration enforcement in the right way is an opportunity for him to show that he actually cares about solving problems, as opposed to simply scoring political points and managing public perception. And a big part of this opportunity involves how he intends to deal with President Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Source: How Trump Can Repeal and Replace DACA | The Weekly Standard

Is this the action that will be pursued by the Trump admin?  Or does he have his own plan that he will find more to his liking?

There has been talk even promises about immigration reform for years now and little has been accomplished….is this the admin to actually do something on this issue?

Once again….we will have to wait for the days and years after 20Jan17 to see what direction he will choose….but rest assured that I will visit this subject later down the line. (you have been warned…tee hee)

How About a Federalized Iraq?

I am slowly returning to my main focus…..conflicts and their resolution….it has been a long thoroughly hilarious 6 months…..now back to work.

We invade then occupied Iraq in 2003….after the major hostilities were over there were some that were calling for a federal republic for Iraq….among those was VP Joe Biden…..most people scoffed at the idea for various reasons…..I for one was not convinced that it would be a good idea….but as time went on I came around to the idea.

Iraqis did not have much input back in those days….was going to be up to the US and its allies to decide the course for a new government for Iraq.

My op-ed on this subject are pressed below…….

Source: Rethink Iraqi Federalism – In Saner Thought

I bring up this bit of Iraqi history for good reason….it seems that the tribes of Anbar province are thinking that federalism would be a good idea at this time…..

For much of Iraq, the ISIS war is seen as just a continuation of the sectarian warfare between Sunni Arabs and Shi’ite Arabs which has raged in the country since the US occupation. Iraq’s Shi’ite-dominated government has long sought to dispel this notion by recruiting Sunni allies.

They haven’t had much success, but the Sunni Arab tribal factions they have managed to recruit are seen as key allies against ISIS. At the same time, the tribal leaders warn that Iraq needs massive reforms, not just a military victory, to end these conflicts.

The Lions of the Tigris faction are urging federalization as a solution to the ongoing tensions. They are far from the first to suggest this, but as allies in the current war, they may have the government’s ear more than some others.

(antiwar.com)

With the divides in the country…Kurds, Sunni and Shia, federalism may be the only way to bring stability in Iraq again.

But because it has worked well for the US does not mean that it will be so for Iraq…..there are so many other situations developing in the country that could prove hazardous to the federal experiment……problems like the Assyrians, Chaldeans and Yazidis…just to mention a few.

The New Exterminatory Warfare

Since ISIS became a major thorn in the ass of civilization there has been all sorts of promises to completely destroy and eliminate ISIS from the face of the earth.

No matter how hard the world tries ISIS keeps on keeping on….even with the entire free world on a mission from”God”…..

During its final years in office, the Obama administration has devised a new form of warfare with major implications for how the U.S. government confronts its enemies. With the ability to quickly locate and eliminate potential adversaries with little to no risk to US forces, the Obama administration has begun to eradicate some of its main enemies in a new kind of exterminatory warfare.

So far, the Obama administration has applied its innovation to militant groups throughout the Middle East and the surrounding area. Its primary target has been the Islamic State (ISIS or IS), but it has expanded its campaign to include IS forces in Libya and al-Shabab in Somalia.

Source: The New Exterminatory Warfare – Antiwar.com Original by — Antiwar.com

And the beat goes on.