Month: July 2017

Here A Leak, There a Leak

Since Trump and his Boyz arrived in DC there have been leaks upon leaks….and this has the president just furious with the establishment according to him anyone leaking info to the press is not showing proper loyalty to hum, the president……

Now the Ag Sessions has issued a statement saying that there will be a DoJ investigation into all the leaks that Trump has been whining about for months.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions will reportedly make an announcement about several criminal leak investigations within days.

Officials told The Washington Post about the forthcoming news from the Justice Department. The investigations will be centered around news reports containing sensitive material about intelligence, the report said.

The news comes as newly-appointed White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci publicly decried leaks coming from within the West Wing in his first week on the job and vowed to fire staffers who continue talking to reporters.

The impending announcement also comes as Trump grows publicly unhappy with Sessions, last week criticized the attorney general for recusing himself from the Russia investigation.

Source: Sessions planning to announce leak investigations: report | TheHill

Here is a thought……could Sessions be trying to repair his image with the president by ordering these investigations……since Trump has been whining about the leaks for months.

And another thought……Sessions is not long for the admin position…..so could he be announcing this in a shot at Trump….since some of the “leaks” that made the news came from the mouth of Trump.  A parting shot at a man that he stood behind  thru thick and thin.

Any thoughts here?

What Do We Get For Our Money?

I am unashamed antiwar supporter…..I have witnessed first hand the obscenities of war and the waste of money that could be used for good.

I keep writing about the barbarity of war and few seem to care……so maybe I should try a different tack……

I recently wrote a post about the fact that the US can no longer afford a war……

Source: The US Can No Longer Afford War! – In Saner Thought

The voter is always looking for a way to lessen the burden on themselves thru taxation policies……maybe a better way to bring attention to the war profit is to tell where the tax dollars go to support war……

You wouldn’t know it, based on the endless cries for more money coming from the military, politicians, and the president, but these are the best of times for the Pentagon.  Spending on the Department of Defense alone is already well in excess of half a trillion dollars a year and counting.  Adjusted for inflation, that means it’s higher than at the height of President Ronald Reagan’s massive buildup of the 1980s and is now nearing the post-World War II funding peak.  And yet that’s barely half the story.  There are hundreds of billions of dollars in “defense” spending that aren’t even counted in the Pentagon budget.

Under the circumstances, laying all this out in grisly detail — and believe me, when you dive into the figures, they couldn’t be grislier — is the only way to offer a better sense of the true costs of our wars past, present, and future, and of the funding that is the lifeblood of the national security state.  When you do that, you end up with no less than 10 categories of national security spending (only one of which is the Pentagon budget).  So steel yourself for a tour of our nation’s trillion-dollar-plus “national security” budget. Given the Pentagon’s penchant for wasting money and our government’s record of engaging in dangerously misguided wars without end, it’s clear that a large portion of this massive investment of taxpayer dollars isn’t making anyone any safer.

Source: Top Ten Ways your Taxes pay for Endless War | Informed Comment

It really is NOT rocket science……

There you have it…..you want your tax dollars to go further to improve the country then make war less profitable…..and then you can see your tax dollars at work….for good.

‘What If’ In History–Korea

I have been helping a friend with a course on the Korean War….so I am always looking for a fresh new perspective on the conflict.

From time to time I write or post an alternative history piece….a ‘what if’ as it were…..

I enjoy reading about these types of things to see what people feel about history and what they think would have changed if it had turned out differently.

Since North Korea has been in the news so much lately…I thought a ‘what if’ would be a fun piece to post…..

I feel I should start this piece with a disclaimer. I am a historian, and hence I am fully aware that my colleagues are skeptical of what is known as “alternative history” or “what-if history”. Perhaps they are correct. Political scientists have had an abysmally bad track record when they have tried to predict what will happen, so why should we take seriously the predictions of what would have happened? Indeed, we probably shouldn’t. But I will try to make such reversed prophecies – in this piece, at least.

Actually, this piece is based on a long and informal talk I once had with Konstantin Asmolov, a prominent Russian historian of Korea. A few years ago we spent much time discussing assorted “what-if” possibilities of North Korean history, the “roads not taken”.

Source: Asia Times Online :: Korea News – If the North had won the Korean War …

Any ideas?  Or thoughts?

The North Korean Endgame

Is North Korea still the problem it was a month ago?

Really?  Are they?

I mean I have heard little in the last couple of weeks….so was the whole situation settled?

Of course not…..it is just not as important as the fluff crap they are reporting today.  And then enter a another news report…..

China is ramping up its military presence on its 880-mile border with North Korea in case a nuclear, economic, or military crisis sends millions of North Koreans fleeing in search of greener pastures, according to government websites. But as the Wall Street Journal reports, that might not be all China is preparing for. China’s Defense Ministry hasn’t referred to North Korea as the reason for a new border defense brigade along with a 24-hour video surveillance system, unit upgrades, new shelters and command posts, and recent live-fire and special forces drills in border regions; but experts say China could be preparing to intervene should the US attempt to seize nuclear weapons from its ally on the Korean Peninsula. Some aren’t so sure China would be keen to take on the US and stress that recent enhancements at the border were first discussed last year.

However, “once you start talking about efforts from outside powers, in particular the United States and South Korea, to stabilize the North … you’re starting to look at a much more robust Chinese response,” argues a former US defense official for East Asia. “If you’re going to make me place bets on where I think the US and China would first get into a conflict … it’s the Korean Peninsula.” Others note China will want to prevent US influence there to retain its regional power. In a column in May, retired Maj. Gen. Wang Haiyun wrote China should not only intervene in a Korean conflict but demand no US occupation of North Korean territory, though he said he did not speak for the government. He made similar comments in an op-ed in the state-owned Global Times in March, CNN reports.

Since NK is still a thorn in the side of American foreign policy….how should we go about ending this docu-drama?

This is a piece that was carried on the site The Diplomat……

There is only one feasible choice for solving the issue: treat Pyongyang as a rational actor.

In 2016, North Korea conducted the most missile tests ever, a total of 24. Since the beginning of 2017, the regime in Pyongyang had only ratcheted up the number of tests, currently at 17, with the promise of reaching a new all-time high, and surpassing last year’s record. The last test, conducted symbolically on July 4, marked a new milestone by introducing Pyongyang’s intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), with a range that could reach Alaska and potentially Seattle. It is now believed that North Korea will soon be able to develop and mount miniaturized nuclear warheads on its ICBMs and become an even greater threat to its neighbors, and the United States.

The urgency of the current developments, fast outpacing the expected timetable, has raised the stakes in Washington, Seoul, Tokyo, Moscow, and Beijing, raising the demand for new policies targeting the military belligerence of the rogue state. As Washington considers its main policy options, it will have to consider both feasibility and the cost-benefit analysis of their potential outcomes.

Source: The North Korean Endgame | The Diplomat

There will be those that scoff at the ideas presented here….but they only know what they are told to know….very few thinking people will scoff.

Thoughts?

Closing Thought–27Jul17

There has been a wealth of Tweets from our president about his disappointment with his AG, Sessions…..some seem to think that he is making a case to fire Sessions.

That is where we pick up a report……Jeff Sessions was a Senator before he was AG and there will soon be an election to decide who will return to DC as the Senator from Alabama….

There is a plan afoot to return Sessions to DC…….if he gets the raw deal from Trump that many expect.

In a strong rebuke to President Trump for ripping Attorney General Jeff Sessions over and over and over, Congressman Mo Brooks (R-AL), who is running for Sessions’ seat vacated when he became Attorney General, created a resolution asking the challengers hoping to succeed Sessions to withdraw as candidates so Sessions could be reinstated in his Senate seat. Luther Strange now serves as a placeholder in the seat until the November 2017 election.

Brooks has described Trump’s treatment of Sessions as a “public waterboarding.”

If all Republican candidates collectively agree to simultaneously withdraw from this race, then we clear the way for the Republican Party of Alabama to nominate Jeff Sessions to be the Republican nominee for the December 12, 2017 general election. He can return to the Senate where he has served us so well. President can then appoint whomever he wants as Attorney General.

read the rest of the resolution……

Source: Alabama Congressman Running For Sessions’ Senate Seat Says All Candidates Should Bow Out So Sessions Can Go Back To Senate | Daily Wire

That could be a real drama if Sessions is fired and then returned to DC as a Senator…..do you think Trump would have a friend from Alabama in the Senate?

Revenge is a dish best served in your face.

Gone for the day…..see you guys tomorrow….chuq

Worst Military Leaders in History

I feel I have been amiss in my duty for not including more history in my daily posts……I will try to change that oversight on my part.

If you remember any history from your school days you will remember a few of the “famous” commanders in time of war…..men like “Monty” Montgomery, Rommel, Eisenhower, MacArthur etc…..

But there is another list that people should be aware of….a list of the worse generals in history.

You may surprised at the men that make this list…..

In war, there are winners and losers. Sometimes an army is defeated because they simply faced a larger and more powerful foe. Other times they lose because of some bizarre set of circumstances no one could have foreseen, or because they were simply outwitted by a cunning adversary. Sometimes an army is even dealt a defeat because of bad weather (as happened to the Mongol fleet of Kublai Khan in 1281 AD, which was destroyed by a typhoon as it tried to cross the narrow strait between Korea and Japan.) However, there are also those battles that were lost due to the sheer incompetency of a leader, which is the source for this list.

Of course, even a good military leader can have a bad day. As such, this list is not about leaders who simply lost a battle, but those who either snatched defeat out of the jaws of victory or were classic incompetents that somehow managed to be given command of entire armies. A few are on this list because they are perceived as being far more capable than history demonstrates them to have been; in other words, besides the worst leaders, this list also contains the most overrated leaders who, while competent to a degree, do not rightly deserve the level of credit given to them by history. Finally, this is not a list of Generals only, but of men—some of whom may not even have been in uniform—that made the decisions that ultimately led their armies to utter catastrophe. And so, without further ado, here is my list for the top ten most incompetent, overrated, or just plain unlucky military leaders in history.

Source: Top 10 Worst Military Leaders in History – Toptenz.net

Tell me you did not see some of those on the list coming at you.

This is your history lesson for the day…..you now know more than you did earlier…

Class Dismissed!

Step Up America!

We are truly living in a divided country…there are two Americas….and that needs to stop….we need to work together or perish….remember the old poster from early Colonial America?

“Join or Die,” by Benjamin Franklin, Pennsylvania Gazette (Philadelphia, PA), May 9, 1754.
“Join, or Die,” by Benjamin Franklin, Pennsylvania Gazette (Philadelphia, PA),
May 9, 1754. Courtesy, Library of Congress

It is as true today as it was in 1754….our divisions are killing the country by tearing it apart and if it continues then this country shall surely perish…..

In director Mike Judge’s prescient and highly underappreciated 2006 satirical film Idiocracy, society five centuries from now falls into a dismal dystopia as Homo sapiens devolve as a species.  The culprits are growing anti-intellectualism, rampant commercialism, the demise of social responsibility, intellectual curiosity, human rights, and impartial standards of justice.  Many sociologists and other qualified professionals have observed similar trends in recent years particularly in the U.S. which is now widely perceived as declining in comparison to the rest of the world.  A new opinion poll seems to confirm both the trend and the perception

Source: America in Decline: New poll shows growing Anti-Intellectualism and the devaluing of Education | The Secular Jurist

But now you ask….what can I do?

Ralph Nader (a person that is not high on my impressed list) has written an op-ed that says it all and we should heed his call before it is too late…..

It is time for an urgent clarion call.

Given the retrograde pits inhabited by our ruling politicians and the avaricious over-reach of myopic big-business bosses, the self-described pillars of our society must step up to reverse the decline of our country. Here is my advice to each pillar:

(read on)

Source: A Clarion Call for our Country’s Pillars to Demand Justice

America, please heed the call….if you truly love your country…….please before it is too late.

A “Trojan Horse”

Remember the gag gift the Greeks gave the Trojans?

Every deceitful move in conflict studies is called a “Trojan Horse”…..a way for a war to start from a not so important event….

The M-IC is using some war games the Russian will do in September to push a narrative…..

Russia is staging war games in Belarus in September, but US officials and US allies in the area are concerned the country’s real aim is to bring military equipment into the country and leave it there. “People are worried this is a Trojan horse. They say, ‘We’re just doing an exercise,’ and then all of a sudden they’ve moved all these people and capabilities somewhere,” the head of US Army forces in Europe tells Reuters. He says NATO officials will be watching the Zapad 2017 exercise closely for that reason. Some allies think the exercise will involve nuclear weapons training and could utilize more than 100,000 troops, which would make it the largest such exercise since 2013, the Guardian reports.

The official did note that there are no indications Russia really is planning such a “trojan horse,” but called for more transparency from the country as to the size and scope of the war games in order to ease concerns. A senior Russian diplomat says Moscow has no plans to leave military equipment in Belarus, and says the concern from NATO is just “artificial buffoonery” over routine war games that is “aimed at justifying the sharp intensification of the NATO bloc (activities) along the perimeter of Russian territory.” NATO is also keeping a close eye on war games in the Baltic Sea taking place July 24-31; Chinese warships were to join the Russian navy there Friday.

There is NO proof that this is a Trojan Horse plan….but the war hawks will make sure that it is highlighted….I am sure there will be requests for more resources during the time period of the games….

Words and then actions…..is the US and Russia headed to a confrontation?

The situation may have to get worse before cooler heads start to prevail.

What happens when an under-staffed, under-experienced, and under-managed presidency, under siege by domestic opponents, is faced with an escalating crisis with a nuclear superpower? We could well find out soon, because powerful forces in both Russia and the United States appear to be itching for a fight.

Source: Are Russia and America Headed for a Showdown? | RealClearWorld

Stuff like this is what keeps Americans worried about another conflict in which we must participate.

Could Another One Bite The Dust?

Some good news to start the day…….

Steve Scalise is out of the hospital. The House majority whip, who was injured in last month’s shooting at a GOP congressional baseball practice in Virginia, was discharged Tuesday, Politico reports. The Louisiana Republican will now start “intensive inpatient rehabilitation,” his doctors announced Wednesday. A statement from the hospital notes he has made “excellent progress in his recovery from a life-threatening gunshot wound six weeks ago,” and he “is in good spirits and is looking forward to his return to work once he completes rehabilitation.”

IST wishes the Representative a speedy recovery and may he be well.

Now on to the day’s stuff……..

Just barely 6 months into his rein Pres. Trump is losing people at a regular pace……it all started with Flynn the National Security adviser……..plus behind the scenes people have started to walk on this president.

Most recent was Spicer who got squeezed out in favor of Pretty boy Floyd, “the Mooch”…….

And it is starting to smell like Sessions will be close behind Spicer through the door.  But who else could be waiting to jump a sinking ship?

Sources (whoever they are) are saying that Tillerson, SecState,  is about fed up with the games Trump plays……

Jeff Sessions may not be the only Cabinet member whose days are numbered. Multiple reports say Secretary of State Rex Tillerson isn’t destined for a long tenure. The latest is Reuters, whose source says Tillerson was “very upset at not having autonomy, independence and control over his own department and the ability to do the job the way the job … is traditionally done.” It says Tillerson has told friends he likely won’t last a full year, a sentiment echoed in an earlier CNN story. That one quotes two insiders who say a “Rexit” is possible before the end of the year, adding that Tillerson has been especially unhappy with President Trump’s public criticism of attorney general Sessions. The story adds, however, that Tillerson might just have been “venting.”

Tillerson had previously signaled that he intended to see through a restructuring of the State Department through 2017, but that now seems to be in doubt, reports Newsweek. It runs through his past frictions with the White House, including not being consulted on major issues such as the travel ban. The speculation has been circulating for weeks now, notes US News & World Report, and it isn’t helped by statements from Tillerson himself, who said in March that he “didn’t want this job.” It’s reached the point where Tillerson’s spokesman addressed the subject, though in the form of a denial that his boss is on the way out. Tillerson, he said, had “plenty of reasons to stay on the job, and all of them are important to America.”

If Tillerson does leave then he will join a small cadre of ex-Trump boot lickers that saw the light and took it on the lamb……I have a new respect for Spicer and Tillerson could join that small crowd…..

After I wrote this draft news came out about Tillerson…..

A State Department spokesperson continues to push back against reports that Rex Tillerson has plans to exit the Trump administration. But in doing so, she made a point to say that he serves “at the pleasure of the president,” reports the Hill. Tillerson himself hasn’t responded to multiple reports that he’s gotten so fed up he intends to leave before the year is out. He is currently “taking a little time off” after overseas trips, says the spokesperson.

In response to the reports of a “Rexit,” she added, “The secretary has been very clear he intends to stay here at the State Department.” While Tillerson has clashed with superiors on policies ranging from Iran to staffing to the president’s travel ban, USA Today notes that he’s also probably not thrilled with Trump’s recent speech to the Boy Scouts, which critics have derided as being too political for kids. Tillerson himself is a Distinguished Eagle Scout and a former national president of the group.

He could already be out the door and they are waiting for the best time to announce his departure…..probably with the next “revelation” from the MSM.

Is The UN Ineffective?

Of course it is….but there is a reason why it seems ineffective.

I know that there will be those that will condemn the UN for everything it attempts…..these are the people that fear the “New World Order”…..they fear the UN because they are told to fear them.

The United Nations….its first incarnation was the League Of Nations…..a post World War 1 attempt to bring the world together and prevent the barbarity of war.  It was the brain child of American president Woodrow Wilson…it failed in its prime purpose the prevention of war…..for 20 years after the attempt the world descended into World War 2.

After the last world war another attempt was made to help the world to try and avoid another World War….it was now called the United Nations.  since its beginning there have been countless “little wars but nothing to compare to the World wars of the past….

There are many that claim that the UN is ineffective…..ineffective in everything they attempt….but is this true?

There are some that would accuse the United Nations of being ineffective or—as researcher Scott Pauls puts it—simply “a witness of changing policy preferences” in the world. But that’s far from the case, according to a study of 65 years of UN voting records published in Physica A. Those records show the UN successfully reduces the chance of war. “The evidence demonstrates that the UN is more effective at achieving its mandate of avoiding wars than many experts think,” researcher Skyler Cranmer says in a press release.

The researchers from Dartmouth College and Ohio State University looked at voting alliances in the UN—both large and small, long-term and short-term—called “affinity communities.” Pauls says such voting alliances served to “reduce the probability of conflict” during the past 65 years. “There is more nuance in voting records than was previously thought,” Cranmer adds. The study also looked at the UN’s effectiveness in spreading democracy and building defensive alliances.

Personally, I like the idea of the UN…..and yes they have been stifled on many occasions for things they attempted…..but that can be blamed on the idea that 5 countries can control the fate of all.

The Security Council in the UN are controlled by permanent members….US, UK, France, Russia and China…all others sit on the council in a rotation scheme…these 5 members can control the issues that come before the council….the UN could truly become a governing body but only when ALL countries enter into this thing as equals.

Until then the UN will continue to appear as if being ineffective.  If it is ineffective you can blame the “Big 5” as the reason for failure.