Day: July 30, 2019

Can We Talk Nukes?

Closing Thought–30Jul19

Nukes for Iran….Nukes for North Korea….nukes for the Saudis…..plus the nations that already have a cache of nukes…US, India, Pakistan, Russia, China,UK, France, Israel……

So how about putting the issue of nukes on the table for these debates?

Don’t you―as stand-ins for the American people―think it might be worthwhile to ask the candidates some questions about how best to avert a global catastrophe of unprecedented magnitude?

You mass media folks lead busy lives, I’m sure. But you must have heard something about nuclear weapons―those supremely destructive devices that, along with climate change, threaten the continued existence of the human race.

Yes, thanks to popular protest and carefully-crafted arms control and disarmament agreements, there has been some progress in limiting the number of these weapons and averting a nuclear holocaust. Even so, that progress has been rapidly unraveling in recent months, leading to a new nuclear arms race and revived talk of nuclear war.

Do I exaggerate? Consider the following.

https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/07/29/dear-moderators-pre

Not to worry for these candidates will not face any demanding questions like nukes…instead the MSM will give them softball questions to answer and the higher in the polls the softer the questions.

“Lego Ergo Scribo”

Catherine The Great

When the name of Russia’s longest reining female is mentioned the first thing people say is something about her and some horse, right?

Russian history is fascinating starting with Ivan The Terrible through to Nicholas and the Revolution…..

One of the few Russian monarchs at most the world knows by name is Catherine the Great…..but what does the world truly know about her and her rein?

There are so many points like her name was not Catherine…..

With that question I can help……

Catherine the Great moved to a foreign land as a teenager and became one of the most important leaders in its history. During her 34-year reign, she transformed Russia’s culture while expanding its borders. Here’s what you need to know about the unlikely ruler, who is the subject of not one, but two series coming soon: HBO’s Catherine the Great, due in 2019, and Hulu’s The Great, slated for 2020.
 
I know history is not everybody’s “thing” but if you are going to hold an opinion why not get the facts…..
 
Be Smart!
 
Learn Stuff!
 
“Lego Ergo Scribo”
 

Afghanistan In The News

The public does not hear much about the war in Afghanistan these days…..I guess since it has been raging for 18 years it is old hat for the MSM…….

First of all the bad news…….two American paratroopers were killed in country….

Two U.S. service members were killed Monday in Afghanistan, officials announced today, bringing the casualty total for the year to 15 deaths. This year’s casualty count now matches the total for 2018, previously the deadliest year for Operation Freedom’s Sentinel since the sustainment and advisory mission began in 2015.

The announcement came from the headquarters of Operation Resolute Support, the NATO-led mission to train, advise and assist Afghan troops in defending themselves. The service branch of the two troops was not identified in the announcement, nor was their location in Afghanistan or the nature of their deaths.

But in a short blog post Monday, Army. Col. Arthur Sellers, commanding officer of 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, revealed the two troops were paratroopers with 3rd BCT.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/07/29/2-us-troops-die-afghanistan-bringing-years-casualty-count-15.html

There is some possible “Good News” out of Afghanistan……

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed on Monday that the administration intends to reduce the number of US ground troops in Afghanistan some time before the 2020 presidential election. Timing and size are not yet settled.

With hope that a peace deal with the Taliban might be reached leading to the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in the next few months, a troop cut within the next 15 months should almost go without saying.

Pompeo said President Trump made the decision, and that he was “unambiguous” about wanting to have the number of troops cut before the election. He added that he wanted the the overall need for troops int he region could be reduced.

This announcement adds to questions about the ongoing talks with the Taliban. On the one hand, the announced troop cut might reflect an expectation that the deal is going to call for that anyhow. At the same time, it’s not clear what the point would be if the deal to withdraw outright is as close as recent indications would say.

(antiwar.com)

Hope this means that we are serious about bringing the troops home….but I have a feeling that this is just a political move for the 2020 election.

“Lego Ergo Scribo”

2020 #1 Issue

We can pretend that there is a wealth of issues that will drive them voters to the polls…..beating, Trump, Climate Change, nation security, etc etc, but the truth is that all these are secondary………the main issue that the candidates need to clarify their positions is…..economics.

Whatever distractions candidates promote to win voters, some underlying issues will wield their influence on 2020 election outcomes in any case. The biggest of these are the historically accumulated anger and betrayal felt by millions of working class Americans. Since the 1970s, their relative position within income and wealth distributions has declined. Real wages stagnated while workers’ rising productivity made ever more profits for employers, widening inequality. That alone depressed the class, but US society is structured to add many political, cultural, and social demotions onto those whose relative economic position declines.

As stagnant real wages constricted workers’ consumption growth, political supports (from government programs to politicians’ attentions) shrank. Shifting cultural norms (smart phones, fashionable bars, fancy sports arenas, etc.) entailed new costs that were increasingly unaffordable. Rising consumer debt (mortgages, car loans, and credit card balances) only partly offset the new costs. Yet that debt also raised new kinds and degrees of financial anxieties.

American History and the 2020 Election

Candidates, the party matters not, do what they must to gain votes….pretend the issue is important then lie about what they will do to rectify the problem.

And the American worker is still waiting for that candidate that will do what they say to improve their lot…….this batch of candidates is a typical batch…..liars and pretenders every one.

But since they seem to have a hard time finding a foothold then let me help them out…..

A Congressional Budget Office analysis published Monday showed that raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025 would significantly increase pay for over 27 million workers and lift 1.3 million people—including hundreds of thousands of children—out of poverty.

The CBO also found that more than doubling the federal minimum wage would boost the income of families earning less than three times the poverty rate by nearly $22 billion.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/07/09/cbo-analysis-shows-15-federal-minimum-wage-would-raise-pay-27-million-workers-and

See!  It is that easy to find an issue that would make the voters smile.

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

VOTE!

“Lego Ergo Scribo”