Day: February 10, 2023

Legislation Without Representation

Is our beloved ‘democracy’ just a big lie?

I ask that question because of the idea that DC needs representation in our Congress.

The Republican-led House of Representatives on Thursday approved two measures that would overturn a pair of bills passed by the D.C. Council, one that allows non-citizens to vote in local elections starting in 2024 and another that revises and modernizes the city’s century-old criminal code.

The votes on the disapproval resolutions — the first time since 2015 the House has advanced such measures, and only the second time in three decades — came largely along party lines, though dozens of Democrats broke ranks and voted in favor. On the resolution targeting the non-citizen voting bill, the vote was 260-162, with more than 40 Democrats joining Republicans. On the resolution aimed at the revised criminal code, the vote was 250-173, with 31 Democrats joining the Republican majority.

No one representing D.C.’s 700,000 residents voted on either resolution, as the city only has a single non-voting delegate to Congress.

The disapproval resolutions, which would have to be approved by the Senate and signed by President Joe Biden to take effect, mark an early start to what many D.C. officials and advocates worry will be aggressive efforts by House Republicans to interfere in local affairs. And they stand in stark contrast to how D.C. was treated during Democratic control of the chamber, when on two occasions lawmakers passed bills granting the city statehood.

During debate that started Wednesday night and stretched into Thursday morning, Republicans argued that they were merely acting to tamp down on “radical” actions by the “out-of-control” D.C. Council.

Republican-Led House, In Which D.C. Has No Vote, Passes Measures Repealing Two D.C. Bills

Personally I think it is a slap in the face of democracy to allow these people without representation….

Back to the question….is democracy a big lie?

Just a few thoughts on that question….

Is Democracy The Big Lie?

It is a lie at least for the residents of DC.

How can any American citizen be without proper representation in our Congress?

Would you stand by and let your voice go unheard?

Anyone else have a thought or two on the democracy thing?

What say you?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

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Onto Victory!

The news, as biased as it can be, is reporting that Ukraine will enter into a new phase…..an attack on Crimea.

Ukrainian sources told The Times that they would plan to use these missiles to hit Crimea, strikes that would seriously risk provoking Moscow. But both the US and Britain are less concerned about escalating the war.

Ukraine has already received some Harpoon missiles from Denmark and launchers from the US. The anti-ship missiles have a range of about 70 miles, although other variants can hit targets over 100 miles away. The Harpoons have a longer range than artillery missiles the US has sent, but the Harpoons are designed for coastal defense.

It’s not clear if Ukraine could use Harpoons in its ground battle against Russia with the current launchers, but Ukrainian officials claimed they used them to sink a Russian military tug boat last June. The Times report said the Harpoons would be less accurate if they were used on the ground.

The Storm Shadow missiles could hit targets at a range between about 150 miles and 350 miles, depending on the variant. They are typically fired from aircraft, and the UK is also considering providing Kyiv with fighter jets and plans on training Ukrainian pilots starting this spring.

Moscow would view the provision of jets and longer-range missiles as a major provocation, and Russian officials have been warning strongly against the move. Recent reporting suggests the US and its allies are no longer concerned with the risk of Russian President Vladimir Putin using a nuclear weapon in response to attacks on Crimea based only on the fact that he hasn’t used one up to this point.

(antiwar.com)

Could this be the start of the re-taking of Crimea from Russian clutches?

Not according to a Pentagon official.

Senior Pentagon officials told lawmakers in the House Armed Services Committee last week in a classified briefing that Ukraine is unlikely to retake Crimea from Russia, POLITICO reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the briefing.

The briefing reflects other recent reporting that said US officials don’t think Ukraine has the capability to take the peninsula, which Russia has controlled since 2014. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said back in November that the probability of Ukraine kicking Russia out of the territory it captured since last February and Crimea is “not high.”

Milley reiterated this point on January 20. “I still maintain that for this year it would be very, very difficult to militarily eject the Russian forces from all –– every inch of Ukraine and occupied –– or Russian-occupied Ukraine,” he said.

According to the POLITICO report, the Ukrainian government was “furious” with Milley’s comments. Ukrainian officials maintain that kicking Russia out of Crimea is still one of their war goals, although Ukraine is beginning to lose more territory in its battle against Russian forces in the east.

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL), the head of the House Armed Services Committee, declined to discuss the contents of the briefing his panel received on Crimea but signaled the US might be looking to wind the war down.

According to POLITICO, Rogers said the war needs to “end this summer” and said the US must rapidly supply Kyiv for a coming offensive. He also indicated the US might try to put pressure on the government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to have a more realistic idea of victory and said that “Russia is never going to quit and give up Crimea.”

“What is doable? And I don’t think that that’s agreed upon yet. So I think that there’s going to have to be some pressure from our government and NATO leaders with Zelensky about what does victory look like,” Rogers added. “And I think that’s going to help us more than anything be able to drive Putin and Zelensky to the table to end this thing this summer.”

But a lot could happen between now and the summer, and as the US and its allies continue to announce major escalations of military aid, a direct clash between NATO and Russia becomes more likely.

(antiwar.com)

I do believe the last statement of the article says it all….this is what so many are praying for….and soon.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”