Month: February 2024

Just How F**ked Up Can It Get?

The American system of early voting, the primaries and/or caucuses, is a tangled mess of stupidity….and Nevada has become the dumbest system of them all.

The state will have a GOP primary and a caucus….that’s right both….

The next round of voting in the 2024 primaries takes place in Nevada this week. But it’s a strange stew of primaries and caucuses, even if the big-picture outcome is not in doubt:

  • Meaningless primary: The state is holding a GOP primary Tuesday, but it will not count for the nomination in terms of delegates, reports the AP. Nikki Haley is running, but Donald Trump is not on the ballot.
  • Meaningful caucus: The state also is holding Republican caucuses on Thursday, and those will count. Trump is the only major candidate participating, and he is therefore expected to receive all 26 of the state’s GOP delegates.
  • The loophole at play: If the above two things sound confusing, the Washington Post explains: A new state law requires a primary when more than one candidate is running, but there’s a loophole: “There has to be a primary, but the law doesn’t say how the party allocates their delegates,” UNLV professor Rebeca Gill tells the Post. The state GOP, under heavy lobbying by the Trump campaign, exploited the loophole to stage the caucuses as well. And yes, many voters are bewildered, as NPR reports.
  • Democrats: The state also has a Democratic primary on Tuesday, and President Biden is expected to win easily. Marianne Williamson is on the ballot, but Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota is not.
  • Trump’s strategy: He is trying to accrue the necessary 1,215 delegates to clinch the nomination as early as possible, and he is on track to do so in March by the AP’s math.

This whole stupidity of who votes first and who uses primaries or caucus is a total waste of time.

Here’s a brilliant idea…..get rid of all this trash and have a national primary day when everyone votes for their candidate and the winners become the nominees.

It is really that simple.

The force stopping such a move is monetary….with this system there would be no need for months upon months of trashing ads and the media would make no money so as usual corporate will win that battle.

Voting process should be simple and readily available….but that does not play well in some political circles.

I will be watching this clusterf*ck closely.

And now the results of the Nevada primary…..

The “none of these candidates” option has won in Nevada’s symbolic Republican presidential primary contest, an embarrassing result for Nikki Haley, who was the only major candidate on the ballot, the AP reports. The former UN ambassador opted to compete in the state-run primary election Tuesday instead of the party’s presidential caucuses, the only contest in the state that awards delegates toward the nomination. Former President Donald Trump is the only major candidate competing in the caucuses on Thursday and will likely sweep the state’s Republican delegates as a result. Utilizing a quirk of Nevada election law, more voters on Tuesday marked their primary ballots for “none of these candidates” than cast their votes for Haley.

There is a good possibility the Haley is not as popular as the media would have us believe…..plus I think she has shot her wad and will soon be only a vague memory.

Just a thought.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Closing Thought–06Feb24

I am one of those un-American people for I do not have any credit debt…..no cards……and an article I read tells the tale of the credit ‘crunch’…..

While the US economy is broadly healthy, pockets of Americans have run through their savings and run up their credit card balances after battling inflation for more than two years. Experts worry that members of these groups—mostly lower- and middle-income Americans, who tend to be renters—are falling behind on their debts and could face further deterioration of their financial health in the year ahead, particularly those who have recently resumed paying off student loans. Some key stats, per the AP:

  • Americans held more than $1.05 trillion on their credit cards in the third quarter of 2023, a record, and a figure certain to grow once the fourth-quarter data is released by FDIC next month.
  • A report from the credit rating company Moody’s showed that credit card delinquency rates and charge-off rates, or the percent of loans that a bank believes will never be repaid, are now well above their 2019 levels and are expected to keep climbing.
  • These worrisome metrics coincide with the average interest rate on a bank credit card of roughly 21.5%, the highest it’s been since the Federal Reserve started tracking the data in 1994.
  • “Overall, the consumer is credit healthy, said Silvio Tavares, president and CEO of VantageScore, one of the country’s two major credit scoring systems. However, the reality is that there are starting to be some significant signs of stress. Most analyses of Americans’ financial health tend to tell a tale of two consumers. On one side are the roughly two-thirds of Americans who own their homes and those who’ve invested in the stock market and done substantially well. But for the rest of America, those who have not benefited from the housing and stock markets, things are looking rough. “They’ve been hit very hard by inflation,” said Warren Kornfeld of Moody’s.

Read the full story.

(NO one will read the full story but it is there for those with an inquisitive mind)

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Political Elites Are Sweating

College of Political Knowledge

2024 Election Series

I know….I know….it is early and all this may not matter….but what if it does matter?

The anti-vaxxer, RFK, Jr, is considering running as a Libertarian and if he does the political elites of both parties are beginning to take notice after being dismissive of his possible candidacy.

While many “experts” still dismiss the possibility of an independent or third-party candidate winning the election, there seems to be a bit more hand-wringing and whistling past the graveyard amongst both Democratic and Republican operatives. Most especially as there is now a possibility that Kennedy may run on the Libertarian Party ticket.

Outlined on this site earlier this week in a piece titled “RFK Jr.’s possible Libertarian bid rankles Democrats,” that possibility is duly noted. As is the growing fear of certain Democratic operatives. And trust me, it is not just Democrats who are viewing that possibility with a great deal of nervousness. It is Republicans as well.

The main reason being — as spelled out in the piece — that by becoming the standard-bearer for the Libertarian Party, Kennedy would be significantly more likely to get on state ballots, including key battleground states.

Democratic strategist Doug Gordon said, “Hijacking the Libertarian Party ballot line won’t change his odds of winning the presidency, which he has no chance at. But it does increase the odds he could play spoiler and hand the keys to the White House back to Trump.”

To paraphrase Hamlet, “Methinks the strategist doth protest too much.”

Democratic and Republican elites fear RFK Jr.’s growing path to victory

I know all you self-styled independents do not want to hear that a third party is becoming strong enough to challenge the idiots in the two parties….but there it is.

There is still a long way to go before we have the dash for the finish line in 2024….but now is the perfect time to look at candidates and possible candidates for you support.

Personally I have a problem with these anti-vaxxers and would never vote for someone so callous….it would do nothing to improve the plight of the people of this country.

But that is just me.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Senate Border Deal

The biggest story so far this year has been the crisis on our Southern border and this problem is giving the GOP lots of false support in the upcoming election cycle.

A Senate committee has come together giving a bi-partisan approach to this situation….a deal, in my opinion, stinks.

Senators on Sunday released a highly anticipated $118 billion package that pairs border enforcement policy with wartime aid for Ukraine, Israel, and other US allies, setting off a long-shot effort to push the bill through heavy skepticism from Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, the AP reports. The proposal could be the best chance for President Joe Biden to resupply Ukraine with wartime aid—a major foreign policy goal that is shared with both the Senate’s top Democrat, Sen. Chuck Schumer, and top Republican, Sen. Mitch McConnell. It is still unclear if the bill will pass in the Senate, which is expected this week to hold a key test vote on the legislation, but it faces a wall of opposition from conservatives.

With Congress stalled on approving $60 billion in Ukraine aid, the US has halted shipments of ammunition and missiles to Kyiv, leaving Ukrainian soldiers outgunned as they try to beat back Russia’s invasion. Biden said in a statement that the Senate proposal “allows the United States to continue our vital work, together with partners all around the world, to stand up for Ukraine’s freedom and support its ability to defend itself against Russia’s aggression.” And on the border, Biden said that the immigration system has been broken for too long, and it’s time to fix it. “It will make our country safer, make our border more secure, treat people fairly and humanely while preserving legal immigration, consistent with our values as a nation,” Biden said.

The new bill would also invest in US defense manufacturing, send $14 billion in military aid to Israel, steer nearly $5 billion to allies in the Asia-Pacific, and provide humanitarian assistance to civilians caught in conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza. In a call with reporters after releasing the legislation, Schumer said he has never worked so closely with McConnell. He called the bill a “monumental step” toward strengthening national security at home and abroad. McConnell said in a statement that the Senate must be “prepared to act.” In a bid to overcome opposition from House Republicans, McConnell had insisted last year that border policy changes be included in the national security funding package. More on those changes, resistance to the bill on both sides, plus a potential House bill some senators prefer, here.

The Senate bill would authorize $60 billion to spend on the proxy war in Ukraine and $4.8 billion to “support key regional partners in the Indo-Pacific,” a portion of which will go toward replenishing arms sent to Taiwan.

The bill also provides $2.44 billion to US Central Command and to “address combat expenditures related to the conflict in the Red Sea,” where US naval forces have been bombing Yemen and downing Houthi drones and missiles. Since January 12, the US has bombed Yemen at least 16 times, and the situation in the region continues to escalate as the Houthis are not backing down.

I think this bill is dead on arrival in the House….but that is not why I think it sucks.

The bill should be about the situation on the border and none of it should be trying to sneak cash in for these proxy wars we keep fighting.

Those situations should be handled by a stand alone bill not masked by some perceived problem elsewhere.

If our Congress cannot find the cash for these wars then it is time to say f*ck it and move on to other situations that need attention.

But we have not heard the last of the border or the blood money for Israel and Ukraine.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Peanuts For The Peasants

A pathetic tax deal.

Last week the miracle of miracles took place….in the House there was an amazing come together moment on a tax deal….bipartisanship at long last.

The House accomplished something unusual Wednesday in passing with broad, bipartisan support a roughly $79 billion tax cut package that would enhance the child tax credit for millions of lower-income families and boost three tax breaks for businesses, a combination that gives lawmakers on both stripes coveted policy wins, the AP reports. Prospects for the measure becoming law are uncertain with the Senate still having to take it up, but for a House that has struggled to get bills of consequence over the finish line, the tax legislation could represent a rare breakthrough. The bill passed by a vote of 357-70.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., threw his support behind the bill on Wednesday morning. He spent part of the previous day meeting with GOP lawmakers who were concerned about particular features of the bill, namely the expanded child tax credit. Some were also unhappy that it failed to address the $10,000 cap on the total amount of property taxes or state or local taxes that consumers can deduct on their federal returns. Raising the cap is a top priority of lawmakers from the Republican members of the New York congressional delegation, whose victories in 2022 helped the GOP take the majority. Johnson committed to moving a bill that addresses the cap, but there is no bill text yet and legislation would have to move through the House Rules Committee, which leaves the timing very much in flux.

Democrats focused on boosting the child tax credit. The tax credit is $2,000 per child, but not all of that is refundable. The bill would incrementally raise the amount of the credit available as a refund, increasing it to $1,800 for 2023 tax returns, $1,900 for the following year and $2,000 for 2025 tax returns. The bill also adjusts the topline credit amount to temporarily grow at the rate of inflation. Households benefitting as a result of the changes in the child tax credit would see an average tax cut of $680 in the first year, according to estimates from the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. “What’s in front of us tonight is pretty simple,” said Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass. “Sixteen million children will benefit from the improvement to the child tax credit. That’s a fact.”

As usual the Dems caved to the GOP.

This bill saves the people peanuts while giving business all the benefits…..this is the pathetic Dems looking for some small win they can take on the campaign trail.

U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib is calling on her fellow Democrats to “stay at the table and demand a better deal for our children” instead of supporting the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, a bill that pairs a partial expansion of the child tax credit with major tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy, which was expected to reach the House floor for a vote Wednesday evening.

Tlaib (D-Mich.) echoed the concerns of Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), a longtime champion of an expanded child tax credit (CTC), saying Democrats and Republicans have negotiated a bill that “gives billions of dollars in tax breaks to the rich, while leaving behind millions of children living in poverty.”

https://www.commondreams.org/news/tlaib-ctc

The only thing that can squash this piece of manure is the Senate….are they going to be as pathetic as the House Dems?

Special interests should be working overtime and spending like a drunken sailor to get this passed in the Senate.

The typical bi-partisan deal……peons get little…..corporations get it all.

We will see.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

What Of Democracy?

These days with an election looming and all the talk about whether or not our democracy is at stake I thought I would take a look at the ‘cradle of democracy’….Greece.

Since it is a Sunday and a good day for me to drop some history and even maybe someone will learn something…..

Remember Socrates?

You know the philosopher that taught Aristotle but what did he think of the idea of ‘democracy’?

Democracy is a form of government in which power is placed in the hands of the people. This can take two main shapes: direct democracy (citizens make decisions themselves) or representative democracy (elected officials make decisions on behalf of the citizens). Most modern democracies operate with some form of representative democracy — such as the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Ancient Greece, however, had a direct democracy; citizens had a direct and active role in the government, but this was easier back then than today because Greek city-states made the population smaller, and the definition of ‘citizen’ was more exclusive.

Socrates was a philosopher from Athens in the fifth century BCE, and he has gone on to be one of the most well-known thinkers of his time. Although he didn’t leave behind any written works of his own, his students kept his legacy alive, and his influence reverberates today. He’s most known for his teaching style — known today as the Socratic Method — wherein a question-and-answer discussion setting is cultivated to stimulate critical thinking. Socrates believed one should be skeptical of everything, and he practiced what he preached regarding democracy. Socrates was an outspoken critic of the Athenian government. Two of his biggest criticisms of democracy concerned the majority rule’s lack of knowledge and the potential for a demagogue. 

(would you like to know more?)

https://www.thecollector.com/how-did-socrates-view-democracy/

Looks like one of Socrates criticisms came true and may come true again….A demagogue is a type of political leader who relies on prejudices, false promises, and charisma to manipulate voters into choosing them. 

Sound familiar?

Was Socrates correct in his criticism?

I think he was pretty spot on and sharp even back then.

Keep Socrates in mind while you search your soul for a vote in November.

Have a good day and hopefully enjoy the rest of your weekend….as always….Be Well and Be Safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

IST Saturday News Dump–03Feb24

AH finally the weekend begins and we can all take a much needed rest…..and turn my analytical brain down a notch.

National news…..Taylor Swift did something….Tesla cars recalled….

News on the home front….Sue had her appointment in Houston with the cancer doctor and good news is the tumor is smaller….bad news she must go through 8 more weeks of the chemo that absolutely kicks her ass.

Now for the news no one could ever use….

Recently my friend John over at John’s web Space and I have written posts about the amount of micro-plastics in our bottled water and in our food and now it is in our bodies from many sources.

Plastic has been found in the deepest parts of the ocean, the air, and our brains—and now researchers have put a number to how much its prevalence is costing us in health care. A group of physicians, epidemiologists, and endocrinologists worked together to itemize the “disease burden” that chemical additives in plastics cause— and they estimate $249 billion in 2018 alone is a conservative number, reports the Los Angeles Times. While research into micro- and nanoplastics is nascent, years of studies have connected these chemical additives to different types of cancers, diabetes, obesity, decreased fertility, and issues with child brain development, per CNN.

“Fundamentally, we’re talking about effects that run the entire lifespan study, from brain development in young children, to cancer,” says Leo Trasande, an author on the study. He calls the findings “a bright, bold line underneath” plastic’s role in human health issues. The study, published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society, makes note of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs—which can confuse hormone signaling) used in plastics. These include the usual suspects in health warnings: BPAs, phthalates, PFOAs (also known as forever chemicals), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (or PBDEs, which are a class of flame retardants). PBDEs comprised most of the cost burden, writes the Endocrine Society, and are linked to increased risks of cancer.

Experts say this financial estimate does not begin to show the full story of plastic’s impact on human health. “In addition to the costs associated with the chemicals and plastics,” says Avi Kar of the Natural Resource Defense Council’s Health and Food, People & Communities Program, “there are health costs associated with exposures to the macro- and microplastics, as well as the pollution associated with their production and disposal.” The findings put a new perspective on recent research that showed hundreds of thousands of nanoplastics shed into bottled water. Trasande likens those fragments of plastic to “a passenger pigeon” for the chemicals, allowing them direct access to vital organs like the brain.

Let’s go to space….this is not about the flub-up by the Japanese and their lunar explorer….it is about water on Mars.

New data from the European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter suggests a massive deposit called the Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF) holds enough water ice to cover the entire planet in an ocean that’s anywhere from five to 8.8 feet deep — if it were somehow melted, that is.

Scientists had previously held that there was still a chance the deposit was largely made of volcanic ash. But given the latest findings, it’s far more likely to be made of water ice, especially given its geographical features that resemble those found at the planet’s polar ice caps.

https://futurism.com/scientists-discover-mars-ice-cover-planet-water

Did you see the Matrix trilogy….then this may interest you….

“The Matrix is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very room.“

So says Laurence Fishburne’s Morpheus in sci-fi classic ‘The Matrix’ as he offers Keanu Reeves’s Neo the choice to find out just how “deep the rabbit hole goes”.

Now, just as Neo discovered that the “life” he’d been living was little more than an algorithmic construct, scientists and philosophers are arguing that we could be stuck inside a simulation ourselves.

In a paper published earlier this month, physicist Melvin Vopson, of the University of Portsmouth, offered scientific evidence for a philosophical theory known as the simulation hypothesis.

https://www.indy100.com/science-tech/simulation-theory-evidence-proven-2667107019

Ever heard someone say “I would die for a butt like that”?

It is a more accurate statement than you may think.

US health officials say 93 Americans have died after cosmetic surgery in the Dominican Republic since 2009, with many of the recent deaths involving a procedure known as a Brazilian butt lift. The operation has grown in popularity recently and has led to deaths in other countries as well, including the United States. A report issued Thursday by the CDC couldn’t say how common these deaths are or whether they’re more common in the Dominican Republic, per the AP. The Dominican Republic is known as a friendly island vacation spot, and some doctors there advertise in the US, offering breast implants, liposuction, and other operations at lower prices. After an increase in US deaths in 2019 and 2020, the US Embassy contacted the CDC, which investigated along with the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Health.

They tallied 93 cosmetic surgery-related deaths of US citizens in the Dominican Republic from 2009 to 2022, or an average of about seven a year; all but one were women. More than half of the deaths occurred since 2019, coinciding with the increasing popularity of Brazilian butt lifts. In the US, nearly 29,000 of those procedures were done in 2022, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The procedure commonly involves liposuction of fat from the hips, lower back, thighs, or other areas. The fat is then injected in the buttocks to change the shape or size. Risks include fat being injected too deeply, making its way into the bloodstream and blocking key arteries or veins. Autopsy records show that was the cause of death for 11 of 20 deaths, says Dr. Matthew Hudson, the study’s lead author.

Cosmetic surgery complications aren’t unique to the DR. Reports of deaths after cosmetic surgeries have repeatedly surfaced in the US, perhaps most often in Florida. On Thursday, the CDC issued a separate report on 15 cases of bacterial infections in women who went to a Florida cosmetic surgery center in 2022. Sporadic reports also have come out of Mexico, including last year when US patients were stricken with fungal meningitis after undergoing cosmetic procedures in the border city of Matamoros. Two clinics were closed and a dozen deaths reported. The report suggests steps that medical tourists should consider before traveling to get work done. “Be informed about who is doing your surgery, the qualifications of the person doing your surgery, and whether or not the facility is capable of doing the surgery and … providing adequate post-operative care, which is crucial,” says Hudson.

How bad do you want that ‘perfect’ butt?

Would you like to go on vacation to Jamaica?

Maybe check with the State Department first…..

Americans considering getaways to Jamaica should reconsider their plans because of crime rates so high that US government personnel are banned from visiting many areas, the State Department warns in a travel advisory. The department has raised the alert level for the Caribbean island country to a Level 3 “Reconsider travel” alert, one below the Level 4 “Do not travel” alert, CBS News reports. “Violent crimes, such as home invasions, armed robberies, sexual assaults, and homicides, are common. Sexual assaults occur frequently, including at all-inclusive resorts,” the advisory states. “Local police often do not respond effectively to serious criminal incidents.”

The homicide rate in Jamaica “has for several years been among the highest in the Western Hemisphere,” the advisory states. The State Department listed problems with medical care as another reason to reconsider travel to Jamaica, warning that “high level or specialized” medical care may be unavailable and private hospitals generally require payment up front, USA Today reports.

According to government statistics, there were 65 homicides in Jamaica, which has a population of 2.8 million, between Jan. 1 and Jan. 27 this year, down from 81 in the same period last year, though the number of shootings and injuries was up, per CBS. The State Department has also issued a travel advisory for the Bahamas after a surge in murders, though the alert level for the country remains at Level 2, “Exercise increased caution.”

Now you know more than the average American…..aren’t you glad you stopped by?

Have a great day and as always….Be Well and Be Safe.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

“We Don’t Want A Wider War”

That was the statement made by the National Security Council head….as the Biden gang decides how to react to the attack in Syria that killed 3 American troopers.

Since October, the United States has bombed Iraq and Syria dozens of times, launched five rounds of airstrikes in Yemen, supplied the Israeli government with more than 10,000 tons of military equipment for its devastating assault on the Gaza Strip, and opposed international efforts to secure a cease-fire in the Palestinian enclave.

Yet Biden administration officials continue to insist that the U.S. is not at war in the Middle East, and is not seeking a broader military conflict in the region.

On Monday, amid reports that the U.S. is weighing how to respond to a deadly drone attack on American servicemembers just inside Jordan’s border with Syria—an attack the White House blamed on Iran-backed militia groups—National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in an appearance on NBC‘s “Today Show” that “we don’t want a wider war with Iran.”

“We don’t want a wider war in the region,” said Kirby, “but we gotta do what we have to do.”

https://www.commondreams.org/news/biden-middle-east-war

Biden and the gang made up their minds on the answer to the killings by Iranian back bad guys…..

The US has approved a series of strikes in response to the drone attack that killed three service members in Jordan last weekend, CBS News reports, citing US officials—but the plan is to hit Iran-linked facilities in Iraq and Syria, not targets in Iran itself. The officials say the timing of the strikes will depend on the weather because the military wants to have good visibility as a safeguard against inadvertently hitting civilians. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday that while the US wants to avoid a “wider conflict” in the Middle East, “we will take all necessary actions to defend the United States, our interests and our people, and we will respond when we choose, where we choose, and how we choose.”

The Jordan strike, the latest in a series of attacks from Iran-backed militias in the region, also injured dozens of US personnel. Hawks in Congress have called for a strike inside Iran, something Tehran reportedly sees as a “red line.” Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi warned Friday that the US could face a “strong response,” Al Jazeera reports. “We will not start any war but if anyone wants to bully us they will receive a strong response,” Raisi said.

Iran has denied responsibility for the drone attack, which was claimed by a coalition of Iran-backed groups called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq. Kataib Hezbollah, one of the groups in the coalition, said Wednesday that it was suspending attacks on US forces. Sources tell Reuters that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have started pulling senior officers from Syria following the deaths of several commanders in Israel strikes.

Bloodthirsty Repubs like Sen. Cotton and idiots like John Bolton keeps pushing for direct attack on Iran (basically to placate the Israelis)….but there is no actionable intel that says Iran did this……

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Thursday admitted the US does not know if Iran was operationally involved in the drone attack in Jordan that killed three American soldiers. On the same day, US officials told CBS News that plans have been approved for strikes against Iranian personnel and facilities in Iraq and Syria.

When asked by a reporter how much Iran knew about the Jordan drone attack or if it was operationally involved, Austin said, “You know, we believe that this was done by an element of what is known as the Axis of Resistance, and these are Iranian proxy groups. And how much Iran knew or didn’t know, we — we don’t know, but it really doesn’t matter because Iran sponsors these groups.”

The US has said it believes the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iraqi militias, was responsible for the attack. Kataib Hezbollah announced Tuesday it was suspending attacks on US troops in Iraq and Syria, which was the result of pressure from the Iraqi government and Iran, making it clear Tehran does not seek more escalations in the region.

(antiwar.com)

You do not want a wider war and yet you widen it almost daily…..I love War Department doublespeak…..

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden’s New Court

We seem to have as many ‘courts’ as we have individual these days…..there is a new one operating within the Biden admin structure…..the Data Protection Review Court….

At an undetermined date, in an undisclosed location, the Biden administration began operating a secretive new court to protect Europeans’ privacy rights under U.S. law.

Officially known as the Data Protection Review Court, it was authorized in an October 2022 executive order to fix a collision of European and American law that had been blocking the lucrative flow of consumer data between American and European companies for three years.

The court’s eight judges were named last November, including former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. Its existence has allowed companies to resume the lucrative transatlantic data trade with the blessing of EU officials.

The details get blurry after that.

The court’s location is a secret, and the Department of Justice will not say if it has taken a case yet, or when it will. Though the court has a clear mandate — ensuring Europeans their privacy rights under U.S. law — its decisions will also be kept a secret, from both the EU residents petitioning the court and the federal agencies tasked with following the law. Plaintiffs are not allowed to appear in person and are represented by a special advocate, appointed by the U.S. attorney general.

And critics worry it will tie the hands of U.S. intelligence agencies with an unusual power: It can make binding decisions on surveillance practices with federal agencies, which won’t be able to challenge those decisions.

“Until there’s some clarity on how that’s going to operate, I think you could expect the intelligence community to be nervous about what it might mean, especially since it’s not even clear what its caseload is going to look like,” said Matthew Waxman, a State Department and National Security Council veteran and chair of the national security law program at Columbia University.

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/17/inside-bidens-secret-surveillance-court-00136175

We already have a plethora of ‘secret’ courts….do we really need another?

Just wondering.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

No Labels–2024

College of Political Knowledge

2024 Election Series

This political group founded back in 2010, No Labels, pretends to be a Centrist organization that would be a go-between for Dems and Repubs…..it is a con.

I have written and given my opinions on this group and you can see my sage words here….this is my most recent post that includes thoughts from years past….

No Labels, The Con That Just Keeps Giving

I bring up this fringe group because there is a bit of news that pertains to the 2024 election….

Taking a page from parliamentary systems employed around the world, the No Labels organization is raising the idea of a coalition government taking charge in the US after the 2024 election. The opening would come up if no presidential candidate wins the 270 Electoral College votes required to take office, NBC News reports. In that case, “there could be negotiation to create a coalition government where electors get traded between different candidates to get somebody over 270,” said Ryan Clancy, chief strategist for No Labels, on Wednesday.

The next day, a co-founder, former US Rep. Tom Davis, talked about how his group’s ticket could make offers to Democrats or Republicans to reach a deal. “It could be Cabinet posts. It could be a policy concession,” Davis said. Or, he suggested, it could be the vice president’s job. The negotiations would be possible, Clancy said, because of “unbound electors,” which he pointed out are allowed in some states. Just 33 require electors to vote for the ticket that carried their popular vote, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Clancy said forming a ruling coalition is just one idea; No Labels prefers to elect its own presidential candidate, per NBC. The Constitution’s 12th Amendment still calls for state delegations in the US House to vote for a candidate if nobody wins 270 Electoral College votes. Once 26 state delegations endorse the same candidate, the Senate would decide who the vice president would be. No Labels also is strategizing about how its ticket might win that way, Davis said: “We’ve mapped all this out.”

A coalition government?

What we have now cannot agree on much at all….why would a coalition government be any better?

Next speculation is swirling around the stepping down of the group’s co-chair…..

Larry Hogan is stepping down from his position as co-chair of the No Labels third-party movement, as speculation swirls that the former Maryland governor could himself end up running for president this year on a No Labels ticket. In a letter dated December 15, obtained and first reported by the AP, Hogan announces his resignation but praises the group and gives no details on why he’s leaving, Politico and the Hill report. “In stepping aside, it is my intent that new leaders, who can devote themselves full-time to the effort, will be able to take the helm to direct the No Labels political operation,” Hogan, a Republican, writes.

Hogan has in the past said the “door” was “cracked open” for a third-party presidential run, and his PAC has published ads hinting at the possibility of one. Joe Manchin, Joe Lieberman, and Liz Cheney also have ties to No Labels, which has pledged to run a unity ticket with one Republican and one Democrat. The news of Hogan’s departure came hours after NBC Washington and other outlets reported that the third-party group had obtained the necessary signatures to form a political party and get on the ballot in Maryland, one of more than a dozen states where it has done so thus far.

I have always thought this country needs a third party because nowadays our choices are dumb and dumber….but is this ‘centrist party’  the answer?

Not in my book….it would be just an added burden on the American people.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”