Month: July 2024

Kamala Harris: A Cheat Sheet

We have a presumptive Dem nominee and voters need to look at her from all angles….I can help.

Not much is known a Harris by the average voter….she was from California, was a lawyer and then vice president…..beyond that not much is known….I decided to try and educate the readers about her life and skills and since I am having limited time to research this I found a good summation of her life and skills in the Guardian…..

Let us start with her name….

After Kamala Harris was named as Joe Biden’s running mate in August 2020, Donald Trump said she was “totally unlikable” and a communist; he twice called her “this monster”. While “monster” is a dehumanising term, the pronoun flags what seems to me to be a racist subtext: not “a” monster, but “this” thing we have all agreed is a monster.

But he also strategically mispronounced her name, elongating the middle “A” to make it sound more foreign. It’s important, therefore, not to get it wrong by accident. It doesn’t rhyme with Pamela; it doesn’t sound like Tony Soprano’s wife. For Americans, it’s “comma” with a “la” at the end and the stress on the first syllable. In Britain, it depends on your accent, but it sounds like “kaw-ma-la” or “karma-la”. The video below from Harris’s 2016 Senate campaign shows children demonstrating the correct pronunciation.

(there is more…..read and learn)

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/22/kamala-harris-cheat-sheet-19-things-to-know-woman-might-be-president

Since one of the pressing topics during this election will be climate change….I thought a look at Harris and her stance….

As vice president, Harris argued for the allocation of $20 billion for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, aimed at aiding disadvantaged communities facing climate impacts, and frequently promoted the IRA at events, touting the bill’s investments in clean energy jobs, including installation of energy-efficient lighting, and replacing gas furnaces with electric heat pumps. She was also the highest-ranking US official to attend the international climate talks at COP28 in Dubai last year, where she announced a US commitment to double energy efficiency and triple renewable energy capacity by 2030. At that same conference, Harris announced a $3 billion commitment to the Green Climate Fund to help developing nations adapt to climate challenges, although Politico reported that the sum was “subject to the availability of funds,” according to the Treasury Department.

As a presidential candidate in 2019, Harris proposed a $10 trillion climate plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045 on the campaign trail, including 100-percent carbon-neutral electricity by 2030. Under the plan, 50 percent of new vehicles sold would be zero-emission by 2030; and 100 percent of cars by 2035. But that proposal, like similarly ambitious climate change proposals released by other Democrats during that election cycle, was nothing more than a campaign wishlist. A better indicator of what her plans for climate change as president would look like — better, even, than her record as vice president, as much of her agenda was set by the Biden administration — could be buried in her record as San Francisco’s district attorney from 2004 to 2011 and as California’s attorney general from 2011 to 2017.

(vox.com)

Will she still be a staunch supporter of green energy?  After election will tell the tale.

There is more on her stands….

Harris’s career in public life is well-documented, beginning as San Francisco District Attorney in 2004. She has long been a centrist, though she veered into more progressive territory during the 2020 campaign, endorsing Medicare for All and the Green New Deal, a comprehensive policy measure devised by progressive leaders aimed at tackling the climate crisis. Biden’s campaign wouldn’t align with the progressive movement on those issues, but offered robust climate proposals as part of his marquee policy agenda, the Inflation Reduction Act, which was passed by Congress in 2022. 

On health care, Biden often speaks proudly of the Affordable Care Act, passed when he was Vice President under Barack Obama. Throughout his first term as President, Biden has talked about improving access to Medicare, but stopped well short of endorsing anything close to a single-payer health care system. 

On foreign policy, Biden is an adherent of 20th century America’s often self-imposed role of global mediator. Since October 7, 2023, he’s been unflinching in his support for Israel’s military operations in Gaza, despite widespread outcry over the death toll of Palestinian civilians in the region. Biden has often reinforced the importance of strengthening international alliances, namely the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which Trump disparages as a so-called globalist money-pit. Harris is pro-NATO, like the vast majority of mainstream politicians.

(inc.com)

She appears to be a bit progressive but that could all change once the nomination is hers and the donors start calling the shots.

But so far so good in my book…..she will be in my process.

The big story is the speculation who she will pick to be her running mate…..my prediction is….some generic white guy with no baggage.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

It Is Good To Be The King

One of my favorite stories from last night….

This has nothing to do with our current situation here in the states but I thought my readers would like to see what can be accomplished with a king (and we have one in awaiting)….

Looks like the king of the United Kingdom will get a little richer next year….

It’s a good time to be a British royal. King Charles III’s monarchy will get a 53% bump in income next year and find itself on the receiving end of about $170 million. Here’s how that number was arrived at:

  • The bulk of the royal family’s wealth lies in the Crown Estate, a collection of lands and other holdings that now officially belong to Charles.
  • NBC News explains that in exchange for surrendering the revenue the Crown Estate generates, the monarchy receives the Sovereign Grant, which is funded by the taxpayer.
  • The Sovereign Grant had previously been equal to 25% of the Crown Estate’s profits; last year, the figure was slashed to 12%. The grant is reviewed every five years.
  • But the Crown Estate had a banner year, revealing in a Wednesday report it saw profits of $1.4 billion “driven by decades of investment in offshore wind, combined with a diverse and resilient property and land portfolio.” As the Guardian explains, “The crown estate, as legal owner of the seabed, has responsibility for auctioning offshore wind rights.”
  • Twelve percent of that is about $170 million, which is what the Sovereign Grant will equal for 2025-2026; the 2024-2025 Sovereign Grant totaled $110 million.
  • Some of next year’s money will go to the last stages of the decade-long renovation of Buckingham Palace, a project with a $475 million price tag. The royals also intend to purchase two new helicopters next year.
  • The news was met with criticism from some. The BBC has this from the head of the anti-monarchy group Republic: “We do not owe the royals a living, we do not owe them palatial homes, private helicopter travel or lives of leisure and luxury.”
  • The Sovereign Grant is far from the royal family’s only source of funds. The king gets income from the Duchy of Lancaster, while the Prince of Wales gets income from the Duchy of Cornwall. William’s first full year on the receiving end of that income saw him receive $30 million, reports the Guardian.

Cha-ching!

Like I said…”it’s good to be the king”.

Any Brits wanna comment?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden: A Farewell

Last night our president went before the cameras to exp[lain his decision not to run for re-election….was a pretty straight up but boring speech.

For those that we watching the beginning of the Summer Olympics I offer up this post to let them know what they missed……and of course I will have to add my thoughts to the night’s offering of manure on a cracker.

President Biden delivered a solemn Oval Office address Wednesday that laid out in the clearest terms yet why he abandoned his reelection campaign. He wanted to send an unmistakable warning about Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump while anointing Vice President Kamala Harris as his natural successor, without invoking an overtly political tone that would have been out of step in the official setting of the White House. He was determined to show that he would not act like a lame-duck president, outlining an ambitious agenda that underscored his resolve to continue building on his legacy. Key takeaways from the AP:

  • He warned about Trump—without naming him: Biden did not mention Trump in his 10-minute Oval Office address, but he didn’t have to. The remarks were imbued with a deep sense of urgency about what the outgoing president saw as the stakes of the election. “Americans are going to have to choose between moving forward or backward, between hope and hate, between unity and division,” Biden said. “We have to decide—do we still believe in honesty, decency, respect, freedom, justice and democracy?” That last item—democracy—and defending it is “more important than any title,” Biden said.
  • A hefty to-do list for his final months: The president says he’s going to keep working over his final six months in office, and his to-do list was full of weighty issues. He said he’d work to end the war in Gaza and bring home the hostages; lower costs for families and defend personal freedoms; keep calling out “hate and extremism”; push to end gun violence; continue to work on his initiative to end cancer as we know it; and push for Supreme Court reforms.
  • He is willingly handing off power to a new generation: Biden finally understood what Democrats had been telling him—that it was time to hand off power to a younger generation—and he embraced it, calling for “fresh voices, yes, younger voices” in politics. “I’ve decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation. It’s the best way to unite our nation,” he said, even as he believed his presidency was deserving of a second term.
  • The tone and setting were solemn: Biden is not a stranger to the sober address, but he has used the formal trappings of an Oval Office address—a tool used by presidents in times of national crisis or to capture a key moment in history—sparsely, with Wednesday’s speech marking just the fourth time that he has sat behind the Resolute Desk to speak directly to the nation. His tone was solemn, the delivery careful and deliberate. He was surrounded by family and close aides.
  • Standout quote: “The great thing about America is here, kings and dictators do not rule—that people do,” Biden said as he closed his address. “History is in your hands. The power is in your hands. The idea of America lies in your hands.”
  • Biden made a subtle push for his vice president: In the official setting of the Oval Office, Biden steered clear of overt political talk. But he still praised Vice President Harris as “tough” and “capable,” and gave a not-so-subtle push to voters. “She’s been an incredible partner for her leadership, for our country,” he said. “Now the choice is up to you, the American people.”

His focus for the coming months are admirable but worthless….there is very little he can get done no matter noble they sound.

His big line….”The great thing about America is here, kings and dictators do not rule—that people do”….that one statement is so much bullsh*t…..money rules and we all know it …..so can we stop pretending the people matter?

Good bye Joe….it has been fun and it has been real but has not been real fun….let’s move on…..please.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Harris: A Look Forward

Harris will most likely be the Dem nominee unless there is some amazing theatrics at the convention (I can only hope it would be interesting)…..so now is the time to see what is happening in Kamala’s world…..

As long as ‘Uncle Joe’ stayed in the race donors were pulling back….and now that he has bowed out how does the bribe money look for the Dem candidate?

Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign says it raised a stunning $81 million in the 24 hours after President Biden dropped his reelection bid and endorsed her. The Harris campaign says it is the largest 24-hour fundraising haul in the history of presidential elections, CBS News reports. According to the campaign, more than 888,000 donors were involved and 60% of them were making a donation for the first time in this election cycle.

Democratic donors opened their wallets after President Biden closed the door on his reelection bid. Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign says she raised more than $50 million in less than 24 hours after Biden quit the race and endorsed her, the New York Times reports. The ActBlue donation-processing portal says that around $50 million in donations for Harris received by 5am Eastern were part of a larger haul of more than $80 million for Democratic candidates after Biden’s announcement.

How nice eager interests buying the person who can do the most for them.

If she is the nominee how will she handle the Trump machine?

Will she attack or be the typical Dem?

As Kamala Harris consolidates her position to be the Democratic nominee in quick fashion, strategists in both parties already are feeling out what a race between the vice president and Donald Trump might look like. Coverage:

  • Three words: A story at CNN based on interviews with more than a dozen Harris advisers and allies suggests the VP’s strategy could be summed up succinctly as “prosecutor versus felon.” Harris served as San Francisco’s district attorney before becoming a senator, and she played up the “prosecutor for president” angle in her own 2020 run.
  • Six words: In an appearance on the Morning Joe show, former Obama adviser David Plouffe suggested a campaign message that struck the same chord with three extra words: “She’s a prosecutor. He’s a criminal.” Plouffe also suggested a Harris campaign could immediately flip the he’s-too-old card on Trump, who would be the oldest candidate ever nominated, per Mediaite.
  • Against Harris: The Trump campaign and allied super PACs will attempt to tie Harris to high inflation and unpopular border policies, reports the Wall Street Journal. A video on the latter already is out. Republicans also are playing up the narrative that Harris misled the public about Biden’s fitness to serve. A video on that is out as well, tagged, “Kamala was in on it.” Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has been among the prominent Republicans pushing that narrative. “The number one question that she’s going to have to answer now is, why did she lie to the American public?” McCarthy said on Fox.
  • Against Harris, II: A post at Popular Information has more details on the expected lines of attack against the vice president.
  • As a prosecutor: The Trump team will be scouring Harris’ record as district attorney for attack points, but it’s complicated. As the Washington Post notes, she was criticized by Democrats in her 2020 race—amid the fallout from the George Floyd killing and Black Lives Matters protests—for her “tough-on-crime” policies. In 2024, however, a tough-on-crime message might resonate more against an opponent who happens to be a “convicted felon,” per the Post. Her prosecutorial skill of understanding both sides of an argument in order to “unpack” it for a jury should help her as well, an ally says.

Attack, attack!  But will it be enough?  Keep in mind she will be dealing with a proven dick and liar and a con man partner.

News came out as I was writing this draft that Harris has the ‘votes’ she needs to secure the nomination….

Vice President Kamala Harris has secured the support of enough Democratic delegates to become her party’s nominee against Republican Donald Trump, according to an AP survey, as top Democrats rallied to her in the aftermath of President Joe Biden’s decision to drop his bid for reelection. Several state delegations met late Monday to confirm their support for Harris, including Texas and her home state of California. By Monday night, Harris had the support of well more than the 1,976 delegates she’ll need to win on a first ballot, according to the AP tally. No other candidate was named by a delegate contacted by the AP, and no major Democrat has announced plans to challenge Harris.

The AP tally is based on interviews with individual delegates, public statements from state parties, many of which have announced that their delegations are supporting Harris en masse, and public statements and endorsements from individual delegates. Still, the AP is not calling Harris the new presumptive nominee. That’s because the convention delegates are still free to vote for the candidate of their choice at the convention in August or if Democrats go through with a virtual roll call ahead of that gathering in Chicago.

Indeed, despite Harris being overwhelmingly favored, the Democratic Party plans to push forward with a virtual roll call, the rules of which will be approved at a convention rules committee meeting Wednesday. But the AP saw a draft, which indicates Harris, and any other potential Democrat willing to challenge her, will be required to submit 300 electronic signatures from convention delegates, not more than 50 of whom can be from the same state. The vice president, and any other candidate qualifying, would then have a few days to lobby delegates for their support before a virtual vote is held, possibly as soon as Aug. 1. Multiple rounds could be required, but the process would be completed no later than Aug. 7—or 12 days before the party’s convention begins.

I am a international relations voter and Kamala’s record here is spotty and dismal in my opinion.

Since Gaza is on-going her blindness is typical of someone who has money shoved in their pocket by AIPAC.

Harris has been a staunch supporter of Israel for years. In 2017 she addressed the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s (AIPAC) annual conference and reminded attendees that the first resolution she co-sponsored as a senator was aimed at combating “anti-Israel bias” at the United Nations.

“Let me be clear about what I believe. I stand with Israel because of our shared values, which are so fundamental to the founding of both our nations,” she told the crowd.

“The vast majority of people understand the importance of the State of Israel,” she added later. “Both in terms of its history and its present in terms of being a source of inspiration on so many issues, which I hope we will talk about, and also what it means in terms of the values of the United States and those values that are shared values with Israel, and the importance of fighting to make sure that we protect and respect a friend, one of the best friends we could possibly have.”

That is a paid endorsement.

Nothing about what Israel is doing is a shared principle of the US and especially the Founders.

But people want me to disregard everything I believe in and hold my nose and vote for someone that would not represent anything I hold dear.

That is the question I must answer for myself….and I will write about my decision.

Of course some Red State idiot has files articles of impeachment against Harris….

Kamala Harris is even more of a target now that she’s the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, so perhaps it’s not surprising that a House Republican on Tuesday filed articles of impeachment against her. Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee added to articles already filed against the vice president, the Hill reports. His new article claims Harris “knowingly misled the people of the United States and the Congress of the United States, principally to obfuscate the physical and cognitive well-being of the President of the United States, Joe Biden.” He says she should be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors, though Fox LA reports he did not give specific examples of alleged crimes. Forbes calls it a “political stunt” that is unlikely to have any impact.

The original article of impeachment, which has not gone anywhere after being introduced in June of last year, takes issue with Harris on immigration. It claims she “willfully and systematically refused to uphold the immigration laws, failed to control the border to the detriment of national security, compromised public safety, and violated the rule of law, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States.” In a statement announcing his move, Ogles said Tuesday that Harris “has disgraced the Office of the Vice President and willfully disregarded her oath to uphold and defend the Constitution,” and says she should invoke the 25th amendment to remove Biden from office because he is “mentally and physically” unfit.

These idiots never get tired of playing games so they do not have to do any actual work…..and people vote for them…..amazing!

As a PSA I will write about her, Harris,  political side since she is pretty much an unknown factor as of right now….look for it.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Just One Goose Step Away

I tried to get people to pay attention to the happenings in our political dealings and this one subject was about as popular as a turd in a punch bowl…..

First I began with the possibility of a theocracy….

Does Theocracy Approach?

Then I gave specifics on how it would be done and what people need to do to protect our nation from these mini-Nazis….

The BLITZ Is On!

What?  Cat got your typing finger?

What are you afraid of?

There is a danger brewing in this country and it is not necessarily the candidacy of Trump…..it is the success the christian nationalists are having implementing their playbook….

Time to pay damn attention!

Project Blitz is a concerted campaign by the Christian nationalist movement to implement radical, anti-equality state policies and attack lawmakers who oppose them. It uses a distorted idea of “religious freedom” to influence legislation—one state law at a time—to undermine religious equality, attack LGBTQ discrimination protections, and reduce access to reproductive health care.

FACT SHEET
Project Blitz
A State-Based Campaign Against Equality and Freedom of Religion
What is it?

Project Blitz is a concerted campaign by the Christian nationalist movement to implement radical, anti-equality state policies and attack lawmakers who oppose them. It uses a distorted idea of “religious freedom” to influence legislation—one state law at a time—to undermine religious equality, attack LGBTQ discrimination protections, and reduce access to reproductive health care.


How does it attack equality?
The Congressional Prayer Caucus Foundation, which is a major supporter of Project Blitz, has published a 148-page policy manual that includes templates for 21 legislative bills. In 2018, over 70 such bills were
introduced in state legislatures around the country, with even more expected in 2019. Unfortunately, some lawmakers who have supported these bills are unaware of the true nature and motivations of Project Blitz.
The manual advises that advocates start with measures that Project Blitz considers relatively easy to pass, and then build momentum by proposing more dangerous bills that offer very broad exemptions for allowing
religiously based discrimination. Project Blitz encourages the growth and spread of “prayer caucuses” in state legislatures to advocate for these bills, and it is succeeding—about 33 states have now established
prayer caucuses in their legislatures. The campaign also encourages “faith-baiting,” seeking to brand opponents of these bills as being against freedom of religion. The proposed legislation falls under three
categories:


Category One: Legislation Regarding Our Country’s Religious Heritage includes bills such as the mandatory display of “In God We Trust” in school classrooms as well as bills that mandate Bible instruction in public schools. According to the guide, these measures “do not garner much organized
outside opposition,” and even if a bill doesn’t pass, it can still “provide the basis to shore up later support for other governmental entities to support religious displays.”


Category Two: Resolutions and Proclamations Recognizing the Importance of Religious History and Freedom includes measures like “Recognizing the Importance of the Bible in History” and “Recognizing Christian Heritage Week” in order to promote the false narrative of the U.S. being
founded as a Christian nation. The guide warns that while these measures will be criticized as favoring Christianity, such opposition does “not play well among members of the general public,” and “making opponents take a recorded vote against them is a win in and of itself. For such
measures, a vote is a win, regardless of whether the bill passes.”


Category Three: Religious Liberty Protection Legislation includes the “most hotly contested” measures such as the “Resolution Establishing Public Policy Favoring Adoption by Intact Heterosexual, Marriage-based Families,” the “Child Protection Act,” which allows publically-funded
adoption and foster care placement agencies to discriminate against same-sex couples, and the “Teacher Protection Act” which unconstitutionally allows teachers and school administrators to proselytize to students. The guide says such legislation should not be proposed unless it can win,
and that success is more likely with measures narrowly crafted to focus on “small business owners, government employees, health care providers, pastors, adoption agencies, and so on.”

These people need to be squashed like a bug on a wind shield and if you want to help in that process…..For more information or to find out how we can help you oppose the Project Blitz agenda in your state, please visit http://www.BlitzWatch.org

None of this is what I embraced when I joined the military.

These people are dangerous and they are an infection that needs to be wiped out once and for all.

Why did people avoid the first two attempts that I made to educate and inform?

What are they afraid of….I ask one more time.

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Hillbilly Elegy: A Review

This is an IST public service announcement (PSA)……

Since Trump named JD Vance his running mate last week the author’s book has been flying off the shelves both on-line and brick and mortar bookstores.

Since I refuse to waste money on a book written by a racist blowhard I have to depend on other sources for the review.

After extensive research I found a review that might help any fence sitters decide whether this guy has a place in our nation’s leadership.

I’m no fan of Hillbilly Elegy, the 2020 movie starring Amy Adams and Glenn Close, but when I picked up the book it’s based on recently, in light of rumors that its author, J.D. Vance, would be Donald Trump’s pick for vice president, I expected it to feel more substantive than its screen adaptation.

At one time, liberal and conservative centrists alike hailed Vance’s bestselling 2016 memoir of making it out of rural, poverty-stricken Appalachia, transforming himself from a tempestuous teen into a successful Yale law school grad.

Yet years on, Vance has undergone a transformation of a different sort, remolding himself from a fairly moderate professed conservative who once compared Trump to Hitler and wrote with disdain about the outer edges of the party into a would-be authoritarian.

That’s not to say Vance doesn’t have some nuanced and even appealing positions. His populist economic instincts are a running theme of Elegy, and today he makes deals across the aisle with Democrats like Sen. Elizabeth Warren. But to understand his larger worldview, you have to look past his economic ideas to his social ideas — and to what Vance actually displays about himself throughout the book.

Perhaps readers in 2016 were eager to look past the book’s highly loaded subtext and overt classism, as the promise of a sympathetic conservative who could unlock Trumplandia for liberals was just too appealing. It also seems likely that readers loved the book because it confirmed all of the negative stereotypes they already held about country hicks. As a read on Vance himself, though, in the context of his subsequent embrace of Trump and far-right ideology, Hillbilly Elegy paints a portrait of a man obsessed with status — and brimming with contempt for just about everyone he meets.

https://www.vox.com/culture/360909/jd-vance-how-true-is-hillbilly-elegy-classism

Nothing about this ‘person’ would lead me to vote for him or any party that would have him as second to the presidential candidate.

I even posted a piece written by someone who knows the man’s story…..

Will The Real JD Vance Stand Up?

Paul Krugman put it right….”this is the man that put ‘con’ in conservatism”.

I hope this was helpful in some small way.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Ukraine: News From The Front

Surely you remember Ukraine and its troubles with Russia, right?

I’ll bet you have not been keeping up with doings there basically because the MSM has been ignoring the conflict in favor of the fluff of the election and the horror of Gaza.

Not to worry that is why you visit IST for I ignore nothing and have an opinion on just about everything.

News from around the battlefield….

The world’s attention may be elsewhere, but the Russia-Ukraine war goes on, and it appears to be trending in Vladimir Putin’s favor:

  • Front-line position lost: Ukraine’s army has pulled out from the village of Urozhaine in the eastern Donetsk region, surrendering another front-line position under a relentless Russian onslaught. The village was reduced to rubble, which “made it impossible to hold the positions there,” a Ukraine military spokesperson told the AP in a written message. Control of the village has changed hands at least three times since the Russian invasion began.
  • River position lost: Elsewhere, Ukraine troops lost a strategic position on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River near the southern city of Kherson, reports the New York Times. Ukrainian forces pulled out of the nearby village of Krynky, which is also described as being in ruins. The river divides the armies in the south, and Ukraine was trying to establish a position on the Russian-controlled eastern side.
  • Strategy: Kyiv is employing a bend-but-don’t-break strategy to buy time until it can get more Western weapons and ammunition to the front, per the AP. By ceding some territory, Ukraine has been able to fight from better defended positions, army officials and analysts say. Leaders from across Europe met in England on Thursday to discuss European security and more help for Ukraine.

Not looking good after all the weapons that the world has given to Ukraine and it still has a losing position….

Not to worry there is a new plan to raise cash for the war to continue….

Ukraine’s government proposed its first wartime hike in taxes on Thursday to raise billions of dollars in new funds for weapons and military salaries as the war with Russia nears the 29-month mark.

At its weekly meeting, the government approved draft changes to its 2024 budget law, increasing defence spending by 495.3 billion hryvnias ($11.9 billion), government officials and lawmakers said.

Until now, Ukraine has been targeting defence spending of about 1.7 trillion hryvnias for 2024. The changes still need to be backed by parliament and signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy before they enter into force.

The government also proposed an increase in taxes and other duties, ranging from a war tax paid by its residents to introducing additional duties on some imports and raising excise duties for fuel.

https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2024-07-18/ukraine-government-proposes-first-wartime-tax-hikes-to-fund-defence

This conflict is getting expensive and a drain on many NATO countries…..Germany will slash its monetary support….

Germany is planning to cut its spending on military aid for Ukraine in half next year and is telling Kyiv to look elsewhere for more funding.

According to Germany’s draft budget for 2025, Berlin will bring its spending on Ukraine to 4 billion euros ($4.35 billion), down from 8 billion euros ($8.7 billion).

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was initially reluctant to arm Ukraine and initially resisted sending heavy weapons such as tanks, citing the risk of World War III. But he eventually agreed, and Germany has become the top supplier of weapons to Ukraine in Europe.

The draft budget still needs to be finalized and could face some resistance in parliament. However, Scholz’s government officials appear set on making the cuts to cover other spending. Another issue is that Germany’s military has depleted much of its stockpiles by arming Ukraine.

According to POLITICO, German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said after the cabinet meeting that approved the draft budget that Ukraine would have to rely more on funds from other “European sources,” including a $50 billion that may be provided using frozen Russian assets.

(antiwar.com)

“Other sources” should send a shiver down the spines of American taxpayers…..for the bigger hand will be held out for more and more and more….

Finally Russian diplomat has weighed in on Trump’s promise to end the conflict in Ukraine….

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said she noted comments from former President Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance about ending the war in Ukraine but said Moscow needed to be “realistic” about the prospect.

“We saw the statements — Trump said he would resolve the conflict within 24 hours, then Vance said that China is a bigger problem for the United States than the Russia-Ukraine conflict,” she said, according to Reuters.

“It’s necessary to separate pre-election rhetoric from statements by government officials vested with the appropriate powers. If we talk about whether it’s possible to resolve the conflict, let’s be realistic,” she added.

Zakharova pointed out that during the previous Trump administration, the president and some of his advisors made statements about bringing peace to the Middle East. “They prepared for the ‘deal of the century’ for quite a long time, but it did not end in anything, and under Biden, on the contrary, a colossal historical tragedy happened,” she said.

In an interview with The New York Times last month, Vance outlined some ideas for a potential peace plan. “What I would like to do … is you freeze the territorial lines somewhere close to where they are right now. That’s number one. Number two is you guarantee both Kyiv’s independence but also its neutrality. It’s the fundamental thing the Russians have asked from the beginning,” he said. “And then three, there’s going to have to be some American security assistance over the long term. I think those three things are certainly achievable, yes.”

(antiwar.com)

On one point I agree with the Russian….”let’s be realistic”.

And there is the news of the week from the front lines in Ukraine.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden’s Out! Harris In!

 New fodder for the media.

Biden crapped all over my series that I had compiled on his public service (if it can be called that)….this is a re-post from GSFP on Biden….

Harris has been tagged in to the political battle royal….will she have what it takes?

I posted the series as to not waste my time and to inform….hopefully I did both.

Biden Is Out….Will Harris Be Our Savior??

I am thinking that if one is looking for some sort of change then they will be sadly disappointed with Harris…..she is and will always be a big money democrat.

This will be my last Biden post….times change and people go missing…..

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden’s World View Is Now That Of Harris?

****Another draft I wrote before Sunday’s announcement****

For a person like me that has a degree in international relations and the coming election I took a look at a Trump presidency…not a big fan at all.

Now to be fair I will take a look at Biden’s world view (and another view I do not like)…..

The Democratic Party is waging its 2024 electoral campaign by focusing on two themes: first, a denunciation of all that Trump proposes to bring to the presidency, centering on the destruction of American democracy if elected, and secondly, a positive domestic record of the Biden years with several notable benefits for the American people including jobs and wages, climate, energy policy, social protection, gun control, and a stock market at record highs.

What is missing from this rosy picture of America and even more so from Democratic Party advocacy is neither claims nor explanations of foreign policy, only a deafening silence. It is as if the leadership of the Democratic Party wants the voting public to forget that there is a world out there beyond national boundaries. And it has good reasons to adopt this evasive approach, especially in an election year.

And yet this national posture seems strange as the US has so heavily invested in military capabilities to secure its global dominance in the decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union over 30 years ago.  And as a consequence, finds itself currently engaged controversially in the wars raging in Ukraine and Gaza. It appears that even Biden is reluctant to claim credit in national settings for US support of Israel and Ukraine, and prefers to speak in generalities about the greatness of America as a country whose future is bright except to the extent dimmed by the threat advent of Trump and Trumpism. This tendency to ignore the world should be more troubling to American voters than even Biden’s refusal to leave the presidential stage in light of his thinly deniable disabilities of age and mental health that have put his 2024 candidacy in peril. Such an evasive pattern gives voice to absurdly grandiose, yet distorting, assessments of the present broad political situation.

https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/07/09/critiquing-bidens-worldview-democratic-party-tactics-and-americas-destiny/

US has got the world addicted to its aid both cash and weapons and Biden is the main pusher after inheriting the ‘business’ from Obama and now Harris will inherit.

I do not see the US coming to championing democracy and peace with a second Biden (read Harris) administration….

I have serious reservations about another Biden presidency.  (Reservations solved)

Looking at it from an international perspective….do you foresee any change in our forever wars with another Biden presidency and now a Harris presidency?

I do not if anything I see more of the same and even a possible expansion lurking just offshore in East Asia.

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Around The 2024 Campaign

Stop The Presses!

It is official as of yesterday…..Biden has dropped out!

President Biden on Sunday dropped his bid for reelection, as more members of his party called on him to leave the race in light of his disastrous debate performance against Republican Donald Trump. “I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the reminder of my term,” the statement says, per the Washington Post. A short time later, Biden separately announced on X his “full support and endorsement” of Vice President Kamala Harris to become the Democratic nominee.

Biden’s decision ends one political crisis and brings another, per the New York Times. It’s not clear who might replace Biden and whether the party will close ranks around Harris or begin a brief process to select someone else as nominee. It also concludes a political career covering a half-century, beginning when Biden was elected to the Senate in 1972 as one of its youngest members ever and ending with him as the oldest president ever at 82. “It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your president,” he wrote Sunday. “Democrats—it’s time to come together and beat Trump,” he said. “Let’s do this.”

The warning signs for Democrats had included Biden’s declining fortunes in polls and a withdrawal of support by big donors. One of them, Gideon Stein, on Sunday called Biden “a true American hero” and predicted the decision will lead to Democratic victory in the November election. Daniella Ballou-Aares, leader of a group organizing business executives pressuring Biden to withdraw, likened his decision Sunday to George Washington’s relinquishment of power, saying it’s “a historic precedent for selfless leadership.” Biden’s letter to the nation can be read here.

Sorry Dems but I do not think Harris is the answer.

Time is drawing close….time for us to cast our vote…..so I thought I would look at the news around the campaigns…..

Donald Trump went back on the campaign trail Saturday, in his first rally since the attempt on his life in Pennsylvania. The Michigan event also marked his first appearance outside the Republican National Convention with JD Vance, the running mate crowned by the delegates this week in Milwaukee. Trump mocked the opposition party’s chaos over whether President Biden will stay on the Democratic ticket, the Washington Post reports, asking the Grand Rapids crowd its choice for his opponent: Vice President Kamala Harris, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, or the incumbent. Biden won the voice vote. Other campaign developments involve:

Wound update: Earlier in the day, Trump posted a letter on Truth Social platform from his former doctor providing new information about the injury sustained when a gunman shot at the former president last Saturday. Rep. Ronny Jackson said Trump suffered a bullet wound at the top of his right ear that was two centimeters wide, saying the shot was “less than a quarter of an inch from entering his head,” per the AP. There’s no longer any swelling, Jackson said, adding that the injury “is beginning to granulate and heal properly.” The memo said Trump still needs to wear a bandage because of intermittent bleeding. At the rally, where Trump talked about the shooting, the white bandage of earlier in the week was replaced by a smaller, tan one.

Project 2025: Trump upped the rhetoric in putting distance between himself and Project 2025, in which allies lay out a presidential agenda for him, per the Post. He told the rally that the Heritage Foundation’s plan comes from the “severe right” and is “seriously extreme.”  (Do you truly believe he would bad mouth Heritage….I do not)

Democrats: Campaign spokesperson Michael Tyler told reporters on Saturday that details of Biden’s return to campaigning will be released “as soon as we have the green light,” per the AP. Biden is isolating in Delaware, and his doctor provided an update Saturday on the president’s COVID bout. Vice President Kamala Harris was in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where organizers reported that a fundraiser netted more than $2 million, per CNN. “We are going to win,” Harris told supporters. “It’s not going to be easy.” The Postreports that big donors are paying for an independent, early-stage vetting process for potential vice-presidential nominees, should Biden leave the ticket and Harris assume the top spot.

Biden is hold up in Delaware…..his COVID news….

President Biden still has a loose cough and hoarseness as he deals with COVID-19, his doctor reported Saturday, though the symptoms are easing. The president has now had six doses of Paxlovid, Dr. Kevin O’Connor wrote in a letter he released. He said tests showed that Biden contracted the KP.2.3 variant of COVID. About 13% of new COVID cases involve that strain, the Washington Post reports, and KP variants overall cause more than 80% of recent infections. The new variants don’t appear to be leading to more serious illnesses, experts say.

Now what about all the calls for him to step aside….how is that going?

(Apparently he saw the handwriting on the wall and took a powder)

This part of the post is a moot point….go to top and read the intro.

President Biden is recovering from COVID at his beach house in Rehoboth, Delaware, and there’s likely some fist-shaking going on in the general direction of top Democrats. Using terms like “fuming” and “increasingly resentful,” the Times paints a picture of a sitting president in an unprecedented situation: Facing a quietly orchestrated mutiny from party leaders including his old boss, Barack Obama, as well as Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, and Hakeem Jeffries, with less than a month until the Democratic National Convention.

Biden particularly blames Pelosi for the efforts to get him to step aside, reports the Times, citing sources close to Biden, but is also increasingly bitter toward Obama, who he sees as quietly pulling strings in the background and not doing anything to help his campaign. But while Biden has staunchly maintained that he’s sticking the course, in private, sources say he’s discussing how and when to bow out.

One factor in the timing of any decision is a Wednesday visit by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to address Congress. Without a ceasefire in place in Gaza, Netanyahu “will humiliate Biden,” Barbara Slavin, a fellow at think tank Stimson Center, tells DW. “It is an act of incredible chutzpah—nerve for him to show his face in Washington.” For now, Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon tells Business Insider in a statement: “You have heard from the President directly time and again: He is in this race to win, and he is our nominee, and he’s going to be our President for a second term.”

Pelosi needs to shut-up….if there is any one person that does not need to point to age it is her….she has been milking the Congressional gravy train for decades…..time for her to go away.

Time is running out….a choice must be made……now the question should be is Harris capable of beating Trump in November?

I am sure there are lots of thoughts on this election…..then let’em fly!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”