Items from The Nation Dec 21, 2015

One of every seven black children has a parent in "behind bars', while one in every 57 white children do.  Jailing of blacks, while obviously impacting the male black population, is also having a huge negative impact of children, something that is not often noted.

Ralph Nader, consumer advocate, wrote Unsafe At Any Speed causing a major impact on auto safety in this country.  It is noted that his book caused the creation by LBJ of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  The standards the NHTSA created (safety regulations) "reduce(d) the rate of deaths per mile driven by nearly 80 %"...saving as many as 3.5 million lives (some experts claim).

"Laissez-faire" is really "laissez isn;t always fair" re article on Nader.  There are three ways that capitalism can be improved by government.  First, prohibit, like discrimination in hiring.  Second, mandate "floors of behaviour" like how much pollution can be tolerated.  Third, disclosure of things like nicotine and tar in cigarettes, or industrial pollution, or cribs that kill, etc.

United States history;  the period after the Civil War was marked by and increase in democracy-former slaves could vote.  That was called Reconstruction.  That was followed by a reduction is voting rights for black, a period called Redemption.  Then with the passage of the Voting Right Act in 1965 (VRA) a period called the Second Reconstruction.  Now with the Roberts Court and the gutting of the VRA we have a Second Redemption period.  What next?

Some thoughts for today Dec 13

One of our few key Arab allies in the Middle East has just now decided to let women vote.  Saudi Arabia- an oil rich dictatorship with human rights issues and possible support for Islamic terrorist-is a partner of ours in bringing democracy to that part of the world.  Doesn't seem to me like the plan is working.

In an op ed article in The Record today a writer for the Bloomberg news noted that a "erstwhile Republican campaign icon" (?) wrote a letter to a father who lost a child in a shooting rampage in California in 2014 and said that while he sympathized with the father for the loss of his child he also said "...your dead kids don't trump my Constitutional rights".  Could someone have really sent that letter?

The Navy reported today that its newest ship-USS Milwaukee-broke down at sea on the way to its home port in Mayport, FL and had to be towed home by a salvage ship.  This is the littoral combat ship (whatever that is) 

My Bio re Ben Carson.

I was just re-reading the Ben Carson bio the other day and I thought I should up-date my own.

Just in case I decide to run for president one day (of my nursing home), I thought it would be wise to start on my biography so that I could use it for a campaign book at that time.

My life started at a young age and the first memory I have is the attack on my mother when I was 8 years old.  She had tried to limit my time reading smutty magazines so I attacked her with a meat cleaver.  But it wasn't too serious, other than to drive our car with on one arm (standard shift); it was only a "flesh wound".

In high school it was during the time of the Soviet space shot of Sputnik.  Students in my school were very much enraged as this was the time of the Cold War and many kids wore t-shirts with phrases like "Kill a Commie for Mommy" on them.  Tensions were very high and at that time there was a foreign exchange student, a Union of Soviet Socialist Republican, who was under threat of physical abuse.  I took it upon myself to shelter the young lade-whose ID number was 34-22-34...wait that was another number.  Well never mind that.  At risk to myself i sheltered the young lady in the back of my family station wagon in the parking lot of the high school; the school backed on to a wooded area and was very private.  We had to hide under blankets to keep from being seen by the squads of roaming students bent on violence toward this young thing.  It was touch and go the entire time.

Nearing graduation I was in a quandary as to where to continue my education.  I was pleased to have received a full scholarship to the Electoral College, but realizing that I would only have to go to class one day every four years, it was obvious that completion of a degree would have taken a lifetime.  For that reason I decided to enroll in NorthEast Puduck University in rural Missouri.  It was just a coincidence that the Union of Soviet Socialist Republican babe was enrolled at the same school (in order to escape form those right wing nut jobs in my high school).

It was at NEPU that I encountered personal violence of the extreme nature when I was held at gunpoint by a gang of gun toting militia members in a Mexican fast food exchange.  They were determined to find the cook's helper-a Mexican-and do violence to him.  I protected him by shoving him into the meat locker.  Unfortunately, I forgot that I hid him there till the next week when he was found frozen stiff.  I tried to do the right thing but in fact I just f---ed it up.

I will continue with my bio at some later time.  Stay tuned.

Pentagon Spending

The US spent $ 150 million on "unnecessary housing(villas)" and security for an ultimately doomed Pentagon (effort) to revitalize Afghanistan's "economy" according to a "congressional  watchdog".  This reported on huffingtonpost.com 12/3/15.  Those in the housing could have stayed in the US Embassy in Kabul for a fraction of the cost.  A Pentagon "task force" on business operations spent $ 800 million between 2009 and 2014.  "Billions in US spending on Afghanistan "may have been misspent due to "poor American and Afghan management".  Why don't we spend that money to "revitalize" Detroit?.

Hawaii and the US Supreme Court

Hawaii may be on to something.  Many there want an election to determine if a new status for the island is needed; the Supreme Court ruled it could not hold that election.  If they were to become a "break away republic" the US would have to invade and then billions of dollars in construction and aid costs would occur, just like in other counties we invade (Iraq and Afghanistan).  Hawaii could stay in the Union and be ignored or revolt and be heard. 

It would place us in a situation like Russia when faced with the loss of their Black Sea naval base they had to invade Crimea when the Ukraine broke away from Russia.  We would have to invade Hawaii to protect Pearl Harbor.

On a bright note, conservatives could then claim that Barack Obama was not born in the United States and repeal the last eight years.

Some Thoughts for Today

The 2016 fiscal year military budget has been approved by the US Senate by a vote of 91 to 3.  The total amount is $ 607 billion and makes provisions for a pay raise of 1.3 %, a 401(k) style retirement plan and a ban on the closure of the prison camp at Guantanamo Bay Cuba (which come election time the GOP will blast Obama for not closing as he promised when elected).  There is $ 51 billion "for US combat operations abroad" and "$ 715 million to help Iraqi forces fight Islamic State and $ 406 million to boost Syrian opposition forces" (something we were told was a complete failure and going to be shut down).  Another $ 50 billion for active duty and retiree health care.  The issue that I have a problem with is that less than 10 % of this budget is for military activities in the field of combat.  So where does the rest of the money going?  Into someones pocket, I would guess.  (Info from "How they Voted" in The Virginian Pilot on 9/15/15).

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Racism in America.  An article in The Virginian Pilot on 11/22/15 reports on a World War II military unit of African American women from Virginia.  They were the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion and were the "first and only all-black women's Army unit sent overseas".  Their job was to organize the mail delivery system to the troops in the field.  The article was about the families of two of the women who served in that unit and had died recently.  It was reported that in Virginia, educational opportunities for blacks was limited due to the fact that the state didn't offer high school classes for African Americans before 1934.  It is also noted that "Jim Crow" was present in Europe for these women.  When several of the women from the 6888th were selected for a WAC all-star basketball team went to London in 1945 to compete they were told "official policy forbade mixed race teams" so they could not compete.  At the same time the Red Cross wanted to but the black players in a segregated hotel; they refused to patronize.

(Source:  "Delivering Morale" by James F. Lee of the VP)

Immigration Policy

Some incomplete thoughts on the issue of immigration in this country today.  Why not create a policy where the present immigrants in this country would be granted permanent legal status as "resident aliens".  That way they could be granted some legal and workplace protection.  They  would be expected to pay social security taxes as well other taxes that they are obligated to.  They would not be citizens so they could not vote (which should put the conservative mind at rest).  Maybe most important of all, their children born in the US would be recognized  by all as being US citizens (even thou they are already, it would also serve to end the argument of "birthright citizenship".  A major plus of this policy would be the wages earned would be subject to FICA taxation thus bulking up the Social Security Trust Fund.  Maybe the biggest benefit of this approach would be to bring the 11 million people here illegally out from the shadows providing them a better life and providing the nation with a needed workforce.

August 2015 Stock Market news

In an article in The Record on Sunday 8/23/2015 it was noted that because gas prices have fallen, consumers have more money in their pockets.  But, to the dismay of businesses, those consumers are opting to "pay off debt instead of going shopping".  It seems to me that the business community wants to pay as little as possible for labor while also wanting those with less to spend what little they do have on the products of the business community.  It proves that the economy will be in the crapper until the consumers have some real reason to begin to spend again.

The South and the Civil War

I have made comments on this forum in the past about the coming of the Civil War with the intention of showing that the South had no reason to secede and by doing so only managed to bring down destruction on themselves.

Another example of this concept is one of the compromises from the Constitutional Convention in the 1780's.  The "three fifth's compromise" is always noted for his disparaging comment about African-American slaves; three-fifths of a person.  I think another way of looking at this compromise is the advantage it gave to the slave holding southern states.  The compromise involved the counting of persons (in a census) for purposes of representation in Congress and maybe more importantly in the Electoral College.  The south got votes for a population they considered property and not able to vote, hold office or have any privileges of citizens.  That plus the Constitution gave the south the ability to import more slaves for twenty years after the signing and then to continue to count slaves who were "bred" on the plantation, many times by the owners themselves.  This gave the south more electoral power than they deserved and a greater influence on passing legislation.  

My original position that the South had few real reasons to withdraw from the Union as they were basically in control of the debate over slavery and all other issues that may have derived from slavery.

Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission

President Harry Truman, after the atomic bombing of the Japanese city of Nagasaki, created this commission to "study the health impact on survivors in order to better protect Americans in case of attacks".  The commission's doctors examined those injured by the bombing and suffering from radiation poisoning by photographing them, taking blood samples and semen samples.   However they "...did not treat them".  I hate to make the comparison, but it almost sounds like Nazi doctors conducting experiments on prisoners of war to see how long they would live under certain conditions.  That was considered a war crime at Nuremberg after WWII for which we executed German officials.

(Source: The Virginian Pilot on 8/9/15.  I did not record the writer or title of article)

The battle flag and the Civil War

Pardon me for offering a history lesson on the Confederate Battle Flag and the reason it came into existence, the Civil War.  Most wars are unnecessary and lead to "most of the troubles of the world" as spoken by Ashley Wilkes in Gone With the Wind and the Civil War is no exception.

The southern states-led by South Carolina-had no reason to secede.  They had won the argument over slavery that had been growing since the Missouri Compromise of 1820.  I would note the following:

1.  The Compromise of 1850 gave the slave states freedom (I hate to use that word here) to bring slaves into an area once prohibited to slavery; that being New Mexico and Utah.

2.  That 1850 compromise also gave the slave states a "more stringent Fugitive Slave Law", meaning escaped slaves in the north were required to be returned to their owners with the help of federal and state officials.

3.  The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 made the Compromise of 1820 null and void, or unconstitutional.

4.  Then in 1857 the Supreme Court came out with the Dred Scott decision declaring that it was unconstitutional to ban slaves in the territories.  

5.  Up till the election of 1860 the Democratic Party controlled all three branches of government and had nearly done so for many years.

6.  The Democratic candidate in 1860-Stephen Douglas- supported a plan to allow settlers of the new territories to decide for themselves the status of slavery in their territory.  (He did advise on how that could be ignored, in order to win a Senate seat in Illinois).

7.  If the southern democrats who supported John Breckinridge supported Douglas and those who supported John Bell (Union Party) had supported Douglas it is very possible Lincoln would have lost to Douglas and the democrats would have continued to hold the Presidency, giving South Carolina no reason to leave the Union.

8.  The Supreme Court ruling (Dred Scott) meant that slavery was legal in all territories and only a constitutional amendment could have changed that, something not likely to occur with southern states still in the Union and voting.

9.  With even the south's most dreaded opponent-Lincoln-the institution would have been guaranteed existence in the places where it all ready existed.

Back to the original question of what was the need of the south to secede.  There was nothing left to argue, they had won them all.  Hell, if anyone should have seceded it would have been the New England states (imagine how history would have changed if New England seceding and joining Canada and the western territories were up for grabs).  I also wonder if the racial situation in this country could have been any worse fi the Civil War never happened.

The south wanted war-certainly South Carolina did-and the other ten states went along.  And as classical literature once noted "you loose the dogs of war" and there is no controlling where they go.

You would think the south would want to down-play the decision that caused so much violence, death and destruction instead of remember their folly by waving the battle flag.

Iran and Israel

I am reminded of a bit of history while reading about the issue of Iran and its nuclear power program, or as Israel claims, it's nuclear weapons program.  Prior to 1914 German and Austria-Hungry were in the same place.  The German government gave Austria-Hungry a "blank-check" to deal with their problem with the nation of Serbia.  History tells us that a Serbian nationalist assassinated an heir to the throne of Austria and the Austrian government wanted to use the issue to force Serbia to give in to its demands.  They were, by the way, not that concerned about the Archduke and his wife-the victims-as they were not well liked by his family or the country.  But the incident provided Austria with a opportunity to gain back some land lost in the Balkans to new countries in the region.  So, in the popular vernacular, Germany told Austria "we got your back" and the Austrians used it to make unreasonable demands on Serbia.  Even after these demands were met the Austrians declared war on the smaller nation.  Now the you-know-what hits the fan and German was stuck with a situation that soon developed into a world war; the "great war" as historians note, and the world or at least Europe was never the same.  We should recall that the generals in 1914 are like the military-industrial complex today; just itching for a chance to use their war plans and weapons.

We are in that place now with our willingness to back Israel is whatever they want in regard to Iran and their nuclear power/weapons program.  If we make the same mistake of granting a "blank check" to an ally without making every effort to restrict their military actions, we very likely could be drawn into a war in a region that is already a powder keg ready to explode.  If that happens a lot of innocent people will be killed or made homeless.  As the Indian proverb goes, "When the elephants fight, only the ants get stomped".

Greece 2015

Greece seems to be on the verge of collapse, economically at least.  This post will be an attempt to record some of the issues.  As on July 15th the country has recieved an additional bail out from the European Union.  It seems one of the provisions of that plan is an increase in sales tax, making everything the Greek citizen buys more expensive.  Many are rioting at this time.  When there last year we saw the evidence of he last time the country rioted because of the recessions there.  Graffiti was everywhere.

One issue may be the reluctance of the Greek citizen to pay taxes.  Some say that harks back to a time when the Ottoman Turks ruled the country and to not pay taxes was seen as a form of patriotism; but hell that was way over 100 years ago.  Now it is said the reluctance comes from the believ that the govt is corrupt.

On reported income earned by the underground economy is one issue, it could amount to 25 % of the gross domestic product.  The IMF says that tax evasion is a big problem,  "Tax debts in Greece equal about 90 % of annual tax revenue" that is the hightest among industrialized nations.  A chart I found on a Google search indicated that from 2008 to 2010 tax collection % fell from just over 60 % to just over 50 %.  This while other countires the figure is in the high 90's.

The bail out recently was for 85 billion euroes or 95 billion dollars.  Unpaid taxes since 2009 were 76 billion euroes or 86 billion dollars. 

Might be an on-going file.

A Lesson From the Sixties

Protest in the 1960's occurred while the economy was still in good shape and people felt comfortable and secure in their jobs and homes.  This resulted in the middle class having time and personal security to afford to be able to concern themselves with issues like civil rights, war, and segregation and discrimination, and they protest all those issues fully.

In the 1970's the economic conditions turned sour causing many people to be concerned more about that job and security of their home and family; the "bread and butter" issues became more important than issues of society's wrongs.

Maybe this was planned by those who run this country, who were fed-up with the masses protesting issues that rocked the boat and threatened to end the privileged position of those who run the country.  If they could divert everyone's attention from the society's problems by causing people to worry about their own security then the "establishment" could continue to rule without interference from the mass.

This was accomplished by driving down wages, destroying the union movement, shipping jobs and money overseas and changing the tax laws to benefit the wealthy.  By making people more fearful they could make them more manageable and in the process increase their own wealth to obscene levels not seen since the Gilded Age.

This would quality as a "conspiracy theory" of some kind.

"The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself" said FDR

While the government diverts our attention by one scare or another-Ebole one day, ISIS another, Social Security bankruptcy another, and then back to the old stand-by, Terrorism-they allow the plutocrats to find ways to stick it to the rest of us.  Now I read that NJ wants to raise a gas tax by eliminating the estate tax.  How greedy can the one percent get?  Take away a tax on the extremely wealthy and replace it with a sales tax, that as all sales taxes, is a dis-proportionate burden on the lower classes.  Is there no limit to how far the rich will push the envelope (in my opinion, there isn't)?  Thomas Jefferson once wrote that people will bear suffering until a certain point and then they will respond;  I don't want to be around when they do.

Remember Jefferson's words:  "All experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, then to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed".

US Elections: A Modest Proposal

After reading The Nation 6/8/15 on the "Wealth Primary" and the need for presidential candidates to raise money, it occurred to me we should change our election process.  Lets just auction off every political office in the country to the highest bidder.  That way the money that "buys an election" will go to the government and not to some multi-million dollar ad agency or media empire. 

Ok, so its a crazy idea some might say, but the wealthy run the country anyway, they should be able to pick their leader.  In that way candidates don't have to debase themselves kissing up or lying thru their teeth to us about what they will do once in office.  These promises are mostly forgotten anyway.  You know, Bush the compassionate conservative or Obama the anti war candidate (Iraq).

The money made by the auction should be earmarked for some domestic purpose depending on the level of government the candidate seeks.  The money raised by those wishing to be President would go to the federal government to be used for infrastructure repair or social security or education or whatever the nation needs most. 

Money raised by those wishing to be House or Senate members should be split evenly between the federal and state governments and used for domestic issues to be determined by those levels of government.

Money raised by those wishing to be Governor or Lt Gov should be earmarked for the state to spend on domestic issues.  Likewise, those running for country office and town should be used by those jurisdictions for their needs.

The bidding can be done on E-Bay and open to all those who meet the qualifications as set forth in the US Constitution.  This would be conducted over a 30 day period to allow the rest of us to watch to gain some entertainment value from.  This would also negate the need for all those annoying phone calls for this candidate or that candidate, all those political signs up and down the highway (in the name of full disclosure I  must admit this might make my collection of political signs more valuable), the endless TV and radio commercials saying what a lard-ass some someone else is or how many times they have committed an unspeakable sexual act in a men's (or women's) room on the NJ Turnpike.

We can also make a lottery out of this by allowing people to place bets on who would win.  This way the "electorate" is given a little taste of a remaining free election process.

As I said at the beginning, this is only a modest proposal and one that will need to be improved on if a number of people agree with the idea.

Obama and Gun Violence.

In response to the killing of nine people in a Charleston, SC church because of their race, calls for change have been many.  Some of demanded the removal of the Confederate battle flag being taken down from the grounds of the state capital in SC and many have called for more control over who can buy a handgun.  President Obama comments that things will not change until "the American people feel a sufficient sense of urgency" and say this is not normal in a society.

I have said before, after Columbine, and Sandy Hook that I for one make a pledge to not vote for any politician who takes money or support from the NRA or the Gun Owners of America.  That will apply for every office for which an election is the way to pick the office holder.  That might leave me with no one of the major parties to vote for, but there will always be a minor party with someone with gun money.  If we all took this pledge then things would change.  I am not talking about denying gun ownership to hunters or those who have a legitimate need for one.  Just get in registered and don't allow anyone to sell a gun without a background check and a licence to sell.  The Second Amendment does include the words "well regulated" in regard to gun ownership and that's all most people are asking.

US Aircraft Carriers

Since 1968 the United States had built 14 aircraft carriers; ten of those named for Presidents of the country. There were the Kennedy Eisenhower, T. Roosevelt, Lincoln, Washington, Truman, Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Ford and a second JFK.  The next one (you know there will a next one) should be named the Bush W. Bush.  It could be the first all-drone naval vessel.  It could be programmed to fire automatically whenever something got in its way.  

Iraq War

Iraq War question should be did you oppose the war from the get go, not this bullshit about "knowing what we know now, would you have opposed it".  I said from day one that the war was the worst mistake we could have made in over 50 years of foreign policy.  I believe that has proven to be correct.  If a candidate for president didn't know what I did they should not be in the running to lead this country.

US Economic System

Our economic system seems to have it all wrong.

We drive down wages by destroying unions, refusing to raise the minimum wage, and shipping jobs overseas.  Those workers make so little they don't owe-or pay very little-income taxes, while also getting government benefits in the form of food stamps.  On one hand that results in less revenue coming into the federal treasury while at the same time more money going out to make up the difference from what companies are refusing to pay their workers.  All in all less revenue to pay for the services and programs people need.

On the other hand we allow more and more wealth to accumulate into the pockets of the very wealthy or almost very wealthy.  We then create a  tax structure that limits the amount of revenue the government can acquire from the rich.  We allow those making just under half a million dollars a year to pay a Bush II era tax cut rate.  We tax capital gains at a lower rate than regular income, we tax unearned income (interest and dividends) at a reduced rate than earned income and are about to approve a plan to eliminate inheritance taxes on the extremely wealthy.

If that's not bad enough already, the corporations owned by the very wealthy  take their headquarters off-shore to avoid paying income taxes.

Could we possibly have created a system that is more ---- up?  The reality of an economic system is the average citizen and the spending they do is what keeps an economy strong; the rich have the money but they don't spend enough of it to make up the difference of the paucity of spending by the average person who only had enough to afford the bare necessities.  All of this and we continue to spend for defense like we were still fighting World War II.  

This country-if we keep this up-is heading for a major fall.

Life of a Nation

Life of a nation is a constant conflict between two opposing forces.  One force consists of those business interests who are motivated by monetary gain and maybe a general idea of what they want is also good for the nation as a whole.  This force is never ending and constantly renewed with new believers in private gain.  There will always be a force of this nature and it requires no new motivation to exist or keep active.

The other force is composed of those who believe a policy is wrong or unethical on moral grounds so they organize to oppose it.  This force needs constant re-birth as the causes or evils change and people lose interest or  die away.  There is not an immediate supply of believers.  This force will be plagued by the reality that most people will get worn down by the scale of their opposition, will just say "what the hell" give up and go home.  They cannot possibly present a organized consistent opposition to the force of business interests-especially when those interests control government policy.

TPP

The Senate democrats have agreed to go along with the trade deal President Obama and the republicans want.  It seems the debate will continue but a formal vote has not been taken.  I thought it of interest that the democrats went along when they "...reached agreement with republicans for votes on other enforcement measures to protect workers who lose jobs as a result of exports".  Doesn't that agreement mean that the trade deal-TPP-will result in the lose of American jobs, and if so, why in the hell has the Senate agreed to it?

(The Virginian Pilot on 5/15/15).

Guns

Congressman Scott Rigell of the 2nd CD in Virginia, a republican, has proposed legislation to allow wives or husbands of sailors and other service members to be allowed to  buy a gun outside their home state.  Current law requires those purchasing a gun must buy it in the state in which they live.  Rigell believes that service members are required to move from base to base, thus they need to buy outside their home state to protect themselves "from Islamic extremists, foreign and domestic and lone wolves" (what about other wild animals?).  Considering the number of military personnel who return from overseas duty with post tramatic stress disorder or feelings of suicide, this does not sound like a great idea to me.  (VP 5/14/15).

Political corruption and Citizens United

We create a system where corporations can give politicians an unlimited amount of money (Citizens United Supreme Court ruling) by saying they (corporations) are people and have a First Amendment right to free speech, thus allowing them to spend to their heart's content.

Then we prosecute a politician who takes the money the court rules is legal to give.

If we are going to go after pols who are influenced by donations-donations they need to win reelection-then lets ban all donations to political candidates and go with public financing and require the media to provide free air or print time to all candidates from recognized parties.

Get the money out of politics.  Of course, that may mean no-one will want to run.