This Blog is created to stress the importance of Peace as an environmental directive. “I never give them hell. I just tell the truth and they think it’s hell.” – Harry Truman (I receive no compensation from any entry on this blog.)
Thursday, August 21, 2025
Reverend Barber has been involved with human rights for as long as I can remember.
There is a different approach to interpreting the USA Constitution as a living document rather than parchment and words.
Rucho vs, Common Cause
This is the decision that turned gerrymandering loose. This is what the court said that provided the spring board to call everything that comes before the Supreme Court politics. Of course, politics is the game that everyone in the USA plays, so why make sincere legal decisions when it is a game. So what if only the wealthy get what is needed.
Rucho v. Common Cause, No. 18-422, 588 U.S. 684 (2019) is a landmark case of the United States Supreme Court concerning partisan gerrymandering. The Court ruled that while partisan gerrymandering may be "incompatible with democratic principles", the federal courts cannot review such allegations, as they present nonjusticiable political questions outside the jurisdiction of these courts.
...while partisan gerrymandering may be "incompatible with democratic principles"...
...while partisan gerrymandering may be "incompatible with democratic principles"...
...while partisan gerrymandering may be "incompatible with democratic principles"...
...while partisan gerrymandering may be "incompatible with democratic principles"...
In 2016, (click here) Common Cause filed a lawsuit in response to congressional districts drawn by the North Carolina legislature, calling the map a partisan gerrymander that violated the U.S. Constitution.
Partisan gerrymandering, or the act of creating electoral districts that favor one party over another, silences voters and robs them of the ability to elect the candidates of their choice.
Although the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately ruled in 2019 that partisan gerrymanders cannot be challenged in federal court, Common Cause’s extensive work using the case to educate the public resulted in unprecedented nationwide attention on the need for redistricting reform.
In the wake of the decision, Common Cause is turning its attention to winning reforms in the states.
Trump is valued at $5.1 billion.
What were Republicans thinking,
Wednesday, August 20, 2025
NATO…
This is a hopeful step forward, but,...
By Jill Covin
Russian leader Vladimir Putin (click here) agreed at his summit with President Donald Trump that the United States and its European allies could offer Ukraine a security guarantee resembling NATO’s collective defense mandate as part of an eventual deal to end the war, a U.S. official said Sunday.
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, who took part in the talks Friday at a military base in Alaska, said it “was the first time we had ever heard the Russians agree to that” and called it “game-changing.”
“We were able to win the following concession: that the United States could offer Article 5-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in NATO,” Witkoff told CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Witkoff offered few details on how such an arrangement would work. But it appeared to be a major shift for Putin and could serve as a workaround to his deep-seated objection to Ukraine’s potential NATO membership, a step that Kyiv has long sought....
Putin doesn't have a choice but to seek such an agreement. Russia never stays true to it's agreements or treaties. There is a long history, especially with Ukraine, to that statement. I believe Putin needs to go forward with a peace agreement and not simply a strategic ceasefire. But, there also needs to be a great deal of detail that spells out clearly the country of Ukraine, the people of Ukraine can move against another regime like Yanukovych without any more deaths or threats to it's democracy. The details have to spell out clearly that Ukraine can not only have Article 5 protections, but, is guaranteed that Russia is getting out of Ukrainian business by allowing application to the EU and NATO (as all the other Post Soviet states) as well as a productive economic guarantee with Russia. Ukraine wanted to trade with Russia. Ukraine wanted to trade prosperity with Russia, not bullets and missiles. Ukraine was officially a neutral nation when Putin changed his mind about any and all agreements and treaties.
Oops. The leadership at the highest levels of USA government are rank amateurs.
...During the summit Friday, (click here) lunch was apparently cancelled. But it was intended to be a simple, three-course meal, the documents showed. After a green salad, the world leaders would dine on filet mignon and halibut olympia. Crème brûlée would be served for dessert.
Jon Michaels, a professor of law at UCLA who lectures about national security, said that the documents found in the printer of the Alaskan hotel reveal a lapse in professional judgment in preparation for a high-stakes meeting.
"It strikes me as further evidence of the sloppiness and the incompetence of the administration," said Michaels. "You just don't leave things in printers. It's that simple."
The printed papers are the latest example of a series of security breaches by officials of the Trump administration. Earlier this week, members of a law enforcement group chat that included members of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) added a random person to a conversation about an ongoing search for a convicted attempted murderer. In March, U.S. national security leaders accidentally included a journalist in a group chat about impending military strikes in Yemen.
Retired General Stanley McCrystal is calling Americans home.
Maybe from a political perspective it was an error to say God did not create the USA, but, that isn't what all the documents Republican rely on to make those statements. The money of the USA states, "In God We Trust." The USA does not appear in the Bible, except perhaps Trump's edition of unreality. But, in fact this country was founded by colonist across the Atlantic Ocean that managed to survive incredible odds to arrive here. Actually, that is not accurate. The beginning of the USA didn't occur until centuries after the Mayflower landed and Jamestown was built.
Washington Crossing the Delaware (click here)
The United States of America grew out of abuses of power from the former Kings and Queens of England. France was always our ally through history and certainly helped win the Revolutionary War. So, when Retired General McCrystal states, "God did not create the USA," he may be politically incorrect, but, factually he is spot on. Human beings that colonized this country fought against incredible odds and in harm climate to win the land that started of the USA out of 13 original colonies. They may or may not have had strong faith in God to see them through their battles for freedom, but, God did not create the USA out of nothing as he did in the Bible of Eden.
President Zelenskyy should recognize…
He also said “the optimism of your president is to be taken seriously. So if he considers he can get a deal done, this is great news, and we have to do whatever we can to have a great deal.”
Macron insisted that the United States must apply pressure to Russia and Putin to find a resolution, including introducing more sanctions.
If there is no progress in the bilateral meeting President Donald Trump announced between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and if a trilateral meeting falls through, “or if the Russians don’t comply with this approach, yes, we have to increase the sanctions, secondary and primary sanctions,” Macron said.
“There is an aggressor, which is Russia. There is a country which decided to kill people, stole children and who refused a ceasefire and peace, so we cannot just create an equivalent situation between Ukraine and Russia.”...
The DC iconic area guarded currently…
Tuesday, August 19, 2025
National Guard
Trump is putting on quite a show, isn’t he?
Where is Putin? That is the missing partner. I thought perhaps Vladimir was tiring of the old paradigm. Doesn’t look like it.
Monday, August 18, 2025
“I am not on anyone’s team.”
29 years of great reporting.
Rebranding can be beneficial, but, there is always the side effect that viewers and listeners can be lost along the way. I consider MSNBC an important cable channel. I think it is NBC News obligation to views to promote the new name and the places where it can be found.
Good luck to the entire crew, the new CEO, and the remarkable journalists and commentators of MS NOW.
(Click here)
Putin can end the war he started, too.
Sunday, August 17, 2025
Addressed to Vladimir Putin…
Erin is currently plowing west.
Am I understanding this currently Cat 3 storm is not making landfall? Okay, but, its immediate course would require a stalling and abrupt turn northeast if it is going to miss land. There is also the burgeoning turbulence off the southwest Florida coast as if Erin’s energy is jumping into the Gulf. That phenomenon may be possible with the troposphere as hot as it is.
I hope Erin behaves as expected but with the manifestation of turbulence off southwest Florida there may be surprises. Just being cautious.
Cautious because if Erin’s energy jumps into the Gulf it can spin upto a Cat 5 in a matter of hours, if that long.
I remind observers that storms currently move into Hurricane status because a couple of Tropical Storms move water vapor from the ocean surface to the air. That air is dry because of the conditions of the plant. But once that dry air becomes saturated we are off to the races. If water vapor is moving from Erin into the Gulf to cause higher concentrations of water vapor the spontaneous hurricane is possible. I have always believed there would be no Cat 6 storms because of the tensile strength of water vapor molecular bonds. There would always be an increase in the number of storms (year 2005) with bizarre behavior because of the fluidity of the troposphere.
Best.
Please observe the straight line from Erin to the Gulf turbulence with a weakening of the air mass between them. It is a solid straight line that indicates an energy relationship between the two.
Better to be safe than sorry. Expect the unexpected. The land masses are very hot. That water vapor is sucking up that heat.
(Click here)
HEAT TRANSFER. I have been using those two words for decades. It may be the models are missing the fact the land and ocean air masses have a real relationship in heat transfer.
Saturday, August 16, 2025
Trump is a blowhard.
Putin think he was going to get Covid? Or more worried about appearing to have small hands? At any rate, Trump’s shoes don’t fit. Seriously. Trump’s shoes don’t fit. Maybe comfortable shoes might help his poor disposition.
Putin does not have a military advantage. Trump has no concept of war or the strategies used in ways to advance a position. All Trump’s yaking is rude and inconsistent with diplomacy. Trump is defaming President Zelenskyy before they meet.
If I were Zelenskyy I would go home without a meeting with Trump for the insulting demeanor he already shows for a meeting guaranteed to fail.
Putin is engaging an offensive in the Donbas region of Ukraine to create an image of impending victory. The offensive is already failing.
The assets needed by Russia to achieve what it currently holds far out weighs the assets Ukraine has used to end Russia’s advance. This is a war of ideology. It is not a rational war to end suffering and bring about peace.
It is up to Zelenskyy to decide how much Ukraine can endure past what it already has suffered. Ukraine has no shame in this war. It is an amazing reality that all Putin can even ask for is next to nothing compared to its original ambition.
In my very humble opinion, Zelenskyy should not settle for a ceasefire. He is the victor already in the magnificence of the Ukraine military. They have out performed and out lasted any expected initiative. Zelenskyy has the right to be proud of his country and the valiant war thus far. A ceasefire will provide a breather for an exhausted Russia, but, a peace agreement would be a treasure and the time to regroup to change the outcomes of further Russian advances against Ukraine and ultimately NATO.
The United States of America will never oppose NATO. President Zelenskyy should be reassured to that reality. Trump is simply an actor on a stage without authority. As an elected president he is supposed to reflect the values of my country, not pretend to dictate them.
The most important man in the world.
Friday, August 15, 2025
President Putin doesn’t want a ceasefire.
The two presidents agreed to meet again.
How many Russian oligarchs came with Putin? They didn’t give him a jet.
A ceasefire would cost Russia whatever advantage it thinks it has in Ukraine. In stating he is not interested in losing ground and retreating from Donbas however subtly, the stalemate continues. Putin’s politics demands he unite all the Russian speaking people. It isn’t workable unless he can return to an era of benevolence and common economic interests with the Free World.
Trump is probably hoping to talk NATO down because of the massive loss of life. Trump must be disappointed. The summit was not prepared in a way that maps guarantees of protected sovereignty for all parties.
See, to NATO and Ukraine this is not about politics. It is about national security. Putin defines national security as “Russian speaking people.” That is not a defensible argument. Russian speaking people have no borders. That vague definition only allows for more hostilities in the future.
Ceasefire, at this point, is about any military advantage that can be gained by Russia. Putin seems to believe a ceasefire is not advantageous. A ceasefire is suppose to illustrate a path forward to peace, not simple a military strategy.
With the loss of life to date and Putin walking away from the opportunity to stem those deaths, he does not place human lives in a place of priority. Saving further losses of Russian speaking people is not as important as the communist political agenda.
I sincerely believe this meeting was to incentivize Trump to leave the NATO alliance. With an agenda that ambitious by Putin there is no chance for productive diplomacy. If Trump sincerely wants a ceasefire leading to peace he needs to have clear goals and guarantees for all parties.
One can only hope Vladimir Putin is more than nostalgic of past benevolence between the USA and Russia. Perhaps that can be leveraged into peace. It has a chance.
Said differently. Putin came to leverage Trump against NATO. The nostalgia was to propagandize a sentiment that would play well on Truth Social providing Trump with a reason to abandon the friends and allies we have as he is brazen enough to do. Idealize a new world order where communists are stronger and better allies than the world we have now. See, in such a world order NATO is a weakling. An undesirable ally with less muscle than all the strongman dictators.
It is propaganda without substance.
I take it the New Start Treaty was not entertained.
Thursday, August 14, 2025
The Alaskan Summit isn't really about Trump. It is about Putin.
By Mary Louise Kelly, Kat Lonsdorf
Thousands of nuclear arms had been left on Ukrainian soil by Moscow after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. But in the years that followed, Ukraine made the decision to completely denuclearize.
In exchange, the U.S., the U.K. and Russia would guarantee Ukraine's security in a 1994 agreement known as the Budapest Memorandum (click here).
Now, that agreement is front and center again.
Mariana Budjeryn of Harvard University spoke with All Things Considered about the legacy of the Budapest Memorandum and its impact today....
Tuesday, August 12, 2025
Ukraine
Why is Trump interested in the Smithsonian?
Trump is compromised.
This is great news.
Stop looking at the National Guard as a threat.
It looks as though “The Epstein Family” is small.
Ever hear the expression..
…,”Do you think the world owes you a living?”
Well. I never thought much about it when I heard it, as it is a way a parent puts life into perspective for a young person. But, today, when I reflect on those words it describes Donald John Trump completely.
I think that can be his own motto: “The world owes me a living.”
Rarely would a mayor or police chief consider any circumstances in a city the need for National Guard troops. But, in some ways if it lends help to the daily tasks of police officers, what can it hurt?
There is one thing, the National Guard is not trained to do police work. They are trained as support staff in emergencies or in assistance to the USA military. I am worried the National Guard will be ordered beyond their training and have consequences no one expected. So, I wish them success in carrying out a domestic initiative to extend the potential of a city’s police work.
I think the LAPD should be able to speak to what to expect with the National Guard.
The country should realize this is all about visuals for infotainment “Trutj Social.” Unfortunately, the Blue States are the stage for Trump’s performance.
I hope something good comes of it.