I am not sure why the political right wing seems to value the Employment Participation Rate over the Unemployment Rate. Could it be politics.

Definition of the "Participation Rate" in employment (click here for video)

A measure of the active portion of an economy's labor force. The participation rate refers to the number of people who are either employed or are actively looking for work. The number of people who are no longer actively searching for work would not be included in the participation rate. During an economic recession, many workers often get discouraged and stop looking for employment, as a result, the participation rate decreases.

Breaking Down the Participation Rate

The participation rate is an important metric to note when looking at unemployment data because unemployment figures reflect the number of people who are looking for jobs but are unable to secure employment.  The participation rate is important in analyzing the unemployment rate. Those who have no interest in working are not included in the participation rate but are included in the unemployment rate. An aging population can have both a positive and negative effect on the participation rate, through retirement and new people entering the workforce. The participation rate and unemployment data should be observed in tandem to give a better understanding of the overall employment status....

The focus is ill conceived. To the left is the current 'trend' in employment participation. The sad aspect of this graph is the "Baby Boomer" generation is falling out of the work force. The Baby Boomers would have entered the work force starting in 1965.

When looking at the history of the employment participation rate, it is best to realize the AGES of the citizens not participating in 2015. The 2008 Global Economic Collapse occurred as the Baby Boomers were coming into retirement age.

The economic collapse helped to stimulate retirement as the 60 somethings when they faced loss of their jobs. There is going to be a higher participation rate in 2015 than 1965 because of the new generations. But, it should not be completely alarming there is a lower participation rate after 2008 because the Boomers are retiring. The youngest of this generation will be 50 years old this year. 

The idea there are employable citizens currently that have given up is going to be accurate, but, not to the extent a political right wing wants to claim it to be so. 

Chinese oligarchs participating in American elections.

November 3, 2015
By Daniel Stevens

Today, Campaign for Accountability (CfA) (click here) asked the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the Federal Election Commission to investigate Sheldon Adelson and the Las Vegas Sands Corporation's (LVS) ties to Chinese organized crime in its Macau operations and determine whether illegally laundered foreign funds are making their way into the campaign coffers of American politicians.
Internal company documents show that LVS maintains a business relationship with a Cheung Chi Tai, identified as the leader of a triad – a Chinese organized crime ring – by the Senate committee in the early 1990s.  LVS also has a relationship with Ng Lap Seng, a Chinese billionaire currently facing criminal charges in the Southern District of New York.  Mr. Ng is described in a report commissioned by LVS as a member of a triad and as controlling prostitution in Macau. 
CfA Executive Director Anne Weismann stated, "Sheldon Adelson is one of the largest if not the largest political donor in history.  Federal authorities have long been concerned about the reach of the tentacles of Chinese organized crime.  If triad money is winding up in the campaign coffers of U.S. politicians through Mr. Adelson's contributions, the American people deserve to know it."...

July 7, 2013
By Hannah Dreier

 Las Vegas Sands Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson, second right, and his wife, Miriam Ochsorn, right, look at a model of the Sands Cotai Central resort during a news conference in Macau on Wednesday, April 12, 2012 to announce the launch of the $4.4-billion complex in Macau, a special administrative region of China. Photo by The Associated Press.
 
...The center of the gambling world (click here) has shifted 16 time zones away to a tiny spit of land on the southern tip of East Asia.
An hour’s ferry ride from Hong Kong and an afternoon flight from half the world’s population, Macau is the only place in China where casino gambling is legal.
Each month, 2.5 million tourists flood the glitzy boomtown to try their luck in neon-drenched casinos that collect more winnings than the entire U.S. gambling industry. The exploding ranks of the Chinese nouveau riche sip tea and speak in hushed tones as they play at baccarat, a fast-moving game where gamblers are dealt two cards and predict whether they will beat the banker.
The textile factories that stood shoulder to shoulder with small-time gambling halls as recently as the early 2000s have given way to hulking American-run enterprises larger than anything found in the states. The gangs, prostitutes and money-launderers that once operated openly in this town half the size of Manhattan have at least receded from public eye.
“It was a swamp,” said Sheldon Adelson, CEO of Las Vegas Sands, as he looked back on his early, risky venture in the forgotten colonial outpost.
“They wanted to change the face of Macau from the gambling dens to that of conventions and resorts,” he added during recent testimony, flashing a jack-o-lantern grin and boasting that it would have taken a genius to imagine the profits that he could reap there....

The Keystone XL Pipeline was never symbol. That is propaganda.

I thank President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry. The Keystone XL Pipeline was never viable as a source of oil for the USA.

The decision was NEVER up to TransCanada.

What does it take to get the FACTS through a pathetic media that panders for political viewership. 

The Alberta Tar Sands is the most carbon intensive fuel on Earth next to the burning of Peat. The FACTS are all there. 

It is not a litmus test of the environmental community. This is ridiculous. Completely. 

When does the propaganda stop? 

 

Chronic computer use does lead to illness and disability.

E3 Journal of Business Management and Economics Vol.2(4). pp. 171-182, October, 2011 
Available online http://www.e3journals.org/JBME 
ISSN 2141-7482 © 2011 E3 Journals

Computer Users at Risk: Health disorders associated with prolonged computer use

Abida Ellahia*, M. Shahid Khalilb, Fouzia Akramaa 
Department of Technology Management IIU, Islamabad Pakistan Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Department, UE Taxila 
Pakistan Accepted 30 September 2011
 
Conclusion 

This study (click here)  has made an attempt to investigate the simultaneous pervasiveness of the most common computer related disorders among computer users which are carpal tunnel syndrome, computer related stress, computer vision syndrome and musculoskeletal disorders. Employees are current and students are future assets for companies. The revolution of computerized workplace is creating certain health risks for both employees and students. This study is relevant to industry because employees’ jobs are making them sick, turn placing huge burden for organizations. Organizations can provide training of ergonomics to employees, thus, ensuring safety of its human assets. By analyzing the results and findings, it is concluded that Prolonged computer use (i-e more than four hours daily) creates several...

Text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (click here)

The text of the Agreement was released by TPP Parties on 5 November 2015 and can be accessed by chapter below. The text will continue to undergo legal review and will be translated into French and Spanish language versions prior to signature....

November 5, 2015

By Krista Hughes and Matt Siegel

U.S. unions, lawmakers and interest groups (click here) questioned the long-awaited text of a landmark U.S.-backed Pacific trade deal on Thursday, setting up a potentially long and difficult path to ratification by the United States, the biggest of the 12 partners.

Arguments over the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, aimed at cutting taxes and tariffs on commerce in 40 percent of the world's economy, are set to focus on transparency and how the pact affects workers and businesses.

"It's worse than we thought,” Lori Wallach, director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, told reporters on a conference call after examining the full text of the pact, which was unveiled early on Thursday.

U.S. labor representatives, who had already voiced opposition to the deal, said the agreement contained weak, poorly worded or unenforceable provisions....

President Assad should know if they found something or manufactured it.

Mustard Gas is more a genocidal agent than a war compliment. It's effects are found in the long term and not the immediacy of the battlefield.

November 5, 2015
By Anthony Deutsch

Chemical weapons experts (click here) have determined that mustard gas was used in a Syrian town where Islamic State insurgents were battling another rebel group, according to a report by an international watchdog seen by Reuters. A confidential Oct. 29 report by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), a summary of which was shown to Reuters, concluded "with the utmost confidence that at least two people were exposed to sulfur mustard" in the town of Marea, north of Aleppo, on Aug. 21.

"It is very likely that the effects of sulfur mustard resulted in the death of a baby," it said.

The findings provide the first official confirmation of use of sulfur mustard, commonly known as mustard gas, in Syria since it agreed to destroy its chemical weapons stockpile, which included sulfur mustard.
The report did not mention Islamic State, as the fact-finding mission was not mandated to assign blame, but diplomatic sources said the chemical had been used in the clashes between Islamic State and another rebel group taking place in the town at the time.
"It raises the major question of where the sulfur mustard came from," one source said. "Either they (IS) gained the ability to make it themselves, or it may have come from an undeclared stockpile overtaken by IS. Both are worrying options."
Syria is supposed to have completely surrendered the toxic chemicals 18 months ago. Their use violates U.N. Security Council resolutions and the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention....

Sulfur mustard is a type of chemical warfare agent. (click here)  These kinds of agents cause blistering of the skin and mucous membranes on contact. They are called vesicants or blistering agents. .

...Sulfur mustard is not found naturally in the environment.

Sulfur mustard was introduced in World War I as a chemical warfare agent. Historically it was available for use in the treatment of a skin condition called psoriasis. Today it has no medical use....

Excuse for #43 and a therapy tour for JEB!. I don't think so.

November 5, 2015
By Peter Baker

Washington — After years of holding back, (click here) former President George Bush has finally broken his public silence about some of the key figures in his son’s administration, issuing scathing critiques of Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.
In interviews with his biographer, Mr. Bush said that Mr. Cheney built “his own empire” and asserted too much “hard-line” influence within George W. Bush’s White House in pushing for the use of force around the world. Mr. Rumsfeld, the elder Mr. Bush said, was an “arrogant fellow” who could not see how others thought and “served the president badly.”...

13 years later and a college appliction. College Deans and Chancellors need to be checking their student identities.

November 5, 2015
By Amber Roberson

Vestavia Hills, Ala. —A child (click here) reported missing from Vestavia Hills 13 years ago has been found unharmed.

"I've been doing this 25 years and its something I've never experienced before," said Lt. Johnny Evans, of Vestavia Hills police.
According to Vestavia Hills police, Julian Hernandez, who is now 18, was reported missing by his mother on Aug. 28, 2002. Police say he was suspected to have been abducted by a non-custodial parent. 
"They (investigators) spent tireless hours doing everything they could to try to find him," said Evans.
Jefferson County District Attorney Brandon Falls said the case broke when Julian Hernandez was trying to apply for college when his Social Security number didn’t....

I heard a report about a 30 second conversation between USA and Russian jet pilots over Syria. I like that. I think that is great. I am hoping 30 seconds turned into far more.

It is time China, Russia and The West find peace leading to non-proliferation. The world has become too small and if it is possible to cooperate over Syria we can find that resolve all the time. There is no disagreement that can't be resolved in peace and in support of the entire global community.

Cooperation and mutual respect can be achieved. President Obama and his administration is capable of achieving it. Hate is not a complimentary form of relationship for any country today. Pope Francis knows peace is possible. He also knows the children of the world are important enough to make it happen.

November 5, 2015

Cairo -- The Egyptian minister (click here) for civil aviation insisted Thursday that its airport security is up to international standards, and said there was no evidence yet to support the theory that a bomb was planted on the Metrojet plane that came apart over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.

"The investigation team does not have yet any evidence or data confirming this hypothesis," Hossam Kamal said....

I have to admit the debris field tells the story. I can't dismiss what I see there.
There is no reason for a tail section to be intact as the rest of the jet obviously was destroyed into a million pieces. It doesn't look as though the tail belongs to the rest of the jet. The only way that tail stayed intact is if it fell and hit the ground first while the remaining jet was still moving forward away from the tail section and the fuel tanks ignited. The break in the tail would have exposed the cargo area of the jet including fuel and electric wiring. The electrical system for a jet isn't like house wiring, it is industrial and would have been carrying substantial charge that could have ignited a central fuel tank.

The main part of the jet fell symmetrically. That means the explosion was more center than any other parts of the jet. The more I think about the debris field the more I see the incident in the sky. I think it is obvious.

The turbine fins from the engines look just like TWA 800.

The only reason I would change my mind is the questioning of the staff revealed the actual delivery of a bomb. If there was absolute proof of a bomb it would raise other questions about the jet and it's fall to Earth, but, proof is proof.

The jet downing in Egypt. My only doubt revolves around the tail section. It was a full three miles from the rest of the debris. It was first thing to hit the ground. It just was. The flash could be full fuel tanks when the jet's integrity was compromised. Electrical sparks occurred and the fuel ignited.

If that picture proves false then so be it, but, the tail section would not necessarily have landed so far from the rest of the debris and INTACT. The tail section appears intact and looks as though it fell off the jet. I can't deny the physics. The three mile distance and intact appearance of the tail section is overwhelming in that debris field.

I am finished. The climate extremes and a fractured tail section is too much for me to rule out.

I wish never happened.

Matt Bevin was a $2.5 million experiment for the GOP.

Kentucky is Clinton Country. The GOP wanted to find the path to defeating Hillary Clinton. Unfortunately, it means a return to poverty and poor health for the people of Kentucky.

Bevin changes could be "extremely radical"

November 4, 2015
By Tom Loftus and Mike Wynn

Frankfort, Ky. - The State Capitol (click here) saw the first steps Wednesday in a dramatic five-week transition of power that is spreading both hope and concern across the commonwealth.

The preliminary steps from the eight-year leadership of moderate Democrat Steve Beshear to Tea Party conservative Matt Bevin began behind the scenes and in a cooperative spirit.

But emotions are stirring about a candidate elected with a mandate Tuesday who has promised to cut the size of government, rework public pensions, initiate charter schools, adopt a so-called right-to-work law, blasted Obamacare and embraced the cause of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis....

I have to point out the parallel hatred of people that cross his path. "W" sent us to war because Saddam made empty threats to H.W. Bush. Now, we see "Jeb!" taking vengeance on Terry Shiavo's estranged spouse. That is a personality trait that does not belong in the White House. 

"W"s problem with revenge and Jeb's problem with revenge are FACTS. It is not political or contrived. There are specific events one can point to and illustrate character traits with both men. 

I am sure any potential candidate has already read this book, however, in case there are one or two that haven't; it is a worthy read.

Below are some of the facts from the book. The book also states the Governor Jeb Bush office was secretive and closed to any scrutiny. Some other highlights stated include rigged school testing. The standards were too low and it would be nearly impossible for a child to fail. Bush was the first to institute educational testing in Florida while he emptied public schools into religious schools that are exempt from testing.

Jeb, as stated by author plays with numbers in comparing Florida with national percentages. Florida did well in most numbers when compared nationally, HOWEVER, the damage Bush did would show up when his numbers were compared to past Governors of Florida. The Florida Bush's statistics showed he had the worst administration ever to hold office in the state. 

The author describes austerity to Bush's form of economic policy including rising unemployment that would be the highest the State of Florida ever had.

The author Shirish V. Date had credibility. (click here) He had been following Florida politics and law for a long time. He knows what he is talking about.
The only way to understand the Florida Bush's bragging statistics is to compare Governor to Governor, not Governor to national statistics.
 

Jeb and his partner Armondo Codina purchased 1390 Brickell Avenue, a downtown office building, in 1984. The two found an insurance company to lend them $7 million, and J. Edward Houston put up another $4.6 million, borrowed from Broward Federal Savings and Loan.Broward , having made a number of these sweetheart loans, collapsed in the national savings and loan crisis. Federal regulators negotiated a deal that Jeb and Codina keep the building by closing out the $4.6 million Broward liability for a mere $505,000. The two partners had to pay $1.3 million in income tax on the forgiven loan.
The question here is not whether Jeb turned a profit. The question is the 7-figure contribution that US taxpayers made to Jeb's net worth. How do we know there was a 7-figure contribution? Because Jeb and Codina paid $1.3 million in income tax on it. Asked if they were aware that the funds for the repayment of the Broward loans came from the taxpayers, Jeb phrased it, "Helllllll, no. Absolutely not."

This is another article that claims manipulation of facts was always used in Bush's politics from "The Atlantic." I am sure there are many more, including, the time he took revenge on the spouse of Mr. Schiavo through the Florida Justice Department.

August 9, 2015
Emily Deruy
...So while it is technically true (click here) in terms of sheer numbers that more black and Latino students are enrolling in college, percentage-wise, black enrollment is down, and there’s little evidence to suggest that Bush’s policies contributed to an increase in Hispanic enrollment.

What can honestly be said about the Atlantic article is that Jeb Bush as a reputation that stigmatizes African Americans. He disenfranchized minority voters in Dade County and in this article, while other minorities were doing fine and Caucasian students were enrolling in college there was out reach to provide a more optimistic view for the African American student. The numbers were higher simply because there were more enrolling regardless of race, but, the percentages before the surge in student numbers showed a far different percentage. Bush didn't care about the fact estranged students needed out reach. He didn't care. 
  

Another Russian plane is down.

Satellite (click here)

If the winds at 30 thousand feet are strong, a once damaged tail section of a jet can be weak enough to cause loss of control of the jet.

It is not easy to spot because there are few clouds, but, there is a convergence of a north air mass moving south and a southern air mass moving north. 

What has the weather been like in Africa? There is some extreme turbulence that has been across Yemen and the UAE. 

The area where that cargo jet went down is not all that far from the adverse weather in Yemen. There is turbulence exactly where this jet went down and given where the crash occurred in the Sinai I believe there are upper winds causing issues. 

The air masses are converging near Jordan. This is a better satellite image to not. It is the most current water vapor image and there is a circulation center that has been the result.

A lot of the air turbulence is not in the lower troposphere anymore. It is in the upper troposphere and 30 thousand feet would be reasonable to consider that scenario.

The turbulence has to be considered as a potential cause of these jet failures. Why they are both Russian bound is a darn good question. 

T

The scene of a cargo airplane that crashed after take-off near Juba Airport in South Sudan on November 4, 2015 (Photo Reuters)

November 4, 2015 (JUBA) - Over 40 people (click here) are feared dead after a Russian plane crashed shortly after taking off from Juba International Airport Wednesday morning....

Those that wrote the ballot thought they could get away with corruption. I am proud of Ohio, they know crooks when they see them.

November 3, 2015
By AP

Columbus, Ohio (AP) — Ohio voters rejected a ballot (click here) proposal Tuesday that would have legalized both recreational and medical marijuana in a single vote — a vote-getting strategy that was being watched as a test case for the nation.
Failure of the proposed state constitutional amendment followed an expensive campaign, a legal fight over its ballot wording, an investigation into petition signatures — and, predominantly, a counter campaign fueled by Ohio lawmakers. It was the only marijuana legalization question on the 2015 statewide ballots.
With three-quarters of the votes counted, the issue was losing 65 percent to 35 percent.
Issue 3 would have allowed adults 21 and older to use, purchase or grow certain amounts of marijuana. It also outlined a proposed regulatory and taxation scheme for cannabis and created a network of 10 growing facilities....

And a new redistricting committee - applause, applause

The amendment (click here) would create a new, bipartisan commission to draw legislative districts that are compact and do not favor one political party or another. The amendment would take effect in 2021 when the next redistricting will occur. Issue 1 is the fourth citizen initiative to attempt to change the redistricting process in the last 30 years....

And last but not least is pure heroism. How did Ohioans pull it off? This is magnificent. It inspires the idea Americans are still alive out there in the country. Real Americans. Moral Americans. I love this amendment.

Under the amendment, (click here) the Ohio Ballot Board would regulate initiatives concerning monopolies.
If the board decides an initiative certified for the ballot creates an economic monopoly or special privilege for any nonpublic entity, including individuals, corporations and organizations, then two questions would appear on the ballot.
The first question would ask, "Shall the petitioner, in violation of division (B)(1) of Section 1e of Article II of the Ohio Constitution, be authorized to initiate a constitutional amendment that grants or creates a monopoly, oligopoly, or cartel, specifies or determines a tax rate, or confers a commercial interest, commercial right, or commercial license that is not available to other similarly situated persons?" The second is the original question that was certified for the ballot....

I can't believe a majority of Ohioans are thinking the same and completely resolved to end corruption in their state. It must be a great feeling. Congratulations.

Capitalism is at it's best when there is competition. Competition means more jobs and better pay when American labor is needed to build quality products. It is a great law.